I have been in the philippines for almost a month now. I thought I would write a blog to give you a look into our daily lives here in the Philippines!
We have set ministry that we do every week. Our ministry is split into morning and afternoon. In the mornings we have feedings at schools, cleaning around the house, bible studies with three year olds, and women’s prison ministry. Every week we have a choice to pick what we feel the Lord is leading us to do. Each week looks a little different but it’s amazing to see how the Lord puts me exactly where I need to be every time. In the afternoons we have the option of feeding or cleaning. On Saturdays we have Awana in the mornings. This is when kids from the local community’s come to our house. We play games and sing songs and then they have bible classes for all the age groups. Sunday is our adventure day! We usually go to church in the morning and then after that we have free time to do what we want. Some things we love to do is go to the beach, coffee shop, or just go home a take a nap (naps are always needed 🙂 ).
Each ministry is amazing in its own way. Feedings are the most precious and joyful places to be. This is how they work: A group of us girls will get in a van with the lugaw ( type of soup that is filled with protein and vegetables! ) which sits in a big plastic bin in the back of the van. We then drive to the school. Depending on which school the drive can be up to two hours or only 20 minutes. As soon as we arrive all we see is kids with the brightest smiles running to the van. They come to us with there bowls, cups, plates, and some times plastic bags waiting for their food. We open the back of the van and scoop the food for them one by one. Getting to see all of their beautiful smiles as you give them their food can make any day ten times better. The kids gulp down their food as fast as they can and usually come for seconds! After we are done feeding we go into the class rooms and get to sing fun songs with them and teach them a bible verse in english. The most precious times are afterwards when we get to sit and talk to the kids outside. We attempt to learn all their names as they begin to quiz us to see if we remember. They love to run around and play tag ! Yes it might feel like a hundred degrees outside but it’s so worth it. They love to teach us their favorite games so I am always learning something new! Banana Split is a game they love to play and man let me tell you i’m not flexible so that is always an adventure for me. They walk us to their houses, bring us puppies to hold, and take us to see their pet monkeys. As we leave the school the kids chase our van down the street as we yell to them “SEE YOU NEXT WEEK MAHAL KITA !”.
Me and my team always know how to make our cleaning days fun. We turn on our music and jam out as we clean the house and wash clothes. We recently started a new and exciting project in the upstairs of our house that I’m going to share with y’all. Upstairs we have a room that is designated to Awana on Saturdays. When we first arrived the room was very dirty and had not been used in a while. We cleaned it up and decided to repaint the whole room! We all pitched in and bought all colors of paint so we could decorate the walls with flowers and make it fun for when the kids use it. We have been having a blast painting and we can not wait to see the finished product (I will defiantly post a picture so be on the look out).
The woman’s prison is so amazing. I have been twice and every time I am blown away by the joy in the women’s hearts. The prison is super small and they do not have enough space for everyone. Some women sleep on the floor because the beds are limited. We go in and we sit with them! We get to play games together, worship together, and learn about Jesus together. Watching the women worship fills my heart with so much love. Their joy for the Lord is so powerful and they have some much hope. Many of them have been in prison for many years and for small things that should not require prison, yet they do not let that hold them back. They love the Lord and want to live for him! JOYFUL and FULL OF LIFE is how I would describe each of them.
SPONTANEOUS MINISTRY
On days where we get done early or our schedule changes we get to do some really awesome things. The Holy Spirit has lead us in ministry even when we thought we were just taking a walk to the store. We have gone on prayer walks through communities and met the sweetest people. We have been able to pray over them and other times just show them love with a smile! The Lord has opened doors as we ride trikes everyday into town. We have heard the most touching stories as our drivers tell us about their families and their everyday lives. They are always the sweetest guys and never fail to get us where we need to go! During these times I am reminded the most of this quote, “ Life is ministry. Ministry is Life”. It reminds me that our everyday life is ministry just as much as the scheduled things we do. The Holy Spirit is in everything we do and wants to use us in every way possible. He is speaking to us all the time, we just have to listen.
The Lord is so awesome. I love to see him work through the big things we do but also through the simple things! As the months go on I am super excited to see how He continues to reveal himself to me more and more each day. My team and I are having the best time serving together. I see each of them and myself stepping into the confidence and boldness the Lord has placed in us. All of the prayers mean so much, so keep sending them our way !
I love each of you and hope you enjoyed reading about what the Lord has allowed us to be a part of as we have been here! <3
