A legacy of

God's Faithfulness

50 years of Reaching Filipino Youth with the Gospel of Jesus Christ

  • June 2-4, 2023
  • Word of Life Camp, Brgy. Perez, Calauan, Laguna
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CELEBRATE WITH US

Join us as we celebrate God's faithfulness for the past 50 years!

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FOREIGN GUESTS
NATIONAL GUESTS

Unable to come? Join us via live stream here.

DOWNLOAD THE PROGRAM HERE

SPEAKERS

Dr. Don Lough

Executive Director
Word of Life Fellowship

Dr. Gerry Tolentino

Former Executive Dean
Word of Life Bible Institute Philippines

Rev. Mike Foster

Former Executive Director
Word of Life Philippines

Dr. John Barnett

Founder and President
Discover the Book Ministries

TESTIMONY OF GOD'S FAITHFULNESS

1973

Rev. Ernie Hautala and his family arrived in the Philippines and began an evangelistic Bible Basketball program in Lipa, Batangas with the motto: No Bible, No Basketball. Hundreds of young men heard the Gospel through this Basketball ministry.

As the work began, the first WOL staff members were added: Yoly Lagrimas and Lalit Edillor.

1974-77

From April 1974 to 1977, Ernie began WOL camps on rented facilities in the Batangas and Laguna provinces.

1977
After looking for over 100 possible sites, Word of Life Philippines was given a 19-acre coconut plantation in Rizal, Laguna by Mr. Conducto for 25 years at no cost. This became the first youth camp property. Ernie liked to say 0+0 = miracle. We had no money but it cost no money, a miracle. Construction began in December with the removal of 100 coconut trees. 14 of the 45 laborers were saved through weekly Bible studies at the camp.

1978

The first American WOL staff members arrived. (John Fogle – Left, Clark & Steph Schuler – Right)

1979

Word of Life began evangelistic and discipleship Bible studies at two large universities. (University of the East and Polytechnic University of the Philippines).

The Lord also opened the door for evangelistic and discipleship Bible studies in over 25 offices (DBP, Meralco, PLDT, Landbank, Immigration, Census, CEC, etc.)

1981

Word of Life Bible Institute began at the Rizal Camp under the leadership of Rev. Joe Mauk in July 1981 with their 13 students.

1983

Local Church Ministries/Bible Clubs under Rev. Mike Foster started to disciple young people and develop godly habits such as quiet time, Scripture memory, doctrinal study, and evangelism.

1986

Rev. Joe Mauk became the director of Word of Life Philippines.

1991
Word of Life Philippines’ ministries expanded to the island of Mindanao through the acquisition of Seaside Bible Camp under the leadership of Rev. Keith Ebrahim.

1993

Rev. Keith Ebrahim became the director of Word of Life Philippines.

1997

Rev. Mike Foster became the director of Word of Life Philippines.

1998

Word of Life Philippines celebrated its 25th anniversary.

1999
School of Ministerial Studies (SMS), an additional three-year program, was added to Word of Life Bible Institute.

2002
As the lease on the first camp property expired, the new 40-acre Calauan, Laguna Camp property was dedicated with the Word of Life co-founder Harry Bollback.

2006
Campus Ministry at the University of the Philippines Los Baños started.

2009
The new Bible Institute building was dedicated with former Word of Life Fellowship Executive Director, George Theis.

2010-13

Unknown

2014
Local Church Ministries launched their Intense Discipleship is for Me program.

2015
Rev. Michael VanProoyen became the director of Word of Life Philippines.

2019
Additional camp property across the river, now known as Riverside, was purchased after more than 20 years of praying.

Seaside Bible Camp celebrated its 50th year in the ministry.

2020
Word of Life Philippines shifts to online ministries during the COVID-19 pandemic.

2022

Rev. Jonel Arcedera became the new director of Word of Life Philippines.

God provided property for the Bible Institute expansion.

2023

Word of Life Philippines will celebrate its 50th anniversary.

In light of
God's faithfulness in the past,
we look forward with anticipation
to what still lies ahead.

VISION 2030

Word of Life Philippines Logos

1973 - 1997

1998 - 2016

2017 - Present

MINISTRIES

Bible Institute

One-year and three-year program that trains men and women in the knowledge of the Word of God so they can live its truth in their lives.

Camps & Retreats

Fun and relaxing camp programs designed to meet the spiritual needs of different age groups, families, churches, and organizations.

