Encouraging God’s servants in troubled times

Cubao Reformed Baptist Church (CRBC) in Manila has flourished under the Lord’s blessing, from its beginnings in 1977 in the home of GBM missionaries Brian and Necy Ellis. One of the church’s influential ministries is the annual Pastors’ Conference, which this year took a very different format

For most pastors in the Philippines within Reformed Baptist circles, coming to the Pastors’ Conference at CRBC is a yearly tradition. It has served as a venue for needed refreshment from the Word, as well as from the fraternity of fellow ministers. In 2020 we had about four hundred participants, with all the three main islands of the country represented. It was already announced by the end of the conference that we were going to have Jeremy Walker, Conrad Mbewe and Noel Espinosa as our speakers for 2021. This was met with eager anticipation. The Lord, however, knew already how it was going to transpire.

By September of last year, pressed by the pandemic situation, the leadership of CRBC decided to cancel the 2021 Pastors’ Conference. But a suggestion was made to do it via virtual conferencing instead. The elders and deacons of CRBC unanimously approved this, so we began preparing. Thanks to the wisdom and skills God has been pleased to grant a few of our men, we were able to secure the necessary equipment and connectivity and build a dependable system. With much thought and prayer we came up with the theme ‘God’s Servant in Troubled Times’, minding the difficulties the pandemic crisis brings to the pastoral ministry. We conducted the conference on three successive Saturdays in February. For the first Saturday, Jeremy gave a heart-warming exposition of 2 Corinthians 4 in two sessions, honest to the pressing realities of ministerial suffering while highlighting the even greater realities of the ministers’ calling. Noel gave two sessions the next Saturday, encouraging the pastors to persevere during this crisis, in spite of the opposition that comes from within and without the church. On the last Saturday Conrad gave two addresses encouraging ministers to seek out godly company and to avoid ungodly ones, in light of the more harmful crisis of moral and spiritual pandemic. After every session participants took the opportunity to ask questions in relation to what was discussed. We had 282 registered participants, including some men from other countries. They gave encouraging feedback, in spite of the novel format. Praise the Lord!

With all the restrictions we may feel during this present crisis, we resonate with the Apostle Paul’s assurance that ‘the Word of God is not bound’ (2 Timothy 2:9). Next year, if the Lord wills, we hope the conference will be back to its normal format. We already have one confirmed speaker – Rob Ventura. We have learned, however, that ‘many plans are in a man’s heart, but the purpose of the Lord will prevail’ (Proverbs 19:21).

Joseph Mangahas (Elder at CRBC)