Palawan is a very beautiful island; one of seven thousand islands that make up the Philippine Archipelago. Over three decades ago in 1965, God spoke
to Paul Stutzman to leave the comfortable United States and go to a place where the people had never heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ. When he was 55 and should have been thinking of retirement, Paul took his second son, Dan, to the Philippines to pioneer a work on the remote island of Palawan. Way down the island, past roads and civilization, he and Dan purchased and began clearing land to begin a Bible School for training men and women for the ministry. Living in a tent not far from the beach, they built a tree house where Rev. Stutzman could bring his wife. Without complaint, Rose Stutzman joined her husband and son in this far away land. During those early days they endured much hardship while Paul and his son built a small cement block house. Soon construction began for the Bible School and little by little the word spread that men and women were welcome to com and study God’s Word there at Ilog-Ilog (Little River)
The first Bible School class began in the fall of 1970. The faculty was made up of several Filipinos, Paul and Rose Stutzman , and their son John. In addition to the faculty, visiting ministers from the States came for short-term teaching and others for longer periods of time. Another son, Jim, who first went to Palawan in 1969, began in the business aspect of the mission making sure there were enough supplies for the needs of the Bible School. He remained part of the work on Palawan, serving his mother and father faithfully. Over the years Jim became an able minister of the Word of God. Jim and his family in recent years helped to oversee the Christian Fellowship. From 1971 until the present, the Bible School has graduated and sent out men and women each year who have gone into the work of the Lord.
In 1985, the Bible School was moved to the capital, Puerto Princesa, where it has been until now. Today there are about seventy five churches on the island pastored by graduates of the Bible School. The Island is over two hundred miles long and approximately twenty miles wide. It is the most westerly island of the Philippines jutting down like a finger toward Brunei, Indonesia (formerly Borneo). Paul and Rose Stutzman labored on this island for many years and both gave their lives on Palawan. Rose passed away in 1979, and Paul in 1995. They are both buried just outside the city of Puerto Princesa.
At the present time, Paul’s son, John, is overseeing the Bible School and the churches of Palawan Christian Fellowship. For years the Bible School itself has been sponsored by churches or individuals in the States allowing the ministerial students to be trained without cost. However, in recent years, as John and his family have traveled all over the island, they have been deeply moved by the needs of the pastors and their families who are sacrificing so greatly to take the gospel to those who have never heard. Many of these native “missionaries” or evangelists (some have pioneered several other churches) are laboring in remote parts of the island, far from home and friends. Some are in the mountains villages where there are no roads, no phones, and no medical supplies. There they live on the small offerings of their members.
John and Joy feel the Lord has directed them to spend about six months each year in the Philippines visiting all the churches to strengthen and encourage the pastors. They are sure in their hearts that it is “harvest time” for the souls of Palawan. Please pray for Palawan, where from one end of the island to the other, many fruitful lives are laboring in fruitful fields for their Master.
