(Filipino Translation: “Laway Lang Ang Puhunan”)

Hi Friends,

If you want to prosper through Real Estate even through hard times, don’t miss this.

Listen as I interview my US-Based Real Estate Mentor Trace Trajano.

This is the guy who was selling one house a week at the worst financial crisis–when everyone was crying doom and gloom.

You’ll be inspired as you learn a new way of prospering via Real Estate.

In this Webinar, he will discuss 3 things:

1. That it’s wise to buy real estate in this kind of market because there are so many great bargains. 

2. That anyone, even if one is broke, can acquire real estate through simple strategies.

3. That there’s a new way of learning these strategies via Real eTV in a very low cost way.

If you attend this Webinar, Trace will even give you a $39 gift: An E-book on how to make money through Real Estate.   He is “bribing” you to attend because this webinar is something you should NOT miss as it could change your life.

Reserve now because space is limited.

I’ll be interviewing Trace on July 7, 8am Manila Time.

That means, it’ll be July 6, 8pm in Easten US time.

To Register:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/433193595

May your dreams come true,

Bo

PS. If it’s the first time you’re attending an online Webinar, it’s really very simple. Just click on the link below and follow its instructions:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/433193595

May I?

I’m not a photographer—so forgive my poor lighting, etc.

But there’s a reason why I want to show you these photos.

I’d like to show you the four greatest awards of my life… 

My Award With A Golden Hammer

Recently, I received the very prestigious Golden Gavel Award, the highest recognition ever given by Toastmasters to non-members who excel in public speaking. This is special to me because I’ve been speaking for 30 years. A big chunk of my life is spent holding a microphone in my hand. So being awarded for it is really sweet. And it’s also the most intricate plaque I have in my collection. It just looks beautiful.

My Award Made Of Exquisite Glass

Last year, I received the Serviam Award, the highest award ever given by the Catholic Mass Media Awards (CMMA). No less then Cardinal Gaudencio Rosales handed it to me in a lovely red carpet ceremony. (Trivia: Today, I visit him in Arzobispado just to chat with him. I learned that everyone there, even the security guards, affectionately call him Lolo because he’s 77 years old and has the kindest soul.)

My Award Made Of A Tree

And in 2006, I received what is perhaps the most prestigious: The TOYM Award, for Ten Most Outstanding Young Men, given by no less than President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in Malacanang. By the way, each wooden sculpture is an original art piece by National Artist Abueva. So cool.

My Little Car Award

But let me share you my highest award—ever.

This favorite award of them all was given to me just last Sunday. 

If I were forced to throw all my awards away and keep only one—without batting an eyelash—I’d throw all the others as rubbish, so that I can keep this one, forever.

It was Father’s Day last Sunday.

There were only two distinguished Judges in the Panel: My 4-year old son named Francis. And my 9-year old son named Benedict.  And this Expert Panel of Judges unanimously voted to give me “The Best Daddy Of The World” Award.

And because my two boys knew that I loved old toy cars, they crafted my award out of some special clay. They put some plastic wheels and painted it with their own bare hands.

          I now carry this little car with me wherever I go.

          It’s in my bag. I don’t go anywhere without it.

          Why? Because every time I look at it, I feel connected with my kids.

You see, when I’m far away from them, I miss them terribly.

Because whenever I’m at home, I play with them. Nothing touches my play time with my boys. 

One day, I asked them, “Do you feel loved?” And they smiled and answered, “Yes!” It was the greatest thing a father could ever hear. (In the past 30 years of helping people, I’ve noticed that those with a lot of emotional hang-ups, psychological trouble, and even addictions are people who didn’t feel loved when they were kids.)

So the little car reminds me of the most important things in life…

My Greatest Achievements In Life

          Here’s what I’m sure.

          When I’m lying down on my deathbed, I’m sure I won’t be embracing my TOYM statuette, caressing it until I breathe my last breath. This won’t happen, believe me.

Instead, there’ll be a high chance that on my deathbed, I’ll be holding this little car. Holding it close to my heart.

          Because it’s what I’m most proud of: That I am the best Daddy in the world according to my irrefutable Panel of Judges.

          On my deathbed, I will cherish my greatest achievements in life.

          Believe me, it won’t be the 14 books I’ve written.

          Or the non-profit organizations I created.

          Or the fact that I’ve gone to 30+ countries because of ministry.

          Here are my greatest achievements:

          My first greatest achievement is that I love my wife.

          They say that after many years of marriage, your love for your spouse wanes. Gets tired. And finally dies. Not me. I can say this to you with all the conviction in the world: I love my wife now more than I’ve ever loved her. My love for her has grown through the years. Why? I’ve worked on this love everyday.

          My second greatest achievement is that I love my kids.

          And for them, love is spelled T-I-M-E. There are days when I get home extremely exhausted—as tired as a dog. And all I want to do is lie down. But when Francis sees me enter the door, he shouts, “Daddy, I’ll ride on your shoulders.” It’s not a request. It’s a command. So from a dog, I become a horse. He hops on me and we run around the house shouting, screaming, and laughing together. My exhaustion is swept away. I feel so alive. These are the moments that I’ll treasure forever.

          My third greatest achievement is that I cut the fingernails and toenails of my father. Before he passed away, I would do that little service for him—because his eyesight was no longer good. I loved sitting beside him, cutting his toenails and fingernails. I loved doing it because I remember when I was small, he would do it for me. Now it was my turn to love him.

I loved it also when I brought him to the barbershop. I loved it because when I was small, I remember that he’d be the one driving me there. He’d lead me to the barber’s chair and then sit behind me reading the newspaper. Now, it’s my turn to lead him to the barber’s chair. I also sit behind him and read the newspaper. 

But I’m not really reading the paper. It’s a camouflage. I’m covering my face so people won’t see that I’m crying. Tears flow down my cheeks because I’m thanking God for the opportunity to thank my father for the love he gave to me all his life.

          My fourth greatest achievement is that I love the poor.

My fifth greatest achievement is that I love my friends.

My sixth, my seventh, my eighth… You can be sure it’s all about love. 

When you really think about it, what else can one be proud of?

Love Like A Dying Man

          Last week, I invited you to take a 30-Day Retreat with me.

          To live these next 30 days as though it were the last 30 days of your life. (This blog is my second weekly installment on this series. Two more to go.)

          Because I’m imagining these 30 days to be the last 30 days of my life, I’m changing. This past week, I’ve become corny. Sentimental. Mushy.

          This week, I’ve never said more “I love yous” in my life!

          This week, I wrote many mushy letters to my friends, telling them how much I love them. (And they happen to be guys!) I also asked for forgiveness for any hurts I caused them.

          This week, I began to love like a dying man.

          I noticed that it was purer love than whatever love I gave before.

          I think I know why.

          There are two kinds of love that the world passes as love.

          One is true. The other is false.

          False love says, “I love you so you can love me back.” It’s a co-dependent love. It’s manipulative. It’s insecure and jealous. Because it’s not really love.

          True love says, “I love you—period.” I don’t expect anything back. I love you and set you free.    

If you notice, this is very close to parental love.

Compared to married love, parental love is even more unselfish.

          Parents don’t love their kids so someone can do the laundry for them. (At least, the good parents I know.) Parents love their kids because they want to set them free. Parents love their kids so they can one day watch them walk out of their home and conquer the world. 

          Friends, this too is the love of a dying person.

          But the one walking out into the sunset is the lover.

          The dying person knows he’s dying. He doesn’t need love—because deep within his spirit, he knows he’s going to a wonderful place of profound love. So in his last days of life, he just wants to love. He wants to fill the world with his love.

          I repeat: We’re all dying.

          If you want to live a spectacular life, I invite you to love like a dying person.

          And your life will never be the same again.

          May your dreams come true,

          Bo Sanchez

PS. Get into an abundant spiritual life. Sign up at www.KerygmaFamily.com and be part of our international, borderless, virtual community of people who want to keep growing in their personal life. Members get a mountain load of spiritual nourishment everyday—Absolutely Free! Donations are totally optional. But if you choose to donate, your donations will support my ministries towards evangelism and my work for the poorest of the poor. Aside from media evangelism, we run orphanages, feeding programs for street-kids, micro-lending programs in the slums, homes for the abandoned elderly, scholarship programs for poor children, a counseling center, and a halfway home for pregnant women in crisis. Join me. Together, we can make a difference in the world. Sign up at www.KerygmaFamily.com now! 

He either was very tired. Or had diarrhea. 

Because he was going through the motions and doing it quickly.

So very different from my friend Bishop Honesto Ongtioco.

          For years, I’ve admired how the good bishop celebrates Mass. He does it with so much passion. Like he speaks every word with fire. And he acts every gesture with love.

Two weeks ago, I had lunch with this great man. 

I asked him why he does his Masses this way.

He said something so profound, I’ll never forget it.

He said, “I always imagine every Mass to be my first Mass and my last Mass.” 

For me, the key word is imagine.

He added, “What if I died in my sleep tonight? I really don’t know, do I?”

Today, I invite you to take a very special 30-Day Retreat with me.

No, I’m not asking you to go to a Retreat House with me. You’ll just do it wherever you are. (I’ll talk more about it later.)

Using the power of your imagination, you’ll allow death to be your teacher.

Let me tell you how…

We’re A Dying People

Here’s a fact: According to statistics, if you gathered a thousand 25-year-olds in a room, 241 of them will not reach the age of 65. 

That’s scary.

We’re all a dying people.

It’s just a question of when. Some sooner. Some later.

But all of us are dying.

But if people know they are dying, I’ve noticed that these dying people will live more deliberately, laugh more joyously, celebrate more happily, give more generously, serve more freely, love more intensely.

Here’s my realization: If you really want to live a spectacular life, you have to live like a dying man.

This became true with my friend Alvin Barcelona.

Wham!

Once upon a time, Alvin was a incredibly busy man.

Alvin, with his mom Aida, was running a flourishing school, the Cardinal Academy. He was in politics. He was in theatre studying under Laurice Guillien. He was also a rock singer with the likes of Freddie Aguilar. Plus, he and his wife Tess had a four-month-old baby boy they named Aio. 

Then it happened. First, he felt sharp stomach pains. Then he began to bleed. He went through medical tests the result of which would drastically change his life. The tests showed there were tumors in his intestines and his doctor told him he must undergo surgery. “Alvin,” the doctor told him, “you may not see the first birthday of your baby.”

Wham! Colon cancer crashed onto his life like a train gone berserk.

His Life Totally Changed

Alvin says, “I was only 30 years old. At that moment, I understood the Pilipino saying, pinagsakluban ng langit at lupa,” Alvin recalls. “For I felt it. I felt heaven and earth enveloped me and crushed me.”

Alvin admits that at the outset, he thought of his family. “My wife and I always thought we’d grow old together,” Alvin says. His son—“He was just a baby. I thought I’d play with him, teach him how to ride a bicycle, fly a kite, play the guitar…”

Those days made Alvin realize what were essential in his life.

And he prayed like never before. He found himself visiting the Divine Mercy church in Marilao. And there he knelt and gazed at the image of Jesus clad in a long robe, His right hand raised up to His shoulders ready to bless anyone who would come to Him, His left hand resting on His chest where rays of hope from His Sacred Heart radiated down to His feet.

Days turned to weeks, and weeks turned to months. Alvin found himself in church the entire day. He opened the gates in the morning and closed them late at night. He begged to give him a second chance at life. 

But then, on his journey towards death, something happened.

“I’m Ready To Die…”

“One day,” Alvin says, his eyes lighting up in wonder, “I simply felt the presence of God and I just knew I was ready—I was ready to meet up with him, to join him in heaven.” He was ready to die and surrendered his life to God.

Alvin underwent surgery for an hour.

When he woke up, his doctor, flabbergasted, told him the strangest thing. He said he did not see any tumor in Alvin’s colon. What was confirmed through a Barium Enema X-Ray—that Alvin had three tumors and spreading—had completely vanished without a trace!

