Encountering God Retreat

Ptr Pony came to Bicol

from Pag-ibig Baptist Church

in Taytay, Rizal, Philippines,

to organize and lead an Encountering God Retreat.

He brought with him a team of pastors.

Delegates came mostly from

Southern Baptist Churches of

Camarines Sur, Camarines Norte, and Tastas, Albay.

By removing most of our living room furniture,

putting up a make-shift screen for power points,

and adding a keyboard for worship songs... Our living room was turned into an assembly hall.The youth sometimes met outside under the trees.Food Preparations Emily and Norma cooked the food.Food had been bought and prepared for 60 people,

but sometimes more than 70 people ate.God graciously fed everyone.

No one went hungry.

The 60 delegates were assigned partners.

Terry was partnered with Nero, a new believer

from Baao, the town where we live.

The pastors lectured on the 3 Fs--Freedom, Fire, and Focus.
Testimonies were shared about being freed
from the bondage of various sins and strongholds.Partners then worked together

to confess and renounce their sins

and strongholds.

Pastors moved among the delegates

to pray for each one.

All who came with open hearts

were cleansed and freed

from their bondages to sin.

To God be the glory!

Homeward bound after a soul searching time

of wonderful spiritual refreshment.

Discipling New Believers

Elma and Michaelle are discipling 5 women.

They are learning to present the gospel,

using John 3:16, and to give their testimonies.

The men are also learning to share their faith.After our time of learning,

the men joined the women to visit selected families.

First, we visited a village kagawad (councilwoman)

and her daughter Rea. Saldo shared the Gospel

and asked others to share their testimonies.

Then we walked through the coconut trees

to make a second visit.

This time we shared the gospel and our testimonies

with Lingling and her family.

Fem (black t-shirt) for the first time

shared a clear yet simple

gospel presentation, using John 3:16,

in their heart language of Ligao Bicol.
By now it was getting dark,

but Tonton (who had joined us after work),

encouraged us to make one last visit at Gi's house.

(Gi's husband is the right-hand man for the village captain.)

The following Sunday, we were thrilled to see

both Rea and Gi with her 3 girls

attend our house church worship service.

Thank you, Lord, for encouraging the group in this way

to continue to share their faith in You.

Matt, our nephew, visits the Philippines

We welcomed Matt to the Philippines from China,

where he has been studying for a year of his college.
His visit began with a ferry ride to Corrigedor.

Corrigedor is a small island

where Filipino and American soldiers

fought side by side during World War II.

Cannons and large guns used

during that war were on display.

Matt's taking a look through gun barrel.
The old barracks are in ruins.
Can you find Matt with his Aunt Michaelle among the ruins?From Corrigedor, we went to Escadero

to experience Filipino culture.

We ate Filipino fiesta food in the water falls,
and enjoyed watching a show of the dances

from various parts of the Philippines. After the show,

Matt's favorite dancers posed for a picture with Matt.

Then we took Matt to our home among the Bicolanos,

who eat hot, spicy food seasoned with peppers

like the one below.Camarines Sur, the province where we live,

is known for it's wake boarding park.
Matt learned to wake board quickly and easily.

Then we headed out to the village of Mampili.

to visit the Bicolano people.

and enjoy the coconut

they pulled from their trees to serve us for a snack.

Matt said visiting in the village

was his favorite part of his visit.

Celebrating Christmas of 2009

This Christmas season will bring a mighty fine corn harvest for Eddie's father, a Bicolano farmer. His harvest won't compare though to God's spiritual harvest in the hearts of Eddie and others in Mampili.

Eddie came for the first time to the Bible study in Mampili last Saturday. After the Gospel was presented in the heart language of Iriga-Bicol, members of the group discussed whether they would commit their lives to Christ now or later. When the moment of decision came, Eddie rose to his feet. His courage spread to the rest of the group and 10 others committed their lives to Christ. Christ won the victory that day.

God used Sally to invite her friends and neighbors to study the Bible. Her contacts in Mampili grew the group from 4 to 12.
During an earlier Mampili Bible study, this grandmother Coring and her daughter Gina had asked us questions like "Do you believe in the priest? Will we be baptized again?" These questions alerted us that the time was right to call for a decision. After their decision, Coring and Gina expressed their heart felt gratitude for what Christ had done for them on the cross.
During this Christmas season, Terry spoke ten times, using the story of the wisemen to explain why Jesus had come as a baby to be our Savior.Terry also spoke at this simple double wedding, encouraging these couples to remain faithful to God and each other. These two couples each have 5 children. We rejoiced with them for getting married, an important step to obey God and His plan for their lives.
This Christmas, Terry and Michaelle were honored to be one of many Ninongs and Ninangs or godparents for Lorenz and Eden's wedding. One unusual custom at this wedding was the bride and groom holding 2 white doves together to symbolize their love for one another.

Along with the newly weds, Tatay Tony and Nanay Estella celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary, a rarity among Filipinos due to their short life spans. (As you can see, they don't consider it proper to smile for pictures. They really were happy.)

We celebrated Jesus' birth with our Bible study groups, including these folks in Santol.

PTL! On December 21st, 6 more new believers were baptized in Tastas. Tonton is a new believer with a tender heart and an eagerness to do whatever God asks of him.
The tears rolled as Tonton gave his testimony after his baptism.

The baptism was followed by a Christmas party with about 80 people in attendance. Pastor Pony gave a powerful salvation sermon followed by gifts of food and vitamins to every family.

These girls prepared a Christmas song with choreography.

As you can see, the Lord smiled down on His work among the Bicolanos this Christmas!