Life is a drag without dreams that excite us every waking moment
of the day. In a country like Canada, we Filipinos can easily
lose the excitement to live as we go through the daily rut of
the North American “fast lane.” Dreams which transcend
selfish pursuits alone can satisfy the soul.
I’m a firm believer in the greatness of Filipinos. Our talents,
skills, and hard work brought us global recognition. This made
migration to highly industrialized nations possible. More and
more Filipinos like Manny Pacquiao and Arnel Pineda are gaining
global stardom. The People Power movement, which was pioneered
by the Philippines 24 years ago, led to the toppling of dictators
and communist rulers all over the world. These and many others
are a testament to what Filipinos can do when driven by great
dreams.
Our migration to Canada 10 years ago was a result of God’s
vision for Filipinos to make an eternal impact in the lives of
the more than 30 million Canadians. With an application for migration
in process in order to pastor a new Filipino church in Winnipeg,
my family and I went to Baguio city on New Year’s Eve of
1998. We needed God’s confirmation if it was His will for
us to leave the Philippines for Canada. It was a big decision
to make, and we wanted to be sure. While in prayerful reading
of the Bible, two verses jumped out of the pages and became personal
to me. It was God’s go signal for us to migrate. It was
in I Chronicles 16:18-19:
“To you I will give the land of Canaan as the portion you
will inherit.”
When they were but few in number, few indeed, and strangers in
it,”
I saw Canada and not Canaan while reading, and felt the Lord impressing
that He will use the Filipinos, who are few and strangers in the
land, to win Canadians to Christ. Prosperity and post-Christian
culture have made many Canadian values secular, anti-religious,
and anti-godly. The dream that fuels my everyday life is for this
nation to turn around for God, through us Filipinos.
Our church, the International Worship Centre, will be moving to
our new building at 1077 St. James Street on March 7th. It is
a building that can seat 800 to 1000 people and is located at
a prime location in the city of Winnipeg, three blocks away from
the Polo Park Shopping Centre. This God-given vision brought us
to where we are right now and it is going to bring us greater
exploits for the Kingdom of God.
I desire for this vision to be true not just for our church but
for all Christ-loving Filipino congregations and denominations.
The vision is so great that it will take all of Christ’s
body working together, for it to be accomplished.
I’m so honoured and privileged to pastor and lead a wonderful
group of people who are as passionate as I am for this vision.
God has blessed me with heroes and history makers. On their behalf,
I would like to thank the support of the Filipino community and
many mainstream churches in Winnipeg who helped us fulfill this
chapter in our “dream journey.” This is not just IWC’s
success, but the Filipinos’ as a whole. Together we are
stronger, together we will move forward to make a difference in
this great nation for the glory of God.
