For the past 5 days, we’ve come together for our annual Prayer, Fasting, and Consecration week.
As a church, we pondered upon the heart of God’s holiness, and this is the great news—we are already made righteous through Christ’s sacrifice.
On that cross, He cleansed us in His righteousness, washing away all our sins. This is the grace that made us from crimson red to as white as snow; the grace that makes us holy now and allows us to have full communion with our Abba Father.
As we carry this good news into each day of 2024, let the burden of striving for holiness fall away. But rather, may we always call to mind that being holy is being set apart for Christ and being clothed in Him “who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)
May God’s call to holiness not become a daunting task but a warm invitation. He is calling us, His dear children, to walk this journey of holiness, together.
We are never alone in this walk, and we will never be. From every corner of the earth, our spiritual family surrounds us—and may this truth be like a warm embrace and spark of hope against and amidst the darkness.
Blessings be upon you and your loved ones as we walk through this year, hearts brimming with God’s holy presence. May we have a faith-filled, set-apart year ahead!
Have you experienced some breakthroughs lately? Share your testimony with us! We’d love to celebrate with you.
Watch the Every Nation 2024 Prayer, Fasting, and Consecration Week Recaphere.
A smooth opening of classes is seen today, with more than 22 million elementary and high school students expected to troop to school, based on the Department of Education (DepEd)’s enrollment figures. This marks the first time, since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, that schools nationwide will conduct full face-to-face sessions on the first day of classes. In Metro Manila, the opening of classes is one of the key factors to the increased volume of road traffic.
The DepEd’s data indicated that 22,676,964 students are enrolled in public and private kindergarten, elementary, and high schools across the country for the school year (SY) 2023-2024.
The agency earlier said it is expecting around 28.8 million students for this school year, a little over the 28.4 million enrolled in public and private schools in SY 2022-2023.
Today, as we see the millions of students returning onsite to school, we see the harvest of students that we can win for Jesus. We also see a great opportunity for our churches and campus ministries all over the Philippines to make an impact in the lives of these next generation leaders.
Let us pray for God’s mighty move in the campuses this school year! Let us believe that revival will take place on the campuses and students will turn their hearts to God and His purposes! Let us believe together for the visible fruits of the work of God on the campuses and in the lives of the students!
Prayer Points:
Pray that students will encounter and know God on the campuses this school year. Let us pray that the hearts of the students would be open to receiving the message of the gospel and making a life-changing decision to follow Jesus.
Pray for a revival to take place on the campuses this school year. Let us pray that students will turn their hearts and minds to God and His purposes. Let us ask God to ignite a passion for prayer, worship, devotion, and evangelism among the students.
Pray for the safety and protection of all the students on the campuses, physically and spiritually. Let us ask God to shield them from any diseases, or negative influences, and guide them away from harmful situations.
Pray for our churches all over the nation to actively and passionately take part in campus ministry. Let us pray that all generations will come together as one in reaching the students for Jesus!
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To learn more about the current situation in our nation, you can read the resources in these links below.
The coronavirus pandemic has caused a major shift in the way we do things. It has changed how we work, learn, communicate, and spend our leisure time. In spite of its significant impact on our daily lives, this crisis shouldn’t change our mission as a church to reach people with the Good News of Jesus.
Because of the recent outbreak, we have temporarily shifted most of our church activities online (including our worship services, prayer meetings, giving, discipleship classes, and Kids Church). We believe that even in this season of fear and uncertainty, we can continue to encourage, inspire, and point people to Christ. It is our prayer that through our online digital platforms, we will all be able to bless one another and grow in our walk with God.
Here are some encouraging words we received from our Victory group members and leaders who are praying and worshiping God with us online.
The crisis we’re facing now can sometimes put fear in our hearts. I am grateful that through our online worship services, morning worship and prayer, and online Kids Church activities, we are reminded to trust God more. Even though we don’t meet physically, we still get a chance to hear the word of God. It’s good that we also have an online giving option which we can try anytime.
—Claudette Cañeda, Victory U-Belt
We are bringing the “church” to people’s homes, and that is very encouraging. Even if we can’t go outside, we can still participate in online church activities. At home, we do Victory group meetings through video calls. Seeing my friends’ faces online is very comforting, especially in this season.
