Laymen Ministries Philippines has now exceeded 15 years of service in the Philippines and has reached a major milestone …
Our school year here in the Philippines begins on June 1. This June, we will be living and holding classes on top of a mountain. I like to refer to it as “God’s mountain.”
The living quarters, administrative offices, high school class rooms, plus dormitories and cafeteria will all be “on top of the mountain.”
The high school students and staff are excited and are working hard to make this happen. Sundays find the students working construction, finishing furniture, or cleaning up after the construction workers.
We desire that you rejoice with us as you read how God has lead and continues to direct His work here in Occidental Mindoro, Philippines.
We are ending this school year with 186 elementary and 7 high school students in our 4 elementary and 1 high school. All of our students are from indigenous tribes.
In order to operate schools here, one must have Philippine government approval and be under the leadership of a citizen of the Philippines. Here we are blessed with our co-workers Louie Benitez and Abel Miralles. These faithful brothers serve as President and Vice-President of Katutubo Excel Schools, Inc., in addition to their full time duties as Prison Ministry leaders for Laymen Ministries.
Our supporters, who have been with us over the years, know that our original outreach was to the scattered, animistic, native tribes, who are among the poorest of the poor.
When we compare our students today with those just 15 years ago, it is a miracle. Not all miracles are instant!
Perhaps some think that missionary work consists of daily preaching or giving Bible studies. Well, actually it is, but not in the sense of inside a church building preaching, or even in a formal setting. Our daily activities “preach” and “witness” Bible studies in actual life, real time!
For example, Here is a partial list of typical daily activities of our missionary life, which actually happened within the last 36 hours:
- Stimulate the boarding high school students at breakfast with a paragraph from “Education”
- Purchase materials for high school construction.
- Encourage parents, teachers and elementary students at year end ceremony.
- Process some papers, which had been piling up on my desk.
- Be a plumber and replace leaking bathroom valve.
- Meet mission boat returning from delivering materials to repair village schools, during Summer vacation.
- Unload teacher’s suitcases from the boat.
- Take patient, who came in on the mission boat, to the hospital. He was admitted.
- Take the night ferry to the mainland to attend a last-minute-called-all-day–mandatory-seminar by the Department of Education. I was privileged to witness to a seat-mate while there. The seminar was to inform us that the bureaucrats had increased our paperwork again!
- Take the bus to the pier to take the return ferry, but the ferry was broken, so we wait. It will be midnight soon!
- Lord, I pray that I have properly witnessed for you today!
- Arrived back at the mission headquarters at 06:30 (6:30 AM) , in time to see the students who were finishing breakfast.
- The construction workers need materials to continue working on the mountain—got to run!
Our goal as Laymen Ministries Philippines and Katutubo Excel Schools is to find and equip motivated students to share the gospel and to improve the primitive lifestyle of their own scattered people in the mountains of Occidental Mindoro. We have had a few very dedicated Student Missionaries from the U.S., Australia, Germany, Switzerland and South Africa. Over the years, their assistance to us, that of revealing God’s love to these marginalized minorities, has been vital, as young people relate well with other young people. We are grateful for their selfless service and love!
We recognize that our permanent staff and Student Missionaries are vitally important in developing our native missionaries, who are infinitely more effective in ministering to their own people, than are we foreigner.
Thank you faithful donors, we are in the finishing stages of the construction of our own high school and administration campus.
We are now again on a ferry, returning from Manila. We were able to get a 40 foot container of donated items through Customs. This added capacity will strengthen our power output for our off-grid system. This trip has been another marathon of renewing driver’s license, renewing car registration, picking up a repaired computer, releasing a native patient from the mental hospital, delivering two of our staff’s families to their mothers, who are in graduate school – Summer session, plus banking duties and dentist visit! Does this sound exciting? Believe me it is, but one must first surrender totally to Jesus and make His agenda your own! That is when the adventure with Jesus begins!
As tiring as our activities are , we are encouraged as we are looking forward to spending the Sabbath tomorrow with Jesus and our Families.
I just received this up-lifting text from one of our student missionaries, who is visiting with her Philippine teacher in the teacher’s home province, before returning to the U.S. This is what student missionary service is all about. Rejoice with us as you read her text, and send us other SMs who are looking for a closer walk with Jesus!
“Good afternoon Tito Jim! We are safely at the Ramos’ house, relaxing after a long and enjoyable day in Baguio yesterday. We went to many different historical places, as well as the SM Mall. That was a new experience for me! I never realized, until I spent time in the mall how much I have changed, while spending time with you and in the village. Secular things, of any type, have absolutely no appeal anymore. I see that as my greatest change and joy, but a challenge I see coming as well. I love this verse and have chosen it for my return promise. Phil.4:11-13. It tells me that no matter where I am, I can adjust and be content. Hope all is well with you. Missing you already!”
Friends of Laymen Ministries and the Philippine project, this type of message disperses our exhaustion and encourages us to press on for the Master in sharing His love to our fellowman.
How is your mission for Him progressing? Are you experiencing the joy, peace and fulfillment He promises His co-workers? Surrendering totally to Jesus is the only way to experience the ability to love our fellowman and walk daily with Jesus in the greatest adventure in this life. We pray that you are experiencing this joy today! If you are and care to write and share with us your joy, we would be delighted to hear from you. If this is not your Christian experience and you would like to write us, we will be happy to pray for you and/or correspond with you!