It was Alvin who found something: A steadfast faith in God.

Today, Alvin’s 4-month-old baby is now 13 years old. And Alvin has done what he thought he wouldn’t be able to do—teach him how to bike, fly a kite, and play the guitar. And bless the world with his preaching and music. (Today, Alvin also leads the Marilao, Bulacan FEAST of my spiritual family, Light of Jesus.)

          But here’s my point: During those precious months when he thought he was dying, Alvin changed his life.

          Friend, you don’t need cancer to change your life.

          You can do it right now by the power of your imagination.

If I Had Only 30 Days To Live,

How Will I Live?

Imagine that when you woke up this morning, the phone rings.

You’re still in your pajamas, drinking your coffee.

You stand up and pick up the phone. 

You hear your Doctor’s voice. In a very somber tone, he says, “I have to say this to you because I’m your friend and I’m your doctor. I’m now holding in my hand the results your medical tests. I’m very sorry, but you’re going to die in 30 days.”

The shock is overwhelming.

The room around you starts to spin.

You sit down.

          “Thirty days? But that’s so soon…”

And a big question reverberates in your mind… “If I had only 30 days to live, how will I live?”

          That’s the question I want you to answer today.

And this is the big question for your 30-Day Retreat with me.

I repeat: I’m not asking you to go somewhere.

Wherever you are, take this 30-Day Retreat. 

Just imagine that these next 30 days of your life are your last 30 days.

Believe me, you’ll live a different life in these next 30 days.

Make this your big experiment.

          In fact, don’t just decide.

Make it an agreement between you and God… (Print this out and sign this prayer. Or get a piece of paper and copy this prayer.)

Prayer:

Lord, I will live the next 30 days

like they were my last 30 days.

Starting Date: _________ 

Ending Date: __________

____________________

Signature

Teach us to number our days aright,

that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

–Psalms 90:12

What 10 Things Should I Do

 In The Next 30 Days—If They Were My Last?

Get a pen. Answer this question: What 10 things should I do in the next 30 days—if they were my last? Write whatever comes to your mind. You’ll be surprised at the stuff that’ll come out. What will come out are the most important things in your heart.

1.     _________________________________________________

2.     _________________________________________________

3.     _________________________________________________

4.     _________________________________________________

5.     _________________________________________________

6.     _________________________________________________

7.     _________________________________________________

8.     _________________________________________________

9.     _________________________________________________

10.                        _________________________________________________

Invite Friends To Take the Retreat With You!

          Get friends to take this journey of 30 Days with you.

          Invite one or more persons to do it with you.

          Each week, I’ll be emailing you the questions you need to answer and share together. So each week, even just for 15 to 30 minutes, share your answers. Your experiences. Your realizations.

          In our spiritual family, we’ve nicknamed this small group of friends as a Caring Group. Because it’s really all about caring for each other.

          In the next weeks, I’ll send you Guide Questions, one for each of the 4 Weeks.

Props For The Retreat

          At our Sunday Feast, I gave people a tin can with 30 marbles inside.

Inside the can is a little card that says…

Step 1: Each morning, pick 1 marble and thank God for the gift of a new day.

Step 2: Carry it in your pocket to remind you to live your last days with love.

Step 3: Each night, thank God for the whole day. Set the marble aside.

When the can is empty, thank God for your life of love. Pray for more days…

          It doesn’t have to be a can. It doesn’t have to be marbles.

          Find your own props.

          Something to remind you of your 30-Day Retreat.

          Have a great one!

          May your dreams come true,

          Bo Sanchez

PS. Gain more spiritual abundance! Grab a mountain load of nourishment for your soul absolutely FREE. Sign up at www.KerygmaFamily.com now!

I was massaged by “Ate Guy” (Not her real name).

I call her “Ate Guy” because though she looks like a woman, I have a suspicion she’s really a guy. In fact, she has the strength of 10 guys in her little female body. But I’m getting ahead of my story.

One of my friends recommended Ate Guy to me, praising her skill to the highest heavens. My friend said, “Ate Guy’s singular mission in life is to remove your lamig (cold). She’s obsessed. She goes berserk when she finds lamig in your body. She’ll not stop massaging you until the lamig is pulverized under her fingers.”

With that glowing description, my wife and I contracted her services.

By the way, let me educate my non-Filipino readers. Lamig means cold, but it means more than that. Sometimes, it’s also called hangin or air. When Asians get sick, we say we have lamig or hangin in our bodies. It doesn’t jive with modern medicine, but this belief has lived on for centuries. In fact, it’s not uncommon that when you get massaged using this traditional method, you dighay and diglo at lot. Translation: Dighay is burp. Diglo is butt burp.

On the agreed time, Ate Guy came to our house.

The Torment Begins

I studied Ate Guy.

She was 4’11. Mid-thirties. Bordering on thin. Girlish ponytail.

Pretty harmless, I thought to myself.

My wife placed a mattress on the floor of our living room and lay down. She wanted to go first. As Ate Guy started massaging her, I sat a few feet away, writing on my computer. I looked on Marowe’s face: She was so relaxed. She appeared half-asleep. I got excited. I wanted to relax and sleep too.

After two hours, my wife stood up and said, “That was great! Bo, it’s your turn.” Oh goody. I lay down and got ready to relax too.

Ate Guy knelt beside me and held my face.

Ahhhh. Pure bliss.

At least, for the first two seconds.

After that, it was pure torture.

Pure, unadulterated, CIA, KGB, Mafia, Yakuza, Al Qaeda torture.

          During her massage, I reached levels of pain I thought never existed in human experience.

Her little thumbs were like Jack Hammers. Like a Sumo Wrestler was massaging me.

As I lay on the mattress being massacred, I mean, being massaged by Ate Guy, I wondered if I offended my friend who recommended her to me—that this was his way of revenge.

In the entire 2 hours, I groaned aray, aray, aray (ouch) the whole time.

Actually, I didn’t want to groan. I wanted to scream, ARAAAAAAAAY! But my neighbors may think someone was being raped.

My wife came up to me and with a sly smile asked, “Do you like it, Bo?”

I whispered to her, “I feel I’m being run over by a train again and again.”

She laughed. I added, “Please call the US Embassy. Tell the Ambassador I have the perfect person to send to their captured Terrorists. Just 2 hours of Ate Guy and they’ll confess where Osama Bin Laden is hiding.”

Ate Guy Was Rich

After two hours of excruciating agony, it dawned on me that I had to pay Ate Guy for almost killing me. We live in a crazy world, I tell you.

My wife asked her how much we owed her.

Ate Guy said, “P250 an hour.”

Two hours for her and two hours for me. So we paid a thousand bucks for 4 hours of torment.

I wondered.   How much does this little woman earn a month?

I asked her, “Ate Guy, how many prisoners, I mean, customers do you massage everyday?” She answered, “An average of 4 to 5 a day.”   I learned that she massages every single day. No day offs.

“Isn’t that tiring?” I asked her. “That’s 10 hours a day.”

“I like it that way,” she said, “If I don’t massage anyone, my body looks for it.”

Aha! I knew it. She was a closet masochist.

“Do you advertise your services?”

“No. My customers just recommend me to others.”

“I’ll recommend you to others too,” I said. I started thinking of all the people who owed me money. “But you mean to tell me every single day of your week is full?”

“Yes,” she said. “Because I’ve got mga suki (regular customers). Some even want me to massage them three times a week.”

“Three times a week?” I almost fell off my chair. These people need to see a psychiatrist.

That was when it all hit me: Ate Guy told me she was a former house helper who earned P3000 a month. Today, she takes home P50,000 to P60,000 a month. Much more than many managers I know.

No doubt about it. 

Ate Guy is a Superstar.

Be A Niche Superstar

How much do other masseuses earn? More or less P10,000 a month.

Why does Ate Guy earn five times more? Because she stands out.

She’s dominated her niche: The niche of torture camouflaging as massage.

Other massagers try to please everybody. They’re average. They’re typical. They’re all alike. They’re forgettable.

Not Ate Guy.

You either like her or hate her.

Fortunately, there are enough insane people in this world who like her to make her a Superstar. My wife is one of them. She invited her back. I’ve already noted the date of her return—and I’ve arranged to be as far as possible from my house on that day.

You too need to find a way to become a Superstar.

But first, let me describe how problems create the phenomenon called Superstars.

Why Problems Create Scarcity,

And Scarcity Create Superstars

            When I taught this message yesterday, I placed a number of ladders on stage. I told the audience that life offers many ladders to climb. And that ladders represent opportunities for growth.

A Superstar is a person who’s able to climb to the top of a ladder.

          Do you have problems in your work or business? Each problem is like a step on the ladder. Each problem is an invitation to become a Superstar. Superstars are Superstars because they can solve problems.

That’s why I say problems are wonderful. Without problems, there will be no Superstars. (I wish to thank the brilliant Seth Godin for these insights.)

Example? Imagine that you and I can pick diamonds in our backyards.

Would you and I be wealthy? Of course not. In fact, women will stop wearing diamonds, period. Why? Diamonds are Superstars precisely because they’re scarce. If they’re no longer scarce, why bother?

Diamonds are scarce because of the problem of getting them. You have to build underground tunnels and excavate them from beneath the earth.

Think now of the many problems of becoming a great singer, a great artist, a great chef, a great businessman, a great priest, a great father, and a great mother.

Problems create scarcity. And scarcity creates Superstars.

Here are the reasons why you need to be a Superstar…

The Rewards Of Superstars

            People go to Superstars.

People watch Superstar movies.

          People read Superstar books.

          People eat in Superstar restaurants.

          Let me ask you: When you see an empty restaurant, with two waiters sleeping on the tables, would you go there? Not likely. Something in your brain says, “The food there must be awful.”

          But when you see a restaurant filled with people, with a long waiting line outside, you’ll say, “My gosh, I better try that restaurant.”

Before you think that this article is just about money, let me also say that Superstars are more emotionally fulfilled. They feel they’ve found their place in the world. They feel they’ve found their mission in life.

And Superstars can serve God with more impact.

Do you want to become a Superstar?

Read on.

Superstars Have Skill And Spirit

To become a Superstar, you need Skill and Spirit.

For example, Ate Guy studied for 6 months in a technical school. Not satisfied with that, she enrolled again in another school for 2 months on specialized massage. But her most important education is the years of massaging almost 60 hours a week—year after year after year.

But what made her develop her Skill? Spirit.

          When you really think about it, Superstars are a little bit crazy.

Superstars are obsessed!

          At the end of the day, it’s Spirit. Passion. Fire. Love. In Japanese, they call this Otaku.

          For example, Ate Guy hates lamig with an almost neurotic obsession.

          Once, Ate Guy had a patient whose lamig was stubborn. She ended up massaging this man for 4 hours straight—free of charge—until she got rid of his lamig. I pity the man. Probably became a paraplegic.

          But no wonder Ate Guy is a Superstar. Only people with spirit do those crazy things.

          Let me give you an example from my life. 

These past 5 days, I had 14 meetings. But despite that hectic schedule, I was still able to write 8 long articles. How did I do it? There’s only one answer: I’m crazy. I love writing. I love crafting words. 

How much do I love writing?

Others get high on drugs. I get a high choosing the right adjective for a sentence. I’m nuts!

Why Do People Not Become Superstars?

I’ve met people who aren’t Superstars even when they could have been.

They could have been Superstars in their businesses.

They could have been Superstars in their careers.

They could have been Superstars in their service for God.

But they’re not.

Why?

I see three reasons.

1. Wrong Theology

Some people think that God wants them to remain small.

God wants them to remain insignificant. 

God wants them to remain humble (a distorted definition).

Their religion tells them, “Don’t stand out. Don’t create waves. Just follow. Just obey. Just be quiet.”

Please. Throw that rubbish way.

Go ahead. Stand out! Create waves. Be the best that you can be!

Use the core gifts that God gave you and develop them to the hilt.

Because your God will be proud.

