Greetings from the Philippines! Read the latest ministry update from Shofar Missions Cebu.

Getting Out There

After months of strict quarantines, God has allowed us to get out and see people that we haven’t seen in months. We have even been able to leave the city borders! Our trips have included updates to Shofar Cable TV in Balamban, visits to Street Level Ministries students, brief meetings with staff at schools, and fellowshipping with various churches on Sundays. God is good… we’ve been reminded of how incredibly important and encouraging it is to be among His people.

Street Level Ministries

This semester is proving to be a challenging, yet fruitful season for Street Level Ministries Cebu. Although we are not meeting in person for our weekly meetings, God has provided many ways for us to stay connected to the students. We are currently going verse-by-verse through the Gospel of Mark during our Friday night Bible discussions on Google Meet. A couple of weeks ago, Jonah and Jessica from SLM River Falls joined us for our meeting. We have been able to see most of the SLM members in person and plan to continue visiting them individually as the semester goes on. The next issue of Word on the Street Magazine will release next month. It’s amazing what God allows us to do despite being spread out across the islands!

Exploring Creation Science

It’s October, which means it’s Science Month! At the Banawa Nazarene School, that involves weekly lessons on Zoom for the Grade 4 students. This provides an interactive learning environment where students can ask questions and engage with the experiments digitally. Hopefully, a set of similar interactive lessons will be taught to the Inayawan Nazarene students next month. Schools also have the opportunity to watch lessons via Facebook Live at a set time each week. These lessons will continue for the remainder of the semester. Also available to students are Daily Bible Reading posts and worksheets online, as well as printed Explore Booklets. The ultimate goal is to equip students to know why they believe what they believe.

Prayer Requests

1. For God’s continued protection from the virus and on our bikes as we seek to safely minister.
2. That the SLM students would desire to know Jesus better, to wholeheartedly follow Him, and that their love for Him would compel them to reach out to other students.
3. Fruitful ministry among primary and secondary aged students, strong internet connections, and continued growing relationships with school staff.

Get the latest news from Shofar Mission Cebu.

Cebu City may look and feel different due to classes for students in all levels being online or modular for the semester but our goal remains the same. We continue to do the work that God has called us to! A couple of things we continue to do are challenging students to know why they believe what they believe, how to share that using the Bible, and being a light in a dark place for students and those in our community.

Street Level Ministries

At the beginning of September, we held our first Bible discussion of the semester. There were 2 new students and 6 returning students and recent graduates. Meetings are being held online due to government restrictions and the fact that no universities are meeting in person! We were able to print Issue 83 of Word on the Street Magazine and have begun Issue 84. We mailed some copies of Issue 83 to students so they can pass them out in their communities. In the near future, we will begin visiting students in an effort to stay unified.

Exploring Creation Science

The first day of learning for the 2020-2021 school year for many private schools was August 24. Again, even though classes are online we continue to teach science from a creation perspective. God continues to bless us as we reach out to pastors and other school staff. Students from three schools have joined the weekly lessons and two more schools started this week. Each school has its own way of communicating with students. Many use Google Meet and Zoom making it easy for staff to share their screen so students can watch the lesson. In October, a special four-part series that has been developed for schools that request a lesson using their platform (Zoom or Google Meet) will start for one school as Facebook Live lessons continue.

Prayer Requests:

1. Continue to pray for the churches that are opening up. That they would be able to open safely and that people would pre-register, come with facemasks, face shields, and follow protocols put in place by denominations and church leaders.
2. For God to keep working in the hearts and minds of the SLM students, especially as the new semester starts.
3. Pray for continued relationships with schools and churches as we seek to continue ministering with them. We are hoping to see them at a church service or if we are in the area.
4. Pray for safe travels as we will travel across the island for a day next week. Pray that we can get there and back to the city safely and stay healthy in the process.

Read the latest update from Shofar Mission in Cebu City, Philippines.

“I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.”

Psalm 121:1-2

One end of our road has been barricaded since quarantine started in March. Therefore, we are forced to go in and out of our community by turning left instead of right (which has always been our normal and most direct route out). The change isn’t so bad, though, since the other direction provides a stunning view of the mountains. No, we can’t climb them or cross them just yet, but every time I see them, I’m reminded of God’s presence and help in Psalm 121:1-2.

Over the past few weeks, God has allowed us to move about the city a little more freely than before. We’ve been able to work from the office most days, which has been a breath of fresh air. It’s nice to get out on our bikes, to see the city, and reunite with familiar faces of some people we haven’t seen in months!

