OFW: What Matters Most?

I believe that there is no parent who would want to leave their kids in the care of other people to go abroad so that they can give them a better life and a future. It is truly a SACRIFICE because of the love they have for their own children. 

I am writing this post because I am so stirred and disturbed upon reading an article from my newsfeed wherein an OFW mother returned home to bury her 2-year old son who was allegedly beaten to death by his guardians. You can read the whole story HERE.

Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) Trend really bothers me. I am really disturbed with the idea wherein the father or mother or both have to leave their home to work abroad so they can earn a greater amount of money which they believe they cannot earn when they work here in the Philippines. My husband and I were OFWs for 5 years and we were navigators (seafarers) sailing on board different ships. Two months after getting married, I joined my vessel and my husband was left alone waiting for his embarkation on board his ship. We celebrated our birthdays and Christmas away from each other, as in oceans apart! We really felt so sad during those times, if only we can be together. Yes, we have lucrative income and yes we can travel the world for FREE but we seldom see each other and we cannot enjoy the money we were earning from seafaring because most of the time, we were in the middle of the ocean with no network signals on our phone until finally, after almost 5 years of marriage ,we decided to quit sailing and have our own babies .We stopped sailing for 5 years now and God has blessed us with 2 cute kids. We are much happier today  because we are together and I know that God will blessed us with more great things. If God can do it to us, He can do it to you also! 


I am not against those people who go abroad to be OFW, I am against the idea of choosing it over your family. I interviewed seafarers and OFW's and here are the reasons why they are still forced to go abroad and leave their families despite the disadvantages: 

1. Economic Benefits - With the income earned abroad, their families are able to live more comfortably in the Philippines. But actually, wherever we are, as long as we work hard, God will bless us. " The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none." - Deuteronomy 28:12

2. No Other Source of Income - Most of the wives of OFW are busy taking good care of their kids so they rely solely with their husband's income. But actually, wives can also earn extra income and help their husbands with the family cash flow even if they are busy managing their homes. " She goes to inspect a field and buys it; with her earnings she plants a vineyard." -Proverbs 16:31

3. To Live the Expectations of Other People from Them- OFWs are sometimes forced to leave the country because their immediate family and extended family have high expectation especially on earning dollars or euro. Some live the dream of other people for themselves. Your friends plan to go abroad, so you decided also to go abroad because it is the trend of the community. " The number of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who worked abroad at anytime during the period April to September 2015 was estimated at 2.4 million." - https://psa.gov.ph/content/total-number-ofws-estimated-24-million-results-2015-survey-overseas-filipinos

4. Culture of the Environment - Sometimes in a community, people think that if you will not go abroad, you CANNOT: 

• Give a more comfortable life to your family
• Send your kids to great school
• Buy your own dream house
• Buy your own dream car
• etc. 

But what disturbed me are the effects of this OFW Program in our society especially in our own children. Below are some of them: 

1. Absence of Parental Role - When a parent is absent, there will be no one to play the father figure or the mother figure so the child will look for it outside the home. 

2. Feeling of Neglect -  The children will look for the love , care and support of their parents. If they did well, they want to be appreciated. If the parents are not around, they will feel abandoned and envious of the other kids who have their parents with them. 

3. Trauma - This is usually experienced by  toddlers when their parents will make them sleep before they leave them. And when they wake up, their parents are no longer with them and this will develop to a sleep trauma that children will be afraid to sleep because they know when they wake up, they will lose somebody they love. There are children also who blame themselves when their parents get divorced because they are constantly being reminded that " your mama or your papa works abroad for you". So they think that they are the reason why it happened. 

4. Abuse - When there are no parents looking after and protecting  their children, they can be prone to sexual abuse, mental abuse,verbal abuse, physical abuse and worst is death just like the 2-year old boy I was mentioning a while ago. 

5. Bad Company - Children will more likely fall to a bad company if there are no parents who will correct and guide them . 

6. Attitude Problem - When the parents are absent, there will no one to guide and discipline the children .

"For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope."- Jeremiah 29:11 

We should pray that God will show us His plan and let us be willing to cooperate with His plan. Our plan should not be an OFW forever and be away from our families for a longer period of time. We should pray for God to show us our "EXIT PLAN" and grant us wisdom so we can make our priorities in order: God first, family second and career third. 

Bible Verses I Cling to When I Am Frustrated

There have been a number of times in my life that I was pierced with the pain of frustrations I experienced with situations I was in,  people who did not do exactly what I tell them to do and with myself every time I miss a goal. 

I have learned in life that FRUSTRATION is actually a MISPLACED EXPECTATION. We are frustrated if what we expect did not happen. But I have learned also that this really happen because nobody is perfect. Everyone will surely commit a mistake. And during this time, we can ONLY achieve peace within ourselves if we FORGIVE and LET GO. I know that it is definitely a struggle but GOD is ABLE to do all things and He will help us if we will call unto Him. 

In the times of frustration and stress, I calm myself with God's Word so that even in the midst of these, I can still have the peace that comes only from God. 

Below are my favorite bible verses that deal with frustration: 

1. Jeremiah 29 :11 -  For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

2. Isaiah 61:7 - Instead of your shame you will receive a double portion,

and instead of disgrace you will rejoice in your inheritance. And so you will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours.

3. Romans 8:28-  And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose.

4. Galatians 6:9 - Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

5. Isaiah 41:10 - So do not fear, for I am with you do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

6.  Joshua 1:9 - Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

7. 2 Corinthians 12:9 - But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.

