Thank You!

I am so blessed to have friends who extend their help to my family. They are very supportive and I am so thankful to have them by our side. Through many years, they’ve shown their support, both prayerfully and financially. Even though they don’t want their generosity to be recognized, I would like to honor God through their great example of service to Him.

Just recently, we moved to a new place which brought much relief for my daughter Micah. She had bad asthma because the place we lived in was crowded and didn’t have good ventilation. Every night she experienced difficulty breathing. We brought her to a doctor and the doctor told us that Micah’s asthma was due to living in such a crowded place. That caused us to pray for a donor who would support us to get a new place for my family. And God provided friends to help us move to a new place.




Our bedroom

Now that we have already moved to our new place, we are seeing good progress to Micah’s asthma. This new place has good ventilation and is not crowded anymore. It has a enough space for us. This place brings good relief for Micah. We hope she will continue to experience relief and show good progress. This new place is a sweet deal.



Our sala

As soon as we moved our things and starting to organize and settle, we remembered God’s faithfulness in our lives through friends who send their support to our family. They are all our encouragement that God will never fail our faith in Him. God truly honors our faith in Him. No matter how hard it is for us to imagine or for our minds to grasp the vastness of God’s provision, He will definitely will make a way to send His provisions. As long as we keep on putting our faith in Him and don’t doubt His plan in our lives, He will never fail to send help and this help will get to us.




our cooking area and toilet

Like what He did to Elijah. God sent food to Elijah through ravens. God also provided food for Elijah through a widow. And in the new testament, Jesus fed five thousand men though two fish and loaves from a young boy. Good thing that the same God who provided for His people in the scriptures is the same God we are serving today. I am happy to see that miracles are still happening in these times.

Even though, friends don’t want their generosity to be recognized, I want to thank God for their lives. I want to give honor to God who sends them to our lives. I know I couldn’t repay their generosity, but at least I could thank them. I can make know to them that I appreciate every help they extend to my family. Truly, having friends who love God is priceless. Their friendship is such a great gift from God.

Youth Mobilization, Windows YP 2011, A missions Conference entitled, "WOW!"

Please let me know if you want to register to this youth missions conference. Please send email to me (mackie_youthmob@hotmail.com) and I will replyy to you the soonest. Thanks!

My Personal Testimony

My real name is Merman Custodio but my friends and relatives call me Mackie. I am 29 years old, happily married to Lerma and just very recently, one lovely daughter was born to us, Yanara Micah. Currently, I work for International Teams Philippines as a missionary under the Youth Mobilization (YM) team. I am one of the trainers of the Training Department. Aside from YM, I am also helping a church in Makati, Jesus Kings of Kings Community Church, focusing on the discipleship program for the members.

It was 16 six year ago, March 1995 when I came to know the Lord Jesus as my Lord and savior. I came from a poor but a big family. I had 6 brothers and 3 sisters. My father was a freelance automotive painter. Not really having a facility to do his job, He would paint cars on our street, so when it rains, he can’t do his job. In spite of not having many customers, most of the time when he got some, instead of buying food for his family, he would spend the day's earnings to liquor and other vices. Also, since that painting cars was the only trade he knew, he forced us, his sons to work for him without really compensating any of us for the work we did. That’s why I grew up with resentment and anger to the point that I became rebellious to my father.

That rebelliousness became evident when I entered high school. Having found new friends, who influenced me to skip school; we spend most of our time in shopping malls. It was almost every day that I cut class just to go with my classmates. After a few months, my teacher didn’t want to accept me anymore because of the many days that I didn’t attend class. She asked me to bring my parents so she could talk to them. I didn’t know what to do then because my parents didn’t know that I was skipping school. I felt so helpless. I was in such a hopeless situation that I didn’t know where to go. It seems that no one can help me with my problem.

Until one day, the youth pastor of the church where my sisters attend Bible study invited me to attend their youth fellowship. Wanting to have more friends, I attended the youth fellowship. That was my first time to attend a Christian church. As the program continued, the youth leader gave a message that seems to be speaking about my situation. It was like the youth leader was only talking to me. He was talking not just about my problem and hopeless situation but also who can help me. I felt like a sheep, wandering in the wilderness and then the shepherd (God) suddenly came searching for me, calling my very name to come to Him.

The message became so personal to me that night. It was so clear that Jesus is inviting me to come and know Him as my personal Lord and Savior. Being hopeless and in need of a Lord and Savior, I gave my hope, faith and life to God. Right after that prayer, I felt so relieved and I had so much joy that I never had before.

After the service I met friends who helped me grow in the Lord. They even helped me to explain my situation to my parents and to my teachers. They helped me to resolve my problem in school and in my family. As I continued to grow in the Lord, I have learned how to forgive and how to be free from angry and guilt.

Then my deep passion in serving the Lord also grew. I saw myself serving in various ministries of our church. I became part of the pastoral ministry, youth ministry and administration of the church.

I even had the chance to go to England for a mission trip. Together with another co-worker of our local church, we ministered in Luton, England for four months. God used that mission trip to open my eyes to missions. I realized that people in different cultures and different walks of life need God in their lives. God touched my heart and I responded to His call for missions. I resolved in my heart that from day on that I will be involved in mission.

It wasn’t easy though as I received a lot of criticism and discouragement after I decided to pursue God’s call. There were many times that people close to me who doesn’t know the Lord, told me that I won’t survive without a secular job. For them, being missionary means I won’t have any means to support my needs. Even my mother discouraged me to the point that she nagged me to get a job instead of serving in missions. But I held on to God’s promises that God will provide for my needs. He will never let His people run out of resources because He will be the one to provide for all their needs.

