My month in the Philippines will forever be one of the most impactful 30 days of this race. It was in this country that I believe God gave me a vision for what He wants out of my life. We stayed in the city of Antipolo, just a little ways outside of Manila. We worked with a ministry called Children’s Garden, a boys home that housed former street boys and gang members. The lessons that these boys taught me are still unfolding and will continue for years and years to come. It is safe to say that they changed the way I see life. Most of my days spent at CG were very simple though. We’d eat, play basketball, play video games, go find snacks at little markets around the neighborhood and just hang out. Sometimes we’d go visit the boys’ families and see the situation they came from. They usually came from very poor families, if they had families at all. It was mind blowing to hear their parents tell us how the young boys were the only hope for the family. Mothers would be crying, carrying their sons telling us how proud she was of him. And how she couldn’t wait till the day he was a successful business man, police man, Navy soldier or whatever other dreams the boys had. But the nights always ended the same. We’d eat dinner, then gather together to worship Jesus and share how He has transformed our lives. We had the honor of hearing most of the boys’ stories and how they were literally rescued from serious darkness and transferred into marvelous light. The grace of Christ shined so brightly in that place as each redemption story unfolded. As I’m typing this I’m again realizing how life changing these nights were for me and how I’ll never forget them. Most nights I had the privilege of sharing the Word of God to them and encouraging them to never give up the pursuit of Christ. We would teach them to obey even in the hardest situations. We’d break into small groups and talk about how we can continue to grow as men of God, and grow in our obedience to Christ. I remember thinking, “I could do this for the rest of my life”. And you know what, I really think I will.
We spent the month of December in the Philippines, and I doubt that there is another country on this planet that cherishes Christmas more than they do in the Philippines. They have what they call the “ber” months. Once September starts, it’s Christmas time. The parents of Jake, one of the staff members of the home, had a special surprise for the boys this Christmas. I remember the night of the announcement so clearly. Right after our devotional time Olive, another staff member there, finally let the boys in on the secret. Each boy got $5 to spend on whatever they wanted at the market. AND we were all going to the waterfall during the day to go swimming. Then we’d all have lunch at the waterfall. Once she announced this it was like the Lakers locker room after winning the championship game. The boys lost it. It was hilarious even though staff had to seriously do everything they could to calm the boys down. That day was one of those days in my life that will always so vividly be stuck in my head. Watching the boys have the time of their lives together brought our whole team so much unspeakable joy.
It was sort of hard being away from home during the Holiday season. But it was definitely the most unique Christmas I ever had and singing Karaoke, laughing, and watching movies on Christmas eve was a good time. It reminded me that we have family all over this world when we realize together that we are the children of God. And we have a Father who delights in us so much. Not only that but He delights in our stories, however horrific it might be in our eyes, because at the end of it we see the light shine out of the darkness. We see the redemptive power of God written all over it when we realize that Jesus restores everything. He takes our situations that seem hopeless and He so graciously pumps life back into them. And this is something that these boys understood at their young age. Never did a day go by where these boys didn’t say “thank you” for everything you did for them. I remember them all saying as I left, “Kuya (big brother) Joe, thank you for sharing the Word of God with us.” Statements like that are what fuel me everyday.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation..”
Here is the video of our waterfall day if you haven’t seen it yet:
