Tag: Shofar Youth Network

April 25, 2022 Shofar Missions Cebu

Keep reading to learn what we have been up to in the Philippines and the USA over the past month.

While we were in the USA, we got to spend time with Annemieke, a missionary from the Netherlands, while she was on her speaking tour among the three Street Level Ministries locations. Before she spoke at UW-Stout, we handed out fliers with her on campus. As missionaries in service to the King, we face many of the same challenges. We also joined the Street Level House for dinner, a night with food and fellowship as we planned for the next chapter of ministry, and a Sunday night in a quiet backyard with grilled food, friends, and a fire on our last Sunday night in the USA for a while.

THE MINISTRY CONTINUES

We arrived a few days before Easter, so we grilled out with our neighbors on Saturday and had pancakes with a couple of students after church on Sunday. As many employers continue to work from home and schedule online meetings, Dyreen doesn’t come into Cebu City very often. When she does, we always try to meet – even if it is for a short amount of time – since she has been a great friend since we moved here.

We have been teaching Sunday School each month at the Inayawan Church of the Nazarene for the past few months. On Easter Sunday, we had an opportunity to teach there again. This is a church and school that Shofar has been ministering with since 2017. We know the staff and pastors there, along with several students that attend the church. Some of the students Laura teaches in school are part of the kids & youth group. Brittany handed out copies of Word on the Street Magazine to the youth after their discussion. Two of the youth contributed to the article about Typhoon Odette, so they were all excited to get a copy.

Since we returned to Cebu, we have spent a lot of time catching up with people and planning for the next few months. Laura has visited with staff and taught Exploring Creation Science lessons for students at Banawa Nazarene and Southern Bethany Christian School. Though classes remain digital with very few exceptions for in person learning, schools are seeking as much face-to-face interaction as possible. Students living near each other are finding ways to join activities in groups when the opportunity allows, and teachers are joining together at schools or coffee shops.

STREET LEVEL MINISTRIES

Last Friday marked the beginning of a whole new format of SLM meetings. Not only have we resumed free dinners, but we have also changed the weekly meetings to be heavily discussion based. A day or two before students attend, they can watch a short Bible teaching on our Facebook page. On Friday night, they can come together to discuss what they learned. Meetings happen simultaneously in Toledo City and Cebu City, with a different student facilitating the discussion each week. It’s an exciting change, which we hope and pray will bear much fruit for the Kingdom. To get the word out, posters have been hung all around Cebu City, and on Wednesday, Jael and Britt will host a live radio broadcast downtown. There are many college-age individuals roaming around and some third and fourth years attending limited face-to-face classes… now it’s a matter of being in the right place at the right time, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, in order to meet them.

PRAYER REQUESTS:

  1. Please pray for all the churches/schools that we work with – specifically the health of Pastor Allan at Inayawan Church of the Nazarene and Jim Young.
  2. Pray for new ministry opportunities as Laura seeks to spend more time ministering with the Nazarene School.
  3. Pray for all those we were able to minister to at the Universal Church of Christ in Toledo. In February, Laura taught a science lesson during kids church and Britt gave WOTS to the youth.
  4. Pray for the upcoming Street Level Radio broadcast and posters – that students would know about SLM and desire to get connected.
  5. Pray for the discipleship of the SLM students – that they’d grow in love for Jesus, holiness, and discernment about the decisions they’re making.
November 24, 2021 Shofar Missions Cebu

Read what has been going on at Shofar Mission as we continue the mission God has given us.

Street Level Ministries

Street Level has been meeting weekly for discussions about big questions in the Christian faith: “Why Did Jesus Have to Die?” “How Can I Have Faith?” and “Why and How Do I Pray?” We have one new member who got connected by seeing a Facebook ad. We’re still meeting online, but making plans for when universities start meeting face-to-face again. The WOTS writers have been working on Issue 89 and distributing Issue 88. One of the SLR DJ’s has been hosting a weekly radio show from the office. At the end of October, we hosted a phygital Halloween party. A couple members joined us at the office! In December, Pastor Jonah will lead one of our Friday discussions, and we’ll finish out the semester with a Christmas murder mystery party.

Exploring Creation Science

Students and staff continue to tune in and engage each week with online lessons. One addition has been adding experiments with basic materials that schools can do as a whole group and observe over the course of the week. We have been able to see a few students in person. Those 12-18 are allowed out and those under 12 can be out if accompanied by a fully vaccinated adult. At the end of October, the school and church staffs that we work with were fully vaccinated. This has allowed for a conversation about more interactions with teachers and school administration. Since everyone is fully vaccinated opportunities to teach a lesson from a school with the teacher and share a meal with school administration are in the works. Exploring Creation Science also continues to provide Daily Bible Readings and staff reading plans for students.

