REJOICING!!!

Thank you for praying with us during the day of prayer and fasting with the Bogkalot church. This day was the culmination of many months of praying and working to mobilize these dear brothers and sisters to GO! God worked mightily in hearts!

The group met under a bridge between 2 villages so that distractions would be minimum. They had a lot of time praying as a whole group and discussing the issue at hand - WHO will they send and WHAT are the next steps.

Since there were actually 4 village churches gathered together, they also spent some time broken off into individual churches for prayer and discussion. My dad said it was so cool because the groups were spread out along the river, and periodically you would hear worship songs being lifted from the different groups. Precious.

After much prayer and discussion, they asked those who were feeling that God may be calling them to GO to stand up, signifying they were willing. After this, they spent time again with their individual churches. During that time of discussion, the churches decided to initially send out 3 families and 2 single men. There are several others who hope to follow soon but have some issues they need to take care of first.

(For example, with one family, one of the teenage sons doesn't want to go; with another, the church asked them to stay for a while longer and help them address the issue of cults in the area before they leave. We encouraged them to resolve these things first, and we will look forward to them joining the team as soon as they are able. Can you please pray with us for the ones feeling called to go but who are being left behind for the time being? Pray that God would work in His time and His way to make it possible for them to join us. Please pray especially for Emillano - in the blue shirt - that their church would be able to work through the issues with the cults so that he is free to come. He and his family want to come so badly, and they would be an incredible asset to the team.)

Our hearts are overflowing; God has called out believers from the Bogkalot tribe to reach the Agta tribe. And not only that, but they are planning to move down here in APRIL!!!

We are praising God for the way HE is at work in their hearts. Even the ones who are not actually going are fully committed to standing behind and supporting the ones who do. I will leave you with a clip of the worship time.

Praise Him with us!

Desperate Prayer Need

The four churches where we have been teaching the last few months asked to gather together and spend a day in prayer and fasting, just like the believers did in Acts. They said that they want to spend this time praying about WHO they will send to reach the Agta and what the NEXT STEPS are. Won't you take some time to pray fervently with them? They will be meeting together on Feb 19 all day (Feb 18 7pm - Feb 19 4am CST).

See next post for the new pics/stories from our most recent time up there. Tnx!

Our Adventure

We made it back safely from another stretch up in the mountains. Steve is actually already back up there; he just dropped the kids and me off in Manila so that we can head to Thailand tomorrow am for a homeschool conference and the kids' annual testing.

It is already late, and we leave early in the am, so I will make this quick (sorry no time to organize the pics...or even my thoughts!). First off, we want to praise God for his protection. The last day we were up there, the kids and I were on an exercise walk. We came across a 6 ft bright green snake. We were in the midst of a steep climb up a mountain, so we were focussed at our feet, just trying to keep breathing and put one foot in front of the other. Suddenly, it was right under our feet! It was less than a foot away, head up and watching us. We quickly scooted around it (after Ben dropped the water bottle and bent to pick it up right next to it!!!) It never moved out of the way, just lay there watching us, even as we continued (quickly) down the trail. Well, turns out that snake is VERY aggressive and will usually chase people. My dad actually chopped the head off one, and the head and little bit of neck chased him down the trail! That's the kind of stuff horror films are made of. The people were all shocked it didn't chase us down when we passed that close to it. And, yes, that kind of snake is very poisonous. We praise God for HIS protection!!!

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Ok, usually I sort and organize the pics, but I am choosing sleep over perfection so bear with me on this post. :)

The kids hiking to a village where Steve taught every week. We had some visitors with us that week, and that is their little guy. It was fun to watch our kids help him on the trail; he is a city kid and not used to such treks.

A river crossing
We hosted a couple teams of visitors while we were up there. This group wants to help the Bogkalot worship God with their native instruments and using their native style of music. We truly believe that facilitating this "heart worship" will breathe new life and passion into the Bogkalot church. The team spent a lot of time recording native songs and music as well as interviewing the older people. They plan to analyze that info then give the Bogkalot ideas on how to incorporate this into their worship times. They also plan to teach some song-writing workshops in the near future so that the Bogkalot can write some of the worship songs themselves.
Watching this elderly lady study the Word in her native dress blessed my heart.

