(a recent prayer letter received from John & Pam Quinlan, Philippines)
If you were lost, when would be a good time for someone to bring you the gospel? Over the course of this last year, we have seen many things ‘set aside’ because of danger, difficulty, or that it is suggested that ‘now’ is not a good time. The Bible tells us that “Now is the accepted time” and actually it is the only time that we can be sure that we have. Uncertainty and fear has changed the way we do things and there are many things that we have no control over, but…God has not changed His purpose or plan in relationship to the believer or His church and the salvation of the lost.
With this in mind we began to pray about our Missions Conference. The planning was already late getting started because we were unsure of changing regulations in regard to the corona virus. But we decided that we must go forward, missionaries must continue to be sent out, and prayer and giving is important to do the job. We usually have 70 to 80 of our pastors coming, with plenty of food and fellowship as we feed and care for them. But, because of quarantines, this was not possible, regulations did not allow for feeding or housing them, or for many of them traveling here.
God led and directed, and we had a great conference! During the week we had 34 pastors, mostly in our area, that joined in the services Wednesday through Friday, and we did give the guests a lunch to take home. Two of our Filipino missionaries were with us for the whole week and were a real blessing, the De Jesus to Bolivia, and the Mabazza’s to Thailand. The commitment of giving was increased but by a smaller amount this year, but it was an increase, and we are praising the Lord for His blessings. An added blessing was to be a part of the Mountain View Bible Baptist Church sending out a new missionary family, Raymond & Mary Cris Montero, going to Thailand. Please pray for them as they begin their deputation and the raising of their support.
The week follow the conference, Pastor Reden De Luna started the first Sunday service, in the mountains, in Pidpid. Brother Deluna is one of the men in our church who has a real burden for these people and has been ministering among them for two years. The tribal council gave them some property to meet on and they have built a temporary building. They all are excited about the advancement and we are anticipating that several will soon be following the Lord in baptism.
In our services, these last two months, we have seen two saved and nine follow the Lord in baptism. We thank the Lord for His faithfulness and for the privilege of serving Him. We also are very thankful for your continued faithfulness.