Lorna Joannes, co-founder of Ako Ay Pilipino Movement, looks back over the last year of the Ako Ay Pilipino Movement:

It is 1:20 AM and I can't sleep. I toss and turn, my mind soactive. I am asking the Holy Spirit to give me peace and rest, but suddenly theLord spoke. "Remember August 8 last year?" I got up, opened my journal to thatday, and read. I wrote the entry while we were on our way back to Manila to begin work on the Ako Ay Pilipino: Noon at Ngayon coffee table book. I realized that the Lord was reminding of the things that are close to His heart.

Journal entry, August8, 2009

"We are on ChinaEastern Airlines to Hong Kong now, then will take Cebu Pacific to Manila. There are so many thoughts in my heart right now about how uncertain things are. But one thing is certain: the God who holds everything will make His plans come topass. My heart is at peace as I pray and fast. I know God will accomplish Hispurpose with or without me here. It is probably just that there is a greater purpose why He had me do this –to become more like Jesus.

"A great vision with limited time and resources –that is how God usually works. I guess after somany years of working in China, doing all those impossible things has made usqualified to do this task. Going to the unreached people groups, running away and hiding from the police, sharing the gospel to those who have zero knowledge about God, almost dying on dangerous roads, and the list goes on. All these things have made us tough. Impossibilities have now become opportunities to show God's glory."

The Lord confirmed so strong in my heart that all the thingsthat we do for the Ako Ay Pilipino would not be in vain.

A few hours after I wrote my journal entry, we arrived in theHong Kong airport. Whenever I travel through this airport, I am always remindedof the plight of our kababayan abroad. I always meet friendly Filipinas seekingto have conversation (perhaps their interest is peaked when they see me with David!)

We boarded the last Cebu Pacific flight of the day, and I foundmy way to my seat. There beside me, on the window side, sat a middle aged Filipina lady. I sat on the middle and David on the isle side. The lady was particularlyquiet. I thought she must just want to have some personal space, so I simply said hi. As the plane took off, she must have noticed me squeezing David's hand,  and noticed my tensed face (which always happens as I am not a huge fan of flying).

Suddenly she started a conversation with me by saying, "Sorry ha kung hindi kita kinakausap." Isimply responded by saying, "Okay lang yun, walang problema." The next thing she said shocked me. "Namatay kasi ang tatay ko."I wasshocked at her openness and honesty. She went on to tell me about themistreatment she often faced with her employer, even stalling for an extended period of time before releasing her to return home. Her employer withheld her money and said they would not pay her if she went home. But she had no choice but to continue working or else face the cruel consequences of not being ableto provide for her family in the Philippines.

My heart was so heavy for her. I started sharing the gospel, and mentioned God's prophetic destiny for our nation. At that point I saw a spark of hope in her eyes, and a desire to know more about the God-given identity and plan for us.

Just before our plane landed, she was in tears as she made acommitment to Jesus.

Before we parted I told her, "Someday you will see the Philippines a rich and successful nation. Youwill return home because you will not need to work abroad as more and more jobsare available in the Philippines." She started crying and said, "I know that God can do that, but I hope it happens soon." The last words she said to me before we parted were, "You are an angel sent from above."

I share this with you because I am reminded once again ofthe vision behind Ako Ay Pilipino. It is a message of hope and of God's love forour country and for us personally. It is about recapturing our God-given identity and so we can fulfill our destiny.

The lady that I met on our flight is only one of the many millions of Filipinos who need hope in the midst of present uncertainty. There are huge impossibilities in our country right now, and yet great opportunities ahead of us. And so I say again: the message of Ako Ay Pilipino is about recapturing our God-given identity so that we may fulfill the great destiny that we have.

It has been over a year since I took that flight. I remember sitting on that plane to Manila, so uncertain of what was going to happen. But today I am incredibly convinced that the Ako Ay Pilipino is straight from theheart of God.

