Spring is always welcomed as the season for new life and new hope. We want to magnify the Lord and praise Him for the hope and life that He gives all year around.
It was with great joy and expectancy that we returned to Mindanao in mid-March to start Phase II of the Bible school in Tagum City. The full time workers we had trained in September and October have successfully completed the teaching of Phase I at the seven teaching points in the mountains. The many students who stayed with the program in spite of all the challenges and difficulties received their certificates of completion for the Basic Bible Course on March 19. The impact on their lives and the effectiveness of the training is such that plans are being worked out to teach the Basic Bible Course in all the churches.
In one of the teaching points in the mountains, the students took what they were learning and put it into practice. They went out and planted three new churches in neighboring villages. One of our full time workers in another area has started two new churches in his home region.
God’s hand has been on this ministry in a powerful way. When the native pastors came together to incorporate Church Triumphant in the Philippines a year ago, following our first visit in February, 2001, we had a total of 13 churches who covenanted together to reach the mountain tribal people with the Gospel. Most of these churches were new works that were meeting in homes, on shaded walkways, or in simple brush arbors. By the time we had finished the first part of the Bible school training, the ministry had expanded to 28 churches but only 8 of them had adequate facilities to meet in. Living rooms and little brush arbors were becoming too small for the hundreds who were coming to Christ, often 20-30 at a time.
But God was listening to the cries of His children on Mindanao and His people in America were listening to the cry of God’s heart. Today, through your generous response to the voice of the Holy Spirit, we now have 35 churches established on Mindanao and 28 of those churches have buildings either completed or currently under construction. We are now in the process of negotiating to buy land for two other churches who have outgrown their currently rented facilities. The work is literally exploding with new locations and new souls being born into the Kingdom of God
One veteran missionary we met from New Zealand said he could not believe we could have accomplished so much so quickly. He had been coming to the Philippines for 15 years and has only been able to start 12 churches during that time. Later, the thought hit me. Probably the reason he had not seen the same results was because he could not believe those kinds of results were possible. But the Bible says all things are possible to those who believe. Whether building a church or praying for a lost loved one, we need to not be afraid but just believe in the miracle working power of God.
We wish you could have traveled with us up the narrow winding road to the village of Sua-on, one of our teaching points in Cumval Province. The Believers there are so poor they were literally dressed in rags. We had come to dedicate the church which they are now building using the nails and metal roofing materials you provided and the lumber they have cut down from the surrounding forest. We also brought them Bibles, a treasure they never could have afforded to buy for themselves. They had nothing to give in return but insisted on sharing their simple meal of coconuts, bananas, and the sweet potatoes our workers had taught them how to grow. The head chieftain of the tribe who had given his heart to Christ on January 1 sat and watched amazed at the goodness of God to him and his people. Yes, we need to magnify the Lord together and exalt His name – Provider.
The following day we traveled again by rented van to visit many of our churches in Sarangani, South Cotobato, and Sultan Kurturat Provinces. The drive from Tagum City direct to Santo Nino is only two hours but we had to travel for six hours to get there by way of General Santos City in order to avoid the areas controlled by the Abu Sayyaf and other Muslim groups. At one point in our journey we were just blocks from the Muslim Autonomous Region. But through your prayers God was with us. The churches we visited were so grateful to us for coming to encourage them. They were so grateful to God for using you to provide them with the building materials they need to build churches to reach out to their unsaved neighbors. As we preached on Good Friday in the church in Santo Nino where the top portion of the front wall was knocked down by the recent earthquake, we magnified the Lord and exalted His name – Protector.
Back in Tagum City, we took part in the interdenominational Easter Sunrise Service, building bridges of unity within the Body of Christ as together we magnified the risen Savior. The following day we baptized 12 new Believers from Kipalili in the Pacific Ocean then traveled to a village outside of Mawab to pray over another new village church that is also under construction. Through it all we magnified God for His faithfulness.
Tuesday, April 2, marked the start of Phase II of the Bible school, training the full time workers in the advanced course for church planters. We will be teaching 9 hours a day Tuesday and Wednesday and 5 ˝ hours on Thursday morning so the workers have time to return home to pastor their churches Friday through Monday. There is much work to be done to prepare workers for the harvest while establishing new Believers on a solid Biblical foundation. It is thrilling to see the impact the Word of God is having on open hearts everywhere we turn.
We praise God for all that He has done in the hearts and lives of the tribal people in this past year. We stand amazed at all that has been accomplished. We know none of it would have been possible without your help. There is more that needs to be done – more churches to be planted and built, more agricultural projects to be established to teach farming skills, literacy programs to be implemented. We still need to purchase the property for the Bible school. We need reliable transportation to be able to visit churches and transport building materials and produce. We can purchase a 15 passenger like new two year old van for $5,000.
We know that the God who has blessed so abundantly in the past will continue to meet all these needs as we continue to be good stewards of His Kingdom resources. We want to give Him all the glory and to thank you for your faithfulness to obey Him in supporting this ministry with your prayers and your finances. Together, we are making an eternal difference in so many lives as we work together for that day when every nation, tribe, and tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is the Risen Lord to the glory of God the Father.