A Joyful Reunion

Matt, Erin, & Chloe Price arrived safely last week for a 2-week visit. We were all thrilled to see them again, and we have had a wonderful time reconnecting. Right after we picked them up at the airport, we did some sight-seeing around Mt. Mayon, our spectacular volcano. Isn't it amazing?

The 4 kids are having a lot of fun together, and Chloe is doing great getting acquainted with the different world here.

Erin is a great photographer so I anticipate having some pics on the blog while she is here that include me. :) Here is a family picture in front of Mt. Mayon that I thought you may enjoy.

We had to cross a little log bridge to get to the Cagsawa ruins, a popular place for tourists at the foot of the volcano. Mikayla and Chloe were best of friends in the States before we came over, and they have loved being reunited.
And another family picture - I think you are going to get tired of having me in the pics. :)
Isn't this an amazing place? I also love the pictures that Erin takes.

We are excited to introduce all of you to Matt and Erin Price and their daughter Chloe. They also have 2 other daughters, Emma and Laney, who are staying with grandparents during this time. If you want to see some more pics of them (as well as some more pics that Erin has taken on this trip so far - she is posting a lot more than I am), please check out their blog at http://pricefamilyupdates.blogspot.com/ . The reason that we are even more excited than normal about the Prices' visit is because God has recently led them to prayerfully consider partnering with us to reach the Agta here in Bicol. They have been praying about it for several weeks now and have even completed the extensive paperwork of the application process with our company. After they had been here a few days (and their brains had cleared a little from jet lag!), we spent nearly a full day discussing what the position would entail, how we see that fitting into the big picture of church planting amongst the Agta, and how we think they would be a great fit for the position and on our team. After that time, Matt and Erin said that they feel that God is definitely leading them this direction! So at this point they are on their way to join us here in Bicol for at least 3 years, unless God closes the door. We are so incredibly excited about their decision and can't wait to see how God is going to use this team (the Hagens and Prices) to plant reproducing churches amongst the Agta for His glory.

Please be in prayer with us that the rest of the application process for them goes smoothly and as they make the necessary preparations to move across the ocean, hopefully by April 2008. Between now and then, they would like to attend the fall semester of intensive Bible training in Wisconsin while they finish the application process with our company. Please pray that God would provide the finances needed for this and give them an extra measure of grace as they have a very busy year, full of transitions, ahead of them.

Rodents, lizards, and ants - Oh my!

Ok, so the lizards are normal for around here (we always have little ones climbing the wall - which is ok with us because they eat the mosquitos), but I thought I would let you know about our recent adventures with rodents and ants. When we got home from our travels, our house was infested with ants. Every counter was covered with them. We had secured a tenuous victory over them before we left by practicing fastidious cleanliness. However, it seems our helper was not as fastidious while we were gone because the ants definitely overran us. After several "Raid" battles, we went to the city an hour away and got some heavy duty ant poison. Today the ant infestation seems much better.

As for the rodents, it seems that our giant monitor lizard (see the post about "Monty" below for details) was waging that war on our behalf. However, we have not seen or heard from Monty since before we left in June, and it seems that the local rodents have heard the news that our home is open for business once again. Our dogs have been doing a great job of killing any of the ones that try to make the mad dash across the yard (they have killed 9 large rats in the 2 weeks since Steve has been home!). However, a few have managed to make it into our house. We noticed the evidence of a few mice and began hearing rats in the attic (where Monty used to live). So we bought some weapons to fight this war as well, and we have killed 5 rats or mice in the last 2 days! All this rodent action has us wondering if it is possible to buy a monitor lizard to put in your attic to live. A thought I would never have considered until recently. I debated, but I decided to spare you the photos of the effects of our rodent war - they wouldn't be pretty, believe me! :)

Our friends Matt and Erin and their daughter Chloe are enroute to see us! We are unbelievably excited. Mikayla and Chloe became best of friends when they were 3 years old in Sparks in AWANA at our home church in Missouri. I can't wait to see their reunion. We adults are pretty excited as well to see some of our very best friends. :) In case some of you are wondering, no, the fact that I waited to publish this post about our rodent infestation until AFTER they left the USA was NOT intentional...but it sure doesn't hurt anything! :)

Here are some pics of the Price kids and Hagen kids before we came to the Philippines. They have had one more daughter since this pic was taken.

Best Friends Forever!

Across the Lake

Yesterday our whole family and our 2 visitors were able to travel to one of the new Bible studies that Steve has been doing. Let me give you a little background for this group - there was a very large group in the village of Ipil (EE-peel) that was interested in being taught. So Steve asked them if they would select the leaders in the group and their wives; then he would teach the leaders and train them how to teach the others. They were excited about that, and the study has been going well so far. Yesterday there were about 15 adults in attendance, mostly men. There are 2 parts to the lessons that Steve is teaching - agricultural training and a story from the Word. It was so exciting to see the men and women eager to learn about the Bible. They are also interested in starting a "test plot" to try some of the agricultural techniques he is teaching.

Here a few pics so you can join us on our adventure. The last one we shared pics of was a hike up into the mountains. This village is located on the other side of Lake Buhi so we drive about 20 minutes then take a little boat to the other side.

This was our boat captain. He looks mean, but he broke into a massive smile when the kids joined him out on the front of the little boat.

Unfortunately, he kept hiding from the camera at the last second so you will just have to imagine his smile. :)

We arrived several hours before the Bible study so that we could visit with the people. The kids had a ball running wild with the other kids, and we had a nice time visiting with their parents and grandparents.
We brought some fish with us, and they grilled it up for lunch. It was delicious!

