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Allister is a 20-something fresh graduate pursuing a career as a college instructor at a local private school here in San Fernando City. Growing up, he was forced to rely on his coping mechanisms when both his parents left him under the care of his doting grandma. He was just an infant then. A product of a broken family, Allister learned to be detached and seemingly unaffected by outside circumstances. He intermittently felt the emptiness brought about by his absentee parents during school affairs and every time he sees a happy family. He would cave in and give in to bouts of crying in the privacy of his bedroom and would go back to wearing his mask when he was done. He constantly craved for his parents’ presence whenever he needed someone to open up to.
Life went on as usual for Allister until one day, he got invited to attend one of the services at SFCC. And there, he readily received what he had been looking for all along—Jesus. Allister became a consistent attender and volunteered in various ministries—among them the Guest Relations Team, and as English translator for attending internationals. Wanting to have a deeper relationship with Jesus, he attended the 5-week Pre-encounter sessions at SFCC. It was the right preparation for him to have an encounter with God. His needy, clingy heart found the love he was looking for. It was, indeed, a breakthrough. “Hearing the Word of God is life-changing,” he professes. “I have been through a lot and I realized that I did not need to go through them alone. God has been reaching out to me all along.”
Totally surrendered to His Redeemer, he declares, “My life is no longer my story, but His story.”