A Good Name

Last Sunday we were at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila preparing to head for the States when my wife, Lhey, became so ill she almost collapsed. I got her a wheel chair and we saw an airport doctor who gave her some pain medicine for her back and recommended we reschedule our flight. Our ride was still waiting so we repacked the van and headed back to Olongapo.

Unknown to us as we started for home was that about an hour behind us a long time friend of ours, Pastor Ramon Reyes, was bringing his sister and family to Olongapo to see their mother. Just about the time we were arriving home they were passing near the town of Floridablanca on a dark, unlighted stretch of highway, when the car ran head on into a concrete barrier and went off the road.

Six people were in the car. Injuries to the passengers were light. Pastor Nelson de Jesus, who was sitting beside Ramon in the middle front seat, received a deep gash on his right middle finger, and Ramon's mother had bruises on her head and shoulder, but Ramon apparently hit the steering wheel with enough force to crush his chest and died instantly.

Olongapo, the Navy town at Subic Bay, was a rough place in the 70's and 80's. Youth gangs defended their turfs in various areas of the city, and there was no gang leader any tougher than Ramon Reyes. He was known as a fighter and feared by many.

In 1975, two students from the Baptist Bible Seminary and Institute in Manila, Jose Ornias and Wilma Dequina, came to Olongapo to start a youth outreach using Bible study materials for all ages, and a sports program called Bible Basketball. Jose, who became known as "Brother Joe," organized teams from the various gang areas and brought them together to play basketball and to share the good news of the Gospel.

Brother Joe took particular interest in a young man named Ramon, but seeing a change in Ramon's life was not easy in coming. For two years he came to the basketball tournaments, before he finally, in 1978, gave his life to Christ.

The Bible Basketball ministry became the roots that led to the founding of the First Olongapo Fundamental Baptist Church. Ramon became instrumental in bringing many of his gang members, as well as other young people to the church. Eventually he attended BBSI, and when he graduated he became the youth pastor of the church, and in 1987 was elected a deacon.

FOFBC has been a recruiting and training ground for young people going into the Gospel ministry. In thirty-four years around forty young men and ladies, many off the streets of Olongapo, have come through the church, gone on to Bible college, and become pastors and missionaries, or have been involved in church work. Many of those were first brought to the church by Ramon Reyes.

I first met Ramon in 1986 when he worked at the church. That year Brother Joe had organized another Bible Basketball tournament. Twelve teams played a round-robin schedule to determine a champion. Each of the teams was organized by one of the young men in the church youth group. Brother Joe asked me to be involved in the Gospel sharing phase of the ministry. The winning team was sponsored by the church for a week at the Word of Life Camp in Laguna, south of Manila. Later Ramon would work at the Word of Life Camp for nearly twenty years. In recent years he also had a jail ministry at Camp Crame, the army post in Manila.

In 1987 we didn't have enough young men to organize teams for a tournament because most of those who had helped the year before had gone off to Bible school. So Ramon asked me to join him and do a "pick-up" Bible Basketball. Every Saturday for several weeks he and I, and three or four others from the church went around to local community centers and basketball courts, and got into games with the kids hanging around. When we were done we would sit down with the boys and share the Gospel with them.

One hot Saturday morning I took a picture of Ramon in his basketball gear, dripping wet with sweat, a Bible in his hand, telling the players how they could be saved. It's a telling picture because when the character of Ramon Reyes is considered, one thing stands out more than any other; an unquenchable desire to tell young people, street kids, and disadvantaged youth about Jesus Christ.

In the Filipino tradition a kind of a Christian wake is being held each night at the church until the burial on Saturday. It was my privilege last night to preach the final message at the first funeral service. I used as a text, Proverbs 22:1. A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favor rather than silver and gold.

I am proud to have been the friend of Ramon Reyes, a man who truly had a good name.