Ah yes, sure ako wala kang alam sa pinagsasasabi ko rito hahaha. Halika at alamin natin ano ba yung ginagawa para maging Konsagradong Layko. Pero bago yan, definition of terms muna tayo mula sa aking previous post. Pakibasa po muna para maintindihan nyo kung ano mababasa nyo rito sa post ko na ito:

Ang Lihim na Pagkatao ng mga Tulad ni Chin-Chin Gutierrez | God's Secret Agents Are Among Us (Part 1 of 3)

Ayan... so kapag alam nyo na yan ituloy ang pagbabasa neto. Ang post na ito ay Part 2 kung paano ba maging Konsagradong Layko. Di pa naman ako expert pero alam ko na ang mga sinulat ko rito ay kasama sa mga paraan para maging ganon dahil napagdaanan ko na ang lahat ng mga ito.

_{Lay people during their consecration ceremony: A man and a woman making their promises at different times and places. | (left image source) | (right image source)}

Hindi ko alam 'to dati, nalaman ko lang since nagbalikloob ako nung Lent 2023 up to now. Sure ako di mo rin alam na ito pala ang mga bagay na dapat alam na natin mula sa ating kabataan hanggang sa paglaki natin. Kaso kapag walang nagtuturo o di natin pinapansin e di ayun, nganga ang karamihan sa atin.

Ang Simula...

Usually nagsisimula itong pagbabagongbuhay kapag may naranasan tayong trahedya o mabigat na problema. Gaya ni Chin-Chin Gutierrez, nasunog po ang bahay ng angkan nila. Walang natira kaya naku dyan nagdagdagan ang kalbaryo nya sa buhay. Tas namatay pa nanay niya few weeks after nasunugan. Aray di ba???

_{house on fire | image source}

Pero minsan walang nangyayaring ganyan pero unti-unti lang magtataka ka "bakit ganito ganyan"? Hanggang sa ikaw na mismo di mo matiis na di malaman ang sagot kaya sa kakahanap mo e matutunan mo na ang maraming bagay tungkol sa Katolisismo, mga turo ni Lord at ng kanyang mga alagad. Magsisimula ka na rin magbago unti-unti patungo sa buhay na banal, ganun.

Sa akin naman nagsimula ito nung nalaman ko na bigla akong may sakit na malubha. Eiii hahaha. Kung di ako nagkasakit sigurado ako hindi ko maiisip magbalikloob sa Diyos. Kasi kapag bulag at bingi ka sa mortal na mga kasalanan mo wala ka talagang pakialam sa kaluluwa mo.

So anyway, after ng realizations natin mula sa mga nangyaring mabigat sa buhay o sa paghahanap natin ng mga sagot e paano ba natin ito kinakaharap?Bilang isang nasa tamang edad na dapat alam na natin mga ito pero kadalasan walang ideya sa prosesong ito ang karamihan sa atin. Sad 'no?'

So kailangan muna magsimula tayo sa basics hanggang sa mas matitinding gawain. Eto step-by-step based on my experience. (No hindi pa po ako Konsagradong Laiko.) Most likely this is how the process will go or pwede naman magkapalit-palit ng numbering o magkasabay-sabay kung anuman ang plano ni Lord sa buhay natin tsaka kung ano mga gawin natin.

Ready ka na malaman? Bago ka tumuloy sa pagbabasa, make sure nabasa na po muna yung Part 1 para maintindihan nyo mabuti ang mababasa nyo rito ha.

Ok... Lezgoooo eto na!!!

✅ Una: Magdasal Araw-araw.

Itanong kay Lord, "Ano po ba ang dapat kong gawin sa buhay ko?" or something similar. Ikaw bahala. Dapat nasa high school ka pa lang tinatanong mo na yan eh. Kaso sa pamilya namin dahil utak pagano e walang nagsabi sa'kin man lang kahit kamag-anak nganga hahaha. Kaya yan e tinatanong ko na rin kay Lord since last year lang yata. 😅

Basta manalangin ka sa Panginoon at humingi ng guidance palagi. Mas maganda magtanong sa Kanya pagkat masasabi nating, "Mas kilala Niya tayo ng mas maigi pa kesa sa ating mga ina." s us best, way better than our mothers". Siyempre pwede ka rin magtanong kay Mama Mary kung deboto ka naman niya.

Kasama na rito yung pagbisita kay Hesus sa adoration chapel. Hindi lang 5 minutong pagdarasal yan pero pwede ka magsimula sa maiksi hanggang kung kelan mo gusto bumabad.

