A Life Set in Motion: Catalyzing a Movement Beyond the Spotlight

When Calling Replaces Ambition

As the years went by and Rodel grew in faith, his life became centered on a singular desire: “I want everyone to know about Jesus. Let Christ be known to everybody.” He began to live that out by serving in his local church, joining the choir, participating in Bible studies, facilitating cell groups, and leading worship.

Rodel’s life was truly captured by his love for Christ and his commitment; yet, how much was Rodel really willing to sacrifice to make Christ known?

One day, while Rodel was worshipping and praying, he sensed God asking him to resign from his current job and become a pastor. This was no simple decision because at that time, Rodel was thriving professionally as an IT Director at a successful company in the Philippines, providing stability for his wife and their four children.

As passionate as Rodel was about Christ, this was not something he had envisioned for himself or for his family. Letting go of security felt impossible. Yet this calling was different from his earlier ambition to become a Catholic priest. That desire he had picked out himself. This calling was given by God.

Rodel responded with obedience.

He resigned, entered Bible school, and volunteered at church without income as his savings slowly dwindled. It was a season marked by deep trust in God and the stripping away of self-reliance. 

A Catalyst in the Making

After two years of faithfully serving in the church, Rodel was invited by a friend to join OneHope. Drawing on his technical background, he was asked to manage an evangelistic website for Asia. Over time, he would serve in various regional and leadership roles, and now serves as a Director of Operations in Asia Pacific and Southeast Asia Regional Director. 

Rodel often says that while it was God who called him, it was the people he worked with who made him want to stay in ministry. Among the most influential were Ty and Cina Silva, the pioneers who helped establish OneHope’s work in Asia in 1997. Early in his journey, Rodel worked closely alongside them, seeing them almost every day in the office. Their integrity, humility, and faithfulness gave him a living example of what servant leadership looked like. They didn’t just inspire him, they catalyzed him.

That same impression deepened through his work with pastors, youth leaders, and educators across the Philippines. Many served with limited resources yet carried an unshakable conviction to reach the next generation. Their perseverance left a lasting mark on him; if they could continue serving so faithfully despite the challenges, how could he not do the same? Over time, their faithfulness shaped his own, and reaching children and youth became not just the ministry’s mission, but his personal calling.

At the time, most churches in the Philippines did have children and youth ministries, but they were rarely a central focus. Much of the church’s energy went toward equipping adults, while children’s ministry often centered more on keeping young people occupied than intentionally discipling them. When OneHope introduced a vision for seriously investing in the next generation through Scripture engagement and leadership development, it challenged churches to see children and youth ministry differently.

It was within this landscape that Rodel became part of a pioneering movement with OneHope. He began building trust with pastors, forming genuine partnerships, training leaders, and resourcing churches with tools to reach young people more intentionally. But the work was never just about programs or materials. It required patient relationship-building and a shared commitment to ministry until church leaders could genuinely say, “They’re one of us, and we’re one of them.” Along the way, Rodel learned that a lasting partnership is built on trust, and that real movement happens not when vision is controlled by one organization, but when it is shared.

Generational Return: The 4/14 Window

This catalytic vision found even greater expression through the 4/14 Movement, which highlights a powerful reality: most lifelong Christians are formed between the ages of four and fourteen, making children and youth a strategic mission field. With a clear focus on evangelism and discipleship, the movement calls the global Church to intentionally invest in the next generation—not only to receive the gospel, but to live it out and share it—catalyzing a shift in how young people are seen and reached.

From the beginning, the movement gathered churches and organizations already serving this age group, including OneHope. That invitation brought Rodel to the inaugural 4/14 gathering in New York in 2009, where leaders were challenged to carry the vision back to their nations. For Rodel, the moment affirmed what he and OneHope were already pursuing through Scripture engagement and discipleship. Returning to the Philippines, he helped establish 4/14 Pilipinas and continues to serve on its shared leadership executive committee today.

The movement also strengthened Rodel’s conviction that ministry to children and youth could not be done alone. Through 4/14 gatherings and partnerships, he saw pastors, churches, and ministries unite around a shared mission. Resources were exchanged, leaders trained, and ministries strengthened through collaboration rather than competition. 

That collaboration became visible in initiatives across the Philippines, including *Okiddo: The 4/14 Kids Show,” a children’s program developed within the wider 4/14 ministry ecosystem. Through stories, music, games, and conversations, Okiddo helped children engage with biblical truth in ways they could understand and relate to. What made the project especially meaningful was that children were not only the audience, but also part of the mission—encouraged to invite friends, share what they were learning, and become active voices of faith in their communities. In many ways, the project reflected the shared heart of the 4/14 Movement and OneHope: equipping the next generation not simply to receive the gospel, but to help bring it to others.

As Rodel explains, “It’s the mission of the church that’s helping the global church focus its efforts to make the greatest generational return.” For him, investing in children reflects the heart of Jesus, who welcomed children and declared that the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these (Luke 18:16). When the Church prioritizes the next generation, seeds of faith are planted early and shape families, strengthen churches, and influence communities and nations for years to come.

The Quiet Power of a Catalyst

Today, Rodel sees himself less as a leader at the center and more as a father on the sidelines, cheering, guiding, and releasing others into their calling. He measures impact not by recognition, but by multiplication: children and youth being reached,  leaders empowered, churches collaborating, and movements continuing without him. 

OneHope is projected to reach more than 19 million young people in Asia Pacific with God’s Word this year, including 2.2 million in the Philippines alone.

 Rodel’s leadership has left a mark on a rising generation of leaders. Neil Alejaga, who has been mentored by Rodel, reflects: “If I were to describe OneHope’s DNA, it’s leaders who are deeply relational, mentors who genuinely invest, and a culture marked by excellence, respect, and kindness. It feels like family. And this family left an indelible mark on my heart.” 

Neil currently serves as OneHope National Director in the Philippines and mentors his own group of young leaders. In many ways, what Rodel once received through the faithful example of others, he has now reproduced in those he has led.

Rodel Lacson is a catalyst not because he strives to be one, but because his life was first catalyzed by Christ, and from that transformation flows a movement still rippling across nations, generations, and lives yet to be reached.

To learn more about an initiative from the 4/14 Movement in the Philippines reaching children in creative ways, check out this video.