Notebook

By: Elsie Sy-Niebar

 

*Although Pope Francis says ‘COVID-19 is not God’s judgment…’ I chose ‘Prayer/ Conversation with the Lord’ as my main subject in NOTEBOOK’s Holy Week issue. The time when the whole Christendom is celebrating His Life and Death on the Cross

*Featured here are Faith-Full prayers/ conversations imploring God’s intercession over this worldwide deadly CORONA VIRUS epidemic – fervently asking the Lord Jesus for healing …

*PRES. DONALD TRUMP’S optimism in handling the COVID 19 deadly problem didn’t escape criticism from the Democrats’

*Please read God-fearing billionaire Bill Gates’ spiritual interpretation of the invasion of Corona Virus -19 *“PHILIPPINE INDEPENDENCE WEEK COMMITTEE 2020 gala is postponed to October 3, 2020”: Jet Gruezo, Executive Chair

What does Prayer mean to you? Believe it or not: it takes some time for some of us to respond to this simple question about PRAYING which I thought we all do. At least, twice a day: when we go to sleep to give thanks to Him for the day past, whether it was perfect or not, and upon waking up to give thanks to God for a good night’s rest, and to ask for His blessing for a “great day,” even if we’re not so sure of what awaits us. On the other hand, I do understand if some of us are hesitant to respond right away? Well, perhaps, it’s because it is difficult to answer a question about something we don’t do regularly? That’s understandable. And I’m glad I asked. So, they will be persuaded to “learn” how to pray. Amen.

My wholehearted thanks to the following responder for their heart-rendering prayers which will touch the Lord. The ardent prayers touched by the Lord to ask Him for His Heavenly Help to the Worldly battle against this deadly attack of Covid-19 or Corona Virus.

Someone asked me: what do you usually pray to the Lord? My answers are simple: Ask God for blessings I can share. Forgiveness, especially if I’ve hurt someone’s feelings. Thanking Him for answering our prayers for our Daily Bread. Or even questioning Him sometimes when God ‘refused’ to answer some of my ardent prayers, especially to help His children in need. However, I often realized that “God’s denial” is for a good reason. So, NEVER STOP PRAYING. If the Lord denies you from what you are praying for: IT IS FOR A GOOD REASON.

In Mathew 12:46, Jesus tells Peter to pray for strength in overcoming temptation. And in Luke 6:12-13, Jesus demonstrates the importance of prayer in making major decisions. Having faith in prayers — Prayers help us handle and overcome fear of failure in our struggles. To me, prayer is talking with God. Not to God. I tell Him my problems, joy, sadness, things and emotions He already knew. Oh, yes, when He denies my ardent prayer, I even question Him, especially when my prayer is like facing the end-of-the-world situation. Until I found out later that Yes, God’s refusal to answer my prayer was for a good reason.

However, TODAY, our PRAYERS to God is ONE PRAYER which the WHOLE WORLD is praying for: Dear God, our Savior, please end our Fight against this Deadly CoronaVirus. PLEASE LORD. HAVE MERCY UPON US. Lord, your beautiful world is being challenged by this PANDEMONIC COVID 19 — our UNseen Deadly Enemy which flies freely in the air around us to take our lives. As to “Who’s Next” is nobody’s guess.

EXCEPT, of course, YOU know, our dear Heavenly Father. Whom Many of Us have forgotten to “call” especially when we are in the midst of PLENTY. Instead. We are always too busy calling and texting our friends. Which made me think about it now. CALLING OUR FATHER in HEAVEN will not cost us a dime. We don’t need cellphones or expensive communication gizmos to reach Him. But… we often forget or worse yet, never thought about calling Him particularly if we are in the midst of being healthy and Plenty.

Yes, WE “Forgot” to call You, Lord. Our FATHER. Until… these few days following the Invasion of our INVISIBLE DEADLY ENEMY: CORONAVIRUS. WE finally thought about You. To ask for your DIVINE INTERVENTION. The Holy Bible calls PRAYER. So, dear Heavenly Father, we NOW present to you our prayers for your Divine Intervention against COVID-19. PLEASE HEAR OUR PRAYERS LORD. The Opening Prayer ORATION CANTATA, is from the Catholic Bishops Conference in the Philipines, through the help of Leo Jaboni, a very dedicated Servant of God.

