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12/25/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “But we only have 88 pesos ($1.60)!” On our way home from downtown, we'd stopped at the store to buy a gift for PJ and Abby's school Christmas party. The kids were hungry after shopping, and I still had a little change in my pocket. PJ and Abby carefully chose the cheapest items on the menu at McDonald's, leaving me with only 3 pesos (six cents) in my pocket, and nothing in my wallet. Going out to the parking lot, many beggars came to our car. “Daddy,” PJ exclaimed, “I think all the beggars in Davao know you!” One particular beggar woman had the tenderest eyes as she held out her hand for alms. Over her shoulder was hung a flour sack, in which you could just make out the small outline of her baby. I was about to shake my head that I had nothing to give her when Abby called out. “Daddy, I found a bottle of water under the seat of the car!” As she gave it to the family of three, the tousle-haired four-year old boy beside the mother and baby got a great big smile on his face. The mom looked me appreciatively in the eye as her way of saying “Thank you, so very, very much!” A few miles down the road, PJ asked, “Dad, how come you didn't give her any money?” I reminded him that we'd spent it all on him and his sister. “But Dad, what about those 3 pesos in your pocket?” Suddenly the memory of that mother's eyes pierced my conscience as those three small coins seemed to grow heavier in my pocket. Why didn't I give her the coins? But then I'd have nothing at all! Nothing? I have a car, a family, a roof over my head, clothes...nothing? When I got home, Elvie mentioned that some BLC kids had walked to the store after school and still were not home yet. We had to look for them. Before leaving, I searched the fridge for some food that I could give to the beggars. By the time we reached the store, the boys had returned home. “Is there anything you need, while you are here?” asked Elvie. “Yes, I need to find some beggars,” I replied. The small family was gone from the parking lot. So I gave the food to some other hungry beggars, who devoured the whole bag full of food in a few minutes of time. Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $442 for the biweekly gas bill for our 7 BLC buses. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that Elvie's and my visits to the mountainous tribal areas this week touched many with the message of salvation. Praise God also for all the five hundred cheerful, smiling faces of our BLC kids when they received their stuffed animals, toys, school supplies, clothes, underwear and Bibles from Christian kids around the world this week! Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $2105 received, $27,895 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors: 57. "Let the Islands Rejoice!"
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12/18/2008 |
Davao City, Philippines “They're like Santa Claus...in reverse!” The City Administrator of Davao is the 3rd to the mayor in authority. His name is Wendel. When he came to speak at DCL (Davao Christian Leaders Foundation), I led in prayer. Using the Philippine flag as the outline for my prayer, I began, “Lord, even as the blue stands for peace and the red stands for security, we pray for your peace to overcome the terrorists in this land. The sun and its rays on our flag stand for the Filipinos' eight rebellions against the Spanish, who ruled the country with an iron fist for 3 centuries. Likewise, we also pray for strength in our rebellion against sin. One such evil sin is the poor example we're setting for the world, since this country has been labeled by statisticians as the most corrupt in Asia and the second most corrupt in the world! The three stars on the flag represent the three main divisions of our country: Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. May we never be satisfied to reach only our island of Mindanao for Jesus, but to preach to and pray for all 90 million Filipinos in this country of 7,107 islands!” After my prayer, Wendel focused on the thousands of dark-skinned, kinky-haired tribal natives who walk down from the mountains in bare feet each year in November and December to come to Davao City. They make six-foot long guitars from tree bark and coconut husks, and also make drums out of bamboo and goat skins, and make noise on them until people give them something. “They are like Santa Claus, for they come from the north with sacks over their shoulders. But unlike Santa who comes with a full sack and leaves when it is empty, the natives come with empty sacks and leave to go back north when their sacks are full!” Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $615 for this month's medical coverage for our 50 BLC teachers and staff. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that four of our six church plants' Christmas programs went very well, and we've only two more to go! Also praise God that Elvie and I were able to get a mortgage on our 5-yr old car to help pay our teachers' Christmas bonuses. Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $2100 received, $27,900 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors: 57. |
12/11/2008 | Davao City, Philippines "Pastor Callem, can you be on the radio at 4 am Sunday morning? I will be running in the 42 km marathon at that time, so I can't make it to the station." Praise God that He has sent us such a willing servant as Pastor Callem to our church as my assistant pastor. "Sure, Pastor Paul." He was to have a full day. Speaking on the radio was followed by teaching Sunday School and also preaching at our church's main worship service. As mile after mile passed under my sore legs, Callem's voice was being strained in his multiple speaking engagements. I was back at church from my race before the worship service began, and at that time the electricity stopped working. Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $3,000 second internal BLC stairway, required by the fire department. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that two wonderful families emailed us this week that they plan to give to BLC for their end-of-year charitable giving! Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $2095 received, $27,905 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 57. "Let the Islands Rejoice!"
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12/4/2008 | Davao City, Philippines "Teacher, when was God born?" Often, since the 500 BLC students come from poor, unchurched families, they come to class with many unanswered spiritual questions. Thus, when Elvie interviews teachers for the BLC staff, she also checks their personal spiritual testimonies to see if they have been faithful to God in their spiritual walk and personal devotional enrichment. Recently, in answer to one little girl's question about God's time of birth, "Was God born on Christmas Day, December 25?" the teacher replied, "God is the Alpha and the Omega: The First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. He did not start IN the beginning or on December 25, because He IS the Beginning." Praise God for the wisdom He has given to our teachers and staff, to be God's spokesmen to this, our next generation! Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $445 for a welding machine to repair seats, etc. on BLC's 7 buses, plus to repair other building needs. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that we received three new sponsors for BLC poor children this week! Praise God also for the legacy of a dear friend who passed away and left funds to build a media/speech lab in our new BLC library! Praise God that I also finished my fifth 26.2 mile marathon last week! Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $2090 received, $27,910 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 57. "Let the Islands Rejoice!" |
11/27/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “He is the water for my tears.” As we sang the praise chorus at our early morning Asuncion church plant, the Filipino pronunciation of the word “thirst” changed the “th” sound to “t”, and the “irst” sound to “ears”. This transformed the original words from “He is the water for my thirst” to “He is the water for my tears.” Since I was preaching on God's great influence in our lives when we become believers, this change fit in perfectly. “We all have an inner thirst for Jesus,” I said. Many responded with “Amen!” Then I continued, “Yet even as our souls long for God, sometimes life throws difficulties our way, and we cry out to God until we sometimes run out of tears to cry.” A few parents in the small 10 x 20 foot, one-room church of 70 people were going through struggles that I knew of, including sickness and lacking finances. “When we run out of tears, Jesus feels our pain. He truly is the 'water for our tears!" Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $442 for the biweekly gas bill for our 7 BLC buses. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that we were able to install three 18-inch cement “steps” in front of our apartment, the supply closet, and the secretaries offices at BLC so that if our usual December floods come, we'll have extra time to move important items to higher stories. Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $2085 received, $27,915 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 60 |
11/20/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “You could be arrested!” Speaking as a representative and trustee of the DCL (Davao Christian Leaders Fellowship), I challenged pastors at one of the many ministers' fellowships in Davao. If you don't give premarital and postmarital counseling to couples, and if the husband ends up beating his wife, by Philippine law, she can sue you for selling her defective goods!” The DCL is sponsoring a pastors' training seminar in December on the civil and legal aspects of solemnizing (performing) marriages. I'd been elected as co-chair for the promotion, registration and data collection committee, and since the chairman was busy at the capital and the president was away at a Gideons' convention, I was next in line to promote the seminar. “Philippine law also will not allow you to marry a couple that does not attend your church. If you do so, the police may come to your door and bring you to jail!” The pastors gave me their full attention, since performing marriages is one of the many expected responsibilities and privileges of pastors. These men follow and pray for children in their church as they grow from birth, through dedication and salvation. Then these young people find ”the special one” that God has chosen for them, and the pastor is there to “tie the knot.” The wedding ceremony is also a perfect opportunity to share the Gospel with unbelievers who often only darken the door of a church when it is time to “marry or bury” their relatives. “If your license to marry expires,” I continued in my challenge to the pastors, “and you go ahead anyway to perform the wedding, the children they have in future years will be illegitimate, since the vows were null and void.” After the meeting, many came to sign up for the seminar. Praise God for DCL and their foresight in providing this seminar for the pastors. Please pray that all pastors in Davao will be challenged in his seminar to perform weddings correctly and also to see many led to become believers during the ceremonies. Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $210 to replace the horns that have stopped functioning on most of our BLC vehicles (on Philippine roads, often the horn is more important than the steering wheel!) Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events: November 19-21 Third School-wide Preliminary Exams. Please pray for the BLC students, who will be taking their Third School-wide Preliminary Exams this week. Also for our church ladies who will be competing in their final inter-church Bible knowledge quizzing competitions this Saturday. Finally, please pray for the city-wide interdenominational marriage seminar (for pastors) that I am helping plan for Dec. 1, that all 200 seats will be filled in the auditorium. Please also pray for BLC's 2008 total debt of $56,055 to be whittled down to zero through careful budgeting and cutbacks by the end of 2009 [$950 per week for 59 more weeks] (+$283 from last week). Praise God that my thesis oral pre-presentation on Juvenile Delinquency before the Davao City Kiwanis Club this week went very well. The members are sure that my official university presentation on 11/28 will go very well. Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $2080 received, $27,920 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 60. "Let the Islands Rejoice!" |
