Be a Servant of the Lord is the title of the Fifth CFC Men’s Conference. The Conference is inspired by CFC Theme 2024, “Be a Servant and a Light to the Nations,” from the verse “I will make you a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.” taken from Isaiah 49:6 (NABRE).
It begins with a Prologue that provides an overview of four Sessions of the Conference. All of the sessions are given title of the songs adopted from the popular songs of ’80s and ’90s.
Session 1, entitled WHERE ARE YOU NOW (as a servant), has an anchored verse from Mark 1:11: “You are my beloved son, with you I am pleased”. The key messages of the session are GOD’S PROMISE. The story of the Israelites, from the bondage and chains of slavery in Egypt to their 40-year wander in the desert and to entering God’s promised land of Canaan. From being slaves for generations and waiting for their deliverance to their wandering in the wilderness to crossing the Jordan River, all these made them realize who they are in God’s eyes – God’s chosen people, His beloved sons and daughters. Just as the Israelites were once in bondage and enslaved, we too experience captivity to sin, vices, fear, doubt, and our dark past. In the same manner, God, in His infinite love and mercy, is committed to providing and guiding us in our faith journey, even to the extent of allowing us to experience amazing things in our lives that seemed impossible, leading us out of darkness and into his glorious light.
The second key message is GOD’S BELOVED. God sees and treats us as beloved sons. In our Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) 2782, it says, “We can adore the Father because he has caused us to be reborn to his life by adopting us as his only Son: by Baptism, he incorporates us into the body of his Christ; through the anointing of the Spirit who flows from the head to the members, he makes us other “Christs.” and the third key message is GRATITUDE. As a response to all things that God has done to us, let us allow our hearts to overflow with gratitude towards Him. Gratitude is the hallmark of every Christian. Our life should be marked by it. It is when we acknowledge that everything we have, the blessings and the graces, without exception, are all gifts from the Lord (James 1:17). We don’t deserve it, but God, out of his love and generosity, gave all these to us. This generosity stems not because we are now proud owners of these gifts but humble stewards entrusted much by the Owner, God Himself.
Bro. Edwin Lim, the speaker of Session 1, called on Bro Chu Lara to give testimony on his dark past and later felt the love of God that saved and brought him out to the light and is now a witness of God’s love and his saving grace.
HAVE I TOLD YOU LATELY is the title for Session 2. It is anchored on the verse of Isaiah 43:4: “You are precious in my eyes, you are honored, and I love you.” Bro. Theodore Olsen provides his wisdom in this session.
The key messages of the Session 2 are LOVE DESPITE OF. Jesus, King of the Universe, the Word through whom all things were made, emptied himself, left His heavenly throne, took our human nature, except sin, and became the mediator between God and humanity. “For there is one God. There is also one mediator between God and the human race, Christ Jesus, himself human, who gave himself as a ransom for all.” 1 Timothy 2:56 (NABRE)
He took our sins and shame and made us whole again. He did it for our sake. For love’s sake. DECEPTION IN OUR HEARTS. While experiencing His love should be easy, oftentimes it’s very challenging. Though God never stops loving us, the evil one can put barriers of lies that keep us from this love. Satan seeks to distort our understanding of God and his love for us. This was what he did to Adam and Eve, and he continues to do it today to make us doubt God’s love and to turn our hearts away from God.
With God’s grace, let us cast aside these deceptions from our hearts, and allow his love to fill the emptiness and void they left behind. And let us be witnesses of this amazing and unconditional love and share this love with others.
TELL THE WORLD OF HIS LOVE. When we personally experience God’s love, when we encounter Jesus firsthand, it will radically change us. And this love compels us to respond to love Him back, to share this love with others, and to be witnesses of this love. This love is meant to be shared.
He has healed, forgiven, redeemed, and raised us up for a reason, and that reason is to spread this love by serving Him and His people. We are to share this through our words and deeds. In the words of Peter and John, when the elders and high priests gave them a stern warning not to speak again about what they’ve witnessed, ”It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.” Acts 4:20 (NABRE)
Bro Jayr Bihasa shares his experienced of hardship and now faithfully serving the community proclaiming God’s goodness in his life, despite his experiences from the past.
