Preaching activities for the month of August 2020

 August 2 (Sunday Worships) 

As we continue to have our worships despite of the pandemic, our attendances are always from 50 to 60 including the children every Sunday at Metro Tuguegarao without any visitors. In the first Sunday of the month, brother Jay led us in the sermon and he preached about “Departing from God”. During this time, only a few cases of infections around town is active until the half of the month wherein almost everyday, 2 or more is added. As we follow all the protocols of the lockdown, we needed to wear face mask, face shields, physical distancing and presence of alcohol always in the building. 

In the afternoon, I am happy that I can still go to Palca and Dagupan without any hindrances. We had a total attendance of 30 in Palca with one visitor (Mr. Victor Soriano), the fiance of sister Jonalyn Llanes. He is from Enrile and is very willing to join us in worship every time he is in Palca. I preached to them about "Human Philosophies in Religion".

After the worship at Palca, I went to Dagupan as last destination for the day. I also preached to them the same lesson. After the sermon, I opened the invitation and I am happy that three precious souls obeyed the gospel. Jhian Carlo (a student of my wife in their children's class), Henry (friend of Jhian), and Jesusa (cousin of brother Enzo). They've been with us since the first time we had the worship at Dagupan. I brought them in Palca because that is where the baptistery is. I am happy because the three of them are actively helping in the work in that area. The two young man are already leading our prayers during communion and I had given them copies of the songs we sing in the church by mp3 for them to practice. I am hearing good comments about the two. Little by little, I will be teaching them with God's help and someday, they will also stand in the pulpit and preach.

August 3-8 (studies)

During the course of the week, not one day that I failed to have studies with Jhian and Henry. We are having the study by just chatting on facebook. That's is the only way we can have it because we all have poor internets. Video or audio calls will not work. I am happy for their interest to learn more.

August 5 (Bible Study)

We had our bible study here in our house because we are still not allowed to have it in the chapel due to the protocols of the lockdown. We choose to have it in our house because it is also my wife's 35th birthday. We studied Acts 16. We had a little celebration and thankfully there are friends and relatives who gave us foods that we shared.

August 9 (Sunday worships)

We thank God for another opportunity to be together again with the saints in worship. It is still difficult to other brethren to come because public vehicles, especially on Sunday's are few. Some of our brethren who cannot come are those aging 60 and above. Brother Rody is the one who preached this time and he shared about Elements of Prayer.

In the afternoon, I am happy that I can help the brethren who are far from the chapel come by picking them up in their house. Before lockdown, it's only four of them, but now, their are 9 of them and I needed to get the five first then the others on the second trip. The reason why I am sacrificing to do this because they have no means of travel but by foot and it is far from the chapel. Second is that, there are no(zero), public transport in the area. I heard from a sister that they know I will always be picking them up at 1:00p.m. but 11:00a.m. they are already waiting for me outside of their house. And so, in Palca, I preached to them "Lessons from the Rich Fool". We had an attendance of 35 during that time. 

In Dagupan, we had an attendance of 11. I also preached to them the same lesson. Sorry because I only took a few photos because my phones battery got empty.

August 10-15 (Studies)

To continue my work as a preacher, I set studies by just chatting, text messages or phone calls with our brethren at Palca and Dagupan. August 11, I had a bible study with sister Carrie Puselero. She is from Dagupan but are in Baggao right now. They wanted to go home but unfortunately, they cannot get any health certificate in their town because they have a 1 year old baby with them which is not allowed to travel. I encourage them to remain faithful and trusting God always by using the scriptures. 

During the week, I also have good communications with two of the wife's student in their Sunday Class, Emily and Nathan (Tantan). They are asking about baptism. At first, they ask me the question, "When are they allowed to be baptized?", and I answered them with series of examples in the bible especially the conversions on the book of Acts. Sometimes, I am receiving messages from them past midnight but I only read them early morning and answered them right away.

August 12 (Bible Study)

In our midweek bible study, we are in the house of brother Jerome. We studied Acts 17. We are thankful that we can still do this despite many hindrances around us.

August 16 (Sunday worships)

In our worship here at Metro Tuguegarao, we continue to have our attendance at 50's. Brother Jun preached to us in the sermon about "He became frightened?, about the situation of Felix. We still have our live streaming on facebook. 

In Palca, brother Jay joined me because he cannot go to his congregation at Minagbag. They have a total lockdown in that area and it is already outside our region. He help me with the work and he preached in Palca about "Who are the religious liars?". We again have 35 attendance. 

In Dagupan, it was my turn to preach. We have three visitors and we had 19 attendance. I preached to them about "There was no more sea" in the book of Revelation. More about the life in heaven. 

