Mariage Enrichment Weekend

 Marriage Enrichment Weekend…

 Where are we Ten Months Later?

Joey and Arnee Villa - ME25 (from the Journey)

 Our families then wondered why we are attending a marriage enrichment weekend.  Were we having marital problems?  Was our relationship on rocky ground?  Actually, we also questioned the relevance of our attending the Marriage enrichment Weekend.  It’s one weekend away from our daughter.  Will this really benefit us?

 Looking back, just before the ME Weekend,  we didn’t think our marriage was in any sort of trouble but something was out of sync.  We knew we love each other but our petty fights were starting to get to our nerves ( as they were becoming more often ) and flaring anger seems pretty much order of the day.  The daily pressures of life, it seems, was taking it’s toll.

 The ME weekend gave us some time to have a good look at where we are, and a wonderful journey back in time to when we walked down the aisle and said our “I dos”.  But the best thing that came out of the weekend was re-discovering God.  We were out of sync because we were losing sight of what mattered most - God’s handy works in our marriage!

 Ten months down, we still have our petty fights, but they are few and far between because we now make a joint effort to address them and not let them escalate. By acknowledging God and His handy works in our lives, we are able to let go of stress, worry, and anger, which usually eat usup inside. We still struggle with our individual spiritual ity and spiritual maturity but now the journey is lighter because we have learned to pray together as a couple and call on God for enlightenment. We also remind ourselves of our love for each other and how important it is to keep the flame alive. 

Today we are very thankful that we joined the ME weekend because we did not only re-discovered God in our daily lives and rekindle our love for each other, but we also found a new family with our Caring Circle and the SJRM community. How wonderful it is to belong to the Catholic Church and be welcomed with knowing smiles and warm embraces, to be amongst brothers and sisters as we celebrate the Eucharist, to find meaningful works as a family in Christ and recognize how lucky we are to have an extended family to our daughter Sofia.

Ten months down the track, God’s handy works are more evident in our daily lives as He leads us on our wonderful journey of coming back to him.

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The upcoming Marriage Enrichment Weekend Number 26,  will be held this coming February 13-15, 2009, at the BLD Covenant House.

 It’s a wonderful opportunity to share the love of Jesus and to give others a chance to experience all the blessings that we ourselves have received from the ME and from being part of the renewal.

 The fee for the weekend is P3,500 per couple, inclusive of board and lodging and all meals. Please contact Cindy and Martin Fernandez, 09175290009, Eric and Ivy Amante, 09173268121 or Renewal Office, 8076001 for more details.

Marriage Enriched

by: Martin and Cindy Fernandez (from the Journey)

Joining the Marriage Enrichment 22 was the beginning of the new life for us. The magic of ME began when we realized that we care about each other enough to invest a weekend of one on one time totally focused on one another. We valued each other enough to invest in our relationship and a chance to make it better.

 The second magical discovery came during the weekend , as we realized that there are struggles and challenges, as expected of every marriage, some heavier than others, but WE ARE NOT ALONE. We became aware of a third important member of our marriage, one that we tend to relegate to the background, instead of giving Him His proper place, at the center of everything. God will journey with us through every stage of our life as a couple and as a family, and that is enough to know that we can and will make it.

 But the real magic of ME comes after the weekend, as we journey on, not just a couple anymore, but a couple armed with ; 1) God at the steering wheel, driving tthe car, and 2) a new family, our ME FAMILY ; a family that supports and loves us through our new life, and helps us grow spiritually. A family that listens without judging, a family that we can enjoy good times with, a family who will be there to embrace and comfort us during bad times. 

Yes, its been almost five years since our ME weekend, five years of new and wonderful memories formed with our faith family, with more to come. As we now shepherd our own ME class, ME25, our family has grown, and we are blessed to witness the miracles that happen when God is at the center of a marriage.