—Josh Torres, Victory Ortigas
Not being connected to the church community in this time of crisis can be disheartening. I am grateful that through our online platforms, I can connect with my friends from church and believe God for better days ahead.
—Andrei Liclican, Victory Katipunan
I attend our worship services online and listen to the morning worship and prayer every day, These activities are very encouraging and refreshing. Now, the church feels a lot more personal. The online sessions also encourage me to have an alone time with God.
—Jon Isla, Victory Santa Rosa
We are grateful to God for giving us avenues to continually spread the Good News. Through technology, we can continue to . . .
WORSHIP AND HEAR THE WORD You can join our worship services and prayer meetings online. Visit this page on our website to check the schedules of our online services or follow your local church on social media.
PRAY FOR ONE ANOTHER
If you need prayer, you can message us at victory.org.ph/prayer-request. You can also join our online prayer meetings through our local churches’ social media pages.
HONOR GOD IN OUR GIVING
Giving is one of the ways we worship God. You can continue giving through victory.org.ph/give. We now have a GCash option as well.
MAKE DISCIPLES
Discipleship never stops! Victory group and ONE 2 ONE meetings, as well as discipleship classes, are being done virtually. For more information, you can check and send a message on the social media pages of our local churches.
Despite what we’re facing in our country and all over the world, we are in faith that God will see us through. Amid the pandemic, let us continue to build up one another and never give up meeting together—even in the confines of our homes.
For now, let us continue “seeing” each other online!
And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another . . . Hebrews 10:25, (NLT)
Paolo and Gladys know that God’s faithfulness does not and will not stop in their marriage. When Gladys finally conceived after almost 10 years of waiting, she and Paolo held on to God and believed that He would remain faithful despite the impossibilities they faced. Know more about God and His faithfulness through their story.
Paolo and Gladys were already followers of Christ even before they met. They had known each other since college and became part of the same barkada. In 1996, both of them faced major crossroads in their lives that—unknown to them—would make their paths meet.
While Gladys was praying to God for clarity and direction about her desire to pursue missions, God promised her that He would not send her alone—she would go to the nations with her future family. Thinking it was unlikely to happen at that time because she was not in a relationship, Gladys sought God in prayer and believed that if and when it happened, she would be with a man who also had a heart for missions.
Meanwhile, Paolo—who had heard a challenge to go to missions in a retreat that year—was contemplating a career change. Like Gladys, he had a heart for the nations and was seriously considering going to the mission field. When asked to take work responsibilities in Southeast Asia, Paolo did not think twice and immediately accepted the role. He knew it would open doors for him to do missions.
After months of not seeing each other, Paolo and Gladys were reconnected and learned about their respective plans of going to the nations. For them, it was like hearing a revelation from God—an answer to a long-ago prayer. It turned out that Gladys was not the only one who was believing God for a partner in the mission field; Paolo was, too.
Allowing God to let His plans unfold in His time, Paolo and Gladys parted ways to do what God had called them to do first. Gladys left for Thailand to accompany a friend on a short-term mission trip, while Paolo traveled to different countries as part of his job. After they had returned, Paolo pursued Gladys and eventually won her heart. A few months into their relationship, they sought God in prayer to know His mission for them as a couple. And when it became clear, they exchanged vows in February of the following year.
Seeing how God had carefully crafted their love story, Paolo and Gladys were certain that no matter what difficulties they faced, God would lead the way and see them through. Believing for a child was one of them. Every year, amid different trials, they would patiently wait for God’s promise to be fulfilled. And year after year, their faith was tested.
Until it finally came.
After almost 10 years of waiting, Gladys became pregnant. It was her first pregnancy at 40, and it was highly sensitive. While carrying their unborn child, Gladys battled with hyperthyroidism, hypertension, and seven myomas. She was bedridden for six months—and it took a toll on their baby. As a complication of hypertension, their unborn child was diagnosed with intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), a condition in which an unborn child is smaller than it should be. Because the baby was not growing at a normal rate inside the womb, the doctors told Gladys that it was at risk of certain health problems, and it might stop growing at some point.
Instead of losing faith, Paolo and Gladys sought God even more and devoted time to pray for their baby. Though there were many times that they had both cried in pain because of everything, they still repeatedly went back to God in prayer and surrendered everything to Him.