August 17-22 (Bible studies)

I continue to have good studies with Jhian, Henry, Tantan and Emily. Other than that, I have also bible study with sister Emy Rivard. They are just close to the chapel in Palca but she is afraid to go out of their house. Even when she needed to buy her necessities, she is calling her uncle to buy it for them. I cannot blame her because this pandemic is getting worst instead of getting better. I shared to them edifying words from the book of Colossians chapter 3. I also had study with brother Joey Puselero. He is in Marikina (12 hours travel from here) and is working in that area. It's my first time communicating with him and he is asking me of churches near the area. We found one for him to join but I also shared to him words of wisdom from the scriptures that he should stay strong because he is alone and there and his family is in Dagupan.

August 19 (Bible study)

For the first time since March, we had our midweek bible study at the chapel. We still continued with our study on the book of Acts and we are already on the 18th chapter. Brother Rody led is in the study.

August 23 (Sunday worships)

Before having the lockdown tighten here in our town, we still have the chance to gather with the saints. We still have the attendance at around 50. Brother Rody preached about "Positions to pray". 

In Palca, brother Jay joined me again, but this time, we schedules ourselves to preach in opposite locations. I preached at Palca about "There was no more sea". They saw my post in facebook about that lesson and they asked me if I can also share it to them. It was this time that we are almost full in the building. I didn't even have any  seat until brother Jay stand to lead the singing. We had a total of 41 attendance and some of the brethren are not even there because they are here in Tuguegarao and others are in their homes because of the current protocols. When the situation is back to normal, we can move the seats back to its proper positions, and brethren at Dagupan will join us, I do not know if the building can still accomodate us, but that is the kind of problem that I wanted, because it is showing the growth of the church. After the sermon, brother Jay led our invitation song. We are very happy for the decision of Emily and Nathan to obey the gospel. We needed to baptized them immediately because we are already late for the next preaching. When we got home, they are messaging me of how thankful they are for all the studies that they learned about the importance of obedience to our God. 

In Dagupan, it was brother Jay's turn to preach. We also had a good attendance of 14. We are also growing in number in that area. Four of the brethren there are not in attendance because they went to their families in other towns.

August 24 (Bible study)

Communications with brethren continued for the week but I only have this day as what I can say a formal bible study. I have studied with sister Lhea who is working in abroad. She is still struggling because currently, she have no work, that means her savings are spent. I encourage her again with bible examples of trials and how they won the trials. Please pray for all our brethren here who are working in other countries. 

August 26 (Midweek bible study)

After one Wednesday of having the bible study at the chapel, we are again back to the house of brother Rody. The lockdown protocol is tightened because the cases of Covid here in our town is rapidly increasing. Everyone is not allowed to go out once again except if it is for our necessities. This is only here in our town, but the problem is, we are also not allowed to go out of our town. That means, I cannot go to Palca and Dagupan. This will only last until September 4. Lord willing, I can go again and preach on September 6. We studied Acts 18 in our midweek bible study.

August 30 (Sunday Worship)

Because of the current protocol on the lockdown, we are down to 20 in our attendance here in Tuguegarao. I am happy to be the one sharing the lesson and I preached about "New Normal". It is not about the covid but it is about the changes we need to to or adapt to be always right with God. I shared the live streaming to our brethren at Palca and Dagupan so that in a small way, they can also be part of the worship. 

Preaching activities for the month of July 2020

July 1 (Bible Study)

We continue with our bible study at the house of brother Rody as we are still not allowed to gather in church during evening and transportation for our brethren to come is minimal. Only few passenger vehicles are allowed to operate during this time of lockdown especially on evening and we also have a curfew. We studied Acts 11 as a family and I am happy to be part of this activity during this time that we are only allowed with few movements in our community.

July 2 (Bible study)

I have a conversation through facebook messenger by chat from three of the young teens in Palca. They have been students of my wife in their childrens class since 5 years old. Two of them are already 15 years old and one is 14 (Bea, Jamicah and Christine ). I made a group chat just for the four of us and they are asking questions regarding salvation. This is the first day of our conversation and it went through until today (July 27, the time of the writing of this blog). 

July 5 (Worship at Tuguegarao, Palca and Dagupan)

I was tasked to preached in our sermon here in Tuguegarao. The lockdown is still in effect but now allowing church gathering with a maximum of 50% attendance. We must strictly follow all the rules for us to be allowed to gather (Social Distancing, wearing of face mask, alcohol, thermal scanner). I preached about "Enthusiasm" or our excitement to serve the Lord. I am excited with everything that is happening because we are slowly getting back to normal and so I made an outline about it.

In the afternoon, we had our first worship at the chapel at Palca for the first time since March 15. We've been gathering from different places last month (May), but now, we are happy to be where we belong. We cannot accommodate everyone on the chapel that's why those brethren who are from Dagupan will still continue to have their worship in the house of brother Enzo.  I also preached the same lesson in both places (Palca and Dagupan).

July 7 (Bible study)

I received a call from Mrs. Ema Castro using the number of sister Teresita Puselero. She is asking about baptism and how to be saved. She have been attending our worship in Palca for almost 6-7 months when she is in Dagupan. She is only absent when she is in her son's house at Naruangan. We have a short question and answer. During that time, she is in Dagupan to get some of her clothes and be back to Naruangan the next day that's why she cannot attend our worships. The reason is, her son is jailed because of wrong accusations about drugs. She is asking prayers for the quick action of the case of her son so that she can already come back to her home. As of this moment (July 27), her son is already release and proven not guilty of the accusation. More news about sister Ema below.

