When the Young Stand and Deliver

Religion teacher Leticia Balequia has taught a lot of young people over the years. Often, she said, these young ones need a lot of guidance from their elders, especially in matters concerning their service to the parish. Recently, however, she noticed a huge change in how these young parishioners serve.
“They are more active and enthusiastic now when they do their tasks. They seem to be more sensitive to the needs of the parish. In fact, they usually don’t have to be told what needs to be done. They just go and do it,” Teacher Letty said. She noted that this happened soon after the parish actively participated in the May They Be One Bible (MTBO) campaign spearheaded by the Philippine Bible Society.
“The effect of MTBO is seen in the lives of our parish youth. They have learned so much from their Bible reading and sharing sessions that some of them are now being assigned to teach the Word of God to other young people,” Teacher Letty said.
She remembers seeing one of her former students in church one late afternoon. “I wondered why he was still in the church when he should have been home already. He simply told me that he was meeting some people for Bible study,” Teacher Letty shared, “So imagine my surprise when I saw that it was a one-on-one Bible study session with a couple.
She is very pleased with how the Bible has changed the lives of the young people serving in her parish. “Thanks to the MTBO Bible campaign, our youth have begun to stand for the God’s Word and deliver it to the people in our community. This is good as older catechists such as myself find it harder and harder to find more time to reach out to others. We praise the Lord for these young ones who hunger for God’s Word and share that hunger to the people around them,” she said.