taguig

Hope Isn’t Gone

March 22, 2024

News about suicide cases isn’t new to us at all. In the Philippines alone, DepEd has death records for a total of 404 learners and 2,147 records of those who attempted suicide in the academic year 2021-2022.

These numbers represent lives, leaving behind a trail of regret. Whenever we hear such stories, it either wounds us or serves as a powerful wake-up call.

However, grief is not the only response. The local government of Taguig moves swiftly in compassion–calling forth the whole city to slowly transform grief into action.

Taguig CARES (Community Awareness towards Resilient and Empowered Students) is one of the LGU’s programs that aims to equip students and their families with holistic tools to navigate life’s challenges through values formation and mental health talks.

*62 public elementary and high schools across Taguig, Pateros, and Makati opened their doors to our campus ministry.*

Our church had the privilege to partner with this effort by serving as resource speakers during the city-wide Parenting Seminar. Leaders and volunteers across Victory Metro Manila helped equip 40,000 parents with the biblical responsibility of parenting. Many signified their willingness to receive help and guidance as parents and guardians of the next generation.

Let us continue to empower more families with resilience and faith by fostering strong values and building a supportive community together.

Stand with us in prayer as we reach families in every city, shedding hope and dispelling darkness.

In Christ, we are never left without hope.

Source:

https://mirror.pia.gov.ph/features/2023/02/09/schoolchildren-suicide-a-growing-epidemic-that-needs-immediate-attention

A City Embraced: Bringing The Gospel To Taguig

January 5, 2024

Just like a father’s heart aches for his child in need, God’s love knows no bounds, especially for the lost, the least, and the last (Psalm 140:12).

Here in Taguig, a city of vibrant yet painful contrasts, we want to echo that very heart of Christ—not just within our church’s walls, but in the least, unseen communities.

Remember the joy of those Noche Buena gift packs we shared nearly two decades ago? That simple, compassionate act from our volunteers ignited a fire, a passion to be God’s hands and feet, to proclaim His love in a greater capacity—to even embed social responsibility in our vision as a church.

And that is where our Love the City initiative started—just from a desire to bless and embody the gospel within and beyond our city walls. By God’s grace, we strive to live out our faith not just in words, but also in acts of generosity and service. Taguig, amidst its divides, has brought us closer to those who need it most. We’ve joined hands with these organizations that are beacons of light and hope in our city:

Generations–Home: Their heart is to end the orphan crisis and give orphaned children a chance to be loved well by raising awareness about foster care and adoption. They do this by reaching out to families through forums, discussions, and more. Currently, twelve families from our church have already opened their hearts and homes—good news to celebrate as we start the year!

Generations Home (formerly ROHEI Foundation)

Our recent Justice and Worship Night was held at Victory BGC last November 30, 2023.

Zonta‘s Kababaihan Project: They advocate for women’s rights and support women in need; we serve alongside them by building bridges of mental health support and sharing Christ’s love with the moms and their children. Because of our volunteers’ efforts, at least three women are now on their discipleship journey with us!

Marillac is a government facility that houses sexually abused and neglected young people. As a church, we partner with them by offering platforms of God’s healing through art therapy sessions, group discussions, and fun activities to spend time getting to know and building friendships with them.

Marillac Hills — National Training School for Girls

Wipe Every Tear: They rescue victims of human trafficking. We stand beside them by starting small group sessions with the women and children—talking and being with them, helping them process their thoughts and emotions, and just simply, hearing their stories.

We believe in starting small, in the ripple effect of a single act of love. Every shared meal, every listening ear, every word of blessing, and every prayer of hope matters.

To all our Victory BGC and Taguig volunteers, may the Lord bless you a hundredfold for all the time and effort you’ve given to minister to our communities.

Thank you for serving with us and loving on people just as Christ loves, wherever you are!

Bringing Joy through Good Work

December 21, 2017

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. (2 Corinthians 9:8, ESV)

By God’s grace, we have the privilege of working for the good of many communities. The Christmas season is a time to express this grace and demonstrate the love of Jesus to people from all walks of life.

For the past four years, we have had the pleasure of adding joy to the Christmas celebrations of families in need with Noche Buena packages. Last year, around 650 Noche Buena packages were given out. This year, we partnered with the local government of Taguig to reach out to a wider group of people. Through the generosity of leaders and volunteers from our church, we were able to give out around 5,000 packages and share joy at schools like Ninoy Aquino Benigno High School. We also blessed and thanked public servants from the Bureau of Fire Protection, Bonifacio Global City traffic enforcers, and Taguig City police, as well as pastors from different churches across the Body of Christ in Taguig. Each package, filled with all kinds of food for Noche Buena, brought a smile to the members of these communities.

Yesterday, we distributed 80 packages to the community in Barangay Fort Bonifacio that was affected by a fire a few weeks ago, with many residents displaced into surrounding areas as a result. Some of them are still recovering from the tragedy that hit them. Hearing people like Grace, one of those who received a Noche Buena package, say “Malaking tulong po ito sa amin,” reminds us of the impact of an act of kindness. Grace had lost her home in the fire; she had to move temporarily to a house nearby with her family. Now, she looks forward to a joyful Christmas celebration with food on the table.

*Grace (second from left) receives a Noche Buena package with other residents of Barangay Fort Bonifacio.*

There are many more communities to reach and many more people to touch, but we can start with the communities in our backyards. Let us continue to demonstrate the hope we have in Christ and His love, which is for people from all kinds of backgrounds.

If you would like to join us in helping more communities this Christmas season, feel free to ask the pastors and staff in our church locations this weekend.