The morning sessions closed after the second talk, and the afternoon session continued with the third talk.
In Session 3, the title is KEEP THE FAITH (call to servanthood), which is anchored from the verse of 2 Timothy 1:7: “For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather of power and love and self-control.” The Speaker is our Social Ministry Head, Bro Rene de Jesus.
One of the key messages of the third session is FOLLOWING JESUS. Jesus, the only son of God, the rightful owner and King of all creation, humbled himself, becoming like us to serve and save us. His is the ultimate example of servanthood whom we all want to emulate. From washing the feet of the disciples to ultimately willingly laying down his life on the cross, Jesus embodied humility and complete obedience to his Father’s will. As followers of Christ, we are called to be like Christ, emulating His ways, imitating His humility and obedience to God. We are called to be a servant like Christ, a selfless, willing, and faithful servant.
Another key message is THE STRUGGLE TO KEEP THE FAITH. Satan, who vowed “non serviam” (I will not serve), is going to tenaciously and constantly lure us to either we will stop serving or deceive us from the very meaning of servanthood. He will look for an opportunity to take us down.
With the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, we can avoid and overcome these pitfalls. Always stay vigilant because “Your opponent, the devil, is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). And when we fall, let’s stand up right away, seek God’s forgiveness, and continue to follow Jesus’ path of servanthood.
The last point to consider in this session is to LOVE AND SERVE. God’s call to servants is not merely a suggestion, nor is the commission reserved only for His apostles; it is for all Christians. We are to profess and boldly proclaim our faith whenever we go, serving one another selflessly, totally, with no reservations, committing ourselves to serve others as our way to express our love for Him. Our ultimate goal is to model our lives after Jesus Christ, our one true servant.
Bro. Pong Ursais shared his life story as a leader who experienced the pitfalls of servanthood that It calls him for self-emptying, total submission to God’s will and a life of service to God and His people.
The last talk is Session 4, which entitles SOMEONE WHO BELIEVES IN YOU. ” I will proclaim the decree of the Lord, He said to me, ‘You are my son; today I have begotten you.’” Psalm 2:7 (NABRE) SESSION ANCHOR VERSE
One of the Session key messages is ANOINTED. Since the beginning, God has set us apart and anointed us for His divine purpose. Just as He spoke through the Psalmist, God speaks this to us you are my son today I have begotten you. This is not just a mere title but the divine mandate. An anointing that we are his, empowering us to fulfill his will and his be His servants.
MADE FOR GREATNESS is another key message. To be a servant and light is to follow Christ’s example of humble leadership and to imitate His obedience to the will of God. We are to reflect the light of Christ to all men. All these we do not do for our own glory but for His and His alone, as John the Baptist humbly declared, “He must increase, I must decrease.”
The last key message is the CONNECTING TO THE SOURCE. As servants and light, we need to always remain connected to the vine for our sustenance and nourishment and to always fix our eyes on Jesus. Let us embrace our calling with humility and obedience, knowing that God’s grace will equip and strengthen us for every good work He has prepared for us. As servants of God, it is not about our ability and talents to do it but our total reliance and dependence on the One who calls, anoints, enables, and empowers us.
Near the end of the talk of Bro. Mel Tapaoan on 4th Session 4, Bro. Khris Ian Gellidon is called to share his experienced on the difficulty of being a servant, who has taken a lot of sacrifices and was away from their comfort zones but was still able to remain connected to the source and embrace his calling with humility and obedience.
The 5th Men’s Conference concludes by asking the participants to form a line and go up to the stage to stick their two (2) flame stickers to the country of Singapore and to the mission area of Singapore they commit to serving like Cambodia, West Malaysia, Myanmar, or East Timor.
BE A SERVANT, BE A LIGHT! RUAH!
Written by: Bro Cyrod Gatungay