11/13/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “What will be the theme this year, for our 10th BLC Foundation Day?” Elvie asked me a few weeks ago. How about "Living in God's patience?” I suggested. This theme of our BLC 10th Foundation Day turned out to be a good choice, in an unexpected way. Before the chess and ping pong competitions, the entire student body, along with their parents, stood at the sidelines of the community outdoor basketball court while the red and blue team boys competed in basketball. Though the Crystal Blue boys were giants compared with the Blazing Red team, the little “red guys”, with their gym jerseys nearly draped to their knees, ran circles around the giant “blue boys”. In the middle of the game, suddenly everyone at the sidelines rose to their feet, thundering in cheers and yelling. Even Dr. Ayoc next to me on the stage, got out of his chair and cried out, “No! No!” A “red boy” ran unhindered down the entire court! Wide open, without any resistance from the blue giants, he leapt into the air and “Swoosh!” he made a perfect dunk. The ball went through the hoop. “Two points...” called the announcer, incredulously, “...for the BLUE team!” Sure enough, with sweat in his eyes, the little red guy had gotten turned around in the confusion of dribbling, and ended up going the wrong way. He'd made a basket for the opposing team! Yet “Living in God's Patience” was the theme for BLC's Foundation day this year, and through patience, the little Blazing Red guys overcame their miss-shot to win, 16-12! Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $108 for 27 fluorescent light bulb sets at $4 each. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events: November 19-21 Third School-wide Preliminary Exams. Please also pray for BLC's 2008 total debt of $55,772 to be whittled down to zero through careful budgeting and cutbacks by the end of 2009 [$930 per week for 60 more weeks] (+$545 from last week). Praise God for the American friend who gave $2,000 for our jeepney fund! Praise God also for the many who have already given for their sponsored kids' Christmas gifts, and also for our 2 brand new sponsors for the poor kids here in Davao City! Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $2075 received, $27,925 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 60. |
11/6/2008 | Davao City, Philippines
"Who wants to be a politician?” I asked 200 BLC Girl Scouts at their annual overnight camp out, what they want to be when they grow up. Hundreds of BLC students in green Girl Scout uniforms lined up by their patrol numbers in the open field, listening to my challenge to them from the Bible. “What lady in the Bible won a beauty contest?” From the back of the fourth row, a voice piped up, “Esther!” Just as Esther took the challenge before her, we too should obey the tasks that we are given. “What woman said to her mother-in-law, 'Your people will be my people...I will stay with you?” This time the answer came from the eleventh row. “Ruth!” So I responded, “Stick with your friends through thick and thin. Be dependable to help!” For their last role model I asked, “Who gave birth to Jesus?” All in unison cried out, “MARY!” Then my challenge was, “Even as Mary was the 'handmaiden of God,' willing to serve Him, so we should be unconditionally committed to serve God always, telling the world about our dear Savior Jesus!” These three examples were all ladies who accomplished great things for God. “What do you want to be when you grow up?” I asked. “Teachers?” Half a dozen girls' hands shot up. “Moms?” Many hands went up. “Doctors?” A few more girls nodded their heads. Being just around the corner from USA elections, I asked the expectant question, “How about politicians? Who wants to be president, or mayor, or governor?” Nobody. Not one hand went up. By following and watching the Biblical role models, these girls will one day become women of great integrity, in whatever paths God is pointing them onto! Let's pray that we too are good examples of Christian character to these precious kids, even as these three Bible women are. Present need: $360 for in-school teachers' mailboxes. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God for the positive response this week to Elvie's six speaking engagements before 300 ladies during a local conference this week! Almost all rededicated their lives to Jesus at the closing ceremony! Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $70 received, $29,930 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 62. |
10/30/2008 | Davao City, Philippines "LOOK! An American frog!” The half dozen teenage boys swimming in the ocean had set up a bamboo pole, parallel to the water, from which they were diving and doing tricks. Since I'd swum the distance out to where they were, I tried my hand at diving too. Determining to do a flip, I balanced my bare feet on the pole, and pushed back with all my might. CRACK! The pole broke apart, splitting in multiple pieces! Needless to say, my “flip” was not impressive! The teens assured me it was okay, so I swam around longer, but without jumping! It was during the special outing for fathers from our church. To get out of the sun shower (before swimming) I led the twenty dads under a large flat boat that was propped up for repairs. There I had each one share the name of his wife, plus where and when they'd met. Some were quite brief, and others went into great detail on the deepening of their love over the years. Afterwards I challenged them from Ephesians 5, explaining that their love should be sacrificial, as was that of Jesus for the church, for which he sacrificed himself. Here in the Philippines, drunkenness and homosexuality are two of the most common heinous crimes that men are prone toward. Pointing out how these sins are not allowed in the life of a Christian dad, we prayed for God's protection over each of us, as we set examples for our families and the entire church body. Even as the large boat we were under was shielding us by its massive strength, likewise, we are to shield our families by being strong dads of integrity. I'd rather be like the big strong boat under repair than like the weak bamboo pole, shredded under the slightest pressure. Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $442 for the biweekly gas bill for our 7 BLC busses Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God for the thirty boxes that have already arrived (of the eighty we sent), filled with thousands of clothes, stuffed animals, school supplies and other items sent to meet the needs of our 500 poor BLC kids. Also praise God for our BLC parents winning first place in the Cabantian village anniversary celebration choir competition last week! Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $65 received, $29,935 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 62. |
10/23/2008 | Davao City, Philippines "Those lollipops are a "sweet" reminder that God has all things under His control!” Last week this diary mentioned the one hundred lollipops mailed to us by an American church, for BLC kids. These we distributed to the kids who were stranded and hungry at the school, since the Davao roads were flooded and they couldn't get home. When our “lollipop friends” in the USA heard of how we'd used the candy, they explained “the rest of the story”. A mom in their church had a son who was a soldier in Iraq. She was so proud that her son was defending our country overseas, and also he was their contact to send special things to the Iraqi kids. But almost a year ago he was killed by a suicide bomber, and while the mom and church were devastated, the church also lost their contact to send the candy to. So they sent the candy to us! Due to the many floods this year, most of our family's appliances have been destroyed by mud that got into the motors. Over the years we'd been given special gifts (mostly from my parents) for us to buy a fridge, an oven, and a washing machine. Since our refrigerator was recently and irreparably destroyed, we used it just to keep dry food away from the cockroaches and ants that are so prevalent in the tropics. Yet we have to weekly wipe down the insides of the nonworking fridge with Lysol to remove the mildew. The “lollipop church” heard that, with no fridge, we can't store food that needs refrigeration, and they decided to do something about it. “Dear Paul and Elvie, PJ and Abigail, we will go to the bank today and deposit $1100 for your fridge. One of my friends gave me $200 toward it, and another friend is checking her finances and wants to help. It is such a blessing for us to know you and have a chance to share God's goodness!” Wow, God is so cool! Literally! So the new fridge will be delivered today (Wednesday)! Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $95 for a new Philippine flag to hang on BLC's 5-story high flagpole. The blue on our old one has faded and is now white. A big one would be nicer, but would cost $400. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God for Dr. Jim and Jana, a young couple who have assisted BLC's medical ministries, and sister missions, over September and October. They'll be returning to the USA this Friday (10/24). we have another couple visiting (Bill and Elaine) in November. Praise God also for a safe and exciting annual camp out for the BLC girl scouts this week (10/16-17). Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $60 received, $29,940 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 62. |
10/14/2008 | Davao City, Philippines "Daddy, I can touch the flood waters out my car window! The car is making BIG waves!" PJ and Abby were in the back seat of the car as we took our 8th detour in the pouring rain to get home. Driving 9 miles out of our way, it seemed like every Davao road was flooded. Finally there was only one road left, and not even big trucks would take it. But it looked pretty clear, so I "plunged" in. "Daddy, look! Naked kids are taking baths and swimming in the muddy water! They are up to their necks!" Too late, I realized my mistake, as the flood waters went deeper than our wheels, then to the bumper, and even up over the hood to lap against the windshield! Miraculously we got through the river of rushing brown water and cheers went up from the "street swimmers" as we continued on. Finally arriving home (we live on the campus at BLC), the school gym was flooded. So was our house, but staff at the school had moved any perishables onto tables and beds, and up into the classrooms on the second floor. Over 100 kids were crowded onto the stage in the gym. They couldn't go home, as our buses had no way of getting through the flooded streets. At waist-deep for many of the little kids, some couldn't resist diving into the muddy waters while in their school uniforms. One hundred hungry kids. What were we to do? "How can we feed 100 kids?" asked Elvie. Then I remembered the 100 lollipops sent by a Utah friend recently. As the kids enjoyed their little treats, our two school cooks came in with plastic bags full of bread balanced on their heads to keep them dry. Soon the rain let up and the kids piled into the BLC buses. Yet some were afraid to go from the dry stage, into the deep and dirty gym water. So one by one I "ferried" a dozen of them across the gym on my back. Looking back at the empty stage, I noticed one tiny girl whom I'd carried, trudging back into the muddy waters, headed to the stage. "I forgot my shoes!" she exclaimed. Praise God there was no damage to the school, since the flood occurred during the day-time (first time ever) and the staff was able to get the low-lying supplies piled onto desks and upper floors at BLC. Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $17,500 for a mini firetruck with water tank and hose to clean out the almost-full drainage canal, to avoid future floods, or $8000 for a portable compressor to attach a hose to and clean out the canal. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God for our victorious BLC kids! Among 35 schools at the Sportsfest this week, they came in first place in ping pong, third in chess and preschool games, and fifth in the cheerdance and badminton competitions! Also praise God that, of the 500 attending the citywide 5-Kilometer road race this week, we had a dozen staff from BLC participate, and while Elvie, PJ, Abby and I came across the finish line together, Abby received a prize for being the youngest finisher, at 7 yrs old! Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $55 received, $29,945 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 62.
