The teacher of a junior high class was trying to illustrate the word "miracle."

"Boys and girls," he said, "Suppose I stood on the roof of a 10-story building, lost my balance and fell off. Then all of a sudden, in midair, a whirlwind swept me up and brought me safely to the ground. Now what word would you use to describe this?"
After a long silence a boy raised his hand and asked, "Luck?"
"True, true," replied the minister. "It could be luck. But that's not the word I wanted. I'll repeat the story. There I am on top of the 10-story building again, and I fall. A whirlwind catches me in midair and places me safely on the ground. Think now, what word would describe the situation?"
"Accident," cries out one girl.
"No, no," answered the teacher. "Listen carefully for the third time. I'm on that same building, I fall and am swept to safety by a sudden whirlwind. What word would account for my safely reaching the ground?"
The boys and girls shouted in unison: "Practice!"

Two words from the above anecdote come to my mind when I recall the events that transpired during our last anniversary celebration: miracle and practice. Let me explain. Take a bunch of people coming from all walks of life - drivers, a printing press machine operator, computer professionals, accountants, a seaman, at least two engineers, a professor, a medical technologist, several housewives and a few self-employed persons and what do you get? They could be any group except a singing one, some people may guess. But that's exactly what they were during the anniversary celebration. Without the participation of any professional singer in the group, the PBCM choir whipped up one of the most challenging choir pieces there is - no less than Handel's Halleluiah Chorus. Many people - including the choir members themselves - thought the piece was too difficult for them that singing it with justice is like falling from a ten-story building and landing safely on the ground unhurt. Well, maybe so if the words of a song that says "your little becomes much, when placed in the Master's hand" is not true. But it is. And so, again I would like to say that hearing our choir sang Handel's "Chorus" that morning attested to the kind of result the people of God achieve when dedication, commitment, and hard work meets with opportunity. Some people call it "luck". We call it the miracle of God's blessing.

For the second time, PBCM celebrated her anniversary without her Pastor. Pastor Chito Mendoza was invited to speak in a Bible Conference hosted by (Shiela, pls. enter name of church here) under Pastor Gerry Asberry (Shiela, pls. check with Cathy's article last week) and was not able to get a flight seat in time to attend the celebration. But the Lord's power could not be limited as He sent  Pastor Joel Antonio from Park Baptist Church and Missions, Sta. Rosa Laguna to preach the Word to 279 people who came that morning. The afternoon was no less significant as brethren from Laguna, Cavite, Zambales, Marikina and other places arrived to join us heard the word of God preached by our Missionary from Catbalogan Samar, Bro. Larry Labajo.

Once more, the Lord proved that the whole world could go into recession all it wanted and economies could plummet to the lowest depths but when it came to His economy, there was no financial crisis as he blessed PBCM's people generously enough to enable them to give a sacrificial offering that overshot the goal by 291%. But the greatest achievement of the day was not in how beautifully the choir sang, nor how much money was added into the church's coffers but the successful communication of God's truth that Christ lives and He lives in each and every member of this church regardless of age and rank in life. He lives in every Christian virtue that was made apparent in their efforts. He lives in every note of gladness in the songs that they sang. He lives in every bit of knowledge that was shared to the visitors that may have opened the hearts of some to receive the Saviour. He lives in the very statement that had become the battle cry of this congregation in the midst of  the deteriorating emphasis on God's doctrine in favor of feel-good preaching: "PBCM - keeping the flame of truth burning."