Students return to build, minister and share faith
Brock Goodhill/Dr John Cox
Public relations editorial intern/Reflections editor
Cooranbong, New South Wales, Australia
Avondale College students will miss Christmas with their family, New Year’s with their friends and a month of their summer holiday to return to a fishing village in the Philippines to build, minister and share their faith.
Twenty-five members of student club One Mission will return to Miatom in the province of Negros Oriental on December 7. Their plan: to build a multipurpose court, a children’s playground and a canteen; to run a children’s club and a Christmas program and to buy a bus; and to run an evangelistic program.
One Mission children’s club in the Philippines. Credit: Sando Bastos.
The students first visited the village in January this year. A team of 16 led by Sandro Bastos and Neil Bustos, a Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Teaching student, ran an evangelistic program and a children’s club, built an extra classroom for a local Seventh-day Adventist school and ran a service project at the local high school and a feeding ministry for poor children in surrounding towns.
To the astonishment of the local Adventist ministers, more than 600 people, including many teenagers, attended the evangelistic program. Three students preached: Neil Bustos, Joel Heise (a Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Teaching student), and Ray Moaga (a Bachelor of Theology/Bachelor of Ministry student at the time).
One factor contributing to success was that the children’s club ran from 5.30 to 7.30 each evening, followed immediately by the evangelistic program. The parents came to collect their children and stayed for the program.
The meetings ended with a baptism of 25 people, including one of the Avondale students. Many others were preparing for baptism under the guidance of the local ministers. Many former church members made a commitment to return to their faith and are now attending church.
Participation in the project powerfully affirmed the students’ commitment to Christ and to the church. “We went with our plans, but God had much bigger plans, and bigger results,” says Neil.
After paying for their own airfares and food, the students raised an additional $20,000 for the trip. They returned with a vision to continue supporting the community and to raise money to sponsor at least one child to attend the local Adventist school. The students are raising $30,000 for this trip.
The minister of the local Adventist church, Pr Elly Abejero, is thankful for the One Mission team and for what they have accomplished. “Praise God He is using these people to facilitate in helping the work here in our mission field.”
The Philippines will be Bachelor of Business student and new One Mission team member Adelle Bottrell’s first mission trip. “I don’t really know what to expect,” she says. “I’m just hoping God can use me to help out those in need.”