Keeping The Commitment

By Jay Walsh

"Today we are going to visit Grace Christian School, the largest Chinese Christian School in the world," Dr. Kempton said as we inched our way through Manila's crowded streets to the suburb of Quezon City.

Wow, I thought, Why have I never heard about this school?

Word of our arrival quickly reached headmaster Dr. Tan. Beaming with joy, he led us into the school courtyard surrounded by multi-storied buildings. Most of the school's 5,000 students, standing shoulder to shoulder on the verandahs, began clapping and singing.

Dr. Kempton presented Dr. James Tan with a citation honoring him for more than 30 years of leadership at Grace Christian School. At a special dinner the Tans gave for us, Dr. Tan opened his Bible, displaying on the inside cover Wendell Kempton's signature dated October 1967. Dr Tan explained, "I received a degree from George Washington University and was employed at IBM in a job that paid a six-figure salary. But I was not happy inside. One Sunday as I walked past the First Baptist Church of Saugerties, New York, I saw an announcement that a Rev. Wendell Kempton would be the special speaker. I decided to hear this man speak. His message was based on James 4:7 "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."

"That was what I needed to hear. Several years earlier, my mother challenged me to make a long-term commitment to the Grace Christian School. She was recently widowed and had five small children. She said, "If only I could buy a large piece of land to build a Christian village with a first-rate school, and a Bible-centered church in the village...if only!" Following Dr. Kempton's message, I left the financial attractions of America and returned to the Philippines to assist my mother in administrating Grace Christian School. Last year we celebrated our 50th anniversary."

God honored Mrs. Tan's vision and faith. In 1950 she and former ABWE missionaries, Dr. Edwin and Helen Spahr, teamed up to start Grace Christian School. Mrs. Tan also opened her home for church services. Dr. Spahr became the first pastor of Grace Bible Church, which today ministers to several thousand people. Dr. Tan says, "Dad and Mom Spahr became our spiritual parents during the school's formative years. They served the Lord in the Philippines for over 30 years."

Dr. Tan said that 70 to 80% of the students are non-Christians when they arrive, but when they graduate, 90 to 95% of them have received Christ as Savior.

Year after year, Julia Tan's dream is fulfilled as her son, Dr. James Tan, keeps his commitment to submit to God as he heard Dr. Kempton challenge him to do 34 years ago.

In January 2001, Wendell & Ruth Kempton, Bill & MaryJo Price, and Eleanor & Jay Walsh visited 11 Asian countries.