EFC CDO partners with Red Cross to save lives
When you give blood, you do one amazing act of saving a life.
EFC CDO celebrates Singapore @ 50
By Rosella S. Abenio
August 9, 1965 marked the day that Singapore became an independent republic after it separated from Malaysia due to some social conflict and disputes. If Rome wasn’t built in a day, so was Singapore.
Singapore withstood severe crises in their early beginnings. Crunches on unemployment and housing arose. Life wasn’t easy for every Singaporean back then. However, that was fifty years ago. Singapore skyrocketed from the third world to the first. And that is just one of the reasons why Singapore @ 50 (SG50) was worth celebrating.
SG50 was a special day for all Singaporeans, naturally capping the day’s activities with sharing and merrymaking. It wasn’t just celebrated in Singapore but the whole world rejoiced with them too. “I will bless you…and so you shall be a blessing…and in you, all the families of the earth will be blessed.” (Genesis 12:2-3) God chose to bless Singapore, and now it has been a blessing to the Philippines particularly to JECPP.
Thus, with much gratitude, Evangel Family Church Cagayan de Oro celebrated SG50 during their Hearts on Fire Fellowship on August 9, 2015. The whole event dubbed a highly-spirited fellowship of more than 130 young people. It was an expression of gratitude towards God and to Singapore for allowing Evangel Family Church-Singapore to send missionaries to the Philippines. Likewise, it gave EFC CDO an opportunity to be appreciative to Pastor Andrew Kwong, Pastor Rowena Kwong and their daughter, Kristy, for leading the church and serving God faithfully.
“We have come to know God’s saving grace and experienced His love, all because someone was willing to follow God’s will and chose to be a blessing for others!,” said the young people.
The event kicked off with a dynamic and heart-moving praise and worship led by the Hearts on Fire music team. Thereafter, Pastor Vic Pacaña preached an encouraging message that stirred the hearts of the young people. He stressed Genesis 12:2-3 in his preaching,” I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
Through history, God uses His people to build His Kingdom to do what needs to be done. We not only see His involvement in the lives of many Christians but also in Singapore as well.It’s amazing how God’s favor had been working to shape Singapore’s history. It served as a living testimony- a challenge for all Christians to believe in God’s power and favor to work in their lives too. It is really evident that the burden that God graciously placed in the hearts of EFC Singapore and all JECPP spiritual leaders is very much alive. And the church’s response as recipients of God’s goodness is to continue the work and courageously fulfill it with His grace.
After the preaching, everyone was up for the next surprise. Since it was Singapore’s day, two video presentations were prepared that was inspired by Singaporean short films. These videos portrayed the turning point and transformation of a student’s life, and how he found true purpose and meaning in life. After that, a short game was held where everybody was given the chance to participate.
Nearing the end, pictures of Pastor Andrew and Pastora Rowena’s missionary works in Cagayan de Oro were shown while a group of young people sang their version of Katina’s “Thank You.” Indeed, EFC CDO couldn’t thank God enough for the exemplary lives of their spiritual leaders. They were more than willing to obey God’s will and call to serve Him in the Philippines.
Pastor Rowena rewarded the two groups for their inspiring video presentations. Similarly, Pastor Andrew expressed his great joy upon witnessing the entire presentations and even commended the worship team and the staffs’ labor for preparing the delicious food and decorations to make SG50 a wonderful celebration.
Looking back 50 years ago, life wasn’t easy for every Singaporean and for Evangel Family Church CDO too. But by allowing God to shape and mold them, by having faith and courage to do His will, they can look forward to another 50 years of victories and breakthroughs.
The years ahead hold a great prospect and promise for Singapore and JECPP! To God be the glory!
Northern Mindanao music teams learned worship language
By: Deljane Balagtas
It is widely known that music is the language of the soul, and that it plays a great role in church services. Praise and worship is a time when people express their devotion unto God through songs, and well-arranged music helps people tune in to the spiritual realm.
