PFM

Max: I grew up with a family that is poor. I never had a toy, at a very young age I had to work so that I could help my family to have food on our table. It was hard. So when I was growing up I became attached to people who taught and influenced me to have vices, and I even joined a group of thieves and we went to a house and stole a lot of stuff, I only did it once because I had a conviction in my heart that I knew it wasn't right. One day when I was going home I heard my mother talking to someone about it and she said, "if I only knew that Max would cause me this much of a trouble, I should have killed him when he is still inside my womb."

That really hurt me and I ran away from our house and stayed with my relatives and my vices became worse. My father looked for me and when he saw me he brought me back to our house. During those times I am questioning the Lord, what am I doing? Where is my life is going? Then I was invited to a church in our place. I passed by one Sunday and I was mocking them (the church) and they were just looking at me. They sung a song “Puso at Katawan alay ko sa Panginoon” (I offer my heart and body to the Lord. It strikes me and I just ran to the altar and accepted the Lord. And since then my life was never the same again. I had so much love for the Lord and a few months after that, July 1991, I joined PFM to share what God has done in my life for others because God poured so much passion in my heart to reach those people who are lost and through me and my testimony they will know that there is HOPE in Jesus alone! To God be the glory!

Rhoda: As I was growing up I always thought that I was blessed by having a loving family and friends surrounding me. People around me, and knowing me, always hear me say that I am thankful for my family and friends. I try to convince myself that it is true. I never had vices, never involved myself in trouble. But I don't understand the battle that's going on inside of me. I am a happy person but I also feel that there is an emptiness in my heart. I started to look for something or someone who will fill that emptiness inside of me. As a teenager I went out with my friends to parties and joined a lot of clubs at school but it still did not help me find what I was really looking for. Then one day my mom asked me to go with her to one of the Bible Studies that they were doing at someone else's house. I went that night and there I heard about Jesus and what He can do and what He did for us. The pastor said that if you feel that there is emptiness in you, no one can fill that except Him. I did not have a second thought that night, I asked Him to come and be the Savior and Lord of my life and fill that emptiness in my heart. Since then my life was never the same again! It's not my family, my friends or even what I have that can fill that empty place in my heart, it is only Jesus. It was 1986 that I gave my heart to the Lord and after three years I joined PFM to serve the Lord in full time Mission! To God be the Glory.