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10/8/2008 | Davao City, Philippines "Oh Lord, guide us to run for the prize!” My prayer, before over 2,000 city officials, athletes, coaches, parents, and teachers from 35 schools at the 2008 PRISAAD Sports Games this Monday, almost didn't happen. For five months our BLC students had trained in preparation for this day. To begin the week-long celebration, BLC's 8 buses joined the 80-vehicle motorcade throughout Davao City's streets. Each car had a placard taped to its window, and festive balloons tied to the mirrors. Policemen on motorcycles roared their sirens in escort for the parade, while dozens of standing policemen in uniform redirected the convoy through traffic lights throughout the ten-mile parade route. Beggar street children ran up to each vehicle for pesos, so I handed used clothes out the window for the kids as I drove. Since I'd gained weight on furlough, I've lost that weight back here in the sweaty tropics. By giving my too-big clothes to these beggars, they can sell them to others to get money for food. One child got a “bonus” by grabbing the balloons from my mirrors as I passed by. Suddenly Elvie asked, “What's wrong?” the car had stopped. Due to the mud's filling our radiator during Davao's recent flood, the radiator had been drained. Yet they forgot to refill it fully. So now the steam proved it had overheated. “Quick!” Elvie cell-phoned another of our drivers, “Turn around to rescue us! Pastor Paul has to be at the Sportsfest first, as he is giving the opening prayer!” Shortly after I'd pushed the car to the side of the road, our “rescue multicab” arrived and we switched vehicles. Since we'd left our place in the parade due to our breakdown, we skipped the rest of the parade route and took a shortcut to the gym. We therefore avoided half the parade route, and were the first car to arrive! We got the very best parking space! God knew! Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $615 for this month's medical coverage for our 50 BLC teachers and staff. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that three new sponsors were added this week, who paid the full year in advance! Also praise God that, while Doug and Imelda's visas were denied, they remain positive, that God is leading them to stay in the Philippines to do God's work here. Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $50 received, $29,950 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 62 |
10/1/2008 | Davao City, Philippines "$700 BN BAILOUT HITS WALL” The newspaper headlines concerned my foreign friend here in Davao. “Wow,” he said, with frustration in his voice, “where can a person safely store his savings now?” I saw my opportunity and responded, “You could always invest in gold. It rarely loses its value.” He thought a moment and asked, “But where would you store it?” This was easy. “Maybe in a Swiss bank account?” Again my friend interjected, “Hmm, that should work. How much have you saved in gold?” I couldn't resist now. “Oh, I already have earned millions in gold. But it is not stored in Switzerland. I have put them in an extremely secure place, where even thieves can't get to them.” His interest peaked, my friend insisted, “Tell me. Where?” The next answer was obvious. “My savings are not even stored on the Earth. They are in Heaven. I have sent on most of what I have gained in this life. I will receive it in such great quantity when I die, that even the streets will be paved with gold. And the dividends I am receiving right now, on a daily basis, in the form of improved health, confidence, direction and a close walk with God. The membership fee has been paid by Jesus on the cross. I signed my name on the deed when I became a Christian.” My friend was a little disappointed, but could see the game I was playing with him. “One more question though... don't you wish you could use at least a little bit of those savings here?” Before he left, I ended our conversation with, “Friend, we just have to realize, we'll be on the other side of eternity some day. Even if we live 120 years, nobody gets out alive. Consider it as... an everlasting retirement account.” Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $16,090 still lacking to replace the textbooks, which were destroyed in the recent flood at BLC. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that my chapel message to the Faith Academy (Davao) students this week was well received, as well as the two messages to the BLC Boy Scouts during their overnight camping and mountain hiking outing. Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $45 received, $29,955 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. Present Need: Replacement time clock for BLC's employees: $350. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 65. |
9/22/2008 | Davao City, Philippines "Two decades!” At our Panantongan church plant's 4th anniversary, I was the speaker. Stepping up to the freshly-built wooden platform, I called to the stage two people: Abigail, at 7 years old, and Dr. Jim, who is 26. “Twenty years ago I was the age Jim is now,” I began. “Jim was only six. Now he is grown and married, and is a doctor, visiting the Philippines for two months, helping poor and needy people to get free medical care!” Then the three of us, ages 46, 26 and 7, sang together a song that I taught Jim two decades ago, when I was his youth pastor in the USA: “I've been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, filled with the Holy Ghost I am...all my sins are washed away, I've been redeemed!” Earlier in the anniversary service, Filipino children had sung a chorus together. So I added, “These kids are like Dr. Jim was as a boy in 1988. Who knows what they will become someday? Maybe a doctor. Maybe a president...due to the work of God through BLC in their lives, these children can be anything that God wants them to be!” Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $16,095 still lacking to replace the textbooks, which were destroyed in the recent flood at BLC. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that Dr. Jim assisted in our BLC medical this week, and also the Gideons blessed us by treating us to a Pastors' Appreciation Banquet! Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $40 received, $29,960 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 65. |
9/15/2008 | Davao City, Philippines "Don't talk to me." A friend of mine, whom I see on a daily basis at the exercise club, does not believe in God. He constantly puts down the church and the good works that believers carry out worldwide. When I share with him that illiterate children are educated by believers, starving kids are fed by believers, abused kids are counseled by believers and homeless children are adopted by believers, he claims it is all a means for rich people to control the masses. Finally this week, enough was enough. "Friend," I said, "I have noticed that your beliefs are anything but right. By your own claims, you believe in and even practice abortion, perversion, population control, and genocide. Which is more admirable: to selfishly destroy lives in the name of self preservation, or to rescue lives in the name of our loving Creator?" Suddenly, my friend would not speak to me anymore, got red in the face and left in a huff. On Friday I saw him again, but he avoided me. "Good morning friend," I said. Suddenly the barrier was broken. "I have decided," he said, "that if I talk with you, it will not be about religion or politics or gender preferences." So we talked, while I exercised. Before long, religion came up, as did politics. He tried to avoid the issue, but it was impossible to skirt his pet issues. Finally I said, "Listen friend, let us understand one thing. I live for Jesus. I talk with Him, and He talks with me, every morning after I wake up and every evening when I am about to sleep. All throughout the day, we communicate with each other in actions and in words. He is my closest friend. When you claim there is no God, or when you degrade my God, you are degrading me. When you feel cut down because I am defaming your lifestyle, please understand that you are doing the same thing to my feelings when you defame my God. Now, with that understanding, let's talk." To which my friend responded, "Friend, I can live with that. Let's talk!" And we pedaled on. Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $16,100 still lacking to replace the textbooks, which were destroyed in the recent flood at BLC. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that my fellow missionary, Mark, has lost 82 pounds since arriving in the Philippines, and is well on the way to his goal of losing100 pounds by Christmas. Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $35 received, $29,965 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 65. |
9/8/2008 | Davao City, Philippines "Pastor Paul, I heard you this morning on the radio!” During our 7am early Sunday worship service, Felix shook my hand to thank me for the inspiring message he’d heard just after waking up. I’d awoke at 3am to get over to the station to air at 4am. In the drizzling rain I waited, since the technician who starts up the equipment had not arrived. After 15 minutes, I gathered together those with me who were waiting outside. “Something is wrong. Perhaps he has a problem. Let’s pray for him right now.” Joining hands, we prayed for the technician. Then, opening our eyes, a minute later, there came the technician! Although sign-on was a quarter-hour late (4:15), When my friend Felix woke up, he flicked through the dial at 4:20 to hear a familiar voice (mine), to challenge him to trust God in times of trial, and to challenge Muslims who are now observing Ramadan to research the meaning behind religious practices of all religions, including Christianity. Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $16,095 still lacking to replace the textbooks, which were destroyed in the recent flood at BLC. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that most of the BLC busses (and our family car) which needed overhauling due to flood damage, have been repaired, and are once again operating, daily picking up our 500 school kids! Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $30 received, $29,970 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 65. |
9/1/2008 | (Somewhere over the Pacific Ocean) Until next time...Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $16,100 still lacking to replace the textbooks, which were destroyed in the recent flood at BLC. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC event:
Praise God for the many, many American children who have given their stuffed animals for needy Filipino kids! What a delightful sign of sacrificial Christian love! Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $25 received, $29,975 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. Furlough schedule: DONE---Yay, God! BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 66 |
8/29/2008 | Pottersville, NY "Introducing…SPUDSON TATER!” Preparing a children’s message, PJ and I were trying to figure a name that would combine the famous missionary “Hudson Taylor” with the toy, “Mr. Potato Head”. At a few churches during this furlough, we brought “Spudson” with us. Abby inserted the pieces into the holes of the large plastic potato, after the kids responded to my questions. “Which piece shows that a missionary sees those who are in need, on the other side of the world?” A little girl raised her hand. “The eyes!” Abby then held up the potato (Mr. Potato Head) and poked in the big white eyes. “Which piece shows the lips that speak the gospel message to the lost?” A big boy Raised his hand from the front row. “His mouth!” Abby added the red lips to our entourage. “Now, what does the missionary use to experience new smells in a third world country? A Spanish boy piped up. “The nose!” Abby then included the nose and moustache. One by one, the pieces were added: ears to hear and understand new languages, and hands to reach out to help those who are in need. We even added glasses, to show that a missionary stays on the field until he is old, committing his entire life to those who have never heard of Jesus. Finally, what makes clear sense to us this week, the cap and itty-bitty plastic suitcase. Our Taterman is heading out to travel halfway around the globe one more time after furlough is done, ready to virtually live out of his suitcase, his home away from home. Way to go, Spudson Tater! A new generation of reformed couch potatoes! Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $16,600 still lacking to replace the textbooks, which were destroyed in the recent flood at BLC. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC event:
Praise God for four new sponsors to pay for the schooling of new BLC kids this past week! Praise God also that PJ and Abby came in first place in the children’s race in Guilderland, NY last week! Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $20 received, $29,980 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. Furlough schedule
BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 70 |
8/22/2008 | Manchester-By-The-Sea, Massachusetts "Paul, you need a break.” Our good friend asked if we had any free time during our busy three-month international furlough. “There are two days just about a week before we head back to the Philippines.” I responded. So these last few days were “down time” at the beach. In the sun and sand, I wondered, “Now how can this be used for the glory of God?” Abby ate some pudding, and as I went to throw the little plastic cup away, I got an idea. “C’mon Abby, let’s start building!” Using the little pudding cup, eighty little sand mounds later, shaped themselves into a four-foot wide heart along the shore. Hundreds of others started arriving at the beach, with Frisbees and floaters. ”Here sir, you can use my toy shovel!” With our new tools, I discarded the shell I had been digging with and PJ helped to dig out the half-foot deep heart’s inside. Then with careful precision, one bold word stood out in the heart’s interior: “JESUS”. Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $16,700 still lacking to replace the textbooks, which were destroyed in the recent flood at BLC. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC event:
Praise God that our friends offered this beach house for our use. Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $15 received, $29,985 left to go! Five of the present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. Furlough schedule
BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 74 |
