When I was growing up in the Philippines, one of the most essential cultural values I learned was the concept of having a debt of gratitude, or, as we call it, ‘utang na loob’. What is it? According to the Oxford English Dictionary, ‘utang na loob’ is a debt of goodwill incurred when a person benefits from significant assistance or favor given by another. Typically, the beneficiary is in dire need of the assistance provided or the favour granted.
When I was very young, my uncle loaned money to our family to help us buy our first house. We had been staying in a small rented apartment before, but it was no longer sustainable with five growing children. My dad and the whole family were so thankful to his brother-in-law, my uncle.
When we were in our teens, my father helped his sister and her family secure a loan, allowing my aunt to buy their own house. I know my aunt and cousins greatly appreciated my dad’s help. In both cases, the debt of gratitude was shown. My dad also became a mini-philanthropist by giving scholarships to children from low-income families who could not afford high school and university tuition fees.
The value of ‘utang na loob’ was so ingrained in me, especially when I became a renewed Christian. I experienced the depth of God’s love and forgiveness. I appreciated the abundant grace lavished upon me by the Lord – unmerited, not earned, and freely given. And so, my life response, my ‘utang na loob’, is as follows:
“How can I repay the LORD for all his acts of kindness to me? I will celebrate my deliverance and call on the name of the LORD. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD before all his people.”
Psalm 116:12-14 (NET)
As time passes, my debt of gratitude to the Lord becomes deeper and deeper. My recent health challenges solidified even more my ‘utang na loob’ to the Lord for answering my prayers and being at my side during moments of horrific anguish and pain. It is like a spiritual harpoon being embedded more profoundly and fiercely into my soul. I live my life in gratitude and thanksgiving to the Lord, who has noticed His lowly servant, whom He has lavished with all the spiritual blessings in the heavenly places. (see Ephesians 1:3) Every morning, I thank God for another day He graced me to be alive.
I am so thankful to God for the gift of ‘utang na loob’. I thank the Lord for instilling this invaluable principle in my heart from a young age. I also thank Him for my culture, my family, and especially my parents. My debt of gratitude to God will only be completed when I pass on this life and see Him face to face.
Top image credit: Photo of wheat and sunset background by Ann Savchenko on Unsplash. Free to use under the Unsplash License.
Tom Caballes is a National Coordinator of the Lamb of God, a community of the Sword of the Spirit with seven branches located throughout New Zealand. Tom and his wife Mhel and their two daughters [with his son-in-law and grand-daughter] live in Wellington, New Zealand.