Steve taught in 4 different churches during our time up there - he just rotated between them for weekly seminar time as well as teaching on Sunday mornings and evenings. He mostly taught through the book of Acts, but he also spent some time studying the churches described in Revelation; he relished the many animated discussions as God's Word did its work. It was so exciting to watch God work in their hearts through this time.

River crossing to get to the village for the seminar. Steve has had to do this crossing when the river is up to his chest and flowing rapidly; thankfully it was low and peaceful this day! But it sure was cold...Steve has also done it at 11pm after an evening service where people were anxious to talk afterwards - "That will wake you right up!"

Mikayla warming up by the fire - it was chilly for much of our time up there (all the way into the upper 60s! Ok, so not that chilly for you, but it is for those of us used to tropical weather year-round!)

While some of the mountains are steep, the spectacular views are what truly take your breath away...

The kids and I stayed home most of the days Steve taught seminar during the week (have to do school SOME time!). But on Sundays, we got to travel to the villages with him. The kids always sing a special song in the service, so our kids enjoyed joining in.

The big inner tubes that we got the kids for Christmas were a huge hit with all the kids.

I have had the privilege of watching God use Steve in a variety of ministries down through the years, but I believe this very thing is exactly what God designed him to do. It was amazing to watch him be able to come alongside these dear men and help them evaluate their thinking against the Word of God. He does it with such humility and grace but is able to communicate his passion...

our garage/kitchen flooded after a heavy storm. The mud was almost an inch thick so it took a lot of work to get it down to the normal amount of mud. What, like you don't have mud on the floor in YOUR kitchen?!?!

Steve with the some of the heart worship team that came for a visit and 2 of the Bogkalot pastors. The little old guy front and center was my dad's language helper way back when (1980+), and Steve said it is amazing to watch him when someone is teaching the Word. If they reference a passage of Scripture, his lips will start moving as he quotes it before even looking it up. The heart worship team referred to some obscure verses when they were vision-casting up there; but even those, this dear man of God knew by heart.

Kayla and her buddies at the river

We hosted another team too. This one was a group of 4 guys, mostly back-packers and outdoor sports enthusiasts. They want to help establish some eco-tourism up in those mountains. This would provide jobs in the village as guides and cooks for groups who come.

One of the kids' favorite activities up there is "cooking" with their friends. They use old cans, build a little fire and cook up various green leaves that can be found near the village.

The boys were my main water-fetchers (can you tell by the tired eyes that this was first thing in the morning?). It had to be pre-filtered through a handkerchief to get the sediment out of it, then filtered through a Brita filter to get the germs out. Even then, we ended up having to boil drinking water or bring it up from Manila with us (I will leave it to your imagination how we determined that this would be best.)

In addition to the regular teaching times, Steve spent a lot of time just hanging out with the men and visiting with them. Some of the best discussions happened during impromptu gatherings like this.

Steve was able to take our vehicle to most of the villages (that is our Everest just behind him), but he had to borrow a motorcyle to make it to one of the villages where he went weekly. Check out those attractive glasses! Don't be jealous now...

Just arriving home. I love the traditional basket in the foreground - a mix of the old and new in the village.

I told you before that my best friend had a baby while we were up there. Mikayla and I worked together to crochet him a little hat, booties, mittens and a sweater. It was our first attempt at something like this, but we were happy with how it came out - and she LOVED the gift. Isn't he a little doll?

Mikayla with her group of closest friends. Many tears were shed as we left...

Teaching in another church. This village is up so high that there are pine trees, and jackets are a must!

The kids had an absolute blast up in the village. They learned lots of new games, including this variation of team tag called patentero.

When Steve was home, he was either off talking with the men in the village where we lived or studying the Word in preparation for the next day.

While life was not always easy up in the mountains, what a privilege was ours to have a front row seat to all that God is doing there!

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Off to Thailand - thanks for your continued prayers and notes of encouragement!!!

Just a Glimpse

I know that there are many of you who would love to come for a visit but just can't swing it - for whatever reason. With you in mind, I tried to capture some of the every-day sights around the village where we are living right now.

My best friend up there gave birth to baby #5 while we were there this time, and we all welcomed him with open arms. Yes, it is a he - don't let the pink blanket throw you. :)

Only 24 hrs before she gave birth, her brother's baby passed away.