8/15/2008 | Oriental, Pennsylvania "Wheee!” Little Aiden (my sister’s grandson) climbed up on the couch for another flying, face-first spread eagle leap. “Whee!” 2-year old Aiden’s landing was softened by hundreds of soft, cuddly stuffed animals, in which he buried himself, without a trace. I used Dad and Mom’s living room to pack boxes for shipping to the Philippines. Filling plastic garbage bags with animals, I poked the hose of a vacuum cleaner in, to suck the air out. Once the bags were small and airless, they were packed into the big boxes with books, shoes, and other donated items. In a few months, just in time for Christmas, these boxes will be unpacked on the other side of the ocean for 500 BLC students to enjoy. Praise God for this opportunity for kids on one side of the ocean to bless the lives of kids overseas, in the name of Jesus! Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $16,800 still lacking to replace the textbooks, which were destroyed in the recent flood at BLC. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that the passports of PJ and I have been released! Yay God! Praise God also that almost all of the 8 kids in my VBS team last week prayed to become believers in Jesus. Even our precious little 7 year old Abigail, a few weeks ago, became a believer! Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $10 received, $29,990 left to go! The present seven BLC vehicles are dangerously overcrowded. Furlough schedule
BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 75. |
8/8/2008 | Delhi, New York "Could I please have duct tape, an old box, and brake fluid…the BIG bottle!” When the repair shop told us they don’t do brakes, we took the next best option, since our brake lines were rusted out and leaking…drive in low gear and refill the brake reservoir every 50 miles. Oh, and pray a lot. The old box that we got was for keeping my clothes clean when crawling under the car to keep checking the line. A hundred fifty miles later we were at another brake shop and I found out why God sent me there. A Vietnam vet (who has been to the Philippines during the war) was also waiting for his car to be worked on. As he shared about the change in the life of his son (a single dad), when he met Jesus and was born again, I challenged the vet as to his own eternal destiny. Planting spiritual seeds. Whether we are overseas teaching, or waiting for our brake lines to be replaced, God has set up eternal opportunities wherever we are! Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $17,500 still lacking to replace the textbooks, which were destroyed in the recent flood at BLC. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that PJ And I were able last month to submit our passport for renewal. Please pray fervently that we will get back our new passports before our flight back to the Philippines. The tickets are for August 31. Status of $30,000 needed for 21 passenger jeepneys to replace three of our overcrowded BLC 10 passenger multicabs: $5 received, $29,995 left to go! The police keep stopping our drivers since the vehicles are overcrowded. We are now making some of the kids late for class over an hour and a half for multiple runs to keep the busses from being dangerously overcrowded. Furlough schedule
BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 76 |
8/1/2008 | Rensselaer, New York "Mom, can I give my allowance to the poor?” As we’ve been speaking at American Vacation Bible Schools, children are bringing in stuffed animals, school supplies and other items for the poor children in the Philippines. One church collected 25 boxes of school supplies and stuffed animals, and told what had happened “behind the scenes”: A mother was after her daughter to thin down her stuffed animal collection and was thrilled when her daughter asked if she could give them to the Philippine children to be loved by them. She brought in two bags of stuffed animals and some school supplies. Another mom had Present need: $19,500 still lacking to replace the textbooks, which were destroyed in the recent flood at BLC. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that a little boy, a missionary kid, wanted to be the last one to give for the construction of the new BLC library. He loves books and when he heard that we were only short fifty dollars of the $22,000 needed, he asked his mom to give his hard-earned dog-sitting money, to finally finish the library! Yay, God! Status of $22,000 needed to finish BLC's new 3rd-floor library: $22,000 received, $0 left to go! We have arrived! Yay God! At the end of the present school year (March, 2009) we can finish the project! Furlough schedule
BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 77 |
7/17/2008 | Clifton Springs, New York "WHOA! There is no possible way you could know how timely your gift was!" Last night I mentioned to Elvie that I'd likely have to get an advance off my credit card today to wire BLC for the salaries of our teachers tomorrow. Yet since I did that last month, I think I've hit my limit. This flood damage has really knocked a dent into our school's budget. Praise God that the VBS kids last week raised over $1600 to replace destroyed textbooks! Today before heading to the bank, I checked the email: "Pastor Paul, as US taxpayers, my wife and I recently received the federal economic tax rebate of $1,200. My wife said that I could use the money to buy a big screen TV. Since there is not much good on TV any more, I decided instead to give the money to your BLC needs. Today, I made a deposit in your Key Bank account, which ends in 0748. I hope that it will help to relieve some of your staff's financial stress." YAY, GOD!!! Hmm... If what we give to the Lord here on earth is stored up in heaven, does that my friend has a big screen TV waiting for him in Glory? Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $10,560 still lacking to replace the textbooks, which were destroyed in the recent flood at BLC. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events: 1. July 16-18: Students' First Preliminary Exams; 3. July 31: BLC Nutrition Month Celebration. Please pray for Beth, a young lady whom we spoke with four years ago while on furlough. She is now in South America as a missionary teacher. Also pray for us to be able to contact low-cost couriers to mail the balik-bayan boxes that we'll be shipping back to BLC with hundreds of stuffed animals and school supplies. Please also pray for our son PJ at Bible Camp this week. It was at Delta Lake Camp when I was his age, that I first felt called to be a missionary the Philippines. Praise God that our new BLC librarian has already codified and spine-labeled 5,000 of BLC's library books. Halfway there! Status of $22,000 needed to finish interior of BLC's new 3rd-floor library: $18,950 received, $3,050 left to go! Furlough schedule (July): 7/18: Radio Interview, WMHR (NY); 7/20: Balston Spa, NY; 7/21-25: Middletown, NY; 7/27: Colonie, NY; 7/28-8/1: Albany, NY; 8/2: Geneva, NY; 8/3: Ithaca, NY; 8/4-8,10: Delhi, NY. BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 81. "Let the Islands Rejoice!" |
7/24/2008 | Middletown, New York "Now THAT's a first for VBS!” Summer is Vacation Bible School time. Many churches are challenging their VBS kids to bring in things for poor Filipino kids at BLC. One church VBS director saw the kids bring in 300 stuffed animals on Monday, 500 toothbrushes on Tuesday, and on Wednesday, the kids likely brought smiles from many parents as they asked their parents to get for them…new pairs of underwear…lots of them! 600 pair! She explained, “The kids are having a great time competing with each other and knowing that their donations are going to children at BLC!” The local newspaper picked up the story, for the kids weren’t done…they brought in shoes and vitamins on Thursday and Friday! My response to that particular church was, “Yahoo! Wow, praise God for the VBS kids! Your guys are incredible!” We’re now stuffing the gifts in plastic bags, pulling out the air with vacuum cleaners, and boxing the bags up for shipping for an awesome Christmas in Davao City, Philippines this coming December! Until next time…Let the islands rejoice! Present need: $10,500 still lacking to replace the textbooks, which were destroyed in the recent flood at BLC. Please pray for the next upcoming BLC event: July
31: BLC Nutrition Month Celebration. Please also pray for the Holy Spirit’s gentle guidance for spiritual growth as the dozens of new believers (students’ parents) who became Christians these past three months at BLC are discipled by our school staff. Praise God that a dear retired woman donated $3,000 toward our lacking funds for the completion of our BLC third-floor library this week! Yay God! Praise God also for the awesome staff of WMHR Christian radio who interviewed Elvie, Abby and I while PJ was at camp this last week. Status of $22,000 needed to finish interior of BLC's new 3rd-floor library: $21,950 received, Furlough schedule (July): 7/21-25: Middletown, NY; 7/27: Colonie, NY; 7/28-8/1: Albany, NY; 8/2: BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 79. "Let the Islands Rejoice!" |
7/11/2008 | Painted Post, New York "We have GOT to find more classroom space!" The 2007-8 school year saw BLC as a very crowded school. We even built a temporary classroom on the stage to provide space for the extra students. Yet the fans and air conditioners could not provide enough coolness to counteract the dozens of sweating "furnaces" that the students seemed to become in each classroom. Suddenly God touched the hearts of half a dozen friends in different countries to give for this need. First, we paid off the three BLC mortgages. Then we started construction of BLC's 3rd floor classrooms. We also gutted out the home economics (H.E.) building to make it into one big classroom. "But where will we store the supplies?" I asked. Dr. Ayoc and I walked around inside the H.E. building. "What about near the ceiling?" I asked. Sure enough, there was ample space we'd not even considered, above the heads of where the students would be sitting. So now there are over 100 square feet of cabinets, criss-crossing the ceiling and its interior perimeter, with sliding glass doors, sectioned in four "quads". They hold the sewing machines, pots and pans for H.E., tools and saw horses (for I.A.), instruments (for music) and microscopes, etc. (for science). In front of the blackboard are rows of worktables for the new "practical education building"…answered prayer! Also, since the new shelves are along the ceiling, the recent flood, which destroyed BLC's textbooks, supplies and computers in the other building, did not affect those items in the new practical education building. God is sooo good. He knew our need before we did. Until next time… Present need: $12,120 still lacking to replace the textbooks, which were destroyed in the recent flood at BLC. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that many children at Delta Lake Family Camp last week were challenged to consider becoming missionaries after we and other missionaries spoke with them about God's work worldwide. Status of $22,000 needed to finish interior of BLC's new 3rd-floor library: $18,945 received, $3,055 left to go! Furlough schedule (July):
BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 82 |
7/6/2008 | Painted Post, New York "Take anything that you need!" A few years ago while on furlough we stopped by a messianic Christian church, and greeted a few believers there, swapping emails. Last year one gentleman invited us via email to visit an outreach ministry they have for overseas missions. Last Saturday when we stopped by his place (Jezreel Ministries), we entered their warehouse where hundreds of boxes of merchandise were waiting for us to look through. We packed out the car with toothbrushes, toothpaste, sheets and even a comforter to send to the Philippines to replace ours which was destroyed in the recent flood. On her way out the huge warehouse door, Elvie noticed a lone shoebox and picked it up before leaving. The week previous we'd visited a few family thrift stores, yet could not find any sneakers my size. When we got to the place where we were staying, I unpacked the car. It was so full I had to make two trips: one for the warehouse items and one for Elvie and the kids. One of the last items I pulled out of the car was the shoebox. "I wonder..." I thought, opening up the box. There inside was a brand new pair of sneaks. Looking at the side of the box, sure enough, they were my size: 8.5! God is soooo good! Until next time… Present need: $12,500 still lacking to replace the textbooks, which were destroyed in the recent flood at BLC. Please pray for the upcoming BLC event: 1.July 11 Homeroom PTA meetings Please pray for patience for the hundreds of BLC kids who are still trying to read wet, moldy and smudged textbooks that were destroyed in the flood at BLC. Please also pray for a few Christian engineers in America who are considering coming out to the Philippines to help clean out the drainage canal near BLC, to avoid future flooding. Praise God that a church VBS in Fulton, NY is challenging their VBS children to bring in different items for BLC kids each day: toothbrushes/underwear/shoes/chewable vitamins & stuffed animals. Status of $22,000 needed to finish interior of BLC's new 3rd-floor library: $18,940 received, $3,060 left to go! Furlough schedule
BLC Children still waiting for sponsors for 2008-9: 83. |
6/19/2008 | Aberdeen, SCOTLAND, United Kingdom (Great Britain) “After 600 yards, cross the roundabout and take your third exit.” The
GPS (Global Positioning Satellite) device plugged into the lighter slot
and hung from the inside of our windshield with its own miniature map
display, which showed us where all the roads were, keeping us on track
while driving six days, over a thousand miles through England, Wales and
Scotland in the United Kingdom. How did Fran arrive on the window of the rental car? A Scottish friend in Davao works out with me when I exercise. His eyes brightened up when I told him we were planning to visit his country. “Please use my GPS,” he offered one day. “I can’t use it in the Philippines. When I turn it on here, it tells me to ‘Go twelve thousand miles and turn left.’” After inviting us to his place for dinner, he showed us how to use it, and even helped us schedule our trip. Now, our UK trip is nearly over, and on Thursday (6/19) we’ll fly to
New York. Yet due to the help of our retired Veterinarian friend Scotty
(his real name) and Greg (our host in Aberdeen), we were able to speak
in four churches, as well as to many individuals, to challenge believers
to become missionaries by going, giving and praying for the lost to come
to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Present need: $48,000 remaining for flood relief at BLC in Davao. PTL, $2,000 has already been received, of the $50,000 needed! Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Praise God that we have ten new sponsors in Britain for Davao’s BLC kids, and for FHF kids in the future! This means that when the FHF is built, we can immediately accept from Davao’s social welfare department 15 children (5 from Mark’s contacts and ten from the UK). Many of the new British sponsors are Nigerian students and professionals. Status of $22,000 needed to finish interior of BLC's new 3rd-floor library: $18,930 received, $3,070 left to go! Furlough schedule (June):
