FIRST BLOG POST FROM THE PHILIPPINES! Wow it has been an amazing first few days in the Philippines and I am excited to share what this time has looked like for my team.
We are working with street kids from Manilla at a camp called New Beginnings, where they have a roof over their head to sleep, good food and water and lots of space to play. Our ministry role so has not been evangelizing to the people sharing the gospel, but by being an example of Jesus to these street kids.
As they live on the streets of Manilla they beg for food, money, etc. day in and day out and are looked down upon by the public. But here at camp New Beginnings they are celebrating, extremely loved and incredibly known, which is exactly how Jesus looks at them. Loving them has looked like making them giggle, playing games, hugs, playing ‘monster’ and just spending quality time with them. We have learned some phrases in Tagalog, and one that is used quite often is ‘Ate Jenny’, which means older sister Jenny. It reminds me of how we are all brothers and sisters in the family of Christ.
Loving on these street kids these week has reminded me of how much we all desire to be deeply loved, especially people on the street because the world tells them they are not. Every person I see on the street I will be intentional about looking them in the eye to show they are seen, smile to show they are loved and shaking their hand to show they are not untouchable.
A look at my daily schedule:
We are still not quite adjusted to the time so everyone is up at about 5:30/6 am with no problem and going to bed around 9. We spend mornings doing quiet time with the Lord and watching the sunrise from camp, which is in the mountains and looks like a jungle.
We have wonderful meals prepared by our amazing host, Mama Jo (Josephine) and every meal we exclaim: WOW this is so amazing, Mama Jo teach me how to make this!
Friday morning (10/12/18) We helped with the Preschool where kids listened to English songs to help learn numbers, letters, and colors. The best part about preschool was running around with the kids and making them laugh. Praise God that He made laughter and smiles a universal language.
After Preschool we went to the shelter to pick up the street kids, while we were waiting for them to arrive, we parked next to a fence that had a small door where a small girl was popping her head out, and after just a smile and a game of hide and seek behind the fence, we began playing on the street for an hour—consisting of tickle fights, hand games where she sang a song and I followed along with the hand motions and lots of hide and seek games. She knew English well, she is 4 years old.
At night we have bunks to sleep in with a foam mattress, a pillow and sheets. We also have a blanket but it’s too hot to use it. We also have flushable toilets, and a real shower!! The shower is cold but feels so good after a hot day.
By far the best time of our trip so far has been playing in the river with the street boys, we splashed, played games and had a great meal on the river. We also recently had a worship night at the church where we have been staying and it was truly a Jesus Party!
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