Using what I learned

It's been a month since I've seen the place I called home for two months. At times, I miss this place and the adventures like crazy, but I know my time there has been finished for now. Hearing of the great things that are happening since our team has left makes it a little easier. Now I get the privilege of using the things I learned there while I live here.

-Zach T
Impact Cebu
Philippines

The Work Has Only Begun

Lives changed. Lessons learned.We have finished our ministry here in Cebu and only have one more thing remaining....a baptism! We are getting to baptize a family that has been ministered to by the last two NTs in this area. This is amazing! We are done with revisits and our translators will be doing follow ups during August. 

Pray that our friends being baptized would continue to grow and make disciples. 
Pray that our translators can share more of the gospel with the people of peace we had summer. 
Pray that the end for us will only be the new beginning for our new brothers and sisters in Christ. 

Although we are leaving...the work has only begun.

The War

Ever since I was a little kid I've loved hearing war stories and  learning the strategy behind war. Over the course of this summer it has finally clicked within my brain as to why I have always been fixated on war and learning battle strategies. I was built and designed to fight in a war. This war is not a war between countries and it can not be fought with guns and military power. 

The battle that I fight in is a battle between the good and evil of Heaven and Hell. I am a soldier of Christ. I may feel outnumbered and outgunned by the enemy, but I do not rely on strength that is my own. I rely on the God of angel armies. He not only commands my life, but the lives of my co laborers and warriors in God's mighty army. We have many previous soldiers to learn from like Abraham, Jacob, Joshua, David, Paul, and many others throughout more modern history. 

A comforting factor in fighting in this battle is knowing that I do not fight alone in my generation. I know many in my generation, Generation X, that are taking up the cross of Christ to fight in this battle against darkness. Along with war and strategy, I also like math, so when I see the X in Generation X I see our legion of  warriors as the unknown. X in math is always unknown, just as our age of warriors is bringing an unknown strength, number, and reliance on the Lord into the next wave of battle. 

We are also a generation much like Joshua. We stand looking at a land filled with giants telling the people that the Lord will deliver our enemies unto or hands. We are unafraid of what lies ahead. We want to fight for the cause of the Lord. We are an entire generation of Joshua's ready to go wherever the Lord leads us. We are Generation X. We are the unknown. The best part of it all is that although we may be fighting a battle the war has already been  won, and we are fighting on the winning side. 

Pray that after this trip myself and the others serving this summer will serve the Lord without reservation and hesitation.
Pray that we will go in with full confidence in the Lord and share the gospel wherever light is needed.

"I consider my life worth nothing to me if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me, the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace."  Acts 20:24

Pamilya

In all honesty, I've wanted nothing more than to go home for weeks. That changed this week. I no longer want to count the days until I go home. I want to spend as much time with these people who don't have a relationship with Jesus. 

All of this changed because God used someone 10,000 miles away. I have a friend, Cory, who has been on the team I am serving on for the past two summers. This past week our team entered a village that Cory had spent several weeks in over the past two summers. My translators know Cory and they know that I go to school with him. When we arrived in village K, my translators were very quick to ask if I wanted to visit the good friend of Cory. We decided to go see if they were home. On the first trip no one was home. The second trip found only Ate Bebie home. Finally on the third trip, Kuya Ete was home. This family proved to be a great family of peace. 

I climbed coconut trees, killed chickens, and watched movies with them. They become family. They spoke so highly of Cory and missed him greatly. I was shown that if you are surrendered to the Lord and doing His will that people will be impacted. Our team spent time laughing with, hanging out with, and ministering to this family. We are even going back in a few weeks to stay the night at their house when we revisit their village. This family was used to show me that as much as I love my family that there are other families who do not yet know the gospel (although this one does). 

As great as Kuya and Ate were, my heart was broken for their son, Cyrus. He and I got along great. We couldn't always communicate great, but we got by. We goofed off, watched a movie together, did a little bit of chores together (by the end it was "no work, no eat"), and we even tried to read each other's Bibles despite them being in a different language. I fell in love with this family and want nothing more than for them to impact their village. Cory wrote John 14:10 on the wall of Kuya Ete's father's house... "Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you are not I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works."

-Zach

Pray that this family and others in the village would understand the truth in that verse and the truth of the gospel. 
Pray for Cyrus, Kuya Ete, and Ate Bebie that they would grow closer to Him.
Pray that our time remaining in the Philippines is spent doing the work that the Lord has sent us here to do. 
Pray that He will draw people close to Him.

The Light

Last night, I walked outside to see the most beautiful starry night sky I have ever seen in my life. While looking at the sky, I was amazed at how much light a sky full of stars can bring to the darkness of the night. I was reminded of Gen. 22:17, "...I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven..." 

Paul writes in Galatians 3:7 "Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham." We are those of faith. We are the children of Abraham. We have faith in the God who created each of the stars. We are more numerous than the stars of the night. We bring light in the middle of the dark night. We have the light of the gospel wherever we go. We can dispel the darkness by sharing the story about a gracious Father that loves us. 

Pray that we will finish strong and not hesitate to share the gospel wherever we go. 
Pray that we will shone the light of the gospel in the place that has been our home for almost two months. 

We have grown to not just get by but to adapt and live life here in the Philippines. We are nearing the end and feel as though there is still too much darkness remaining for our work to be finishing. I personally have begun to see how much I have grown since I first arrived, I have become patient instead of stubborn. I persevere with joy now instead of whining. I don't just know now that I can lean on the Lord t get me through the tough times. I believe that I can. The Lord will continue t work here after we leave. People's lives have been and will be changed by the light that our team has brought to our villages. 

