God’s Miraculous Power Evident as 420 Members Rejoice in Davao City, Philippines

This was also a Feast of miracles!

Typhoon Ramon was expected to hit landfall as our 37 Leyte brethren from the Visayas were scheduled to cross by ferry to Mindanao Island. Expected, their chartered bus in Leyte also cancelled its trip. The Festival Coordinator instructed them to proceed by all means to Port San Ricardo at the tip of Leyte Island, where the municipal government unexpectedly hosted them to a free dinner! As soon as the typhoon passed, miraculously, God provided an unchartered bus to seat all of them!

On the return trip after the Feast, in spite of all efforts, they missed their scheduled bus. But God provided for them a special one (air-conditioned) which arrived at their destination even earlier!

Another miracle involved our 11 Banisilan brethren all jammed into a small pick-up truck headed for the Feast. About five hours drive away from Davao, their vehicle ran off the road, hit and toppled a coconut tree, then slammed into another tree before flipping onto its side. The windshield was shattered and the steering wheel destroyed. Most of their loose baggage were thrown out, including one little child; and the plastic chairs they carried were shattered. The consistent question of passers-by was: how many were killed? Thank God, miraculously, apart from some minor bruises, no life was lost and they arrived on the opening night of the Feast!

The Davao Festival site hosted about 420 attendees, including our Festival speakers from the US: David and Denise Dobson for the first half, and Earl and Carol Roemer for the second half of the Feast.

Beginning with the opening night service, the momentum of powerful and inspiring messages (some accompanied by PowerPoint illustrations) continued to encourage and edify the brethren to the last day. God blessed us with good weather; beautiful stage setting with creative daily arrangements of fresh flowers; and warm and joy-filled camaraderie and fellowshipping among brethren—young and old—in the serene atmosphere of the camp.

Afternoon activities included tours, livelihood workshops, varied games and balloons for children, bonding activities for youths and singles, a relaxing seniors’ social, an enjoyable family sports day with a sampling of Davao City’s best fruits, as well as an informative Bible Q&A on the Sabbath afternoon conducted by Festival Coordinator Edmond Macaraeg and David Dobson.

Evening activities included a fellowship night, a colorful and entertaining variety show, and a Church Leaders’ dinner in appreciation for their help in serving the congregations in Mindanao and the Visayas Islands. For the fifth time, we also had Practical Christianity sessions on the evenings conducted by Mr. Macaraeg, with each evening devoted to varied groups as: teens, singles, and married couples.

Due to some donations, we had special blessings such as a free daily lunch for everyone; two roasted calves served on the first and last day; breakfast food items distributed to the families; and other gift items.

Significantly, we had two Elder Ordinations: Jose Campos of Leyte Island, and Merlito Tonog of Kidapawan City. Like last Feast, we again had 11 baptisms: Reuel Cainglet, James Villacote, Sharlo Boldios, Christopher Betoy, Teofilo Balibrea, Jr., Dr. Bibian Amarille, Jingle Moscoso, Roxanne Evaristo, Minda Macaraeg, Evelyn Morada, and Evelyn Wong. Eleven little children were also blessed.

In summary, the very inspiring messages, the fun-filled activities, and the warm family atmosphere created an inviting foretaste of the glorious coming Kingdom of God. We are very thankful to God for all these great and wonderful blessings plus interventions. Not a few have said that this was their best Feast ever. As we strive to continuously improve, we look forward to another “best Feast ever” again next year.

—Reported by Edmond and Daniel Macaraeg