Filipino families invited to see why ‘family is a gift’
Have you ever read or heard these quotes before?
“Family is the most important thing in the world.” – Princess Diana
“The family is the first essential cell of human society.” – Pope John XXIII
“You don’t choose your family. They are God’s gift to you, as you are to them.” – Desmond Tutu
“Family is not an important thing, it’s everything.” – Michael J. Fox
“What can you do to promote world peace? Go home and love your family.” – Mother Teresa
Well, one or more of these quotes may sound cliché to some of you but the essence of each quote certainly rings true to me: family is important. Your family, my family, all families have an important role to play in this world.
In fact, you could even say that “family is a gift.”
Yes, even amidst all the challenges, trials, dysfunctions, hardships, brokenness, separation and so on—family is a gift. At least, it can be when we choose to look at it that way.
Take my own family, for example. (And here, I mean not just my nuclear family with my husband and kids, but my extended family, i.e. my parents, siblings, nephews and nieces too.)
We are not a “picture perfect” family. We each have our weaknesses. As a family, we have our own “dysfunctions.” We are all sinners. We are broken in some aspects, still on the road to healing in others. We have hurt one another countless times and forgiven one another countless times.
Yet, through it all, we are a family. We can count on one another in times of joy and sorrow, trial and triumph. My family is my village, and their support and love have seen me through a lot! They have especially been our source of strength, help, and encouragement during my current pregnancy, which has been full of challenges. So I choose to see that my family—the one that God has given to me—is a gift.
I’m happy to say that I’m not the only one who feels this way.
There are hundreds, even thousands, of people who believe that “family is a gift” too. And because of this, many of us will be gathering together on June 16, 2018 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City for the “Family Is A Gift Conference.” We believe that the family is worth defending. It is worth strengthening through the promotion of family values and—especially for people of faith like me—the promotion of the Christian lifestyle, too.
So this actually serves as an invitation of sorts to you too. I know… maybe you’re thinking, “Yeah, family is a gift only if there are no problems,” or “That stuff is only for ‘goody-goody’ families or people,” or “My family has never shown me love and care. How can they be a ‘gift’?”
I know you may have your doubts. You may be mourning the fact that you come from a broken family. You may be angry because it is your own family that abandoned and abused you. You may feel that your family is “OK,” so you don’t really need to learn more about strengthening it. Still, I believe that you should still come and see why family can truly be a good—if not the greatest—gift.
Have a look at the different sessions below, and consider attending the conference. Experts from different fields will be speaking on noteworthy topics such as family life, parenting, financial literacy, dealing with depression in the family, marriage in the 50's and 60's, hope in adoption, chastity and sexuality education, and a lot more.
As for me, I am really excited to go to the Conference. I know I will be learning a lot from the speakers, and I believe that everything that I will learn will benefit not just my own growing family, but also my extended family and the families I serve through my advocacies.
By attending events like these, it is my hope that my family and I will learn how to contribute to the building of a stronger, God-and-others-centered society. As one of my favorite saints, Saint John Paul II, once said, “As the family goes, so goes the nation, and so goes the whole world in which we live.”
Do you believe that “family is a gift”? Why or why not? Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments, or send me a message here.
