We have been gone for 6 months.
We have spent the last 3 months in community in the Philippines.
We have hauled concrete, scooped lugaw, and drained water.
We have worked with many kids and the people of Tacloban.
We have learned (sadly) very little of the Tagalog language.
We have consumed copious amounts of rice and chicken.
We have met people that will have an impact on our lives forever.
And now we have to leave.
These past 3 months have been amazing. I am in love with our hosts and our ministry. Initially, the Philippines was an easy country for me to love, especially after coming from Albania where we had a lot of trials. I was told by previous Racers that the middle months were the hardest because the “newness” of the Race has worn off and the “final stretch” has not yet begun. I went into these 3 months expecting them to be the hardest of the Race. However, the first 2 months were exceptionally easy. We joined 3 other teams in Tacloban and did life and ministry with them. We had worship nights, prayed, played, and had an overall good time. Then, we went to debrief. That is where everything started going downwards. We got stuck in Manila for 2 weeks after debrief. The busses were down because of not only bus strikes, but one of many typhoons has shut down some roads due to flooding. Then there were bombings right outside of Tacloban. We were not sure that we were even supposed to return until we were told that there was no longer going to be room for us where we were staying so we were able to get plane tickets back. Then, the spiritual warfare started. 3 of us began to have nightmares and wake up in the middle of the night. We were constantly being tormented in our sleep. We prayed and prayed and worshiped and did everything we could to get rid of the demons attacking us. Eventually, after many sleepless nights, it stopped. However, the enemy was not done, more and more things just kept piling onto our mega team of 23 girls. I am currently suffering from overall body pain.
But we refuse to break. God has shown us the strength we have in Him and we are using it.
I never expected to go through anything like this. I mean, I knew that it happened, but never to me in this extreme before. I have never been persecuted for my faith, until now. I have never experienced spiritual warfare, to this degree, until now. In fact, I told my team at the beginning of the Race that if we ever had to deal with anything like that, to count me out because stuff like that terrified me. Then, I found myself being one of the ones attacked mercilessly. I was afraid, for a while.
And then God showed up (like He always does) and showed me what it was like to take control of my thoughts and my fears.
We are battling this warfare by being honest with each other. We are praying together, as one family. We are fighting for each other. We are loving each other through sin and struggles. We are forgiving. We are crying together. We are worshiping together. I have never seen community so clearly shown before.
And it is one of the most beautiful things you could ever ask for.
Our ministry here has also been so beautiful. We have built a church from scratch. We have begun to hand till a field for corn. We have cleaned the bathrooms (used by 23+ people every day) and we have cooked and cleaned everything in sight. We have helped out in the preschool with the crazy kiddos. But my personal favorite is the feedings. We make this stuff called lugaw which is kinda like oatmeal, but with veggies, eggs, and meat flavoring and rice. It is a meal that is served hot to kids that might not get a hot, nutritious meal otherwise. After serving the kids, we get to play with them. They are some of the sweetest kids I have ever met and they are so accepting and wanting of your love. They run up to you and hug you and hold onto every possible piece of you that they can get their hands on. They tell you that you are beautiful and that they love you and that you are their friend. I leave each feeding feeling more full than I was when I first got there.
Our hosts are the most amazing people. They love The Lord and it shows in every action and word. They care for us when we are sick, laugh with us, cry with us, and forgive us endlessly. They have made such an impact on all of our lives and I am so forever thankful for them.
Tacloban. A place healing from massive destruction. A place filled with passion and hope and joy. A place that knows what community looks like. A place that God has a hold of and if continuing to work in the hearts of the people.
The Philippines. A country filled with poverty and hurting people. A country that is accepting and loving. A country that is standing on its own two feet and rallying behind each other to help each other. A country that is filled with lots of honking and traffic, but is so alive with joy.
I am so so sad to have to leave this place. I have loved getting to know all of these new people and new foods and cultures and places. I am going to miss the corn nuts, the endless amounts of bone in chicken, and the huge malls with weird foods. I am going to miss the drives in the van to feedings. I am going to miss the kiddos that come to the Lighthouse every night to play. I am going to miss our amazing hosts, Papa Sel, Mama J, and their kids. I am going to miss Abby and Leo and Aira, Trex, and our sweet puppies.
The Philippines is an amazing country that I had the pleasure of living in for the past 3 months, and I would not have wanted to be anywhere else, with anyone else. I am forever changed.
In one short week, we will leave the Lighthouse, and head to Manila for PVT where I will get to see my dad and do ministry with a program called Wipe Every Tear*. Then, we will get on a plane and head to Johannesburg.
Yes, I am nervous to uproot and leave again, but I am beyond excited to get to finally go to Africa (which you can ask any of my family members… it has been a dream of mine since birth). I am going to miss everyone here and living so close to the ocean (literally 100m), but I know that God has something BIG planned for us in Africa, and I can’t wait to see what it is.
2 Samuel 22:20 “He rescued me because He delighted in me”
*Wipe Every Tear is an organization that works with sex-trafficking victims. We will be going into open bars and working with the women selling themselves and then asking them to join us for a weekend retreat where they can choose to leave their “job” behind them and start fresh.
