On the Spot: Rev. Edgar Valdoria

A TESTIMONY OF REPENTANCE AND RESTORATION
By: Mielyne B. Rayos


Sin allures. And not only the weak are likely to succumb.

In a world filled with temptations of every kind, people are likely to fall victim to sin. Even people of God are not exempted from tests of faith. Rev. Edgar Valdoria’s story is an example of this sad truth.

It takes both courage and an overflowing and thankful heart for any Christian, much less a man of God, to testify to having succumbed to sin, then received forgiveness and restoration after genuine repentance. Pastor Edgar is one such man.

This is his story.Ptr. Edgar Valdoria

Before he came to know Christ as Lord and Savior, Pastor Edgar considered himself the black sheep of the family. He vividly recounts: he was a drunkard, a womanizer, and a disrespectful to parents. Ironically, for a man bent on vices and unconcern, there was one thing he was actually passionate about: basketball.

Although sports injuries are common among basketball players, a broken hand became a life-changing experience for Pastor Edgar. Instead of bringing him down, enigmatically, this tragedy served as the turning point of his life. “I broke my hand and it got infected.The doctors said I needed an operation,” he recounts.

“Before the scheduled operation, my older sister, who was then the only born again Christian in the family, brought me to Araullo High School to attend the JIL worship service. During the pastoral prayer, Bro. Eddie told us, the congregation, to place our hands on that part of our bodies that was ailing – so I did. The next day, miraculously, the pain was gone!We went to our doctor and he confirmed the miracle: no more infection… no need for any operation! Praise the Lord! That’s when I started believing in the Lord Jesus,” Pastor Edgar narrates.

From then on, he committed his life to serving the Lord.

Pastor Edgar started in the ministry in 1981, the pioneering years of the JIL Church. Among his first ministerial assignments were outreach ministries such as: the school outreach ministry (at the Adamson University where he served as president), the community outreach ministry, the company outreach ministry, the jail outreach ministry and the provincial outreach ministry. On top of these, some years after, he helped pioneer JIL churches all over the country – in Luzon: Luisiana and San Pablo City (Laguna), Lucban (Quezon) and Batangas City (Batangas); in Visayas: Dumaguete City (Negros Oriental); and in Mindanao: Pagadian City (Zamboanga del Sur). He also pastored JIL churches in Pasig and Tarlac.

Despite all his ministry involvements, as on fire as Pastor Edgar was, he found himself surrendering to sin. He recalls, “Ako po ay napabarkada sa grupo ng mga pastor na may bitterness at hunger for position. Wala kaming ginawa kundi mag-complain at mag-murmur. (I found myself in the company of pastors who were filled with bitterness and hunger for position. We did nothing but murmur and complain).”

The spirit of murmur and complaint that they nurtured became the gateway for sin to enter their lives. Although pastors, they fell to drinking, even womanizing and stealing from the church to sustain their secret ‘alternative’ lifestyle. For Pastor Edgar who was a drunkard in his youth, it was worse than déjà vu. He gave in completely. “I drank the most,” he confesses.

But our God is a holy and just God; and He can never be mocked. The lifestyle they lived was an abomination and disgrace before the eyes of God. He exposed their sin and they were put under indefinite disciplinary action.

For three and a half years, Pastor Edgar worked as an overseas Filipino worker in Taiwan while serving the given disciplinary action.

Knowing full well how repentant he was, without his knowledge, his wife, Sis. Recilyn, wrote to Bro. Eddie and Sis. Dory:

“Kung may nakuha mang salapi ang aking asawa, ito po ay pagpapakita ko ng intension na handa kong bayaran gaano man kalaki ang presyo, pahintulutan lang kami (ako, ang aking asawa at anak) na kahit makadalo lamang ng services ng JIL Church – hindi na bilang pastor o kahit ordinaryong manggagawa,” (If my husband stole from the church, then let this show my willingness to pay every cent my husband owes, regardless of how big that amount might be. Please just allow us (me, my husband, and child) to attend the JIL Church services again – you don’t need to restore him to being a pastor or to even being a church worker.)

Enclosed with the letter was a check.

The humility and repentance demonstrated by the act touched the JIL leadership.

And the rest is history. Pastor Edgar and his family were allowed to attend JIL church services again. Because of this, after a period of repentance and prayer, and earnestly seeking God’s forgiveness, his relationship with the Lord Jesus was restored. God poured His mercy and grace! Not only this, in God’s time, he was reinstated as a pastor. Pastor Edgar Valdoria with his family ~ daughter Nicah Edrizia, wife Pastor Recilyn, and son Marc Herald

Today, Pastor Edgar is not only the pastor of the largest Filipino Church in Taiwan, the JIL Taiwan Chapter, but also serves as the Director of the JIL International Operations 2 or which covers Asia, Middle East, Micronesia, and Africa (AMEMA).

Sin allures. And not only the weak are likely to succumb. But it doesn’t need to end there. Pastor’s Edgar’s life is a living testimony that, if we are courageous enough to confront our sin and repent, then God’s unfailing grace and mercy can restore us.

One more lesson he got from his experience: Our earthly existence is meaningless without a relationship with the Lord.

His advice for church leaders, who, like him, have fallen into sin and are praying for restoration?

“Kalimutan nyo po muna ang ministry, huwag nyong isipin kung paano nyo itatayo ang inyong nalugmok na pagkatao. Ang pagsikapan nyo ay maayos ang relasyon nyo sa Diyos at maitaguyod ang inyong pamilya kung may pamilya kayo. Pilitin nyo pong malugod muli ang Diyos sa buhay nyo dahil pag nalugod si LORD, hindi pwedeng di ka rin kalugdan ng tao.” (If you’ve fallen into sin, forget the ministry. Forget about how you can regain your dignity. Instead, focus on restoring your relationship with God and on how you can rebuild your family, if you have one. Do everything to make God delighted with your life once again – for he whom the Lord delights with, man cannot help but be delighted with, too).

God’s mercy CAN triumph. No matter how deeply sin has taken over your life. But His mercy can only triumph over the truly repentant.

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