How do I know? I’m a Dad of 2 boys.

When I see my kids show their Superstar qualities, I get giddy with joy. My heart palpitates. My chest expands. I feel delirious.

Here’s my Theology: You owe it to your Maker to become a Superstar.

Because when you become a Superstar, you’re praising the One who made you.

Here’s the second reason…

2. Wrong Psychology

Some people believe they deserve to be small.

Some people believe they deserve to be failures.

Perhaps because their parents treated them as dirt and not as stars.

Or some other past trauma.

Friend, be aware of this inner programming and reboot!

Get a new internal software!

You deserve to be a Superstar because you already are one.

You’re made in His image.

God created Superstars. Get used to it!

Finally, the third reason.

3. Wrong Strategy

            People fail to become Superstars because they climb the wrong ladder.

Let me shock you: If a ladder will not make you a Superstar, quit.

If you have no hope of reaching the top of that ladder, get off that ladder.

Why? Because you’ll always be mediocre. You’ll always be average. And in business, average is death. In jobs, average means you’ll be the first one to be retrenched. Even in relationships, average is risky. To be good enough is not enough. 

You’ve got to be remarkable. You’ve got to be phenomenal.

Choose a ladder where you have Spirit and Skill to make you a Superstar.

This is just what Rex Robillos did.

Climb The Right Ladder

My friend Rex owns Buns and Pizza—a fast-food chain of restaurants. Rex already knew he couldn’t fight Jollibee. Why climb this ladder where the chance of success was almost zero? Why not climb another ladder where the chances of success is bigger?

Here’s what Rex did: He made Buns and Pizza the Superstar in secondary towns where there was no Jollibee. In these smaller, more far-flung towns, Buns and Pizza was king. It’s usually the only air-conditioned fast-food restaurant in the area. This is where the children of the Mayor hangout. He dominated this niche. After only 5 years, Buns and Pizza now operates 139 branches in the Philippines.

If you’re average, it’s time to quit.

Be A Superstar In One Thing

Years ago, I was climbing the wrong ladder.

Because of this, earning money was like pulling teeth out of the mouth of the universe. I had to struggle for every peso I earned. It was as though money didn’t like me—so I had to drag it with me by force.

My food businesses—which I was so excited at the start—were collapsing. 

My hotdog stand, my ice cream store, and squid ball kiosk were all drowning in red ink. Money was flowing out from my hand like water from a broken faucet. 

During those dark days, I wondered if I made a mistake in becoming an entrepreneur. I began to doubt my desire to become wealthy. Was this really from God? Perhaps this was God telling me to stop. Perhaps I should have just remained a preacher and kept begging for money whenever I needed it.

But in those agonizing moments, I went deep into my heart and listened.

There was chaos outside, like a signal 8 hurricane.

But in my heart, I found peace.

Somehow, I knew I was doing the right thing.

I was simply climbing the wrong ladder.

That no matter what I did, I’ll always be average in the food business.

Because I didn’t have Spirit and Skill in the food business.

Instead, my passion and gifts were in communication—speaking and writing.

So I closed all my food stores.

Today, my businesses are doing so well because they revolve around communication.

Live To The Max

Friends, the world needs Superstars.

          You owe it to the universe to become one.

No one benefits if you play small.

You only live once.

So go full throttle.

Live to the max!

          May your dreams come true,

          Bo Sanchez

PS. Want more practical strategies for growing in abundance? Each week, I send out to my TrulyRich Club members my WealthStrategies Letter. Plus my audio and video talks each month! Plus many more surprises. To join my TrulyRich Club, log on at www.TrulyRichClub.com now.

PS2. Are You A Leader? My friends Mike Joseph Jr. (my spiritual mentor) and Arun Gogna, Founder of Creative House, will be giving Leadership For Growth Biblical Principles for Leaders concerned about community development. Topics: Spiritual Power, Strategies for Evangelization, Support Structures and Systems, Socialization & Service, and Enabling Leadership. Date: June 20, 2009 Saturday; 8am to 5pm; Venue: Lay Force, San Carlos Seminary, Guadalupe Makati; The Seminar Fee is P695.00 only per person. Register now and avail of a 5+1 discount. For Reservations and Inquiries, contact: Noel or Mara at 4018238 or  (0915) 4493600  / (0928)2109765.

          The warden was extra kind that day, so he asked him, “Max, for your last three meals, you can ask for anything you want.   What do you want for breakfast?”

          Max said, “Pancit (Local noodles). For long life.”

          The warden smiled and said, “I don’t think it will work. But here’s the pancit anyway.” Max ate with gusto.

After a few hours, the warden asked, “What’s your second meal?”

          “Spaghetti. Also for long life,” Max said.

          The warden laughed as he shook his head, “Max, this won’t give you long life, but anyway, here it is…” He gave him spaghetti and Max devoured it.

          After a few hours, the warden asked, “What’s your third meal? Sotanghon?” (Another local noodle dish.)

          “No,” Max laughed, “noodle dishes have not been working for me.”

“So what will your last meal be?”

Max said, “I want a bowl of fresh strawberries.”

          The warden said, “But it’s not the season of strawberries. That’s about ten months away!”

          Max said, “Oh,  it’s okay. I can wait.”

          Max had a simple purpose: To extend his life.

          If you noticed, his first two strategies didn’t work. So he shifted strategy.

Friends, you need to be an expert in using this powerful tool of success.

Are You A Quitter?

I know it sounds shocking.

But I’m serious. 

Unless you learn how to quit, you won’t reach your dreams.

I don’t say that because I read it in a book. I say that from personal experience. I’m successful now because I know when to quit, how to quit, where to quit, and what to quit.

By the way, do you have problems?

Today, I’m going to teach you how to solve your problems by quitting.

Let me give you a hint: Most of the time, the best way to solve your problems is not by solving your problems. The best way to solve your problems is by making them irrelevant.

          And the way to do that is to quit.

          I hope I’ve confused you by now.

          Let me now tell you my first story: A love story. A tragic love story.

          But I’m going to ask a favor. Notice whenever I use these three words in my story: Purpose, Path, and Problem. 

Let me define them for you:

o   Purpose is the final destination

o   Path is the road going there.

o   Problem is the barrier on that road.

          Ready?

My love story is about Jenny, a beautiful single woman with many dreams.

          Like many single women, her big purpose is to have a happy marriage. 

Which includes a lovely wedding, romantic dates each week, cuddling in bed every Saturday morning, and hugs under a starlit sky.

One day, Jimboy walks into her world and offers a path to her purpose.

He has good looks. Dresses smart. Speaks well. Has what Filipinos call “arrive”. 

She meets him, likes him, and walks home with her feet on the clouds.

She also has many profound signs from Heaven that they’re meant for each other: They’re fans of the same artista. 

She’s excited. She believes she has found the man of her dreams.

Unfortunately, the dream turns out to be a nightmare.

The Problem of Jimboy

She discovers that Jimboy is an irresponsible bum. 

He always doesn’t have money. His wallet is thick, but it’s filled with old receipts, discount cards, and an expired driver’s license that he can’t renew because he has no money.

He hasn’t held a steady job for the past five years. When Jenny asks him why, he says he’s a free spirit. But since his spirit is still trapped in a physical body that gets hungry three times a day, Jimboy has to borrow money from Jenny.

Jenny also discovers that Jimboy has mixed blood. He’s 25% Filipino, 25% Chinese, and 50% Alcohol. When she asks why he drinks so much, he says, “When I drink, I fall asleep. When I fall asleep, I don’t sin. When I don’t sin, I go to Heaven. So I drink to go to Heaven.”

Finally, she also discovers that Jimboy flirts with anything that moves with a skirt. She finds he has other girlfriends. “In case of emergencies,” he laughs.

Let’s review the three elements of our story.

Her Purpose is a happy marriage.

Her Path is Jimboy.

Her Problem is his character flaws: being a bum, an alcoholic, and a playboy.

What should Jenny do?

Wouldn’t it be so much simpler if she just quit this path and take another?

But from my experience, many women don’t. They just keep on trying to solve their problem—in this case—Jimboy’s character flaws.

I see two reasons why people don’t quit…

1. When You Confuse Purpose And Path

Jenny must see boyfriend Jimboy as a path. 

Just a path, not the purpose. 

Because if she’s confused between purpose and path, she’ll be attached to Jimboy. If Jenny confuses Jimboy to be her purpose, then she’ll try to solve the problem of his character flaws head on—by trying to change him.

That may include emotional manipulation, sexual blackmail, dragging him to prayer meetings, forcing him to counseling, and driving out demons via exorcism. 

Or she may just marry him and hope that marriage will change him. 

Which is a huge mistake. Here’s the truth: Marriage doesn’t change anyone, it simply magnifies what’s already there.

But okay, I admit. There are rare exceptions. A few guys do change after their wedding day.

But that’s like playing Russian Roulette. With a gun that can hold 100 bullets—and 99 are loaded. Do you really want to take that risk?

2. When You Become Unclear With Your Purpose

Emotionally, the Jennys of the world are discombobulated.

They will keep their Jimboys because marriage is no longer their purpose. 

For example, if Jenny has a strained relationship with her parents, and her parents told her that Jimboy wasn’t good for her, Jenny will keep him as her act of rebellion. In this case, her purpose isn’t marriage anymore. It’s to get back at Mama and Papa and declare her total independence.

Another example.

If Jenny has a broken self-image and believes—in her subconscious—that she deserves a jerk, then she’ll keep him too. Again, the purpose is no longer to get married. The purpose is to inflict self-punishment for being such a terrible person. Even if Jimboy leaves her, Jenny will continue to search for other Jerks. She will be a Jerk-magnet for the rest of her life.

When the purpose is messed up, our lives are messed up as well.

Sadly, I see this tragedy again and again.

Oh, if only we learn to quit!

          But our problem is that we think there’s only one path. 

So when a problem blocks our way, we try to solve it head on.

Not understanding that sometimes, the best way to solve a problem is to make it irrelevant. For example, Jenny can make Jimboy’s character flaws irrelevant by simply dumping him—and choosing someone with better husband-potential.

Life will be much simpler. And happier!

Tell Yourself: There’s More Than One Path

          People don’t know how to quit.

I’ve met otherwise wonderful people who’ve been stuck in dead-end relationships for years—because they don’t know how to quit.

I’ve met great employees who—for the past 10 years—have been stuck in a job they don’t like, working for a boss they don’t like, and receiving a pay they don’t like—because they don’t know how to quit. (I’m not saying you quit tomorrow. Apply at another job first before you quit.)

I’ve met entrepreneurs who’ve been stuck in a business that doesn’t earn much or that isn’t in line with their passion—because they don’t know how to quit.

I’ve met people who—for the past 10 years—have been stuck in abusive religious groups that kill their spirit—because they don’t know how to quit.

          A friend of mine showed me this principle at work…

There’s Got To Be Another Way

A couple of years ago, my friend said he was taking up nursing to go abroad to earn for his family. Though he and his wife owned a school, they still couldn’t make ends meet. Because the school had very few students and many parents weren’t paying or were delayed in paying their tuition fees.

So the guy went abroad to work.

But after a year, I met him again. He told me something beautiful. A line I want you to say often. He said, “Bo, there’s got to be another way!” 

“What happened?” I asked.

“My kids need me. And I was so lonely out there. I don’t want to go abroad again!” he said.

My friend and his wife decided to work on their little school. They did massive marketing and doubled their enrollees. They also did the unthinkable: They raised their tuition fees. (In the past, their tuition fees were very low.)

Today, this couple is happy to report that the school is doing so much better. And wonder of wonders, the parents now pay regularly. Why? Because they were able to reach parents of a higher economic bracket who don’t have problems paying tuition fees.

Filipinos think that there’s only one path to financial abundance: Go abroad. Be an Overseas Filipino Worker.

But the problem to that path is huge—leaving your children.

Hey, don’t solve that problem. Make that problem irrelevant by choosing another path. Yes, there are other paths to financial abundance!

