Proclaiming Messiah in Mabas -- Subanen outreach Part 2

The first Sunday I was in the Philippines, I was blessed to preach in the church of Pastor Clemente Gumapit, who lives and works in Salug. 

The associate pastor reads
from Luke's Gospel.

It was a joy and a privilege to help him celebrate his anniversary service at Salug. Pastor Clemente's church is one of the first we were able to help last year when the ministry first began.

Below you will see photos of Pastor Clemente's parsonage. Thanks to our partnership with Love in Acton Ministries, we were able to buy the church a new lot in 2011 and pay for the construction of the parsonage earlier this year. The parsonage is almost complete, with only a little work left to be done. At least, such was the case when we visited there in late April. The progress is very likely further along at this point.

We are thankful to be able to help Pastor Clemente with those needs, but the point of this blog entry will be the ministry we were able to do with Pastor Clemente. On May 7, Pastor Clemente led us to Mount Malindang, the home of many villages of Subanen, the native tribe we mentioned in an earlier post. You see, Pastor Clemente is Subanen, and he has family members still living in the places where the Gospel has not reached.

The parsonage for Pastor Clemente in Salug.

Mount Malindang is the tallest mountain on Mindanao, and it is also in a critical area. Pastor Clemente was living in the municipality of Lopez Jaena many years ago when he encountered the Gospel. He now carries a deep burden to reach his fellow Subanen with the truth of Jesus, and His death and resurrection.

The day started very early for us. We had a convoy of motorbikes, and we left around 5 or 6 a.m. from Punta. Pastor Clemente, his wife, my hostess, her two brothers, Pastor Mario, Bro. Joel and I started the journey to Mabas, in the municipality of Lopez Jaena, in the province of Misamis Occidental.

We were beset by many difficulties. While we were traveling, we had to replace the tire on one of our caravan's motorbikes. We also had to buy rice and some other necessities because Mabas would not have rice. It was too high up in the mountain. On the way back, Pastor Mario's motorbike had many issues, and we had to stop for repairs often. Such is the life of these pastors. They are often hindered from ministry by challenges to their transportation and resulting expenses.

Mount Malindang in the clouds. Near the mountain is the
base of the New People's Army, the communist rebels of
Mindanao. Last September, an officer in the Philippine army
was killed in a skirmish with the NPA.

But God provided, and we were able to make the trek. The road up the mountain was similar to the others roads we traveled, but thankfully, part of it was paved. The military has paved a strip for many kilometers, but the road is only wide enough for a motorbike. The trip was rather tiring.

Along the way, we stopped to get a look at Mount Malindang in the distance. It was beautiful going up there. As we looked at the mountain, Pastor Mario pointed to another mountain near where we were going. It was where the New People's Army, the communist rebels of the island, has a large outpost. Violent clashes with the military are common, and in September, a high-ranking officer in the Philippines military was killed there in a skirmish with the NPA.

In fact, we spend the night in Mabas because of the rebels. Pastor Mario told me, "If we travel at night, the communist snipers think we are military and will shoot at us, and the military snipers think we are communists and will shoot at us." I agreed that staying overnight was wise.

Even though the road was paved in parts, it was still hard on the motorbikes, the drivers and the passengers. We had to stop for rest often to eat a snack or just to get some rest.

Pastor Clemente takes a break from driving. Notice the narrow
pavement we had traveled. We were thankful for paved roads,
no matter how small.

Finally, when we got to the end of the road, we stopped. That was Mabas. If we had driven any more, we would have fallen off the cliff. We visited with Pastor Clemente's mother and sister for a few hours while we rested. I also tried some local food called "sweet ginaums." Since the village is at such a high elevation, fish are not easy to obtain. So, when they do venture down to the plain to buy the small fish that are a staple of the diets on Mindanao, they heavily salt them for preservation. After a few days, the fish start to smell bad. But after 40 days, the fish start to smell sweet. That's how you know they are ready to eat.

Additionally, since the village is far too high for rice fields, the staple food is kamote, a kind of sweet potato. If you are on the plain, you will have "rice and" for breakfast, lunch and dinner. On the mountains, it will be "kamote and" for all three meals. They also will boil the greens from the kamote. We had that for part of our meal.

Up in these mountains, the food is not at all like what is eaten on the plain. The tropical fruits don't grow up in the mountain jungle, and so the diet is much different. The people live off of kamote, chickens and whatever vegetables they can grow. They also hunt for wild animals, frogs, monkeys, wild pigs, snakes, etc. I was promised a wild-game supper, but apparently, the hunters did not fare so well. There's always next time.

The people were kind and friendly in the village, or barangay, of Mabas, even if they were shy around the Amerkano. They had an elementary and a high school. But they had no church. No church of any kind was in Mabas.

