Happy Easter! – PINS OF LIGHT

Thank you so much for this experience. God bless everyone behind this beautiful retreat. Thanks so much, Fr. J, hope you are always well, keep your light shining!

Thank you, Fr. Johnny and the Pins of Light team. What a fantastic gift you are for us all <3 Thank you for spreading the love and blessings, and may it come back to you a thousandfold!

Thank you Fr. Johnny and the entire team of Pins of Light. This was truly a treasured moment of quiet and reflection that I didn’t realize I needed so badly with the busy-ness of life. This Holy Week felt like a reconnection not just a recollection especially as last year, Holy Monday, we lost our Tatay amidst the very strict COVID lockdown so I felt that Holy week passed by like a haze as I was overcome by grief. But a year has passed and as a family we’ve had our moments of just pulling through our very sad, broken road and truly it has been so many people praying for us and praying with us that has given us hope.

So despite the loss, that will never leave my heart, I know the Lord will always walk with me.

The Lord will bless my broken heart as I walk my broken roads. Thank you, Fr J and your team for this online retreat.

The first time I attended this in 2020, I shared one of the songs (Not While I’m Around) from the retreat to my cousin who was suffering from covid and was about to be intubated. Sadly, my cousin didn’t make it, but I take consolation in my belief that my cousin has gone home to God.

After my reflection on Day 1 Holy Thursday, I went to Mass. During the adoration until midnight, the image of sheep and wolves came to me. Jesus fed both His sheep and wolves at Last Supper. That turned out to be one of the points on Day 2 Good Friday – the sheep in wolves’ clothing. Thank you, Fr. That was affirming and challenging me at the same time. God bless you and your team for giving us this gift. Happy Easter. From us in Kuching.

Broken roads, trials, time of uncertainty may be short, they may be long, they may feel like small bumps, they may feel devastating…

As difficult as it may seem (most specially in the hardest and darkest of times), try to see the light…the goodness…the seemingly littlest of blessings…pray (harder) and look for the Lord…the acknowledgement of even the smallest of gifts will help in giving one the strength to take one more step…to move on for another day…and another…and another…and look forward with hope. These steps we take are not just for our sakes, but also for those we hold dear…our family, our friends…as we also somehow guide them or influence them to be closer to God…Be thankful…be strong in Faith…Keep your eyes open…keep your heart open much more…and always keep walking.

Happy Easter to all…Many many thanks for this opportunity to take part in this retreat…from our family (who all participated here!) to all of you…

God bless.

,,,this last day of the retreat is icing on my Easter cake,,,my Easter day ends with a smile and so much hope because of it…thank you Fr Johnny for guiding me through the ‘hunt’ for Easter 🙂

Thank you Father Johnny for this year’s wonderful retreat. It has been an eye opener for me. I will definitely want to keep my eyes open afor me to experience my own Easter each and every time I come to a cross road. Sometimes THE LORD is probably in front of me already and I still miss him as I look down instead of raising my head and open up. I know he always blesses my broken road leading me straight to Him. 💜💜💜🙏🙏

Stay well and may God continue to bless you with great health.

Thank you, Fr. J, for this incredible experience! I’ve been doing the Pins of Light Lenten retreat for several years now, and this precious time spent with fellow pilgrims, each coping with his or her own cross but also with more than enough strength to reach out to and encourage others, is something that I need to “recharge” for the rest of the year.

God bless you!

Press on, hang on and continue the journey even when all seems so unfulfilling and dry…Thank you, Fr J for the 3 days Retreat and may I recognise that the risen Lord is walking with me.

Thank you for this opportunity to have this retreat after such a long time. I feel blessed and assured that no matter how broken I am feeling right now I have a faithful God, that in this broken road that I am right now all that I should do is to continue to trust and believe that He is still here with me guiding me through my journey of achieving the desires of my heart. I pray for continuous guidance, protection and blessings for my family and all my loved ones and a special intention for my kids to have a personal relationship with you Lord most esp my son. Please show, lead and guide him to the right path. Please be with them always. Thank you so much for your unconditional love!

😊

Thank you Lord Jesus for this time with YOU. Thank you for the broken roads in my life that help me build my relationship with You. This retreat reminded me to always seek You first and spend time with You. Thank you for reminding me that with You, nothing is impossible. Thank you also for the gift of the Holy Spirit and the charisms You have gifted me to give to others. Use me Lord Jesus, use me to do Your will. I love you Lord!

Thank you Lord for the gift of this retreat. I have crossed so many broken roads and I thank You for them because it brought me closer to You. I love you with all my heart. I welcome more broken roads if it be your will and because it will lead me closer to You, my loving God. I entrust to you all my loved ones and all retreatants.

thank you for this inspiring and spirit-filled online retreat.

God bless you father and your team.

For some of us, the journey to Emmaus continues. But, as Easter people, we are hopeful. This song, THE MORNING AFTER sung by Maureen McGovern, says it all: https://youtu.be/fQtbBugPbSc

Thank you Fr. J and Pins of Light Team! Happy Easter everyone!

When I recalled one of my “Broken roads”, it made me realized that it was God’s plan for it to happen and He led me to my own personal Easter. On this retreat I was able to forgive the person who caused my “Broken road”.

Thank you again Fr. J and POL team! God bless us all!

A Blessed Easter to all!
Thank you so much for this retreat. It was indeed an eye opening of sorts. It’s the first time i attended this retreat and i liked its format, especially the part that we could participate in our own time and pacing. Hope to be invited again next year. Thank you again and God bless.

Thank you, Fr. Johnny for speaking God’s word to me.

This online retreat led me to recall & reflect on how God has worked in my life. I remembered 2 dead ends that left me with questions. Answers have been there but ‘my eyes were not opened.’

A significant Bible verse & strong message for me — Jeremiah 29
‘For I know well the plans I have in mind for you. Plans for your welfare not for woe, plans to give you a future full of hope. When you call Me, when you go to pray to Me, I will hear you, I will change your lot.’

Happy Easter!

Thank you, Fr. Johnny and everyone involved in making this Holy Week online retreat. I’m so thankful to have discovered this a few years ago and I look forward to this every year. I deeply appreciate how the Pins of Light Holy Week retreats are easily accessible to anyone anywhere in the world, can be done at our own pace, and are filled with inspiration and intelligence. I am always uplifted and enlightened because of the personal touch and the profound knowledge shared by Fr. Johnny. Happy Easter to everyone, and may we always find hope and companionship as we walk along our broken roads.

Thank you, Father J for another meaningful retreat. After seeing your post surgery picture, it was a stark reminder and realization, that each of us has a plight of our own. Each of us is going through something and has experienced a loss or two. A reminder to myself that I am not the only one on a certain ‘road’, broken or not … God bless, everyone and Happy Easter!

Thank you so very much for this retreat Fr Johnny & your assistants in putting it together. This retreat is very different from those I have attended, it’s really a breath of fresh spirited air! It has helped me to trace my past broken path & to allow me to see where Jesus was then & to hear Him clearly now & to see how close he was walking with me then. He also led me to pray to Mother Mary. My broken path has a new resurfacing & I can continue on it with a New Spirit in Him who loves me. Thank you Jesus & dearest Mother Mary for always there for me! Happy Easter everyone.

I am most grateful for the stillness that this exercise has provided me. It allowed me to pause and let the grace of our Lord enter and stay in my heart, so much so that i found myself in tears, and I thank you for this.

There were no big and giant revelations but just a gentle assurance from the Lord that He is control. The road that He leads me to is His road and that everything will be alright.

Thank you and Happy Easter!

Thank so much for this retreat Fr. Johnny. It was a memorable and moat insightful one I had in years.

I will Start opening myself more to others and to sharing God’s word and what I learned. I realize that I still hold back initiating especially tonthose who need it most.

I will try to “Stop” doubting every challenge that I encounter. I will remember the line “God blessed the broken road” because he does. I have seen it many times but I tend to forget.

I Continue to work on my faith and my relationship with the Lord.

God bless you more.

A blessed Easter father Johnny and Pins of Light Community. It’s always been an eye opener everytime I join your online retreat. Like the rest of us, I have always trusted in the Lord to see us through. God bless everyone. 🙏

saga(d)na

Yung akala mo sagad na…pero sagana pa rin pala! Hope against hope.

Salamat, Fr Johnny and Pins of Light! Yakap at dasal!

Thank you Fr. Johnny and to your staff for another wonderful experience. I was worried for I did the retreat hurriedly in the first two days. This was typical of my days since the pandemic started. There was no time to feel given my heavy workload. I met targets and impressed my colleagues but at the expense of my mental health. I’m still on the broken road but the third day of the retreat opened my eyes that God has always been there, keeping me safe from the pandemic. I’m grateful for my husband who looks after the mental well-being of our family. The daily online Masses have also been my source of strength. This retreat is a great reminder for me to slow down and focus more on my well-being. I also realized that I need to rebuild personal bridges to reach out to my family and friends. I’m praying that all Filipinos help build a bridge to help each one recover from the pandemic and grow together as one. Happy Easter to everyone!

The most valuable blessing in this retreat was taking more time to read the messages especially on the last day. I hope to be less negative and more hopeful because of these. It is true what someone said before, “Patience is tested in difficult times while attitude in good times.”

Thank you again Fr. Johnny for this retreat. May you be in good health and live a long and fulfilling life. Thank you to all participants for sharing much of yourselves. I related with many of the experiences and i am filled with hope of better roads from a broken one. May all of us continue to feel blessed with our faithful hearts.

Grateful for the gift of being able to share this with my husband, and for the even greater gift of being him being able to appreciate and enjoy the retreat as much as I did!!!!

A blessed Easter to everyone! Thank you Fr. J and the Pins of Light online community for this very inspiring, Spirit-filled Triduum retreat, which allowed me to reflect on where I am in my life and in my relationship with the Lord. This gave me the time to look back and see how the broken roads in my life had led me to God’s gracious plans for me, in many ways far beyond my imagining. This retreat also awakened me to show more love and compassion to the people around me and to never give up hope when times look so bleak.

I look forward to more retreats! God bless us all!

Blessed easter to all.
I’m new here, but thank-you for the journey over the last few days.
It’s been quite impactful and a much enjoyed learning experience.
Thank-you to the creators!