Training is therefore crucial for all musicians and singers so they can effectively minister in worship services. In line with this, a music workshop was held at Evangel Family Church Cagayan de Oro last April 28 to 29 to equip and improve music teams from different Evangel Family Churches all over Northern Mindanao.
Music teams from Malaybalay, Balingasag, Lala and Manticao came in the morning of the first day. In the afternoon, the workshop was opened with a prayer by Pastor Rowena Kwong followed by a short praise and worship and orientation of participants.
The workshop was divided into three sub-groups: Song Leading led by Pastor Rowena Kwong and Philip Salinas, Guitar & Keyboard led by Neil Gregory Simpas, and Drums led by Jefferson Ouano.
Song leading participants were given an overview on the basics of song lineups for different church services and events, proper ways of song leading, keys and timing, and hand signals. The participants were also given a chance to examine themselves on what area they must improve for better song leading. The guitar and keyboard participants where taught the necessities on playing instrument as well as enhancement of hearing and listening skills which are very important in learning new songs. Drum participants, on the other hand, were taught beats and rolling in drums.
After the first session, all groups were given assignments. For song leading, each one must prepare a line-up according to a chosen theme. For the guitar and keyboard participants, they must learn one song by ear. Drum participants were asked to demonstrate the beats taught to them. The participants also gathered for prayer meeting in the evening. A short message reminded and inspired the singers and musicians to always clothe themselves with God’s anointing.
The morning session of the second day started with a praise and worship led by one of the participants in song leading. Workshop groups resumed and got even more exciting after the announcement of a praise and worship in the afternoon to be led by one from each group of participants. Facilitators of each group chose one participant for the final praise and worship as the culmination of the entire activity.
The participants also got a chance to learn teaching skills because they were invited to a meeting of Sunday School teachers right after the music workshop. In this gathering, EFC Cagayan de Oro and outreach teachers underwent guidance in lesson plans, creative visual aids and songs. An open-forum on classroom management and teaching strategies was also conducted.
After a hectic day, participants were treated at Mang Inasal for a hearty meal. The evening continued sweetly at JCO for doughnut dessert. After the good food experience, the best ending of the whole music experience was again another round of praise and worship that night.
“Next Generation” equipping in Northern Mindanao Summer Youth Conference
By Pastor Vic Louie Pacaña.
…And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ … Ephesians 4:11-16
Last March 30 – April 2, 2015, JECPP held its annual summer youth conference at Coconut Bay Resort in Tablon, Cagayan de Oro City with a theme “ Equipping and Releasing” participated by youths from different Evangel Family Church sections all over Northern Mindanao including Lala, Naawan, Manticao, Balingasag, Mambayaan and Malaybalay. It was facilitated by Pastor Rowena Kwong, and administered by Pastor Andrew Kwong, Pastor Roberto Padinit, and Pastor Vic Louie Pacaña.
The four-day and three-night conference was full-packed with encouraging sermons from pastors and fun-filled activities that showcased God-given talents of young people: singing, playing instruments, narrating and acting. Noticeable also in this year’s camp was the increased number of younger participants.
The event started on March 30, 2015 with the arrival of the participants, an orientation and groupings of youth for the activities. The event was opened with a praise and worship jam in the evening and a heart-warming message of encouragement by Rev. Andrew Kwong. In his message, he reminded all young people to remember the source of eternal life. He said, “To whom shall we go? You [Lord] have the words of eternal life”.
“A biblical foundation must be built in the lives and hearts of the next generation. They must be fully equipped in doing God’s work. ” With this message from Pastor Andrew, he capped the day and set the course of the entire event!
The second day of the camp started exceedingly great when Pastora Lourdes Ello, from EFC Malaybalay, shared an eye-opening devotional. After breakfast, the morning service began with a praise and worship lead by Lala team followed by a message from Pastor Vic Pacana of EFC Cagayan de Oro. Camper Paul John Cornel of EFC Lala was the one leading the worship team. At his very young age, God enabled Him to do his ministries. Though he was very young, he took the responsibility in leading the praise and worship. What a great joy to see young ones willing to be trained and be used mightily by God.
