Bugkalot to Bicol

Last month, Steve was blessed to accompany a group of 8 Bugkalot tribal church leaders down to Bicol to visit the ones whom their churches have sent out.  They met first at the training center in Bicol that the volunteer team this past summer helped to build.

 They had a wonderful time of fellowship together for a couple days.  Their time included some business-type meetings, ministry reports, and a time of training as well.  Just a few weeks previously, Steve had helped the Bugkalot church leadership to think through their vision statement and strategy for how they want to function so he was especially encouraged when the chairman of the Bugkalot church leadership shared their vision and passion for the Bugkalot churches.  We are so excited to partner with these churches and the ones they are sending out!

 Spending time in prayer together is a priority every time we gather as a group.

 In addition to time spent at the training center, the guys headed out to the local Agta tribal villages to see exactly where our Bugkalot partners are working and to meet the people to whom they are ministering.

 Even though both the Bugkalot and Agta are tribal people, their cultures are VERY different, and this difference is even evident in the kinds of homes in which they live.  It is so good for the Bugkalot to see the Agta situation for themselves so that they better understand the situation in Bicol and know how to pray more specifically for the ones they have sent out.

 We are so thankful for these partners!

 The guys saw several different sights as they traveled around several different areas.

 Towards the end of the trip, the guys climbed up to the top of a mountain that overlooks several different Agta areas.

 There at the top of the mountain, overlooking the vast area where some of the 100,000 Agta live, they stopped to pray for the Agta tribe and for the workers who are ministering here in this place.

Some of the Bugkalot church leaders were in tears several times during this trip as they realized the magnitude of the work in Bicol and how much we need GOD to work.  They said that this trip helped them understand the situation down here so much better; now they know how to pray more specifically for the ones they have sent out, and they are excited to share that passion with their churches back home.  

(*Photo cred: Many of the pictures were taken by the pastors themselves.*)

Hagen Happenings

Things have been busy as always around the Hagen home!  On March 1, Ben turned 11 years old!

Since he has never had a big class before, he wanted to invite the WHOLE class to his party. :)  We had a lot of fun with a BIG group of 5th graders.  It's a great group, and we are so thankful that Ben has them as classmates. 

We enjoyed cake, ice cream, and watermelon (notice Ben is counting the candles to make sure we got it correct!), then we went up to the pool on campus to play some water games together.  Unfortunately, I was soooo busy at the pool, that I didn't get any pics of that part so you will have to take my word for it that we had a good time. :)

The other day I had the privilege of babysitting for a friend's foster baby.  This precious little gem was just over 3lbs when she was born 1.5 months ago, but she has already gained more than a pound since then!

See how this guy's thumb is the same size as her little arm??  She is just so adorable, and I thoroughly enjoyed some wonderful "baby therapy". :)

Something big happened just this past week.  Zach competed in a speech tournament at school with all the 7th and 8th graders.  He and a friend performed the dramatic duo "Who's on 1st".  They did a spectacular job, and they went on to the finals (which is rare for 7th graders).  Then they proceeded to give their best performance yet for the finals in front of several hundred people - and they won!  They were so excited, and we were so proud of them.  They worked hard on this very challenging piece, and it was fun to see them reap the rewards for their labors.  

Check out that smile. :)

Steve just arrived back from a week down in Bicol with our tribal partners as well as several Bugkalot church leaders who took a vision trip down there.  It was a great time of fellowship together, and I will do a post about there time soon.

This week will be another busy one with my (Jen's) mom and dad arriving tomorrow!  Since the kids are on spring break this week, we will all travel together up to the tribe together on Tuesday, then back on Thursday in time to catch their flight out that night.  We would appreciate prayers as it will be a busy 72 hours while they are here, filled with lots of time on the road and in important meetings.  Thanks for standing behind us!