Happy Easter Father J and fellow retreatants! Thank you again for another great series of reflections: In essence, I picked up the following insights (and hopefully the graces to attempt to do so)
Holy Thursday / Good Friday – Extending invitations to others and breaking divisions between us.
Black Sat / Easter – Avoiding being too absorbed in times of difficulty and knowing that God is continuously here.

Thank you Father J, for giving your time and talent to create this online retreat. Since 2017, I never miss out to do your DIY Lenten Retreat, and became much more excited when you conducted a virtual Zoom retreat last year. This is one of the things I thank for the power of technology, and also being used into good and productive use.

Anticipating for next year’s retreat Fr., (hoping na once mag conduct po kayo ng limited F2F retreat in the future). Also kudos to your editing team for the graphics, videos and songs 👍🏼👏

Thank you very much, Fr. J and Pins of Light Community. Last year’s retreat via zoom was my first and it was unforgettable.
Thank you for this DIY retreat 2022. I look forward to 2023.
Tears is a gift I am always grateful of – it cleanses, eases and comforts. Like the rain that falls to the ground for its purpose, my tears fell and as it dried, I realize the Glory of God’s resurrection!
Happy Easter, Fr. J, Pins of Light and my fellow retreatants.

Off to a new start and keeping my eyes and heart open to my own Easter appearances! Happy Easter!

Amen!!

Thank you Fr J!

I realized that I should soldier on and not give up on my husband and our daughters
even if they deliberately or unintentionally hurt me.
I should forgive,
forgive and forgive them and continue to love them,
warts and all.
I should also forgive myself for
my limitations.
I continue to pray that our good Lord will heal me of my illnesses to be able to still be with my family
esp my teenage daughters. May they be healed too of our family conflicts. May our family live together again soon in joy,
love, peace and harmony.
May my husband finally
surrenders his life to Jesus, and not realy on his “intelligence and wealth”. In my depression, may I steer my family towards God, His mercy & compassion.
Amen 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼

Happy Easter Father J & fellow
pilgrims! 🙏🏼💓🤗🌸

Once again you have been God’s mouthpiece to us through your Holy Week Retreats/Lenten Recollections.

Thursday – it was about extending the invitation to OTHERS.
Friday – Love.
Saturday/Sunday – Broken roads can lead us to Easter appearances.

My journey from grief to glory has added another step towards glory.

I will stop to not invite those who are difficult/betray me (family, work, friends, etc). I will continue to love and not give up when I encounter broken roads.

I will build bridges through my ministry (education/sports).

Happy Easter!

Thank You, Lord, for shedding light on my broken parts ; helping me come to terms with them; and to hold Me with loving patience. Thank You for showing me how.
I wait patiently for the detour – or the prompting to build a new road or bridge.

Thank you, Fr. J and Pins of Light team, for never growing weary in helping to light up the Broken Road and being Jesus to us in our journey back to Jerusalem.

#KapitLang #TiwalaLang

The blessing is finding a chance to articulate the things I didn’t want to think about anymore but need to.

But the best part is praying about them and praying for others too.

This retreat is a much needed light and guide in the broken road I’m treading. I keep looking for excuses to not attend my Bible study group. I keep thinking I am hypocritical because I have too many questions. But the road to Emmaus reminds me that Jesus comes in the person I least expect. That I need to keep an open door to God’s plan, no matter how scary I think it may be. And if I keep adding guests to the table, then I can continue to act, because if I forgive myself, I can forgive others and continue to walk. Continue to act, and just do.

Thank you for this retreat!

Thank you, Fr Johnny! I have been a fan of your Holy Week retreats. This has become my yearly quiet and quality time with the Lord. All your messages are very timely and really speak to me. It never fails to make me cry. Thank you again and may God bless us all.

Dear Lord,
Thank you for accompanying me in this retreat. I couldn’t focus at all, so many distractions, I kept thinking about my mom. But I made it to the end, with your help. Thank you for never leaving my side.

I don’t know what to do now that my mom is gone. I’m all alone now, in this city I can’t even explore much due to the pandemic. But I thank you for giving me kind and understanding neighbors. Please continue to protect me by bringing the best people who will be understanding, supportive, protective, kind and wise. Please help us develop a good relationship so we can support each other when times are tough.

Thank you for giving my mom a chance to enjoy our new home for a few months before she died.

Please help me forgive everyone who hurt me and my family. Please help me forgive myself for not always being able to take care of my mom the way she deserved. Please tell her I was only mad because she didn’t make me sleep at all. I never would’ve left her, even if I said so in a moment of anger. I hope she knows I would’ve taken care of her even if it killed me.

Right now, I feel so lost. I know I’m finally free of the responsibilities of being a breadwinner and carer, I’m supposed to feel free to do what I want to do… but the money is all outgoing now. Please bless my job hunting efforts and plans to put up a small business, not only so I could support myself but also provide employment for my very loyal handyman and the cleaning lady who helps me out once or twice a week.
Thank you that my business partner is still around to brainstorm with me even if he decided to return to Korea and not pursue our business ideas.

Please help me focus more on getting to know you rather than thinking of the painful past. Even if I can’t go back to being as happy and innocent as I was when I was young, please soften my hard heart and show me that there are still good people in the world I can trust.

Please keep me in good health so I can take care of my furry pets, my only family now. Please keep them in good health so we can maximize our time together.

Please keep me safe and protected from all possible evil events at home and outside.

Please bless all of the participants in this retreat and Fr. Johnny and the Pins of Light team.

I totally surrender my broken life and broken road to you. Please heal it, renew it and make it better. Please give me hope that I can build a life that will make me happy, productive and at peace while honoring my family. May it be a life that you will also be happy with because you’ve already suffered so much.

Thank you, Lord. Please stay with me and always protect me. I trust in your goodness and mercy.

Amen.

Thank you For. J for this Holy week retreat 🙏💖🙏 It really is a blessing from the Lord as He reminds us of His unfailing constant Love for us…makes me cry and overwhelmed every time I ponder about His Love … Thank you Thank you Thank you Lord…Happy Easter everyone! God bless you 💖💖💖

For all my “broken roads,” i am reminded of this exhortation and which i always claim and confess when feeling boxed in: “I am not moved by what i see, what i hear or what i feel; but i keep my eyes focused on my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ Who alone is my Rock, my Refuge snd my Strength.”

🙏🏼💓🙏🏼🤗🌸

Happy Easter Fr. Johnny, to your staff and to everyone who joined this retreat! I’m so grateful for having you journeying with me for the past 3 days. The way each day moved me was really a wonderful experience of connecting to our Lord. It was as if He was so near, so close as He opened not only my mind but my heart as well.
I hope and I pray that I may be able to build bridges or take detours whenever life seems broken or reaches a dead end. I hope to keep the faith, by God’s loving grace.

This retreat caught me where I am after a year with a lot of challenges and putting myself to address everything in the best way I knew and can. The three days were me-time and self-care for myself. It also validated my feelings over things and my experiences. I thought at first it was bad because my feelings were unpleasant ones. They were my realities.

The retreat inputs and reflection exercises put me back in perspective and I continue to HOPE and find God in all things/experiences new.

Gratitude to everyone in Pins of Light. Prayers for all too! Thank you.

Thank you very much to the team of pinsoflight. It has been more or less 10 years since i have done these wonderful retreats with you. I remember the very first time I did, it was by chance that I stumbled on your site. God knew I needed it so much as I was awaiting for some medical results and thank God he has been most faithful in answering my prayers right after, up till now and I pray most faithfully, in the decades to come.

I am so grateful (I dont know though if my observation is correct) that on the 2nd day of this retreat, i noticed that there were no longer posts re God Bless this and that politician. I was mightily relieved as I have to admit i was skimming along already, very much turned off and was praying to just keep moving on… I thank you for the sensitivities if indeed, my observation is correct.

God bless you and all you do… and I pray that you continue this effort to give us a most meaningful retreat, something to truly look forward, too.

The songs and reflections are truly from up above.

Thank you Fr Johnny and to your team. This is my first time to join your online lenten retreat and I would say the 3-day retreat journey is my road to Emmaus. My heart burns reading the passages, scriptures, listening to the songs, and reflecting on the questions. It affirms that with Jesus, there are no dead ends and broken roads but only detours and new paths. Jesus is truly the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Again, thank you, thank you, and thank you Fr. Johnny from my heart. You are God send. May the Risen Lord bless you abundantly in your works.

Truly, I find the Lord most especially when I journey in the broken parts of the road of life. We face challenges and hardships. The past two years have been most trying for many of us. But these past two years also drew us closer to God, feeling his presence in our lives, filling our hearts with love and mercy in ways never experienced before. Despite the closure of churches, He found His way to our homes and in the darkest of places.

Thank you Lord for always being there for us, in the darkest of moments leading us towards the light. As we end this pandemic and face new challenges anew, we continue to seek you to grant us the strength, the wisdom and the faith to carry on.

What a wonderful thought knowing there is always Easter Morn!

I pray that I may continue to open my heart to God in all the ways that He reaches out to me – the little “coincidences” that the cynic in my can quickly brush off may actually “little Easters” of the Lord blessing me with his presence. Even, and especially, during the most hopeless of times, may we never close our hearts to God.

I pray that I may not lose HOPE in instances when what lies ahead seems to be unknown. I pray that Filipinos start realizing the it is through the genuine and sincere LOVE of our Motherland that we will be able to move forward as a nation.

Thank you very much, Fr. Johnny for guiding us once again in this journey.

Happy Easter to all.

💓💓💓

HAPPY EASTER, EVERYONE! 🥳✨🙏🏼

Blessed and grateful to have journeyed with you all. Thank you po, Fr. Johnny, for never tiring to say yes in being God’s intrument. May He bless you more and praying for your full healing po!

