Taste and see that the Lord is good.
I’ve been in the Philippines for 4 weeks now and I know I’ve been slacking on some stories since being here so wanted to share a few with you.
The first weekend here I was treating myself to a pedicure and met a woman as I was waiting. Out of the blue she was talking about how inexpensive it was to get a pedicure compared to the states. I chatted back like I really knew the differences and asked where she was from. She said California, though by looking at her you’d assume Filipino. I told her why I was there and she thanked me for coming, that the Philippines really needed Christian missionaries. She said she was also a Christian, though grew up Catholic and now helps teach a Sunday school in California. She said she taught at the Catholic Sunday school because she wanted the kids to really know Jesus. So here I was, a missionary in the Philippines just out to relax and get a pedicure, meeting another American, doing mission work back at home. So cool. She thanked me again and said she felt really encouraged by our conversation. And I the same.
A few weeks later my friends and I were taking an Uber back home. I sit in the front and start chatting with the driver. He’s friendly and makes jokes. I asked why he was a driver and he responds saying, it helps keep bad thoughts away when he is at home alone. He quickly opens up in conversation about things he’s never shared with even his family. I share with him some of my struggles from my past and how I too used to seek things that would make me happy but were so fleeting after the moment. My other friends also shared personal testimonies and connected in deeper ways. He said he knew who Jesus Christ was but hadn’t surrendered his whole life to walking in obedience. He felt like he had no value in life and his one deserve was to make other people happy. I think he felt like even if he couldn’t make himself happy he could at least make other people. 23 years old and already feeling like his life has no purpose. When we pulled up to our home we got to pray for him and leave him with some encouraging words. He said he knew this was a divine encounter.
Our first weekend here the ministry held a kids camp for a few nights. The kids were from the street. Boys whose parents left or couldn’t take care of them. They slept on the streets, got involved in cheap drugs and theft to take care of themselves. We met them that first night and they were all laughter. The youngest 11, the oldest 21. The ministry cleans their clothes and provides clean bedding for their stay. We hung out playing volleyball and swimming in the river. We heard some of their stories and shared some of our own. This weekend we’ll have another one for girls that live on the streets. Children that live on the streets are a major problem here as I’ve been told by many Filipinos. Some as young as 3 will walk the malls asking for money.
The VBS we had last weekend was so good. Lots of kids came and got to explore their creative side. Most of the kids are never exposed to a VBS like they put on in the USA. It’s usually a one man band with simple decorations and crafts. So the fact that they had all the stuff donated was really spectacular and unlike anything they’ve ever experienced.
The longer I’m here the more I fall in love with the people and the country. The more people I meet, whether it’s at a nail salon, Starbucks, in a taxi, a Chili’s, or on the street, people thank us for being here to share the Gospel and doing mission work. It’s crazy! A country so aware of their need for more of Jesus. I pray god continues to send more people here.
