The Lord's Flock Community

A HISTORY OF VISION AND FAITH

The history of the Lord’s Flock is entwined with the life of its visionary, Sis. Techie M. Rodriguez. The Lord gave her prophetic visions and she faithfully obeyed His instructions. As the visionholder, she has given herself entirely to the service of God’.

Sis. Techie leads steadfastly the journey of the Community with Bro. Bobby Rodriguez, her husband and co-founder and a host of dedicated directors, stewards, chapter coordinators, leaders, and members.

Out of a vision, The Lord’s Flock was born. Sis. Techie Molina Rodriguez received a prophetic vision from the Lord on March 24, 1986 in the chapel of the Seminary of the Augustinian Recollects Fathers. She was with Bro. Bobby Rodriguez, Bro. Froilan Hong and six others praying together to get God’s clear message regarding unfolding events. It was a period of deep reflection and big decision.

“At around six o’clock in the evening, the sky was already dark and the rain was pouring. I was on a big white boat, being tossed about by the waves which seemed to grow bigger and bigger.

“Then, as the mist slowly began to clear, I saw people trying to get hold of my boat for safety. People… people everywhere! Swimming around and panic-stricken, some desperately struggled to stay afloat. Many already drowned.

“My face was so wet from crying and from the rain which mercilessly fell down in torrents. I called to them… and tried to lead them to the safety of my boat. My heart was so filled with pity and I felt confusion and helplessness. So many of them!

“And in the midst of the chaos, I heard a distinctive voice which said, ‘Save my people, bring my people to safety.’ They will listen to the voice of the shepherd and they will recognize the true voice.

It was the Lord!”

On March 16, 1986, the time of fulfillment of a prophecy had come. This prophecy was made by Fr. Joel Ador, OP to Sis. Techie Rodriguez, two years earlier and had now presented itself to Bro. bobby Rodriguez, Sis. Techie Rodriguez and Bro. Froilan Hong. Together with a handful of renewed Christians, they started to meet and pray together to God's clear message regarding the events unfolding at that time. It was a period of deep reflection and big decision.

Fr. Hubert Decena, the Augustinian Recollects priest who led Sis. Techie and her group into a one-hour contemplative prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, interpreted the vision of Sis. Techie. He said she would establish a new community to win souls for Christ. The six other renewed Catholics who prayed with Sis. Techie received similar visions from the Lord that confirmed her prophetic vision.

Another priest, Fr. Joel Ador, O.A.R., confirmed that Sis. Techie’s vision was a fulfillment of a prophecy God gave him on March 16, 1984. He was told by the Lord that Sis. Techie would be the Founder of a new Catholic charismatic community

Three more priests, who were completely without knowledge of what was happening, confirmed the formation of a new community. They were Fr. Larry B. Faraon, O.P., Fr. Val Darunday, S.V.D., and Monsignor Bautista of Pampanga.

Sis. Techie and Bro. Bobby and a small group held a meeting at the Quezon Memorial Circle. During the meeting, Sis. Techie received a word of knowledge from the Lord revealing that 150 people would attend a prayer-meeting at an old building beside St. Peter’s Memorial Homes along Quezon Avenue, Quezon City.

In the morning of April 4, 1986, Sis. Techie immediately negotiated the building rental which was drastically reduced from P 15,000 to P 5,000 a month without any deposit. The building was dilapidated, its beams were sagging, its floor was cracked and vibrating. She also persuaded the owner to apply a fresh coat of paint on the entire 2nd floor.

In the evening, the group’s first prayer-meeting was held with 150 people. There were no chairs in the building, people sat down on newspapers spread on the dusty floor. The place was lighted with only one bulb.

During the eucharistic celebration, Fr. Joel Ador gave the community its name from Jeremiah 13:17: THE LORD’S FLOCK. A new community, The Lord’s Flock, was born!

Sis. Techie, Bro. Bobby and Bro. Froi organized the new Community’s first Catholic Life in the Spirit Seminar (CLSS) on April 25, 1986. More than a thousand people joined and were baptized in the Holy Spirit.

After the first CLSS, the growth of The Lord’s Flock was phenomenal “and everyday the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:47).