“God our Father, We come to you in our need to ask for your protection against the Covid-19 disease, that has claimed lives and has affected many. We pray for your grace for the people, tasked with studying the nature and cause of this virus and its disease And of stemming the tide of its transmission. Guide the hands and minds of medical experts that they may minister to the sick with competence and compassion, together with the government and private agencies. That they must find cure and solution to this epidemic. We pray for those afflicted. May they be restored to health soon. Grant us the grace to work for the good of all, and to help those in need. Grant this prayer through our Lord, Jesus Christ, your Son, Who lives and reigns with You, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever. Virgin Mary, Help of all Christians, pray for us. St. Raphael the Archangel, pray for us. St. Rock, pray for us. St. Lorenzo Ruiz, pray for us. St. Pedro Calungsod, pray for us. God of grace, you have made us for yourself, so that our hearts are restless until they rest in you. Especially now, when our world has been turned upside down by an invisible enemy, Coronavirus. To whom can we turn to, but you, our Creator and the One true God. You are the only solace we have in the midst of the constant stream of distressing news. Grant unto us, O God, the fullness of your promises. Where we have been weak, grant us your strength; where we have been confused, grant us your guidance; where we have been distraught, grant us your comfort; where we have been dead, grant us your life. Apart from you, O Lord, we are nothing; in and with you we can do all things. God of all the living, in the resurrection of Christ Jesus you have given us the promise of life which death cannot destroy. In the strength of this unshakable promise, teach us to be firm and to put our trust in you alone. We ask this through your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Prayer by the Rev. Pastor John Chu, of Faith Community Presbyterian Community Presbyterian Church, Chicago, IL (Elsie’s church) “God of grace, you have made us for yourself, so that our hearts are restless until they rest in you. Especially now, when our world has been turned upside down by an invisible enemy, Coronavirus. To whom can we turn to but to you, our Creator and the only true God. You are the only solace we have in the midst of the constant stream of distressing news. Grant unto us, O God, the fullness of your promises. Where we have been weak, grant us your strength; where we have been confused, grant us your guidance; where we have been distraught, grant us your comfort; where we have been dead, grant us your life. Apart from you, O Lord, we are nothing; in and with you we can do all things. God of all the living, in the resurrection of Christ Jesus you have given us the promise of life which death cannot destroy. In the strength of this unshakable promise, teach us to be firm and to put our trust in you alone. We ask this through your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen!

“Prayer for the Coronavirus Victims, by Liza Vasich, R.N., Alzheimer & Dementia practitioner:“ God of Mercy, be with the tens of thousands of people who have contracted the Coronavirus around the world. Comfort those whose loved ones have died. Bring peace to those living with uncertainty after perhaps being exposed to the virus. Give patience to those who are quarantined and unable to move freely in their communities. Our Wise and Faithful Guide, please watch over and protect older people from catching the virus. Strengthen those who are risking their own lives to take care of others. May we all be filled with compassion with those who are suffering. In your Holy Name, I pray. Amen.

“Pastor Epenito “Rambu” Ursos, Jr., Youth Ministry Programs, Faith Com. Presbyterian Church: “Our most gracious and loving God, our creator, redeemer, and sustainer, our wonderful counselor, our mighty God, the everlasting parent, the Prince of Peace! Glory and honor be unto you, for great is your faithfulness, your love endures forever, and your mercies never come to an end. We humbly come to you at this time of distress, disease, and death. We come to you with lamentation for what is happening near and beyond us. We continue to lift up to you our families, loved ones, and communities across the world. We pray for your protection, shelter, and liberation.

Loving God, we thank you for those who are your hands and feet of healing and rescue. Your strength will sustain them. You hold them in the loving palm of your hands. Your hope will empower them. As you are our creator and healer. you made the blind see; the deaf hear; the mute to speak; the paralyzed to take up their cleansed the lepers, called out the dead to live again. You are the resurrection and the life! Thank you for walking with us compassionately at this time of Coronavirus Pandemic and made us realize the gods we have been serving — comfort, materialism, entitlement, and the desire for power and control. You have taught us these, yet failed to bring us to your deliverance but made us lose sight of you. Forgive us and bring us back into your loving presence and to love you with all our heart, mind, and soul. Give us the strength to acknowledge you in all our ways as you direct our paths—to live responsibly, loving one another, act justly, love kindness, and walk humbly with you. In your loving name, our God and Savior Jesus Christ, we choose faith over fear, we choose your wisdom over worry, and to pray without ceasing and rise above without panic. Amen.”

Edna A. Benemerito, Church Elder, Faith Comm. Presbyterian Church: Heavenly Father, thank you for the privilege of coming to you in prayer. Thank you God for drawing me to seek for you to love you more. To recognize your greatness. I am so grateful for your presence in my life. Lord, you promise that all people will see your salvation. I claim this promise. Show us your rescue and healing as we still live in this broken world. Help us to face this trial that we are having now, COVID-19. To claim your promise in Psalms 46:1. “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” By this we cannot let fear rule our hearts. Govern our prayers and dictate what we think God can do. I ask this in Jesus name, Amen.

JetJet Gruezo, Home Healthcare part-owner/administrator: “ Lord, You are greater than this deadly COVID-19. On bended knees we pray to your loving heart for your Heavenly Healing power to end this deadly virus now. Please look down upon us, especially to the FRONTLINERS who work day and night to save lives to the point of losing their own. And, to all of US your children. In your Holy Name, we Pray, Amen.”

