Welcome to the Table!

“Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame… compel them to come in, so that my house will be full.”

Luke 14:21-23

Martina is living proof that Jesus is transforming lives and saving souls in the darkest corners of the world! 82-years-old and living in spiritual darkness in the Philippines, Martina had completely given up hope after losing her granddaughter to COVID-19 and then having a stroke herself. Like many Filipinos with disabilities, Martina felt the sting of discrimination, rejection and poverty. She seemed destined to live out her remaining years in despair.

Martina found herself blaming God for her situation. Grieving her granddaughter’s passing and suffering under the strain of her own paralysis, Martina felt like nothing but a burden to her family and friends. She became utterly despondent, spiraling further and further away from hope and from God.

Filipinos living with disabilities are often among the poorest segments of Philippine society, with little access to basic healthcare and services they desperately need.

But what Martina did not know is that God was preparing the way for her life to be physically and eternally transformed.

When our in-country partners tenderly placed Martina in her much-needed wheelchair, she saw the love of Christ in action. And when we gave her a Bible and shared the Gospel with her, Martina accepted Jesus as her Savior! Not only does she now have a seat of dignity in her new wheelchair; Martina has a seat reserved for her at God’s table! What Martina thought was only meant to harm her, God intended for her good all along!

“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”

Genesis 50:20

Our Joni and Friends Missouri team, coupled with our in-country partners in the Philippines, is dedicated to going out into the streets and alleys of villages like Martina’s in order to bring people suffering under the strain of disability into the house of God. We are sharing the Gospel with them and showing them that God has good, good plans for their lives.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Jeremiah 29:11

Please pray for our Joni and Friends Missouri team as they continue serving the Philippines through our Wheels for the World program. May more lives be changed and more souls be saved!