Three months after the community rented the building, an additional bay was constructed to accommodate the increasing membership. But like the universal Church, The Lord’s Flock and its elders were hounded by persecutions and false accusations in attempts to hinder God’s work through the Community.

In Acts 5:38-39 "... For if this endeavor or this activity is of human origin, it will destroy itself. But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them, you may even find yourselves fighting against God." The forces of the enemy were of no match to the community established by God.

Membership grew; activities flourished.

The Lord’s Flock radio program “Signs and Wonders” was first aired over Radio Veritas on January 29, 1987. The program was hosted by Fr. Larry Faraon, OP, Sis. Techie Rodriguez, and Bro. Froilan Hong. It started as a two-hour program with teachings on the practical life applications of God’s Word. It accepted listeners’ requests for prayer, healing and counseling. A Tagalog version, “Tanda’t Himala,” hosted by Bro. Bobby followed soon afterwards. After 16 years of broadcast it stopped in favor of the “Signs and Wonders Power of the Word” on television.

To meet the ever increasing demand for space as the Community continued to grow, The Lord’s Flock EDSA Branch was established and inaugurated on February 19, 1987 at EDSA near the corner of Biglang Awa Street in Quezon City.

The main office of The Lord’s Flock was transferred in July 1988 to a bigger and better site at the G & D Building, D. Tuazon Street, corner Quezon Avenue in Quezon City.

In December 1988, The Lord’s Flock was incorporated as a foundation in the Philippines: Lord’s Flock Catholic Charismatic Ministry Foundation. On May 1989, it was incorporated in California, USA. The foundations formed in the Philippines and in the United States are the corporate and juridical entities that are transacting the temporal needs of the Community in these countries.

In September 3, 1998, The Lord’s Flock became a founding member of the Federation of Transparochial Charismatic Communities Inc. (FTCC). The FTCC is the umbrella organization of all the transparochial charismatic communities in the Archdiocese of Manila. It is under the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church.

The Lord’s Flock continued to prosper in membership. The first international chapter of the Community was established in Singapore in June 1989. This was followed by chapters in Hongkong in February 1990 and in the United States in July 1991.

To effectively manage the ever-growing number of members in the Community, smaller units called “households” were created. In November 1990, the NET Household for single professionals was the first to be established. It was followed by the CANA Household for married couples, the Young Adults or Young Timothy Household for high school and college students, and the Small World Household for children ages 4-12.

In 1991, the HARVEST FORMATION PROGRAM was introduced. This program was designed to nurture the members' formative years and to become the seedbed of the community's potential leaders. In May of the same year, the Harvest Formation Center was inaugurated at Casa Bella Building in Alejandro Roces Avenue, corner Quezon Avenue.

‘The "Signs & Wonders" radio program moved from Radio Veritas in Quezon City to DWIZ in Makati City in 1991. Bro. Judge Oscar Leviste and Bro. Dr. Butch Roxas joined joined as co-anchors.

The Community continued to bring lost souls to the Lord. To meet the additional space needs of the swelling membership, the Paramount Center in West Avenue in Quezon City was opened on January 30, 1992. The small EDSA Branch in Caloocan City was closed.

On August 18, 1992, the Brethren Household was organized for professionals and businessmen who are asked to help the “least among my brethren” (LAMB) and to renew their workplace.

In 1994, the Disciple Formation Program was launched. It was designed to focus on leadership training and pasturing for those who have completed the Harvest Formation Program.

In the same year, the Community started a new trend in evangelization in the Roman Catholic Church when it formed the Street Evangelization Group (now the Proclaim Ministry). It also extended works and acts of mercy to the less fortunate brothers and sisters when it put up the Good Samaritan Ministry.

On September 22, 1994, the Lord gave a message for the Community to purchase a property for the construction of a house of worship for the Lord (named “The Heritage”). Fund-raising activities were undertaken (Numbers 26:52-54). The land to be acquired was described in Ezekiel 47:1-7.

In January 1995, the Community’s activities at Paramount Center and at Casa Bella Harvest Formation Center were transferred and consolidated in one place – the Bookman Building in Quezon Avenue.

