Walking - Spirit & Truth Fellowship International

The Spirit & Truth Fellowship CommunityAn Enduring Work ofBy Dan GallagherIcan still hear the voice of PeterAlcantara when he loudly said,“Synergy.” All eyes were rivetedupon him as he spoke with passion,energy, and conviction. The event wasa weeklong meeting that Ryan Maher,Mike Patten, and I were attending inFebruary in the Philippines. ThereThis day we were all faced with anew challenge. The issue no longerwas one of right doctrine, as it wasclear to all that they were solid in thefundamentals of the faith. No, nowwe needed to discern the Lord’s visionfor their country and the part theywere to play in spreading the truth.I believe that truly spiritual goals, when inspiredby God or the Lord Jesus, require spiritual meansto be accomplished.was a synergy present that we were allfeeling as we came together to discussthe vision and strategies of Spirit &Truth Fellowship of Asia (STFA). Petercould not have said it better.My only previous trip to thePhilippines was in May of 2002. At thattime the nine elders (Peter Alcantara,James Bat-ao, James and Nene Butoy,Benjie Casido, Rey Delima, LeonidasDuazo, Willie Matub, and RudyOdarve) were all ordained as ministersand installed as the Board of Elders ofthe STFA. Since John Lynn’s first visitto their country in 1991, these menand women had stood for truth againsta tsunami of pressure and persecutions.Yet here they were, continuing steadfastin their convictions for the doctrinaltruth and the subsequent freedom itbrings.We discussed the past, the state of theministry in the Philippines, and ourdirection. I rhetorically asked, “Whatare we trying to accomplish?” It wasthen that I recalled a phrase I kepthearing in my mind the night before:“an enduring work of truth.”We all stopped to consider it as Iwrote it at the top of the whiteboardat the front of the room. Throughoutthe next few days we kept coming backto that phrase, examining it from manyangles and perspectives. We agreed thatthe truth (doctrine) was not the issue,but rather what would it take for usto produce “an enduring work”? Toooften missionaries have evangelizedother countries only to have thingsfail because they have never made thework indigenous, and instead tried tocontrol things from their home country6 STFonline.org/sower | May/June 2008