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6/12/2008 | HAPPY FATHER’S DAY! Please pray for BLC. While traveling we have had a challenge accessing the internet. Yesterday we connected and found that there was a major flood in the school. 45% of the 3000 school textbooks stored in the office for distribution on the 10th were destroyed on the 6th. The gas tanks of the busses all have to be drained and our family car is now full of mold... and we have only been gone 12 days! The opening of the school for this year has been delayed one week for “Operation Linis” (cleanup, by all the faculty, staff, parents and kids). The mud is four inches deep in the classrooms. Pray especially for Elvie. She is very worried. On the bright side, we did get a chance to speak in a church in Wales last Sunday, and we spoke in a Scottish church last night (Wednesday). While traveling, we keep our dirty clothes in a separate bag. By mistake, we left a bag of our nicest clothes in a hotel about 600 miles ago, so had to stop at a store to replace some of them. While I was up all night with the stomach flu (from bad salami) in Edinburgh, the kids are traveling well. The UK is a gorgeous country. We saved $32 by looking over the fence at Stonehenge instead of going in next to the rocks. PJ drew a picture of them from a distance. In London we saw the Tower, Eye, Bridge and Trafalgar, but missed the palace. We've seen over a dozen castles from a distance, and visited three more. They are soooo majestic! We turned in the rental car yesterday and are now staying with our delightful host, Pastor Greg. It was fun driving on the left side of the road with a GPS (direction finder)! Desperate needs:
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6/5/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “You know young man, I am older than your aged godfather.” The smiling Chinese man was a great man of prayer. Every Friday, without fail, he came to our town prayer meeting. One week when our meeting place wasn’t available, he and his wife opened his home to us for the meeting and also for a complete breakfast. During Friday prayer meetings, whenever I give a prayer request, he asks me to repeat my request loudly, shaking my “aged godfather” awake so that he and godfather can pray for me (In the Philippines, everyone has at least half a dozen godfathers). Last week I received a text message on my cell phone: Please come to Brother Tingtat’s funeral.” Who was Brother Tingtat? I couldn’t remember. Yet I couldn’t attend the funeral anyway, since it was at the same time as an important school event for PJ and Abigail. This morning at prayer meeting, next to my sleeping godfather, the elderly Chinese man’s seat was empty. I whispered to my seatmate, “Where is the smiling Chinese man?” That was Brother Tingtat! A flood of realization swept over me. One day, in 80 years or so, my seat will also be empty at prayer meeting. My desire is that before people remember my name, I will be known like “the smiling Chinese man” for my prayer life, my willingness to open my home to those in need, and also…for my smile. Until next time… Present need: $442 for this mini-laptop computer that replaces my normal one that just bit the dust. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Praise God for Pastor Callem (my assistant) who spoke on the radio for his very first time last week. I gave him my slot, since I’ll be gone for three months. He did a great job. When he was finished, I presented the plan of salvation over the air for the 1.4 million people who live in Davao City. If you have recently requested to be deleted from this weekly email diary, please tell me again. My laptop computer died this week and I had to quickly go out and buy a “mini” laptop so we’d have one to use during our travels, which begin this Sunday. In the process, lost some of more recent revisions, made after my backup files were logged. Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's new 3rd-floor library:
$18,925 received, $3,075 left to go! |
5/29/2008 | Davao City, Philippines Diary “Challenge us with your plan!” Elvie, PJ, Abby and I are leaving for our three-month speaking tour next Sunday (6/1) after church. We'll be flying to London, driving through England and Wales, and speaking in Scotland. Then we'll be on our way to New York, in the USA. Yet before leaving the Philippines, I had one more thesis defense scheduled at the University here in Davao. As the panel reviewed my thesis, one of the committee members went to the white board with a marker. “Your topic and research of juvenile delinquency is good. Yet tell us what BLC is doing to solve this problem in Davao City.” The professor then outlined in a drawn box, the frequency distribution (gender, ages, etc.) of my 21 BLC case study analyses. Next, being a qualitative research project, she detailed in a second box the spiritual, mental, physical and social needs of BLC kids. Finally, the third box she left empty. “We need you to fill this box with what BLC is doing in response to the needs shown in boxes one and two. How are you helping the hungry?” she asked. “We are feeding them every day.” was my answer. “What about their education?” -We are schooling them...for free! “Their physical needs?” We train them in gym class, as well provide hospitalization and clinic needs when they have medical challenges. “How about their spiritual needs?” -We teach them about Jesus every day. “Wow, what BLC does should be a prototype for ALL schools in Davao!” The panel strongly suggested that our approach be presented to the government Department of Social Welfare. In essence, BLC is challenging the entire city of 1.4 million Filipinos to lead kids, “from crime...to Christ!” Until next time… Present need: $300 for the construction of a new office and desk for our new BLC librarian. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events: 1.June 10 2008-9 School year begins. Please pray for our adjustment as we travel, to time changes, cultures, seasons, climates, accents, driving on the left side of the road, currencies, etc. Please also pray for the new BLC teachers hired this week, as they prepare their classrooms and lesson plans for the new school year which begins June 10. Praise God that the new windows have been installed lst week in our new third-floor BLC addition. The large rooftop BLC signs will be installed this week. Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's new 3rd-floor library: $18,920 received, $3,080 left to go! Furlough schedule (June): 6/1:Davao,6/2:fly,6/3,4:London, England,6/5:Stonehenge and Hay-On-Wye, Wales,6/6:Llangollen, Wales,6/7:Llandudno, Wales,6/8:Edinburgh, Scotland,6/9:Ft. William, Scotland,6/10:Inverness, Scotland,6/11-18:Aberdeen, Scotland,6/19:Fly to London and NYC, USA,6/20-21:Fulton, NY,6/21-24:Albany, NY,6/22:Castleton, NY,6/26:Albany, NY,6/27-28:Rome, NY,6/29:Albany, NY, 6/29-30:Trenton, NJ. "Let the Islands Rejoice!" |
5/22/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “Oops!” As the tambourine rolled across the church stage toward the stairs, the teenage girl in her white dress and bare feet ran over to get it, catching it just in time. Meanwhile, her companions never skipped a beat in their leading the congregation's worship songs. these teens were once small child students in classes at BLC. Now they are part of our church praise team. It seems only yesterday when they were starting preschool, cute in their freshly ironed school uniforms. Now, some have already graduated. Others are in 4th, 5th and 6th grade. Their inner talents differ, yet all share the joy of Jesus. The son of a policeman plays the drums. A boy whose dad drives a public jeepney plays the electric guitar. A third boy, whose family is unemployed, plays the church's classical guitar. A girl whose parents are farmers reads the scripture, and the tambourine team includes kids of carpenters, pastors and a mechanic. Though jobs are few and far between, Christian joy can be seen on their faces as they praise God who is in control of all...including that rolling tambourine! Until next time… Present need: $1660 for paint and labor (of the painters) for the three newly-constructed classrooms at BLC. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Praise God for the recent approval for a 2-month medical fellowship for a medical intern to assist our Philippine ministry when we return in September. Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's new 3rd-floor library: $18,915 received, $3,085 left to go! |
5/16/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “Madam Elvie, I will NEVER go to church!” Every year Elvie interviews the parents of each of the new sponsored children before enrolling the kids at BLC. One question she asks them is, “Are you willing to come to church on Wednesdays and Sundays?” Almost always, they agree. Yet this particular father was not willing to worship. He explained, “Never in my whole life have I ever stepped foot in a church. I am scared. Uncomfortable. Confused.” Yet Elvie assured hum, “You know, right where you are sitting is where we worship on Sundays. You are already in church! And Jesus takes away your fear. He is your Comforter. He gives you confidence! Be sure that eventually you will be in church. If not while you are alive, after you die, your funeral will be in church! Why not visit while you are still living?” The next Sunday during visitor recognition time, I noticed a shy man with long hair, sitting with his family in the third row. After shaking his hand and returning to my seat, Pastor Callem whispered to me, “He's the man!” And now for over a month, he has been faithfully attending church every week. This morning in church he stood before the congregation as each person shook his hand. It is his birthday, so we all sang happy birthday to him. When I took his hand, he reached out and embraced me with a strong, meaningful embrace. “This is my new family!” he said. He's still a little shy, but is opening up to his new family of friends at church. His wife carries a big smile on her face as she and her children sit with the dad as an unbroken family, singing, praying and worshiping together at church. Jesus brings them together! Until next time… Present need: $94 for the BLC phone bill. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Please pray that the construction of BLC's 3 new classrooms will be finished this week so the new teachers can prepare them and decorate them for classes, which will begin the first week of June. Please also pray for the Holy Spirit to urge the souls of many of the new BLC students' families to become Christians, during their weekly one-on-one discipleship times. Statistically, April through June is the greatest “soul harvest time” at BLC, due to the new people who come. Praise God that my brother Phil (a pastor in Pennsylvania)
is actively recuperating from his recent car accident, in which he broke
some ribs, Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's new 3rd-floor library: $18,910 received, $3,090 left to go! |
5/9/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “Ladies, please pray for the thief!” The biennial national women's convention last week in Manila had been excitedly anticipated by over a thousand pastor's wives and lay women all over the 7,107 Philippine Islands. Over 150 women from eastern Mindanao attended, pooling their resources to get a discount group rate on the 2-hr airplane flight instead of the equally-priced 3-day boat ride. Elvie is the national women's secretary, and also needed to arrive a few days early to visit the British Embassy to pick up her visa for our June “round-the-world” family speaking tour. So she was not included in the “discount crew” Yet the 150 Eastern Mindanao delegates did not arrive in Manila! Anxious phone calls revealed the horrible news that the secular discount agency “disappeared” with over half a million pesos, sacrificially given by the ladies for their plane fares. A missionary sending agency pooled its resources and pulled back on some projects so they could help the ladies, and also the other hundreds of ladies at the convention collected special offerings to make it possible for the ladies to take the boat. Arriving a few days late, the 150 victims were not angry. Frustrated, yes. After all, they had saved up for over 2 yrs from their husbands' meager pastor's salaries, for the trip. Yet thankful that God's people had sacrificed so that the victims could attend, the ladies' heartfelt desire was that their sisters-in-Christ would pray for the agency that had stolen their airfares. “May God touch their hearts, not only to return the stolen money, but that God will cause the thieves to become Christians so that, instead of hurting people, they will be led by God to make the world a better place.” Until next time… Present need: $585 for this month's medical coverage for our 45 BLC teachers and staff. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Please pray. Praise God that we now have our plane tickets from Manila to London. Now please pray for the nine other reservations we have to make for our June travels to Manila, Scotland, Wales and New York. Please also pray for a meeting we're having with a landowner this week. This woman wants to donate land (22 acres) to our ministry, on a “loan” basis. The agreement is that, if the poor in our ministry can grow crops on the land, 10% of the food and animals grown will be given to the landowner, while the other 90% will feed the poor in our ministry. There is a glitch though. A cult has a compound near the land, and a few days ago, a family of five was massacred there. Praise God for God's blessings, poured out on two of the churches that we have planted here in Davao! These two churches (Asuncion and Purok Ocho) are celebrating their one-year anniversaries this month! Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's new 3rd-floor library:
$18,905 received, $3,095 left to go! |
5/2/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “Pastor Paul, would you be willing to share your faith on the radio?” The grandfather of one of our poor BLC kids is a secular radio announcer. He recently started an early-morning Sunday program, “Ecumenical Moments.” Of course I agreed to participate. It meant waking up at 3:30 am, so I set my alarm clock the night before. I guess God wanted to be sure that I'd not oversleep, so the alarm went off half an hour early, at 3am. I used the extra 30 minutes to review my message and to pray. “Lord, may the Gospel be clear in this message!” In the early morning darkness, the gate was opened for me to enter into the radio station. While on the air after I finished my sermon, Announcer Ed asked, “Rev. Barner, what is the meaning of ecumenism?” Knowing that I had been invited as one of many speakers over the course of the next few months, I explained, “Ed, each of us is required by God to tell people about salvation through the blood of Jesus Christ. If Jesus is in your heart, whether you were born Baptist, Alliance, Catholic, tribal, or even Muslim, once you have Jesus in your heart, you are responsible for sharing Jesus with the lost souls of unbelievers.” In closing, my prayer was the prayer of salvation. Everyone listening, any of the 1.4 million who live in Davao, was invited to join in the prayer to become a believer in Jesus. Perhaps in heaven one day a laundrywoman will approach me and say, I am here because in April, 2008 I turned on the radio at 4:30 in the morning while scrubbing clothes by hand, and prayed with you to be saved from my sins!” Praise God for answering my prayer that the Gospel would be clearly presented! Until next time… Present need: $1500 for 50 4'x8' “hardiflex” panels
to build a sign on the fourth-floor roof of BLC, with the name of the
school and its logo and mission. Without this four-sided sign, many find
it hard to find the school. All four sides combined, it will be 200 feet
long, and painted by our BLC teachers.
