A Church's Gift

Every church is different.  Some are friendly, and no newcomer leaves feeling unwelcome.  Some are reverent, and a quiet awe pervades the worship services.  Some are joyful and exuberant as they lift their praises to the Lord.  Some are evangelistic, and they are excited about sharing their faith with friends and co-workers, and they revel in their own salvation.  Some are prayerful, and prayer meetings are well attended and considered to be one of the most important aspects of the week.  Some are seen as theologically deep or mature, and their pastors and teachers enjoy going deep into the Word of God.  Some are missions minded, and their reputation for giving to missions is noticed even by visitors.

One of the families that fed us.

On this trip, we found something in this Cochabamba church that we have seldom seen.  We found a church with the gift of hospitality.  In all of the trips we have taken, both in the U.S. and abroad, we have not
been welcomed into people's homes and lives the way we were here.  Every day, for both lunch and supper, we were fed by the people of this church.

When I mentioned this to Jacky, the pastor's wife, she said to me, "Well, we know the verse in Hebrews that says "Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares."

"That's true," I replied.  "But you know us and you know that we are not angels.  We are just people."

She laughed and agreed.  Yet somehow this group of people really took the gift of hospitality to the maximum and made us feel so loved and welcomed.  As we joined them at their dinner tables and heard the stories of their lives, it made us feel so much more a part of them.  Some felt unable to have us into their homes, but they showed hospitality to us by taking us out to dinner.  There, too, we heard their stories of faith and family and came to love and appreciate them.

Pique Macho

"What is the typical food here?" we asked when we arrived.

"Oh, Cochabamba has many foods.  We do not have just one."

So through the weeks we were there, the church tried to make sure that we tried many of their typical foods: Pique, Silpancho, Api, Charque, Pollo a la Brasa, Steak, and so much more.  They checked with each other to find out what we had already had so that they could let us try something new.  On our last day there, we were invited to join the college-age young people at a steak house and were able to get to know some of them. 

The church gave us some mementos as going-away gifts, but to be honest, the best gift they gave us during our time there was themselves through the gift of hospitality.  Through that, our hearts were bound to them.  We understand those families better and have an appreciation for their lives.  Had they not chose to share their lives with us in this way, we would not have gotten to know them nearly as well.  As a result, we found we did not want to leave because they had become so precious to us.

We look forward to going back.  Perhaps next time we will be able, in some way, to extend hospitality to them as well.

God Answers Prayer

God answers prayer

Some prayers were spoken in terms of simple desires.  "Lord, it would be nice to go to the Philippines to see the work of MEBSI and participate in that ministry."  We thought the door for us might be closed there, so it was more of a spoken desire than an actual request.  Yet God heard us and answered.

Some prayers barely left our lips before we saw the answers.  When we arrived at the airport, we discovered that our plane was delayed and we would miss our connection.  "Lord," we prayed quietly, "please help us."  A very helpful airline agent found another flight for us.  We got our tickets and then waited in an extremely slow security line.  Once again our prayer was, "Lord, please get us there in time."  We passed through security and ran for the gate, arriving just in time to board.  "Thank you, Lord," we breathed as we walked on.

We prayed that we might be a blessing along the way.  On the very long flight across the Pacific, Charlie sat next to a man who was on his way to reunite with his wife.  Charlie had the opportunity to talk with him about his faith and explain the gospel to him.

Joan teaching.

We prayed that we might be effective in our teaching.  We knew that our students had learned English as a second (or even third) language and there could be a significant language barrier.  For the most part, the students were responsive and enthusiastic about what they were learning.  We have been invited back again, and this time the students and faculty want us to spend some time observing their ministries after the classes are over.  That was another answer to prayer.

After classes and graduation were over, we headed to Manila where we were supposed to bard a bus to Baguio, a popular tourist town up in the mountains where many Filipinos escape the summer heat.  We headed to the bus station but were told they were all full.  "Lord, direct our steps," we prayed, when we saw that our plans were not working.  Within a few hours we received a call from Pastor Livioco who told us he had managed to get us seats on the overnight bus, and we were once again on our way.

Charlie preaching on Easter Sunday.

"Lord, let us be a blessing to Foundation Baptist Church," we prayed.  Charlie participated in a Q&A time and I shared part of my testimony in family camp.  Then on Sunday, Charlie preached in the morning service.  A number of people openly responded to his message.

There were also unexpected blessings.  First there was the blessing of music.  I taught the college students a new song to go along with the VBS curriculum.  When they got to the chorus, they broke out into four-part harmony.  What a surprise and pleasure that was.  Then on Easter Sunday, the church amazed us with their mini-cantata.  Their music ministered deeply to our souls.

Charlie's class - the MEBSI faculty.

Then there was the blessing to getting to know some of God's people in the Philippines.  Our hearts were bound to the Namocs and Liviocos and to others working with them.  We began to understand the unique role each of them has in God's work, and we really appreciate what God is doing in and through them there.

God answers prayers - all kinds of prayers.  We are grateful for the many prayers God's people prayed on our behalf because we know He answered those as well.

Thank you, God, for answering  prayer.

Scenes from Cagayan de Oro

What a surprise it was to arrive and find a big banner across the front of the auditorium announcing the coming week's DVBS seminar.  A smaller one hung in front of the building.  I spent some of the time teaching on general principles of ministry to children and the rest of the time getting the students ready for their summer ministry of holding Vacation Bible School in churches throughout the area.