Shofar Youth Network

We have continued to communicate with various churches and ask how their youth ministries are going. In some cases, school administration and pastors are also the ones that lead church youth groups. Since the youth had been unable to go out of the house, we were able to recommend a few ideas to a couple of youth groups in the city. As we start the new year, we are planning to continue providing resources and sponsorships to youth groups.

Prayer Requests

  1. Please pray for students to remain firm in their faith over the holiday season and in their conversations with family.
  2. Pray that those eligible for boosters would see the importance of getting them.
  3. Please continue to pray that people would follow minimum public health standards (wearing of facemask and social distancing) and get vaccinated.
  4. Pray that we would continue to get creative with ways to see people and minister in person as the new year begins.

October 24, 2021 Shofar Missions Cebu

Check out what we’ve been up to in the Philippines!

Street Level Ministries

At the end of September, we had a couple of SLM members visit the office for breakfast. Since we still meet online, we’re thankful for opportunities to meet in person. We’re continuing to go through the Alpha series and supplemental discipleship discussions on Friday nights. A couple new students have joined  since they saw our semester promo video on Facebook. Ben and Sasha also joined us for a meeting recently. It’s always nice to keep in touch with the SLM chapters in the USA. 

WOTS issue 88 has been sent to print and should be ready this week. The writers will gather virtually this Thursday to pick out local articles and start on Issue 89. 

On Saturday, we are having a phygital Halloween party. A few students will join us at the office and others who live in the province will join us on Google Meet. Everyone has been so busy lately, so we hope it’ll be a time to fellowship and laugh together. There will be costumes, candy, games, and prizes…it’s not really a Filipino holiday, so it should be fun to do something different.

Exploring Creation Science

At the beginning of the month, a special fingerprinting lesson was taught to the JFB homeschool group. Each student was able to take their own fingerprint and compare it to the main 3 types of fingerprints. This lesson shows how each person is uniquely created in the image of God and no two people (even twins!) have the same set of finger or toe prints. New Explore booklets were delivered to Inayawan Nazarene and Southern Bethany. Laura was able to visit and fellowship with the staff at Southern Bethany while delivering the booklets in person. Again, these limited face to face meetings are something we don’t take for granted! Weekly lessons continue on Facebook Live and Google Meet.

Shofar Youth Network

Last week, we delivered a USB with teaching curriculum to South Cebu Church on Talisay. It included 4 sessions from the NUA series with Cebuano subtitles and English teaching guides, which will be used in part or whole for a youth camp the church is hosting in December. The topics include “How Did We Get Here?” “Jesus: Fact it Fiction?” “What About the Resurrection?” and “What Was Jesus Really Like?” One of the ways we seek to help local churches is by providing teaching resources like NUA for youth groups to use. We also post monthly on a blog with topics that could challenge and help youth leaders. 

Prayer Requests

  • The Philippines as a whole – upcoming presidential election (May 2022) as candidates are already campaigning; it is causing much division and uncertainty among the people here. We are praying for God to guide the election and place godly people in positions of influence.
  • Street Level Ministries – for the students to grow as disciples, for new students to get connected, and the distribution of the new issue of WOTS.
  • Exploring Creation Science – for the students who received Explore booklets, relationships with schools and staff, and endurance to continue online learning.
  • Our Community – God keeps giving us opportunities to serve and be served by our neighbors. These relationships mean a lot to us. A new family will move in next month, so we’re excited to meet them!
July 25, 2021 Shofar Missions Cebu

Read what is happening at Shofar Mission Cebu!

Street Level Ministries

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, virtual or modular learning, and many students studying from their hometowns, Street Level continues to meet digitally.

At the beginning of the month, we were blessed to spend the day together at a coffeehouse at Spring Park Mountain Resort. This was the first time three of the members saw each other in person since March 2020. The next day, we attended church with two of the SLM members. It was wonderful to meet the church and to fellowship with them! We journeyed by bus, car, and motorcycle, and look forward to the next time we can see each other in person. The digital community just isn’t the same as face-to-face. Please pray that students would see the value in reaching out to invite other students in.

