So I’ve been joking with this next guy that he will be a future president of the Philippines because I feel like he knows everyone and everyone seems to love him. Jason has really been like a little brother for me out here and it has been so much fun to see all that he is doing out here. He was the reason that I was invited to the college ministry as well as the gang Bible studies. I have tagged along with him to several feedings in the areas of poverty and social gatherings, and he has just been a huge part in helping me network out here. On first meeting, most Filipinos can be a little shy, but I don’t think Jason ever meets a stranger, even though I do have to force him to practice English most of the time. He’ll just carry on a full conversation with me in Visayan if I’d let him.
While Jason is really building his network out here and flourishing in the ministry God has given him, it hasn’t always been that way. As with most boys in this country, the allure of gang life and pursuit of pleasures is a strong temptation and Jason took the bait. Like many of us, he has a past that he is not too proud of, but in his past he was able to get whatever he wanted. However, there came a day when this pursuit of stuff turned up empty and void. Jason told me how there were times when he would have a lot of money that he couldn’t bring home, so he would just drive to the next biggest city and blow it all in one night. Jason could literally do whatever he wanted, but nothing seemed to satisfy.
While he was spiraling deeper into this life and gathering more and more stuff, Jason knew he wasn’t headed towards a future he wanted. He has a great set of parents that have raised him well and so he could never truly forsake the foundations that were laid in his life. Within the last couple of years, it seems that Jason has turned a complete 180 and repented of the life that he was living. Now, one of his biggest ministries is with the city scholars because of how much potential he has in his life. Students with potential here are often led to corruption and selfishness, so Jason has the burden to help train these future leaders in the way they should go. As a big brother figure, Jason longs to lead these students toward something better and more satisfying and leave them with a stronger purpose.
There’s no doubt in my mind that Jason has the potential to be a man of strong influence and character. My biggest prayer is that his ministry will continue to grow and he will lead other influential leaders towards this way as well. The poor in this country are hurting and they need the leaders to hear their cry. There is too much of a gap between these two populations and we need more people like Jason and his parents (who I will write about later this week…) to hear their cry and make a stand. I’m proud of Jason and can’t wait to see what he continues to grow in to…