Campus Ministry

Engaging college students of the University of the Philippines Los Baños with the Gospel and disciple those who come to know Christ.

Local Church Ministries

Provides resources, training, curriculum, and youth events to equip local churches for evangelism and discipleship.

MINISTRY FRAMEWORK

MINISTRY FRAMEWORK

CONTACT US

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Bible Institute Office
Enrollment Office
Laguna Camp
Seaside Camp
Campus Ministry
Local Church Ministries

(c) Word of Life Philippines 2021 All Rights Reserved

STAY TUNED

We are currently working on it.

Dr. Don Lough

President & CEO
Word of Life Fellowship

Don Lough, Jr. serves as the President and CEO of Word of Life Fellowship, Inc. He graduated from the Word of Life Bible Institute (1984), Cedarville University (1987) and earned a Master of Theology (Th.M.) degree from Dallas Theological Seminary (1992). He has been honored with two Doctor of Divinity degrees (D.D.) and is presently completing a Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) degree in strategic leadership from Capital Seminary.

Don’s personal ministry journey began with his family’s involvement in their local church. As a young man, he played the piano for church and camp meetings, he enjoyed summers in Word of Life camp kitchens, and eventually directed the camp counselors on Word of Life Island. Unique ministry and leadership opportunities surfaced during Don’s years in seminary, including assisting Drs. Howard Hendricks and Mark Bailey, serving as Program Administrator for the Hendricks Center for Christian Leadership, and taking on the Manager of Prospect Research role for DTS. After returning to Word of Life in 1992, Don became the Vice President of the International Division. In 2011, he was named Executive Director of the worldwide organization. He is a contributing author for multiple books and magazines and is privileged to be a member of the Board of Trustees at Cedarville University.

Don and his amazing wife, Darla, have been married for over 30 years and rejoice in being the parents of four adult children who are preparing for and engaged in ministry.

Don never dreamed he would be leading Word of Life Fellowship. However, he remembers well Dr. Hendrick’s wise advice: “Lie low, Exalt Christ”. These words have become Don’s motto for life and ministry. He often says, “My identity is in Christ, not in what I do”.

from https://www.wol.org/speakers/

Dr. John Barnett

Founder & President
Discover the Book Ministries

Dr. John Barnett has been teaching the Word of God for 30+ years.

Born and raised in Michigan, John has studied at Michigan State University, Bob Jones University (B.S., B.A., M.A., M. Div.), The Master’s Seminary (faculty and Th. M. work), Dallas Theological Seminary (Dr. of Biblical Ministry) and with Francis Schaeffer at L’Abri Fellowship.

As a home educating family, John and Bonnie teach children and teens with enthusiasm and love. In the past 30 years of uninterrupted ministry, John has served congregations in Michigan, Georgia, Rhode Island, California, Oklahoma and Michigan. In 2017 the precious saints at Calvary Bible Church in Kalamazoo, Michigan commissioned and set out John and Bonnie as full-time global partner missionaries. John & Bonnie are now ministering the Gospel primarily in Asia, Europe, Africa & the Middle East.

John has served on the Faculty of the Master’s College & Seminary. He was an Associate Pastor to Dr. John MacArthur at Grace Community Church for five years overseeing the Shepherding Ministries. During graduate school, John served as the Assistant Dean of Men at Bob Jones University for five years.

Called to the ministry as a young man—his passion remains prayer and the ministry of God’s Word. As a global Christian, and having ministered the Word in 40 nations around the world, John’s ministry is deeply touched by outreach and evangelism. Since 1978, in conjunction with Land of the Book Tours. John has led dozens of study tours, retreats, travels, and pilgrimages with over 1,500 participants, and taught on site in 21 countries and on five continents. His Tours filmed onsite are available to watch online.

As a Seminary Professor of Theology, Church History and the English Bible, John’s messages reflect the background of the Scripture from the ancient biblical world, the history of the church and the daily life in far corners of the planet. In 1998 a new ministry called Discover the Book Ministry was launched to provide electronic copies of Pastor John’s audio, video, and text studies free of charge to pastors, missionaries, and other believers. Since then, this ministry has grown to serve saints in all 50 states and over 145 lands around the world, as well as through daily radio on a growing number of radio stations in the USA, Europe and the Caribbean.

Excerpt from https://dtbm.org/about-us/