On August 23, 2007, Gladys finally gave birth to a healthy baby girl named Sofia Therese or Pia. She had a Cesarean delivery at 36 weeks and six days. It was a full-term pregnancy! It was also a painless delivery all throughout.
Now, Pia is 11 years old, and she’s been a blessing to Paolo and Gladys. But more than anything, her parents know that she belongs not to them, but to the Lord. Last May 25th, Pia attended Victory Weekend for preteens, and although Paolo and Gladys had already attended Victory Weekend nine years before, they decided to be baptized in faith as a family—with Pia.
Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. Hebrews 10:23
Paolo and Gladys’ family is a testimony of God’s faithfulness. He has been faithful to them for more than two decades; they know that He will remain faithful in the years to come. He will continue to be the author of their life stories as they await their next mission as a family.
Paolo, Gladys, and Sophia are part of Victory Fort. Paolo has a small consulting business, while Gladys runs a school in Caloocan.
The following is a transcript of Bishop Ferdie Cabiling’s message from Discipleship 2018.
Today, I want to focus on being established in the Word and prayer. Why do we need to be established in the Word and prayer? Because we are living in a world where we have so many challenges—the pressures of the world and of the flesh. We have the typhoons of life, the storms of life, that would try to devastate and destroy us. There are a lot of teachings out there that would try to derail us from the doctrines and theology of the Scriptures. And so therefore, there’s a need for a believer, right after they have received Christ, to be established in the faith, in Jesus, and in the Word and prayer.
I couldn’t think of any passage, there are a lot of passages, but I want to look at the story in Ezra 7:10. It says in this passage, “for Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the Lord and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.”
Ezra was sent to the remnants in Jerusalem, in order to help build spiritual foundations in the lives of the remnants and of the Israelites. He was sent there—there was Zerubbabel, there was Nehemiah, who had built the walls of the city, but Ezra was sent to establish a strong foundation in the spiritual life of the people. And so this is the commission given to him in this short passage, and I’d like to share this to us.
In the first part of the verse in NIV, it says, “he devoted himself.” He devoted himself. That’s where we get the words “devotions” and “devotionals,” some people say, “devos,” their daily devotionals. He devoted himself, and there are three areas where he devoted himself. The first one is study. He devoted himself to searching the Scriptures. Sometimes, when people would try to study the Bible, they do it out of curiosity, and that’s good at first, but I hope that we go beyond curiosity.
Some people are on the other side of the fence; they’re study the Scriptures so they can display, so they can have knowledge, so they can have more tools and weapons to argue with people. We don’t want that; we don’t want to gain knowledge that puffs up (1 Corinthians 8:1). We’re not here just to gain knowledge; we don’t just study the Scripture for displaying, so that we can win all the arguments. I believe that we are called of God to study the Scriptures, so that we can have an understanding of the Word of God. Understanding of the Scriptures is very crucial. That’s why there’s a need to come and understand, seeking to understand the Scriptures. You don’t impose what you know about the Scriptures; you examine the Scriptures, you search the Scriptures. And that is an important part.
There were Jews in Acts 17:11 that were more of noble character than the Thessalonians. They’re called the Bereans. Why? Because the Scripture says that these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the Word with all eagerness. There’s such a desire inside of them. They examined the Scriptures daily. These are the Berean Jews who have heard the sermons, and yet they did not stop there. They decided to receive it with eagerness, and it says, “they examined the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” In NIV it says, “to see if what Paul preached was really true.”
How dare these people question what they have heard from Apostle Paul, who is the author of two-thirds of the New Testament? Today, we have doctrines and theology, and most of those came from the writings of Apostle Paul, and yet these men and women decided to examine the Scriptures daily, to see if what he really said was true. They weren’t questioning the character of the person; they were just good students of the Word. They examined the Scriptures daily to see if what Paul’s sermon was really true.
So there’s a meditation that was happening. God wants us to meditate on His Scripture. The word “meditate” means to muse, to think over and over, to ponder, to mutter, to memorize, to internalize, to pray, to ruminate, to think about it slowly at time, to say it over and over again, to examine the Scriptures, so I can have that as part of who I am—the Word of God. Study the Scriptures.
