Prior to Christmas, we have taught our kids that Christmas is not about receiving or even giving presents, its about a testament of God’s love by sending Jesus into our lives. Christmas is really about Christ and as parents we felt we needed to constantly remind them.

Jesus is the Lord of generosity too and I believe that whenever we are generous, it is an act of worship. We can teach kids to start being truly generous at an early age and after Christmas is a great way to do it. Usually, we teach our kids to give away old toys, stuff they don’t like to play with and after sometime of doing it, our kids find joy in giving away their old toys. Sometime ago, we slowly tried to teach them about sacrificial giving… generosity is not just about giving away things you don’t want anymore. We encouraged them start giving even new and unopened toys to bless others.

This morning, I got an sms from my mentor and dear friend Cito Beltran who is currently in Cagayan de Oro helping with relief operations. Cito asked me to create awareness in the viral world on sending toys and crafts to help relieve the affected children from a lot of stress. With a few text messages, posts in Facebook and Twitter, it was a joy to see people already responding. A short text message to my good buddy Paulo Tibig of V Cargo resulted to them agreeing to pick up and bring the toys and crafts to Cagayan de Oro and Iligan for Free!

Here’s what me and my kids got busy with earlier. We sorted out their new toys, mostly unopened still and I asked them the pray and seek what the Lord is telling them — if they want to give new toys and which of their new toys. My wife and I was overwhelmed when they wanted to give more than half of their new gifts. We also asked them to check their toys and start deciding which to give away. Again, we were delighted that our kids decided to give even toys they like to play with. At ages 9 and 6, it is such a blessing for parents like us to see how Jesus has touched their hearts and move in the spirit of generosity.

My boys story was picked up by Gerald Dela Pena of TV 5 and you can catch their short feature tomorrow (tuesday) at TV 5, 11:30am.

If you would like to move in generosity along with your children, please do so and send toys and crafts to the children of CDO and Iligan. Again, may we reiterate to send toys that are in good condition, not those that demean the dignity of our brothers and sisters. We suggest that you consolidate toys and crafts from your friends and family and V Cargo will pick them up for delivery to CDO and Iligan, free of charge. To arrange for pick up, please call or sms Nerz of V Cargo at 0927-7008059.

God bless you.

Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” - Matthew 19:14, NIV

A few weeks ago, I was part of a 1 day seminar called Mastering Wealth in Davao where I shared the stage with my esteemed colleagues and closest friends Paulo Tibig and Cito Beltran with Dennis Poliquit (Big Daddy Jake) as host. There were about 150 participants in the event and you can really sense that they have a lot of questions in their minds about many issues they are going through with. It’s a money seminar and we tried our best to be able to go beyond inspiring them, we tried to instruct them. Cito Beltran challenged the crowd into thinking strategically and that with the right perspective and coaxing, they themselves can find the answers to their questions. In typical Cito Beltran fashion, he was very bold and objective in pointing out how ineffective some of our actions are and provided practical solutions to overcome such. Cito harped on finding value in what we do and who we are. Cito Beltran narrated that “if manure has value (as an effective fertilizer) everything else in this planet has value”.   More of quotes I picked up from Cito Beltran during the event:

-          “Strategic mind is being purpose driven.”

-          “God is not whimsical, He is purpose-driven. God is the #1 strategist”.

-          “Not all opportunities are an obvious advantage, but some problems could create an advantage.”

-          “If you can’t take harsh criticism, you will never become good.”

-          “Evolution or Extinction: Repackage, Reinvent or Regret?”

-          “Redefine your roles, redefine your leadership.”

After Cito Beltran, my good friend and former co-worker Paulo Tibig educated the crowd on what an Entrepreneur should be doing. Paulo Tibig is the CEO of VCargo, one of the country’s largest logistics and cargo companies.  Paulo is also the current President of the Franchise Association (AFFI) among many of his other endeavors. Paulo was an employee that became an employer and has been tagged an ‘Entrep Champ’. A poster boy for Globe business, Paulo wowed the crowd with his practical steps to achieving success in business. There are 2 points that really struck me in Paulo Tibig’s lecture – 1) Expand on surplus and 2) Lifestyle check. He argued that many businessmen fail in this area causing their businesses and their lives a lot of ruin. Paulo inspired the crowd too by giving examples on how to convert crisis into cash. Paulo Tibig’s lecture was grounded on sound business theories and yet backed up by real personal experiences. After listening to Paulo, I was so inspired to jump into full-time entrepreneur mode… but no, we all have our places in the sun.

The Davao experience reinforced our desires to be able to empower as many Filipinos as we can, in the way we best can. Up next is my experience in Bacolod in part 2 of this blog.

* Special thanks to Joseph & Mike Doce, our partners in Davao.

Here’s your chance to be part of this event for free! All you need to do is post a comment in this entry as to how you can be benefited by attending the event plus posting a link of the event http://www.randelltiongson.com/wealth-summit-2011/ to your Facebook Wall and/or your blog site (if any).

There are 5 slots up for grabs, valued at P2,500.00 each.

Cito Beltran on Strategic Thinking; Phil. Star Columnist & leading corporate consultant

Chinkee Tan on Money Mindsets; Money Coach & best-selling author

Paulo Tibig on Entrepreneurship; CEO of VCargo & Entrepreneurship Champion

Randell Tiongson on Personal Finance; Director of the Registered Financial Planner Institute, columnist & trainer

Ms. Miriam Quiambao on Wealth Strategies; Successful real estate practitioner

To learn more about this event, please get in touch with Ms. Jen Magalong at 0939-1177856 or email at jcignacio.magalong@gmail.com

Features Chinkee Tan, Cito Beltran, Paulo Tibig, Randell Tiongson & Miriam Quiambao.

January 29, 2011 at Megatrade Hall, SM Megamall.

For inquiries, get in touch with Jen Magalong at jcignacio.magalong@gmail.com or 0939-1177856

If you believe that this program can help you, submit your comments and we will chose 5 individuals. P2,000 worth, Free!

Details of the program — http://www.randelltiongson.com/cito-beltran-changing-directions/

Little did I realize that my mentor was coaching me using the “Strategic Thinking” way. It’s been over half a year since that fateful moment in our lives and I am glad to say that our lives has never been the same and our future is so much brighter.

My mentor? Mr. Cito Beltran.

This is the story why we opted for other people to benefit from what my wife and I experienced. This is the main motivation why we are promoting the event “Changing Directions” with Cito Beltran. Listening to Cito teach us was a great moment in our lives, I am sure that the others who will do the same will come to the same realization as we did. Listening to him was one of the best things I did in my life.

August 21, Changing Directions with Cito Beltran is not just a good seminar – it will truly be a life-changing one. I personally guarantee it!

To learn more about the program, click here http://www.randelltiongson.com/cito-beltran-changing-directions/

STRATEGIC THINKING

Begins with identifying your purpose.  But what is your purpose or objective in your personal or corporate life?  Find out the answers through Strategic Thinking seminar with Mr. Cito Beltran.

What do I do?

Where am I now?

Where am I going?

How do I get there?

When will I get there?

What will it cost me?

Ø      What is the cost of changing personal or organizational direction?

Ø      Do I need to change direction?

Ø      Is the change acceptable? How do I sustain the attitude?