Table of Contents

Even to the ends of the earth

(Acts 1:8)

      But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, even to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). This verse provides an outline of the Acts of the Apostles. After receiving the power of the Holy Spirit, the disciples preached in Jerusalem (Acts 2 to 7), then throughout Judea and Samaria (Acts 8 to 12), and to the ends of the earth (Acts 13 to 28). The phrase “ends of the earth” in its original context refers to Rome, where the Book of Acts ends and where Paul ended his ministry. It echoes Isaiah 49:6: I will make you the light of the nations, so that my salvation will reach out to the ends of the earth.

        But the word of God is alive! These words, which Jesus spoke to His disciples before He ascended to heaven, are alive today, and are certainly alive in our community of Couples for Christ. Those who seek Him continue to receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon them, and men and women continue to be His witnesses in many places and the ends of the earth. For instance, our elders in CFC, Frank and Gerry Padilla are in Mauritius while Rouquel and Nina Ponte are in Egypt to bring God’s good news and establish the community of Couples for Christ.

        Several weeks ago, I received a letter from Marlou and Leah Castillo who are now residing in Taipei. Marlou and Leah used to be members of our community in Jakarta. When they attended the Christian Life Program, they were in my discussion group and when they became members, they were in my household. When Marlou was still deciding on whether they should stay in Jakarta or move to a new job in Taipei, we spent long hours together in a series of one-on-one meetings to help him discern God’s will for them. When Marlou finally decided to accept the job offer in Taipei, I gave him a parting gift consisting of a bound manual on how he and Leah could start Couples for Christ in Taipei.

        During one of our monthly Chapter assemblies, I related to you how the Lord used Marlou and Leah in getting the initial contact made to enable a team from CFC Manila to come to Taipei to start a Christian Life Program. In his latest letter, Marlou reported that the first CLP in Taiwan was held on July 16 and 23 with about 60 participants. Let me quote parts of his letter:

        “As I advised you before, sometime in March a couple from Bacolod (Teody and Cynthia Lopingco) came over to do the preliminary exploration. Then sometime in May, a parish priest here, Fr. O’Brien (who is the de facto shepherd to the local Filipino overseas contract worker community), requested us to put him in touch with the CFC Center in Manila as he wanted to start one for the Filipino OCWs right away. That was when I called you up. Fr. O’Brien went to Manila in June and I believe he met with someone from the Center.

        “The CLP that was held here is unique in many ways. Aside from the fact that we have a set of leaders who have not undergone any training, the CLP was compressed into only two days. From what the Philippine team members told me, that was unprecedented. Also, our members are mixed: some are singles, but a lot are married folks whose spouses are in the Philippines (you have to remember that this was organized for the OCWs). We only have one complete couple. So our households are a microcosm of the entire CFC ministry, except Kids for Christ; we have one couple, and a mixture of singles, handmaids and servants of the Lord.

        “But despite these limitations or maybe because of them, the Lord really made His presence felt: there were a lot of manifestations of His Spirit during the baptism. Because of very limited space, there were six baptisms going on simultaneously in one small room; but that notwithstanding, there were plenty who spoke in tongues, at times simultaneously.

        “You know when I got home that night after the baptism and the Mass that followed, I suddenly remembered that that very day, July 16, was my first anniversary in Taipei. Yes, I arrived in Taipei to take up my new posting on July 16, 1994, exactly one year to the day.

        “Please pray for the newly-organized CFC movement in Taipei. We will need that! Bro Teody will come back sometime in October to try to organize another one in Hsinchu for the local Taiwanese and to give Covenant Orientation. In the meantime, Leah and I will try to recruit participants to a CLP composed of couples from among the expatriate community here.”

        We are happy and thankful that the Lord has used Marlou and Leah to bring Couples for Christ to Taiwan. The Lord has allowed our work in Jakarta to bear fruit in Taipei. This is a very special grace bestowed on our community by God. It should humble us that our new community has been privileged by God to produce missionaries that would bring God’s word to another part of the world. This is God’s work and not ours. This is God’s plan and we are mere instruments in His hands.

         My brothers and sisters, we can see from this that it is indeed true that “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be my witnesses even to the ends of the earth.” For this is God’s plan for all of us. Being expatriates in Indonesia, we will, sooner or later, be leaving this country. But we will be bringing with us the power of the Holy Spirit. And wherever we are, God will empower us. He will use us to be His witnesses, to spread His word, and to plant the seed of a new community of Couples for Christ. All that we need to do is to keep our hearts and minds open to allow His grace to work in and through us. For, as I wrote last month, God’s grace is truly sufficient for us.

 Table of Contents