Thank You very much for everything and welcome back, my Jesus, my Savior ✨ No one knows my heart like You do, and You know well how it cries hard in desperation for You. I’m sorry po talaga if I haven’t been 100% committed to my Lenten practices and fast, for the times I got so distracted during prayer and even while doing this retreat. I fail in so many ways yet You always reassure me of Your love. Lalo pa ngayong Easter, each pain and suffering You endured was for me, for us. Salamat po sa lahat, Panginoon ko at Diyos ko. Haaaay all the glory are Yours, forever and ever! 🙏🏼

Looking back on my personal journey these past three days, this is what grabs me:
I heard the cry of Jesus before he breathed his last, FOR THE FIRST TIME.
I have looked at Jesus on the cross countless times. Have read the passages on His passion and death as well. Watched movies of the crucifixion….
But I had never heard His cry till yesterday.
How many other cries have I not heard? Or heard but ignored? Or even mocked as fake?
And how many cries have I stifled and swallowed? Because I was ashamed? Or did not want to burden others? Or felt it would be so humiliating?
I need to reflect on this more.

MAY YOU BE BLESSED EVEN MORE, FR. JOHNNY AND P.O.L TEAM!
This is probably my 8th? 9th? 10th? year of doing this online retreat and you are indeed a Godsend, Fr. J! (Your song Out of Roads has likewise resonated with me over the years, especially during my darkest moments.)

To hope against all hope. Despite Covid. Despite Ukraine. Despite Sri Lanka. Despite the Philippines. Because God is an Easter God, of detours and of new beginnings.

Thank you Fr J and to your team. Praying for everybody here. May we all traverse our roads with joyful and grateful hearts. God bless.

Nais kong ibahagi sa pagtatapos ng Online Retreat na ito ang awiting “Constant Change,” na inawit ni Jose Mari Chan.

Sa lahat ng patuloy na sumusubaybay sa espiritwal na gawaing ito, hayaan nating istorbohin tayo ng Diyos paminsan-minsan sa ating mga paglalakbay o di kaya’y mga nakasanayang pamumuhay, dahil Siya ang Diyos ng oportunidad na magbibigay sa atin ng “change of heart” upang muling magmahal.

AMEN.

Broken roads are mere detours. When we think we’ve run out of roads, BELIEVE that a new path will be shown to us. I just need to pause, listen, and see. Thanks 🙏 Fr. Johnny. ❤️

Blessed Easter Fr. Johnny and to all. After this retreat, I am reminded once again of God’s mercy, infinite goodness and love. To continue to hope and find life beautiful despite sadness, illness and failures.

Thank you very much for the 3 day online do it yourself retreat, Fr. Johnny. I am blessed with new revelations, nuggets of wisdom by the help of the Holy spirit & warmed & enlighten my heart & soul.

Thank you Father for such a wonderful retreat again this year! I am also one of the regulars, and each year I am always blessed with the reflections in the online retreat. Today especially, I was so overcome with emotion I actually cried. Thank you so much for reminding me that hope in God never fails, that even when all seems dark God’s light will always shine through. (As a side note, I can really relate to what you said about the current political rallies–the hope and goodness I see in everyone is so inspiring! For so long we’ve had to face only despair, and it’s so invigorating to see all these examples of kindness and solidarity in everyone.) Because of this retreat, I will continue to pray harder even when all hope seems lost because the truth is, hope is NEVER lost. God is always with us, and even the broken roads we travel on he has blessed and will surely lead us to Him.

Have a blessed Easter Sunday Father, and all the participants of the retreat!

Salamat Fr Johnny and POL Team. even online -it is equally meaningful and relevant. It helped me reaffirm that there is a detour in a broken road-continue to go on. A Blessed Easter!

Thank you Fr. J.
I am keeping this paragraph. Lets keep our flames burning no matter how small, lets keep hoping that what Easter people do, lets find the path or build the path ourselves – to our dreams.

“Easter stretches our vision to see beyond what lies only immediately before us. When there is darkness around us, we should keep our flames burning, even when it’s but a flicker; when there is absolutely no apparent reason to hope, we need to do our best to hope against hope; and when there seems to be no path forward, we look for a path–or if necessary, build one.”

Happy Easter, Fr. Johnny and Pins of Light team! May our Risen Lord continue to bring us hope amidst the uncertainties and fears around us. May the light of God continue to shine through the cracks of the broken roads we tread. 🙏🏼 All will be well 😇

“ God blessed the broken road and led me straight to you…” this is really true. Moments in my life of ups and downs, I believe in the end, God led me to the right place, right decision at the right time. Believe and have that trust in Him. In the end, it will turn out ok.
Walk in Faith through this journey of life, as God holds my hand, I will be fine.

We are all journeying together on a broken road. Thank you for allowing me to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Sometimes we take so many, many things for granted and we must always open our eyes to the shining way to God. Thank you for this retreat. 🙏🏻

I think the thing I learned most is that whatever is going with me.. the storms in my head.. is just me walking the road to Emmaus, and dwelling too much on my worries to see the signs on the road. Easter is right there in front of me – in front of us – and we just have to look up and open our eyes. I do agree that there is something to find and cherish in all our brokenness… all it takes are the eyes of faith to make them appear. Thank you as always, padre and to the team behind POL. You are actually some of these “signs on the road” personified. 🙂 To all those who read this, I’ll be praying for all of us. Happy Easter!

This retreat reminded me that The Lord will always be with me – on the hills and in the valleys of my life. And I thank the broken road led me to Jesus.

Today is also the feast day of St. Bernadette of Soubirous. I want to share her prayer that I received from a co-prayer warrior this morning:
“Grow, Jesus, grow in me, in my heart, in my spirit, my imagination, my senses, by Your Modesty, Your Purity, Your Humility, Your Zeal, Your Love. Grow with Your Grace, Your Light, Your Peace. Grow despite my resistance, my pride.”
-St. Bernadette Soubirous

Lord, as we await Your Glorious Resurrection with joyful anticipation, please “plant” this prayer deep in our hearts—deeper than our pride. Live in our hearts, root out ALL our imperfections…& purify us. Amen.”

Many thanks again, Fr. Johnny, for this Lenten retreat that I always find so meaningful🙏 I always grapple with the “sharing” part, being a very shy person. But I did it! Hallelujah and a Blessed Easter to you and your PinsofLight staff🤗

Thank you Fr. Johnny and team for another wonderful Lenten recollection. My main takeaway from this retreat is the overwhelming gratefulness I experienced during my last dinner. I also learned I should open my table again to a sibling who has distanced himself. Lastly, from one sharing, where the broken roads are Filipinos who continuously choose the wrong people, I am reminded to not lose hope. They are just misled and/or misguided but they remain the same mabait, matulungin, always smiling Filipinos that are worth fighting for.

Thank you Fr. Johnny for the grace of your Holy Week retreats. God bless you and the organizers.

Happy Easter and thank you as always, Fr. Johnny and team 💙 I am praying for a detour in this broken road in my life.

I Thank you from the bottom of my heart. This retreat was a huge help for me. This made me realize that I am only on a detour and I need to keep my fire blazing. I pray for everyone that they could reflect well and strengthen their faith.

Thank you, Fr. J and team. You’ve been a blessing to many of us. This is my fifth year and I’ve always had deep encounters with the Lord each retreat. I must say that this retreat seems to be cut out of me. This shorter retreat is a reminder that God knows what I need and gives that to me. I have been very tired and really needed to rest and get some sleep. I also have so much to do as I sort the stuff left behind by my nanay who passed in December.

One of the biggest take-aways for me is the reminder that growth happens in broken places, that broken roads are detours, not deadends. No matter how the May elections turn out, I will count on my Easter spirit.

Thank you, Fr. Johnny, and thank you, everyone, for letting me sit at your table. This has been my first POL retreat and it has made me see my life under a different light, with everyone’s sharing. Happy Easter!

I am blessed to encounter the Lord in this 3-day retreat. Truly, the Holy Spirit works in mysterious ways. I can relate well to the story of Road to Emmaus. Same feeling of sadness, despair , lost, displaced, no purpose when my father passed away. I immersed myself to despair and came to my realization after deeply reflecting that I might already missing Easter. But, thank God gratefully that I was enlightened and I can say that after going through this retreat there was a hope and joy burning in my heart and I can deeply feel that the Risen Lord is approaching. I want to stop immersing myself to despair , I want to continue listening to my God, seeking Him and start opening my eyes to the new path He will be showing me. Thank you, Fr. J for being an instrument of God’s love , hope and joy! Have a joyful Easter.

I pray we may all find the hope we seek.

Thank you always Fr J and team.
As i continue to look up and around in my own road to Emmaus i will also strive harder to also be available to help and comfort my patients in their own medical journey.
May God bless you always as you continue to be a blessing to us……

Thank you once again Fr. J for this enlightening lenten online retreat. I have been doing this for several years now and I never fail to learn some new insights from you about the Scriptures and from fellow retreatants about their personal experiences.
One thing that struck me this time is to continue HOPING amidst the hopelessness around me. I would continue to hope that my son will stop with his vices, my parents will continue to enjoy good health, and my family will stay safe and healthy. I would continue to hope for world peace and for our country’s bright future.

As always, Pins of Light has alwats been a spiritual treat to me. Thank you to a very good friend who introduced POL to me.
Praying for you, Fr J. Thank you for your gift of story telling.
Because of this retreat, I promise to be more grateful to God through my neighbors.
God bless.
That very good friend also gave me one of your books! Ang galing!
Story teller ka po talaga, and your stories want me to be a better person, always.
Salamat po ulit, Fr J.

Broken Roads doesn’t stop us towards our destination.
And GOD is with us always. Take time to listen.
He will help us to build a bridge if the road is broken.

Sincerest Thanks Fr J-
IT’s my third year with Pins Of Light.
It has Been very helpful .

ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT. On this third day of the retreat, God assured me I’m still in his radar, he hasn’t changed his plans for me and that I need to keep trusting and looking for a way through. It’s quite amusing to realise (made my frustrated and grouchy initially) that the past 3 days of not being able to participate in the Lenten liturgy because I’m minding my special needs nephew is part of God’s design to prepare to me for my work with them. I had started making other plans — my U turn, thank God for that arrested development! This is my Easter story, Hallelujah to the Lord! This is my first online retreat with Fr J. and I look forward to more. God bless you, Fr J. and fellow retreatants. Will remember your intentions were n prayer🙏🏼🙏🏼

Thank you Fr Johnny for your insights . You always concretize our human struggle, what we are currently undergoing and the anxiety we feel. Doing the retreat at our own pace allowed me to really quiet down over the last 3 days. There was adequate time for introspection and to review what has occurred in my life and you presented a viable framework to handle and analyze these setbacks. Looking at them as detours was new for me, as was the idea of inviting persecutors and enemies to my last supper! That Jesus is always there for us gives us much HOPE.
Happy Easter, Fr Johnny and all my co-retreatants

Dear Fr. J.
I have been a fan and have been attending your retreats online every holy week. Now, me and husband joined your retreat this year. It’s the first time that both of us went thru the retreat. And we had lots of realizations and lessons
We pray that the Lord will continue to use you as an instrument to inspire and touch others in the retreats that you make. May the Lord bless you with good health and abundance so that you can inspire and touch people’s lives more. God Bless you always 🙂🙂🙂 Sending our love and prayers from Cebu

Thank you, Lord, for reminding me that You are always there beside me as I travel through life; that I should not lose hope when things don’t go my way or when it seems all hope is lost because You will be there; that I sense You are there and should accept the path You show me instead of ignoring You and insist on going my way; and that I just have to do everything I can and, if You had meant it for me, it will be mine, and if I don’t get it, You had reserved something better for me.

Happy Easter, Father Johnny !

My Easter Prayer:
Lord, I seek You in my broken life.
I know it is not too late to find you.
May I see you in the signs, hear you in your whispers, see you in the Northern Stars that you send my way, discern you in Your Word so that I may finally find my way straight to you.

Someone who is in a rut tells me that if I pray for patience, God bombards me with situations where I can practise being patient. If I pray for courage, God bombards me with situations where I can practise being courageous. This outlook scares me because this constant bombardment might blast me to pieces.

The message Jesus tells me on this Holy Week retreat is, “No, I won’t bombard you with situations. That’s not how I operate. Just hold my hand and let’s continue the journey.”

Yes, I will hold Jesus’ hand and he will help me build the bridges. Happy Easter!

Broken moments are indeed grace-filled moments. I shall continue my journey along broken roads and make detours whenever they are necessary.

A joyous Easter season to all!

Thank you Father Johnny for another wonderful Holy Week Retreat! This retreat has always been a pitstop for personal prayer and reflection as I journey on my own bumpy, broken road. I guess we’re not broken or lost people- we’re just being guided by God to better paths.

Will be praying for everyone who “attended” the retreat, God bless you all!

Thank you Fr. J for always bringing forth a new perspective on the Holy Week Experience. This is only my 2nd year to attend your retreats but the takeaways and insights abound. You and your ministry is a blessing to us all. Thank you..

I think I have been a regular since POL started and it has always been my Holy Week tradition. Thank you so much Fr. J, this year’s has been especially hard-hitting. Here’s praying that the heart aches turn into heart-burns that reveal God’s love. 💕

This retreat is indeed a Godsend, a much needed balm & refreshment for my extremely battered heart. My takeaway is beauty from ashes – that God uses all our broken pieces to make something beautiful. But we need to humbly surrender them to Him, lay them at the foot of His cross, in order for Him to “fix or mend” what was once thought of as unredeemable or impossible. Because nothing or no one is ever too broken or unworthy for His loving arms to reach & hold.

Whatever grace I received in this retreat, I wilingly share it with all of you, my fellow pilgrims. We may be strangers to each other but with the Lord beside us, I realize that there is no great distance between my heart and yours. Peace, love & light to all of you!

Lastly, my gratefulness to you, dear Fr. J and to your team. Continued prayers for your wellness, and more grace for your wonderful ministry. God bless and keep you always.

Thank you, Fr. Johnny. Going through the online retreat provided me the much needed time to reconnect with God. This exercise made by Holy Week more meaningful and blessed. Happy Easter to all!

Thank you so much for this online retreat. It helped me hang on to the fact that even if the road I’m traveling is broken or still unknown, I am never alone. I’ll continue to keep on taking steps into the light.

First of all, Happy Easter to everyone.

Secondly, thank you Fr Johnny and the entire POL Team for making this annual Holy Week Retreat available for all those interested. It really hits the spot each time.

Finally, the take aways.

I believe that God is ever with us and that He never will leave us. Although we may experience pain, hurt, betrayal or what, I believe that these things were meant to happen. It’s all part of His plan for us. As Jeremiah 29:10 says, “I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you HOPE and a future.” In His time, all shall be well.

For the wolves in sheep’s clothing, wolves will be wolves but as we remain His sheep, we shall keep moving forward following what He wants us to do. in His time, all will work out.

Let us pray for our country esp this coming May election. May we elect candidates who are servant leaders and who will put the interest of the Philippines and the Filipino first.

Thank you for this oppotunity.

Now I am hoping for the end of my broken road. Happy Easter to all.

Thank you for this wonderful retreat, Fr. Johnny and POL team!

Am blessed to attend this for the first time and inspired to lengthen the table while traveling the road with wonderful strangers finding happiness in doing good.

Thankful also to fellow travelers who shared compelling posts that will help guide the way in our own roads. Prayers to all!

Thank you, Fr Johnny, for this annual retreat.
Through the years, and through you, I have been able to find and keep God in the torn and broken places of my life/ my heart.
These last three holy weeks, especially because of the pandemic, I wasn’t able to go on retreat physically. The online retreats with you have sustained me. The pandemic did not stop the appearance of newer and deeper breaks and tears in my life and in my heart. But unceasing prayer and seeking of love in God and other people have helped me find hope and joy in my brokenness.
Salamat po! Huwag po magsawa ! See you again and again.

Thank you Lord, for reminding us this Holy Week, to seek you even in the most broken places and even among the most broken in us. Thank You for reminding us that nothing separates us from Your love. Your love penetrates in everything, even in the most darkest corners of our hearts, illuminating them and springing forth new life. As we go back to our regular lives starting next week, may we never fail to seek You in our daily dealings, to seek for ‘heart-burning’ moments even in the most unexpected moments and to always open the eyes of our hearts for our private Easter moments. Thank you Lord Jesus for the gift of Your life and Your love to us, from Your body and blood, Your cross and to Your resurrection. Thank you Lord God. Thank you Lord Jesus. Thank you Holy Spirit. Amen.

Thank you for reminding me that though I am on a broken road right now, I have to look out for Jesus and for my private Easter-there is hope. Jesus is here on the road with me.

Lord God, please open our eyes that we may see Your presence in our lives, no matter the situation we’re in. But most especially when we experience sadness, bitterness, hardships, and spiritual dryness, open our eyes that we may feel Your presence and continue to believe that You will never abandon your children. Amen

I’m truly grateful for being a part of this group that nourishes my longing for a deeper encounter with the Lord especially during this pandemic which I thought during the first lockdown would hinder us from attending recollections and even annual retreats.
Really, our Lord is a God of surprises and His plans are so strange to my plans that at times I find it difficult to understand. These only teach me that I should entrust myself totally to His Divine Will.
“Lord, I know that in spite of my being stubborn, my so unfaithful to you, You never abandon me, Your graces are sufficient enough for me rise up and follow the road you walked thru. Thank you for your infinite love manifested thru your ministers and other people whom I encountered in my journey. I pray for them that they too, live a holy life. Thank your for the Blessed Virgin Mary your Mother , who is also my loving mother and is always at my side. Thank you for this community, headed by Fr. Johnny that they may continue to reach out to many people who needed spiritual guidance. I also pray for their good health of mind and body and holiness of life. I entrust to you all the retreatants and unite their prayers and intentions together with my brokenness in union with your victory over death. Deo Gratias et Maria.

Thank you again Fr and the pins of light team! The insights of this retreat should be part of a continuing journey… love the my own and the others’ brokenness. and hope that this brokenness would soon be healed! Till next year 🙂

Thank you Fr. Johnny and may all of us in this faith community have a truly blessed Easter!

From this retreat, I am grateful fo the graces of encouragement and renewed strength to continue my journey with the Lord – responding to His call for me to serve others and strive for inclusive love. I am able to overcome all fears and trials because by Jesus’ loving sacrifice, I am never separated from God, for eternity.

Thank you for this retreat, Fr. Johnny, and especially for this third day. This morning I had a fortuitous conversation with a fellow-lector at our church. We were to practice reading the readings for the Eater vigil and we happened to sit next to each other. She was many years younger than me and we hardly knew anything about each other. Our conversation led us to talking about our teaching experiences. I teach college students part-time, while she teaches at a city science high school. Going through the Emmaus story on this third day of the retreat reminded me of how that conversation turned out to be a surprisingly hope-filled one. It consoled me that despite the sorry state of public education in the country and the seemingly imminent dark future the nation faces, there are these dedicated and generous teachers like her who continue to give their best because they love their students. The seeds of hope are everywhere.

Thanks again, Fr Johnny and PoL team!
It gives me hope that I am not walking on a broken road alone and little by little I know that our Lord will bless me with the healing that I need. Losing a loved one unexpectedly, with no goodbyes whatsoever, is truly heartbreaking.

Maraming salamat po, Fr J and to all in the POL family ❤️
Kakaibang experience po ito and I am truly grateful.
Prayers work 🙏
Blessed Easter 🐣

my recent broken road has truly led me to Him. I understood this better after this retreat. This retreat will change my life. How? I am not sure but I am sure it will. Thank you Fr. Johnny.

Thank you Fr J and staff for this retreat. It is good to know im not alone in this journey of life, esp in that broken road, that I have found a family, to share it with, even fleetingly.
Praying for all of us here and hope to participate again in the next Lenten retreat.

Not broken roads but bridges. This retreat has affirmed what has been reflected to me in many many ways. I was led to a detour to make me grow in faith, love, patients and character. And in so doing, I feel like I am walking towards Him on my Road to Emmaues. It’s not the rocky road imagine (based on the topography of the area
as I saw on Google). It rather scenic, sometimes circular but it changes and challenging, where the weather changes all the time. I never felt abandoned by God, maybe because of my Catholic upbringing but largely because it is and was during my most trying times that He makes his presence most felt. And for that I am touched and grateful.

