MISSIONARY SPOTLIGHT - FRED TERACTECAN

Church Planter, Fred Teractecan of North Jersey Bible Church

There was a time in Fred Tarectecan’s life when full-time ministry was the furthest thing from his mind.

Born in Mandaluyong, Philippines, the third of eight children, he grew up in a strong Christian home and loved the Lord from a very young age. Years of Sunday school classes, choir practices, and Bible studies in his youth prepared him to be a Sunday school teacher and deacon in the International Baptist Church.

But Tarectecan’s career in the Philippines in banking and finance was going very well, and he was on the fast track to a major promotion.

However, God had other things in mind.

Tarectecan started feeling God's call in his life, and his friends at church told him that perhaps the Lord was calling him to full-time ministry. After much soul-searching and prayer, he accepted this call, enrolled in a local Bible school, and soon migrated to the United States. With seven people he started the International Baptist Church of New Jersey and served as its pastor.

Now, 10 years later, Tarectecan is pastor of North Jersey Bible Church, the first Southern Baptist church in Bergenfield, New Jersey.

Bergenfield is one of the booming and developing commercial and residential boroughs of Bergen County, which neighbors Manhattan. A significant portion of the city's 33,000 residents are Filipino, which matches Tarectecan’s background perfectly.

Since its launch on Sept. 26, 2003, the church has grown to an average attendance of 50. The congregation recently baptized 11 at Jones Beach, Long Island, including Tarectecan’s brother, Rollie.

The Tarectecans have recently seen their only son, Red, deployed to Iraq with the U.S. Air Force where he is proudly serving as a staff sergeant and has been blessed with safety thus far in his role in the dangerous area of Mosul, Iraq.

The Tarectecan's share the vision of reaching the Bergenfield area with the Gospel of Christ.