“And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” (Joshua 24:15)
CHURCH UPDATE
The last quarter of 2024 literally made our hands full with church activities here and there. In the first week of October, the church celebrated its 25th year with the theme, “Embracing the Call to Serve Till He Comes.” We never thought the church could reach this number of years! It is only by His grace that we can still serve Him and minister in this place. Our family has been a part of this ministry for 16 years already. We have seen God’s faithfulness and goodness throughout these years. We are grateful to God for His wondrous works. Our prayer is that we can continue to serve Him more for the rest of our days. All glory belongs to Him alone!
Aboard our church vehicle, which we named “Goliath,” and one other van, the young people and young adults adored the winding road from Burauen to Hinunangan, Southern Leyte, for their annual retreat. A day and a half went by so fast with all of the activities. It was their first time to experience having a retreat outside the church premises, and we are thankful to God that, in spite of limited finances, we can still have fun and enjoy what God allowed us to have. It is my heart’s desire that I can take them to other places now that we have our “Goliath.”
Soul winning is one of the most important activities that we do. As a pastor, I make sure that our people understand its relevance. Every Friday, our young people and young adults go and pass out tracts in different areas. On Saturdays, they do visitation and teach kids in extension classes. I am blessed as a pastor to see their efforts, and I am praying that they will continue to be faithful in the Lord’s work.
Through evangelism and God’s divine sovereignty, we see people getting saved and baptized. Recently, Renz Alla came forward and expressed his desire to follow Christ in the waters of baptism. We have two more candidates who have expressed the same desire. These two young ladies come from different families but have the same family situation. Both come from broken families, and we are praying that we can get their parents’ consent so that they can be a part of our church family.
Another joy to witness as a pastor is for young couples in our church to grow and mature spiritually. Hannah and Raffy are a young couple who made a wrong decision but were able to get back up on their feet again by God’s grace. As new parents, they want to start things right by dedicating their little Ashtin Zane to the Lord.
FAMILY UPDATE
Our firstborn Sofia will be finishing up 12th grade. In just a few months, she will turn 18 years old and will be in college soon. Our middle child Hadassah will officially become a teenager, as she will be 13 come March. Our youngest, well, we can’t believe she is almost 4 years old! My wife and I are blessed to have our girls, and we are praying that the Lord will continue to guide and protect our family.
Once again, we thank God for your faithfulness, and we pray for God’s blessings to be upon you.
By His grace,
The Javier Family
Missionary in the Philippines