Wala lang, chika-chika w/ the Lord lang. Shempre kelangan makinig ka rin sa sasabihin Niya. Opo ang Diyos po ay nangungusap sa atin, tayo lang yung mga bingi sa Kanya sa dami ng mortal na kasalanan natin at katigasan ng ating ulo.

_{(photo source)}

Si Chin-Chin yan din ang ginawa nung namatay ang ina. Aba'y siyempre masakit po maulila kaya kanino pa ba siya babaling kundi sa Diyos? May madreng nagbigay sa kanya ng imahe ni Our Lady of Lourdes at dun siya natauhan na ibinigay nga naman ni Hesus ang Kanyang Banal na Nanay para sa ating lahat. So ayun, nagdarasal na siya palagi mula noon. Ang pagluluksa niya ay idinaan niya sa panalangin.

👉 Pag sinabing "magdasal" ano ba ang intindi mo dyan?

Kapag nagdasal po tayo ibig sabihin kinakausap natin ang Panginoon. Yan po ang dahilan bakit nananalangin tayo. Dapat kausapin natin Siya sa magalang at mapagmahal na paraan. Kaso ang dami nating reklamo sa buhay nauuna yun lagi bago umayos pakikipag-usap natin eh. 😆

Again, ang pagdarasal = pakikipagusap sa Diyos.

Napakadali magdasal araw-araw. Basta magsimula ka kahit isang dasal man lang. O kaya tatlo; bago ka kumain magpasalamat ka muna sa Diyos. Dasal na yun! Pagkagising mo, "salamat Lord nagising po ako at ang sarap ng tulog ko." Easy di ba? Ano'ng mahirap sa pagdarasal?

Eto pa, kung gusto nyo matigil bangungot nyo dasalin ang Guardian Angel prayer bago matulog sa gabi. Napakaraming maiiksing dasal online maghanap ka n lng kung ano bet mo.

Isang dasal wala pang isang minuto, like Ama Namin o Aba Ginoong Maria. Kahit dagdagan mo pa ng Luwalhati di pa rin aabot ng 1 minuto. Kayang-kaya mo dasalin yan araw-araw, napakadaling gawin nyan, kahit batang maliit magagawa yan. Simulan mo na now ang pagkakaroon ng daily prayer habit. 🙂

👉 Kung gusto mo pa malaman tungkol sa pagdarasal, marami na ako nasulat tungkol dyan.

Feel free to read these and other writings I linked in them:

_{collage from my older post: 9 Movies Worth Watching this Christmas Season (or anytime actually)}

## ✅ Pangalawa: Kilalanin ang Banal na Santatlo. Andiyan ang Bibliya, Catechism of the Catholic Church (may Tagalog version nyan), mga libro tungkol sa buhay ng mga santo at mga sinulat nila, meron pa nga mga sine huy! May mga TV series pa!

Bible stories nagkalat na po online gamitin nyo ang search engines. May AI na nga rin haller gamitin mo panghanap ang dami mong makikita. Ang dami nang mga online content from mga pari at madre since nag-pandemic ano. Maghanap kasi kayo kung nahihiya kayo kumausap mismo ng pari, madre o katekista man lang.

Also kung everyday ka pa rin magdasal aside from pagkilala sa Diyos, eventually malalaman mo ang tamang discernment of spirits mula sa mga sinulat ng mga santo. Ang ilang halimbawa nito ay sina San Ignacio de Loyola (Spiritual Exercises) at San Francisco de Sales (Intro to the Devout Life).

^source

## ✅ Pangatlo: Magkumpisal ng Pangkalahatan at/o Magkumpisal ng Madalas Ito yung tinatawag sa Ingles na *General Confession*. Ginagawa ito ng mga Kristiyanong matagal nang di nagkukumpisal, mga taong gusto pa mapalapit sa Diyos o kaya ng mga pari at madre.

Maghanap ka muna ng Pagsusuri ng Budhi, magdasal ka then basahin mo. Ilista mo kung ano mga pinagsisisihan mo na mga kasalanan mo sa buong buhay mo tas saka ka magkumpisal. Ganern!!!

### 👉 Kung matagal ka nang di nagkukumpisal tas nag-General Confession ka, dapat magkumpisal ka na madalas. Depende sa kunsensya mo at kung ano sabihin ng pari sau. Pwede tayo magkumpisal kada Linggo, kada buwan o kaya dalawang beses kada buwan. Malalaman mo yan base sa mararamdaman mo after ng pagkukumpisal ng buong buhay mo.