Please pray for strength for Elvie this week in Manila, as she is emcee for a national ladies' conference with attendance of nearly 2000 women. Please also pray for the ten new BLC teachers this year, for them to catch the vision and relate clearly the Gospel to the 600 BLC kids. Praise God for the church congregation in the USA which sacrificially gave $6,000 for the construction of our new BLC library! Only $3,100 left to go! Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's new 3rd-floor library: $18,900 received, $3,100 left to go!
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4/25/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “PJ, here's five shells from Sarangani: 3 seashells and 2 bullet shells!” PJ and Abby hadn't seen Elvie and me all day long, since we'd left on our 3 ½ hour trip to Sarangani before they were awake, and now it was late at night when we returned. Our kids like seashells, so I brought some back to them from the beach of Southern Mindanao. We didn't think the area was safe for American children, which is why we'd left them behind. Before leaving Davao however, we visited a comatose friend of a friend in the hospital. After waking up the hospital receptionist, we were informed that the patient had already died, so we continued on our way. The “highway” we traveled was filled with detours and washed out bridges, so it was a very bumpy ride... but scenic, passing through a mountain chain. Since only one of the seven of us thought to bring shorts, we stopped at a roadside stand to buy clothes to wear while dedicating a boat. Through the assistance of Christian Aid Mission, I had been able to raise $1500 for this colorful, rainbow-striped motorized boat to be built. The motor of the “pumpboat” glided it like a big water spider over the ocean, with bamboo struts stretching out on both sides of it to give it stability in the water. After shaking hands with the appreciative vice governor of the province, the Honorable Mr. Solon, we waded out to the boat for its dedication. This vessel will be used to carry church-planting Filipino missionaries to unreached people groups on remote islands which can only be reached by boat. Dozens of believers joined us after the ceremony for a feast of appreciation, with a large roasted pig and cooked fish to fill us up. One of the pastors rushed to the head of the pig and reached his hand into its mouth to yank out his favorite part, the tongue. Some say that by eating a pig's tongue and ears, a person will be able to understand and speak pig language. When we prayed for the boat, it was christened “Charity Faith DSO”. “Charity” for the missions of mercy that it will be used for, to bring food and clothes to the needy poor on the islands. “Faith” for the Gospel message that will be preached by missionaries aboard this “Gospel Ship”. “DSO” for Davao Strategic Outreach, the arm of BLC that funds needs like horses, pigs, goats, bikes and this boat for church planting missionaries. Before prayer, I looked down into the floor of the boat. There was a cigarette and two bullet shells, left behind by the boat's builder. “We will not pray for these!” I said, throwing away the butt and pocketing the shells. I saved these shells to bring home to PJ. Now, whenever we see those shells, we pray for the safety of our Sarangani church planting missionaries, since this area of Sarangani is a dangerous crossroads for Islamic sea pirates. Until next time… Present need: $1153 BLC's monthly water and electric bill. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $12,900 received, $9,100 left to go! |
4/18/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “I'll be in heaven because of Elvie!” With tears streaming down her cheeks, and speaking with choking voice, Olive and a dozen other parents in church came up to the microphone on Pastor Appreciation Day to show their gratitude for our ministry here at Faith Fellowship. “One day, when I get to heaven,” shared Olive, “when God asks me how I heard of Jesus, I will mention how Elvie prayed with me to receive Jesus into my heart.” The leaders of youth, music and children brought a pot of dirt and a budding coconut to the church stage, planting it before the congregation of 700. “You have planted the seed of truth into our hearts. Now, watch it grow!” As 30 or so of the church men came to the stage to sing a chorus, the dad of two new BLC kids joined them. We'd found his ragged children selling onions on the curb of a gas station last week, and now the dad is already singing in church! Awhile later Abigail leaned over to me and whispered in my ear, “Daddy, I'm hungry! Are we almost done? We've been here on stage for over two hours!” Just then, the parent giving the Bible message finished, and in response half the congregation came to the stage bringing gifts of fruit, vegetables, rice, mugs and framed certificates. “There's your food!” I whispered back to her. The 700 Club had come to Davao 2 wks ago to suggest that each church have a Pastor's Appreciation Day. Although we'd never mentioned the idea to our congregation, they secretively planed it behind our backs and gave us this delightful surprise! Until next time… Present need: $640 for 8 bald BLC bus tires which desperately need replacing. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Please pray for required Summer classes, which begin this week at BLC.
Praise God for our trip to Sarangani (S.E. Mindanao) this next Thursday to christen the motorized boat that we raised the money ($1500) to build. Church planting missionaries will now be able to reach island areas that are impossible to reach without a boat. Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $12,895 received, $9,105 left to go! |
4/11/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “Dad, are we low on gas?” PJ wanted to stop at the gas station on our way home from a birthday party, so he could see if they had any kids' magazines. Since we were low on fuel, we stopped at the station. After filling up, Elvie noticed two very cute small children sitting on the curb with a backpack. “Why are you out so late at night?” she inquired. It was 9pm. “We are poor and have a backpack full of onions and garlic to sell. But we lost, through a hole in our pocket, the 120 pesos ($3) we earned, and we are afraid to go home!” As half a dozen gas station attendants came outside, big smiles appeared on their faces as Elvie invited the two kids to come home with us for dinner. When Jeff and Jen arrived at our apartment in the BLC school, their eyes grew really wide as they saw our shoes, all lined up inside the door, as well as PJ and Abby's bedroom with bookshelves full of his book collection and Abby's doll house. “You know, these clothes we are wearing were given to us by people that we sold onions to,” said the girl. They ate as if they hadn't eaten anything all day, and played with PJ and Abby and their toys. Then Elvie brought them home after we replaced the money they'd lost, and bought the rest of their onions. “Please come back on Tuesday with your parents,” Elvie said, “and you can apply to come here to BLC as free students!” They leaped into the air and gave Elvie a big hug. Jen explained that Jeff had taken three years to complete 2nd grade, since the family kept running out of money for school. Bigger than we'd seen them yet, their eyes revealed their surprise when the truth hit them once again. They asked for clarity, “Libre?” (free?) And again, “Libre, Yes! LIBRE!” Until next time… Present need: $2653 for the final payment of our 2007 BLC schoolbooks. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Please pray for the construction of our third floor BLC library, and the conversion of our home economics building, to be completed by May 15, when the teachers will prepare their classrooms for the new school year. Please also pray for Elvie's visa to Scotland to be approved when she goes to Manila for a pastor's wives conference there, in two weeks. Praise God for the ten thousand Gospel tracts and school fliers that our teachers, staff and students' parents distributed door-to-door all over Davao City today. Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $12,890 received, $9,110 left to go! |
4/4/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “Look at who has the camera!” I leaned over and whispered to Elvie as we sat side-by-side on the BLC stage during our 2007-8 graduation ceremonies last week. One by one, the parents of the 6th grade graduates accompanied their children as they filed forward down the aisle, across the stage, and back to their seats. At the center of the stage, each graduate stopped to be handed his or her diploma and shake hands with Elvie, Dr. Ayoc, the official representative from the Philippine Department of Education, and me, before having his or her tassel transferred from one corner of the “mortarboard” hat to the other. Most of these graduates come from very poor households, and many as well from broken families. One single mother had had an affair with a married man, years ago. The result was that the same father has daughters of similar age, yet from different women. These 2 children (half-sisters) are both enrolled at BLC. Yet BLC provides such Christian teaching as forgiveness and repentance of our old lifestyles. Both mothers showed these qualities during graduation. As mother #1 walked across the stage with her daughter, mother #2 took their picture. As mother #2 walked across the stage with her daughter, mother #1 took their picture. Praise God for His forgiveness! Praise God for showing us how to repent, how to forgive, and how to go on with life! Praise God as well for our BLC graduates, “Batch 2008!” Until next time… Present need: $5000 for our flight to the USA for furlough in June. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Please pray for churches who are still planning on having us speak during the Summer to schedule one of the 24 still-available weekdays available in our 92-day furlough. Please also pray for Mark and Mary Ann's wedding (and marriage) to go smoothly, beginning this Friday. Praise God for the cement of the 12 columns for our 3rd-floor library have been poured and are dry. Now the reinforcement bars and molding are being built for the roof slab to be poured next week. Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library:
$7,885 received, |
3/28/2008 | Davao City, Philippines "What was THAT?" Elvie woke up with a start, and I grinned in the very early morning darkness with a knowing, yet tired smile as my cell phone played the military bugle wake-up revile at 3am Easter Sunday morning. Elvie and I had had errands late into the night, so waking for our 4am Sunrise service, we'd only had 2 hours of sleep. Just outside our door, early worshipers had already begun to arrive. In the church sanctuary, just 40 paces from our front door, the hundreds of plastic chairs began to fill up with worshipers. The Resurrection Sunday message focused on the resurrection that we will face when the trumpet of Jesus' archangel blows, and the dead and alive in Christ will rise to meet Him in the air. As we sang in the Easter choir, “Up From the Grave He Arose,” I looked out on the poor BLC families. Some live in only shacks. Some sleep with no walls, only a sheet between them and the damp night air and mosquitoes. Many had to walk a great distance in the morning blackness, down forest pathways to get to church. But now we were here, together, as a church. After we sat down, PJ leaned over and whispered to me, “Dad, we should have a trumpet player here in church, like there will be when we get to heaven!” One day the trumpet will sound. But it will be much louder than my cell phone trumpet, and on that Great Resurrection Morning, oh, what a heavenly choir we will be! From the forest, from the city, from the mountains and from the continents of the world. Day or night, we'll all be gathered up together to attend that awesome, final Sunrise Service! Until next time… Present need: $4878 for iron reinforcement bars for construction for our new 3rd floor BLC library, before the cement is poured next week. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Please pray for my clarity of mind during the pre-defense of my Master's
Thesis this Friday morning, 3/28, as well as my final oral defense on
4/7. Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library:
$7,830 received, $14,170 left to go! |
3/21/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “He was so young!” Burley died last week. He was a young dad, with four
kids. Two are students at BLC. The other two are not enrolled, as one
is blind and the other is a baby. Burley died of a heart attack while
sleeping. Friends from school and church came to visit their tiny hut,