So, that's why we were there. We said earlier that Pastor Clemente was a Subanen. Actually, he was more than that. His late father was the chieftain, so when he arranged the meeting ahead of time, everyone was sure to be there. I asked my hostess for the trip, also a Subanen, how much authority the chieftain had. She was a member of a group from a different area, so she had a different chieftain. Still, I asked her if the people had to obey the chieftain. She said, "Yes, or you get shot."

We did not take any guns, of course, but you get an idea of how the Subanen live. So, when the son of the late chieftain says, "We will meet on this date," everyone shows up. We were told the meeting would begin at 5 p.m., so we went to the barangay hall a few minutes early. About 5:15, Pastor Clemente made sure all of the traveling party was assembled, and then he looked toward the village. He stood where he was clearly visible, and he clapped his hands.

From left, the barangay captain, Pastor Clemente, Pastor
Ronilo Buyog and me, Taas Na Ilong.

Immediately, doors started opening up, and people started walking toward the barangay hall. Now, the hall was a wood building with dirt floors and an elevated stage. There were no lights. But the people came. The entire village was there, from babies to the barangay captain.

The religion of the Subanen is an animistic religion. They worship things in nature. I am not exactly sure about all they believe, but as I understand it, they believe in many spirits.

God really impressed on my spirit the sermon Paul made to Mars Hill in Acts 17. When you are preaching to people who have never heard the name "Jesus" in their lives, who worship all manner of false spirits, how do you start? It's best to follow Paul's lead. Paul begins with creation, and declares a message from the God who created all things. Incidentally, that's why we as Christians must not compromise on the lie of evolution. We serve the Creator, and it is His message we declare.

Many from the village attend the meeting.

So, after Pastor Clemente made introductions and with Pastor Mario translating for me, I declared the God of creation. Basically highlighting the sermon Paul preached, I told them of the God of creation, Who had made every single person. I gave them Paul's message, that God has created every race and every culture, and He is the God of all men. I shared with them how God commanded men to worship God and God alone. I warned them of the penalty for disobeying this command.

Pastor Clemente prays to start the meeting.

Then I got to share with them how God has been patient up until now, but now He had appointed a time when they must repent. I shared how He would judge all men by the One who was dead and lives again. I shared with them how Jesus, who is fully God and fully man, died for the sins of all who would believe. How God poured out His wrath on Jesus, and by placing our faith in Jesus, we can be saved. I told them how Jesus came back from the dead, and so will we if we believe on Him.

Pastor Mario then spoke for a little while in the Visayan language. Then, Pastor Clemente returned to explain the Gospel further. He then led the group in a prayer of repentance. As far as we can tell, the entire group prayed to receive Christ. Including children, the total number is between 40 and 60.

I say, "as far as we can tell," for one main reason. Romans 10:9 tells us, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." Notice the two elements there. First, confession with the mouth. We heard that. But second is belief in the heart. We can't see another person's heart. Furthermore, we remember Jesus' parable of the sower and the seeds, that there are many who appear to believe but who, in fact, do not.

Pastor Mario, left, interprets for me.

However, prior to the trip and on the day of this meeting, I was drawn to Acts 9:35. It is a small verse, and Luke seems to pass by the wonder of it in such a matter-of-fact way. It says, "And all that dwelt at Lydda and Saron saw him, and turned to the Lord." I remember praying with this verse on my heart. I wanted to see something like this. If God could turn two entire villages to Himself back in the first century, why couldn't He do it now? I think sometimes we forget Who our God is. It may be that God answered that prayer of mine. Only He knows for sure, and we will know only in eternity.

Pastor Clemente leads in a prayer of repentance.

After this meeting, my heart was saddened yet. I watched these new believers go back to their homes with no pastor, no church, no way to grow. They can't even read English up there, so the KJV Bibles we send to the Philippines would do no good. Pastor Mario told me they are praying for a man to be willing to go up to Mabas and be either a pastor or an extension preacher, such as we noted in a previous entry. Since the land is all public, they can build without buying a lot (different laws than in the U.S., huh?), and since the place is in a jungle, lumber is not an issue. All that is needed for the building is labor, nails and metal for the roof.

Please join me in praying for this village, with so many new believers, that there will be either a pastor or extension preacher willing to make the trip up there. Perhaps God will use us to support a full-time pastor in Mabas. A pastor would need support, because the village is too poor to support one itself.

Pastor Clemente told us about another village that is beyond Mabas. It requires a four-hour hike through the jungle. There is no church, no Gospel outreach in this village, either. Does that concern you? People living, marrying, having sadness and joy, growing old, worrying about their children, all without the light of Christ. What does that do to your heart? Please join us in prayer for the Subanen.