The boys sat on one side of the room, and the girls on the other.  So when we broke into discussion groups, it was usually a group of all boys or all girls.

Do you need to go somewhere that is too far to walk, but not on the route that the jeepneys and buses travel?  Then you need a bicycle with a side cart.

These vehicles are actually a small van body built onto a motorcycle.  They usually travel the smaller streets and have regular routes.

Do you need to have something carried?  You might be able to hire this young man to do it for you.

Security guards abound.  Every store and shopping mall has at least one.  They inspect your bags and purses when you walk in.  If there is a perceived threat, you might have to leave your shopping bags with them while you shop.

When we think of reaching out to Muslims, we do not always think of the Philippines, but Mindanao has many Muslim faithful who live there.  I encountered these ladies in the mall, and they graciously allowed me to take their picture.

More Than Bravery

Mindanao, the southern island in the Philippine archipelago, is known for trouble.  An active rebel movement called the New People’s Army has kept the Philippine army busy for decades.  While we were there, they killed eight soldiers in a town not far away.  In addition, an extremist Muslim group, Abu Sayef, periodically makes the news with its activity.  Years ago they captured New Tribes missionaries, Martin and Gracia Burnham, and held them for ransom.  When the army tried to set the Burnhams and the other prisoners free, Martin was killed in crossfire.  We were grateful that Abu Sayef was quiet that week. 

IPM has a missionary family there, and we wondered what they would be like in person.  There were things we already knew.  We knew that Glen Namoc and his wife have a burden to reach Mindanao and other parts of the world for Christ.  We knew that 31 years ago, they began a Bible institute to train young men and women to become missionaries, church planters, pastors and other church leaders.  We knew that they call Mindanao their home.

In other parts of the Philippines, people think that those who live in Mindanao are either trouble or brave.  The Namocs know about the reputation of Mindanao, but they do not feel brave.  Mindanao is home to them, and just as you and I would deal with difficulties in our homeland, so do they.  Yet even though they do not feel brave, we found something more compelling than simple bravery.  We found a profound dedication that we do not often see, not just in them but in the others who stand with them in their ministry.  We found students eager to learn and to find ways to serve.

Where in the U.S. would you hear stories of:

• a husband leaving his wife behind for four years in order to plant five churches in an unreached part of the island?
• students eager to finish their education in the city with all of its amenities to return to the primitive village lifestyle in order to plant churches and share the love of Jesus with their neighbors?
• a willingness to go hungry in order to attend Bible college?  We heard of one student who often went without lunch because he did not have the ten cents he needed in order to pay for lunch.
• farming families willing to give up their children’s labor in order for them to attend Bible college and go into the ministry?  (Imagine what it would be like if a farmer in the U.S. gave away his combine to further the gospel.)
• a willingness to go into areas known to be infiltrated by terrorists in order to preach the gospel?

  

  This year's graduates singing at graduation.
  White robes signify a 1-year certificate and black robes a 3-year degree.

• being told to leave your motorcycle helmet off so people know who you are and do not attack you?  It also lets your friends know where you were last seen.
• selling a plot of land you inherited in order to buy a motorcycle so you can reach into the mountain villages?

As we heard more and more stories like these, Charlie asked Glen, “What are you doing in this ministry to encourage this kind of dedication?” 

He shook his head, apparently dumbfounded that we thought he was doing it. 

We finally realized something.  Wholehearted commitment is not something you can program into your students.  It is, instead, a work of God.  Although they are doing all they can to encourage the student body toward wholehearted dedication to the Lord, the credit is due not to him, but to the Holy Spirit who is at work in the students’ hearts.

February Highlights

Looking back, these are some of our blessings from this month.

Twice a month our church goes out into the neighborhoods to visit those who need encouragement and to share the gospel.  In February, Charlie was the prayer partner as one of the men in our church led a young man to the Lord.

We attended a Valentine's Banquet in our church.  In addition to a fine dinner served by the teenagers and an excellent message on marriage, there were also some games.  Charlie and I won the word game and came home with a prize.

Charlie flew to Iquitos, Peru, and from there took a boat downriver to Mazan where he and a couple other men from IPM held a pastors conference.  While they were there, God answered these prayers:

The town of Mazan

• Safety for the men when their boat hit a log at full speed and had to pull over for repairs.
• Encouragement and growth for the pastors who attended.
• An ability for Charlie and the other speakers to complement each other in their teaching, thereby giving more in-depth understanding of the subject matter.
• God is growing His church in the Amazon.  One church Charlie attended was almost double in size from his previous visit last summer.

While Charlie was gone, I went through the small neighborhood where we live and invited the ladies over for a morning coffee.  Six women and one teenager came, and it was a good time of getting to know each other.  When they left, I handed each one a rose.  It is my hope that this is beginning of some lifelong and eternal friendships.

Our church held a missions conference while Charlie was gone.  By the end of the conference, they came within a few hundred dollars of meeting last year's goal, and they decided to raise their faith promise giving by 28%.  This is a huge blessing to the missionaries who attended who are raising support to go abroad.  They can now add our church to their list of supporters.

Charlie arrived safely home on Sunday afternoon, in time to celebrate together with our church on their victory of raising their faith promise goal.