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God of Miracles!
Barefoot and naked, I walked across the garbage dump, past broken glass, smoke, and stinking garbage. This was our home. Garbage trucks came by every hour and we searched for something edible or recycled that we could sell.
When I became a teenager ...
… I wanted to get away from it all. I got pregnant at 16 and moved to the countryside to start a better life. But alcohol, aggression, and fighting overshadowed the new beginning. When I was pregnant for the fifth time, I decided to take the children back to the city - back to my family. When we arrived, there was no welcome, no big hellow. I had no hope, started drinking, gambling for money and hardly took care of the children. When they asked for food, I had no answer ...
Touched by God's love
During this time, a missionary kept coming to visit us. She prayed for us and often brought us food. My heart became softer and softer. I was touched by God's love and after two years I gave my life to Jesus. That was the beginning of something new in my life: I finished high school, got a part-time job with the prospect of a full-time job in the future. I took my first steps with Jesus and eventually started my own bible study group.
Jesus Mountain Church
Covid hit and nothing worked anymore – from one moment to the next. I prayed many times, "Lord, why don’t you allow for a church to be founded on this garbage dump?” God answered my prayer and the Jesus Mountain Church was born.
God has done Miracles!
So many people on Smokey Mountain gave their lives to Jesus and wanted more of God. We met to read the bible together, learn how to pray, receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and minister to one another. And we also started doing outreaches together to reach others with God's love. I have been working with HELP in Tondo for almost a year now. God has done so many miracles: All my children are going to school. 80% of my family have received Jesus Christ and attend our worship services.
Marisa Dao