Kung pinapansin mo ang estado ng kaluluwa mo, mase-sense mo kung kelangan mo na magkumpisal or tuwing kelan mo gagawin. Pwede mo rin itanong sa pari or kay Lord pag nagdasal ka.

👉 Kung mula pagkabata e nagkukumpisal ka na, maaari mo ring gawin ang General Confession.

Ang alam ko usually ginagawa lang yan pag papasok sa religious or priestly life ang isang tao. Pero shempre pwede pa rin ito gawin ng bawat isa sa atin basta kailangan humingi muna tayo ng payo mula sa parish priest or spiritual director.

Whether first time mo magkumpisal ng pangkalahatan o nagawa mo na ng ilang beses, ang pinakaimportante ay huwag iwasan ang pagkukumpisal.

May mga tanong ka ba? Para mas maintindihan ano ba ang Sakramento ng Pagbabalikloob at paano ito gawin, basahin po ang mga sinulat ko tungkol diyan:

Dahil humahaba na...

Puputulin ko muna dito ang mga steps para hindi masyado mahaba. Lalagyan ko pa ng translated version e di wow super haba na nito hahaha.

Abangan ang katuloy na iba pang steps pagkatapos niyan! Nabitin ka ba? Basta naka-follow ka sa'kin mababasa mo yung next na mga gagawin. hehe.

Pero aminin nyo, di nyo ginagawa yang tatlo di ba? Tatlo pa lang yan pa'no pa kaya yung mga susunod na sasabihin ko di ba? haha. Baka mas lalong wala kayong alam sa mga yun!

Karaniwan po kasi sa ating mga Katoliko na di ginagawa lahat yan. Nakakalungkot pero yan ang mapait na katotohanan. Kaya sana may natutunan ka sa pagbabasa mo nito.

May tanong ka ba? Nabasa mo na ba yung mga ni-link ko na ibang posts sa taas? Kung hindi pa rin, tara dasal muna tayo para ma-inspire ka na magbasa. Our Father... Hail Mary... Glory Be... 🙏

XOXO, @artgirl

ENGLISH VERSION

Ah yes, I'm sure you don't know what I'm talking about too. hahaha. Come and find out what being a Consecrated Lay Person is all about. But first, definition of terms is in my previous post. Kindly read it to understand more of what you will read here.:

Ang Lihim na Pagkatao ng mga Tulad ni Chin-Chin Gutierrez | God's Secret Agents Are Among Us (Part 1 of 3)

There... so if you have already read that, proceed in reading this. This post is Part 2 of how to become a Consecrated Layperson. I'm not an expert yet but I know that what I wrote here is part of how to become one because I've been through all of them.

_{Lay people during their consecration ceremony: A man and a woman making their promises at different times and places. | (left image source) | (right image source)}

I didn't know this before, I only found out since my spiritual renewal during Lent of 2023 up to now. I'm sure you don't know about these either. These are the things we should know in our youth and even into adulthood but when we're not taught such or never notice such things, well then we lose sight of many things in life.

How it Starts...

Usually this transformation begins when we experience a tragedy or a serious problem. Like Chin-Chin Gutierrez, their family's ancestral house burned down. Nothing was left, so that added to the ordeal in her life. Then her mother died a few weeks after the fire. Ouch, right???

_{house on fire | image source}

But sometimes nothing like that happens but you gradually wonder "why is this like this or that"? Until you yourself can't stand not knowing the answer anymore so when you find it you will learn many things about Catholicism, the teachings of Lord and his disciples. You will also start to change little by little towards a holy life.

For me, it started when I found out that I suddenly have a serious illness. Eiii hahaha. If I hadn't gotten sick, I'm sure I wouldn't have thought of turning to God. Because when you are blind and deaf due to your mortal sins, you really don't care about your soul.

So anyway, after our realizations from the difficult things that happened in life or when we search for answers, how do we face it? As someone of the right age, we should already know these things but most of us often have no idea about this process. Sad, right?'

So we need to start with the basics up to more "intense" activities. Here is the step-by-step based on my experience. (No, I am not a Consecrated Layperson yet.) Most likely this is how the process will go or we can alternate numbering or go at the same time depending on what the Lord has planned for our lives and what we will do.

Are you ready to learn? Before you continue reading, make sure you have read Part 1 first so that you can understand what you are about to read here.

Ok... Lezgoooo here we gooo!!!

✅ First: Pray Everyday.