Romans 10:7 says, “faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” When we allow ourselves to be in the Scriptures, when we allow the Word of God to become part of who we are, when we are faced with the pressures of the world, when we are faced with the challenges, like the storms of life, then we would be able to make it. When there are false doctrines that are being taught, then it will help us discern and have spiritual discernment, and say this is false, and this is true, because I have been meditating on the Word of God. And so that is crucial, in order for us to be established in the Word and Prayer—devotion to His Word. We have to be devoted to His Word, and I’ll tell more about that as we move on.
The next part of the devotion that Ezra focuses himself on is to study the Scriptures, and then, to do it. It says, to do it. He was delighted to do the Word of God, and apply it. Practice it and do it. There were five frogs on a log. Three decided to jump. When you look at the log, there were still five more on the log, in spite of three deciding to jump. Why? Because decision doesn’t mean action. There’s a big difference. It’s by the grace of God that will help us apply the Scriptures.
Discipleship without teaching will be hard. Acts 28:20 says, “teaching them to obey, teaching them to do.” It takes the grace of God to apply what we’re learning in this life. There’s a trap sometimes, that, because we know of something, we can be deceived to think we have already done it. There’s a big difference between knowing and doing. There’s a huge gap between knowing and doing. It is crucial to bridge the gap, and that is by the grace of God, helping one another, helping a fellow believer as a Victory group leader, helping them to cross the bridge and apply it in their lives.
Victory group leaders have to help one another; we can’t do it, apart from one another, letting the Word of God be applied in our lives. The challenges and pains in this life, we can’t make it without the Word of God being part of who we are. In the Philippines, we have regular guests: around nineteen to twenty storms every year. In Metro Manila, we have around five to six storms. We call it typhoons; in Bangladesh, they call it cyclone; in the US, they called it hurricane. Nevertheless, these are storms. Pastor Ariel mentioned that a while ago, when we started out, when he tried to explain Establish, the Scriptures from Matthew 7:24-27 told about the wise man who built his house on a rock, but when the rain fell and the winds blew, and the floods came, and beat against the house, the house did not fall because it was founded on the rock. But the foolish man who built his house on the sand, when the rain came in and the winds blew and came and beat against the house, the house fell with a great crash.
You know, with the typhoons hitting us, I have my own personal experience in my province. I grew up in Central Luzon, where we experience around seven to eight typhoons every year. I had an experience when I visited Tacloban, seeing the devastation and seeing the bodies all over the place because of a huge storm, and people asking questions upon questions; it’s tough to be a pastor in the middle of this devastation. Pastor Janssen and I had dinner in the midst of all this, and all the eyes were on us, inquiring about the typhoons and the devastation, and there were arguments, they would argue and they would talk, and then finally, everyone’s eyes were on us, the pastors, as if we all know the answers to all the issues of the world.
Sometimes, you feel the same way, but I believe if we have the Word of God in our hearts, though we may go through some tough times, there’s something there. As we say in Tagalog, “meron kang mahuhugot. Sa paghihirap sa buhay, meron kang mahuhugot, because the Word of God is in your heart.”
I appreciate my wife, Judy, for going through this life with me. We have a son who was born with special needs. He’s about to be 14 years old. What is sustaining us today is the Word and His promises to each and every one of us. Before coming here today, I had to see my son go through through a seizure. What would sustain a father? What would sustain a person who’s going through some tough times in life? There’s only one thing that would help us be sustained. Through the storms of life, there’s one thing that would cause us to move on and continue to fulfill God’s purpose in our lives: His Word.
Establishing in the Word and prayer.
Devoted to study.
Delighted to do.
And the last part, it says there, “to teach.” Determined to teach. It is part of establishing foundations of the Word and prayer in the heart of a believer, for them not just to gain knowledge to apply it in their lives, but also for them to find someone to share their faith with, to find someone to share what the Lord has been speaking to them through the Word.
Teach! Going back to that passage in Matthew 28:20, teaching “them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Teaching is part of discipleship, and we cannot set that aside. I thank God for the people who have taught me the Scriptures. I thank God for Pastor Tom who helped me understand the Scriptures. I thank God for Gregory Dickow, who helped me and asked me to go read the Bible together with him, while he was reading his Bible in a corner, I was reading my Bible in the other corner. He showed me how to spend time in the Scriptures, and to preach. Some of you wonder if evangelists taught me how to preach, but it was Pastor Steve who taught me how to preach in FEU and in UST. I thank God for the investment of time; in all the wrong words I’ve spoken, he would correct me along the way. I appreciate him going out with me in teaching others the Word of God. We needed somebody to come! It would take a community to make a disciple; we can’t have a disciple without the community.
