More than saying grace

Why me? Why do bad things happen to good people? I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life enjoying the fruits of my labor. Can you relate to these questions?

Last Friday, I was invited to be an “observer” in a town hall meeting of homeowners, lawyers and officials of the CJHDevCo to determine future plans and litigation against the BCDA that evicted them from their homes.

The agenda was rolled out, the speakers and lawyers took turns explaining the series of unfortunate events that resulted in strained relationships between CJHDevCo and BCDA, and finally the necessary steps towards filing multiple cases against numerous officials of BCDA and other individuals party to the eviction of residents.

Towards the end of these, I was asked if I could please lead the prayers or say grace for the lunch that was about to be served. Like Nehemiah, I found myself asking God for a “word” or a verse “faster than a speeding bullet.”

Before the prayers, I asked everyone to indulge me with five minutes of their time and speculated that most, if not all, of them have probably become more prayerful in the last two months than they have been in a while.

As they laughed at the joke and the irony, I pointed out that it is only human for everyone to pray the hardest in the face of overwhelming challenge, loss or tragedy. Being robbed or evicted of your home certainly qualifies as “Urgent.”

Being buyers in good faith and legitimate investors in the first public-private partnership program of the Philippines or PPP, it was certainly hard for everyone to fathom how BCDA could brazenly evict retirees and investors without fear.

To answer that, I shared the first “bullet Bible verse” that came to mind regarding such circumstances and why people in power end up doing the unthinkable:

“For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools.” Romans 1:21-22.

Anyone who has read the books of the Old and New Testaments know that while God is good, patient and loving, we inevitably piss him off or bring his wrath upon us by being corrupted with power, driven by lust or greed and plainly being “ungodly.”

Many kings, nobles, even prophets in the Bible found themselves swallowed up or destroyed by their ego, violence or deceit. They murdered, slaughtered, stole and oppressed people, but eventually their very act became the seed of their undoing.

In essence they thought they could “get away with murder.” But they didn’t. Book after book, character after character, God got fed up and pushed them further into their wicked ways and actions until God sent an angel to finish them off or incited supporters or family members to stage a coup.

For the residents from John Hay, I suggested that there are probably a number of things that were wrong in the inception of the PPP, the development project or the BCDA that has to be exposed and corrected in order to prevent an even bigger problem or mistake 20 years from now. This could be a “course correction,” so to speak.

Whether it’s the PhilHealth “plunder blunder” or the “unconstitutional” 2025 General Appropriations Act or “under-design” of a major bridge, some people thought they were smart and now find their pants on fire, while the exposés serve to lessen the chances of such things from happening again with impunity.

The next verse I shared with the crowd of about 100 people was from Paul’s letter to the Romans chapter 12 verses 17-19:

“Do not repay evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay.’”

I then reminded those gathered that there is power in the strength of numbers and that they all needed to be united. In the first month after the eviction of Camp John Hay residents, I learned from friends in Baguio City that there was utter confusion and fear.

A week after, suspicion, finger pointing and seeking legal remedies became the activity, with residents enlisting different lawyers from around Baguio and all the way to Pasig City and Makati. They eventually started to realize that going to court separately was very costly, with some lawyers asking for P300,000 as acceptance fee per client.

They all needed to consolidate, cooperate as well as protect and defend each other, especially from the lies of their spiritual enemy. I was glad to learn afterwards that as many as 60 residents signed up on the spot, thereby saving themselves hundreds of thousands of pesos if not millions in legal fees.

As a final reminder, I emphasized that each of them has one of the most powerful weapons in such situations. We often turn to it as our last option, as an afterthought or simply out of desperation.

But when we prioritize and activate powerful, heartfelt prayers, as a family, as a town or a group, the prayer of the righteous achieves much.

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“No weapon formed against you shall proper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment you shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is from me, says the Lord.” Isaiah 54: 17