15If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food,
16And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? -- James 2:15-16
Who is a missionary? Is it someone who leaves the West and goes to a foreign land? Or can it be a man who leaves his home to minister in another part of his home country? Do we care about those types of missionaries?
Let us meet Pastor Aries. He left his home on the Philippines island of Mindanao and moved to Manila, the nation's capital city. Actually, he serves in Taguig City, part of metro Manila. He left as a missionary from Pastor Mario Montero's church in Punta, Dipolog City. Instead of his native dialect, he must speak Tagalog in Taguig City. Philippines students learn their own dialect, the national language (Tagalog) and English throughout their school days, so he had some exposure to Tagalog, but still, it is a different environment for him, even within his own nation.
His monthly support is 4,000 Philippine pesos. The rent and electricity for his home and church (same building) are about 3,000 pesos a month. That leaves about $24 a month for all his needs, and the needs of his wife and 6-month-old son. In metro Manila, where the cost of living is higher than on Mindanao, that money does not go far.
Recently, Pastor Aries has had some serious health issues. He battled the mumps a few weeks ago, and then last week he had to be put into the hospital for dehydration.
"They said maybe because of malnutrition," Pastor Aries said. "That's why I am easily hit an illness like that."
Pastor Aries is an adult, but his weight is down to about 100 pounds, very small for an adult man. But is he bitter?
"Oh maybe this is part of the missionary life, hehehe," he said. "Getting thin for a while."
It would take so little money to support our pastor friend there in Manila. How many of us in the West are far from malnutrition? Even $50 or $100 a month would do wonders for this dear brother in Christ, who is suffering to bring the gospel to the people of Taguig City.
Please pray for this brother, and consider whether God might have appointed you to be a helper to this cause.
Pastor Aries is a wonderful man of God. He's very compassionate and faithful. It was great meeting him last month. He took a one-hour taxi ride to the Manila airport just to met us. We had a good time of prayer, and thankfully were able to give him a study Bible that Micah gave us to take to him. Prayers are with him and we are working on the support.
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