Sumalo, Mesael
I am Mesael Sumalo, born on October 5, 1970 at Davao City. My parents were converted to apostolic oneness doctrine in 1977. In 1993 we transferred to Bohol province due to an insurgency problem. I was baptized in the precious name of our Lord Jesus Christ in 1991. I finished my course in criminology and passed the examination as a police officer in 1993. At that time I felt God's calling in my life. It was so strong that I decided to study at the Apostolic Institute of Ministry in Davao instead of as a police officer, even if it meant raising my parents in poverty.
I got my license in 1994 and started a pioneering work in Talibon Bohol. I stayed there for almost two years. I married Hipolita Salo who was the pastor of Sierra Bullones Bohol. After prayer and consideration we decided to pastor one church and we chose Sierra Bullones. We have worked here for twelve years. The Lord has blessed us in many ways, including our three month old daughter, Jean Grace.
Our church location is in a mountainous area. We tried to start a work in Tubigon. We gathered the converts to hold a bible study, but in the long run we are not able to continue due to a lack of funds to support the work. My desire is to work in a town proper since most of our churches here in Bohol are located in the barrio.
I am serving as a presbyter in Bohol, Philippines. Our goal is to reach the unreached towns by the year 2020. Bohol is comprised of 48 towns. We still need to reach 27 more towns. It is our goal to establish more churches on our island, reaching the whole province with the apostolic doctrine. To reach this goal, we desire to have our own local training center to produce more pastors and workers for our island. May the Lord continue to bless you. Please include us in your prayers that the Lord will provide, supplying every need making this goal possible.