You can be wealthy here in this country!

One last story…

Choose Another Problem—

A Problem You Can Handle

Four years ago, I wanted to build the first Catholic homeschool provider in the Philippines. At that time, all homeschool providers in the country were non-Catholic.

For those who don’t know what homeschooling is, let me give you a simple definition. Homeschooling is when parents teach their own kids at home and try their best not to kill them before the day is over.

Just kidding. I believe in homeschooling so much because kids learn with fun. When done correctly, homeschooled kids can have a broader intelligence than kids from regular schools. And ironically, they can have greater social skills too. Today, two million kids in the US are being homeschooled because it’s a fantastic alternative.

I love homeschooling. But my problem was that the Department of Education didn’t love homeschooling. (Yet!)

They had this iron-clad condition: If I wanted a license for homeschooling, I needed to build a physical school—complete with a few concrete building, an army of teachers, yellow school buses, a nice tall flagpole, and a security guard named Mang Jun—before they gave me a go signal to open my homeschool center.

That was the giant problem in my path.

Now I could have bulldozed my way through that big problem by simply building a physical school. I knew I could do it. I’ve built stuff before.

But my goodness! First, I’d need millions. Second, I’d probably become bald from stress—and I don’t like to be bald because my head is shaped funny. But more importantly, why build a traditional school if my heart was in homeschooling?

I took one step backward and prayed. 

That’s when I found another path with a much smaller problem: I could partner with an already existing school and work out a joint-venture agreement with them.

That’s when I remembered my dear friend and fellow-Preacher Alvin Barcelona and his wife Tess. They owned a wonderful, multi-awarded school called PowerKids. The only problem was whether we could work together on the project.  

We solved that small problem over a nice dinner of boneless Bangus and Quezo ice cream in my home. That night, we signed the papers, and Kaboom—we launched the www.CatholicFilipinoAcademy.com the next day.

Today, PowerKids CFA serve almost 150 kids and their very brave parents.

Here’s the key to great success: Be unflinching with your purpose, be flexible with your path.

          Never give up on the dreams that God has placed in your heart.

          But you can experiment in various ways in fulfilling them—until you find the right one.

          Just like Peter…

Fill Your Nets!

One day, Jesus asked Peter to fish. Peter said they’ve been fishing all day and have caught nothing. But Peter said that he’d still do it.

But Jesus said something curious. 

He just didn’t tell them, “Lower your nets one more time.”

He said, “Lower your nets in the deeper water. And lower your nets on the other side of the boat”

In other words, quit the old way of doing things and take another path.

Result? Peter’s nets were so full of fish they almost broke. That’s abundance.

Friend, do you want your nets to be full? Do you want abundance too?

Don’t quit your purpose. Still lower your nets.

But quit where you lower your nets.

Quit when you lower your nets.

Quit how you lower your nets.

Find another path.

Are you going through some problems now?

Ask yourself:

1.     What is really my end purpose?

2.     Is there another path to this purpose whose problems I can handle?

And take new paths.

And may your nets almost break with your abundant harvest.

Next Week:

I’ll tell you one more reason to quit:

Even when a path seems to be working!

          May your dreams come true,

          Bo Sanchez

PS. Do you want more Spiritual Growth? Join my international, borderless, non-physical, virtual community called www.KerygmaFamily.com It’s for free! You’ll receive a mountain load of blessings. Sign up at www.KerygmaFamily.com now.

PS2. Do you want Financial Growth? You’ve got to join my www.TrulyRichClub.com. You can try it out for two months—free! (All you have to cover are the mailing costs.) Each month, I ship to my TrulyRich Club members audio and video talks to their home to nourish their abundance mindsets; I send them weekly the WealthStrategies newsletters; I send them daily emails called GodWhispers. And so much more! Try it out at www.TrulyRichclub.com now. 

PS3. Get my Free Ebook, How To Know If Your Dreams Are God’s Dreams.  Scroll up this page and look at the right side.  You’ll find my Ebook.   Just fill in your name and email address–and I’ll email it to you. Bless you!

If not, believe me, you don’t want to experience it.

I’ve been denied a visa. Twice. From the US Embassy no less.

Look into my heart and you’ll find two ugly scars.

I remember my first attempt. 

I was still in my teens.

When I woke up, I was already wet with nervous sweat. It didn’t help that when I arrived in the US Embassy, I saw a humongous crowd of hopeful Pinoys outside the gates of American Heaven. They were standing in long lines, all of them begging for a visa. I felt their collective fear. It was nerve-wracking.

Each step closer to the interviewer made my stomach churn. I could actually hear the loud beating of my chest and wondered if everyone else heard it. 

Dub-dub. Dub-dub. Dub-dub.

Finally, it was my turn. 

I walked up to the glass window and said with a trembling voice, “Good morning…”

Am I Human?

The consul, a thirtyish guy with square spectacles, was all business. He looked at my passport. I bet he already made up his mind right there, but the interview had to go on. He asked, “So why do you want to go to the US?”

I said, “I’m a preacher and a Catholic convention is inviting me to give a talk.”

That was when I realized—My gosh, who in the world would believe me? A pimple-faced, scarecrow-looking teen-ager being invited to speak in a religious convention?

The man abruptly left his cubicle. I imagined he was laughing out loud and rolling on the floor. When he came back, he said matter-of-factly, “I’m sorry Mr. Sanchez, I can’t possibly give you a Visa.”

Again, I imagined him say instead, “I’m sorry Mr. Sanchez, you’re so totally unworthy of stepping on the beautiful shores of America because we only accept human beings.”

Another Rejection

The second time I applied, the interviewer was an American lady.

She was very kind to me. Instead of saying, “I’m sorry, I can’t possibly give you a Visa,” she said, “I’m so very sorry, I can’t possibly give you a Visa.” But it still broke my heart.

By the third time I applied, I thought I was already an expert in the body language of foreign diplomats. I got ready for another denial.

Here were the signs I was looking for:

If the consul has an emotionless zombie look on his face, I’d get denied.

If he shakes his head… Denied.

If he raises an eyebrow… Denied.

If he yawns… Denied.

If he looks at his watch… Denied.

If he inhales oxygen… Denied.

If he exists in front of me… Denied.               

I’m A Human Being After All

            So I was so shocked when he approved my visa.

          Just like that.

          Without asking me a question, the guy said, “Have a nice trip.”

          “Excuse me?” I asked.

          He smiled and repeated himself, “Have a nice trip.”

          “Where am I going?” I asked. 

But I finally got it.

          I almost ran out of the embassy jumping up and down.

          Hey, I’m a human being after all!

Life With A Visa

            When I still didn’t have a visa, I remember visiting my neighbor who had a potted plant from the US. I put my foot in it and announced, “Hey guys, I’ve finally stepped on US soil!”

When I didn’t have a visa, I couldn’t step on an inch of US territory. 

But because I got the visa, I’ve now preached in 34 cities in North America.

            Friends, there’s something better than a US visa.

There’s a visa to the land of abundance and love and victory that God wants you to have.

I should know. 

I’m experiencing it right now.

It’s Harvest Time For Me

People ask me, “Bo, how can you be so blessed?”

They point to my loving family.

They point to my fantastic job that blesses the world. 

They point to my financial blessings from my small businesses. 

They point to my incredible circle of friends. 

They point to my irresistible good looks. (Note: “They” consist of my mother and my wife.)

Yes, I’m living a dream life.

Sometimes, I have to pinch myself. Is this really happening?

Let me tell you a curious thing that started happening when I hit 40.

In 2006, I was named Ten Outstanding Young Men, awarded by the President in Malacañang Palace no less.

In 2007, I was given the Serviam Award, the highest award of the Catholic Mass Media Awards by none other than Cardinal Rosales himself.

And just last week, another fantastic recognition: The Golden Gavel Award from Toastmasters International—the highest award given to non-Toastmasters for public speaking.

Do you know why I’m so blessed?

Here’s my theory:

There are two seasons in this universe:

·        The Planting Season

·         The Harvest Season

For 40 years, I was in the Planting Season. 

Today, I’m in the Harvest Season of my life.

It’s that simple. For years, I’ve planted and planted…and planted!   Crossing the line between planting and harvesting was like receiving a visa to a land of abundance and ease. In other words, I’ve experienced a breakthrough.

Let me describe these two seasons as simply as I can. I cannot think of a clearer explanation as this:

In the Planting Season, I chased after blessings.

In the Harvest Season, blessings are chasing after me.

How to get to Harvest?

There really are only 2 Powerful Steps…

Step #1:

Even If You See No Results,

Keep Planting

Many of you are getting tired of doing good, of doing the right thing.

Why? Because you don’t see the results.

So you want to give up.

Don’t! Or there will be no Harvest.

            Perhaps you’ve been applying for a job, but the right job has not been coming. Never mind. Keep applying anyway.

          Perhaps you’ve been reaching out to your son, but he’s still distant as ever. Never mind. Keep reaching out to your son anyway.

Perhaps you’ve been working on your finances, but you’re still buried in debt. Never mind. Keep working on your finances anyway.

Perhaps you’ve been working on your marriage but the relationship is still strained. Never mind. Keep working on your marriage anyway.

A wife said to her husband, “I’m so tired of our fighting. I can’t take it anymore. I’m leaving the house!” And the husband said, “Me too! I can’t take it anymore as well. I don’t want to stay in this house too! I’m coming with you.”

That husband wasn’t about to give up!

(Note: I’m not talking about abuse in marriage. These are the exceptions where it may be better for a husband and wife to live apart. In this article, I’m talking about the regular problems that slowly destroy marriages if we don’t work at our relationship.)

Some of us think if we plant, we’ll harvest.

That’s not how this universe works.

You’ll need to plant and plant and plant…and then you’ll harvest.

My friend, don’t give up.

Believe that harvest is coming!

Keep Showing Up!

Friend, if you want to succeed in life, you need to show up.

In the US embassy, I needed to show up for my interview.

And when I got denied, I just applied again.

When life denies you of what you dream for, here’s the key: Show up again.

What if I got so depressed and I never tried again? I would never have been able to preach in 34 cities in North America.

Remember that in the Planting Season, not all your seeds will grow. Many of your seeds won’t reach the Harvest Season. Some of your seeds will die.

          I remember one area of my life where I had to plant again and again, almost giving up because it seemed as though nothing was happening…

Planting Seeds Of Love

 In My Emotions

          For almost 30 years, I was run by my fears. 

Each morning, I would wake up with a profound sense of sadness. For many years, I didn’t know why I felt so sickeningly sad. Many years later, I was able to define it: it was shame. I had a shame-based personality, rooted in my molestation as a child and teen years. (I talk about this painful part of my life in my 2 books, Your Past Does Not Define Your Future and 7 Secrets To Real Freedom.) I was totally ashamed for who I was. I was ashamed that I existed in the world.

For years, I tried to please everyone. Because if someone didn’t like me, I would panic. I would die within. I was desperate for people to love me.

But daily, I planted seeds of love in my heart. 

I received God’s love. I loved myself aggressively. I allowed others to love me. There were days when I was okay. But there were more days when my old fears would grip me again. 

There were days when I wanted to give up.

I felt it was all a waste—that I would never get healed.

And then one day—I just noticed it—my fears were lessening. Its intensity weakening. My shame reared its ugly head less frequently.

I knew a miracle was happening.

I knew love was conquering my soul, edging fear out of my life.

Today, as I write this piece, my life has totally changed.

Harvest has come!

I now profoundly love myself. I’m no longer ashamed of myself. I cannot begin to describe to you the change in my inner life. It’s like night changed to day—and I’m a brand new person inside.

But there’s a second step to Harvest Season…

Step #2:

Plant In The Right Environment

The Law of the Harvest says, what you plant, you harvest.

But hidden in this Law is the need to plant your seeds in the right environmental conditions: Good sunlight and abundant water.

If I plant the right seeds in the wrong environment, there’ll still be no harvest.

