The second National Men’s Conference was held at the Christian Development Center, Tagaytay City last June 19-21 with 121 men (young and old) attending the 3-day gathering of grandfathers, fathers and sons coming from various parts of the country.

The conference started in the afternoon with a keynote address from one of the country's highest official, Supreme Court Chief Justice Reynato Puno.

In his address, the Chief Justice who also is a lay preacher in his denomination, noted with much grief the prevailing condition of unrighteousness not only in this country but throughout the whole world. He noted that in this country, hatred has become ingrained in the hearts of many of our countrymen. He also noted the devastation and violence wrought about by the two world wars and the mass killings that have happened and are happening even in recent times in various places around the world. He ended his message with a story of a 5th century monk named Telemachus whose death eventually led Rome's emperor to forever stop the violent, gladiatorial combats at the Coliseum. The audience appreciated the lesson that one Christian having the love of God, can make a big difference in bringing about change in this unrighteous world.

Dr. Dan Rogers, WCG Church Administration Director, expounds on the Trinitarian or Christ-centered theology.

In the two evenings and on the following day, our main speaker, Dr. Dan Rogers (WCG Church Administration Director), took the time to explain what the Trinitarian Theology is all about. More specifically, he explained who Jesus is/who God is - "Laying the Foundation of who Jesus Christ is" (part one) and also, he explained who we are (humans) in relation to Jesus/God - "Our Union and Participation with Jesus" (part 2). Various questions were raised by pastors and brethren alike which were all answered to the delight and satisfaction of everyone. It was a timely visit which cleared a lot of questions in the minds of brethren regarding Trinitarian theology.

Attorney Aldwin Salumbides, who is a lawyer for various Christian organizations, spoke about sexual sins and gluttony which can bring Christians to public shame. He drew from his wealth of experience as a lawyer for many pastors who got entangled in various cases involving sexual scandals and the lack of control of the appetite.

At the end of the conference on Saturday morning, ND Eugene Guzon spoke on "Finishing Well" and encouraged all the participants to run the course and to finish the race well.

National Director Eugene Guzon encourages the brethren to run the course and finish the race well. Photo by WCG photographers)

The conference ended with a communion service at noontime. Due to a sudden typhoon (signal no. 3), the planned combined worship service for all the Metro Manila local congregations the following day, Sunday, was cancelled. Dr. Dan Rogers was scheduled to have been the guest speaker.

"How great is the love the Father has lavished on us that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!" (1 John 3:1)

Typhoon Frank Hits Kalibo

Hello to all!  I would like to share a portion of my report of the situation in Kalibo. Your continuing prayers for them is appreciated, and that practical help may be extended to the residents of Kalibo and surrounding areas as soon as possible. 

The streets of Kalibo were covered with thick mud, although 3 days after the storm and/or flash flood that hit the area, most of these have been removed andscraped already to the road sides.  It was said that the mud that settled after the water receded was a foot or more thick, while the height of the water rampaging on the streets at the peak of the flooding, rose from waist deep to more than ten feet

Obviously, the whole town of Kalibo was engulfed and submerged by the muddy floodwaters, and all of the residents and/or business establishments suffered losses in terms of ruined and/or damaged property, goods and belongings. Like for example in one medical center where one of our members (Dr. Hezzie Teodosio) has her clinic, all their machines were rendered inoperative by the muddied water, like their CT Scan, Ultra Sound machine, X-ray machine and Blood Chemistry machine. 

I was told that the cost of these machines are in the millions. Another example are the ATM machines of the banks, which were also damaged by the floodwaters. It is said that the local big supermarket sustained major losses when its ground floor and the goods there, were swamped and soaked with water.

This scenario can be multiplied hundreds of times. I can see that all of the stores and business establishments were closed so no one can buy their groceries on the usual stores. No one can also get money from the ATM machines and banks, for these are closed also. These resulted to consumable goods being sold in the streets at exorbitant prices. One example is the price of rice which was reportedly sold at P250.00 per ganta. Since the water supply was cut-off due to damaged connections, mineral water was sold at five times its cost. We saw numerous toppled electric posts, which resulted to the cut off of electricity.  It was said that it will take 2 to 3 months, or even more to restore the electric supply.  Big trees were also toppled down by the strong winds and blocked the streets.  The whole roof of the building of the Hall of Justice was blown away, this is representative of the numerous houses whose roofs were also blown away. --Pastor George Escara, Area Superintendent

9th Batch of Basic Computer Training Graduates at BCTW

IPIL, ZAMBOANGA SIBUGAY -- Last June 17, 2008 was the graduation of the 9th Batch of Basic Computer Training Workshop (BCTW) and the 6th year founding anniversary of BCTW Ministry. There were One Hundred Four (104) youths and individuals who finished the 40 hours Basic Computer Training.

The graduates were from the municipalities of R.T. Lim, Ipil, Naga, Malangas, Zamboanga Sibugay and Liloy, Zamboanga del Norte. This batch training was made possible and successful because there were individuals who volunteered to become trainers. These volunteers are from the different Christian churches and religious organizations.

The BCTW is a ministry of the local congregation of WCG Ipil (or Barandilla Community Fellowship) reaching out to out-of-school youths by teaching them computer basics and getting them accredited by the government through TESDA. This is a joint project in cooperation with other groups. --Pastor Geoffrey Balatero