This past school year, I was blessed to be able to teach again at Philippine Bible Baptist College, which wrapped up their classes in May. I was able to be the emcee for their graduation ceremony as nine Bible college students graduated. It truly is exciting and encouraging to teach these young people and watch to see how the Lord will use them. The third week of July, the Bible college started again for the new school year, and I am thrilled that Czarinna has a chance to teach a class called “The Christian Home” for this semester. Praise the Lord for the four young men and one young lady from our church who are currently in the Bible college. Three of them will be graduating next year. Please pray for Armando Albios, Lirejim Sante, and Chinky Barong to finish strong and to do what the Lord has called them to do. Armando Albios and Chinky Barong are praying about being missionaries to Thailand.

One of the most awaited events each year is our Youth Camp. We were so blessed this year to be able to take the most youth that we have ever taken to camp. Harvest Baptist Temple of Owensboro, Kentucky, was very instrumental this year in helping us with the camp, as they sponsored all of our youth for their registration, food, and transportation. All in all, including our church and kitchen staff, we were able to take around 200 people. This Youth Camp focuses on training youth according to their interests and abilities that they can use for different church ministries. I was able to do a workshop on missiology for those who were interested in missions. It was a blessing seeing those young people who had a heart for missions and were eager to learn more about missions. At the end of the Youth Camp, we were able to baptize 16 visitors! That was also a record number of baptisms for us at Youth Camp. This year’s Youth Camp will be the most memorable one not only for breaking attendance and baptism records but also for the natural disaster that occurred near our town during the Youth Camp. Mount Kanlaon, the volcano that is pictured on the front of our prayer card, erupted, and a three-mile-high ash plume filled the sky. There was not much lava that spewed out, but rather it was the ashfall that caused some problems. It was a big enough problem that a mandatory evacuation was issued for all residents living within a three-kilometer radius of the volcano. Some of our church families were affected, and it wasn’t until three weeks later that the evacuees were finally able to go home.

In my last prayer letter, I mentioned that we were processing Czarinna’s dual citizenship, and praise the Lord, He answered our prayers. Czarinna is now officially a Filipino citizen again. Now we ask prayers that next year we can have Edward and Franco apply for dual citizenship as well. Please keep praying for our church building as well. We have been able to do a lot of work since our last prayer letter; however, the construction work is slowing down now, as we can only do as much work as our people are able to give toward our church building fund. Please pray that God can give us $38,000 more so that we can finish our church building much faster.

And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive,

Ian and Czarinna Vincent