as we prayed for and sang with the family. Next, two lizards were on another wall. One ran around, catching bugs. The other just popped his head out of a crevice, waiting for “the big one”. It never came. Like the poor, the big opportunities are just not to be found. Next, a small mouse skittered across the white coffin. Down to the floor, it then climbed up the rungs of the wooden stand for the funeral guest book. Pulling itself up with its from claws, it lost its grip and...THUMP! It hit the floor. Like the poor, he kept falling short of his goal, running out of strength. As Callem went on with his message, a scruffy dog wandered in from the dirt steps outside. Snooping around for scraps of food and finding none, he moseyed back out the doorway. Like poor beggars, the dog was skin and bones. After I gave the closing prayer, Elvie asked Ruthie Joy (the widow, with her sleeping baby in her arms) why the casket didn't have a picture of Burley propped on it, as is the Filipino custom. “We are too poor to have a camera” was the answer. Instead, the one who made the coffin gave her a wallet-sized painting of Jesus, which was propped where Burley's picture should be. I thought, “Hmmm, In just a few days is Easter. Imagine if Jesus was in that casket.” Then I saw the age of Burley: 33 years old. That was the age Jesus was when he hung on the cross. Jesus had said, “Whatever you do for the least of your brothers, that you do into me.” I looked up to see a big, hairy spider in the corner of the ceiling with a massive web. A mosquito got caught and, as quick as a wink, was wrapped up in webbing and devoured by the spider. Why were the cockroach, the lizard, the dog and the mouse unsuccessful, while the spider was fat and full? Because of his network web. Although Burley is now gone, Ruthie Joy is not alone. Her “network” is her BLC family, the church family, and Christians around the world who are supporting her kids and praying for her. In memory of Burley, and in honor of our living Jesus, we continue to reach out to hundreds of “Ruthie Joys” and their kids, here in Davao City. Until next time… Present need: $400 for extra BLC graduation expenses (awards ceremony on 3/28). Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Please pray for my Master's thesis pre-defense (on BLC's preclusion to juvenile delinquency), this Friday (4/28). Please also pray for the construction which we started this week, on the outer shell of our new 3rd floor library. Since we still lack $14,000 for the finished library, we are only building the roof, walls, windows and bathroom at this time, so it can be used for much-needed temporary overflow classroom space. Praise God for three new sponsors this week! Also for over 300 stuffed animals that were given! Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $7,825 received, $14,175 left to go! |
3/14/2008 | Davao City, Philippines HAPPY PALM SUNDAY! (3/16) HAPPY DAVAO CITY ANNIVERSARY! (3/16-ARAW NG DABAW) “Daddy, I want to memorize that verse!” PJ was looking over my shoulder as I was doing my email. An attachment quoted Philippians 3:14 (“I press on toward the goal...”). When PJ saw the verse, he wrote it down, repeating over and over, “Philippians 3:14...Philippians 3:14...” A few weeks ago our family started a new tradition. Since the beginning of the school year I have been challenging the BLC student body in a Bible verse memorization competition. It is so successful that I thought, why not quiz my family as well? Every morning and evening we recite Bible verses. This is in response to Psalm 1:2, “...on His law he meditates day and night...” If I fall asleep before evening verse-time, Elvie gets me up with, “We didn't say our verses yet!” If I spend too long at my computer, PJ comes up to my office, “Daddy, it's time to say our verses!” PJ and Abby get up half an hour earlier in the morning before getting ready for school, so they will have time to say their morning verses. For each verse, they each get one peso (two cents). Elvie is up to 300 verses per day. PJ is at 80, and our seven-yr-old Abby recites 20. Even though I am the one listening to the verses, I also quiz myself on 137 verses. I bought each of our family members a small Bible with cover and handle so we can each carry them wherever we go, as we practice. The all-time favorite verse, aside from John 3:16, is John 11:35...”Jesus wept!” Until next time… Present need: $2447 for salaries due 3/15. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Please pray for the preliminary stages of our library construction to begin this month. Since we are still lacking $14,000 for the final 3rd floor library's construction, we'll use the funds you have given to build the initial shell (walls and ceiling), so that we have temporary overflow classroom space. We'll continue renovating the space as funds arrive, until the library is complete. Please also pray for acceptance of our furlough visas, as we plan to stop at Scotland on the way to the USA in June. We have Scottish prayer warriors who would love to have an update of God's ministry here in the Philippines. Praise God! Last week I asked you to pray for Mark to find a place to
live, since we are gutting out the interior of the Home Economics Building
to make more Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $7,820 received, $14,180 left to go! |
3/7/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “Our humble home...” The woman in rags parted the tattered old, discolored sheet which covered the opening that served as her doorway. There was no door. Elvie accepted the invitation and ducked her head to enter in. The walls were just remnants of plastic tarps, hung from clotheslines. No wood. No cement. Just pieces of thin plastic tarps. A colorful picture from a five-year-old calendar was the sole decoration, hanging on one “wall”. Laying on a floor on a mat was an old, toothless woman, who also lives with this poor family. “Aches and pains are my alarm clock which wakes me up in the morning. It's okay that we have no electricity,” she told Elvie. Without running water, the tiny dirt-floored, windowless home was just a shack. Not even. And yet it held three generations. Four small children with matted hair and in drab t-shirts (but naked otherwise), came in from playing in the alleys “outside”. One-by-one they humbly pressed the back of Elvie's hand to their foreheads, in the Filipino sign of respect from the young to the old. “May we pray with you?” Elvie asked the mother. Gathered in a small circle hand-in-hand, they prayed that God would provide for this family, and also that He would send sponsors to pay the $25 per month for the schooling of these and other destitute children. Our goal for 2008-9 is 500 sponsored kids. Elvie visits the home of every new BLC pupil to see if the family is poor enough to qualify for the free schooling program at BLC. After a busy and tiring day, Elvie was laid-up with fever and “sore eyes” (pinkeye), which she caught from the hands of some of these poor kids. We reach out to forgotten and abandoned...the refuse of society. After all, isn't that what Jesus would do? Until next time… Present need: $320 for the monthly medical insurance for our 45 teachers/staff. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Please pray for Mark, our missionary from California. He's getting married next month and is trying to build a small place for them to live in before their wedding date. He's been staying with us for the past 8 months. Please also pray for the case studies I'll be doing on 20 BLC students for my thesis defense, to be presented in two weeks. I've now completed 150 pages of my pre-defense. Praise God for the family from America which received a company bonus and sent over $900 to BLC to help us cover increasing operating expenses. Praise God for another family who gave to BLC a portion of their tax refund! God is sooo good! Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $7,780 received,
$14,220 left to go! |
2/29/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “The tribal chief is demanding a sacrifice!” I'd sent Mark, Doug and Callem up to the mountains to request land for our juvenile detention center, the “Father's House”. After months of getting government permits in office after office in the city of Davao, it was now time to go up to the mountains and approach the chieftain. Never did I imagine that he would demand a sacrifice! In my studies of this tribe, I'd researched how other tribes had practiced human sacrifices against at least one member of this tribe. They also practice animal sacrifices (mostly chickens) on a regular basis, to get the opinion of the gods in pertinent matters. Yesterday Mark shared with me the other details of his report. “They demand not just one, but FIVE sacrifices, over the course of the next six months!” This couldn't be right. How could we kill someone so that the land could be released, and these child criminals' lives could be saved? At least once a month, here in Davao City, a child is massacred when marked by vigilante groups as “criminal”. Drive-by gunmen then exterminate the child by shooting him in cold blood. Suddenly I had an idea. “Mark, did they say HUMAN sacrifice, or ANIMAL sacrifice?” Mark assured me, “Neither. The chief did not say SACRIFICE. He said he needs a SACK OF RICE to feed the tribal dignitaries when they make their decision! Hmmm, that is different! The human sacrifice was already made by Jesus, when he gave Himself for the souls of these precious kids! Until next time… Present need: $191 for postage stamps. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Please also pray for the tribal leaders to release the land for the Father's House with fewer community meetings. The longer the facility is delayed, the more children's lives are lost. Praise God also for 300 birthday cards sent by a church in New York for a BLC school project, and also for a church in Utah which sent nearly 100 brand new shop tools to BLC for our industrial arts lab! Praise God also for the fellow missionary who gave Mark a brand-new motorcycle for his ministry! And praise God for our 10 yr old son PJ! He won first place in the Faith Academy (Davao) “Battle of the Books” (BOB) school wide competition! Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $7,785 received, $14,215 left to go! |
2/22/2008 | Davao City "We love our teachers!” How appropriate that our annual BLC Teacher Appreciation Day should land on Valentine's Day this year! Each class called its teacher to the stage and sang for him or her, as well as giving him handmade cards and flowers. When the science teacher (Daisy) was called forward, Artjil sang her a solo. It was quite touching for everyone, since this student is autistic. Although he fears crowds, he nonetheless sang, without stammering, before all of the 600 parents and students present. A hush fell over the crowd as Artjil gave Daisy a flower and she kissed him on the cheek. “Awww....” said the audience, in unison. Then a burst of laughter followed as Artjil wiped off the kiss from his cheek with his t-shirt, with a mighty grin on his face. We actually had two autistic students volunteer to perform. The second
was Pershey, a sixth grader who is the age of a high schooler. Since she
is shy, she spoke very softly. Her fellow students so wanted to hear her
during this momentous occasion, that they knelt down on the floor next
to the loudspeakers to hear her whisper! Praise God for opening the shell
that these two autistic children have hidden in from birth! It is so true
that each and every one of us blossoms with beautiful new abilities when
Jesus touches our lives with His Until next time… Present need: $87 electrical rewiring for our “new” second-hand school security monitor system. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Please also pray for the tribal conference which is meeting next week to formally approve of Mark and Doug to move onto the tribal land 2 hours away and begin landscaping for a satellite tribal BLC school. Once the school is built and running, construction for the Father's House Juvenile Detention Center will begin. Praise God also for my finishing the second chapter of my master's thesis! Only two more chapters (including BLC case study) to go before my March defense! Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $7,775 received,
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2/15/2008 | Davao City, Philippines "Sorry, I don't have any pesos today." Every day that I stop at a certain signal light in town, a kind, dark-skinned teenage beggar boy looks through my windshield to see if I have a peso for him. Typically I try to have at least one in my pocket to give to him. But sometimes I forget, and just shrug my shoulders. He gives me an understanding grin as if to say, "That's ok. Maybe tomorrow." Today, I was busy. Very busy. I had a forum to attend and also 21 pages to write for the first chapter of my thesis revision. This morning also was a prayer breakfast downtown, and this afternoon I had to turn in my paper to the university before they closed for the day. I printed the 21 pages on my computer, and suddenly noticed on page ten, that it was invisible! No ink. After changing the cartridge and starting the slow printer again from the beginning, I collected my things and jumped into the multicab. Once in the driver's seat, I noticed that a bird had targeted the windshield. Not on the corner, not on the passenger side, but right in the center of my line of sight. It was already dried on hard, and I was in a hurry. No time to clean it off. After a few miles of driving, I hardly noticed it. Almost to the university, I hit a red light. Looking at my watch, I saw that I was cutting it very close. Then he came. My beggar friend. His shirt and shorts were dirty rags. He had a tattered cardboard box, folded under his arm: it was both his bed and house for the night. I shrugged my signal to him after feeling in my pocket: no pesos. He came anyway, reached over with his finger, and scratched the dried-on bird dropping from my windshield. We made eye contact for half a second. The light changed. I smiled. "Salamat" (thanks), I said. He smiled back and muttered, "maybe tomorrow." I arrived at the university in time, and with a clean windshield. I also felt really, really good inside. A man (the beggar) who had nothing, had given me something. Jesus cleaned my windshield today. Until next time… Present need: $138 mattresses for PJ and Abigail. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Praise God also for $30 which came in this week for construction of BLC's library!Also please pray for Mark, as he visits the mountainous tribal areas this week to map out the location for construction of the first buildings of the Father's House juvenile detention center and school. Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $7,770 received,
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2/8/2008 | Davao City, Philippines "Daddy, can I sleep in the box to night?" Abigail's words
seemed ironic to me. While children who live in boxes wish they could
sleep in a house, kids who live in houses want to sleep in boxes. I've
actually seen many beggar children sleeping Until next time… Present need: $342 biweekly gas bill for our 7 BLC busses. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Praise God also for a successful 3rd Board Meeting for the Father's
House (FHF) for CICL (Children in Conflict with the Law). My presentation
