We arrived in Iloilo City in October 1977 and shortly afterward started a Bible study in our apartment. Most churches are started as a result of Bible studies, and in April 1978, Iloilo Baptist Church was started. This past April the church celebrated its 31st anniversary. Iloilo Baptist College began with a goal of starting churches.
In 1990, the Lord impressed on my heart three new ways to start more churches. One was to send graduates to other countries. I made a trip to Haiti and soon after, a young man on our church staff surrendered to go there. After two years of deputation in the Philippines, he left with his wife for Haiti.
It was in Haiti that a missionary shared with me the second way. Some graduates from his Bible college started night time Bible institutes for married men. Like Haiti, it is very difficult for married men in the Philippines to go off to Bible College. Many are farmers and fishermen with families and there are no jobs in the city for them. When I returned to the Philippines, a challenge was given to the graduates of Iloilo Baptist College to train married men in their churches to become pastors.
The third way the Lord impressed me to start churches was by encouraging a few of our more experienced graduates to start Bible schools to train single young people.
We have had many wonderful things happen to us over the years. God blessed us with a wonderful son, Ricky, and a daughter, Rachel. Ricky and his wife, Brandie, are now working here with us. They have a son named Tristan. Our daughter, Rachel, married a fine young man named Matt. They are working in a church in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Some strange things have also happened. One night after church, I was told that someone was throwing rocks at one of our buildings down the street. I went to the building. A man walked up, opened his jacket, took out a .38 caliber gun and began to shoot. He missed me, but hit one of our students who, thankfully, survived. The shooter lived nearby and fled to another town where he hid for years. One day he came back. I talked to him and had the privilege of leading him to Christ.
We have seen many people saved over the years, but one of the most exciting was Becky’s Dad. She prayed for him for seven years to get saved. When Becky’s parents came for a visit, they fell in love with the Filipino people. They attended the church services, but her Dad didn’t get saved. On the last day of their visit, they left for the airport. A short time later, I walked into the bedroom and saw Becky crying. She was heartbroken that her Dad had not gotten saved. I said, “Let’s go to the airport and talk to him.” When we got there, she walked up to him and began to cry. She said, “Dad, I may never see you again.” He told her not to worry - he promised he would come back and visit again next year. Becky told him she didn’t mean that - she was worried that he might die without Christ. He was not a man who expressed his emotions, but tears began to run down his face. He asked what he needed to do to go to heaven. I had the privilege of taking my New Testament and showing him the plan of Salvation. He accepted Christ as his Saviour there in the Iloilo Airport.
For the 30 years we have lived here, the Philippines has been very receptive to the Gospel. The people of Iloilo are especially open. The Philippine Constitution allows churches to send their workers into the public schools and teach their religion on a volunteer basis. Many teachers and principals, who have never accepted Christ, welcome us to teach the Bible. Special people groups like the deaf, educable slow, street children, lepers, blind, hospital patients, prisoners, and others are hungry for our great Saviour. There are countless opportunities to witness for Him.