We have shared the message ofthe Ako Ay Pilipino book with thousands of Filipinos. We launched the book to over seven thousand people in three major locations in the Philippines, and in three states in America. The book is now available in major bookstores all over the Philippines,America, Singapore, Canada, and United Arab Emirates. We have partnered with popular bands in the Philippines to capture the hearts of young people with thepower of music and a message of hope. We are working with non-governmental organizations that share the vision for the destiny of the Philippines. Some churches all across the country are using the Ako Ay Pilipino coffee table book as inspiration to preach about the message of Filipinos' identity and prophetic destiny. We have received numerous emails from people whose perspective onbeing a Filipino has changed as they realize their role in this generation through the pages of the book. The Ako Ay Pilipino: Noon at Ngayon book has alsobeen featured in the 700 Club Asia, and in five major newspapers in the Philippines.

Together with twenty five creative writers, designers and editors, this dream became a reality. Ako Ay Pilipino coffee table book will not be possible without them.

God is in the business of changing lives, and the hearts of Filipinos are being transformed one page at a time through the Ako Ay Pilipino coffee table book.

We need your help! Go to our Kickstarter page and help us make the Ako Ay Pilipino Kickstarter successful!

Embed the widget on your site, tag us in your Facebook and Twitter, and let's make a difference in the nation together!

Author's Note: This article has been published as a Facebook note before elections as part of the cry for righteousness and justice in the national elections and for the country in general. The original note can be found here.

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Change is coming.

Everywhere in the country, the winds are changing. Every person that has enough awareness of his or her surroundings can sense that we are standing at a critical crossroads in the history of our nation. I hear the assessments of people around me and they all boil down to one thing: "This is going to be all or nothing. Either the country will change for the better or take a turn for the worse."

For years---centuries, even--- we have cried out against injustice, corruption, and wickedness. We have tried everything: we have had bloody revolutions and bloodless revolutions; we shouted slogans as we marched down the streets and we took up arms and went to the mountains to fight; we changed presidents----elected intelligent presidents and popular presidents, ousted dictators and plunderers. All in the hope that someone, anyone, would be able to overturn the increasing wickedness in the land. In the course of our history, in every revolution we have fought and won, we had a measure of change, for a brief moment of time. This change wouldn't last because, yes, we changed the faces, we changed the people, but the system of corruption still remained. The system of injustice still remained.

The question now is WHAT CAN WE DO? Make no mistake: what you decide to do or not do will cascade down through the centuries, through the generations after us. WHAT CAN WE DO? WHAT CAN WE DO? WHAT CAN WE DO? WHAT CAN WE DO?

We have tried everything else. We have sampled everything that the arm of human effort can give us. Now, we decide. Decide that a new president will not save us. Decide that nationalism alone cannot save this nation. Decide that if this nation is to be rescued from the mire we have blundered into, we need God. In a democratic nation it is often said that vox populi, vox Dei, but what if the heart of God became the heart of the people? What would happen if a whole generation would begin to stand for righteousness in their everyday lives? What would happen if we actually became a "Christian nation", not just in name but in our individual lives? We cannot live in the fantasy that our politicians can solve everything. Yes, we hope they can help, but in the end, they can only do so much. For in the end, our politicians are just reflections of us. People vote for people who are most like them. As we change, our politicians will change, our nation will change. If we will not give in to corruption, it will die out. We have no right to criticize corrupt politicians if we still take our company provided office supplies and give it to our children. The change must first happen in the hearts of the Filipino people.

This past elections was just one of the many decisions we as a nation must make, though it may be the one of the biggest. Decisions that would either jump start our upward climb or accelerate our downward spiral. Decisions made not only in a national scale but also in our individual everyday lives.We cannot afford to make the wrong ones. We cannot afford to make the decisions for the sake of making them. 

In this past elections, I do not care who you voted for, as long as you voted for the candidate who you think is best for this nation. Voted your consciences. Not who gives the most money, not who has the best slogans and jingles. For generations, we have sold our votes. In our ignorance we have sold ourselves. If not for money, for favors, for unfair advantages against our competitors. And this is where it led us. We must begin to realize again the power of our choice. Realize that our choice goes beyond election day, beyond the inauguration and certainly beyond our lives.