Dearest Jesus,
I praise and give thanks for the invaluable insight of
Finding You in the torn and broken places of my own life.
Thank for finding us and always being found where we are.
Fill us with hope.
Do bless our broken roads.

Thank you once again for this wonderful triduum online retreat, Fr. J and the pinsoflight team1
Always strikes a chord and bring me to tears. 😍😇💕

Thank you Fr. Johnny and the Pins of Light team!

The Lord reminded me to love just as He loved. In the midst of our trials and difficulties, He is always with us. Let us seek His presence always. Thank you Lord. We praise you.

Happy Easter everyone. God bless.

We will never fully know Jesus, and how great his love is for us, if we will keep looking for him in the people, events, and places we usually find him in. So…
Are we uncomfortable now? He must be here.
Are we broken? He must be here.
Are we insecure? He must be here.
Are we surrounded by our enemies? He must be here.

If life gets too hard and our HOPE is not enough to keep us walking, we can then walk with FAITH/belief that he has never left us. And if our faith runs out too, we can just be still… and his LOVE will find us. He will adjust to reach out to us on the road we want to stay on. Our hearts will then burn with an intense desire to follow him even on a redirected path. And maybe on this unusual path (world), we get to know an unusual side of Jesus he’s been wanting to reveal to us, still for our own good.

It’s good to know that im not alone I this Lenten journey. There’s the Pin of Light staff and Fr J, who i’m so grateful with, the participants, but most of all our Lord who is forever with us, with me, especially in that broken road.
Im praying for all of us here in the family of Pins of Light, that we may continue to journey together in the weekly One Minute homily and the future Lenten retreat. God bless us all.

I’m still on the broken road waiting to reach the end of the unsettling condition of cancer. I’m not despairing though as I’ve found Jesus on the way in the form of family, friends, and colleagues who are praying for me and giving financial and emotional support. I could not thank the Lord enough for the graces He poured on me and my family. I continue to pray for complete healing and recovery. My God is bigger than this cancer. Amen. 🙏🙏🙏

Thank You, Fr. Johnny for journeying with us in this profound experience with our Lord Jesus Christ. My heart is filled with gratitude. 💕

The most striking part of the retreat for me was choosing “the playlist of my life”. I spent a lot of time for that. It made me realize good and precious memories, as well as my vocation. Coming to the message of today which was the broken road, I reflected again on the time in my life where I really had a broken road and the journey that I had taken right until now. How God used all these circumstances in my life to mold me for the vocation He calls me to do. And like Jesus, I’d like to say “yes” to this vocation which the Lord calls me to take. The journey is still a long way off. My road to Emaus might take years to reach its end, but knowing that Jesus is there accompanying me, guiding me and keeping the fire of hope burning in my heart, I know I will one day reach my destination.

Thank you Fr. Johnny and to the Pins of Light team! God bless you and Happy Easter to all!

Thank you Lord. You have blessed me with so much. Thank you for staying by my side, no matter how many times I’ve sinned or fallen short or felt so alone and broken. I hope I can be more steadfast in believing and spreading your love and light, even to my ‘enemies’. Please continue to guide us all, everyone who’s in their broken roads, lead us to the path of healing and strength.

Thank you Fr. J for this DIY retreat! This is one of most meaningful Holy Week experiences I’ve had. My heart is full and I look forward to the next.

Thank you as well to those who have shared their personal prayers and experiences. You have moved me and opened my heart. I will continue to put you in my thoughts and prayers.

Happy Easter everyone!

Na-blessed nanaman po ako ng retreat na ito. Thank you so much Fr.J 🙂

The greatest blessing I received this Holy Week is having the courage to reconnect and forgive the people who have hurt me. I tried walking out of their lives but realized that they are also important in my life.

Thank you Fr. Johnny for another fruitful and blessed Holy Week retreat.

God bless and thank you, Father Johnny! Praise God for another meaningful online retreat thru Pins of Light ❤️i have been utterly broken and confused the past years, but the inspiration/messages received in this retreat were reassuring and affirming. Looking forward to move ahead to welcome the Risen Christ in every moment of my life, and to see His face in the most broken situations I may find myself in. Praying for you and my fellow retreatants! Advance Happy Easter po!

God is always near to the broken hearted.

You always have a way to ease the burden that many of your participants experience. Thank you for paving the way for me to realize that there is much, much more to look forward to and not be stuck with the broken road I travel right now. God works in me through you!❤️

Thanks to the organizers esp our retreat master. What an eye opener for this Holy Week. The veil has been torn for us and the stranger is no longer a stranger but is the answer to our broken roads. The Easter is truly hope for me and our beloved country. Thank you. Truly many insights to remember and bring along in my journey.
Happy Easter to all!!!

Thank you Fr J, it was such an inspiring and insightful journey truly life changing experience thank you so much
God bless

Holy Father, thank you for this retreat of the past 3 days. Bless Fr. Johnny who has helped guide in this retreat. Bless my fellow retreatants & myself Your continued guidance & protection.
I now realize that the broken roads we travel are nothing compared to the road our Lord Jesus travelled to Calvary. He will always be there for us. We just have to look & ask for His help.
Give us also the resolve to be forgiving & to see the sheep in wolves clothing.

My greatest blessing is knowing I am not alone in this broken road, and that, with even smallest of efforts, it will be worth walking on until the destiny is reached.

I will continue sharing my thoughts about this election. I’ve voted, and I’ve posted it for all to see. I hope even among a few, I can convert to the Good and bring Easter to many more.

Thank you Fr. Johnny, I’ve been a regular since a few years. I feel renewed each and every single time after. God bless you and the entire Pins of Light Community!

Thank you Father Johnny. I have been doing online retreat like forever. And it’s something I truly look forward to when Holy Week comes. And it never fails, Father Johnny. It always hits the spot. I find all the lessons and messages fitting to the situation I am in that very moment. Thank you. I asked the Lord to talk to me, I need Him now, and I just heard from Him through this retreat. I’m still hurt, so much, that I’m not sure I am strong enough to carry out what God had told me here. But I will try. Thank you and Blessed Easter to you and to everyone.💕

Thank you for the realizations that imperfection, frailty, and pain notwithstanding, God will always be with us. The least I can do to honor him is to forgive, and to get rid of any negativity in my heart. Thanks again to Fr. Johnny and the Pins of Light team.
BTW, here’s another lovely version of that final song by a favorite group of mine, Home Free: https://youtu.be/3wGB7SXThFQ

So blessed and grateful for the online retreat this year. It’s full of affirmations from the Lord.. constant reminders for me to keep going, be life-giving and prepare for soul-stretching adventures as I journey with Jesus daily. Thankful for this morning I was able to catch the beauty of sunrise in the serene beach with company of dear loved ones… affirmations of hope and healing as I choose to grow, encounter and embrace the love of Christ in the here and now & for eternity. Thank you, Fr Johnny & team. Sending peace & love to all. Happy Easter!

To the afmin of PINS OF LIGHT, thank you very much for the 3-day online Holy Week retreat you have provided us. God bless and more power. 😇🙏💟

Thank you Fr.Johnny. It is my first time to do this DIY with you and your team. I am truly blessed. From here on, I look forward to the stranger God sends and the bridges I could build. Life is still a long journey. We have many Lents still ahead, but the promise of Easter keeps us living. Thank you Lord for the grace to see you in every valleys and for lifting me up.

Thank you Fr. Johnny and your team for another fruitful,enriching, inspiring and motivating 3 day lenten retreat. Praying for your complete recovery. GOD bless all of you in all your humble works.

I realized that even through my darkest hours in my life… God has been with me… all through out… that’s why I’m still here… alive and kicking…

So as i go through another chapter of my life… whatever the road will be… whether bright or broken, I am assured of the Easter message that God will be beside me, every step of the way…And I know he won’t be hard to find… 😉🙏

Happy Easter!🐣🐇🐰

I realized that God is in control of my life. That whatever situation I’m am in now is a message from God that He is bigger than my problems, that He is preparing me for something great and that He will not allow me to stay in the dark.

Thank you for this online retreat. It helped me focus my attention qto God and not be weakened by my personal struggles.

God has certainly blessed my very broken road, and what I’ve learned is that God’s love and peace are there regardless of our circumstances. We need to pray for the faith to love and trust in return, regardless of what is happening in our lives, because good or bad, God is there. His message is love. Choose what is loving and life-giving to others, is the way to live through our brokenness. Of course it isn’t easy, which is why we need to constantly pray for strength and enlightenment. Learning to put these things in God’s hands (where they belong) and live in love regardless can make our brokenness blessed and beautiful. Happy Easter, everyone!

Thank you Fr.Johnny and POL team for this soul-enriching retreat. A blessed Easter!🙏

One of my key takeaways: when you feel lost walking through your broken road, remember the stranger in Emmaus, and watch out for moments when your heart burns. For that is a sign of the Risen Lord approaching.

Beautiful retreat! Thank you Fr. Johnny!

Thank you Fr. J and to your POL team. It’s my first time to do DIY on line retreat. I had some hesitations but I’m glad that I did it. I will certainly prepare longer table for my last supper. Just like many others this pandemic has been challenging for me. I know I’m treading the broken road and I can’t seem to get out of it. With today’s readings, I am ready to create new paths and or build a bridges. Happy Easter to all of us.

From my wounded and hoping heart I thank you so much Fr. J for this beautiful retreat. 💕
I love this interactive retreat I shared many comments. It was an eye opener again for me. A precious reminder. You helped me set aside my shyness. The most valuable experience I had was sharing my brokenness which is just within my personal relationship. I intend to mend it to help me set up a most genuine truthful facade. I will stop being judgemental, critical, and be more appreciative, loving, patient, cheering up most especially those closest to me. Jesus teaches us to live the true life intended by God for us. Then death, we could view more as a transition to the eternal life with God.
Thanks so much for all the meaningful songs. You have such a gift for spotting the right songs, even the right movies, to explain, to enlighten, to engage and I find that a very worthwhile exercise to keep.
Thank you so much for your Easter gifts. 🌅🙏💕

Thank you so much Fr Johnny and the Pins of Light Staff. Your online retreats have always touched the core. I love how you take the “other view point” …soul stretching as He wants us to do…making the Triduum …. Special Time with Him! Thank you. God Bless you!