Ask the Lord, "What should I do with my life?" or something similar. It's up to you. You should have been asking that when you were still in high school. However because in our family we have the pagan mindset, no one told me about this, not even my relatives, hahaha. That's why I've been finally asking the Lord that question i think since last year. 😅

Just pray to the Lord and ask for guidance always. It's better to ask Him because we can say, "God knows us best, way better than our mothers". Of course you can also ask Mama Mary if you are a devotee of her.

This includes visiting Jesus at the adoration chapel. It's not just a 5-minute prayer but you can start with a short one and stay as long as you want.

You know, just chit-chat and do small talk w/ the Lord. Of course you also need to listen to what He has to say. Yes, God also speaks to us, we are just the only ones who are deaf to Him because of our many mortal sins and our stubbornness.

_{(photo source)}

Chin-Chin did the same thing when her mother died. Of course, it's painful to be orphaned, so who else could she turn to but God? A religious sister gave her an image of Our Lady of Lourdes and that's when she realized that Jesus had indeed given His Blessed Mother to all of us. So, she has been praying constantly ever since. Ms. Gutierrez channeled her grief through prayer.

👉When we say "pray", what is your understanding of that?

When we pray, it means we are talking to the Lord. That's why we pray. We should talk to Him in a respectful and loving way. But the many complaints we have in life always come first before we can talk properly. 😆

Again, prayer = talking to God.

It's so easy to pray everyday. Just start with at least one prayer. Or three; before you eat, thank God first. That's prayer! When you wake up, "thank you Lord, I woke up and I had a good sleep." Easy, right? What's hard about praying?

Here's another one, if you want to stop your nightmares, pray the Guardian Angel prayer before going to bed at night. There are so many short prayers online, just search for what you like.

A prayer doesn't even take a minute, like Our Father or Hail Mary. Even if you add Glory Be, it still won't take 1 minute. You can easily pray that everyday, it's very easy to do, even a small child can do it. Start a daily prayer habit now. 🙂

👉 If you want to learn more about prayer I wrote several things on that.

Feel free to read these and other writings I linked in them:

_{collage from my older post: 9 Movies Worth Watching this Christmas Season (or anytime actually)}

## ✅ Second: Get to know the Holy Trinity. We have the Bible, the Catechism of the Catholic Church (translated in various languages), books about the lives of the saints and their writings, there are even movies! And TV series'!

Bible stories are already all over the internet, use search engines. There's even AI already, come on, if you use it to search you will find a lot. There is already plenty of online content from priests and nuns/sisters since the pandemic. Do a search if you are embarrassed to talk to a priest, nun or catechist in person.

Also if you still pray everyday aside from getting to know God, eventually you will know the correct discernment of spirits from the writings of the saints. Some examples of this are St. Ignatius of Loyola (Spiritual Exercises) and St. Francis de Sales (Intro to the Devout Life).

^source

✅ Third: Do a General Confession and/or Confess Often

This is done by Christians who have not confessed for a long time, people who still want to get closer to God or by priests and nuns.

First find an Examination of Conscience, pray then read it. List what sins you regret in your entire life and then confess. Just like that!!!

👉 If you have not confessed for a long time and you have made a General Confession, you should confess frequently.

This depends on your conscience and what the priest tells you. We can confess every week, every month or twice a month. You will know that based on how you feel after confessing your entire life.

If you pay attention to the state of your soul, you will be able to sense whether you need to confess or when should you do it. You can also ask the priest or the Lord when you pray.

👉 If you have been confessing since childhood, you can also do the General Confession.

As far as I know, it is usually only done when a person enters the religious or priestly life. But of course, each of us can still do it as long as we first seek advice from the parish priest or spiritual director.

Whether it is your first time confessing in general or you have done it several times, the most important thing is not to avoid confession.

Do you have any questions? To better understand what the Sacrament of Reconciliation is and how to do it, read my writings about it:

Because it's getting long...

I'll cut the steps here for now so it's not too long. I'll put a translated version so it's gonna be super long. hahaha.

Stay tuned for the rest of the steps after these! Are you hooked? As long as you follow my blog posts, you can read the next steps. hehe.

But admit it, you're not doing all those three, right? I've only written three for now, so what about the next ones I'm going to tell you? haha. Maybe you don't know about the other ones at all!

It's actually common for us Catholics not to do all of them. It's sad but that's the bitter truth. So I truly hope you learned something from reading this.

Do you have any questions? Have you read the other posts I linked above? If not, let's pray first so that you can be inspired to read. Our Father... Hail Mary... Glory Be... 🙏