on the multifaceted Also please pray for our plans for our New York furlough in June-August. June is now fully booked with speaking in churches and helping in VBSes (Vacation Bible Schools), and now we are working on July and August. Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $7,735 received, $14,265 left to go! |
2/1/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “Pastor Paul, I'm worried!” Imelda (Mel) and Doug are newlyweds. Doug is American and Mel is a Filipina. Doug was bitten by a dengue mosquito and contracted the virus. Due to his fever and senior age, he was confined to the hospital. “Pastor Paul, Doug's blood platelet count is already down to 117!” We went to thehospital to pray for Doug. His legs were so very white, like a ghost. But the next day his count was even lower, down to 95. Then on Wednesday, it hit 80. Plunging this fast, the doctor told us to get blood ready for transfusions. But Doug has “O negative” blood type, which is very rare. Since Filipinos have only Rh positive blood, Doug would have to get blood from a missionary. Although I have given blood here, I am A positive, like the Filipinos. After a few hours of searching, through a “missionary blood hotline”we found 6 potential donors! But before getting them together, we sent emails around the world to you last week, asking for prayer. We had those at prayer meeting pray as well. Thursday morning, we stopped by the hospital and prayed again. As soon as I got home, a message came from Mel. “Yay, Pastor Paul! Doug's blood count shot back up to 110! PTL!” The time which his blood went back to normal, due to the international time difference, would be the time of prayer meetings around the world. Imagine the great, collective voice of prayer, reverberating against the interior walls of heaven, and echoing against those gates of pearl, into the very throne room of our Creator God!! Yay, God is soooo very good! This week Doug is back to work, praying with a paralyzed stroke victim in the hospital. Until next time… Present need: $5,000 for our family's round-trip flights for furlough to England, Scotland New York from June-August. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Praise God also for the goal of my university mentor (Dr. Gloria) that I will be able to finish my thesis by the end of February, so that I can graduate with my Master's in March, before we leave for furlough! Then I'll be able to begin work on my doctorate when we return in September! Also please pray for our Father's House 3rd annual board meeting this Saturday (2/2). I'll be presenting some of my thesis research on juvenile delinquency (and the need for early intervention) in Davao City. Mark will present his bureaucratic accomplishments in getting the paperwork done, and some government reps from Social Welfare will also present. The tribal chief who is donating land may also come down from the mountains to be present. Mark is traveling there today to invite her. Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $7,730 received,
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1/25/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “January is a month of joy!” 2008 is a brand-new year, spurring-on great expectations. That's why I focused our January Sunday sermons on the topic of evangelism. “There are so very, very many ways that you can share your faith!” I told the congregation about the blind beggar who had never been trained in evangelism. All he did was say, “I don't really know who this Jesus is, but one thing I do know. I once was blind. But after I met this Jesus guy, now I can see. Wanna be His disciple too?” Itemizing for the congregation the many other ways we can share our faith with others, I explained the “Four Spiritual Laws”, Evangelism Explosion (in brief), Roman Road, and other methods of sharing their faith. Yet looking out on the hundreds of worshipers, I pictured in my mind the 150 more destitute families who would be waiting in line outside Elvie's door on Monday morning, to enroll their kids at BLC. God is using the 5,000 sponsorship cards I'd mailed around the world from October-January, to both believers and non-believers alike. With an average of half a dozen new sponsors a month, we'll be ready to increase or student body by 30% this next school year. Since the school year begins with Summer School in April, the cut-off for new sponsored kids' applications is February 1 (next Friday). Every needy child, every loving mother, and every concerned father who enters Elvie's office is given the opportunity to receive Jesus into his or her heart. Evangelism comes in many forms here at BLC. Hundreds are being saved! Until next time… Present need: $132 Repairs on one of our BLC buses. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Praise God also for Mark's safe return from his mom's funeral in California. We made a mistake with his visa, so he almost lost it. Since we re-routed his return trip to Davao, he had to sleep two nights in the Singapore airport, and a third night on the plane. But he's back, and his visa was not canceled. Praise God! Also please pray for Pastor Doug, in the hospital. His platelet count is down to 80, with Dengue. And please pray that I can finish my master's thesis by graduation in March. Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $7,725 received, $14,275 left to go! |
1/21/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “January is a month of joy!” 2008 is a brand-new year, spurring-on great expectations. That's why I focused our January Sunday sermons on the topic of evangelism. “There are so very, very many ways that you can share your faith!” I told the congregation about the blind beggar who had never been trained in evangelism. All he did was say, “I don't really know who this Jesus is, but one thing I do know. I once was blind. But after I met this Jesus guy, now I can see. Wanna be His disciple too?” Itemizing for the congregation the many other ways we can share our faith with others, I explained the “Four Spiritual Laws”, Evangelism Explosion (in brief), Roman Road, and other methods of sharing their faith. Yet looking out on the hundreds of worshipers, I pictured in my mind the 150 more destitute families who would be waiting in line outside Elvie's door on Monday morning, to enroll their kids at BLC. God is using the 5,000 sponsorship cards I'd mailed around the world from October-January, to both believers and non-believers alike. With an average of half a dozen new sponsors a month, we'll be ready to increase or student body by 30% this next school year. Since the school year begins with Summer School in April, the cut-off for new sponsored kids' applications is February 1 (next Friday). Every needy child, every loving mother, and every concerned father who enters Elvie's office is given the opportunity to receive Jesus into his or her heart. Evangelism comes in many forms here at BLC. Hundreds are being saved! Until next time… Present need: $132 Repairs on one of our BLC buses. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Praise God also for Mark's safe return from his mom's funeral in California. We made a mistake with his visa, so he almost lost it. Since we re-routed his return trip to Davao, he had to sleep two nights in the Singapore airport, and a third night on the plane. But he's back, and his visa was not canceled. Praise God! Also please pray for Pastor Doug, in the hospital. His platelet count is down to 80, with Dengue. And please pray that I can finish my master's thesis by graduation in March. Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $7,725 received, $14,275 left to go! POTENT PRAYER: A gorgeous 20 acre campus at
the foot of the tallest mountain in the Philippines (20 miles from BLC)
is available for a high school/Bible Campground, if we can come up with
$80,000. |
1/18/2008 | Davao City, Philippines “Cali-fornication...” The song was repulsive to me. It implied that a lascivious lifestyle was acceptable. We were attending the birthday party of a one-yr old little girl, and I was asked to speak. First however, some of the invited guests chose songs to sing on the kereoke microphone. Over and over again in one of the songs the teenage boys laughed and sang out very loudly, “Cali-fornication!” Sometimes in the Philippines, American off-color songs are sung without the intended meaning being fully understood. Thus I see one of my ministries, as a missionary, in Ezekiel 44:23, “They shall teach my people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean.” In my birthday challenge, I began the short message. “As believers, we follow our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ. Our words, our actions, and even our attitudes should be like Jesus. As this little birthday girl grows, you all need to sing good songs that will teach her the right lifestyle to live.” After prayer and dinner, someone handed me the microphone. There were no longer any songs containing profanity. The little girl's father made sure that praise music and hymns were all that was sung for the rest of the evening. Now, through this tiny circumstance, everyone present understood the difference between the profane and the holy! Until next time… Present need: $27 Minor roof repair for BLC gym/chapel. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Praise God also for the four new sponsors that were added to the sponsorship program in the month for December. They live in New York, New Jersey and Illinois. Also please pray for Elvie as she daily interviews hundreds of poor families to see which children will qualify to fill the 150 new slots for student sponsorships in the 2008-2009 school year, which begins in April. Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $7,720 received,
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1/11/2008 | “Daddy, can we have a beagle?” For over a decade, we've avoided pets, since we live in a school. But looking into the cute eyes of PJ and Abby, and reminiscing the joy our own pets were to us when we were kids, we gave in. Two items concerned me: 1) American dogs are expensive in the Philippines, and 2) Dog food is not cheap. Then one of the Faith Academy teachers mentioned in passing, “I'll give you a free puppy!” Now THAT was an offer we couldn't refuse. Feliz (the puppy) is a light brown female, of “whatever” ancestry. She gets no end of affection from over 400 BLC students and staff,and has become somewhat of a school mascot. There always seems to be someone else petting her, cuddling her and giving her “puppy love”. Even the neighbor pups occasion by, but I ran over one of her puppy friends this week with the car, by mistake. Feliz is getting over it. We're training her to be a “school dog”, without barking or biting. We took down the Christmas decorations to avoid temptation for her. Since some Filipino drunkards eat roasted dog, we will keep Feliz on a chain as she grows, for protection. While she does like to chew on PJ's shoes, her preferred diet is also okay for my wallet: fish and rice (both very common in the Philippine Islands). God knew just what we needed! We've used the money some friends gave us for getting a dog, for her dog-dish, shots and so forth. Oh, and where did the kids get the name “Feliz” for our Christmas pup? From “Feliz Navidad”, of course! Praise God that Elvie was given an all-expense paid trip by plane and boat to the beautiful Island of Bohol (made famous by their dozens of natural, volcanic brown “chocolate mountains”, which resemble Hershey's kisses) a few hours from BLC, this week. The three-day trip was hosted by one of the five book companies that we use for our students' curriculum. The delegates also attended a series of seminars on the company's new materials for 2008-2009. Until next time… Present need: $167 locking storage drawers for under the BLC stage. Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Praise God also for Mark, our missionary friend. While in the USA a month to attend his mother's funeral, he was able to find six new sponsors for the 2008-9 school year, which begins in April! Yay God! Also please pray for three of our BLC staff whose contracts will be ending this year, that they can find other employment elsewhere which will make full use of their gifts. Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $7,715 received,
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1/3/2008 | Davao City, Philippines "Bring your whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be
food in my house. Test me in this," says the Lord Almighty, "and
see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so
much blessing that you will not have room enough for it." (Malachi
3:10) Pointing to the back of the BLC gym, I told the congregation at
prayer meeting, "It's true!" There in the back of the gym, was
a pile of furniture, stacked four pieces deep. Desks, filing cabinets,
couches and tables were proof that God "passed the test" of
Malachi 3:10. We'd bought over 100 large pieces of discarded furniture
from two local banks that merged. We'd obeyed the tithe challenge of the
Old Testament by "putting God on the payroll" of BLC during
2007. Every BLC employee received, in addition to his/her salary Praise God that PJ and Abigail came in second and third place (with medals) with Elvie and me in the 3K Family Fun Run in Davao! Until next time… Present need: $94 Shelves for educational videos/dvds/cds for BLC Please pray for the upcoming BLC events:
Praise God also that Elvie is enjoying her weekly piano lessons that a dear friend in New York paid for. Also please pray for us to reach 500 sponsors for poor kids who can receive a free education at BLC this next 2008-9 school year. We have mailed out 5,000 sponsorship cards for people to give their friends worldwide! Status of $22,000 needed to build BLC's 3rd-floor library: $7,710 received, $14,290 left to go! "Let the Islands Rejoice!" Rev. Paul, Elvie, PJ and Abigail Barner POTENT PRAYER: A gorgeous 20 acre campus at the foot of the tallest mountain in the Philippines (20 miles from BLC) is available for a high school/Bible Campground, if we can come up with $80,000. |
Archived news from 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002 Last edited
August 22, 2012
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