PALM SUNDAY PRAYER: “ Suffering God, the way of the cross is a hard road. It is draining. It is demanding. It is fraught with danger. You ask us to stay by your side as you walk toward Calvary. But weariness and fear overtake us. Like the first disciples, we are quick to betray you, to deny you, to abandon you. Forgive us, God, and strengthen us for the journey ahead. Give us courage to face the pain and suffering of this world and to respond with compassion. As the darkness gathers, renew our faith, fill us with hope, and startle us with your grace, Amen.”

***

Thank you, my dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord for your prayers. I pray it will touch the hearts and souls of our other brothers and sisters who need their Faith to grow. And most graciously – our Father in Heaven will forgive our “negligence” to call Him to give Thanks. Amen. Readers’ comments are most welcome. Send to: elsyniebar@msn.com

Now, let me share with you this heart-rendering view of what this deadly Corona virus is “reminding” us of — according to BILLIONAIRE and PHILANTROPHIST, BILL GATES. You’ll love the Message.

Bill Gates: “I’m a strong believer that there is a spiritual purpose behind everything that happens, whether that is what we perceive as being good or being bad. As I meditate upon this, I want to share with you what I feel the Corona/Covid-19 virus is really doing to us: It is reminding us that we are all equal, regardless of our culture, religion, occupation, financial situation or how famous we are. This disease treats us all equally, perhaps we should to. If you don’t believe me, just ask Tom Hanks. It is reminding us that we are all connected and something that affects one person has an effect on another. It is reminding us that the false borders that we have put up have little value as this virus does not need a passport.

It is reminding us, by oppressing us for a short time, of those in this world whose whole life is spent in oppression. It is reminding us of how precious our health is and how we have moved to neglect it through eating nutrient poor manufactured food and drinking water that is contaminated with chemicals upon chemicals. If we don’t look after our health, we will, of course, get sick. It is reminding us of the shortness of life and of what is most important for us to do, which is to help each other, especially those who are old or sick. Our purpose is not to buy toilet roll. It is reminding us of how materialistic our society has become and how, when in times of difficulty, we remember that it’s the essentials that we need (food, water, medicine) as opposed to the luxuries that we sometimes unnecessarily give value to. It is reminding us of how important our family and home life is and how much we have neglected this. It is forcing us back into our houses so we can rebuild them into our home and to strengthen our family unit. It is reminding us that our true work is not our job, that is what we do, not what we were created to do. Our true work is to look after each other, to protect each other and to be of benefit to one another. It is reminding us to keep our egos in check. It is reminding us that no matter how great we think we are or how great others think we are, a virus can bring our world to a standstill. It is reminding us that the power of freewill is in our hands. We can choose to cooperate and help each other, to share, to give, to help and to support each other or we can choose to be selfish, to hoard, to look after only our self. Indeed, it is difficulties that bring out our true colors. It is reminding us that we can be patient, or we can panic. We can either understand that this type of situation has happened many times before in history and will pass, or we can panic and see it as the end of the world and, consequently, cause ourselves more harm than good.

It is reminding us that this can either be an end or a new beginning. This can be a time of reflection and understanding, where we learn from our mistakes, or it can be the start of a cycle which will continue until we finally learn the lesson we are meant to. It is reminding us that this Earth is sick. It is reminding us that we need to look at the rate of deforestation just as urgently as we look at the speed at which toilet rolls are disappearing off of shelves. We are sick because our home is sick. It is reminding us that after every difficulty, there is always ease. Life is cyclical, and this is just a phase in this great cycle. We do not need to panic; this too shall pass. Whereas many see the Corona/ Covid-19 virus as a great disaster, I prefer to see it as a great corrector. It is sent to remind us of the important lessons that we seem to have forgotten and it is up to us if we will learn them or n.”(By Bill Gates. 03/20)

Holy Father, Pope Francis is requesting everyone to say this prayer: I AM VACCINATED BY THE PRECIOUS BLOOD OF JESUS CHRIST, NO VIRUS CAN TOUCH ME.” Amen.

Palm Sunday commemorates the entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem (Matthew 21:1–9), when palm branches were placed in his path, before his arrest on Holy Thursday and his crucifixion on Good Friday. It thus marks the beginning of Holy Week, the final week of Lent.

Pastor Epenito “Rambu” Ursos, Jr., Youth Ministry, Faith Comm. Presbyterian Church, Chicago

Liza Vasich, R.N., Alzheimer & Dementia practitioner

Bill and Melinda Gates, happy billionaire, philanthropist couple who still do their dishes together in their 25 years of marriage — and living happily ever after. Read how Bill Gates synthesizes the invasion of Cobid 19 as it relates to Someone up there…