More than just money

We continue to rejoice over what God has done for our brother, Pastor Clemente Gumapit in Salug, Zamboanga del Norte, in the Philippines. We were able to raise the money for Shiloh Bible Baptist Church in Salug to keep its property and church building.

You may ask, though, why do we do this? Why do we want to help pastors in the Philippines? Why does it matter to us whether a church in the Philippines keeps its property or not? Further, why do we envision being a prayer and financial support ministry for people who we may never meet this side of heaven? Are we just compassionate toward the needs of our brothers in Christ?

The answer is fairly simple. First, we do have the clear commands of scripture to share with those in the family of Christ who have less financial means than we do, especially when they are in need. There is certainly that element there. If a family of believers is suffering need, then we are to share with them when we have the ability to do so.

But there is another reason we help, and it goes beyond the family ties. Throughout the world, God is using indigenous missionaries to complete the Great Commission. Ministries such as Gospel for Asia (whose ministry opened my eyes to the reality) have such a great impact for the Kingdom. The mother church in this family of churches we want to help is Shiloh Bible Baptist Church in Ozamis City. The church has sent out 24 missionaries, many of whom have started churches. Some started Bible studies in different places, but for those who started churches, they all bear the name Shiloh Bible Baptist Church.

Of those 24 missionaries, the sending church sent out 14 new missionaries in 2010. How long would it take us to send 14 missionaries to the Philippines? Actually, some of these missionaries even have crossed into other countries, including Malaysia and Saudi Arabia. Try getting a Western missionary into Saudi Arabia. But God is not without His witness. (OK, I'm getting sidetracked, as I tend to do when I get excited.)

The point is this: If I wanted to be a missionary to the Philippines, I would have to learn a lot of dialects, build relationships with people from a new culture, avoid countless cultural pitfalls, and return to the U.S. every once in a while to raise funds. But for the fraction of the cost, I can support these missionaries who are already in the culture and are very able to lead their own nation to Christ. They know about the various people groups, the different dialects, the cultural taboos, things it would take us years to learn, if we ever learned them at all.

But we do not just send money. We send prayers. These are not "Filipinos" we are trying to help. These are fellow believers we are trying to help. These are men just like us who were once in sin but have been brought to know Christ through faith in His death and resurrection. These churches are made up of men and women who justly deserve hell but are now redeemed by Jesus Christ. They carry the message to people we would never meet and would never see. In fact, we probably don't even know a lot of these people exist.

As much as we hope to provide funds on a regular basis in the future, and as much as we rejoice in being able to help out this time with Pastor Clemente, the money is not all we send. Prayers are essential. Consider the following list of prayer requests from some SBBC missionaries (these are only some of the requests):

Pastor Greg Begafria, Sindangan, Zamboanga del Norte

• Church lot 270,000 Philippine Pesos
• 20 souls saved

Conceivably, we could help answer the first request, but only God can answer the second one.

Pastor Jojo Begafria, Leon B. Postigo, Zamboanga del Norte

• Philippine Peso 5,000 budget (that's $115.61)
• Curtains
• 1 hectare lot for church building
• 12 families saved and baptized this year

Again, we can help pay for a lot, we can buy curtains, we can send $115.61. But can any of us save 12 families and bring them to baptism? No, but we can join in praying for the salvation of these 12 families Pastor Jojo was burdened to request.

Pastor Emony Tagaan, Dumingag, Zamboanga del Sur

• Building construction and materials -- ongoing (20,000 PhP, or $462.43 in the U.S.)
• 10 families saved and baptized

Less than $500 for their construction and materials (consider how much our church buildings in the U.S. cost) seems so easy for us, but can we save and baptize 10 families anywhere, much less in the Philippines? Of course not, but we can lift our prayer for God's mercy to change the lives of 10 families in Dumingag (maybe if we each prayed for 10 families, God would give 10 families per person praying).

Pastor Rolan Tigao, Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay

• 1,000-sqm lot
• More supporters for the ministry

We put these here to show you Pastor Rolan is praying for supporters for the ministry. That is what we hope to be, to help lift the financial burdens for these men so they can focus on their calling.

Pastor Jerry Antipolo, Siayan, Zamboanga del Norte

• Guitars and kitchen utensils
• Financial needs and victory
• More souls saved and baptized
• Unsaved loved ones and good health

Again, how hard would it be to help them with guitars and kitchen utensils? But you see, these men are not only seeing their financial needs, but the spiritual ones as well. Do we not share his pain of having unsaved loved ones? How often do we pray for more souls to be saved and baptized?

Pastor Dandy Begafria, Molave, Zamboanga del Sur

• Church building this year
• 20 families added to the church this year

I love bold prayers. May this church have its building this year, but even more so, may it see 20 families changed by the power of the Holy Spirit and brought into fellowship with these believers.

By now, you should be able to see the point. As important as the financial needs are, just as important is our need to join with them in prayer. Pray that we will be able to lift some of these financial burdens from them.

If they are not having to be concerned about the church lot and where the rent will come from, then they can focus on those spiritual matters. That's why we want to help support them. But we must not think we are doing all our duty if we send money and do not lift them in prayer. May we send more than just money to these precious fellow laborers in the work of Christ.