Reflections and Prayers for the New Year

I haven't been updating my blog for a while because I don't have the luxury of time. But I believe a post about some of my biggest lessons in ministry last year deserves to be written. So, I'm taking a few minutes to update you about God's workings in my life in the previous year.

2011 is my first full year in Christian ministry. It was a difficult year because of the adjustments I had to make. There were several times I felt idle because I couldn't put my schedule in order. I had full control of my time but the challenge was most of the ministry activities happened simultaneously in selected periods of the day or week. This left me with alternating jam-packed and excessively free time, and switching my biological mood from one mode to the other proved difficult.

By God's grace, however, I learned to handle my unorthodox schedule, slowly mastering how to use my time wisely. In 2012, I commit to be a better steward of this resource as my ministry work expanded to include not only the UP Diliman Campus but also Pisay Diliman and Krus na Ligas Elementary School.

Yes, last year, God opened two new ministry opportunities for me. I now serve students from elementary to college as a counselor, Bible and values teacher, a staff worker, or simply a "kuya." Each ministry has its own set of challenges. Work with elementary students stretch my patience a lot. The hyper-active sixth graders-- around fifty in each class --have difficulty focusing and listening. Many times I find myself consuming much time putting the class in order!

KNL is actually the most challenging of my ministries. I was discouraged many times because I felt that the students were not bearing fruit. Some were becoming worse despite the values lessons we had week after week. But, praise God, because He sustained me until the end of the year. I'm now excited to meet my students again next Monday. Pray with me that they'll be more behaved in the last three months of our meetings.

Pisay is a new territory for me. I decided to help in the ACTS ministry in the Diliman campus because I figured that most of the graduates of the high school enter UP in college. I wanted to minister to them as early as possible and also continue ministering in college especially when they pass UP Diliman.  A few years back, several in our fellowship in the dorms started in ACTS. I desire to serve as a bridge to bring back the connection between their fellowship and ours in serving the students whom God led to our ministry.

I think the greatest challenge in Pisay is the seeming lack of interest of the students. Many of them are glued on their dreams and ambitions, and so find God and spiritual issues unappealing. There are also several restrictions on campus, making our projects and programs less flexible. Despite these, however, the potential of planting seeds of the Gospel is enormous. Pray with us as we continue to seek the Lord's guidance in expanding our ministry among the freshmen in Pisay.

I know that there will be much work in the coming months, but I have peace that God will be with us, giving us strength to  persevere.

Finally, I still have my first ministry, the UP Diliman Campus. We were able to start a fellowship in the newest dorm on campus and I am very grateful to the Lord for that. I know that it is only by His grace that the vision became a reality. I'm also thankful because of the eagerness of other Christians in the Centennial dormitory to help in starting the fellowship. Continue to pray for us as we expand our activities in the said dormitory.

As for the other dorm fellowships, pray with us as we revive and revitalize them. 2 Corinthians 4:1 always resonates in my heart when I think about my ministry in DCF. God exhorts, "Therefore, since through God's mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart."

It is by God's mercy and grace that we are ministering to our fellow dormers. He gave us this ministry and He will sustain us as long as He sees fit. We are dependent upon Him. If He desires to expand us, He will. If He desires to dissolve us, I know He will raise other people to minister to the dormers. But as long as we are here by His mercies, we continue to work for God and not lose heart.

There are so many things going on and I'm excited and nervous at the same time. Just thinking about the workload makes me tired, but I know God will sustain me. Please pray with me for people to really commit themselves to the Lord. Pray also for burdened hearts to reach out to the lost in the dorms and in UP as a whole.

I will end here for the mean time. I have so much more in mind, but I'll share them with you in the days to come. Remember me in your prayers.

In Christ,

Pau