What is the right environment? Faith.

You need to plant your seeds with blessing mindset. Faith is the water and sunlight of your seeds.

What is a blessing mindset? That no matter what happens, you expect to be blessed. That you expect good things to happen to you.

I know people who work on their finances—but don’t expect to be truly rich. 

I know people who work on their family relationships—but don’t expect that they’ll ever get better. 

I know people who work on their health—but don’t expect healing.

If you want to be blessed you have to expect to be blessed.

You have to expect the harvest.

Let me give you an example…

Develop Your Wealth Mindset

In my last Blog, I said that if you want to harvest more money, you have to plant value. Why? Because money is simply a symbol of value.

But why was it that for the first 30 years of my life, I was poor, even when I was planting the right seeds?

When I started serving God at age 13, preaching almost daily and leading non-profit organizations, I was already planting value into my life and enormous value in others—by helping countless of people. I planted what I believe are the 3 seeds of wealth—character (integrity), competence (gifting), and connections (relationships).

So why no harvest?

I didn’t have the right blessing mindset to make the seeds grow. In this case, I lacked a wealth mindset to make the seeds of money grow.

In other words, I didn’t want to become rich. I didn’t expect to be blessed.

It took years to get rid of my scarcity mentality. It came from…

·        Wrong beliefs about myself: I identified myself with poverty. 

·        Wrong beliefs about God: I thought He wanted me to be poor.

·        Wrong beliefs about money: I believed it was the tool of the devil.

I remained poor because I didn’t want the harvest. 

I was already giving so much value to people, all I had to do was ask and I’d get paid handsomely. But I didn’t want to be paid.

So I remained poor.

When I hit 30 years old, I began to open myself to harvest.

I began to grow a wealth mindset.

And I began to grow my wealth too.

I remember reading all the books I could get on money and searching for all the mentors I could find. Sometimes, it seemed like the more I knew, the more confused I became. But I didn’t stop. I kept learning. Until everything made sense.

I also got into 8 small businesses—and failed in every single one of them. I lost tons of money. (I didn’t have much money then, so “tons” is a relative term.) It was devastating. Depressing! But I never gave up.

And then breakthrough came.

Today, money flows to me like a river. (Compared to my multimillionaire mentors, my river is more like a trickle from a leaking faucet. But it sure looks good to me!) I don’t look for business opportunities; Business opportunities come to me. And the right people, the right resources, and the right wisdom just come to me.

Yes, harvest has come.

And greater harvests are coming because I keep planting.

Even At Harvest, Keep Planting

Some of you are enjoying your Harvest Season in various areas of your life.

Don’t stop planting.

Don’t forget to take some of the seeds that you harvest and plant them.

If you do this, greater Harvest Seasons will come.

Next Week, I share with you the answer to this difficult question:

Is there a right time to quit?

          May your dreams come true,

          Bo Sanchez

PS. We received a flood! So many people signed up for my How To Be Truly Rich Seminaron June 6, we were forced to search for a bigger venue. Thankfully, we found one, so we have a few more remaining seats available. For more information on my How To Be Truly Rich seminar, click here.

PS2. Do you want the really serious stuff? Get into my Truly Rich Financial Coaching Program on June 19 and 20. My mentors will be there to help you. For more information, click here.

PS3. Grow spiritually. Join a borderless, virtual, non-physical community at www.KerygmaFamily.com now!

Here’s a hint: My first computer monitor wasn’t black and white. 

It was green.

          And the only real popular computer game in my time? 

Pacman. It was a green round character with a big mouth that ate everything in sight. Like greedy politicians of the Philippines.

          If your dictionary was published before 1980, throw it away. Thanks to the computer, the English vocabulary has radically changed.

          When I was young, a mouse was a furry animal.

          A mouse pad was the house of a furry animal.

          A virus caused the flu.

          A bug was an insect.

          A hard drive was a difficult journey.

          An apple was a fruit.

          And windows were rectangular holes on the wall.

          My friend (whose name I won’t divulge because it’ll be hazardous to my health) has been frozen in time when it comes to computers. She refuses to learn. One day, her boss enters her office and says, “I need new Windows for the office.” He was referring to the computer’s Operating System, but she didn’t have the foggiest idea what he was talking about. Being the bubbly girl that she was, she said, “Cool! Interior design is my specialty.”

          What is an Operating System? It’s the system that operates the computer. (Man, I’m bright.) Okay, let me try that one more time. The Operating System is the most basic program of your computer. Your various applications—Word, Excel, and Powerpoint—sit atop the Operating System or OS.

          Why am I giving you a lecture on computers?

          To make a very important announcement.

          Friends, I’ve just discovered the Operating System of the universe.

It Answers The Mystery

            How did I come to this discovery? 

I like to ask a lot. 

I’ve always wondered why some people are successful and others are failures. I’ve wondered why some people are happy and others unhappy. I’ve wondered why some people have loving families and others have broken families.

          What determines success and failure? 

I’ve now come to the conclusion that it’s how we relate to the OS of the universe.

The Operating System of the universe is the Law that governs all of reality. Success and failure hang on this one Law. Follow this Law and you’ll succeed. Disregard the Law and you’ll fail.

          So what is the OS of the universe?

Luck

Some people think luck is the OS of the universe.

          If good things happen to you, you’re lucky.

          If bad things happen to you, you’re unlucky.

          So to be successful, just be lucky!

          I remember the husband who told his wife, “Sweetheart, when I had a big trial, you were there beside me. When I lost my job, you were there beside me. When I got sick, you were there beside me. When I lost all my wealth, you were there beside me…” His wife was about to cry, so touched was she by his words. And then he said, “I’ve come to realize that you bring me bad luck.”

          People who believe that luck is the OS of the universe will wear amulets. They will also knock on wood, follow their horoscope, hang mirrors on their homes, and kill a rabbit and bring along his foot. (I can assure you that rabbit wasn’t lucky at all.)

Luck says that your life is based on how the stars are arranged.

My friend and I were going to have lunch one day. But early in the morning, she called me and said, “I can’t meet with you today, Bo.”

“Why?”

She said, “My horoscope says I can’t leave the house. It says I may have an accident today.”

“I have a suggestion,” I said. “Buy another magazine where your horoscope says you can get out of your house!”

I don’t like my life being controlled by the arrangement of the stars. Because that means my life is totally out of my control. 

Because the last time I checked, I can’t seem to control those stars. They’re a bazillion miles away and they’re also bigger than me. Goodness, I can’t even control my kids who are only 2 feet away—and much smaller than me!

I added, “You shouldn’t be superstitious.”

“Why?” she asked.

“It’s bad luck.”

God

Some believe that the Operating System of the entire universe is a capricious, self-centered, immature, insecure God.

They don’t call him by that description, but that’s who their God is. He is a Divine Being who sits on the throne, looking for people to reward because they adore him—or looking for people to punish because they forget him. 

So to succeed in life, all you have to do is make this capricious God happy. Don’t anger him. And perhaps, He’ll throw some rewards in your direction.

Plu-eeeeese.  

That’s not my God. That sounds more like the Volcano God in the movie Kingkong. Whenever the volcano rumbled and spewed more smoke then usual, these primitive people imagined their god was angry. To appease him, they would choose a poor guy among them, tie him up, and throw him through the boiling mouth of their volcano god, hoping that this human sacrifice will pay for their sins.

Why would you want to worship such a tyrannical God?

If the OS of the universe isn’t lady luck or a self-centered God, what is it then?

To Be Successful,

Follow the Operating System

Friends, I don’t believe in luck.

I believe in blessing.

Luck is based on chance.

Blessing is100% sure!

What people define as luck, I define as getting ready to be blessed. 

My belief is simple: When the soul is ready, the blessing will appear.

Are you ready for the truth? Right now, you’re swimming in an ocean of blessings. You don’t see this ocean, but it’s there all around you.

If you lack blessings, it simply means you lack readiness to receive the blessings. There’s no shortage of blessings. There’s only a shortage of your readiness.

The key? Get ready.

          How? By planting seeds.

Let me now tell you the Operating System of the Universe.

Friends, the Operating System of the universe is the Law of the Harvest.

This is what governs the world.

And this is what governs your life.

The Law of the Harvest states:

What you plant, you harvest.  What you don’t plant, you don’t harvest. The more you plant, the more you harvest. The less you plant, the less you harvest.

If you plant mango, you get mangoes. 

If you plant bananas, you get bananas.

And if you plant love, you harvest love.

If you plant hatred, you harvest hatred too.

Experiment

Try this out tomorrow.

Put a permanent smile on your face and greet everyone you see. Smile at people walking on the streets. Give a cheery “Good Morning!” to the security guard, the janitor, the messenger in the office. And give hugs to the staff in your office.

Though a few would wander if you’ve taken shabu for breakfast, I can assure you that you’ll receive more smiles than you’ve ever received before.

That’s just how the universe works.

Make a decision now to plant today what you want to harvest tomorrow. Or next week. Or next month. Or next year. Or 10 years from now.

Do you want to more joy? 

Give joy to others. Face it. The happiest people in the world are those who’ve planted the most seeds of happiness to others.

I can share with you an example in my life…

Why Am I So Blessed With A Loving Family?

I’ve got a great family life.

Why? Because for the past 10 years now, I’ve been planting seeds of love into my family. I spend time with the boys. I play with them everyday. In fact, they know my policy that at anytime, my home office is always open to them if they want to play with Daddy. 

Everyday, I bike with Francis. Each week, I have a one-to-one breakfast with Benedict. Each week, I have a romantic date with my wife. In fact, this past week, despite being away to Davao and Cebu for a couple of days, I still was able to grab two romantic dates with my wife. (I can’t get enough of her.) 

I’ve planted all these seeds of love, and I’m now harvesting!

If you want to harvest love, you have to plant seeds of love.

By the way, do you want more money?

How To Harvest More Money

If you want more money, plant value.

Remember: Money is nothing else but a symbol of value. So the surest way to increase your income is to increase your value—and give that value to others.

My friends own a chain of restaurants in Metro Manila named Trinity.

Visit them in Mall of Asia and you’ll see that they’re always jampacked. How come? Go ahead. Try their food. I recommend Sinigang sa Miso. But before going in, write your name in a small card and put it in your pocket. Because when you start sipping the soup, I promise you that it’s so good that you’ll forget your name. Thus, the card in your pocket. My friends are giving you incredible value.

My other friends own In My Womb Prenatal Ultrasound Clinics.

They too are prospering because they want to serve the customers. 

First, they took the ultrasound out of hospitals and into malls. Pregnant women don’t like going to hospitals for their ultrasound. Because they’re not sick and don’t want to be around sick people. Second, the clinics are such a lovely, family-friendly, attractive place. While a doctor is doing your ultrasound, your family can watch your baby’s prenatal videos because they placed a wide-screen, TV set on the wall.   Third, only OB-Gynecologists work on each pregnant woman—not their staff or assistants. That means you get the ultrasound interpreted to you as its being done. 

Do you now understand? The wealthiest person (minus Drug Lords, etc.) is the one who can give the most value to the most number of people.

Anyone who has a lot of money but not a lot of value will soon loose all that money. Take a look at LOTTO winners. According to the US Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc, nearly one-third of LOTTO winners become bankrupt within five years of their winning.   Just five years and the money flies away. Why? Because money symbolizes value, and if there’s no value behind the symbol, it won’t last.

            Let me close with one last story.

What You Give, You Receive

In Sagada, we visited the Echo Valley.

Standing on the edge of the cliff, I told my 4-year old boy, “Okay son, shout I love you as loud as you can!” So Francis hollered, “I love youuuuu!” 

It was a delight to see the surprise on his face when he heard his high-pitched voice bounce back… “I love you, I love you, I love you…”

Being the killjoy that I was, I took him aside and gave him a 2-minute lecture on life.  “Francis,” I said, “life works the same way. The entire universe is a giant Echo Valley. What you give to life, you’ll receive back a hundredfold. Imagine if you said I hate you. You would have heard, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you… Hatred will return to you many times over too. Remember: Whatever you give to the universe, you’ll receive it multiplied.”