Pray that the harvest will continue long after we leave.

A little faith goes a long way

Last week, I was getting discouraged that we haven't had as much success as the past teams. I'd also heard how our team was doing so much work yet seeing so little product. We went to a beach last Wednesday, and after getting my fill of swimming, I climbed a small cliff that overlooked the beach. While I sat on this little cliff watching my team enjoy the beach and laugh together, I looked out over the ocean. In my view was a countless number of waves and the next island over from us. I could clearly hear the waves, which is unusual because I have hearing problems. 

While I was listening to the waves, I was reminded that just as each wave crashes into the rocky cliff that I was on... that the mercy of our Father is washed over me more than that. We serve a God who is merciful. He is mighty. He can do all things. I sat there for a little and a song began to come to mind, so I sang. "Give me faith to trust what You say. That You're good, and Your love is great. I'm broken inside, I give You my life....I may be weak, but your Spirit's strong in me. My flesh may fail, but my God You never will." 

As this song played through my mind and came across my lips, I was shown how little faith I have. I looked at the mountains across from me and remembered the passage about faith the size of a mustard seed being able to move mountains. I have been shown time and time again, yet I did not even have faith that He would would bring the harvest of people we have shared with. I made that song my thought for the day. I repeated it in my mind over and over. Patience. Perseverance. Faith. 

These are gifts the Lord bestows upon us so that we may follow Him into the dark places, into the places were the light of the gospel has not yet reached. 
Have I really given my life to even though I'm broken?
 Is this summer a glimpse of what that looks like?
Do I trust what the Lord says?
Will I follow him into the hard places?
I may not have the answers to all of my questions, but I do have faith in the God of all creation that does have the answer to any question that I may have. 

• Pray that our team would have continued patience and perseverance. 
• Pray that our faith would grow to an immeasurable size.
• Pray that we would trust what He say, and that we would give Him our broken lives for the sake of the gospel.

Perseverance & Patience

A few days ago, we had to go get supplies from the city near us. I made my list and budgeted what we need and how much we could spend without spending too much. (I love schedules, routines, and planning... none of which are really part of the Filipino culture.) After we got the packed grocery store, I began to feel overwhelmed with the amount of chaos. I wanted to freak out because so much was happening at once, but like so many others times this summer, I was reminded that I must be patient. After reminding myself f this multiple times in the grocery store, I finally made it outside only to find it raining. 

Motorcycle travel in the Philippines: always room for 1 more!

After my 100 lb.. translator, our 50 lb. bag of rice, the next weeks worth of food, and my 6'2" 190 lb. self get onto this motorbike, we proceeded to drive 20 minutes in the rain up a mountain road to our village... I began to reflect on what I've been learning. Perseverance and patience blasted in my thoughts the entire ride. 

James 1:2-4 "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance, and perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete not lacking anything." 

Just like I experienced the pain of growing into my 6'2" frame, I am now experiencing some pain of growing into the man of God that God has intended me to become. Like the missionaries we read about all summer, patience and perseverance are key components to living for and following the Lord wherever he guides you. 

Pray for our team as we grow through perseverance & patience this summer.

-Zach

Growing Pains

We have said goodbye to one village and hello to another. However, God has renewed my strength in the middle of a tough time. Last week on our R&R day, we went to a fish farm. I walked up expecting to catch a few fish and move on with my day; however, God had other plans.

I began to get discouraged about not feeling like I was actually sharing the gospel since I can only share so much before my translators are given leeway to share it in the heart language of our lovely people. I had found a sweet spot for fishing, and per the rules of the fish farms, a worker had to take the fish my hook for me. This girl named Josie just stayed beside me as I caught fish after fish. While we were waiting for me to catch the next fish, she began to ask me questions (IN ENGLISH!) about me and where I was from. After a few minutes of back and forth conversation, the conversation just died. As soon as the silence fell, I knew that not sharing the gospel with Josie would be direct disobedience to the Lord and my purpose for being in Cebu. So, I started the conversation back up talking about her brother, whom she had already talked about being a Christian. After asking her what she believed and if her brother had ever shared his beliefs with her, I laid the gospel out in simple terms. Her response to me was, "I can't be forgiven because I've done too much bad." This broke my heart. At that moment, it began to rain and we had to leave, so our conversation ended with my last words of, "God will still forgive you of what you've done." I felt a weight lifted from me as I was shown that I must be patient and let the Lord work.

-Zach
   
Things to pray for our team:

• Patience
• Perseverance
• Continued unity in our team
• People of Peace
• Good health as we play basketball everyday
• People who truly understand their need for the gospel!

My life is worth nothing to me...

Acts 20:24 "I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me, the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace."

Our team has had the opportunity to freely share the gospel with nearly every person we encounter. We have even been able to go to local high schools and share with about 1200 students the good news that we have been tasked with sharing. We have been blessed with many people of peace in our ministry. Please pray that along with the people of peace that we also would encounter people who are truly receptive to the gospel. The people are often stuck in a religion that seems like Catholicism, but it is very animistic. The people we share with are often more afraid of the demons that they give power over their life than they are willing to see the love that God has for them. Pray that blinded eyes would see and deaf ears would hear the good news that is the gospel of God's grace.