When Alexandra Bloss first decided to go on a short-term mission trip to the Philippines, she had no idea how deeply the experience would change her. “I’m a do-er, not a be-er,” she admitted. The idea of simply living among people and sharing their daily lives was foreign to her. Like many of us, she expected that a short-term mission trip would include helping with a kid’s program, working in a health clinic, or building a church. But, as she immersed herself in mission this time, she started to understand the power of presence—letting God show her how to love others. And that was more impactful than if she had accomplished a building project or led a program.

“It often feels like we’re walking through the slums with Jesus.”
—Paul Rollet, IM Global Servant

During her time serving alongside Global Servant Paul Rollet and Companion With The Poor (CWTP), Alex spent four days living in a slum community where CWTP was helping local leaders plant a church. She recalls her first day walking through the rubble-filled streets lined with trash, receiving stares because of her height and pale skin, and trying to adjust to the oppressive heat: “I remember that night thinking, I need to call them [Paul and his wife, Queenie] to come pick me up because I don’t know that I can do this.” Yet, in that discomfort, she found peace and transformation. “After clearing dinner, we did Bible study, worship, and prayed. That was when I knew I was staying—I knew that maybe I can’t do this, but God certainly can.”

Being the Hands and Feet of Jesus: The Mission of Companion With The Poor
Companion With The Poor is dedicated to planting sustainable churches in some of the most impoverished areas of the Philippines. Paul Rollet, an IM global servant with the organization, shared that they will work with a local church for two years and then turn the church plant over to be sustained by the local leaders. These churches bring spiritual hope and serve as centers for holistic transformation—offering bible studies, children’s programs, feeding and education initiatives, and livelihood training.

In the last 25 years, CWTP has planted 80 churches in the slums, with 95% still going today. Paul explains that sustainability comes because most pastors and leaders who start new churches first experienced God in the slums. They were children, or had children, who attended a feeding program, then got involved with a youth program. They began to lead the youth program or be involved with worship. Then, as Paul shares with a smile, “Maybe they’re invited to preach once or twice and there’s a call from this crazy white guy (or other Filipino missionary) who says, ‘Do you want to join our missionary in-training program?’ and now they’re going around planting churches in other slum communities just like the ones that they came from.”

There are countless stories of how God is at work in the slums of the Philippines and around the world. And the amazing thing is that we are invited to experience this too!

A Deeper Understanding of God’s Heart
One church that Alex visited later in her trip was located on an actual landfill. She vividly described people sorting through trash to find items they could sell, and she recounted seeing a baby being bathed in a bucket while flies swarmed around.

CWTP follows a unique, relationship-driven approach: “The strength of CWTP is that we are a people-based ministry. We don’t lead with programs. We don’t lead with money or resources. We lead with relationships. It starts with walking in the community, finding people of peace, talking with local leaders, and getting to know families.”

As these churches take root and flourish, they create ripple effects of change, touching countless lives with the love of Christ. Lives are changed for those living in the community and for people like Alex, who gained God’s new perspective.

“I could not stop crying. I remember when I finally got in the shower and was able to pray. I said, God, just show me how to love these people. And it’s one of the few times in my life that I can actually recall hearing the voice of God. He said, ‘Let me show you how I love them.’ It was as if peace descended on me, and I stopped crying. That’s what happened for the rest of the trip—God really just showed me how He was loving people.”

Alex’s time in Manila reshaped her perspective on mission work, and Paul shared that over the 13 years he’s served with CWTP, God has reshaped his perspective, too. “It often feels like we’re walking through the slums with Jesus. When we see someone who’s sick, we stop and we pray. There are just so many who are hungry for the Word of God. We don’t have anything special. We don’t have anything in our pockets to give, and yet we just love on those people that we see along the way. It is being with the people, loving them and seeing how God works through us when we’re just there, being present that makes a difference.”

We know that this is not unique to the Philippines. God is at work all over the world through IM global servants, ministry partners and projects. God invites us to join that mission in any way we can—short-term mission trips, becoming a global servant, or through giving. In doing so, not only are we blessing those being served, but we receive a blessing as well.

What’s waiting for us when we accept the invitation to be part of God’s mission is a blessing much greater than any financial salary, house, or car. When we take that step into God’s mission, we experience the Kingdom in a very real way.

“I want to be engaged in what God’s doing in the world. I want to see what he’s doing for people and with people and through people.”

For Alex, going on a short-term mission gave her an understanding of what it means to be a Christian living on mission in her daily life. She understands God’s heart for people and wants to live that out right where she is.

Your Role in Mission
You are invited to be part of the extraordinary ways God is working in the Philippines and other parts of the world when you give to International Ministries. Your support can be stretched to meet tangible and spiritual needs, allowing God’s love to permeate the lives of others.

For example, $60 a week will feed 100 kids in the Philippines. A $1,000 education scholarship helps break through poverty by sending a student to college for a year. And while a church building in the US can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, a church can be built in the slums for $6,000.

Will you be part of this incredible work? Your gift contributes to transforming lives and communities around the world with the love and presence of God. By reading Alex’s story and learning about Companion With The Poor, you’re already receiving the blessing that comes with walking with others in partnership. Your past gifts make Alex’s experience and Paul’s ministry possible. Now, let’s look ahead in faith as God uses your gift today to show others the richness of Christ’s love.

Stories such as Paul’s and Alex’s highlight the profound impact of International Ministries.
Each church planted in the Philippines and around the world represents a beacon of light in the darkest places. But this cannot continue without faith-filled donors who believe in the work God is doing.

Your financial support can equip local pastors and establish churches that will transform lives for generations. Thank you for your prayers, your commitment to seeing God’s mission fulfilled, and your generous giving. You help ensure that more people hear the gospel, find hope, and experience the power of God’s presence in their lives.

Thank you for partnering with us as we walk alongside others in God’s mission!