“Okay Daddy,” he nodded, “the universe is a giant Echo Valley.”

Of course, that was his polite way of getting rid of me. 

As I watched my little boy holler more I love you’s to the universe—and receiving it back—I realized how simple God created the world.

Friend, what do you want to harvest in your future?

Plant it today.

May your dreams come true,

Bo Sanchez

PS. Learn from my Financial Mentors. Join me on my Truly Rich Financial Coaching Program on June 19 and 20, 2009, for 2 power-packed days of learning from the very same Mentors who taught me how to reach financial abundance. They’re awesome. They’ll open your minds to a whole new world—in investing, stocks, real estate, and business. More importantly, they’ll open your minds to a new way of thinking about money. For more information, click here.

PS2. Grow spiritually. Get a mountain load of spiritual nourishment for free at www.KerygmaFamily.com   Log on now.

And instantly, he found himself in a beautiful place.

A woman covered in light approached him and said, “Welcome, Juan Miguel.  It’s easy to get to know this place.  Just walk around.  And if you’re hungry, just wish for it.  You can wish for anything you want and it’ll be given to you.”

 “Wow! Anything?” Miguel said.  “For my appetizers, can I have New Zealand baked oysters?  For my main meal, I’d like to have Alaskan crabs with lemon buttered dip—plus a side dish of Cebu’s Lechon.  For my dessert, I want a tall glass of chocolate parfait drizzled with Belgian truffles.  Oh, and please give me a diet Coke.  I’m trying to watch my weight.” 

The woman said, “In this place, no matter how much you eat, you won’t gain a single pound.”

“This is incredible!” Miguel said.  “In that case, can you also add crispy pata, liempo, and pata tim?”

 Instantly, all the yummy food he ordered appeared right in front of him in a huge buffet that looked like those served in 5-star hotels.  Except that the buffet was only for him.  

He couldn’t believe his eyes.

Instant Gratification

“Wait a minute,” the man said.  “You mean to tell me that in this place, I can have anything I want?”

The woman said matter-of-factly, “Yes.”

“How about a nice car?” he asked.

“Sure.  Just say the brand…”

He decided to be daring.  “A top-of-the-line BMW!”

The words had not yet left his lips when a shiny silver blue, brand new, custom-made BMW popped in front of him.  It even had a diamond-encrusted emblem of his name on the steering wheel.

“Whoa!” he shouted.  As he opened the door to examine the leather seats, he turned to the lady and asked, “Can I also have a 10-bedroom house with a swimming pool and jacuzzi?”

In a wink of an eye, a huge mansion appeared in front of him.

“No,” Miguel said, “I changed my mind.  I want a 127-room castle.  And I want my backyard to be a forest spanning a thousand hectares!”  And viola, his gigantic castle and gigantic forest appeared before him. 

He got into his BMW and drove into the gates of his humongous castle, all the while screaming, “Yipeee!  I gonna love this place!”

Like a little boy opening his gifts on Christmas day, he was extremely happy, creating things left and right.

After 7 days, something happened: Miguel was no longer happy. 

And he couldn’t understand why.

So he searched for the woman who welcomed him 7 days ago.

When he found her, he asked, “Excuse me, but I’m here to complain.  I have everything I need, but I’m actually very bored,” he said.  “In fact, I’ve never been more miserable in my entire life than now.”

The woman remained silent and just looked at Miguel, her face emotionless.

He began to sob.  “How could you call this place Heaven?”

The woman shook her head.  “Excuse me Miguel, but who told you this was Heaven?”

When You Don’t Serve,

You’re Not In Heaven

            Miguel was taken aback.  “What?”

          The woman said, “Did I ever once tell you that you were in Heaven?”

          He thought back and realized she never did.  “Where am I, then?”

          “You’re not in Heaven, that’s for sure,” the woman said.

          “But everything I want comes true!”

          The woman said, “Yes, everything you want comes true.  Miguel, haven’t you noticed?  In the past 7 days, you never loved anyone.  You never served anyone.  All you thought about was yourself.  What you wanted.”

“So?” Miguel asked.  “Isn’t that supposed to be fun?”

The woman said, “Heaven is the perfection of love. Hell is the absence of all love.”

          Reality hit Miguel like a giant hammer hitting his head.  His lips quivered, “Don’t tell me…”

The lady said, “Juan Miguel, welcome to Hell.”

Miguel collapsed to the ground.  “Nooooooooooo!  How did I end up here?”

          “You chose it.”

He shook his head.  “No, I didn’t!”

“We all choose our eternity.  Because eternity is a mere continuation of our chosen life on earth.  We merely follow its path after our death.”

          As the woman walked away, she said to Miguel, “Order a few Lear jets, perhaps some giant yachts.  It may take away some pain.  At least for a few seconds…”

          Miguel wept.

          For a very long, long time.

A Different Ending

In the Philippines, some of our telenovelas have two different endings.

Isn’t that cool?  In one version, Judy Ann Santos dies.  In the other, Judy Ann Santos misses the bullet and marries her prince.

So allow me to create a different version of our story…

One day, Juan Miguel died.

And instantly, he found himself in a beautiful place.

Immediately, he saw his grandparents and other family members and friends who had already gone there before him.  They greeted him with a group hug, shouting, “Welcome, Juan Miguel!  We missed you so much!”

“Wow, it’s so wonderful to see you!” Miguel said.

“We love you, Miguel!” they all said in unison. 

After many more tears and hugs and I love yous, his grandmother asked, “Miguel, do you want something to eat?  In this place, you can eat anything you want.”

“Wow, really?  Okay, for my appetizers, can I have some Ceasar’s Salad with Spanish anchovies?  For my main meal, I’d like to have Garoupa with capers and olives plus a little Roti breadon the side.  For dessert, I want scoops and scoops of Gelato Italian ice cream.”

And in a wink of an eye, a 5-star buffet table filled with food appeared.

“Unbelievable!” he shouted.

“It’s all yours, Miguel,” they said.

“No way!” Miguel said.  He got a plate, filled it with food, and gave it to his grandfather.   He filled another plate and gave it to his grandmother.  “You’re all eating with me,” Miguel said.  “Hey grandma, how are you doing?”

She smiled and said, “Miguel, I’m happy here.  In this place, we have enormous power.  You can wish for anything—and it will come true.”

“Anything?  Like cars and houses…”

“Yes!” everyone shouted.

His grandmother said, “Juan Miguel, I have something to give you.  Close your eyes…” 

Only Love Can Make Anything Beautiful

As he closed his eyes, she snapped her finger and viola—a shiny silver blue, brand new, custom-made BMW popped up in front of him.  It even had a diamond-encrusted emblem of Miguel’s name on the steering wheel.  Below his name were the words, “Love, Grandma”.

Miguel was speechless.  She hugged him tight and said, “I knew you’d like it.” 

After wiping a tear, he said, “I like the car, Grandma, but it’s your love that makes it so special.  Hey, can I do these things too?  You know, snap my finger and give you all some gifts?”

“Not in a million years!” his grandfather said. 

Everyone laughed. 

“Your grandpa is kidding, Miguel,” Grandma said.  “Of course you have the power to do that.”

“But it’s my turn to give Miguel something,” Grandpa said.  “Miguel, I’m going to build you a little house.  Would a castle do?”

          Everyone laughed again.

          “If it’s big enough for all of you to live with me, I’ll accept it,” Miguel said.

          The old man said, “But it’ll take awhile.  You see, I won’t snap my finger and give you a castle.”

“You won’t?”

“Nope.  I’m going to build you one with my bare hands.  I want it to be a labor of love.  Just to let you know how much I love you.”

“We’ll help,” the others chimed in.

“Besides, it’ll be so much more fun!”  Grandpa said.

And you could hear their laughter echo all over Heaven.

The Two Things You Need To Be Successful

You can’t be successful in life without these two essential things:

Giftedness and Godliness.

Let me define them for you.

Giftedness is the ability to turn thought into things;

Godliness is the ability to use that giftedness to serve.

Giftedness is being like God in his skills;

Godliness is being like God in his service. 

Giftedness is being like God in his power;

Godliness is being like God in his love. 

Giftedness is charisma; Godliness is character.

You can be successful with giftedness alone, but success will be short-lived and isolated in one or two areas of your life.  For real success that spans your whole life, you need giftedness and godliness.

Giftedness

Let’s talk about giftedness first.

The most successful people in the world have perfected the craft of turning thoughts into things. Successful people are those who have the skill of making their dreams come true.  What they think about becomes reality. 

One day, Steve Jobs was in his house when he thought of a little gadget that can contain 10,000 songs and that was tiny enough to put in your pocket.  And in a few years, Apple produced the Ipod and it has taken over the music world by storm.

One day, Warren Buffet thought of buying businesses when the values were cheap.  It all started with a thought.  Today, Warren Buffet is the second richest man in the world because his company owns thousands of companies.

One day, Manny Pacquiao was in a tiny town in General Santos, thinking of becoming a boxing champ.  Today, he’s the #1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

Friends, you have that gift.  All of us do.  God has given you that power to turn thoughts into things.  He made His co-creators!

Our problem is that we don’t use this enormous gift that we have.

In my preaching at the Feast and in my writings, I constantly remind people of that power that we have to turn thought into things.

But giftedness alone isn’t enough to create Heaven…

Godliness

You need godliness too.

Many people imagine Heaven in this way: People floating around in their pajamas and all they do the whole day is sit on fluffy clouds and play their harps.

If that’s Heaven, I’ll be like Juan Miguel in my first story: bored to death.

More than anything else, I believe Heaven is a place of service.  We’ll be serving each other more than ever before.  If that doesn’t attract you, then you won’t like Heaven.  Yes, I really believe we choose our eternity by our way of life on earth.  God won’t force Heaven upon us.  He’ll respect how we want to live.

The Rewards Of Service:

Heaven On Earth

I’m living the dream life.

One day, a lady interviewed me for a magazine article.  She asked, “Bo, if you had an opportunity to live your life all over again, would you live your life in any other way?”  I told her, “Except for my sins, I wouldn’t change a single thing.  I would still serve God with my life.”

          Why?  Because I’ve experienced the Rewards of Service.  The Bible says, And anyone who gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward.[1]

Friends, Heaven and Hell starts here.

God promised Rewards.  And it will happen.

If you serve, you experience Heaven here.

If you don’t serve, you experience Hell here.

What are the Rewards of Service?  I know I could site 2,486 examples, but for lack of space, let me just share three rewards today:

          1. I have so much love in my life.

          2. I’ve grown in my talents.

3. I’ve protected my spiritual life.

          Here they are…

1. I Have So Much Love In My Life

            My friends are the greatest.

          Just look at the guys who lead Light of Jesus with me.  You’ll notice that most of them have been with me for 30 years.  Look at the second line of leaders.  You’ll notice that they’ve been serving with me for 20 years.

Why do I have these phenomenal friends in my life?

          Because we don’t just serve God—we serve each other in personal ways.

          I repeat: Service is not a set of activities; Service is a way of life.

          Serving each other means calling each other, doing stuff for each other, and praying for each other.  We take trips together; We eat together; We laugh together.

          We serve each other.  That, in one line, is the secret of maintaining the unity of a church or ministry.  If you see an organization whose leaders are serving God but not serving each another in personal relationships, mark my word, in won’t be long before you see a major split in that organization.  Guaranteed.

          If you want to fill your life with love, learn to serve.

2. I Grew In My Talents

Yes, I grew in my giftedness.

I started serving when I was 12 years old. 

I sang in the choir.  I played the guitar.  I wrote the song lyrics on Manila paper. (Kids, this was during a prehistoric era when there was no LCD Projector yet.)  I arranged the chairs.  I swept the floor. I cleaned the toilets.  Even if I was the speaker, I still had to carry the loud speakers.

