“So, should we call him or not?” The question was asked with a bit of irritation, expected after the frustrations of miscommunications we had just dealt with. Linnea was referring to another contact, Matt, whose name had been handed through previous contacts here. We are in the Philippines to meet people, scout ministry opportunities and build relationship, but after only 3 weeks here, we have more contacts that we know what to do with. They are all great people and the place holds great potential for future teams, so does one more person really matter?
I stopped in my tracks on the stairs to my room. “No… I don’t know… do we need to?” Mostly I was just avoiding making the decision about it, same as the others in the room. “I guess not, it seems we’ve got enough, and he’s connected to others, so future teams will no doubt run into him at some point. Right now, I just want to shower and get ready to go.”
Decision made, we each headed to our own rooms, a luxury here in this guesthouse we never exepected, but deeply appreciate, and in our own quiet rooms, readied ourselves for the big game.
Who’d have thought I’d end up in the Philippines attending a college playoffs basketball game between the two greatest rivals in the country?! Our primary contact here, Jeff (missionary from Kansas) supplied us with tickets to the packed arena to watch his son Kirk play ball. It made for a fun day. Half the arena was filled with fans bearing green shirts, and waving big green inflatable tubes.
Our half was the same, only blue. We stood the whole game with the great drums, both snare and bass drums, booming in rhythm for the duration of the game. We cheered through the game, saw some bad calls, some good shots and the last seconds of the game filled us with the same energy the students had as Kirk’s team made their winning point, with only 7 seconds to go. The green team took three shots in those 7 seconds, but only succeeded in bouncing the ball off the rim. We Won!! The guys in front of us gasped sighs of relief as they realized that they are indeed moving on to the next round, and they spun around to give us high fives.
It reminded me of state championships at Vets Autitorium during high school – even the blue was the same as Des Moines Christian. So fun!
After the game, we headed to the mall to find the glorious Taco Bell. We passed the one at the entrance, hoping our chance of faster food would be greater on the 3rd floor food court. Getting there was a bother, with so many people, and we began to wonder if it was indeed any better this way. Oh, well…we were already on our way.
Next door to the Taco Bell, our seeming heaven on earth here, we saw Bill and Debbie, a missionary couple that God keeps dropping in our path. We have run into them by accident, in different places 3 times now in a week and a half! We greeted them, mentioning we had been at ‘the game’. They had not.
“So, you’re coming to the feeding with us?” Suggestion…question…command…all in one. “Uh…well, we’re kind of hungry, can we grab some food?”
“Sure, we’re leaving in 20 minutes” was Bill’s reply, spoken from his always grinning face.
Walking out, Leah mentioned that God always does things for a reason, and this ‘chance’ encounter was no different. I agreed. For some reason, we keep running into this couple, but hadn’t planned to do any ministry with them to this point. It seemed now that God was orchestrating it for us.
Not everyone was excited to go to a street kids feeding ministry, feeling like it was obligitory and no fun- and asked among ourselves if everyone had to go. No, but it seemed obvious that this was God’s arranging, so I don’t want to miss it. After food, attitudes were a bit clearer and we headed out with Bill and Debbie, not knowing where we were going, or exactly what we would be doing. Somewhere along the way, they mentioned that this was Matt’s ministry – had we called him? Yep, Matt – the one we had decided we didn’t need to call only this morning. Apparently, we were to make contact after all, and when we chose not to, God stepped in.
As we arrived, Debbie left us and began speaking with a Filipina who worked in the ministry. She asked about the 3 men that were coming. From where I was walking, I head Debbie’s reply.
“Well, they were unable to make it, but God brought these 5 to us, knowing we needed help tonight. Isn’t it awsome to see how He always provides?”
If I had any doubt inmy spirit that were in the right place, it was gone from that point forward.
The evening was wonderful; street children ran up to us, hugging us, asking our names as they gave theirs. They jumped on Josh and Scott as jungle gyms, a role both have well adapted to. We laughed and smiled and loved these kids for a half hour or so before heading inside the church for dinner. Three year old Princess found me soon after I arrived, lifted her arms to be held, and stayed in them the majority of our evening.
Chatting with Matt, the guys learned about them ministry he leads for the street kids of Cubao. It’s a rough place, in need of great love, and he’s doing it, with his staff. Bill and Debbie help out regularly, along with a few others. He teaches vocational training in a halfway house, providing skills to those who desire to leave the street life and follow the Lord. It’s a ministry we wouldn’t have wanted to miss – and yet we almost did.
We didn’t plan for ministry that night, but it was what made the day – the game and Taco Bell were great, but finding the hand of our God in the midst of it all was the best. We left the church with great smiles on our faces and our hearts filled with joy… and also repentence for feeling that this would be a chore. It wasn’t in the least a chore to love these kids. If only I could love little Princess again…