My take away from this retreat is this: That once you commit yourself to the Lord, He is faithful to you. That even if you become overwhelmed by weakness and despair He keeps you close to fortify you yet again. Thank you, Lord, for being faithful to me, despite and in spite of my so many imperfections and weaknesses. Thank you so much for pulling me back and pulling me through that difficult surgery I had last year. Something that was beset with difficulties yet once I ‘yielded’ to you, the road to the surgery and beyond, was not that stony nor broken. I will remain ‘hopeful’ Lord. Thank You for loving me.

“Others who broke my heart, they were like Northern stars,
Pointing me on my way into your loving arms.”

This is how God blesses the “Broken Roads” of our lives.

Thank you for making my own Easter a new morning to wake up with!!

💙💙💙

I can’t wait for that moment when my heart will burn.

Happy Easter, everyone! Thanks once again for a graced and blessed retreat, Fr J and your team!

Happy Easter my fellow retreatants! Thank you for your sharing.

Thank you Fr. Johnny and Pins of Light Team, this online retreat is such a wonderful blessing.

My take-aways:
I am ending my term of office soon and thank the Lord for giving me the strength to complete it.
I am waiting on the Lord for my next assignment.
But I understand that given my seniority, I should help him tend the flock. Let people know that they are loved, accepted, respected, seen, heard and supported so that they too will find the strength to help out in the Lord’s work.

Maraming salamat muli 🙂

I have never attended on online retreat and went into it with some degree of doubt as to its “effectiveness.” Still I was invited by a friend and truly the Holy Spirit works in mysterious ways. I’d like to thank Fr J and the team for this retreat and the insights from all the fellow participants were quite eye opening and filled my spirit.

I am quite afraid of being vulnerable and have built a wall around myself to prevent real intimacy. Yet, reading from everyone’s sharings, I see my struggles in everyone else’s and can relate . It gives me more courage to reveal more of myself . I know the challenge being asked is how to love fully and unconditionally. I know before I get there or get anywhere close to it, I need to remove these blockages that have closed my heart .
It is not something I can achieve by myself but only through the grace of God.

So this Easter I am saying Yes to taking out all these obstacles that hinders me from being able to give and receive love. I pray for courage to walk this path and stay the course.

Thank you for this wonderful time of reflection! I’m in the process of getting rid of an unhealthy obsession! I think I’ve found a way to do it. This special time shone a light on my selfish self, and what i can do about it!

I join you all in thanking God for the love with which God holds and heals us all – in which we uniquely experience anew in this online Easter Triduum Retreat. We also thank God for the gift that Fr J, and the Pins of Light Team are to us and in generously sharing this beautifully prepared online soul resource for us all. May the fruits of this retreat spill over to people that needed these too, elsewhere in the world.

Thank you so much for this on-line retreat. What an eye opener. The long last supper table shouldn’t be only for our last supper, because we never know when that will be, but I realized that it should be a daily long supper table. And the broken road must be tread with Our Lord at my side all the time and with Mama Mary and St. Joseph holding my hand

Like the the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, we also have our own expectations about Jesus / God – how he should respond to our needs / petitions, how he should act, etc. We become disappointed, frustrated or lose hope when God doesn’t answer us as we expect him to.

“Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us …” Listening to Jesus / The Word of God is the key to having an intimate relationship with Jesus, understanding ourselves and God’s will for us. Listening to him is how we can learn to love him more deeply.

As Pope Francis said, “Holy Week is not so much a time of sorrow, but rather a time to enter into Christ’s way of thinking and acting. It is a time of grace given us by the Lord so that we can move beyond a dull or mechanical way of living our faith, and instead open the doors of our hearts.”

Thank you vey much Fr. Johnny and the Pins of Light team!

Happy Easter Everyone! God bless! Alleluia!

Salamat po Fr Johnny at sa buong team
.Extra effort para mas makapagnilay sa Kuwaresma.

I am a regular retreatant of POL. Once again, THANK YOU Fr. J and team!
This year’s POL retreat has given me more courage to journey even to torn and broken places where more often than not I find God walking with me. God bless everyone.

Thank you Lord for always being me through all of my life’s detours. I know that it is because you are beside me every step of the way that I manage to take each step forward. Please continue to help me build the bridges in the upcoming detours. You alone are the one I turn to.

Thank you for this retreat.

This retreat invited me to forgiveness. ❤️

Thank you for continuously giving this online retreat. It has given me a time for reflection . God has be so magnanimous and has been blessing us continuously. I will continue to praise and worship Him in good times and bad times. God is our hope and He will be the only one I will call everytime I feel down. Thank you Fr. For your sharing your thoughts with us and this 3 day retreat. May God continue to bless you more.

Detours! Sometimes, it is the path God really prepared for us. At this stage of my life, I can truly say, God’s plan is the best. For the younger generations, be patient and wait for the Lord. Let us fix our gaze on Jesus and hold His hand especially at difficult moments. He will show the way. We can trust Him, because He has LOVED us until the end.

Thank you, Fr. J and team. Been attending since 2012 and it never fails to touch my heart and bring me healing. God bless you and thank you, all the retreatants who shared and made our retreat more meaningful and connected. God bless everyone and have a life-changing EASTER!

Prior to beginning this retreat, I was gifted by our Lord during my Holy Wednesday night prayer of what I should start doing and that is to seriously tread the path of self-love or self-care once and for all. It has been the root of all my inner struggles, including that of my faith in God. I should stop “crucifying” myself for every negative and uncomfortable thought and feeling. My takeaway from this retreat is a reminder for me to always keep the door open for God to enter since He wants to all this time and I just am keeping the door slightly ajar because I feel undeserving of His unconditional love. I have walked through broken roads and felt God with me all the way, so working on loving myself is the only way now to keep that door wide open for God – that despite my feeling inadequate and underserving, He still wants to enter and embrace me fully. I just have to learn to stretch my arms to Him to feel and give back that love. So here I am, starting on the path of self-love, of becoming whole and courageous, in order to be able to open the door wide open and reciprocate love to our Lord. I’m brimming with hope actually. Easter is just really around the corner.

Once again thank you Fr J & POL Team…it has been a fulfilling retreat – despite broken roads around us – Pandemic still, War in Ukraine, Uncertainty of our Elections… indeed you gave us HOPE to look forward to our private Easter & rejoice in it bec Jesus never left us alone in these broken roads-ever‼️
Fr J , I am just a number among your followers/retreatants/Sunday seekers~ but i really prayed very hard for you when i heard about your brain surgery & He answered my (our) Prayers ‼️🙏 Isnt that awesome, He made sure we would have this Holy Week Retreat again👏
Thank you & will continue praying for you~ more Blessings 🙏

Thank you Fr Johnny and your team for this 3day online retreat! Your use of music, songs with prayers and your own reflections helped me in my own retreat.
My take away for this 3rd and final day —-
As we journey thru our lives, we will always encounter a broken road, and when this happens (again and again), may we recognize Jesus like the 2 men in Emmaus, to relive our own private Easters (again and again).

Happy Easter!

Day 1 : the word that came to mind to describe my life was “blessed” and lines from the song The Journey ” what a journey it has been and the end is not in sight, but the stars are our tonight and they’re bound to light my way” affirmed this because I knew God put the stars there!
Day 2 : Jesus said “yes” and ‘the veil was torn’ affirmed again how blessed I am. My contemplative spirituality (when my family was charismatic!) taught me to say “yes” through gritted teeth and go through the humbling process of recognizing and accepting my false self to allow my true self to “live”.
Day 3 : God held my hand through the years I travelled my broken road. Through the pain of betrayal and the darkness of uncertainty, I just knew the dark tunnel will open up to the light I could not see, I had a taste of the “peace that surpasses understanding”, and I understood what unconditional love entailed. Maybe because I was trying to say yes, I did not think of “dead ends”. And my Easter was indeed glorious! The light at the end, the path after the terribly broken stretch was way beyond what I asked or hoped for or ever imagined! Now I thank God for the gift of that broken road which He blessed.
Thank you Fr. Johnny for the past three days of blessings!

Thank you so much, Fr. J and the Pins of Light Retreat Team! It has been a truly insightful, personal and challenging retreat. May God bless you mightily!

Two key takeaways:
God is challenging me to be more, to do more.
I need to be watchful for my private Easter appearances that will show me where to find a new path.

Thank you, too, fellow retreatants, especially to those who shared your comments.

Thank you Fr. Johnny and team for another meaningful lenten retreat. We are grateful to you and your group for this ministry and look forward to it every year.

Praying for all of my fellow retreatants, for your personal petitions, your struggles, your burdens. In this long and oftentimes bumpy road we call life, may we never lose sight of God. He loves us more than we could ever imagine or deserve. Keep moving forward, however tempting it is to sulk and stay in sorrow. Kapit lang tayo sa pananalig at sa pagmamahal ng Diyos.

Happy Easter to everyone. 💖

It truly helps to know that I am not alone in my journey through broken roads. there are also many others who are on their own roads. And we’re all doing the best we can to hope against hope. May our eyes be opened to see and feel God’s presence in our journey through life’s broken roads and beyond.

Thank you, Fr. Johnny and the Pins of Light team, and to fellow retreatants, for this three-day journey. I take to heart the invitation prepare a longer table, I carry as baon that Jesus’ death on the cross opens the door of grace to all, and I pray that the broken road we are treading now as a nation will invite all of us to be channels of hope. A blessed Easter to all.

Nothing but a grateful heart to you Fr. Johnny and my fellow retreatants. I am a proud believer of faith more than ever. God bless us all.

I didn’t know what to expect in this retreat as I attended last year’s retreat which I blew me away and was looking forward to a similar experience this year. This retreat is more personal and more introspective and required me to dig deep into painful parts, the broken roads, of my life which I was strangely not afraid to do. I usually do not like to remember those moments in life which reflect our weakness and brokenness and vulnerability, but I felt safe remembering these broken painful moments in the knowledge that we never really alone in this life. That in the moments we feel we cannot go on, Jesus carries us through life and never let’s go. Thank you Fr. Johnny for a truly spiritual retreat. I am grateful that this retreat is as meaningful as last year’s retreat.