Members can volunteer for Street Level Radio and Word on the Street Magazine. We are putting the finishing touches on Issue 87 and started writing drafts for Issue 88. In the next few weeks, we will continue updating the new WOTS website with local articles and finding ways to get the magazine in the hands of students. Despite being unable to meet in person, SLR volunteers are keeping the station fresh with new content and helping to record WOTS articles for the new website.

  • WOTS Sample Review
  • Some of the SLM Members
  • Church Visit

Exploring Creation Science

Exploring Creation Science lessons have continued. As the month of July comes to a close, we will start the 2021 school year soon. As of this writing, classes at all levels are to remain online or modular. To prepare for online and modular learning, Exploring Creation Science will print booklets for students that receive modular packets. Online lessons will be held for those that are enrolled in online learning. We also continue to provide lessons for specific schools we have worked with in the past as requested.

Other Ministry Updates

We continue getting the word out about Shofar TV and updating content. For those of you that may not be aware, Shofar TV broadcasts 24/7 on three cable TV stations throughout the island – one each in Toledo, Balamban/Asturias, and Metro Cebu.

Through Shofar Youth Network, we have provided curriculum to local youth groups that discuss some tough questions like “How Did We Get Here?” “Is the Bible True?” and “Who Created It All?” Several churches are trying to do youth events safely, so we have been able to share their postings to our social media pages also.

We have also had a chance to meet up with Dyreen, Orchids, & KC (in person!) to celebrate a couple of July birthdays!

June 25, 2021 Shofar Missions Cebu

Read the latest updates from the mission field in Cebu, Philippines.

Domestic Mission Trip

At the end of May, we took a 3-day trip across the island to Toledo and Balamban. KC, one of the SLM members, came and assisted. We updated programming at both Shofar TV stations hung banners to promote the channels. We also caught up with a few pastors and distributed the latest Shofar newsletter. On the second day of the trip, we held a coffee giveaway for college students at Knockbucks Café. A few of the SLM members were able to help at the booth, and we met quite a few students. We also hit the streets with WOTS magazines and posters. At the end of the day, we regrouped at Yummio and caught up with the owner there. He has been a main contact with a couple of schools in the area, so we left Exploring Creation Science proposals with him to pass along to the administration. On the way back to the city, we journeyed through Cantabaco, visited Spring Park, and stopped at Southern Bethany. The trips out of the city are always a breath of fresh air (literally) and good for maintaining relationships and forming new ones.  

Street Level Ministries

At the beginning of June, we started a new series called “FOCUS.” The summer can be a time that students “check out” so we thought it best to give it all we’ve got and encourage students to focus on what matters. Every week, we define key terms that every disciple needs to know. Check out the video promo to see all the terms we’ll cover this summer:

In addition to weekly bible discussions, SLM members continue to serve in WOTS and SLR. Final drafts have been submitted for Issue 87, so now we’re moving on to layout. Check out the video below to hear Fred read his Bisaya poem for the next issue. Last Saturday, we had a brainstorming meeting with Ruby, our only SLR DJ, to pray for the station and discuss ways we can keep serving remotely. On July 3, we are planning an in-person member meeting in Cantabaco. Since we’re still meeting virtually, we’re really looking forward to meeting in-person for a few hours on a Saturday.

Exploring Creation Science

In June, students in grades 4-6 and 7-12 got to learn all about forensic science and DNA during a 4-week series special. Students were able to look at fingerprints and learn how to do the experiments at home. How can one deny the existence of a creator when you look at how unique every person’s fingerprint is? Lessons will continue as schools keep teaching throughout the summer. Since lessons are online, it makes it easily accessible for students to keep learning. Schools will resume at different times (either July or August), so new Explore booklets will be developed and ready to go for the new semester next month.

Life & Other Things

We thank God for the opportunities to fellowship with people in-person. Although things are still pretty restricted, we’ve been able to attend Sunday services at local churches that we have relationships with. We’ve also been invited to attend one church’s young adults fellowship and are starting to form new friendships. We’ve also grilled out with neighbors and had a few visitors to the office. Zoom and Google Meet calls are still the bulk of our communication with people, so we snatch up any chance we can to be in-person!

Prayer Requests

  • Vision and wisdom for ministry as things continue online
  • True discipleship and gospel clarity among the SLM students
  • Continued relationships with schools and development of lessons for the upcoming year
  • For Filipinos to get vaccinated and for the country to open up to foreign tourists
  • Our upcoming trip to Cantabaco on July 3 – safety, for all the SLM members to attend, and for good fellowship