Month 1 WR: Philippines
We are driving, swerving back and forth going fast through small alleys that seem as though they may close in on us at any moment. I smell the trash and hear kids playing, I see poverty all around in the form of tin roofs nailed to pieces of wood created to shelter families.
I feel overwhelmed at the amount of need in this place, overwhelmed that I cant help every child running around with no shoes, every mom who looks desperately in my eyes as if to plead, PLEASE be the one that saves my children from living as I have lived.
then I remember…Lord you’re in charge, its not me that can save, its not me that can make a difference, its YOU…it’s ONLY YOU….only you can clothe the naked, feed the hungry, and give HOPE to the hopeless. Only YOU have brought me here, not to feel overwhelmed- but rather to be awakened…that there are needs that you want me to respond to…not EVERY need, not to “save” the Philippino people, but instead to listen to your voice and respond when you call.
We were still driving, 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes go by and still we’re driving through trash and mud and children playing half clothed in the streets. I start recording our drive with my camera, trying to document what I see, but in another way I think trying to create a barrier between me and the poor, making it easier to look away instead of enter into the reality of the situations I was seeing.
then I remember….Lord you have a task for me and my team today…its not to feel defeated or sad, but instead to know our role which is to respond to your call with obedience, no matter how scary or risky it may seem. Today we have the PRIVILEGE of driving out to a village, a village where our good friend, fellow lover of Jesus, and very helpful translator was from many years ago. She was taking us to meet Baby Jason.
A previous WR team in Manila had originally heard about Jason and eventually went to meet his family and introduce themselves. They’d heard that he had a severe cleft pallet, and cleft lip and was not doing very well physically. He was unable to receive the nutrition he needed desperately because his mom could not breast feed him due to his condition and could not afford highly priced formulas. The team at that time worked with the local missionary organization and figured out a way to arrange for Jason to receive the nutrition he so desperately needed.
Months later…here I am with Team Liberators, we were asked to check in on Baby Jason, see how his family is doing, and also ask if it would be okay for us to take Jason to a very exciting opportunity in the city of Manila. Operation Smile which is an international organization which offers free medical operations to very needy children in 3rd world countries, they were hosting an event that weekend in Manila. We felt that Jason would be the perfect candidate for these services and we wanted to be his advocates!
During our time in Manila my team was able to visit Jason and his family, pray for them and over their home, the Lord allowed for us to take Jason to the Operation Smile testing site, miraculously HE WAS ACCEPTED for surgery, we then had the incredible blessing of dropping him off for his surgery and being able to pick him back up after he was released. As far as I know to this day he is growing and healthy and going to live a beautiful life thanks to this awesome opportunity that the Lord opened up and my team was allowed to enter into while in Manila.
This memory reminds me that no matter how dark or grim things seem, no matter what kinds of circumstances we may be going through, God is present, He is still working. Instead of trying to separate ourselves from those very real situations, try entering into them hand in hand with your Savior, He will NEVER let you down..AND He may just have an incredible ministry opportunity waiting just around the bend!
*Still no update on a job yet, just continuing to pray and ask the Lord to provide whatever opportunity He has for me! Keep praying!*