The highlight of the day was the Battle of the Bands in the afternoon where praise and worship teams from the different sections, Lala, Malaybalay, Naawan, Manticao, and Balingasag, gave out songs that brought people to an experience of anointed praise and worship.
In the afternoon of the second day, all teams prepared for the competition. Here they would be able to express their talents and abilities in singing and playing music. Through this, each team would be able to encourage and challenge others to give their best in whatever things God has entrusted on them. As the first team began to play, I noticed how expressive they were in singing their songs to God. They had given their very best; a magnanimous heart was evident as they worshipped through music. Others, as they waited for their turn, were also motivated. In this event, Pastor Rowena Kwong introduced Bro. Jefferson Ouano as the sole judge for the competition. He was also giving feedbacks, recommendations and commends every team that performed. All of them had distinct ways of playing their songs; all were commendable. To God be the glory! Among the teams who participated, Naawan won the Battle of the Bands.
I remembered last year that it was Pastor Andrew Kwong who proposed this Battle of the Band for all the outstation churches. We were all enthused with the idea that through this, we would grow, challenge, help, and polish one another’s music skills.
After which we proceeded to the evening service. Before the preaching of the Word, an hour was spent for prayer asking the power of the Holy Spirit and anointing of God throughout the service. It helped us to be prepared spiritually. Pastor Andrew Kwong shared about “Seeing the Unseen God”. It was Moses’ faith that prodded him to leave Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger, and he persevered because he saw him who is invisible (Hebrews 11:27). On one hand, he fled to save his life, but it was not because he feared the anger of the king. Rather, he fled in surrender to God’s timing. He was waiting when exactly God would deliver Israel. That long, discouraging wait was possible only because Moses saw the unseen God. I believe that God can do the same to all the young people in this conference. May they learn to believe in God and choose to stand firmly in His side though they cannot see Him.
When the evening service was over, everyone was busy meeting together for their practices. They carefully planned and put all their efforts to come up with the best presentation for the next day. It was a great time of fellowship and bonding. It gave me a joyful heart to see them sacrificing and devoting their time at night to practice and work things out in their groups. It was a place and time of encouragement, mentoring and understanding one another in spite of many differences. Praise be to God for His abounding grace to them.
On the morning devotion of the third day, young people were all alive as Pastor Reynaldo Cornel of EFC Lala shared the message of being bold and unashamed of the gospel. The morning service started with a Cebuano praise and worship led by EFC Balingasag team followed by a message “Serve like Jesus” by Pastor Robert Padinit of EFC Cagayan de Oro.
Then came the most awaited part of the day; the room exploded into a big cheer as five groups showcased their acting skills and teamwork in the drama and cheering competitions. Teams Ephesians and Corinthians won the competition.
The evening service was also a blast with a jam-packed praise and worship led by CDO praise and worship team. The event was closed with a message “Dare to Be Different” by Pastor Andrew Kwong. He exemplified the life of Daniel and other three men as they stood out for the Lord, did what was right, and trusted God for the results, no matter what. In this case, God caused Daniel to excel than all the other youths.
Those words are remarkably insightful specifically spoken for the young people to take a leap of faith and be courageous in doing God’s will. With willing and humble hearts, we have responded to the Word of God. God graciously poured out His Holy Spirit to the congregation. As shared by Pastor Andrew Kwong, the lives of these men are worth emulating. Once more, the young people were challenged to do likewise.
The night ended with great assurance of hope. Many questions were answered. Doubts that clouded our minds were cleared, and the Holy Spirit moved in our midst.