During a one-and-a-half year period, the elders and the directors of the Community continued to listen and receive messages from the Lord about fund- raising activities for “The Heritage.” A 16 million pesos property at Catanduanes Street, near West Avenue in Quezon City, was eventually purchased on May 10, 1996. It was fully paid on November 30, 1997 – exactly as the Lord stated in 1 Maccabees 15:8 and 2 Kings 7:38.

On January 30, 1999, the Bookman center was closed in order to consolidate all activities of the Community at two floors covering 2,500 square meters at G & D Building, D. Tuazon Street corner Quezon Avenue, Quezon City. This final consolidation was preparatory to the building of the 12-storey Heritage Center with P 7 daily temple tributes from Community members (2 Chronicles 24:5) and proceeds from other fund-raising projects.

Sis. Techie Rodriguez, Bro. Bobby Rodriguez and Bro. Froilan Hong re-started planting more churches in Canada and in the United States. In October 1988, new chapters in Toronto and in Scarborough, two chapters in New Jersey, and another chapter in Sacramento, California, were established. A third community was added in New Jersey in 1999.

The Lord’s Flock, upon receiving messages from the Lord, realized the effectiveness of evangelization through the television media. On December 24, 1988, the first episode of the TV program “Signs and Wonders” was telecast on GMA 7. Within a short period of nine months, it rated among the top three religious programs on local TV.

The Lord’s Flock is now focusing its different programs for the new millennium with intensified evangelization and church planting. Its active membership of more than three thousand is enthusiastically serving the Lord through these programs. It aims to live up to its name as “People of Faith.”

On December 22, 2002, the Ceremonial Ground- Breaking for the 12-Storey Heritage Building was officiated by Bishop Teodoro Bacani. Phase 1 construction of this building consisted of 3 basements and five stories including the auditorium. This 128,000 square meter building facility was named “The Lord’s Flock Heritage Worship and Spiritual Formation Center.

The Lord continued to use The Lord’s Flock mightily in His work – bringing the elders, Sis. Techie and Bro. Bobby, to evangelical missions in Asia, the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Germany.

On March 12, 2003, The Lord’s Flock was invited to be a member of the Catholic Fraternity of Covenanted Communities and Fellowships, an association based in Rome and vested with papal rights. The formation of this fraternity had been with the encouragement of Pope john Paul II. It usually takes three years for a community to remain an under-way member and another year to become a regular member.

In January 2006, The Lord’s Flock was elevated to full membership of the Fraternity. The Lord had given the Community this great honor! In November 2006, a delegation composed of Sis. Techie, Bro. Froi Hong and Fr. Glenn Gomez, S.V.D. went to Sao Paolo, Brazil in order to be formally installed and be prayed over by the Catholic Fraternity’s general membership.

The “Heritage” is one of the revelations of the Lord that are being regularly given to Sis. Techie through prophetic visions.

On its 21st anniversary, April 4, 2007, the Community had a two-week celebration with Dedication Rites for a magnificent and lofty edifice – The Heritage Worship and Spiritual Formation Center. This center is truly a miracle of the Lord Most High! It is a vision realized! It is God’s work through a “people of faith”!

On August 1, 2007, the Community transferred to The Heritage Worship and Spiritual Formation Center. This period of transfer was fondly called “Exodus to the Promised Land (Heritage).” On August 31, 2007, the Community held the first Harvest-Disciples In-Gathering at the Heritage Sanctuary. This was a very meaningful celebration of the “Entry to the Promised Land (Heritage).” “When you have entered the land that the Lord will give you as He promised, observe this ceremony. It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord.” (Exodus 12:25, 27).

In November, 2007, Sis. Techie Rodriguez, the only woman Member of the Executive Council, was unanimously elected as Treasurer of The Catholic Fraternity of Charismatic Covenanted Communities and Fellowships during a four-day meeting in Italy. She was initially nominated to head “Asia” in the organization composed of 55 covenanted communities in the USA, Europe, Latin America, Asia and Oceania.

On April 4, 2008, The Lord’s Flock marked its 22nd anniversary and commemorated the amazing glory and blessings of God during all these remarkable years of its Holy Spirit-inspired existence.