Surgery Update

Thank you all for praying for Ben and I this past week as we went up to Manila for his surgery (sorry I wasn't able to update you before now - I didn't have any internet access up there). Ben has had persistent fluid behind his ear drums for more than 6 months, and the last time we confirmed he still had fluid was 2 weeks before we went up for surgery. Our flight ended up SIX hours delayed on our way to Manila so things were pretty crazy when we got there and had to fit all the tests and appointments into a couple hours instead of all day. But we got all the tests done, and I was absolutely shocked when the dr said that the fluid had inexplicably cleared sometime in the last 2 weeks!!! Since there was no fluid, there was no need for surgery after all! Well, we asked for God to make it clear for us whether or not to go ahead with the surgery, and it doesn't get any clearer than that!!! We were so thankful to not have to do it, but it did feel a bit like a wasted trip. Since it is semester school break right now, all the flights this week were full so we couldn't even arrange to come home earlier. So Ben and I were stuck in Manila for the week with no surgery after all. :) We had some great 1-on-1 time and got to visit with some friends we haven't seen in a while so that was nice. We will have to continue to keep an eye on him with the fluid thing since it is possible that it is coming and going, and he may still end up needing tubes eventually, but hopefully this is the end of it. Thanks again for all your prayers and words of encouragement!!!

Please pray

I know many of you have been following the situation with Ben's speech delay and the persistent fluid behind his ear drums. Well, on Monday (Oct 20), Ben and I (Jen) are headed up to Manila to check into all this. We will go straight from the airport to the hospital to get some various tests done, then we will see the ENT at 2pm. He will do a thorough consultation, and if his advice is for Ben to get tubes in his ears and/or his adenoids out to resolve the persistent fluid issue, then I will call Steve and our company dr in the States to discuss it. If we agree that this is what needs to happen, then Ben is scheduled to stay the night at the hospital Monday night then have surgery at 7am on Tuesday morning. If it is just tubes, then he should be out that same day. If he has to get his adenoids out as well, they may keep him Tuesday night as well. Ben and I will plan to come home on Friday morning as long as all goes well. Please pray for wisdom as we make quick decisions, for Ben to be brave and cooperative with the various tests and possible recovery pain, and for me to have patience from above as I help Ben this week.

Steve and the older 2 will stay home this week, and Megan will be teaching all their school so they can stay on track even though I am gone!!! We praise God for how willing she always is to help however she is needed.

How God Can Use a Child

This week our co-workers are hosting a large training event where they are discussing how to use Bible Storying to communicate the Truth. Altogether, with trainers and attendees, I think there is around 65 people at their house this week! This pictures shows some of the group gathered there. Steve has been helping in the discussions, doing some translating, and helping our Agta guys to understand the concepts. I have been playing chauffeur and gofer all week, running people back and forth and doing the necessary running around town. Since our mornings have been starting before our helper arrives, the kids have been leaving the house with me at 6am. It has been a busy week, but we are encouraged with how God is using this time in the lives of many people.

Here are some of the Agta guys who came - a few couldn't make it to the last day so they aren't in the picture.

I want to share with you about how God used Mikayla this week. By way of intro, something that has been on our hearts and in our prayers lately is how to help the new Agta believers to learn to worship in their heart language. Since they don't have any Scriptures in their mother tongue or any worship songs already written, this will require them translating some Psalms and putting them to music or writing their own from their hearts. Steve and I have been discussing and praying about how best to encourage them with this, but we have so far not brought it up with anyone. Well, it all began on the 1st day I was ferrying the Chieftain to the training...

1. The topic of heart worship naturally came up in discussion with the chieftain in the car, and it got his wheels turning.

2. The next day, completely out of the blue, Mikayla decided - for the 1st time ever - that she wanted to compose a song of praise to God. She had not been with me to hear the discussion with the chieftain in the car. She worked on it for several hours and completed it.

3. The next day, unbeknownst to me, Mikayla brought her newly-written song with us to pick up some more people for the training. She eagerly showed it to the men we picked up. That prompted a discussion about heart worship with those guys, and they were excited about the possibility. I encouraged them with, "If Mikayla can do it, so can you!"

4. One of the guys, Freddie, is musically inclined and became especially excited about this idea, and he wants to begin composing some worship songs in their heart language. He has said repeatedly, "If Mikayla can do it, so can I!!!"

5. On the final day of the training, each of the groups had to make a presentation to the rest of the group, showing a story they had learned as a group. Freddie decided he wanted to compose a song about Mary and Martha to communicate their group's story.

6. Also on the final day of the training, Mikayla showed her song to the training leader (from the States). Dorothy asked Mikayla if she would be willing to sing her song in front of the group to help those who were feeling nervous about their presentation to know that they can do it with God's help.

7. Mikayla was very nervous, but she felt like God could use her to encourage the others to be bold in sharing the truth. So she decided to rely on God and just do it.

"If a child can do it, so can we!"

Isn't it great how God can use anyone, regardless of how old (smart, educated, experienced...) we are???

A Step of Faith

Sunday was a gorgeous, sunny day, and we gathered with some of the group from the Sept 6 post "Forgiven" beside a little lake at the foot of a volcano.

What a spectacular setting for God to do something amazing. These four new believers took a bold step of faith and proclaimed to their curious friends and neighbors that they have chosen to follow Christ.
We can't wait to see all that God will accomplish through the new life of Jose. He is incredibly excited about what he has learned from the Bible, and he is eagerly telling everyone else he comes in contact with.
Jose then baptized his wife, Mary Ann.
Then Jose baptized his brother-in-law, Christopher (the one featured the month of July on our prayer calendar for those of you who are following that - your prayers were answered!) and a friend of theirs, Annabelle. Their culture makes it awkward for a man to touch a woman who is not his wife, so their solution was that Jose's wife would stand with him while he baptized Annabelle.

We give God all the glory for the amazing ways that He is at work amongst the Agta tribal people and the way that HE IS BUILDING HIS CHURCH in this place. Praise be to Him!

Extreme Kids Wakeboarding

Kids Wakeboarding Fun

FYI

Just wanted to let you know that we finally got those videos to upload about our trip to the beach where we got stranded. If you scroll down this page, you will see a post called "A Rough Ride". The first video is the really wild one about our boat ride home, the second is one of Kayla catching a wave. Enjoy!

And Another!

Apparently Zach liked his $1 visit from the Tooth Fairy last night, because today (about 20 hours later) he pulled out ANOTHER tooth! So now both his bottom middle teeth are missing - but he doesn't seem to mind. I think we better not up the Tooth Fairy ante though or he may be knocking a new tooth out every day!