Christ’s Heritage Church has gone through 2024 by God’s preserving grace, and in this newsletter, we happily share the different ministry events wherein God has displayed His steadfast love and grace. May God be glorified in this!
We praise God for allowing CHC to have its first ever church retreat last October 31 to November 2, 2024 in CCT Tagaytay Retreat and Training Center. It was entitled “Pursuing Christian Unity” and focused on understanding how the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ unites us despite differences, temptations, and sins that may divide His Body. The retreat also allowed those in attendance to immediately practice Christian unity through recreation and intentional, Christ-centered fellowship. How blessed it is to understand our union with Christ better and experience more sweet fellowship among brethren!
A long-standing prayer request of the church has been graciously answered by our great God through His gracious Providence where He has allowed The Great Commission to bear fruit in the covenanting of another church plant. This started through the sending of Gabriel “Gabe” Castelo, CHC’s first affirmed missionary, and his family to Davao last April 2023. Despite the many challenges presented to Gabe, God has faithfully sustained the ministry outreach for 18 months until finally, the regular attendees and our missionary family were covenanted as Christ Alone Reformed Baptist Church last November 16, 2024 with a total of 18 members. It was also a joy to witness the baptism of 5 of their members.
As the missionary sent by Christ’s Heritage Church and one of the first members of the newly covenanted Christ Alone Reformed Baptist Church (CARBC), Gabe was affirmed by the 17 other members through a unanimous votation on the same day of their covenanting. Pastor Gabe Castelo was then ordained with the laying of hands by Pastor Xley and Pastor Jonard Samejon from Tagum City Reformed Baptist Church to be the official undershepherd of CARBC. Praise God for the continuous spreading of Christ’s name throughout all the earth through His good Gospel!
We praise God as well that, in His faithfulness to His own Great Commission, we were able to welcome three new members with great joy last December 8, 2024.
Lastly, to sign off the year before the busyness of the holiday season, we had a year-end fellowship last December 22, 2024 with CHC’s members and regular attendees. Praise God through whom all blessings flow! May we all welcome the new year with glad tidings and expectant hearts that our faithful God is “able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think” (Eph. 3:20)
a. Pray that our Hermeneutics Class and the upcoming Homiletics Class will train more men in the ministry.
b. Pray for the sustenance and growth of Christ Alone Reformed Baptist Church in Davao with its pastor, Gabriel Castelo, and its 17 other church members.
c. Pray for the continuous sanctification of our members and their unity in the name of Christ.
d. Pray that the Lord would sustain the ministry of our pastors when it comes to shepherding and in the preaching of the Word. (2 Tim 4:2)
e. Pray that the Lord would enable our deacons to ‘gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.’ (1 Tim 3:13).
f. Pray for the upcoming applicants (9th batch) this start of the year, that they would persevere and grow in knowledge and grace in Christ.
g. Pray for Saved Media, which is a ministry oversight by CHC, as it begins the weekly podcast this mid-January.
Galatians 4:4-7 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.
