Thursday, December 6, 2012

Bringing Christ to the World!


(FROM JOSHUA AND ANNE'S NOVEMBER PRAYER-LETTER PAGE 1)

I always find the Christmas season hectic and challenging.  More so this year.  On the last Sunday of November, we started a church in a nearby community located just a few minutes from our house through a simple worship service.  A culmination of 5 months of hard work of our church planting team as we tirelessly share the Gospel, lead Bible Studies and visit new contacts. 

PREACHING GOD’S WORD DURING OUR FIRST WORSHIP SERVICE 
IN THE COMMUNITY LAST NOVEMBER 25.

A few days later, we went to Tingloy, for an overnight ocular inspection of the area which could be our next church planting site.  Tingloy is part of the Batangas province which is about three hours away from Manila.  It is  an isolated island and according to our contact, there has never been any evangelical work there as far as he could remember.

THE BEAUTIFUL SUNSET IN TINGLOY -   
ALTHOUGH THE DARKNESS SEEMS TO REVEAL ITS SPIRITUAL CONDITION.

A day after we arrived from Tingloy, the Extreme Response (ER) Christmas Parties for street kids started.  This year, we have scheduled 13 parties for 1500 street kids in 12 different areas in the Philippines.  ER brings a team from Sunrise Community Church (Sacramento, California) and together with Youth Mobilization and IT Tender ministries, those 1500 kids will receive the love of Christ and find the true meaning of Christmas.

ONE OF THE ER CHRISTMAS PARTIES - 
THIS ONE WAS HELD IN ONE OF YM’S PARTNER CHURCHES IN MAKATI CITY.

Aside from those events, we have reunions, church Christmas celebrations and team parties.  But the real challenge I am anticipating is the preaching of the Christmas message which I have been doing since I started preaching in 1999. 

To be honest, since the story never changes and there are a few accounts in the Gospel about the birth of Jesus, I have used similar scriptural text over and over again.
But this year, I am assigned a text that I will use.  It’s on Luke 1:46-55 - the “Magnificat”, Mary’s song of praise.  It will be my first time to use the said text for my Christmas message.

As I prepare for my preaching, it has become very evident that although Mary is not the focal point of Christmas, she plays a very significant role - that is to bring Jesus to the world.

Then I realized that we are no different. Just as God has chosen Mary, to be the physical mother of Jesus in order to bring Jesus to the world, we too are called and chosen to bring Christ to the world not just during the Christmas season but at all times and at all given opportunities.

This world needs people who would say, "I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said (Luke 1:38).”

We need, as the Lord’s servants to bring Christ to wherever God will lead us.  Whether in the nearby community or in the province, I find that people long for a kind of love that lasts.  Not the kind that is here today, gone tomorrow.  A true love that only Christ can bring.

This Christmas, I believe God is giving us the many opportunities to bring Christ to each person we will meet.  1500 kids are now getting that opportunity.  That community a few minutes away from us continues to get it.  Tingloy soon will first get that opportunity.  If each one of us will respond to God’s call, it won’t be impossible for us to bring Christ to the world.