Teach!
In page 145 of WikiChurch, it says, “Just be a chapter ahead.” Just one chapter ahead! If you are are one chapter ahead, as long as you can stay one chapter ahead, you can disciple him. You don’t have to be in a seminary to be able to teach. One of the challenges we had in 1984, when we would go out and preach in the streets, would be religious folks who would come to use and ask:
“Have you been to a seminary? What seminary have you come from?”
And they would ask us, while we were preaching the gospel, they would challenge us, “Have you been to a seminary?”
Thirty-four years later, now I’m in the seminary!
But thirty-four years ago? “What do you mean, cemetery, I mean, seminary?”
We only know the Bible! We only know people who helped us go through the Scriptures and built that foundation in our lives. Amazing, amazing experience.
You know what? Ezra said that he devoted himself, he set his heart, devoted himself, to study, to do, and to teach. Now, that’s one man. But when we go to Acts 2:42, they devoted themselves to apostles’ teaching, to prayer and to fellowship, to breaking of bread, and to prayers. We want each and every one of us to be devoted in faith, devoted in the Word and prayer, devoted in fellowship and church community. When we are founded on the rock, when we are founded and devoted to the Scriptures, then it will help establish others, it would ignite a spiritual passion in others as well. As Victory group leaders and interns, a disciple established in God’s Word and prayer ignites spiritual passion for others to follow. When they see you and I established in God’s Word and prayer, then it would ignite something in the hearts of the people we’re helping.
The reason why I’m able, the reason why it’s possible for me, as a young person, to read the Scriptures, is because I’d seen this man exemplify reading the Bible. I still remember him up to today, because he would show me the Scripture. He was the one who brought me to biblical foundations. Greg Dickow. He would bring me into that class—that was the first time I met Pastor Steve teaching the class—to make sure that it was established in my life.
I’d like to encourage us today: have your own Bibles. Have a Bible app if you need to, or an old-school Bible. Get a Bible. Get a large print if you’re above forty; if you’re below, it doesn’t matter. Get your own Bible, not your wife’s Bible. Have your own! Then have a notebook where you can write the verses that the Lord has been speaking to you.
You can use different ways to do it. There’s SOAP. There’s Scripture, Observe, Ask, and then, Pray. Who among you take a bath every day? Okay, remember SOAP, every day, you gotta have that SOAP. You get your Bible. Scripture, Observe, Ask Questions, and then Pray.
Let’s say you don’t take a bath every day. You go on the road, so let’s use ROAD. Read, Observe, Ask, and Do. ROAD. Maybe you can do that, whatever it takes, just read and then observe, ask questions, and then write what you have been observing, and out from that would come your devotion and then prayer at the end.
Or, I made up another one: Stare. Stare at the Scriptures, and if you see something glaring, something that you have observed, write it down. Glare. Have you experienced that, something glaring out of the verse? And then Dare to change. Have you read your Bible sometimes, reading your Bible, and you start crying? You close your Bible, and then you start crying? The Holy Spirit is daring you to be transformed, and you come before God in prayer, and then you Share. Find somebody to share what you have learned that day in your devotion.
Whatever it takes!
Then you gotta have The Purple Book! Go through it, and get deeper in the Scriptures. We are trying to put it online so that it can be quicker for some of us to share it with others, but there’s no shortcut. Go get The Purple Book. I’m just so encouraged today. May the Lord bless you as you continue to search the Scripture like the Bereans.
“I said yes, even if I had no idea what I’m supposed to do.”
These were the words of Troy Alvarez, a 17-year old student at Lyceum of Alabang, who joined our Dare to Believe prayer and fasting week last January 2016. On the first day of fasting, he felt God speak to him to pray for someone in church. It was the first time he heard God tell him to pray for someone. He didn’t know any special prayers, and he didn’t know how to approach strangers. Still, he said yes.
The next day in Victory Alabang during the first session of prayer and fasting, he scanned the crowd for someone he could pray for, and his eyes fell on an elderly woman. He couldn’t shake the feeling that this woman had cancer. Troy prayed for confirmation from God, and a feeling of certainty washed over him. “This is her. God wants me to pray for this woman,” he told himself.
