Church members, regular visitors, and guests packed the Cebu City Seventh-day Adventist Church on Dec. 27, 2025, to celebrate the final Sabbath of the year. In addition to the physical congregation, thousands of online viewers joined the service via the church’s Facebook and YouTube channels.
For most Adventists, the year-end Sabbath serves as a “spiritual inventory”—a day of thanksgiving for the blessings bestowed upon individuals and the congregation throughout the year.
For this special Sabbath worship, the church invited Pastor Eliezer ‘Joer’ Barlizo, Jr., newly elected president of the East Central Philippine Union Conference, as the speaker during the divine service.
In his message, Pastor Barlizo delved deeper into the global theme of the Adventist Church: “Integrated for Mission: Grounded in the Bible, Focused on the Mission.”
To emphasize the mission’s importance, he sang to the congregation the global church’s theme song, which includes lines such as, “Grounded in the Bible, focused on the mission, ’til we see Him high in the clouds.”
During his message, He also urged the attendees to self-evaluate spiritually, search their hearts for any hidden sin, confess it to God, and renew their commitment to Him as the new year starts.
He specifically stressed a warning from Ellen G. White’s Testimonies for the Church, noting that one of the most grievous sins is “talking about his unbelief and [drawing] other minds into the same dark channel.”
In addition, another essential part of the special Sabbath worship was the presentation of the newly elected church officers for 2026, whom Pastor Barlizo dedicated to God through a special prayer.
Following the Divine Service, the church held its annual fellowship lunch. However, this year, the lunch fellowship was kept simple—there was no fancy catering, only packed meals and fruits.
This shift in the usual way the church celebrated its yearly thanksgiving was because the church chose to help and support those affected by recent calamities, including the earthquake and Typhoon Tino.
For the worshippers, the gathering may be simpler, but it did not diminish the magnitude of the thanksgiving. They still found the experience deeply meaningful, using the moment to recount God’s faithfulness even amid challenges.
Karl Jordan Abayon ⎸ Accounting Staff ⎸ Adventist Hospital-Cebu