Steve and Mikayla ran out to the local grocery store for a snack.
This the boat we rode home. The kids had fun climbing all over it before it was time to leave. Notice the mountain in the background. It is a volcano that blew 400 years ago. The town of Iriga (where we live) is just on the other side so don't normally see this one. You can see here where a massive chunk of the mountain is missing, leaving only a gigantic crater. It must have been quite the day when that blew!
The kids are getting really good at balancing on these ramps and on other log bridges. We have been so proud of them in how they have adjusted to life here.
Please pray with us for the group that is meeting in the village of Ipil. Pray that the people would continue to come and be eager to learn more from the Word (especially the men since it is normally so difficult to get men to be interested in spiritual things). Pray that many would be saved in this village and a church would be established that will spread the Good News to the surrounding areas.

Mr. Clips

Here is a post that Mikayla wrote and wanted me to put on the blog -

This is how Mr. Clips was made. Fist we(Zach and Ben and I (Mikayla) made a circle a and I thout about making a smiley face and so we made one. Then we decided to make him a king and that went well. So we made a castle to go with it.
He even has a crown and a airplane and so that’s the story of Mr. clips. THE END!

Back Home Again

Hello once again from the Philippines! I (Jen) arrived home yesterday from an amazing week in Thailand and a few days in Singapore. Let me get you up to speed on how all our various trips went. Our annual meeting with our company went very well, and Mikayla had an absolute blast the following week at summer camp. Steve and the boys had a safe trip up into the mountains, and we are encouraged by the excitement the Ilongot people are showing about the possibility of sending some of their own to partner with us to reach the Agta. We had hoped to do some training in their midst in October, but that falls right in the middle of harvest time so we will probably schedule the training for January instead. My time in Thailand went amazingly well; we had a great group of students, and we were able to connect with them in real ways. Thanks for praying for all of us during our various travels.
While I was in Thailand, Steve had his hands full with sick kids - including several doctor visits and an ER visit! I am happy to say that the boys are doing much better now. However, please be in prayer for Mikayla as she is running some high fevers and having symptoms that make us suspicious of dengue fever. Please pray that whatever it is will run its course without any complications.
I went straight from Thailand to Singapore to see the specialist about my wrist. The doctor there seemed to have a lot more experience with this condition, and she said she wants to try several different things before jumping into major surgery. I got several more xrays and an MRI. The xrays showed that the gap between the bones has narrowed significantly (PTL!), and the MRI showed that the tendon is not "severed" like the doctor in Manila assumed. The doctor gave me a steroid shot in my wrist, and she is optimistic that it will heal on its own within a month! Honestly, as painful as it is, I have a hard time seeing this happen; but it is worth a shot (no pun intended :) ). So right now we are in "wait and see" mode. The next step will be a splint that completely immobilizes my entire right arm, palm facing up. Please pray with us for God's will in all this and that He will be glorified in whatever happens.
Tomorrow, our supervisor and his wife will be coming to our home for a visit. We are so looking forward to having them in our home for a few days and showing them how God is at work down here amongst the Agta. Then we have some dear friends from the from our home church, Matt and Erin Price along with their eldest daughter Chloe (Mikayla's best friend!), who will be arriving for a visit on July 26. Please pray for safe travels and health for them and also for God's direction in their lives. They had orginally planned this just as a trip to visit us and see what life on the field is like with a family; however, God recently opened up the possibility of them moving here for 2-3 years to partner with us to reach the Agta! So what was just a trip to visit friends has become a vision trip for them. Please pray for God's clear direction in their lives while they are here.
Thank you for your faithful prayers over the last few weeks. It has been a very busy time for our family, and we have been encouraged by your intercession on our behalf and your sweet notes as well. May God bless you richly as you seek to glorify Him in all you do.

Please Pray!

Hello from Thailand! I (Jen) just arrived here yesterday to help with a conference for TCKs (Third Culture Kids) that are about to graduate high school, to help prepare them for the upcoming transition. Thanks for praying this week that we are able to connect with the students in a real way. Please pray as well for Mikayla at summer camp and Steve and the boys as they travel into the mountains to visit the village where I grew up; we want to see if they are interested in partnering with us to reach the Agta. And please be in prayer for our family as we are apart this month. Steve and the kids will travel home on the 7th, and I will be home on the 15th.

We also have another big prayer request to share with you. On the way to our meetings last week, we stopped in Manila to see a hand specialist about my wrist. I injured it in April and have been wearing an immobilizing wrist brace for 3 1/2 months now, but it has not improved. The specialist is the top one in Manila, and he said that the tendon that holds my 2 wrist bones together was severed, causing the bones to separate. He described a surgery to repair it that involves harvesting a tendon from my arm, drilling holes in both bones, then threading the tendon through and around the bones to reconnect them. However, this hand specialist has only done this extensive procedure once, so that made us a little nervous. We emailed our medical department in the States, and they agreed that I need to have it looked at by somene else. So I will be traveling to Singapore after my conference here in Thailand to see a doctor there. Please pray that the details for this last-minute trip come together and that the doctor would have some experience with this very rare injury. Also, if this doctor recommends the same procedure, pray for wisdom to know where and when to have it done and what to do with the kids during that time. The recovery that the Manila doctor described involved a cast up to my shoulder with a wire through the bones that keeps my palm facing up and immobile for 6 weeks, followed by 6 weeks of physical therapy. We appreciate your prayers during this uncertain time. We are staying encouraged and resting in the fact that God is in control, but there are a lot of unknowns out there right now. We are praying that this medical situation will not take us away from our location for any longer than is necessary. Please pray with us.