After praise and worship, Troy started approaching the woman but before he could get near her, he was suddenly overwhelmed with fear and uncertainties. He couldn’t move a step forward and found himself retreating to his seat. Doubtful and defeated, Troy headed home instead. During his commute, there was a gnawing feeling inside him. He couldn’t take his mind off the elderly woman who needed his prayers. “I could feel there was something wrong,” he confesses, “I didn’t obey God because I was thinking more of what other people would say. I didn’t trust Him.” Feeling humbled, Troy prayed that the woman would be there tomorrow and he resolved to approach her, so he can do what God has been telling him to do.
The next day, Troy immediately looked for the woman. God answered his prayer, because he had no difficulty finding her. Gathering courage, he approached her and introduced himself. He found out that his name is Ester, and she was fighting breast cancer. At the time she met Troy, the cancer had spread to her lungs.
“I asked her if I could pray for her,” he narrates, “I told her that God has been telling me to pray specifically for her.” As Troy was praying, he suddenly felt very cold and goosebumps overwhelmed him. He felt the presence of Jesus in their midst. He shared with her his life verse from Mark 11:24, “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” Before long, he found himself crying with Tita Ester. “After praying for her, I was speechless and I felt really cold,” Troy shares, “I felt a mix of emotions, but the most overwhelming thing is the joy that is overflowing in me.”
The next day, Troy went to church again and the first thing he did was look for Tita Ester. To his dismay, she wasn’t in church. Troy couldn’t help but worry and feel anxious about her absence. Remembering how he felt Jesus’ presence yesterday, Troy was comforted. At home, he continued to pray and fast for Tita Ester’s healing. He knew nothing is impossible with God. He is sovereign, and He can cure any sickness in a blink of an eye.
On the last day of prayer and fasting week, Troy prayed to see Tita Ester once again. To his relief, she was in church and he ran towards her once he saw her. Tita Ester was in high spirits. She had wonderful news that she couldn’t wait to tell Troy about. Doctors were dumbfounded to discover that the cancer in her lungs seemed to have disappeared!
Upon hearing the news, Troy felt a wave of peacefulness wash over him. God did not only give him front row seats to witness a miracle, but He used him to be an instrument of blessing to someone he didn’t even know when the week began. Troy wasn’t spared from the voices in his head telling him that his faith is not enough to heal, but he clung to his life verse and was reassured that God can do the impossible. Ester’s daughter, April, agrees; her mother recently underwent laser surgery to remove a small tumor discovered in her brain.
“Though we know Mom’s fight with cancer isn’t completely over,” she shares, “we know that the victory is already ours because of Jesus. We’re so blessed because God gives her so much strength; she’s a fighter.” Ester’s courage has made quite the impression on Troy.
“This experience taught me to be brave,” Troy shares, “It showed me that when God declares something, it will happen. We’re not the miracle workers, we’re just the instruments, so we need not fear. We just have to dare to believe.”
Join our Mid-Year Prayer and Fasting from July 5 to 7 as we take time to reflect on God’s goodness and faithfulness over the first half of 2016! Let’s continue to believe God for greater things in our families, campuses, workplaces, church, and nation.
Follow our updates on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to know more about this prayer and fasting activity. You can also read testimonies from our previous prayer and fasting by clicking on this link.
Let’s continue to dare to believe God for more of Him in our lives! May each of us live lives that honor and give glory to Him, every single day.
How do I honor God? It’s when I sing that He is God, and I am not. When things are going from good to great, or when they aren’t, I can’t help but acknowledge who He is and what He has done for me. God’s very character and nature demands this recognition, and it ceaselessly creates in me a divine hunger—a drive to abide in His will (even when it hurts), trust in His ways (even when it doesn’t make sense), and give praise for His works (in the times we should: when we feel like it and when we don’t feel like it).
In a disciple’s life, this is seen as personal prayer—a pursuit for intimacy with the One who loved us and still loves us at our worst. It is a desire to behold Him who stooped down to make us great. It is a seeking for fellowship and not just partnership. It is a drawing near for reasons other than needs. Prayer is both a time and place: a time for opening our whole being to know His holy presence, and a place for hearing His loving voice, “You are my son, my beloved one.” If only for that, it would all be worth it. Have you ever wondered why Jesus prayed so much?
