Marriage Arranged by Heaven

"... But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." (Joshua 24:15)

Aileen and I met each other for the first time about eight (8) years ago in an unusual and unique circumstance most probably by God's divine providence. As Quezon City Evangelical Church's (QCEC) Youth Pastor back then, I was busily preparing for the annual Youth Winter Conference. That year's theme was probably designed and orchestrated by God just for Aileen and me. "M.i. 2000" or "Mission impossible 2000: Finding the Love of Your Life".

Aileen was invited to join the camp just the night before we left for Baguio City by one of the camp's sponsors. Through the camp, God wonderfully arranged the two of us to finally find the love of our lives!

Interestingly, Aileen's grandmother and my grandmother were schoolmates in Yiok Tek Girls Christian School in Fujian, China. When my parents got married about 37 years ago, my parents had their honeymoon in Cebu City (about 450 km Southeast of Manila). They were warmly taken cared of by Aileen's grandmother's family. (I sometimes joke that I was probably "Made in Cebu").

Aileen was working as an Occupational Therapist in Metropolitan Hospital in Manila way back in 2000 when we first met. She was born and grew up in Cebu. On the other hand, I was serving the Lord as a full-time pastor in Manila. People may wonder, what does a pastor and a therapist have in common? Aileen was actively involved in treating the physically sick and handicapped, while I was actively involved in treating the spiritually sick and handicapped. However, in reality, we were threading on two different paths in life and the camp was our crossroad and God beautifully crafted our paths to intersect and move on as one.

Last April 10, 2008, Aileen and I celebrated our third (3rd) year wedding anniversary. This year was extra special because of the presence of our daughter Hannah in our lives. We give thanks to God for His amazing goodness and grace to us as a family. Do pray for us that our marriage and family be a resemblance of God's unconditional love. We thank you for your partneship with us as we continue to aim for God's kingdom expansion and live for God's glory and honor!