Venus Balucay — Chapter

Venus Balucay

Youth Ministry / Discipleship

Philippines

Years in Ministry

Calling & Mission

My calling is not just about serving it is about loving. God called me to be present, to stay, and to pour out my life for the people in front of me. Today, I serve as a full-time missionary with Kids International Ministry, a Youth Coordinator, a girls home leader, and a student pursuing a Master’s Degree in Counseling. Life is not without challenges, but through it all, I have seen God’s faithfulness again and again. Everything I am today is by His grace I believe that the calling God gives is not always about going far it is about being faithful where He places you.

About Our Work

I am a Filipina missionary serving in Tondo, leading a girls’ home and coordinating youth programs. I disciple young people through daily life, education, and mentorship—helping them discover their identity in Christ and build a future with purpose.

How God Called Me

Looking back, I realize that God was calling me long before I understood it.

He met me when I was just a child, standing in line for food at eight years old. At that time, I didn’t know Him I only knew hunger. But even then, God was already reaching for me. As I grew older, I began attending church, but my heart and mindset were still shaped by the environment I lived in. I believed that my future was limited that my role as a young woman was to survive, not to dream. Even when opportunities came, I doubted myself. I was afraid to hope for more.

But God used people to pursue me.

Through Pastor Ramil, God showed me that my life could be different. He challenged me to take a step I never thought I could—going to college. That step was not easy, and even when I said yes, it was full of fear and uncertainty. Then came the turning point—the moment when God made a way where there was no way. That was when I began to understand: this was not just about education or provision. God was doing something deeper. He was calling me.

After I graduated, I thought my purpose would be somewhere else—that I would leave Tondo, work abroad, and help from a distance but God spoke differently to my heart. He called me back to the very place I once wanted to escape.

Not just to return—but to stay.

Not just to give—but to love.

God called me to Tondo because I know the pain here. I know the struggles, the fears, and the mindset that keeps people from believing they have a future and because I have lived that life, I can now stand in it and say with conviction:

THERE IS HOPE!

Today, I understand that my calling is not about a position or a title. It is about obedience. It is about saying yes to God daily—whether in big moments or in the quiet, unseen acts of love.

God called me to be his daughter and heirs and to be His vessel where I go and to stay when it would be easier to leave and every day, I continue to say yes.

Why This Place & People

After graduating, I thought my path would lead me abroad, working to earn money and help my family and community but God redirected my heart back to Tondo. He showed me that my calling was not somewhere far away it was right where I came from. Tondo is not just a place to me; it is HOME. It is filled with people whose stories I understand because I have lived them where others may see hardship, I see purpose. Where others may want to leave, God called me to stay. I believe deeply that God loves this place, and He called me to be part of that love in action.

A Turning Point

There was a moment in my life when everything I had hoped for suddenly collapsed. I was already two years into college, something I never thought I would even begin and then my pastor, the one who believed in me and helped me get there, passed away. Along with the grief came a heavy reality: unpaid tuition. I was no longer allowed to enroll. In one moment, my dream ended.

I remember thinking, “This is it. This is where my story stops.” I was ready to go back to what I had always known to find a job, survive, and let go of the future I once dared to try for. It felt like all the doors had closed.

But God was not finished.

One day, I received a call from Norman, a friend of my late pastor. He asked me to guide him and his friend around Tondo. I said yes, not knowing that this simple yes would become a turning point in my life. After the tour, he asked me about my schooling, and I told him everything about the debt, the disappointment, the end I was preparing myself to accept. The next day, he called again and said that his friend would pay for my remaining tuition and support me until I finished I could not hold back my tears.

In that moment, one truth filled my heart so strongly: JESUS PAID IT ALL! just as Christ paid the price for my life on the cross, I saw His love reflected in that provision. It was more than financial help, it was God reminding me that my story was not over, that He sees me, and that He has already gone ahead of my future.

1 Corinthians 15:10- "But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me"

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Community Outreach

As the YouthLab Tondo Coordinator, I lead and oversee programs that reach young people across the community. Through feeding programs, Bible studies, youth gatherings, and mentorship, we create spaces where young people can encounter God and discover their identity. This ministry is not just about activities—it is about transformation. It is about speaking truth into lives that have grown up believing limitations. I am passionate about raising a generation that knows their worth, understands their purpose, and chooses a different path rooted in faith and hope.

Youth Night - Praise Party (Ages 14+)

Juniors (Ages 4-11)

Rookies (Ages 11-14)

Tondo Homes

Passion Team

Bible Studies

Street Dwellers

Belong Groups

Basketball

Talitha Home

It is a place close to my heart—a home for young girls in Tondo who need safety, guidance, and love. Many of these girls come from difficult backgrounds, and in many ways, I see my younger self in them. Today, I care for eight girls, walking with them daily not just as a leader, but as someone who desires to nurture, guide, and protect them. My prayer is that they will grow up knowing they are deeply loved, that their lives have value, and that their future is not limited by their circumstances. Through this home, I want them to experience what it means to be loved, seen, known, and cared for.

TALITHA'S