For God So Loved The World
The gift that God so freely gave on that first Christmas was for the salvation of the whole world. That “whosoever” believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16). There are no exclusions—except for those who will not believe and receive that gift who is Jesus Christ the Lord. Of Himself Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). We have been proclaiming this simple truth for 40 years now— first in the city of Hawaiian Gardens California and now all the way across the world in San Jose, Philippines. Thank you for being our partners in sharing “the way out” of sin, shame, and suffering and the way into God’s peace, hope, joy and love. Jesus is the reason for the season and for all of the good works that we do together in His name. Merry Christmas friends!
The Way Out Philippines (TWOP):
Our Holiday season began October 19 when five of us visited the Philippines. This time I was able to take my daughter Rachel (our Coordinator of Ministry Affairs) who has helped so much in establishing the ministry there. Our Board President, Sarah Park and her husband Leo also joined us along with Maira Dulin who is a member of our church, The Gathering. What a joy it was to encourage our two staff members — Divine Canapit and Mark Salcedo and to visit our newly dedicated sister church, Chapel By The Beach. We enjoyed interacting with the children from our weekly kids’ ministry. They, along with many volunteers, greeted us with a dance program and wonderful home-made food. We brought gifts of sports equipment, musical instruments, craft and office supplies. The children made Christmas cards to give to our kids’ club in California and sang Christmas songs to us (Christmas is celebrated September through December in the Philippines). Our team also participated in a baptism service and in the grand opening of our ministry center in San Jose. In mid December, 100 children received Christmas gifts through TWOP from The Gathering Church which included a pair of shoes, a colorful blanket, a toy and a family food box— from their U.S. family with love!
Give Thanks to the Lord!
We celebrated Thanksgiving once again in partnership with the L.A. Mission—doubling our outreach to needy families this year with 100 Thanksgiving Food Boxes. Thanksgiving day followed in Hawaiian Gardens with our volunteers serving the homeless in the community at our 41st annual Thanksgiving Dinner where we fed hundreds of people. Our Annual Christmas Concert filled The Way Out Ministries with families, friends and visitors and abounding Christmas cheer. Ryan and the band put on a great show with all the classic songs and brought the true meaning of the season home by giving thanks to the Lord! At our Christmas Store, mothers, fathers and grandparents were able to select gifts for their kids and wrap them. This year we added a gift box of household products along with several pairs of children’s socks.
Party, Party, Party!
Our Christmas parties, as usual, just kept coming! Our annual Grace Stop Christmas Party for our homeless friends celebrated Jesus with brunch, a sing-along, and Christmas Bingo with prizes! Everyone left the party with a gift bag filled with items including a hydro flask and a rain poncho. Christmas parties for Kid’s Club, Zion Youth, Unite, The Lion’s Den, Beyond Grief and others were also filled with fun and fellowship making The Way Out Ministries the most happening holiday place in the city! Keeping in mind and heart the most important theme—Jesus is the reason for the season!
Thank you for helping us bring Jesus to so many people. We wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year— and “God bless us…everyone!”