He was only 3 months old and died of pneumonia. My friend was not able to attend the wake because she had just given birth, so they brought the coffin by her house on the way to the burial site. Our hearts broke for this close-knit family as they welcomed one baby and buried another within hours of each other.
They asked me to take pictures at the funeral. An incredibly difficult task. I felt like I was intruding on their private pain, but they insisted they wanted the pictures. This was the final glimpse of the tiny coffin before they cemented it in.
In the midst of the emotional angst, life continued around the village. Most of the rest of these pics were taken from our porch - just a glimpse of the many sights we see everyday.
There is a broken-down jeepney in the center of the village that has become the local playground. Who need a jungle gym when you have this to climb all over?

Another jeepney comes through twice a day - once in the morning going down into the lowlands (about 3 hrs away), and once in the evening when it returns. Now, you would have to see the treacherous mountain roads that this jeepney will have to traverse to understand how wild this journey will be for them. Sadly, more than one vehicle has plunged into the ravine in the past several years. So we will NOT send you on this jeepney if you come to visit us - even if there is "always room for one more".

I LOVE how involved the dads and grandpas are in the care of the little ones.

No washing machines here, folks. Clothes are washed by hand in a tub then hung to dry. My shoulders ache and fingers tingle at the less-than-fond memory. It may look so idyllic, but it is plain old hard work, trust me.

The people up there don't have much money, but their true wealth is their children.

I love all the animals that come wandering through the village.

Except the dogs - don't love them much since they viciously attack anyone they don't know (us); and our kitchen/cooking area is outside so they love climbing up on the counters and leaving muddy paw prints all over everything. NOT a huge fan of the village dogs.

The baby chicks are cute though.

I have always loved people-watching, and the village is a the perfect place to watch beautiful people living out the paradox of a simple, yet hard, life.

Our porch overlooks the path to where many of their gardens are so we watch them head out to their fields everyday. This old man has one of the traditional deer-hide backpacks.

The ladies all carry these baskets. When she comes back later, it will be full and overflowing. Steve has stopped to give them rides back from the garden when he passes by on the way home, and he is shocked by how much weight these little old ladies haul around - often more than a 100 lbs!

Then there are the little baskets for the little ladies.

This is the wife of the recently-deceased village elder. He was the father of the church here in this village, and his 7 sons are now all in leadership. Unfortunately, her mind is no longer clear, so all I ever get is scowls in exchange for my smiles and waves. But she is a dear woman of God who raised a Godly family.

Life revolves around rice.

Planting rice, harvesting rice, pounding rice, winnowing rice, cooking rice....

Every afternoon, you can hear the sound of rice being pounded by hand to remove the husks.

This is what it looks like before the husks have been pounded off.

They will often pound in pairs - or even 3 at a time. The bowl is quite small, so you have to get your timing just right.

After it has been pounded, you put the kernels and the husks all into a flat basket to be winnowed. You then throw the rice up into the air, the wind blows the chaff out, then you catch the rice again. It is harder than it looks.

Mikayla actually spent quite a bit of time learning how to pound and winnow rice this past time. Our friends have a little guard around the bowl of their pounding bowl, so that helps.

She even got the hang of winnowing the rice...

...and only fed the chickens a couple of times.

Thank you for your continued prayers. To be honest, we are tired. It is all going amazingly well, but we are being stretched for sure. God is truly at work in hearts here. Currently there are 8 families/singles who are seriously praying about moving to Bicol to join us in reaching the Agta. Please pray for these men and women as God works in their hearts, that they would be sensitive to His leading and faithful to follow Him, regardless of the cost. We have also uncovered some serious spiritual warfare going on, and we covet your prayers for wisdom in how to deal with it in a Biblical way - and to help the believers to do the same. We covet your prayers as we press on here!

We are only down in the city for a couple days - Steve had a 2-day seminar to teach down in Bicol. So we drove down to Manila late Thurs after he taught up in the village, then he caught the 6am flight Fri down to Bicol. He will fly back to Manila late on Sat, then we will drive back up into the mountains on Sunday. Pls pray for renewed strength, and rejoice with us in all that God is doing.