A lot has happened in the last week. Our team has been split up, then back together, and then split up again, in our journey to find contacts and debrief sites for future World Race teams.
All I can say is… I wish I was the one doing ministry here, not to mention the amazing debrief options. The Phillippines have suprised me.
We spent a couple of days at a young men’s and women’s discipleship and vocational training school in the Cavite province last week. This is a great option for men’s and women’s ministry. The contacts are Canadian and American, and they are all very talented people with great hearts for the Kingdom! One night Amy and I had a chance to share with the ladies about the World Race and our own personal journeys. We talked about what we miss, but about what we and the people we love have learned as a result of our obedience to God’s call on our lives. It really had an impact on all of us (me included). Sometimes it takes reflection to just see where God has moved in our lives.
Our team met up at this location called Second Mile. From there we left for Puerto Galera, on the island of Oriental Mindoro. It took a full day’s travel through typhoon type weather to get there by boat. Lynette, Amy, and Rusty got there just in time to eat dinner, sleep, and turn around the next day to get back to the airport. They’d fly out the next morning for Mindinao.
Team O’phun (as we like to collectively call ourselves) had split up again. The crew that stayed on the island took jeepney, trike, and foot power to find locations for debrief hotels and such. We scoured the island seeking affordable, yet comfortable locations for a restful debrief. Comfortable typically means there’s a real toilet with a toilet seat… and the island had those!
We enjoyed the volleyball net, the ocean waves, and the missionaries who just happened to show up to stay at our hotel. After spending some time with Bill and Deb, they gave us their info, and some other’s info as well. Networking in a tropical paradise… it’s a tough life, huh?
We made our plans through email for our next stop on the hunt for contacts. Leah knew a family who lived just to the east of Metro Manila because her dad had spent some time in the Phillippines when Leah’s brother was adopted here. So, after a series of horrible bus/ jeepney rides, we ended up at the Burdicks house.
We ate dinner with them, and then they brought us to the missionary guest house. However, the guest house was full, so the Burdicks made room at their home (their three kids didn’t seem to mind that we’d invaded their rooms), and we became family members for a few days. Brent is a pastor of a growing church here, and they are very involved with their children’s school, Faith Academy. Faith is the largest MK school in the world, and we had a chance to work with a kids program there, have the grand tour, and meet with other contacts there.
This morning we’ve moved to a new guest house, property of Kids International Ministry. Jeff Long is the leader of that ministry. And the ministry is growing. There is a children’s home and a community center in a squatter village just down the road from Faith and the Burdick’s house that World Race teams would work with. Jeff also has building opportunites on Mindinao, as they are building a Christian camp there. Also, Jeff seemed really excited about partnership ideas with making the Phillippines a training area for World RAce teams. As we talked more with Jeff, he lit up, and so did we. It was amazing to hear about all of the opportunities available to World Race teams here in the Phillippines. Not to mention that Jeff knows Bill (from the island paradise). It seems as though there’s a tight knit missionary community with many options for teams in the Metro Manila area (as well as Mindinao).
I’m so glad our crew has been given the chance to try out a new facet of missions: set up. Who knew this could be so fun. So our next proposal is… maybe we could send teams to Australia or New Zealand. Team O’phun would be more than willing to try those spots out :).