Amidst criticisms and discouragements but armed with God promises, I pressed on. Now after more than 5 years of serving God as a missionary, God proved Himself once again as faithful and true. Since 2005 when I joined International Teams Philippines, until now, God has never been late in providing for my needs and for the needs of my wife and daughter. Not only that He is faithful to my personal life but He has also shown faithfulness in the ministry. He is truly blessing the work of our hands. Through the YM team, many youth in different churches are responding to missions. Countless youth and youth leaders are being trained and exposed to various ministries, here in the Philippines and in other countries. As a result, they are becoming a big blessing to their church as well as to their communities.

As I look back, I am glad that God called me to missions and then gave me the grace to pursue His call. The more we train youth leaders the more I can see God’s faithfulness. It became my driving force that’s why we never get tired of training and discipling youth and youth leaders. As a result of that drive, we started a mini-bible school in our church. I called it Be E, a name I derived from its purpose - Be Enlightened, Be Empowered and Be Equipped. I am praying that it will become a formal bible school someday.

All glory belongs to our God!

(edited by: Joshua B.)

More of Yanara Micah

Here are more pictures of her. Her solo pictures

Yanara Micah!

I want to share my joy. I am a new dad. I am thanking for a great blessing of a baby girl. We named her Yanara Micah. She came on December 5th. She is so precious and so cute. We love spending time with her.

Here are our pictures with her. We want to share our joy with you! Thanks for praying with us! I appreciate all of it!

updates!!!

As the year 2010 is coming to it’s end, we are counting our blessing throughout the year. And we are counting your friendship, support and prayers as one of the great blessings we received. Because of your partnership in our ministry helps us in reaching and touching the lives of many.

Be:E turned one year this year. I still couldn’t believe how God make this discipleship program develop workers and build a strong faith within our church members. I am so thankful that God gave me the privilege to start it. I am so overwhelmed and thankful for your partnership with this ministry.






Teacher’s Clinic is still keep pushing through. Students are learning a lot. They are excited to apply what they have learned. One of the students is Raymond, an intern of the church. He is thankful that God is using this training for him to develop his ability in teaching/preaching. He is speaking now in their youth ministry and other bible study of the church.

The Daycare will have another program which will help the out of school children to have an opportunity to study in a proper school. This scholarship program will start next year and two from our students in daycare will have the benefits. We are excited to see them to go to school.

The church in general is growing and getting better. Not only the number are growing but also their faith is growing as well. One sign that they are growing in their faith is they are starting to get involve in the ministry and in missions.

These are evidences that we are making a great impact in the lives of many people. And that your investment in praying and supporting us financially, is a great partnership in advancing the Kingdom of God which resulting in winning souls.

Lerma gave birth to our daughter and we named her Yanara Micah. She was born last December 5th. She is so cute because has great smile and she is also a healthy baby. We are thanking God for a wonderful gift. And thanks for praying with us. I appreciate all your love and support.

Please pray for our fund raising for our house. We are still in need of $400-450 a month so that we will be able to rent a decent place for our family most especially Yanara Micah is now here with us. Our family is growing by having new addition and we need to move to a place which have space for us. We are planning and praying to move in the first quarter of the coming year.

Please pray for wisdom as I lead the church since I am still the Chairman of the Board. Decision is hard and I need more pray that I can get. New year is coming so soon and it comes with new plan and projects for our church. Please pray that God gives me discernment on which of them is beneficial for our church.

Please pray for the successful visit of a team of Extreme Response. They will be coming on January aiming to bless our church with training on bible seminars to our workers and members. Please pray that we could learn so much from them and please pray that we (church) will have opportunity bless them as well.

Again, your support is a blessing to us, to church and to many people. Let us keep this partnership and let us keep moving forward. May the Lord bless you and keep you!

Story from IT Tender (taken from YM Newsletter)

Anjo is one of the kids from a family we are helping in the community of Sucat. He lives together with his parents and three siblings. They usually beg in the street to get enough money for their food. Knowing that they only live in the street, they don’t have bills to pay, but food is the main reason why they beg for money from people walking in the street. Since, Anjo’s parents don’t have decent work, they feel stuck in a poor community within a busy city. They are relying solely on what people give them.



Then one day, Anjo's mother was invited to attend our IT Tender Women's Camp. It was a big turning point in her life, because God used this camp to open her eyes and to move her heart. At the camp, she expressed her desire to send her son, Anjo, to school. Even Anjo really desires to go to school. The sad part is that she knows what her desires entail and that she can't fulfill them. And the more she knows it, the bigger and bigger problem grows in her eyes because of the reality of where she is. Though she knows how huge the challenge is for her to send Anjo to school, she is relying on what she learned from IT Tender Women's Camp. She knows God answers prayers.



After she expressed and presented her desire, one of her counselors donated a certain amount of money, enough for Anjo’s school supplies and other requirements needed in his school. When she returned from camp, she shared the news with Anjo. It was a touching scene to see Anjo’s big smile after he heard the great news from his mother. He is very excited and thankful. Even his mother is so thankful to know that God heard her prayers. Anjo is now enrolled in a school and enjoying life as a student. It is amazing to see him transformed from being a street kid, dirty and bare-footed, and now a good-looking boy with his school uniform and with so many hopes inside his smile.



This is a big encouragement to us as we continue to bless the community, and they are people with lives changed. Anjo and his family is one huge testimony of God’s love, and that is the message we bring, we preach and we are sharing to people. Anjo’s story is enough for us to continue doing what we are doing. We are thankful to God for the changes he makes in people's lives. To Him be all the glory.