For 20 years, almost everyday, I would preach to anyone.  You name it, I preached to them.  I’ve preached to kids, teachers, farmers, executives, prisoners, doctors, judges…  The only audience I haven’t preached to are green aliens from outer space.  (Perhaps one day.)

Believe me, it was the best public speaking training anyone could ever have!

For 20 years, I served without charge, not knowing that I was being paid in another way…

Because I grew in self-confidence. 

I grew in leadership skills.

I grew in relationship skills. 

I grew so much in my personal life, that by the time I got married at the age of 32 and needed to earn money and start businesses, it was easy.  Why?  I had all those fantastic skills under my belt. 

Listen carefully: If you want grow your wealth, you’ve got to grow you.

There’s no other way.

3. I Protected My Spiritual Life

            My service kept me godly.

          When I was 21 years old, I had an experience I’ll never forget.  This was a time when I was still young and irresistible.  (Now, I’m just irresistible to my wife.)

I was alone in my office when I heard a knock on the door.  When I opened, I saw a young beautiful girl crying in front of me.  She asked if she could speak to me.  She said she was in so much pain.  So I let her in.  (At that time, I still didn’t know that men shouldn’t counsel attractive young women alone.)

          Through much sobbing, she told me about her boyfriend.  She told me how he was using her.  She told me she had given her body to him and how she regretted it.

As I listened to her story, without warning, she threw herself to me.  She knelt in front of me and embraced me.  With her head on my chest, her lovely eyes looking at me, she said, “Bo, you’re really the man I want for my life.  I love you, Bo!”

          Picture this scene.  Here was this gorgeous young woman throwing herself at my feet, telling me she loved me.  I could feel her supple body and soft skin.  I could smell her sweet scent.  I could touch her beautiful hair.  At that point, she was putty in my hands and I could do anything I wanted to do with her.

          I want to be honest with you.  At that moment, I almost forgot I was a Christian.  But as ridiculous as this may sound, there was one thing I didn’t forget: That I had to give a talk in a prayer meeting in two hours!

          That’s what saved me.  My thoughts were, “My gosh, how could I face my audience if I did something naughty right now?”

          So I pulled her up and led her to the door.  She couldn’t understand why I was driving her out.  Two times, she tried to embrace me again, begging me to love her.

I had to literally push her out of the door. 

Let me tell you how human I was.  After I pushed her out and closed the door, I leaned my back on the door and said, “Sayang”[2]. 

But twenty years later, all I can say is, “Thank God, nothing happened!”  

My service protected me from sin.

Serve In God’s House

Be a world-changer in a new level. 

Yes, serve God in your families, in your jobs, in your businesses.  Complete the picture and serve God in His House too.

You have a choice. 

Every time you come to Church…

Choice A:

You can park in your favorite parking spot, walk to your favorite seat, sing a few songs, listen to a talk, chat with friends, and go home and watch TV.

Choice B:

Or you can roll up your sleeves, serve in a ministry, love people with all your heart, and go home with that sense of satisfaction, joy, and fulfillment that you’re serving God and God’s people in His House.

Friend, do something bigger than yourself: Build the Kingdom of God. 

Our organization, Light of Jesus, is run by thousands of selfless volunteers. Without these wonderful people serving as administrators, singers, ushers, musicians, intercessors, programmers, caregivers, counselors, group leaders, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do.  (If you’re abroad, log on at www.KerygmaFamily.com and be part of our borderless, international, non-physical community.)

Believe that God will lead you to the best way to serve Him.

          May your dreams come true,

          Bo Sanchez

PS. Hear me “Live” in my How To Be Truly Rich Seminar!  On June 6, I know I will again change the financial lives of hundreds of people.  I want you to be one of them.  Join me!  Thousands have already attended my How To Be Truly Rich Seminar and they tell me how blessed they are.  (I wish you could read the glowing emails I receive from the participants.)  There are very few seats left.  Call us right away to reserve your place.  For more information, click here.  Or call Beckie at Tel. (02) 7229562 (Tuesdays to Fridays 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ) or email her at beaconlightevents@gmail.com now. 

PS2. For those who aren’t living in Manila and can’t hear me “live”, I have a great solution for you.  I invite you to join my online TrulyRich Club.  Each month, I’ll ship my talks in Audio CDs and DVDs to your home—wherever you are in the world.  Remember: It’s when you change your thinking that you change your life. Log on at www.TrulyRichClub.com now.

PS3. Attention to all Cebu readers who want to learn how to earn online!  Jomar Hilario is giving an Internet Marketing Workshop in Cebu.  It’ll be held on June 12 and13, 10:30am to 5:30pm, at SM City Cebu. For more details, log on at http://internetmarketingworkshop.blogspot.com/2009/05/cebu-14-hours-hands-on-internet.html now.

[1] Matthew 10:42

[2] What a waste.

            I’m not the athletic type.

          One reason: I’m an only son.

It so happened that my five sisters were—for some reason—all women.

          Dad? He wasn’t also athletic. Oh yes, when I was a kid, he used to ask me to jog with him. But his entire jogging route was inside his garage. He jogged around his parked car.

          But two weeks ago, I did something absolutely nuts.   I went to the mountains of Sagada and I went rock climbing.

          For those who haven’t tried it, let me give you a very technical definition of rock climbing: It’s when you climb a rock. I know my definition is a bit difficult to understand but bear with me. (I sometimes amaze myself with my brilliance.)

Seriously, my definition of rock climbing is being insane enough to suspend yourself 100 feet above the air with your fingernails hanging onto tiny cracks and indentions on the flat surface of a rock that ants can’t even crawl on—

And you wonder why you even paid to do this lunacy.

          But you know what?

          When I was up there, I felt no fear. None whatsoever. I wish I could be religious and all and say, “Because of Jesus.” But actually, I felt no fear because I had this thick rope tied around my torso. I knew that whatever happened, that rope would keep me safe.

Don’t Stay Where You Are

            Friend, God wants you to go higher. 

He wants you to keep on growing, to be wiser, to be more loving, to be better, and to be even more blessed.

Let me ask you: What’s your mountain? What do you need to conquer in your life? What dream does God want you to reach?

          If your life isn’t exciting, it may be because you’ve not been climbing mountains.

          Hear this: It will be your fears that will keep you from reaching the summit.

          But God is your rope. No matter what happens, He’ll hold you tight. Even if you slip or make mistakes in climbing the mountain, He’ll never let go. He’ll keep you safe in His hands.

But if you think I was excited rock climbing, it was nothing compared to my excitement watching my 9-year old son climb…

Your Mountains Make You Grow

            Believe me, it was incredible just seeing Bene go up!

          When he was already some 50 feet up on a rocky ledge, all by himself, I heard my wife pray to all the saints in Heaven. Including those I never knew existed. She said, “Please pray for my son, St. Fulgentius, St. Hegesippus, St. Ischyrion, St. Paphnutius, St. Radegundes, St. Wenceslas…”

          What was so frustrating was that I couldn’t be up there beside my son. He had to climb all by himself. I couldn’t pull him, push him, hold him, or carry him.

          But even if I could have done all that, I wouldn’t have done it. Or I would have stolen from my son the opportunity to grow.

          So when he finally rappelled down to the ground wearing a million dollar smile on his face, I realized he didn’t only conquer the rocky cliff. He conquered his fears—which was the biggest mountain of all.

          I now realize that God will not remove your mountains. You need them. Because He is using the mountain to make you grow. God will give you all the inspiration and wisdom and power to overcome your mountains, but he’ll let you do it “seemingly” alone. But He’ll cheer you. He’ll guide you. He’ll bless you. 

          In your climb, remember that your God is watching you. With pride.

          I got deeper insights when my son asked me for money two days ago…

God Has Piled Up Your Blessings

 On The Kitchen Counter

Bene was going to an internet marketing workshop. Before leaving, he asked, “Daddy, can you give me P20? There are only pay toilets there.”

When I turned to him to say “Sure”, I saw him already stuffing a P50 bill in his wallet. I left a pile of money on the kitchen counter—and he helped himself to it!

Man, I loved it.

I share you this little incident because of three key insights:

First, God has left all that you need on the kitchen counter.

The universe is God’s kitchen counter. He has loaded it to the brim with every blessing and miracle that you need in life to reach your dreams. If you only realize what’s available to you, you’d be totally overwhelmed. If you need love, it’s there. If you need wisdom, it’s there. If you need money, it’s there.  

Second, ask for more than what you need.

          Didn’t you notice? My son asked for P20 but got P50.

            I asked him why. He said, “My cousin Nicole is attending the workshop. She goes to the toilet too.” Isn’t he wise? If you’re wise, you should also ask for more blessings because you want to be generous. Life isn’t about you. Life is about loving others. So ask Big!

Third, be confident when you ask.

Even before my son heard my “sure”, he already got my money from the kitchen counter. My son already assumed that I would meet his needs because he was confident in my love for him. And I believe God would love it too when we’re confident in His love for us.

          Let me tell you about my little mountain two weeks ago…

When One Door Closes,

Another Door Opens

            I wanted to bring 36 people to Boracay.

The top leaders of the Light of Jesus were going to a 4-day Planning Session in Tagaytay. But I wanted to hole them up in an island instead—so no one can escape. So I spoke to Gil Ramiscal, our Finance Director, that I’d just add to the Tagaytay budget with my personal money —and bring the whole group to Boracay.

          In my mind, I calculated that I needed to raise P200T. I could have just taken it from my bank account, but I challenged God to give me fresh money for this need. So for two weeks, I looked at my various small businesses and income streams, checking for unexpected lumps of cash flowing my way.

          But after two weeks of waiting, there was none. All the income flowing was regular income—not what I asked for.

          But I’ve learned a long time ago that God isn’t limited to only one door. That in life, there are millions of doors to choose from.

To cut the story, last week, 36 leaders did go to Boracay and we had the most productive 4-days ever. It was absolutely phenomenal. 

But how did God answer my prayer?

          First, Gil Ramiscal was very generous with his Tagaytay budget.

          Second, one of the owners of the hotel we stayed in Boracay was a friend—and he gave us a huge discount.

          Third, instead of eating in restaurants for 4 days—which would easily cost us P100T++, I brought my brother-in-law Abel Victoria to cook for us. Abel served us the most delicious (and lavish) meals everyday, but by some magic, spent only P21T to feed 36 hungry people for 4 straight days. It was a miracle.

          So at the end of our trip, I only had to add—would you believe—P10T to the budget? All I had to do is sweep under my bed and gather my change.

          I repeat: Every blessing you need is already available to you. God has left it on the kitchen counter ready for the taking.

Finally, let me tell you how to conquer your fear.

Face Your Monsters

            Once upon a time, a family of frogs lived in a broken-down well.

          They lived in isolation, content with their tiny puddle of water. Sometimes, it got murky and crowded, but no frog dared to leave home. Why? Whenever someone would dare leave, everyone would warn him, “There are monsters outside!”

          And so for many generations, these frogs were stuck in their little world.

          Until one day, a little frog had a dream—to live outside the well. In his mind, he saw a big pond of water. Lots of open space. The vision excited him so much.

He would tell his friends about his dream, but they would tell him: “We had a great-great-great grand uncle who went out and never returned! He must have been gobbled up by the monsters!”

But the little frog didn’t see the monsters. 

He only saw his dream of a big pond.

Finally, he made up his mind. Without any warning, the little frog jumped as high as he could. He landed on top of the well. All his friends below shouted, “Come back! You’ll be eaten alive!” But the little frog hopped out.

And what he saw blew his mind. Almost right beside the well wasn’t a big pond. Instead, it was a giant lake—a million times bigger than their tiny puddle.

          Friends, face your monsters.

          Many of us are trapped in our little worlds because of fear.

          God has bigger blessings in store for you outside your walls.

          How did the frog jump out of the well?   Before he saw the lake with his eyes, he already saw the lake within him. He felt it in his heart.

          What you see with your heart, you will see with your eyes.

