Serving the Next Generation

Serving the Next Generation

Joevanie Nebreja, a Victory group leader from Victory Iloilo, has a passion to reach the next generation. Discover how God compels him to preach the gospel and encourage others to do the same.   Joevanie was a college senior in Mindanao State University when he was first reached with the gospel. Kim, one of his org mates, actively befriended him and eventually invited him to youth gatherings at Victory General Santos. “I noticed that he was different,” Joevanie recalls. “He’d regularly invite me to hang out or share a meal with him. I also found out that he was inviting our boardmates to church.” It was through Kim’s example of genuine concern for him that Joevanie became curious about God. “I came to a point of wanting to know God, partly because I wasn’t pressured into it.” What came next was a realization that God was all that he needed in his life. “At first, l only wanted to know Jesus on an intellectual level. Eventually, I went through hardship before I decided to stop running away from Jesus and follow Him.” God was doing a deep work in his heart by then. “When I decided to give my life to Christ, I gave up my vices. I also worked hard in my remaining months at school.” joevanie-youngpros Joevanie acknowledges that his walk with

God was something he could not do alone. “Kim worked hard to disciple me,” he shares. “It’s difficult to build your relationship with God alone. You need other people to pray with you and stand with you.” Armed with a newfound knowledge for Christ and the support of the people around him, Joevanie had a burden to reach his family and friends. Today, he is now helping reach the next generation through volunteering at Kids Church. Aside from this, he has a mixed group of pre-teens and high schoolers, and another Victory group of young professionals. joevanie-HS What compels him to reach the next generation? “Their identity belongs to God,” he declares. “I want them to experience who God is—as a Father, and as a friend.” This is what fuels him to preach the gospel to others and lead them to Christ. “Life is much better if you’re walking with God.” Joevanie expresses the importance of preaching the gospel because Jesus modeled this to each of us. “Jesus calls us to ‘go and make disciples’ because He did it Himself. He went to the world to be a servant. He called us to be servant leaders, not just leaders for leadership’s sake.” True to form, he is in faith that the students he is discipling today will be great leaders in different sectors of society. Joevanie himself exemplifies the notion of a servant leader—because he himself serves, not just in his home church, but the people he leads to Christ. We are in faith that more men like Joevanie will rise up and raise leaders from every age group, campus, and business. joevanie-kids

Nothing to Lose

Nothing to Lose

Mitos Aguadera is simple, straightforward, and passionate about who God is and who He called her to be. Discipled as a young woman, she readily accepted an invitation to be part of a Victory group in her current home church of Victory Iloilo.

“I’ve always wanted to lead my own small group,” she shares. Her discipler, whom she considers “one of the best leaders,” empowered her by giving her valuable tips and pointers en route to letting her lead the Victory group discussion among her classmates.

“She would always tell us that our foundation should be Jesus and His love for us,” she shares proudly.

Being fully aware of Jesus and what He did for her, Mitos decided to focus on her relationship with Him. “I decided to follow Jesus because I had nothing to lose if I followed Him.”

Not long after making this life-changing decision, Mitos was forced to become her family’s breadwinner when her father passed away. The blow may have been painful, but Mitos found a peace and joy that sustained her through that difficult time.

“The gospel changed my mindset on how I see myself, my life, other people, and God,” she says. “It made me feel secure of God’s love for me,” she adds, sharing on how the gospel transformed her.

She also recounts how God has created in her a heart of compassion, putting this burden into action by “an innate desire to share Jesus to all people.” As she herself puts, “God’s love for me made me want to disciple others. I always remind myself that if I love God, I should love His people. One way to put this into action is through making disciples that will also make disciples.” Mitos currently leads a small youth group, and is an active Kids’ Ministry volunteer at Victory Iloilo.

Mitos understood what it meant to live for God, not only in her relationships, but also in productivity. She graduated as a cum laude in college, and is now an account manager in a business process outsourcing (BPO) firm. All this is because “I always do my BEST as a form of worship to God.” To her, God deserves the best of all that she is.

Of course, Mitos is far from perfect. “I struggle with my temper and impatience sometimes,” she admits, “but I believe God will help me overcome this.” Other than this, she believes that meditating and applying God’s Word in her life is the best way to live life in Christlikeness.

Mitos is in faith not only for the things that are her weaknesses, but also for discipling others. “I want to (disciple) future campus missionaries, church planters, and missionaries.” Indeed, she has seen how God’s love has made an impact in her own life, and having that desire to disciple the nations and the next generation is her way of giving back gratitude and worship to God.

Mitos, like all of us, has nothing to lose when we lose ourselves for God’s purposes in our lives.