President Noynoy in Church - LIVE THE FULL LIFE

Who would have thought that one day, our church would be able to host and have the President as our guest. Today, it happened. It is amazing and surreal. President Noynoy joined Victory Greenhills and the other churches in Metro Manila to celebrate the 2012 Global Day of Prayer – the biggest prayer gathering in the world with over 200 countries coming together today to pray for the nation.

Privileged to be given the chance to lay hands and pray for the President.

President Noynoy gave a powerful speech on how prayer became a part of his life especially when the late senator Ninoy Aquino was in prison.

Here is a transcript of his speech this morning:

Speech
of
His Excellency Benigno S. Aquino III
President of the Philippines
At the 2012 Global Day of Prayer

[Delivered at V-Mall, San Juan, on May 26, 2012]

Kakaiba ho itong araw na ito. May bisita ho tayong dayuhan. Ingles po iyong talumpating hinanda. Ito na po.

The Presidency is a job that requires faith—faith that you can make a difference; faith in the people who work for you, and in the people you work for; and faith in yourself, and in God, especially during the lonely hours of decision making, when it is your decisions that will decide the future of millions of Filipinos. Thanks to the strength I gather from prayer, and the support of my countrymen, I am here, faithfully fulfilling the responsibilities of my office.

I assume this is true for most of us here. Whenever we face challenges in our lives, we take some time off our schedules to sit down and pray—to remind ourselves of what’s important—of why we are here—and to find meaning in what we are doing.

Prayer holds a quality that strengthens our resolve. When my father was imprisoned, our family gathered every day at exactly 8 in the evening to pray: my father, solitary in his prison cell, and the rest of our family at our home. Somehow, it helped us to get through those very difficult times, when hope seemed to be almost forlorn. Our prayers breached physical barriers, and allowed us to be united as one family, at least once a day.

Today, we invoke that same power of prayer to unify—to remind us that despite some gaps in geography, or perhaps even some gaps in age—we are all brothers and sisters in our faith. In prayer, we acknowledge our humble origins as humans—whatever our status in society might be. In prayer, we are reminded that we are not soulless actors or automatons, but fellowmen, working together towards each other’s benefit. We are reminded of our responsibility to each other—of God’s infinite compassion, and of our task to live by His example.

Filipinos are known all over the world for our faith, but, especially now, we are also becoming known for our initiative to change our own lives for the better. After all, prayer is not simply about trusting in God’s divine providence; it is also about letting His divine providence work through us.

Let us remember that we are always in the presence of God. This is a reminder that can guide us not just in the way we pray, but in the way we live each moment of our lives. It can guide all of us—from the government official who faces temptations to abuse his power for personal gain, to the young child quietly considering whether or not to donate his toys to less fortunate children during Christmas.

Thus is the power of prayer: it is a noble reminder of the value of humanity. It allows our spiritual lives to permeate our day-to-day tasks, and, in doing so, we are able to become instruments of God’s will that can change society for the better.

Just as prayer and faith were able to unite my family during the darkest chapter of our lives, may it unite and strengthen all of us who have joined this Global Day of Prayer. Let us remember that the strength we gain from prayer is not individual strength; it is a strength that has roots from God, and from the people around us. And thus: it is this strength we can rely on as we move forward along the straight path—towards better lives for our countrymen and of those in the world, but also towards a closer, more prosperous, and more peaceful world.

Thank you. God bless all of you; and God bless the Philippines.

I want to honor the different bishops and pastors who attended the meeting and is working on the unity of the body of Christ to usher in the revival we all have been praying for. It is high time we come together as one and pray. Also I want to give the biggest shout out to our administrative in Victory Greenhills for doing an awesome job!!!

Here is the video of President Pnoy’s speech: