Lockdown Ministry

Life has continued in lockdown, and so has ministry...however, there have been some major changes. Since much of our ministry revolves around travel and trainings (large-group gatherings), many things have been put on hold. In spite of that, there have been some things we've been able to do. For one, we've gotten caught up on computer and administrative work (receipts and blog). 

Then, just like the rest of the world, there have been a LOT of zoom meetings. We are thankful that some things have been able to continue in this way, including a training about God's heart for the nations that Steve leads every Saturday morning with about 20 in attendance.

 

While this lockdown has been a challenge for us, at least we have food to eat. Those who live hand to mouth (if they don't work that day, they don't eat) have been starving. :( The boys had the opportunity to help with some relief loading and packaging for Timothy Project, run by our close friends. They were a big help carrying the large sacks of rice, and they helped with sorting/packing eggs and other food. They did not help with distribution, but I added a couple of Timothy Project's pics of the people they prepared the food for.

 

Zach has continued leading worship in our little house church (with his cousin), and it has been amazing to see how he's grown in this through lockdown.

 An unexpected ministry opportunity presented itself a couple weeks ago when I (Jen) heard about a new family who had arrived from the States just before lockdown (welcome to the Philippines!), and they were expecting a baby the end of May, but all their baby supplies were stuck in customs through lockdown AND no stores open selling baby stuff. I was able to coordinate some loaner items for them through my network, and figured out a way to get it delivered to them (NOT easy!). It was God's perfect timing though because we got it delivered one day, and she went into labor that same night! It was several weeks early, but baby and mom are both fine and recovering at home. And they have clothes, bed, blankets and other things for him now. :)

So ministry during this time has definitely looked very different, but we have been thankful for the opportunities we have to reach into the lives of others...even if done virtually.

Lockdown Life

We just found out that Manila will extend their lockdown again, new date for it to end is May 31 (but could be extended again). This means that Manila will be locked down longer than Wuhan was. Here's a few pics from our locked-down life. 

Zach has continued with his advanced foods class, and we have enjoyed weekly international recipes. Ecuadorian sweet rolls was a favorite.

 The guys have been enjoying playing "knock out" for school/work breaks. Our two basketballs went flat, and nowhere is open to buy new ones, but a friend loaned us two, so they have been able to continue.

 It was a hard day when they announced no graduation. Zach stared into space a lot of the day, processing. In the States, graduation is a happy celebration and an important milestone, but for an MK, graduation is even a bigger deal as it is when they say goodbye to the world where they grew up and all their friends (most of whom they will never see again) and try to find closure to this life before starting their new one on the other side of the world. We are praying for this group of MKs who have been denied the opportunity for healthy transition activities. Research says they will flounder without them, but our trust is in God for these precious MKs.

 Rugby sports awards were held online. Ben was awarded Most Inspirational Player for JV, and Zach was the MVP for varsity. So proud of these guys!

 Meanwhile back in the States, Mikayla has been staying with my parents. We are so thankful that they have each other during this time, and they have been such a blessing to Mikayla!

 Online school has continued. It has been a challenge (there was a 2-week stretch that Zach was putting in 12 hour days until I started emailing teachers), but they have persevered, and we are so proud of them.

 The weather has added some challenges too - heat index has been up over 115 most days lately (sometimes higher!); it was 102 in my kitchen - straight temp not heat index - when I was making supper the other night. Now we have a typhoon headed our way that we have been tracking. This is especially exciting because we have a section of roof that is about to give, so Steve needs to reinforce it before any winds...but hardware stores are closed with the lockdown. We think we found a place to get some lumber, so trying that...

 Another thing to be thankful for in this lockdown is that we live a couple houses down from "the cousins" so we have considered ourselves 1 household during this time and enjoyed lots of time together. I found these pics on google photos from where they synced from one of the boys' phones. Looks like they were on the roof at the cousins' house. :)
(yes, there is one more cousin, but her pic wasn't in the ones I found)

Here is our ticket to the outside world during quarantine. It is the quarantine pass issued by our area. It says that only one person per house can go out to buy food or medicine.

 Ben gets a kick out of this side because it lists Zach as head of household because he is the one who got the pass. It says that anyone without a quarantine pass will be caught.

As of this past weekend, our area has gone to "general community quarantine" instead of "enhanced community quarantine". Not much has changed for us since still only supposed to go out for food/medicine, but a few more places (like hardware stores) are open now. And the road checkpoints aren't as strict so Steve and I went out for a short drive in our area (to check out a house to possibly move to), but apparently you still need the quarantine pass to go shopping.

Thanks for continuing to pray for us during this time, especially for wisdom as we try to figure out summer plans.

Relief Project

This lockdown has been incredibly difficult for our tribal friends. They live hand-to-mouth, which means if they don't work one day, they don't eat on that day. Well, with the lockdown, they have been prevented from going out to work the day jobs they are used to. Additionally, they are not allowed to hike to the river where they can find fish and river snails as supplemental food; and the promised government aid/relief has not come through for the vast majority. So this has been a hungry season for them, eating whatever plants they can find in the area surrounding their homes (which are now stripped bare). Thankfully, a couple weeks ago, we were able to secure some funds from our organization's disaster relief department to provide at least some food to these hungry families. Our tribal partners there bought rice, noodles, and canned goods, repackaged it, secured the necessary permits to travel to other villages, and distributed relief to more than 300 tribal families. While it was only a bandaid on a gaping wound, it was something anyway. Please pray with us that they can get back to work soon - we are getting texts again this week that they just don't have anything to eat. :(

Tribal House Church

A friend in one of the villages in Bicol sent these pics that were an encouragement to us, and we thought they might be to you as well. It was one of the very first house churches that we planted, starting back in 2007. During this quarantine lockdown, they have continued to meet (no one is apparently monitoring what happens in the villages, only if you go out to the roads) to study the Word and worship together. I'm not sure they get the whole idea of social distancing, but still an encouragement to see their desire to continue drawing close to our Father in the midst of this difficult time.
(Sorry for the poor photo quality - taken on one of their cheap cell phones in the dark.)