Just ten days left until we begin our journey back to the states. It seems like last week we were getting on the first plane ride from Atlanta to Los Angeles. We are all excited to return home, but we know that our work here isn’t finished yet.
We have been in our third barangay for about a week now. It’s a port city, filled with fishermen, families, and few followers of Jesus. This barangay has been more staunch than our previous two, with many Catholics and “Christians” who believe we are treasure hunters and with little interest in allowing us to come back for Bible studies.
But we know that the Lord is working for His good. We may not feel great, physically or mentally, but we know that God is moving if we are obeying and glorifying Him. We may not see the fruit or results of His moving, but we know that He is beginning to because of our obedience and willingness to do small things, such as accept coffee, play with the kids, or hold a baby during Bible study. We see God working in small ways.
For example, we had a family miss a Bible study in the morning, so my group went prayer walking up to the local high school. We found three hammocks under a waiting shed, so we sat down, talked about our day and how we should approach the rest of the barangay. Then, the officer-in-charge (OIC) of the school comes up to us and starts a conversation. After a time, Kuya Ruel asks if we can speak to the children as a whole before school started. The OIC agreed, and we were able to share the Gospel, a testimony, and our purpose with over 100 high schoolers in addition to the teachers. God was and is faithful, leading us in the right direction and putting us in the right position to be effective. Thank the Lord for His consistency.
As we have asked many times before, pray for our island. Pray for the people, that they would realize we are not there to convert them, but to help them create a relationship with Christ. Please also pray for team unity. We want to be united in the Lord and not allow petty things to become obstacles for sharing the Gospel.
Pray for perseverance. We see the end of the road and we don’t want to be caught looking ahead. We want to live in the moment, sharing Jesus and loving people.
Pray that more students see how living for God is the only life that matters, and that giving up our hopes, dreams, and agendas are worth it for the spread of the Gospel to the reaches and hard to reach.
We want to thank everyone again who has been praying ferociously for us. Even though you are not here in the flesh, God respects prayer and will not ignore the requests from His children. We cannot wait to share how our summer went and how God has moved, both in the Philippines and in us.
Colossians 3:17
-Christian
Tropical Harvesters (TJC)
Philippines
We have been in our third barangay for about a week now. It’s a port city, filled with fishermen, families, and few followers of Jesus. This barangay has been more staunch than our previous two, with many Catholics and “Christians” who believe we are treasure hunters and with little interest in allowing us to come back for Bible studies.
But we know that the Lord is working for His good. We may not feel great, physically or mentally, but we know that God is moving if we are obeying and glorifying Him. We may not see the fruit or results of His moving, but we know that He is beginning to because of our obedience and willingness to do small things, such as accept coffee, play with the kids, or hold a baby during Bible study. We see God working in small ways.
For example, we had a family miss a Bible study in the morning, so my group went prayer walking up to the local high school. We found three hammocks under a waiting shed, so we sat down, talked about our day and how we should approach the rest of the barangay. Then, the officer-in-charge (OIC) of the school comes up to us and starts a conversation. After a time, Kuya Ruel asks if we can speak to the children as a whole before school started. The OIC agreed, and we were able to share the Gospel, a testimony, and our purpose with over 100 high schoolers in addition to the teachers. God was and is faithful, leading us in the right direction and putting us in the right position to be effective. Thank the Lord for His consistency.
As we have asked many times before, pray for our island. Pray for the people, that they would realize we are not there to convert them, but to help them create a relationship with Christ. Please also pray for team unity. We want to be united in the Lord and not allow petty things to become obstacles for sharing the Gospel.
Pray for perseverance. We see the end of the road and we don’t want to be caught looking ahead. We want to live in the moment, sharing Jesus and loving people.
Pray that more students see how living for God is the only life that matters, and that giving up our hopes, dreams, and agendas are worth it for the spread of the Gospel to the reaches and hard to reach.
We want to thank everyone again who has been praying ferociously for us. Even though you are not here in the flesh, God respects prayer and will not ignore the requests from His children. We cannot wait to share how our summer went and how God has moved, both in the Philippines and in us.
Colossians 3:17
-Christian
Tropical Harvesters (TJC)
Philippines