Tales of Changed Lives: MCGI Broadcasts Yield 123 More Members in the West

Maria, who saw enough, had enough. So she prayed to God that night, that God guide her so she could learn His real Gospel.

A former Igreja Mundial of the Power of God church worker, Maria started to realize that what she was doing – taking money from the members of their group – was not God’s will.

Maria’s job enabled her to see a lot of things – like how much money the group amassed from their minimum wage-earning members. She also saw how one of their sick members who cannot afford to buy blood pressure medicine was refused help by their Church, even after she has given the obligatory tithing and had spent on an expensive booklet amounting to 2,500 Brazilian reis, which is enough to pay for six month’s rent. This was her wake-up call.

One night while lying down in her bed and feeling restless, she felt like someone was calling her. Her eyes fell on her satellite receiver, which had a small hole in it. Out of restlessness, she tried to insert a matchstick so she can change the channels. As she pulled the matchstick out, the channel switched to TV Verdade where she heard Bro. Eli Soriano speak for the first time.

She had goose bumps. She jumped with joy. She knew that her prayer was answered. She watched the show for three days and she was convinced. “Bro. Eli Soriano truly, I do not doubt, not even a shadow of doubt, that Bro. Eli is sent by God,” Maria said in her native Portuguese language, fighting back tears as she recounted her story.

Maria is now Hermana Maria after being baptized from South America. Apart from Bolivia and Brazil, regular baptisms were officiated in London, Canada, Norway, and the Philippines. Bro. Daniel Razon welcomed to the Members Church of God International the newly-baptized during the regular Thanksgiving service last June 30, this year.

With the aid of technology, Bro. Eli and Bro. Daniel, Presiding Minister and Vice- Presiding Minister to MCGI, respectively, are on a mission to spread God’s words through all possible media – local and cable TV channels, radio stations, live Bible Expositions, and the Internet.

Bro. Eli Soriano, host of a radio show since 1980, has brought his award-winning religious program Ang Dating Daan or The Old Path to foreign shores. In South America, the program goes by the name El Camino Antiguo and O Caminho Antigo for Spanish and Portuguese speaking people, respectively. Bro. Eli preaches and answers in the English language, and it is readily translated in Spanish and Portuguese.

Another newly-baptized brother, this time from Bolivia, realized the big difference of Bro. Eli from other pastors. “I learned about the Church [on] Uneteles Channel 9,” said Bro. Rosimbau in Spanish. “The difference is far from other pastors, other preachers. Bro. Eli teaches correctly, based on the Bible without interpreting any verse.”

Bro. Eli, known for answering spiritual inquiries with verses straight from the Bible, has brought this tradition to the Americas and the rest of the world. His being a Filipino is not the only thing that sets him apart from other preachers – but also, his manner of answering questions.

“He is a frank person, and he answers whatever question from anyone. He espouses very sound doctrines, which I believe Lord Jesus Christ handed to him,” revealed Bro. Leonardo, one of the nine new members in Bolivia aside from Bro Rosimbau.

Bro. Marcos, a young man from Brazil, has been an avid viewer since 2009. What captured his attention was seeing “We preach the Gospel for free” plastered on the TV screen. “Wow! They preach the Gospel for free, this is different,” he remembered saying to himself.

Bro. Marcos kept watching to test if the claim was true. Soon, he was convinced, and finally realized that “It looks like the Bible was speaking for itself. That was incredible!.” A product of MCGI’s television broadcasts and its 24/7 online streaming, Bro. Marcos is also one of the newly-baptized brethren from last week’s regular baptism.

The Mass Indoctrination sessions where visitors learn God’s primary doctrines are held once a month, in all MCGI chapters all over the world. The next session will be held on July 16, 2012.

(Written by: Pol Arellano)