Prayer also, I believe, is a posture of dependence; a bowing down to honor the Lord. It is when we treasure the words of His mouth more than our daily bread. To pray daily is to declare daily that apart from Christ we are nothing. To live a day devoid of the Bible and all or any manner of prayer is only one of three: ignorance, negligence, or a loud audacious statement saying, “God, I do not need you today; I’ll be ok. Maybe tomorrow or next time again.”
Sky Ramos serves as the Coordinator for Ministry Development of Victory Philippines. He is married to Fem and is a dad to Jedi and Kenshin.
“When we feel forsaken and when God seems far away, in reality, He is still holy and He is still enthroned. My feelings and my experiences do not change who He is.”
Victory founding pastor Steve Murrell writes an insightful blog entry about what prayers to pray when one feels forsaken by God. Read When God Seems Far Away.
“Living all of life for the glory of God is the heart of real worship. Next time you participate in a worship service start by offering your body as a living sacrifice.”
Join us at the first Thursday of each month for Worship Night! This is a great time for all of us to worship God together as a spiritual family. We’ll also pray for our nation, our church, and even our personal concerns.
Worship and pray with us at Victory center nearest you! Here’s the schedule of Worship Nights at our Victory centers in Metro Manila:
Our 2012 Seven Days of Prayer and Fasting is in full swing! Check out these testimonies from people who have been seeking God to bring breakthrough in different areas of their lives. We hope you are encouraged as we are!
Healing
One of my faith goals in 2011 was healing for my mother-in-law. She was diagnosed to have stage four lymphoma. Because of God’s healing power, she was healed and is now cancer free. Praise God for this!
– Charity, Middle East
I have been childless for six years. I joined our Prayer and Fasting in 2009 and asked God for a baby. I got pregnant after that. Last year, I joined again and got pregnant with my second child. God really opened my womb. What an amazing God!
– Cathy, Victory Pioneer
My husband and I have joined the annual Prayer and Fasting since 2009. God never fails to do more than we ask for! When our child was three months old, he was diagnosed with pulmonary tuberculosis and God healed him! Truly, God is FAITHFUL!
– Cyrene, Victory Fort Bonifacio
Cage Liongson of Victory Fort Bonifacio narrates the story of how their youngest son was cured of an illness that would have resulted to mental retardation and required lifelong treatment. Watch the full video here.
Salvation
In 2011, I prayed and fasted for family salvation. Three months later, my wife started attending Victory and accepted Christ. We both finished Victory Weekend that year and have been attending small group meetings regularly. Both my kids are also attending KIDS Church. At may extra pa: my sisters-in-law have been attending service since the early part of 2011. Amazing how God answers prayer.
– Dt, Victory Fort Bonifacio
I’ve been praying for the salvation of my family for years now and I always include that in my Prayer and Fasting faith goals. God answered my prayers in 2011, when my mother and younger sister accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
– Margie, Victory Makati
Promotion
I’ve been working in a government agency for five months now. This year, I prayed for a promotion and increase in salary. To my surprise, our boss talked to me (during Day Four of Prayer and Fasting), giving me good news. As I renew my contract (this year), I’ll be assuming a new post, and the salary is almost tripled compared to what I’m receiving.
– Patrick Jason, Victory U-Belt
I’ve been working in my present company for more than five years and still haven’t received a salary increase. I made that as one of my faith goals in 2011. God faithfully answered my request. Despite the company crisis, retrenchment, and cost cutting, God provided for me. He is so awesome! Praise God for the wonderful breakthrough!
– Bevs, Victory Lipa
I fasted for my acceptance to the AUSAID scholarship grant. Now I just finished my first semester at the University of Sydney and am looking forward to the start of school year 2012! (I also fasted) to win in the Toastmasters (International Speech) Contest all the way to the National Finals. Not only did I (win) in the Philippines, but I also won in three speech contests in Australia!
– Vinnie, Victory Pioneer
Restoration of Relationships
My husband and I separated two months after I gave birth to our third child. It was the most painful trial ever. But God is amazing. He brought us back together after eight months. During our first talk, my husband said that he missed God so much and wanted to repent and go back to Him.
– Rhea, Victory Fort Bonifacio
My brother and I were not in good terms in 2010. During the 2011 Prayer and Fasting, my sister and I fasted for a reconciliation with my brother. And God is really good. Now, my brother and I are in good terms and he became more responsible as a brother and a son.
