{"id":46898,"date":"2024-03-12T13:35:55","date_gmt":"2024-03-12T17:35:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/?p=46898"},"modified":"2025-11-04T16:19:50","modified_gmt":"2025-11-04T21:19:50","slug":"25th-anniversary-philippine-international-christian-fellowship-beacon-of-hope-and-light-for-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/25th-anniversary-philippine-international-christian-fellowship-beacon-of-hope-and-light-for-community\/","title":{"rendered":"25th anniversary Philippine International Christian Fellowship: \u2018Beacon of hope and light for community\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pictured above: At the 25th<\/sup> anniversary of Philippine International Christian Fellowship in Lakeland, the congregation \u201cburns the note,\u201d signifying that the financial loan for the recently acquired and renovated church facility is paid in full. As smoke from the burning note wafts into the sanctuary, Pastor Lito Lucas prays, \u201cWe pray the aroma of the smoke will go to Your altar of praise as we express thankfulness to You.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

LAKELAND\u2013In May 1998 Lito and Lilybeth Lucas moved to Lakeland with the firm belief that they were following God\u2019s direction to plant a church in Central Florida.<\/p>\n

Lucas had recently completed his studies at Dallas Theological Seminary, and as he and his wife prayed and laid hands on a map, they felt drawn to Lakeland. There, they knew no one and were, in a sense, \u201clone rangers,\u201d Lucas recalls. Yet, they focused on the calling from God and persevered. Soon the couple, both Filipino, started a six-person Bible study in their apartment.<\/p>\n

The couple\u2019s lone ranger status didn\u2019t last long as they chose to partner with South Florida Baptist Association<\/a> and the Florida Baptist Convention,<\/a> even as their fledgling Bible study took shape and began to grow in numbers.<\/p>\n

Today that Bible study has become Philippine International Christian Fellowship<\/a>, a thriving congregation that celebrated its 25th<\/sup> anniversary Sunday, March 3.<\/p>\n

The past 25 years\u2013along with the building where the congregation now worships\u2013are \u201ca testimony of God\u2019s faithfulness and grace. I could not imagine the bountiful blessing God bestowed on this church,\u201d Lucas said during the church\u2019s anniversary celebration, adding that God used each person in attendance to help sustain and grow the congregation.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you look back at how God provided \u2026 I could not express words of gratitude to God,\u201d said Lucas, who had no guarantee of a salary when he first planted the congregation.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Members of Philippine International Christian Fellowship in Lakeland gather March 3 to celebrate the congregation\u2019s 25th anniversary. Here, members are standing in the church\u2019s recently acquired, renovated and debt-free church facility.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cI believe when God calls you to do a ministry, just be faithful; He will provide resources,\u201d Lucas said.<\/p>\n

\u2018Part of a family\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

The pastor expressed gratefulness to his local association and the state convention for their partnership in coming alongside the church plant through the years.<\/p>\n

Florida Baptists, he said, are \u201ca family. I enjoy being part of a family who loves the Lord, loves the gospel, and loves the people of Florida.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a blessing to be part of Florida Baptists.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Lucas, the partnership goes both ways. He has served in numerous volunteer roles with the association, from moderator to prayer coordinator to committee chairman. Also, he serves as second vice president for the Florida Baptist Pastors\u2019 Conference and is the Asian-American multicultural consultant<\/a> for the Florida Baptist Convention.<\/p>\n

\u2018Aroma of smoke goes to \u2026 altar of praise\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

One noteworthy aspect of the anniversary celebration was the \u201cburning of the note,\u201d signifying that the financial loan for their recently acquired and renovated church facility had been paid in full.<\/p>\n

Through the years, after the small group moved from Lucas\u2019s apartment, it had a couple of temporary homes\u2013first, the associational office and next, nearby Lakes Church<\/a> (then known as First Baptist Church at the Mall). Grateful for these temporary homes, the church still longed for a place to call its own.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt (the church facility) was a dream before it became a reality,\u201d said Lucas during the church\u2019s anniversary celebration.<\/p>\n

As he prepared to burn the note, Lucas read an excerpt from a letter written by Richard Williamson, associational missions strategist for South Florida Baptist Association: \u201cI\u2019m thankful for what God is doing in the life of your church family. It is my prayer that this building will be home to your church family for many years to come. May God do great and mighty things in your midst as you faithfully follow Him.\u201d<\/p>\n

As smoke from the burning note wafted into the sanctuary, Lucas prayed, \u201cWe pray the aroma of the smoke will go to Your altar of praise as we express thankfulness to You.\u201d<\/p>\n

Having a church facility opens up numerous opportunities for the congregation to plan and conduct outreach events focused on the community, such as hosting holiday events for families and providing food to local residents displaced by a recent hurricane, Lucas believes.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe give God all the glory for providing us a place to worship so that we can be a beacon of light and hope not only to the Filipino community but to the rest of the community. Our prayer is to be more diverse\u2014a more multicultural, multigenerational church,\u201d Lucas said.<\/p>\n

To that end, Lucas said that his congregation wants to open the doors of its facility to other churches, particularly those focused on reaching specific ethnic groups.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur church is open to sponsor them, and we have a space for them. We will encourage them to grow,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

As Philippine International Fellowship Church celebrates its quarter century, Lucas knows that the Lord has a future for the congregation as it continues to be faithful in obedience to Him.<\/p>\n

\u201cPray for us that we will be continually focused on the Lord, share the gospel, love the community and make a difference not only to each other but to everyone,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In May 1998 Lito and Lilybeth Lucas moved to Lakeland with the firm belief that they were following God\u2019s direction to plant a church in Central Florida.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":108,"featured_media":46899,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[174,47,40,11,18,22,23,25],"tags":[665,666,395,477,478],"class_list":["post-46898","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-asian","category-region-central","category-developing","category-expanding","category-multicultural","category-providing","category-sharing","category-stories","tag-asian-american-multicultural","tag-lito-lucas","tag-pablito-lucas","tag-philippine-international-christian-fellowship","tag-south-florida-baptist-association"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46898","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/108"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46898"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46898\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67727,"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46898\/revisions\/67727"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46899"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46898"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46898"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46898"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}