The last day was spent for swimming, picture-taking, eating and fellowships allowing young people from different section to mingle and bond with their teammates and new friends to share experiences that would surely inspire them to serve the Lord enthusiastically. This years’ youth conference played a vital role in strengthening and equipping the faith of the next generation. As they travelled home, they brought with them a touch of the Holy Spirit, the fun experiences, and encouraging messages that prepared them to be released in God’s work in their various places.
God made many wonderful things and revelations during the camp. It was a remarkably successful and anointed youth conference. All of the young people and outstation church Pastors were really grateful for this experience and for the vision that JECPP imparted to us.
The challenge did not end in the conference. We now have a journey set before for us. We are now equipped, and we will never be afraid because God will always provide the skills, ability, direction and resources we need to carry out His will.
We are already looking forward to next year’s camp!
Christmas Party on the street of Nazareth
(Written by: Ms. Risa Labis)
“The Christmas message is that there is hope for a ruined humanity—hope of pardon, hope of peace with God, hope of glory.” – J.I. Parker
Evangel Family Church CDO is blessed to have embarked on its first outdoor Christmas Party on a community outreach in Barangay Nazareth, Cagayan de Oro dubbed as “Christmas at Nazareth”. “Christmas at Nazareth” was a striking departure from the Christmas parties we used to have inside the four corners of our church where we enjoyed the fun and the fellowship of fellow believers and of course, feasted on a variety of delicious food.
The church, under the guidance of Pastor Andrew Kwong and Pastora Rowena Kwong, felt that Christmas should be a time where we can showcase God’s generosity because on that first Christmas night, God gave the most precious thing He has, and that is His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. So instead of lavishing ourselves with gifts and toys and all that, we decided to go out to the community and spend Christmas with them. Interestingly, a barangay in Cagayan de Oro named after our Messiah’s hometown was fittingly chosen for the event.
It was a warm afternoon of 21st of December 2014 when about 500 children from Barangay Nazareth were gathered together in a gymnasium. It was an uncomfortably humid day, yet the kids did not mind because they were very excited on what were in stored for them during that day.
The active and dynamic TKK (The Kingdom Kids) teachers started the program on “Christmas at Nazareth” with a Praise and Worship led by the Music Team. Kids were attentive to hear the sharing about Christmas, and Jesus being the center of the celebration. Moreover, Burglar, a mascot brought fun to all the kids when he started playing with them. Teachers also entertained the kids with various games and fun activities.
Moments later, grandparents, parents, and more adults started coming in. The second part of the program was dedicated for them. Everyone enjoyed worshiping and praising the Lord. Everybody raised their hands as they all sung joyous Christmas songs. Evangelites continued on by having more surprises through various games and activities.
The day will not be complete without hearing a word of encouragement from beloved Rev. Andrew Kwong. He gave a very uplifting word of Hope. Also, a brother in Christ, Jeff Ouano and his band presented songs about his life experiences in encountering the Lord during the darkest moments of his life.
After all the games and giving out of prizes, four families were surprised with gifts given by Evangel Family Church. They were thankful and indeed surprised.
The fellowship with an estimated 900 adults and kids ended with a night of shared happiness and so much laughter over the warm and simple foods prepared by Evangel Family Church’s Staff and members.
By going into Nazareth, which happens to be the name of Jesus’ hometown, we meant to be a blessing to others as the Lord wants us to be. We shared material things that we could manage to buy to give to others so they would be happy on Christmas. We did this to let people know God is a generous God. But little did we realize that we in turn were also blessed to share the message of God’s relentless love with the people most in need of it – the destitute, the downtrodden, the hopeless and the restless. Indeed, the true message of Christmas is His undying love for everyone.
Northern Mindanao Youth take on the fight of faith
By Maria Niña Bañares
“This fast-paced life requires much of our time to do the things that are required from us and as a result, we don’t have ample time for ourselves. We tend to be more focused on the things that help us to be a better student or employee, but we forget to develop our relationship with the Almighty. I believe that if we, the next generation, spend our summers in retreats like this, we would be better prepared for later decisions in life and for every spiritual battle that we will encounter,” said one of the delegates Cinderella Bañares, a secondary education teacher, when asked about her expectations of the retreat.