Exploring Creation Science

Virtual lessons have ended for the summer, so Laura has been preparing to start virtual lessons for the school year. Some of the private schools have started to meet online already, while the opening of all public schools has been postponed until October. This school year, Laura’s planning to develop new curriculum (hint: it’s out of this world), reach out to new schools, build up a media library for teachers to have access to resources, and continue the Daily Bible Reading posts that started during the summer. Other “creative ideas” are in the works as things are continually changing!

University Outreach

None of the universities in the city are planning to meet in person this semester, so we’re seeking God’s guidance and open doors to minister in whatever ways we can. Currently, the newest issue of Word on the Street Magazine is being printed and should be ready this week. We are planning to distribute online and mail copies to the Street Level Ministries members to share where they live. We have also requested approval from the University of the Visayas to include a copy with each modular learning packet that will be mailed to students who are not taking online classes. At the beginning of September, we will kick off the semester by resuming our Friday night Bible discussions – albeit digitally for now. Our hope and prayer is to meet in person as the semester goes on (and if the government eases restrictions).

Prayer Requests

• God’s hand to be upon all the branches of Shofar Mission. For open doors to minister, and ultimately that our labor would build the kingdom in the Philippines.
• The expansion of Shofar Cable TV as we are actively seeking to broadcast in Cebu City. We have all the equipment we need, have met with the cable company and are waiting for their approval.
• Scheduling of virtual science lessons, new and continued relationships with schools, and the development of new curriculum.
• Passion and desire among the SLM members to keep following God and reaching out to other students this semester.

Read the latest news from Shofar Mission in Cebu City, Philippines.

Quarantined

Since our last update, Cebu City went from Enhanced Community Quarantine to General Community Quarantine, and back to Enhanced Community Quarantine. Simply put, we went from a strict lockdown to a slightly less strict lockdown, and back. For the two weeks of GCQ, we could bike to and from the office every day. This was really refreshing after so many weeks at home. God “threw us a bone” by letting more businesses open up and residents move around. Unfortunately, that prompted virus cases to rise, putting us back in ECQ.

Back to Basics

One thing that God taught us throughout this pandemic is to go back to the basics. It can be easy to get caught up in the machine (projects) and neglect the organic (people). Over the past few months, we’ve communicated with people a lot since we’re all stuck at home. We’ve also taken time to assess what we’re doing and why, asking God to teach us and help us apply those things when we get out from lockdown. One thing’s for sure… He has made it clear how important it is to… s l o w… d o w n.

Getting Creative

God has also taught us (in very practical ways) to be creative. Even daily life here requires creativity – especially when you take turns walking/biking to/from the grocery store alone… you make do with what you can find that day and fit in your backpack. In terms of ministry, we have learned how to exploit the technology we have as much as possible to reach people.

Laura implemented virtual science lessons for the summer and has successfully taught lessons to the JFB homeschool group and one of the Christian schools here in Cebu. She also uses social media to regularly share resources that help students/parents/teachers grow in their understanding of how faith and science work together. Most recently, Laura has been working on daily Bible readings for students in grades 4-6 and 7-12. These readings are to encourage students to know their Bibles and why they believe what’s in it.

Brittany has stayed in touch with the Street Level Ministries students digitally. Some have “checked out,” but others have stepped up in their commitment to the Lord. We have a group video call on Fridays, which is open to any student to join and share what they’ve been up to. Usually, 2-3 students join for fellowship. A few students are still volunteering for WOTS and SLR – as much as they can remotely. We recently started a weekly Digital Small Group, where we walk through practical discipleship material over a group audio call. These small groups are open to all SLM members and designed to be small for open discussion and accountability. So far, three ladies have committed to meet each week.

Looking Forward

We don’t know what the next few months will hold – whether we’ll be 100% online, 50% online, or 100% in person. However, God has proven faithful these past months and equipped us to face every challenge He allowed. We look forward to seeing what He’ll do next and are thankful to continue ministering here in the Philippines.

Prayer Requests:

• Our government leaders to make wise decisions regarding quarantines and the “new normal”
• Educational leaders to plan wisely for the upcoming school year
• The growth and health of churches throughout the Philippines – for the pastors to lead well, the churches to be united, creative ways to minister, and patience and endurance for the believers
• The students and staff that we work with to stay strong in their faith and resolute in their obedience to Christ