          Dearest friend, climb your mountains and live with great abundance.

          May your dreams come true,

          Bo Sanchez

PS. Receive Financial Abundance! Join my TrulyRich Club and I’ll teach you the simple, powerful steps of how to grow in your financial life. I’ll email you daily and ship you my teaching Audio CDs and DVDs. You’ll be blessed. Try it out for two months for FREE. Log on at www.TrulyRichClub.com now!

PS2. Grow in your spiritual life. Receive a mountain of spiritual nourishment by joining www.KerygmaFamily.com now!

PS3. Get my Free Ebook, “How To Know If Your Dreams Are God’s Dreams”. Sign up at www.BoSanchez.ph now.

PS4. Are you interested in homeschooling your child? We’ve been homeschooling for 4 years now and it’s one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. To learn if you can homeschool your child, log on at www.CatholicFilipinoAcademy.com now.

             

            Imagine a hammer. 

          A solid, shiny, shimmering hammer.

Expensive. Made of high-grade steel and first-class polished wood.

          Now imagine a primitive tribesman from the mountains who has never seen a hammer in his life. He picks up the hammer, likes it immediately, and brings it home. And for the next 50 years, he uses it as a wonderful back scratcher.

Scratch.

Scratch.

Scratch.

That’s all it did for 50 years.

Friends, many people are like that hammer. Because they’re not fulfilling their life purpose, their greatness doesn’t come out.

          I believe there are four kinds of people on planet earth…

A.   Extremely Unhappy people don’t know their life purpose.

B.   Unhappy people who know their life purpose but don’t work on it.

C.   Happy people who know their life purpose, work at it, but not daily.

D.   Extremely Happy people who know their purpose and work on it daily!

Question: Who are you among these four people?

The 2 Simple Questions

That Will Make You Discover Your Life Purpose

            How do you know your purpose in life?

          So many people think it’s complicated. No it’s not. In fact, all you have to do is ask 2 very simple questions.

          Here they are:

Question #1: What do you love to do?

Question #2: Where do you excel?

I’ve talked about this in my other books, so I won’t dwell on it too much. I’ve discussed this fully in my Free Ebook, How To Know If Your Dreams Are God’s Dreams. (Grab it at www.BoSanchez.ph) But let me cover the main points here.

First Question: What do you love to do?

What’s the one thing that you do, that when you do it, you feel fire in your belly? What’s your passion? For example, as I write this book to you, I feel whole. Complete. In the zone. I believe I was born to write!

          However, this first question is only 80% accurate.

          Proof: Watch the auditions of American Idol. There are some people who love singing, who sing with passion, who sing like there was no more tomorrow—but whose voices can be used to torture terrorists to divulge where Osama Bin Ladin is hiding. As John Maxwell says, you’d wonder if they have any real friends. Why has no one told them that their singing voice can cause seizures?

          But more often than not, we excel in what we love to do, because we do it often and with passion.

          That’s why the Second Question is 100% accurate in discovering your Life Purpose: Where do you excel?

          God has given you a special gift that’s indelibly connected to your life purpose[1]. This is what I call God’s anointing in your life.

Make An Inventory Of Your Gifts

To help you discern your Life Purpose, list down your gifts and rate them from 1 to 10, with 10 being excellent.

Here’s my own inventory of talents:

o   Cooking: 1

I’d rather starve or eat raw, then cook. When I heat water, it disappears. Need I say more?

o   Fashion: 1

The only reason why I look presentable when I preach is because of my friend and top couturier, Adrian Panganiban, who dresses me up. Otherwise, I will wear teeshirts and sandals everywhere I go.

o   Mechanical: 1

When my wife asks me to fix things, I obliterate their existence from the face of the earth. Today, I’ve learned to fix anything with just one tool: The Telephone.

o   Dancing: -10

I tried. We had a concert where I had to take a few dance steps with the singers. But when I danced on stage, I was like a wooden stick suffering from epilepsy.

o   Athletics: 3

Do you know what PE I chose in High School? Chess. Do you know what PE I chose in College? Health Lectures. I remember that class so well. We were required to wear rubber shoes and do some stretching at the start of each class—and all we did was sit down and listen to lectures.

o   Spelling: 3

In a Spelling Exam, I once got 2 out of 20 items. As a kid, I think I was semi-dyslexic but it was never diagnosed.   Today, there are so many labels for kids who have a difficult time in school. “He’s got a learning disability” or “The boy has ADHD” or “She has dyslexia”. But back in my time, there were no such thing. I was simply called stupid.

o   Singing: 5

Yep, I have three music albums of all my original compositions. In total, I sold 6000 copies. But don’t be impressed. My mother bought half of them to give away to her friends.

o   Drawing: 5

I love to draw. At least my kids love my drawings.

o   Business: 5

I’m a late bloomer here. So far, my businesses are doing very well. But I know I’ve got a long way to grow.

o   Leadership: 7

I love leading people because leadership is all about loving relationships. But I’m a 7 because I need to learn so much more.

o   Writing and Preaching: 9

As you can see, this is my anointing. But I’m not a 10 because that would mean I have nothing to learn anymore. Would you believe that even if I’ve been preaching for 30 years, I’m still honing my craft, watching how other great preachers preach?

Be a Genius!

            Do you know why people are unsuccessful?

          Two reasons:

1.     They don’t know their anointing.

2.     Or they know their anointing, but don’t work on it.

I learned that there are two kinds of geniuses in this world.

First are the geniuses that win Trivia Game Shows, like “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?” That’s not want you want to be. This type of genius is good only for, well, Trivia Game Shows.

You want to be the second type of genius: These are people who focus their attention, time, and energy on one thing.

What’s your one thing?

In my own life, my “one thing” is communicating God’s love to others.

Today, I’m probably the highest paid corporate speaker in the country. When companies invite me to speak, I charge then an arm and a leg. I do this in part to raise money for our ministries. Just between you and me, these companies don’t know that if they only send their employees to our weekly prayer meetings called The Feast, they can hear me preach for free. (Shhh, don’t tell anyone I told you this.)

But the reason I can charge an arm and leg is because I’ve been speaking to crowds for the past 30 years.

Starting at age 13, I was preaching everywhere. All for free. I’d preach in schools, prisons, old folks homes, barrios, hospitals, and the slums. Even while I was studying in school, I’d preach nightly. Caloocan on Sundays, Alabang on Mondays, Cubao on Tuesdays, etc… On weekends, I’d preach in Laguna, La Union, Ilocos Sur…

In his book Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell talked about how successful people clocked in an average of 10,000 hours to their craft before they hit it big.

That’s me.

And that can be you too—if you focus your life on your anointing.

Follow Your Anointing

In the Bible, anointing was done for kings and prophets. They would pour a large amount of oil on the person’s head, indicating that he is totally set-aside for a specific purpose.

          Today, we associate anointing for religious professions only: For priests or pastors or preachers only.

I don’t believe in that. 

I believe God has anointed people to be entrepreneurs, to be bakers, to be chefs, to be beauticians, to be accountants, to be administrators, to be stock brokers, to be engineers, to be doctors, to be mothers, to be farmers…

This is how you are to serve others. 

This is how you are to bless the world.

Anointed For Business?

            Ed Silvoso, author of Anointed For Business, wrote how he was running three businesses and impacting the marketplace with God’s love. Many times, he would be an informal pastor to his business associates, bringing God’s Presence in smoke-filled rooms and parties. 

But church people looked down on his profession. They kept badgering him to become a pastor. They said, “When are you going to go into the ministry? You don’t live by faith but by sight. At work you hang around sinners, people who drink and smoke. You have a calling on your life. Don’t be rebellious. Leave everything and go into the ministry.”

Yet every time the church needed money, they would go to him!

Years later, he left his businesses and became a pastor. In the process, he decreased his income by 30 times. But he was doing it out of obedience to God.

Yet after a few years, a powerful revelation came to him. He realized that beneath all the shame was an authentic anointing from God to be a businessman.

Here’s what he learned: That the anointing of a businessman wasn’t lower than the anointing of a pastor. Both are necessary in the Kingdom of God.

I love that.

A Formula For Mediocrity & Success

            Let me tell you why many people live mediocre lives.

Because they put 80% of their attention, time, and energy on their weakness, and put 20% of their attention, time, and energy on developing their strengths.

If I take this approach, then I’ll enroll in Dancing lessons and Culinary Arts.

This is insane. Because no matter how much I study, I’ll never become a fantastic dancer or a world-class chef.

The formula for success is this:

First, forget your weakness. Delegate them. Outsource them. 

And then focus 80% of your attention, time, and energy on developing your strengths. Be the very best in this one thing.

And put the last 20% in developing new strengths. (For me, it’s running business and creating passive income.)

Today, I focus almost all my time in writing and preaching.

And I’ve tasted great success because of this sharp focus.

A flashlight and a laser are both made of the same element: Light. But a laser is a thousand times more powerful than a flashlight because it’s focused light. A flashlight is pretty harmless, but a laser can cut through the thickest steel.

When a person is focused on one thing, he becomes powerful too.

I’m A Preacher For The Marketplace

            After 30 years of preaching, I’ve become even more focused.

          And you should be too!

Today, I just don’t just have an anointing to preach. That’s too general.

          I’ve discovered that I have an anointing to preach to the Unchurched.

In other words, I have an anointing to communicate God’s love to outsiders. To people who aren’t religious. To people who don’t feel comfortable in church. To people who feel distant from God. To people who won’t go to prayer meetings.

One day, a woman came up to me and asked, “Bo, why don’t you preach more about doctrines? Why don’t you talk about the deeper spiritual truths?”

I smiled and said, “I love doctrines. There are wonderful priests who can explain them better than I do. Personally, I don’t think it’s my gift. I’m a layman, so I preach about the practical things of life. Like how to build a family, or how to handle money, or how to grow in your relationship with God as a lay person immersed in the world.

If you check my blog at www.BoSanchez.ph, you’ll read thousands of comments from my readers. Some of them say something like this: “I’m not a religious person, but I really like your articles.” Wow. When I read that, I know I’m hitting my gold. This is my anointing: To talk to those who aren’t religious.

          I’m anointed to preach not in Church—in the traditional sense of the word. Instead, I’m anointed to preach in the Marketplace. (By the way, I consider our prayer meeting, The Feast, a part of the Marketplace. Because The Feast is totally focused on outsiders, not insiders. We welcome everyone. We welcome all seekers. We welcome unbelievers, non-Christians, addicts, adulterers, alcoholics, prostitutes, and believe it or not, even corrupt government officials. We welcome all those who feel they are far from God.)

          This focusing on my life purpose has blessed me so much.

          My prayer for you: May you find your anointing and give your whole life to your anointing. And be very happy.

          May your dreams come true,

          Bo Sanchez

PS1. Expect Financial Blessings for your life! Join my TrulyRich Club and I’ll teach you the simple, powerful steps of how to receive more abundance. I’ll email you daily and ship you my teaching Audio CDs and DVDs. You’ll be blessed. Try it out for two months for FREE. Log on at www.TrulyRichClub.com now!

PS2. Attention: Youth and Yuppies who want to earn dollars through the internet.   My friend and Internet Guru, Jomar Hilario, will be giving an Internet Marketing Workshop for Youth and Yuppies on May 8 and 9, 2009. For more details, click here.

PS3. Do you want to start a small prayer meeting in your area? My friend Roy Pasimio, our Mission Director in the Light of Jesus, may be able to help you. If you live in Singapore, Malaysia, Ho Chi Minh-Vietnam, Bangkok-Thailand, Hongkong, Macau, Indonesia, South Korea, Brunei, Taiwan, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Dubai, and Qatar, email Roy at rmpasimio@hotmail.com.

PS4. Are you interested in homeschooling your child? We’ve been homeschooling for 4 years now and it’s one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. To learn if you can homeschool your child, log on at www.CatholicFilipinoAcademy.com now.

[1] 1 Peter 4:10 Just as each one has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of the varied grace of God.