My husband and I are serving as missionaries in a closed country. My husband is an American, and has been on the mission field for 12 years. I moved to this nation after getting married 6 years ago. We actually met on the mission field in 1997, while smuggling Bibles. Today we travel on a regular basis to unreached, impoverished villages. We stay with tribal people groups, and share the gospel with them. Throughout the years we have seen changed lives and hope renewed in the villages that we have traveled to. By establishing Christian training centers near tribal people groups, opportunities for them to receive education and training are now possible for them.

2009 was one of the most difficult years we have ever faced. After traveling to these tribal villages, eating with the locals, and living with them, we got chronically sick.  In May 2009, we experienced two near death experiences. The lack of sanitation in the area took its toll on us. We finally decided to return to the Philippines for a medical check up in June 2009.

We stayed in Manila for three weeks and received the medical attention that we needed. During that time, we saw the Philippines is in the midst of many critical situations. The state of the political and economic arenas, poverty, and the numerous natural disasters had brought he hearts of Filipinos to a place of hopelessness.

Regularly traveling around Asia and America, we have met Filipinos living outside the country who only see the negative aspects of the Philippines. There are some who do not even want to return to their own country because of the shame they carry being called Filipino. Some even cringe at their own ethnicity. This had always saddened us. After years of living outside my country as a missionary, I have seen the beauty and hope of my nation. I can clearly see the bright future ahead for the Philippines. I see the incredible qualities of my people: resilience, like bamboo–a bending but not breaking. And there are so many other unique traits of the Filipinos, too many to number.

There is always hope and beauty in the midst of chaos and uncertainty.

One day in Manila, while having lunch with our pastor, we were talking about the destiny of the Philippine, and how Filipinos should rise up now to make a change. My husband and I were so challenged.

The next day we flew to Cebu for a little rest and relaxation.  That morning, there was a strong urgency in me to write a book about the Philippines’ history, one that would stir people about the hope, direction and destiny of our country. The urgency was further confirmed when we stood at the Lapu-Lapu shrine on Mactan Island. I was compelled to trace the steps of our nation, looking back so that we would know how to move forward from here.

As I pondered how we should start this process, I was struck with a realization:  the relation between identity and destiny. A person cannot fulfill his destiny if he is insecure of himself, if he does not know who he is really as a person.

“In order to read the destiny of a people, it is necessary to open the book of its past.” ~Jose Rizal.

This confirmed in my spirit the reason we needed to trace our history, reminding ourselves of who we are as a people and as a nation. There are many positive traits of the Filipinos that have been long forgotten. But many of these traits that have such positive aspects have been turned upside down, now carrying a negative connotation. Our society suffers because of our mindset.

As I pondered all these things, the coffee table book “Ako Ay Pilipino, Noon at Ngayon” began to take shape.

I started sharing my heart with friends, church groups, and acquaintances. In less than 3 weeks time, about 25 people–students, young professionals, free lance artists, designers, business people and writers–volunteered to work on this vision. All of them simply sought to serve our country with their gifts and talents without receiving anything in return.

We all felt the urgency to begin this project as soon as possible. We worked tirelessly for many sleepless nights, shedding tears together. Because no one was paid for their work, we had to borrow money to begin the printing. From the first brainstorming meeting about the look and feel of the book until the printing was finally complete, the whole project was finished in only 13 weeks! In November 2009 we held our first Ako Ay Pilipino: Noon at Ngayon coffee table book launch.

We all believe that our country has a great destiny, and is capable of being great in Asia and the world. We are a unique country, full of human and natural resources, beauty, and rich heritage. But we also understand that this vision needs to be realized by every Filipino. We need to know our identity so that we might fulfill our destiny. In the midst of dramatic events from the political scene to natural calamities, we are inspired to share this message with every Filipino. We want to share the passion to love our country, and take practical steps to see change– a change that begins with ourselves, and extends to our country and beyond.

But the message of Ako Ay Pilipino goes beyond one single book. We want to help change the mindset of Filipinos today, declaring their true identity as God intended them to be, and thus help fulfill the destiny that is theirs to claim. We desire to see this nation transformed. As every Filipino hears about our rich history–where we have come from and where we are going–we believe that their eyes will begin to open to see the bigger picture of the Philippines’ place in the world today.