Me

Hi! My name is Riza and… To keep your imagination from running amok, let me fill in on some things about mahself. I was born in 1981. (I wonder why I had to say that first. Haha.) I’m a follower of Jesus. If you haven’t met him, I’d love to introduce him to you. It’s hard to think of something to say that might not change in the next couple of months because apparently, nothing in my life has remained predictable for the past decade. But let me start with how I have a love-hate relationship with getting myself in trouble. I could think of a few things that make me feel most alive and one of them is getting myself in a crazy situation. I think life should be spent talking to strangers, or preaching in a classy cafe, or singing your heart out on a footbridge. I avoid awkward moments as much as I can but I crave having to risk losing my face for the sake of doing something radically right. The other thing that could change the color of the sky for me is music. The kind that makes one wanna rip your back skin and spread new wings. And then there’s children and the adorable things they do, like yawning or sucking or simply sleeping. And then there’s writing, stuff that feels like suddenly invisible things can be seen. At least for a moment, while your words are dancing like a paintbrush. And then there’s my lifelong dream of being part of a 24/7 house of prayer here in the Philippines. I want to see a prayer revolution where a people hungry for God would bring unceasing worship and praise to the King, creating a portal by which heaven would invade our mundane day to days. And then my other dreams would be to become an Olympic figure skater when I get to heaven. Because it’s a bit too late for that now. I also want to start a publishing ministry soon, one that would siege print media sector with Kingdom truth that sets people free. But all of the above can sound really absurd sometimes and I used to float with ideas of how to surpass my old self and change the world. But the more I grow old, the more I realize that at the end of the day, I just want to love God and my family more and more. And do crazy things on the side. Still pursue dreams. And most of all, keep running hard after God.