Our current situation should not stop us from encouraging one another and growing in our walk with God. Here’s how a student from Olongapo continues to meet with her Victory group through calls and different digital platforms.

How did you feel when you learned that the enhanced community quarantine would make it challenging to meet with people personally and engage them with the gospel?
During the summer break, I was really planning to spend more time with God through devotions and discipleship. I was looking forward to meeting my Victory group so I could finish going through ONE 2 ONE with them. When the enhanced community quarantine was implemented, I knew we could no longer interact with each other physically. That made me sad, but I also knew how important it was for us to stay home and be with our families.

What inspired you to continue making disciples even in this challenging season?
Because of social media, we were still able to chat and encourage one another. We would usually share lessons and insights from our devotions, and that had always inspired me to continue what I was doing prior to the lockdown. Our online youth services also made me realize that even in this challenging time, we could still do our part in reaching out to other students.

How did you reach out to your Victory group? 
Just when I thought I could start doing discipleship again through social media, our town’s internet service provider encountered a problem. But instead of losing hope, God gave me the grace to still reach out to my group by doing phone calls with them. It’s a good thing that most of us are subscribed to the same mobile network; it allows us to do unlimited calls with each other.

Why is it important to continue making disciples in spite of the challenges we’re facing today?
I’m thankful to God that even though we did most of our Victory group meetings over the phone, we continued to stay connected. Instead of losing interest, they all continued to attend our meetings and appreciated that we didn’t let our situation stop us from growing in our walk with God. In times when we had spare internet data to use, we would also chat and send Bible verses to each other.

In spite of what we’re facing, I believe that it’s important to continue reaching the next generation. One thing I learned is that, if we do our part, it can make a great impact on the lives of the people around us. We have to continue pointing them to God so they can be reminded of His love in this season. And once they experience that love from God, they will also develop a desire to share that love with others.

And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another . . . Hebrews 10:25 (NLT)

Rania Viduya is an incoming Grade 10 student. She is one of our Victory group leaders in Olongapo.
The above photo was taken in June 2019 inside their campus.