8. Deuteronomy 31:8 - The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

9. Philippians 4:6-7- Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

10. Psalm 56:3-4 - But when I am afraid, I will put my trust in you I praise God for what he has promised. I trust in God, so why should I be afraid?

 What can mere mortals do to me?

Remember, when what you expect did not happen and you want to feel frustrated, God is in control. 

Earn Free Mary Kay Products Simply by Having Fun

Are you a skin care or make-up geek? Or someone who needs a pampering moment after your very long day? Ladies, I am Khorry, your Seniort Beauty Consultant with Mary Kay from Parañaque City.  YOU ARE INVITED to a FREE MARY KAY SKIN CARE and MAKE-UP CLASS!

What to Expect

During the  class, you will have the chance to try Mary Kay products for FREE as I guide you through the best techniques and with advanced tips for those who wants them. I can also teach you a basic personal make-up tutorial as you wish for it. 

"This is your event and your time to enjoy, play, laugh and catch up with friends – all while experiencing the must-have products Mary Kay has to offer." -MARY KAY

I understand that you need to fit in things in your schedule that is why you will be the one to pick the date and time of when I can hold a  class with you and your friends. 

Earn a Reward

Through our " Hosting Program" , you can earn the following rewards:

•  A gift by just inviting your friends and hosting the class at your place of convenience;  
• Personal make-over by yours truly;
• Get a 10% off if you purchase above P 2000 worth of products after the class;
• Get 20% off if you purchase above P 5000 worth of products after the class;
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Contact me NOW, pick the date, pick the perks, invite your friends and let's get the party started. 

A Week Full of Love

"Who can find a virtuous wife? For her worth is far above rubies. The heart of her husband safely trusts her; so he will have no lack of gain. she does him good not evil all the days of her life." 

-Proverbs 31:10-12-

As I am working on my goal for 2016, which is being intentional, I spent time to take a closer look at those areas in my life in which I want growth and betterment to occur; one of those is my marriage. This year, it is really my intention to take our marriage to the next level. I don't want an ordinary marriage. I want a strong and a happy one. I asked the Lord in prayer to help me make our marriage something He planned it to be. I talked to my husband about making our marriage stronger and happier by doing things that we have not yet done before. So, to spice up our love for each other, we come up with this idea of " A Week Full of Love" . We set a week when we do extraordinary things for each other like we did before when we were still courting. This is to bring back the "kilig" after all of the things we have undergone in our marriage life. God is so good to us and we would like also to show Him that we are taking good care of the marriage He created.

Below is the sample of our , "A Week Full of Love":

Day 1: In a day, tell your spouse 10 sweet-nothings .

Day 2: Make a heartfelt letter for your spouse.

Day 3:  In a day, tell your spouse 10 things in him or her that you are proud of.

Day 4: In a day, tell your spouse 10 things you love about your spouse.

Day 5: Dine-out with your spouse.

Day 6: Write 10 things you pray for your spouse ,put it inside a picture frame, put it somewhere you can always see and pray for those things every day.

Day 7: Give your spouse something he or she loves.

For those who want their marriage to "level up" , maybe you would like to try this as well. And for those who have suggestions on how to spice up a marriage, please leave us a comment, we would like to hear from you. Thank you very much. 

Make Time:Time Management Tips for Busy Moms

"For everything there is a season,  a time for every activity under heaven."

- Ecclesiastes 3:1-

For a busy mom like me,it can be very exhausting just thinking on how to joggle and stretch my time in order to cater to everything that needs to be done in a day. Sometimes, I feel that 24 hours is not enough for a day. I need to find time for all of my tasks at hand as a wife, mom of two, connect leader,employee, blogger, mompreneur,  home manager and financial manager of our household. Actually, I realized that I don't need to find time, I need to MAKE TIME. 

Well, for moms who are in a situation just like mine, maybe these tips can be of help to you.

1. Get Organized - Get yourself a nice planner wherein you can assess your time, write your to-dos and schedule your events and activities. Plan ahead and think how you can lessen the time to be spent on each task. 

2. Prioritize - While planning, assess and categorize your to-dos and think what needs to be done first. As for me, I learned the following sequence of prioritizing my tasks in a day.

         1st: Urgent and important things

         2nd: Not urgent but important things

         3rd: Urgent but not important things

         last: Not urgent and not important things

3. Multi-task - Women are multi-tasker. We can do multiple tasks at a time. So think of the things or tasks that you can multi-task. 

4. Sow Time  - The bible is telling us  in Galatians 6:7 "Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows." So if we sow our time, we shall also reap our time.  We sow our time when we spend our time doing God's works. We sow our time when we spend our time with people in need. 

5. Make Use of Internet - Check all your bills and see if you can pay them online so there is no need for you to spend your time going out from the house to pay the merchants. You can also buy stuffs from online stores which offer good deals and services. This can save your time as well. 

6. Get Help - If you can afford to get a house help, get one. Effectively delegate the other household chores to your house help so you can spend more time with your spouse and kids. 

7. Pray - In Matthew 21:22, it says, "If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer." So go ahead, ask God for wisdom on how to make time.

So, these are the things I do in order to make time for everything. How about you? Maybe you have something that you want to share with us regarding how to manage and make time for everything. Feel free to leave a comment. We also love to learn from you.