She echoed the sentiments of the enthusiastic115 delegates in the first Northern Mindanao Regional Youth Conference last April 15-17, 2014 at the Coconut Bay Resort, Tablon, Cagayan de Oro City.
The said conference which was focused on the JECPP theme, “Empowering the Next Generation” was participated by the delegates from Evangel Family Church Cagayan de Oro and all its outstation churches namely EFC Lala, EFC Naawan, EFC Manticao, EFC Balingasag and EFC Malaybalay. It was facilitated by Pastor Rowena Kwong, and administered by Pastor Andrew Kwong, Pastor Roberto Padinit, and Pastor Vic Louie Pacaña.
The Holy Spirit did a great job in empowering the spiritual lives of the young people throughout the two- day camp. Pastor Andrew set the mode of the retreat on the first night by stressing Joel 2: 25 on his preaching, “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten – the great locust and the young locust, the other locusts and the locust swarm – my great army that I sent among you”. He started off by defining locust as a type of insect that caused farm infestations that devastate crops and cause major agricultural damage and human misery through famine and starvation. He then metaphorically compared the swarm of locusts to the cruel infestation that Satan brought to the believers causing spiritual devastations, misery, coldness and dryness of the present generation. Such devastations weaken the hearts of this generation and hinder the passing on of the great commission of faith, but there is hope in the future with Jesus. God has promised to restore this hope in us by repaying the years of havoc in our lives. And true enough, as the song in the praise and worship went, “these dry bones will live again, we’re nothing without You, nothing without You…”, young people in the Northern Mindanao region responded to God’s message in a desperate cry of restoration. Indeed, God’s outpouring is overflowing; it was a night of healing from pain and disappointment, pure surrender and deliverance from selfish and worldly desires that corrupted the minds and hearts of the young generation. The night ended with a promotional video from Evangel Center for Missions and Evangelism (ECME). One delegate from CDO Section, Milyn Mayake took the challenge to step out and accept the greater call to join the mission field and study in the Bible School.
After all cares were cast to the Almighty on the first night, the young people were once again set on fire for a greater encounter with God on the second day. Pastor Vic Louie Pacaña of EFC-CDO dared the young people to experience or re- experience the infilling of the Holy Spirit on his short message delivered during the early morning devotion. After which, cries of hunger and thirst from the empty vessels echoed throughout the hall. Among those filled was a young boy who is the son of one outstation pastor.
The morning service was led by the energetic praise and worship team from the Naawan section. Pastor Andrew commended the worship team and even expressed his great joy upon witnessing them lead Bisaya songs in fragrant worship to the Lord. Because of this, he proposed for Battle of the Bands for next year’s retreat and all outstation pastors to take turns as Speakers. “This is so good because we are all one body. Through this, we will grow together, challenge one another, help one another and polish one another,” he said.
In the morning service which was entitled “The Generation that Seeks God”, Pastor Roberto Padinit shared a very relevant message out of his experiences of faith. He led the young people into an awareness that there is a spiritual warfare or battle (immorality, idolatry, media, education, music, pornography, drugs, and civil initiative promoting same sex marriage) going on around us, and that they are obliged to bring about this awareness into each of their circle of influence. “We are enjoying right now because of the generation before us that picked up the good news and suffered and sacrificed for us to receive the freedom of worshipping the Lord. Now is the time for us to take up the battle. We are the next generation! If we don’t take up the battle, then we are doomed! It’s time for us to see the cause and pass it on to the next generation,” Pastor Robert said on his sermon. He added that in order to be empowered to fight a good fight of faith and to pass on the battle to the next generation, Christians need to declare the mighty and awesome acts of God’s greatness and majesty. To do this, we need to understand that we are created by God; we need to know that God cares for us; we need to trust on the cross of Christ; we need to follow Christ and be sold out to Him; we need to live the correct way of living – having wisdom and integrity, and we need the Holy Spirit in our daily undertakings. He wrapped up his sermon by saying that Christians need to arise because we have been called to be the light and salt of the world.
