Author: Shofar Missions

On Tuesday and Wednesday our team taught the second of four scheduled MTI classes at an entirely new location in Hilongos on the island of Leyte. We met at Chicka-an restaurant in their meeting room, and it worked great.

The pastors and ministry leaders who attended were a wonderful group to spend these two days with. They were eager to learn and participate, and we had many conversations about ministry and life in general during the breaks and lunchtime. The topic of the “Life of Jesus as our Blueprint for Ministry” was appreciated by the group. It gave us an opportunity to introduce our ministry goals both in the States as well as the Philippines. We were excited to meet this new group and have high hopes for more connections with them in the future!

Four of us had a great time with Hope of the City Church Hilongos youth, who invited us to their church for a casual evening of games and a Bible study and discussion on Luke 17:11-19. We got to know them, which was a lot of fun. We enjoyed the evening talking about gratitude and Jesus’ reaction to the nine lepers who didn’t glorify God after being miraculously healed.

On Friday, we finished up the Bantayan Ministry Training Institute. It was a good time, and we hope and pray that the material that was discussed and learned will be applied in real ways and that churches will be benefited by it.

On Saturday, we and some of the Street Level crew hosted a Youth Leaders Summit for student- aged youth on Bantayan. The summit was titled ‘What if Jesus Meant What He Said? – Words That Turned the World Upside-down’ and we taught about some of the hard things Jesus said like cutting off our hands and hating our families. We think it was an impactful day, and it was a fun time of worship and learning. We got to meet a lot of people and have some good discussion in small groups. After the summit, we said goodbye and began our journey back to Cebu for church on Sunday.

Thank you for praying for us. We have church tonight and a travel day to Leyte ahead of us.

Shofar’s June team from Wisconsin has arrived safely and we were up and running as soon as possible. After landing in Cebu on Tuesday night, we spent a quick overnight in the city before departing to Bantayan the next morning. Two Street Level members, Rodnie and Chariel, joined us for the trip there, which included a drive up and over the mountains and a ferry ride. It was great spending time with them while reorienting ourselves to being on the other side of the world. (Translation: they were very accommodating when we were very jet lagged). 

Today was the first day of the Bantayan Ministry Training Institute where we were going through the Life of Jesus focusing on how His life impacts the way we lead and minister for His kingdom. It was great to see a lot of returning students and a few new faces. 

Thanks for all your prayers! Please continue praying for endurance and effective ministry as we have a packed schedule ahead.

This past Sunday we gathered on the beach for a very celebratory day. We worshiped together, Pastor Jesse taught out of Romans 5 & 6, then we listened as everyone being baptized gave testimony of what God has done in their lives thus far. It was a great reminder of God’s transforming work and of His love. We then, as a church, witnessed their baptism, and celebrated by sharing a meal together.

Please keep those baptized in prayer. We are excited to see where God takes these believers, and are so blessed to be part of the journey.