– Carol
These are just some of what God has been doing mightily! If you’d like to share your testimony with us, please email stories@victory.org.ph. Let’s continue believing that God will do great things in our lives this year!
2012 is the year of the Lord’s favor! Let’s be expectant for what God will do in us, with us, and through us.
We invite everyone to join us in our annual Seven Days of Prayer and Fasting. This is the time when we gather together as a spiritual family to consecrate the year and every area of our lives to God. Bring your family and friends and together let’s start 2012 right!
Check out our Prayer and Fasting 2012 webpage to read practical guidelines to help you in your fast. You can also read devotionals, take notes on your insights, and download free manuals and wallpapers. Be encouraged with us as you read testimonies of answered prayer—and feel free to share yours, too!
If you’re on Facebook and Twitter, please follow our updates and share your prayer requests and breakthroughs with us! You can also use the #fasting2012 hashtag on Twitter to join the conversation.
2012 is the year of the Lord’s favor! Let’s be expectant for what God will do in us, with us, and through us.
Check out our Prayer and Fasting 2012 webpage to read practical guidelines to help you in your fast. You can also read devotionals, take notes on your insights, and download free manuals and wallpapers. Be encouraged with us as you read testimonies of answered prayer—and feel free to share yours, too!
Only a few days left of a season filled with breakthroughs! 2011 was truly a year of the Lord’s favor as prayers were answered and faith goals were fulfilled left and right. Even from the start of 2011 up until its last remaining days, God has been moving mightily in the lives of many.
Let’s begin 2012 with an attitude of faith! Start it right by seeking God’s perfect will and by covering the upcoming year in prayer and fasting. Join us in the prayer meetings that will be happening in our Metro Manila locations during the 2012 Seven Days of Prayer and Fasting! Please find the schedule below:
We are so excited to share you some testimonies that we received during our recently concluded Seven-Day Prayer and Fasting. We hope that you are encouraged as you read through these stories.
Healing
My dad lost his vision in [his] right eye last year. But last Sunday [January 9], during my dad’s check-up, the doctor said he can already see farther than the last time she saw him: both in his peripheral and his main vision.
Katie, who posted in our Victory Facebook account
Last November, na-detect na may sepsis ako. I was confined for two to three days and was back in the hospital [in January]. I decided to pray and believe God for healing. True enough, on the third day of the prayer and fasting, God actually healed me!
Paolo, Victory U-Belt
On the 20th week of my pregnancy, my husband and I discovered that my baby had a cyst. We were expectant for a change and asked people to stand with us in prayer. When I went through our routine scan for the baby last January 10, our doctors confirmed that the cyst in our baby disappeared completely.
Yet, Victory Pioneer
Restoration of Relationships
[I started writing my personal faith goals in the beginning of the year.] On top of my list was for my Mom and my Dad, [who have been separated from each other for seven years]. Last Sunday, January 9, my dad called me to say that he and my mom want to be together again! After seven years we will all be together again as one family!
Christian, Victory Greenhills
My relationship with my mom has been strained for more than two years . . . After last year’s fasting, I found the strength to start emailing, texting, and calling my mom. I started visiting [her too]. Kitang-kita sa mukha ni Mama yung saya niya kasi magkasama uli kami lahat. Michael, Victory U-Belt
Promotion
I have been working as a salesman for years now and praying for career breakthrough. [Then] I was offered a job as a Sales and Marketing Manager by [a different] company. I was hesitant because I [was working at] a multi-national company that has all the best compensation and benefits that others cant compete with . . . but this small company was able to offer me the best and [much more than what I expected].
Kim, Victory Pioneer
I did not have any work or job offers for six months. On the second day of prayer and fasting, somebody called me, offering me with a job with a high salary. I believe God has more in store. God is really faithful!
Eric, Victory U-Belt
Victory Group Growth
[I believed God for fruitfulness in the area of discipleship.] Nagkaroon [ako] ng Victory Group and nakapagsimula [noong January 13], with three new members.
Lynn, Victory U-Belt
Let’s continue to hold on to the promises of God with strength and courage! If you have a testimony you’d like to share with us, please email stories@victory.org.ph. We’d love to hear from you!