The day was concluded with the campers’ encounter and tracing back of the seven stations of the Cross where the pastors explicated Christ’s sufferings and battle per station. Pastor Andrew gave emphasis to the value of the soul by asking the question: “What is a price of the soul?” He further stated “The cost of the soul is the life of the Son of God – that is how precious and valuable our soul is. God gave His life for our souls. He conquered the greatest battle of mankind which is death. Jesus’s earthly life ended, yet He remains forever. He continues to live with us as we continue to pass on this life to another generation.” Knowing the price that Jesus paid on the cross empowered the young people to really take up the spiritual battle of this generation.
“The stations of the cross activity helped me to contemplate how great the battle he faced just to give us a chance to live a second life that will be of great use to His kingdom. As a response, I am now willing to give my life and will back to Him”, one high school camper said.
During the camp, strong camaraderie was also built among the young people from the various outstation churches through various activities such as group cheer competition and outdoor pool swimming. Special song numbers were also given by nine-year old Hannah Padinit, Pastor Robert Padinit’s daughter, on the first night and Sheen Cabañeros from EFC-CDO on the second night.
When asked about her insights and realizations after the camp, this is what Mariecris Michelle Uy, stage 2 cancer survivor from EFC Manticao said, “I had so much fun during the retreat. I made new friends and I enjoyed the food, the place and the fellowship. Everything was just so smooth, relaxing and no pressure at all. I felt like I already had a vacation, I am truly blessed by how God touched my heart. He made me realize that I am loved, that I am of such worth because He gave His only Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross for me, for all of us. Isn’t that the sweetest thing that could ever happen in the history of mankind? It made me appreciate myself more, and it made me love God even more. I just felt so amazingly happy, loved and blessed. Thanks EFC for the wonderful experience”.
It was indeed a very successful retreat. The campers went to their respective places and homes filled, revived, and empowered by the presence of the Almighty to arise to the spiritual battle and become the light and salt of this earth.
Capping off the whole retreat were few words from Karl Angelo Almueda, lone delegate from Metro Manila who flew in to experience church youth retreat for the first time. “This retreat is undeniably a great and fulfilling experience in the sense that it gave me a taste of real spiritual encounter with God. The Conference taught me how to individually reflect and relate my present lifestyle to the standards God has set for me to live by. It made me realize that there is a great spiritual battle around and ahead of me as I go back to Luzon on Monday. God helped me to really take up this battle and rise as one of Christ’s servants. It is so awesome to know that this vacation is definitely one of my best and will always be cherished as I go back home EMPOWERED!”
Northern Mindanao sections prepare for harvest
By Pastor Vic Louie Pacaña
The Holy Spirit taught me a very valuable lesson during my trip last December to Tacloban City via Ormoc City. Amidst the sorrowful landscape of wrecked houses and snapped coconut trees caused by Super Typhoon Yolanda, I saw a farmer plowing his fields. The houses nearby were all in shambles, yet this farmer would not allow the situation around him to hinder what needs to get done for the season. It was the right time actually to prepare the fields for planting, and this wise and diligent farmer arose from the heartbreaking moment to prepare his fields.
The church goes through many storms, and sometimes we can get stuck in the heartbreaking moments and neglect what needs to be done for that season.
C.S. Lewis says, “The Church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little Christs. If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, even the Bible itself, are simply a waste of time. God became Man for no other purpose.”
“The Great Commission is not an option to be considered; it is a command to be obeyed…” so echoes Hudson Taylor.
Missions is not just about planting churches or spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ. It means giving birth to another church that has this same mission to spread a passion for God. So instead of merely saying that we aim to plant a church, we say that we aim of “Planting a Passion for God” at a certain locality.