July 8 (Bible study)

We again had our bible study at the house of brother Rody. We are now on the 12th chapter of the book of Acts. But before going to that chapter, we asked questions to the kids if they still remember everything we studied from the previous chapters. Most of their answers are correct and that's a sign that they are listening. 

July 10 (Bible study)

July 5 when sister Elaine De Leon asked for prayers for her mother because she is rushed to the hospital due to cervical cancer. The next day, I got a news that her mother already died. July 10, morning here in the Philippines, her mother was buried. Sister Elaine is in Oman right now and because of the pandemic, she cannot come home. In the afternoon, I made a point to chat to her to comfort her with the situation she is facing right now. I send her biblical verses and comforting words. Please pray for our dear sister.

July 12 (Worship at Tuguegarao, Palca and Dagupan)

In the worship here in Tuguegarao in the morning, brother Rody preached in the sermon the topic about "The power of prayer in the Old Testament".

In the afternoon, at Palca, I preached to them about "Spiritual Distancing". I made a point that before we even have our worship, the brethren will already know what our topic is. I am posting the title of the lesson on our group page at facebook (Palca Church of Christ). Many brethren are contacting me about the whole outline and I gladly send them.   After the sermon, the three teens (Bea, Jamicah and Christine) whom I continue to have daily chat finally decided to obey the gospel. I immersed them in water after the worship.

After the worship at Palca, I went to Dagupan and also preached the same lesson to them. Sister Ema is with us and still ask for our prayers for his son. And after the worship, she came to me and told me that she wanted to be baptized. I am very surprised and very happy with her decision. We've been encouraging her to obey the gospel for many months but during the time we haven't talk about it, she decided heartily and very excited. We went to Palca to baptize her.

July 13 (Bible study)

I decided to chat sister Leah who is in Dubai to see how they are now. They are in total lockdown and not even allowed to go out of their houses. They still do not have work and so they have no salary. It is harder for them to be there. They cannot go back to the Philippines. To comfort her, we had a short bible lesson. 

July 15 (Bible study)

Our bible study at the house of brother Rody continues. We are now on the 13th chapter. We got news from several brethren who are infected by corona virus here in our country and so we include them in our prayers.

For the next days, I've been busy working on our house. I needed to put waterproofing on our walls, and fix our rooftop because if it is raining outside, it is also raining inside. We have our own waterfall inside our house which is bad. 

July 19 (Worship at Tuguegarao, Palca and Dagupan)

In our worship here in Tuguegarao, brother Jerome preached in our sermon about "Where do I stand?" It is again a very encouraging lesson. If you noticed, since the lockdown, we do not have the bible study part on Sundays. That is because, we are only given a limited time to have the gathering. We need to follow rules so that they will not prohibit us from worshiping in the chapel again.

In the afternoon, at Palca, I preached to them about "Five things to forget". Since the start of 2020, many things have already happened around the world. Here in the Philippines, we suffered many earthquakes that destroyed our brethren's houses. Until now, they are still living in tents in Mindanao area. After the earthquake, volcano erupted in Taal and many brethren need to move away from the area. And now, this pandemic. I am thinking of forgetting everything and so the title of the lesson is that way. But the body of the lesson is about spiritual matters and not the things that are happening around us. I used biblical examples.

I also preached the same lesson at Dagupan. In Palca, I am using the projector, but in Dagupan, I am giving them copies of my outline.

The next days, I continue to work on our house. I wake up 6 am and have the breakfast, then start with the work until 5 or 6 in the afternoon.

July 22 (Bible study)

Even with the tiring work I am doing, I still managed to join our bible study. We are in the 14th chapter of the book of Acts. We all have decided that the next Wednesday, we will have the bible study on other houses. On July 29, we will be in the house of brother Jay. On August 5th, will be here in our house and that will be my wife's 35th birthday. On August 15, we will be in brother Jerome's house.

July 24 (Thanksgiving service at Maguirig)

I was invited by brother Jerome to work with him together with brother Jerry Soliva, Edgar Corpuz, Dennis Yuson, Mario Garma and Robert Pader in Maguirig. The said thanksgiving is for the daughter of brother Jake and sister Karen Bunagan. 

July 26 (Worship at Tuguegarao, Palca and Dagupan)

In the morning here in Tuguegarao, brother Rody preached in our sermon about "The power of prayer in the New Testament". We continue to have our live streaming over facebook and is posted on the group page of Metro Tuguegarao Church of Christ. 

In the afternoon at Palca, I preached to them the lesson about "Our Modern Society's concept of Hell". Many believed things regarding hell but not all of them are biblical. I answered them in this lesson. I also preached the same lesson in Dagupan.