I really felt God speaking to me these past three days. I am truly grateful and filled with hope, ready to face our broken world. Thank you, Fr Johnny for always making our Easter Triduum spiritually uplifting. Thanks to the Pins of Light team too! Happy Easter!

I thank God for you, Fr. Johnny, and my fellow retreatants for accompanying me, for being channels of God’s voice.

I have been blessed abundantly by GOD and I am really grateful for the gifts I have received. With the pandemic experience, I am going through some rough times. I am praying for clarity of mind and heart. Healing. And I need to know what the LORD really wants me to do. I hear obedience. And yet, I try to ignore this because I would like to do something else. I am being asked to serve but I am not happy and my heart is not into it. I am looking for something more. I am praying to find it soon. And not to run-away and leave because it looks like there is no hope. Hope is always there and soon I will see and hear HIS message.

“This much I know is true, That God blessed the broken road
That led me straight to you.” The lines of this song are filled with so much hope for a new Easter look at myself, my community, my environment. True, possibilities are infinite if we but create the trail ourselves and not rely on a ready-made path. Thank you Fr. Johny for these three days of prayer space and for what you have shared with me. The style is novel, personal, and creative and I do thank the Lord for such an appealing style that brings in the freshness of the Spirit. May we all gladly pass through the wide-open door, no longer separated by the curtain, and share with deep joy and gladness the hope and blessing that Jesus brings in His Resurrection.

There is always HOPE, a complete SURRENDER to His Will and in His Plans and learn to LISTEN. As the broken roads can lead to new beginnings, loving more the sheep in wolves clothing, and to let go of the what ifs… In Stillness, In Silence we learn to listen and to ACCEPT His Divine Will when we allow urselves to do so ! I BELIEVE I can DO IT and mend my broken roads to new beginnings.Opening my heart in detecting the Lords approach more.

Happy Easter Fr. Johnny and to all the people behind Pins of Light. This year’s online retreat is my favorite! Maraming salamat!!!!

I realize the my whole life is that road to Emmaus and I am one of the disciples na nag “alsa balutan”….little did I realize that with me, on that road was Jesus. He still is, quietly accompanying me, reminding me that He is very much with me. There are countless experiences in my life when I felt His profound presence and those were my “Did not our heart burn within us….” moments. So many times – so now I feel really loved and unburdened….so many times on that road, Jesus and I took a break at a tavern and talked about my journey and how I must not lose hope as I head back to home with Him.

May I not forget that Jesus is always with me specially during times I am crushed and broken…..

The most comforting feeling is that through Jesus, God restores our brokenness. Last week, a friend shared with me the Japanese art of kintsugi (from two words – “kin” means golden and “tsugi” means repair). So simply, it is putting broken pottery pieces back together with gold. Once made whole again, it is more beautiful, stronger, and sturdier. On this last day of our 3-day retreat, I am reminded me of the Bible verse from Isaiah 64: 8 — “But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are the work of your hand.”

When we are broken, Jesus is the gold that binds us and makes us whole again. Our relationship with Him should never falter because His is always with us. We come out stronger & more courageous, ready to face life’s trials and triumphs.

Thank you Fr. J, for being an instrument in opening my eyes once again. Your annual Lenten retreat is something I look forward to. I pray for your good health and safety. God bless you and the Pins of Light family!

I realized that I have to appreciate God’s gifts more. I may not be a very patient person for now but God graced me with my decisiveness, my passion for action, and my desire to do good. Instead of focusing only on what I lack within myself, I should also celebrate what I already have. God can be found in broken places, and so I believe this even more — God is within me, especially since I’m broken.

There is hope because God is with us. Happy Easter everyone!

THANK YOU SO MUCH Pins of Light Team!

Thank you again and again, Fr Johnny and my fellow retreatants, for the fresh insights and perspectives on the Bible stories that have kept my faith alive, even stronger amidst the seeming hopelessness and pain all around us. I think of God with us, doing kintsugi with every tear and brokenness in our lives, repairing the broken roads with gold and making them new and somehow even more precious because of the wisdom we gain in the process. Happy Easter, Fr Johnny and the Pins of Light team and community!

I am grateful to see the Lord deeper, in more meaningful-to-me ways this Lent. Makes Him closer to me.

This online retreat in this format has been very soul-cleansing. I thought I was generally okay already but still I feel refreshed and lighter. Thank you Fr J.

I loved going deeper into the road to Emmaus story. I will pickup my Bible and read more into it after this.

This has been an affirmation that though the roads of life have lead me to where I am now– somewhere broken, somewhere unexpected– I am not alone in this road, and with Jesus, I’ve made new paths where there was none, out into new territories and spaces. Yehey! Thank You, Lord! Thank you Fr J! So immensely blessed and grateful for this ministry.

This is my first time joining this retreat and I’ll be looking forward to joining again in the coming years. Lenten tradition na ito 🙂 Thank you and God bless!

Thank you, Fr Johnny for this beautiful online retreat. I hope that you continue to make your retreats available online even when we go back to “normal”. It’s convenient to be able to do it at our own time. Also praying for your complete and immediate healing.

My key takeaways

Set a longer table and welcome even those who have hurt us. We invite people into our lives not because of what they’ve done for us, but because we love.
To continue to forgive others because people get lost sometimes because of the hurts they have suffered.
To be open to life’s detours, as these can lead to places even more beautiful that we could ever imagine.
God bless.💗

In God alone…
With God alone…
Yes! God alone.🙏🏼

Thank you Jesus for always being there for me. In good times of abundant blessings and even during my lowest and darkest moments. It is when I seek for you along my broken road that, That I find my way back home. Jesus, I put my trust in you always, Amen

Fr. Johnny, thank you once again for this beautiful, enriching and soul stretching retreat. It has reminded me of things I already know but seem to have forgotten about. Am excited for next year’s Retreat. Thank you, thank you, thank you! Will pray for your complete healing and recovery. God bless you🙏🏼❤️💐

Thank you so much Fr J. I remember the first time I joined your retreat, 8 years ago in Barcelona. It was an awakening. This year He was very specific….. to open my heart to someone I do not really like…. to pray for him as my heart opens like His…. I pray for His grace that I may be able to open my heart more and more everyday…..

What meant to me was the reassurance and the reminder that at the moments when I thought I was all alone and that the Lord was away from me, He was there. His death has made me closer to Him. I just need to walk into that open door.

Almighty God, please be patient in making me see your guiding hand in the life bumps I encounter. Remove the tinted lens over my eyes and the stubbornness of my heart to feel the loving nudge toward You.

Thank you, Fr.J, for another meaningful Lenten Retreat.

I have never been to any retreats before even when I was still a student (our school had never conducted anything!), so I was grateful that I “attended” this. There were a lot to think about, and there are a lot of questions that rose. And even if I do not have any answers to these right now, it helped me to become self-aware.

I think the blessing is the awareness that we never walk alone. That even if we are in a torn and broken place, there is something we can do to walk through it.

I know that God loves me, but I doubt it at times. As I end this retreat, I FEEL that God loves me. He knows what I am going through and He is walking with me through it all. This makes me cry. Thank you for the great company, Pins of Light! 🥺💙 Yakap at panalangin! Happy Easter. 🙂

As Lent started, I prayed that the Lord make it a new experience for me .. and indeed the Lord answered my prayer. Going thru this online retreat allowed me to have a profound experience of the Lord suffering on the cross and has showed me even the areas of my life that I have been setting aside and not been looking deeper for my own growth in my love for the Lord. The broken road has shown me that indeed … seemingly hopeless situations are situations for me to see the presence and the care for the Lord. This coming elections has made me hope for the best that Lord will allow for our country. Happy Easter!

This experience helped me to realize that broken roads are not dead ends and they can lead to wonderful paths in my life. From this day on, I will try to be more hopeful and be more gritty to overcome all the challenges in my life.

All broken roads, with God’s blessing, can lead to Home. Thank you, Fr. Johnny and Pins of Light team, for this retreat.

Thank you for the gift of silence, reflection and prayer. Fr. J, your words and guidance throughout this online retreat brought out thoughts, feelings, questions and desires I would not have discovered in my daily busy routine. I said earlier that I started this retreat with the intention of having clarity of my purpose and while I still don’t have the specific answer, what I gained was a deeper understanding of what led me to this yearning and the Lord’s message to say “yes” to His will that I know will later on lead me to that discovery – in His time.

Thank you Fr. J and fellow online Retreatants. This retreat has been a wonderful grace. It has given me new strength and hope to continue the journey even in broken roads. As in the song Secret of Life, this is a lovely ride. Indeed it is not only a lovely ride but a SAFE ride and journey as the Lord accompanies and walks with me. I will begin to walk (and work) more mindfully looking around for grace-filled moments and will build a bridge when needed. HAPPY EASTER TO ALL!

Thank you Fr. Johnny and happy Easter to all of us! This retreat reminded me that I should not lose hope as I travel a broken road because I am not alone… I know the broken road I am walking on now will not forever be broken. And I may be walking on a broken road now but Jesus is walking with me. I just need to remember that especially when I tend to get tired of walking…

I remember today the broken roads I have been through in my life. I remember the pain, the heartbreak, the hopelessness, the fear and anguish it brought to my life. But at the then I also remember the most heartbroken and the most hopeless moment that I felt at that time waa also the moment when I felt His unconditional love the most. Why? Because at that moment when I want to give up I felt that loud whisper that told me, “Dont give up. Just trust in me. Just surrender all your pain, all your worries to me and let my will be done.” It was the hardest thing I ever did in my life, to leave everything up to God and let Him lead me but it was also the best thing I did. Now I never felt more peaceful and more contented in my life. I realized that by humbly following His will and trusting His plans a bridge was bulit ao I can pass through that broken road in my life. And that was my Easter miracle!

Thank you for another meaningful retreat!

Once again, thank you, Fr. Johnny and get well soon!
My take-aways from the beautiful Retreat”
(1) Jesus is very inclusive. I should strive to make my ‘table’ and guest
list longer and longer;
(2) By Jesus’ death, a ‘wide open door’ has been made available to me;
I just need to step into it. I should learn to recognize the “hidden
sheep”.
(3) Even Jesus’ disciples travelled a broken road on their way to
Emmaus, but they had the timely opportunity to make a U-turn. I
pray that I will not be self-absorbed when I travel through my own
road to Emmaus and instead be sensitive to His promptings so I
may see the U-turn slot.

