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The
highest courage is to dare to be yourself in the face of adversity,
choosing right over wrong, ethics over convenience, and truth over
popularity.
Travel the path of integrity without looking back, for THERE IS
NEVER A WRONG TIME TO DO THE RIGHT THING.
-
Bishop Soc Villegas
25 July 2007
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ON SERVANT LEADERSHIP
(Part 10)
MARTYRDOM, MISSION AND MONEY
September 8, 2009
On the 12th death anniversary of Jun and Ben
A servant is one who is a slave of Christ, who belongs totally to
him. As a slave, a servant has no rights. He is to simply obey the
commands of his master. His very life is in the hands of the master.
Jesus was the suffering servant of Yahweh. He washed the feet of his
disciples, taking the lowest place. He suffered and died on the
cross, winning for us our salvation.
As the servants of Jesus, we are to follow him. When we follow him,
we must deny ourselves and take up our cross. When we follow him, he
leads us all the way to the cross. When we follow Jesus, we must be
willing to give up our lives for him, just as he gave up his life
for us.
Martyrs for the cause
Today I honor, once again, our brothers Ben Donato and Jun Frias.
They are our first martyrs. They died 12 years ago in Vanuatu while
on mission. They gave their all, to the offering of their very
lives. They died with their sandals on. They were true missionaries
and servant leaders.
Today we persist on our mission and our work. We are an evangelistic
and missionary community. We continue to field our missionaries to
different parts of the world. And there will be more of them to
come.
Our missionaries face hardships (just listen to their testimonies)
but rejoice in the privilege. And our missionaries lay their lives
on the line every day for Jesus.
Our missionaries in Ghana had an encounter with death. Our brothers
Mike Javier from Canada, Deks Gonzales from the Philippines, and
David from Ghana, had a terrible road accident. Their Ghanaian
driver was killed. They were bloodied and bruised, with cuts and
broken limbs. They needed to be hospitalized and operated on. But
they lived.
Recently also, while on their way home from our conference, our
brethren had a serious accident in Italy. The car was a total wreck
and cannot be repaired anymore. But thank God, all four passengers
were unharmed.
In the Philippines through the years, there have been various
vehicular accidents involving our brethren while on mission, causing
various injuries and also deaths.
Paul, the missionary par excellence, suffered a great deal
(just look at 2 Corinthians 11:23b-28!). He made four missionary
journeys. He did not have the modern conveniences of vehicles or the
Internet. His was a hard life. But he rejoiced in the privilege of
serving Christ, and especially in suffering for him.
Today we do mission, and our missionaries indeed suffer. But we have
not been lashed or stoned. We have not been shipwrecked. We have not
been imprisoned. But we do face the possibility of serious accidents
and even death.
Not everyone is privileged to do mission. In that our missionaries
should exult and rejoice.
Mission and money
There are many more opportunities for us to do mission. The
potential missionaries are there, especially among our young single
brethren. It is of course not limited to them. Ben’s very own
widow Menchie has gone to many different and difficult mission
areas, all by herself.
But our big problem is finances. There simply is not enough money.
This is tragic. How I wish that we could simply call on God to send
His angels who can bodily whisk away our missionaries to Africa or
to Latin America or elsewhere. But every time I pray, the Lord says
the same thing, “You need to buy a ticket.” It sounds funny, but
I am not laughing. I am grieving.
How can we let such a mundane thing as money prevent us from serving
the Lord more, from being the missionary community that we are
called to be?!
It is doubly tragic because it is not for a lack of money on your
part. If only every CFC-FFL member gave some amount every month, no
matter how small, we would have more than enough for mission. Is
that too much to ask? I am not wringing blood out of you. Far from
it! You would not even notice what you forgo if you give.
People at times ask why God does not provide for our needs. But God
has indeed already provided. Whenever we respond to His authentic
call, then He will provide. So where is the money? It remains in
your pockets and purses! “Dare a man rob God? Yet you are robbing
(Him)!” (Mal 3:8a). What a tragedy for our mission. What a tragedy
for you.
In the accident in Ghana, we needed to raise money for the hospital
and for operations. You responded! Do we have to wait for such
serious accidents before we give for mission? Does the Lord have to
allow an accident before you take out your wallet or purse?
People continue to die in their sins. They are the object of our
evangelization. Physical death, especially martyrdom, is not tragic,
for we live and die for Christ. But spiritual death is
tragic. And for you who already know the Lord and are striving to
live a truly Christian life, failure to give is even more tragic.
You are accursed because you rob God (Mal 3:9). But this does not
have to be. You can prevent this by your giving.
Going on mission
Ben and Jun died on the birthday of Mama Mary. So death and life
come on the same day. But our brothers’ death has led to eternal
lifetheir own and those they have helped evangelize. This is the
wonderful work that we have been given the privilege to do.
Our singles, couples and handmaids are stepping forth and willing to
become missionaries. They know the hardships this entails, and even
the possibility of death. But they persist.
You can do your part, from the comfort of your homes, in the
presence of your loved ones, without the threats to life that they
face. You can pray for them. But you can also make it possible for
them to be sent as missionaries, by your giving of your finances.
This can be your way of going on mission.
Our call as servant leaders
We are all servants of Jesus. And our community has been
tasked to raise the leaders who will pursue the work of Jesus, that
of evangelization and mission. There is much to be done, and we must
give of ourselves so that we can lead the way for many others.
As servant leaders we must take on the mind and heart of our Master.
We must be willing to give our all, including our very lives. And if
we are to give our all, we certainly must be willing to give back to
God what He has entrusted to usour time, talent and treasure.
Today we honor our brothers Jun Frias and Ben Donato. Thank you, Jun
and Ben, for your ultimate sacrifice.
May there be more of them, including those who will give their lives
for the cause.
May our community be so blessed.
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