We have been grounded. Churches have stopped meeting. Planes
have stopped flying. Most of our appointments have been canceled. For the
unforeseeable future, we will stay put. But we have not been grounded like a
naughty child for disobeying the rules. We have been grounded, like all of you,
to prevent the spread of a deadly disease
.
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| A pastor's house in the Philippine countryside |
We are grateful that, in the months previous to the pandemic
hitting the U.S., we were able to be active. Charlie's recovery from the stroke was
sufficient so that we were able to join a team from our church on a mission
trip to Jamaica in early January. Although he could only be involved for about
half the day, we were confident that his healing was progressing. Based on that
trip, we booked tickets to go to the Philippines where Charlie would teach a class on
church leadership at the Mindanao Evangelistic Baptist Seminary and Institute.
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| Charlie's class |
Our trip to the Philippines was a huge blessing. Charlie taught a
group of ten pastors and teachers who are working on obtaining a Master of
Ministries degree. The school provided a
guest room so we could stay on campus. That allowed him to rest during the lunch
hour so that he would have the energy he needed to teach in the afternoon. The
seminar format he used was easier for him to manage with his compromised speaking
skills.
I prepared the students for their summer ministry of VBS
by teaching them a curriculum about Daniel. Due to a
bad cold I picked up just before leaving the U.S., I almost lost my voice. God was gracious in allowing me to continue, but it was touch and go for a while. As a result, I
gave them more responsibility for teaching each other, and that seemed to work
well.
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| My class |
We returned to the U.S. just in time to avoid the quarantine
in the Philippines. Our flight back was almost empty, and we were able to
stretch out and sleep. We are planning to return to Mindanao next year for a
longer trip with added ministry opportunities to the rural churches.
We are grateful that we still have plenty to do. Charlie has resumed his speech therapy and he's trying to figure out the next step in his doctoral program. I, too, have several projects that need my attention.
Right now, we are thankful to be grounded in the Lord. May
you, dear reader, be rooted and grounded in the love of God so that this pandemic and
the ensuing economic difficulties will not sway you from the total security
that is found in Christ. (See Eph. 3.)