Thank you Fr. Johnny for these 3 days. A reminder for me to slow down to listen and pay attention as I walk along my winding and broken road.

I entered this retreat with darkness around covering my hope. The retreat and the Easter message is like a lamp shining in the dark place where I am until the day dawned and the morning start rose in my heart. Like the 2 disciples, whenever darkness is present, I can always look up not down and expect Jesus coming in my thoughts, when I pray and when I attend mass and experience the breaking of the bread everyday in this pandemic. I will still struggle with Jesus to see the original goodness in the hearts of people torn like me with their own hurts, frustrations, mistakes, rigidity, one track mind, anger and other negative emotions. I believe in my heart that Jesus way is the only way, the way of love that can touch the hearts of people thousands of years after passing through time and space touching me now. I will struggle to apply it, it may take a lifetime but by God’s grace it will happen. Thank you Fr. Johnny for this retreat, this lamp. God bless

As Easter people who believe and love you, please Lord Jesus help us to recognize you in every people that you sent our way, specially those who are difficult to love! Sa ganito po lang ko masasabi na tunay na mahal ko kayo. Nahihirapan po ako but with your help, it was made possible in many instances!

Indeed – all my shattered hopes and broken dreams are North stars that directed me to Jesus. Keep the faith!

Remembering brokenness can be a blessing. We just need to hold on and allow God’s plan to unfold.
Thank you very much Fr. Johnny! Wishing you more blessings! Happy easter to everyone!

What blesswd me the most is the exercise on stretching the soul. Expanding my final party guest list to include those i dont particularly like was a very uncomfortable stretch. Describing the sound of Jesus’ last cry was a painful and grueling stretch. Finally seeing the broken roads as a means to discovering or rediscovering new paths towards Him, is one that takes me far in this faith journey. As in all Holy Week retreats of Pins of Light, we have been most blessed. Only pray for your continued health and recovery Fr Johnny! Thanks to the whole team for putting this together for us again. Blessed Easter to all!

I am grateful to the ‘stranger’ i met in my broken road. I am consoled, my take away is that GOD meets us where we are. I am looking forward for the bridge we are going to build😊

These past few weeks there are words that have meant so much to me– hope, truth, love. During this 3-day retreat, these words resonated again and again, filling my heart with validation. I love how the retreat has reminded me that I am on the right path. And that He is with me every step of the way. With hope, truth and love, I can carry on through broken roads and I know, all will be well.

It was my first time to join the Pins of Light Lenten retreat and I am already looking forward to joining again next year and the years to come. I thank my brother-in-Christ, tony L, for sharing it with us. I also thank the Lord for the graces He bestowed on my family this Lenten season.

This retreat was soul-enriching indeed!

My takeaway from this retreat is captured in the lines from the last song: “It is all part of a grander plan that is coming true.” Easter’s message is that God is never done with us. That life goes on. That greater things are yet to come. I had thought that coming out of darkness was the end of the journey, was all I needed to process in this retreat. But our God is a God of surprises, and He offers an Easter surprise: That there is a greater plan; there is a reason why I have been making it out alive out of every darkness that has come. There is a reason why — there is something in the future that I have had to stay alive for.

Lord, thank you for embracing and blessing my brokenness. Now I see that there is grace even in those instances when my heart was broken as these “led me straight to you.” Amen.

Thank you, Fr. J and POL Team, for these “soul-stretching” three days! May God continue to bless you and your work. It is not yet Easter, but already my heart is full of hope and joy.

Thank you to Fr Johnny and the team .. this is a very enriching retreat for me… looking forward to next time. God bless you all and Happy Easter

Key takeaways in our retreat: Never lose hope. Trust in God and in the goodness of others. Jesus walks with us even when we don’t feel or see him.

I will STOP being easily overwhelmed by worldly cares and doubts. I will CONTiNUE finding God in all the people, events, spaces and moments of life. I will START becoming an EASTER Christian. Amen.

Thank you Fr J and Pins of Light team! May God bless you for your untiring ministry of leading us to meaningful prayer and reflection. I like the bonus treat yesterday.

To all my fellow pilgrims/retreatants, let us continue to pray for one another. God bless. A blessed Easter!

Thank you Fr Johnny Go!

This retreat is helping me deal with the loss of my Father (my mentor, my leader, my counsellor, my rock). We had a falling out on his last few days and my reaction to that I deeply regret.

The Passion of Christ has shown me the road to forgiveness (yes – even forgiveness of self); to perseverance (yes – even when you are so spent that you feel you have nothing else to give); and to hope (yes – even when no one understands you or everyone takes advantage of you.). JESUS IS THE REASON!!

May God continue to bless and guide you Fr. Johnny Go!!

Holy Thursday is about questions and grief. Good Friday is all about faith. Holy Saturday and Easter is all about being a survivor with the Lord.

I share the same sentiment the past few days about our own country. The what ifs, the broken road and dead end.

I’d like to think that my heart will not stop burning for hope for a better tomorrow- not only personally but for our country

My worst experiences were the best things that happened to me. Happy Easter

Aww. So profound, and it takes grace to realize this as such. Amen. God bless you <3

This is my first time to participate in this online retreat. Many thanks for the comforting and inspiring words. Indeed, the broken road is not a dead end but rather a detour to the loving arms of Jesus. Thank you for the reminder. Looking forward to my personal Easter appearance. Happy Eater to all!

Thank you Fr. Johnny and to the Pins of Light team. There were a lot of detours in my life the past years. Sometimes you question why this is happening. But I continued to pray and ask for his guidance. He never disappointed. Every day I see Him helping me, and reminding me to be always be hopeful. I pray for everyone that we continue to see our Lord in our family, our friends and even to those that have hurt us in the past. Happy Easter!

The phrase “But we had hoped” made me realize that hope is different from faith. Like the 2 disciples, I have been living with hope that God will bless me with a smoother road rather than believing that He is already with me on my broken road. From now on I will look for him on my journey and open myself to my private Easter.

Thank you, Fr. J. Happy Easter to all!

Lord, there have been broken roads in my life but You have always been there to guide me. You touched me and I felt my heart burn within me with hope, especially during those times when I felt lost and confused. Continue to guide me, Lord, through the broken roads of my life.

Thank you Fr. Johnny for leading us through this online retreat.
There really are no dead ends with our Lord.

Thank you, Father Johnny! Your online retreat has always been an eye-opener and has provided me time to reflect on my wrongdoings. Looking forward to next year’s retreat.

This road I am travelling sometimes seems to be so dark, thorny, stony and cold. I often find myself wandering whether I took the right turns and brought enough light for the travel. I thank you father Johnny and team, my fellow retreatants, for enlightening me, to never give up and find a stronger source of light, God, whenever i feel lost and frustrated.
Through this retreat, i also learned that enemies should be given attention too. Extending my love and forgiveness to them, though hard, will lead me to greater results.
From now on, i will start to look on the positive side of all things. And get on with a new, refreshed and hopeful heart for this journey, with God as my light and guide..

Thank you everyone. Happy Easter! ☺️☺️♥️♥️

This is my first online retreat! I haven’t gone on retreats is so many years but I felt that now was the time to start them again. Thank you!

The most important thing that I have to remember is to welcome everyone into my long table.

Happy Easter, everyone!

Thank you, Fr. J and team, for another meaningful retreat, tagos na tagos sa puso. I’m going through a rough patch, a broken road, and while I am anxious and uncertain, I find comfort in your words. God is with me, God is with all of us. Thank you and God bless everyone!

Thank you Fr. Johnny and the Pins of Light for this opportunity to spend Holy Week in a meaningful way. It gave me the opportunity to connect, though virtually, with you and my fellow participants. Thank you for sharing your insights and challenges.

Kapit lang!

Kung pagod . . . . Magpahinga

Kung nalululungkot . . .

Kapag mabigat ang ating mga pasan sa buhay . . .

Kasama mo si LORD!🙏

Maraming salamat po Fr. Johnny & your team, & my fellow travellers for allowing us the privilege to journey with you

The blessing of inspirational songs from the community of sharers was one of the most valuable blessing from this year’s online retreat–all the 219 songs in the Pins of Light 2022 Soundtrack of Our Lives which I have included in my Spotify library. As I continue on my journey–these songs will accompany me specially when the road becomes broken so that I will make a detour towards Christ. These songs made my heart “burn” with their inspiring lyrics and melodies. And I continue and will continue to use these songs as background music to my daily activities. Thank you Fr. J and your team and the whole community for your insights and inspirations.

Thank you, Fr. J. Next year ulit.

As i travel through the road of my life, I often say I travel the road less travelled but now I know that there will always be a bridge for me , the road less travelled is now a road I travel with you my God.
Happy Easter!

Thank you Fr. Johnny. When I started this retreat, I figured the title of the retreat very much applies to the situation in our country and the world we live in. This morning, I realize that the title very much applies to me. Knowing this I need to seek the Lord everyday that He may guide me and let my heart burn.

When we are confronted with a broken road may we find the bridge that will help us go through ….one day at a time as some say….a new day …a sunrise and a sunset….everything will be okay we just got to have faith and hope in our hearts so that the love within us will give us strength to surpass these broken roads in our lives.
Thank you. Happy Easter to all.

Thank you, Lord, for the strangers I meet in my life journey. Thank You for allowing me to see the good in all people. Amidst my fears and guilt, I know You are always here for me. Never let me go.

We never travel alone indeed.
He is where we choose to meet Him- long- winding or even in the broken roads as we tread along in our spiritual journey.

What do you consider the most valuable blessing that you received from this year’s online retreat? That when there’s darkness around us, we should decide to keep our hearts burning, even just a flicker, because a new path will be shown to us. I’ve always said to myself – the best time to believe in God is in desperate times.

A joyous Easter to everyone. Thank you Fr. J and the Pins of Light team for this online DIY retreat and to all the participants who shared even their most intimate thoughts and insights these past three days. Maraming salamat po.

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