Down the Easter road, we rediscover that we are God's BELOVED.

Chosen.
Blessed.
Broken.
And shared.

You have to let God own you first, and let Him bless you abundantly so that in your broken-ness, He may break you still and share you with others to become a witness of the love that has been there even before you had the desire to say 'Yes' to His invitation.

Even before I was born, You knew me and loved me already. You have chosen me as someone worthy of Your eternal and unfathomable love. You have seen me as someone unique and special, someone worth dying for. In time, I started to grow up and learn more about myself and the world. I made my own decisions about the paths I take in my life - some lead to You, but some bring me further away from You. Yet, despite all the wrong turns I take, Your voice always finds me and gently guides me to where I am meant to go. Despite my weaknesses and imperfections, You continue to choose to be beside me. You continue to choose me as Yours.

How great and magnanimous are You, O Lord. How overflowing and immensely rich is Your love for me. You embrace my whole wounded and scarred being, not asking me to be someone else, not asking me to change or be more. In Your eyes, I am enough.

I feel that I am unworthy of Your unconditional love, and though I am undeserving, You continue to shower me with an abundance of talents and gifts. You surround me with so much beauty and life. In every sunrise I see, every person I meet, in every tear I shed and in every smile I make, You are there, always reminding me of my being beloved. And for these and so much more, I am truly blessed.

The journey of life is never smooth and easy. There will always be times when I stumble and fall, times when I am wounded by others, or even by myself. In these times, it is so tempting to hide and cover all my scars, to run away from You and others, and to pretend that I can heal myself on my own. But often times, the further I run away from You, the more wounded I become, and the more lost I feel. There is so much pain and sorrow, so much anguish and hurt in being broken that words escape me, and I am left with nothing to do, but weep.

As I surrender and give in to my tears, as I start to allow myself to embrace my wounds and genuinely feel the pain of being broken, there I hear You call me and tell me that that I have nothing to fear, for I am in Your hands.

I am Your Beloved, Chosen, Blessed and Broken child. I am who I am because of You. All my talents and all my triumphs are all because of You, and I desire nothing more than to use them for Your greater glory, and to share myself with others in need of love and healing. There are times when I would feel small and inadequate about the things that I do. Teach me, Lord, to trust in You. Remind me always of how with You, my smallness, and brokenness, all my burdens and inhibitions can be transformed into miracles for other people. I surrender myself to You. Break me, and use me. Love through me.

The Easter Journey allows us to find hope and meaning in our daily lives. It reminds us of how God loves us unconditionally, and how, we ourselves are called to love as well. It gives us renewed life and an enthusiasm to start all over again, and to offer ourselves up to Him and to others. May this Easter experience allow us to see the world with new eyes, and may our lives be, always, a journey down the Easter Road.

Hangad's Down The Easter Road Concert was recorded last April 19, 2009 at Tanghalang Onofre Pagsanghan (Dulaang Sibol), Ateneo De Manila University.