The aim is not just to plant a church, but to plant a strong, God-centered seedbed for spreading a passion for the supremacy of God in all things for the joy of all peoples through Jesus Christ.
Since our exposure to the Church Planting Movement Concept last 3-6 August 2010 at Marco Polo Hotel, Cebu City, we experienced a surge in our church planting endeavors for a year or two, but the zeal began to wane. As the essence of the Church planting movement rests primarily on the mobilizing of volunteer church members to plant churches, we revive our efforts on the training of new volunteers for church planting.
We began with reorganizing the evangelism program of our city church. Believing for the harvest must first begin with preparing for the planting. So we went back to the basics of evangelism. We gathered all willing members and enlisted them to our modified Evangelism Explosion Program. This program will take around 12-15 weeks, depending on the diligence of the trainee. With much excitement, the first batch of 29 volunteers has already grown to 40. We are expecting this number to double when the trainees reach midway of the program where they are expected to each enlist a trainee.
The excitement doesn’t just stop here at our city church, but it has also reached our barangay outstation churches. Our present volunteers who handle outstation churches have also implemented the same program on their barangay churches. Our full time church planters are also preparing their fields. Currently, Balingasag Section has 9 volunteers, and they are training 4 more workers to plant 2 churches this June. Malaybalay Section has 9 volunteer workers, and they are now training 3 additional workers to plant churches by July. Manticao Section has 10 volunteer workers, and now they are training 2 more volunteers to plant 2 churches by July. Lala Section has 10 volunteers, and they are training 5 volunteers to plant churches by June this year. Naawan Section has 12 volunteers, and they are training 3 more volunteers to plant church by June this year. The overall number of volunteers under Northern Mindanao Region is 113, and we are presently training 34 volunteers for our projected 10 churches to be planted this year.
Truly, the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. We need to mobilize our people to be involved in the harvest. It starts by preparing them. David Livingstone says “Sympathy is no substitute for action”. There is so much to be done for evangelism, but it can only be done if God’s people are available and willing to do it.
EFC- CDO youth help fellow students envision college degree
Many high school students think that since they know how to Facebook or some internet games, they are gifted with computer skills, so they enroll in a computer-related course. After one semester, they find themselves shifting to another course. Other high school students use a “no-mathematics-please” standard in choosing a perfect pain-free college life. These and many other downbeat decisions lead to delayed and distracted college years.
Seeing their losing plight, Evangel Family Church Cagayan de Oro City organized a Career Guidance Seminar as a community outreach program to help high students envision college education and professional life.
Career Guidance talks are held every third or fourth Friday of the month where working adults in the church are invited as speakers. Since this project kicked off, qualified speakers for Engineering, Accountancy, Medical fields, Education and Vocational Technology courses already shared their different experiences from college life to their current profession. They also suggested best school offerings such as affordability and quality, as well as choices of scholarships offered by various colleges and universities.
A few weeks before the seminar started, our youth went to three public high schools in the City and invited their third year and fourth year students. As we explained to them the objective of this event, they were very optimistic. Some school principals also suggested that we hold the event within their schools so many students could join. The students are thankful because many of them are still clueless for college. They said that Universities are also conducting room-to-room career guidance but the difference with ours is that we don’t promote any particular school. Our speakers simply freely share to them their actual experiences, know-how and wise tips so students can start early career planning with courses that are most appropriate for them. To add fun, we also have some trivia questions between talks, snacks and awards for our young, enthusiastic participants.
Some of these students are now coming back to church, and we are very glad that we influence their lives. They are so blessed with the testimonies of our guest speakers and are now beginning to desire for God. After every event, many don’t want to go home immediately because they love to fellowship with our young people. Although lots of them are not yet coming to our church every Sunday, we praise God for the privilege of planting the Seed of God’s Word in their appreciative hearts.