James Paet came to pick me up at the hotel about 7am on Sunday. We traveled almost an hour and a half south to the city of Trece Martires (meaning 13 Martyrs, an atrocity committed under Spanish rule in the late 1800’s). I had held a one-day gospel meeting in Trece Martires some time ago and was very happy to see the brethren again. They have clearly grown in strength and number.
The building is in the midst of a government resettlement area. It is fairly spartan – just four walls and a concrete floor. Another congregation has recently been started out of this group and one of the men preaches there every Sunday.
The local preacher of the Trece Martires congregation, Junie Samontina, also preaches in a total of 4 congregations every Lord’s Day. He is a hard worker and expressed the hope that I would hold classes on a book of the Bible in the Manila area so he could attend and grow. Both of the groups are looking for funds to buy more chairs. If you are interested in helping with that effort, please let me know.
The Trece Martires congregation is made up of mostly young people and young families as you can see. As I recall, the count for attendance was 45 that day. I was requested to preach a lesson on “Living a Godly Life in an Ungodly World.” We based the study on 1 Peter 2:11-12 which teaches us to (1) recognize our place in the world as sojourners and strangers, (2) make our lives characterized by purity in actions, and (3) battle ungodliness in its presence rather than remaining silent. We then made application to our lives in this world regarding its morals, speech, dress, intoxicants, other drugs, gender perversions, dancing, sexual promiscuity, homosexuality and other examples of rampant ungodliness in our culture.
The crowd was especially attentive through the lesson. I noticed several parents talking to their children and telling them to listen to the things being said. Many of the young people came and thanked me for the lesson, saying they had learned many things and had been encouraged. A number of the very young, probably 12 and under, took my hand to their forehead, a sign of respect for older people. Not sure why they did it to me! 😁 Several teenage visitors were also present at the service and expressed appreciation for the lesson.
At about 5:30pm, James Paet again picked me up to meet Dr. Teresa Toreja at the Mall of Asia for supper. It had been a long time since I was able to see her and we enjoyed catching up. Teresa’s husband, Jerry, died a few years ago. Jerry was one of the elders of the Kapitbahyan congregation on the far southwest side of the Manila area. Teresa’s brother, Elias Cruz (son of the late Ben Cruz), preaches for the congregation as well as other places and had asked Teresa to raise the possibility of some future work in the Metro Manila area. We will be corresponding about that over the coming months, the Lord willing.
Thanks again for your interest in this very fruitful work! God bless.
Brotherly, Harry
