Hi to all! I have some updating to do! Yesterday we visited the dumpsite, and it was an incredible time! We purchased juice and bread for about 500 people, along with packs of school supplies for those who are in school. The social worker and secretary, Mae, met with the leaders of the dumpsite and squatter areas to get lists of children who are in school. It was an absolutely incredible day.

First, we went to Umapad dumpsite to give our gifts. At the entrance to the dumpsite, there was a home where about 30 or so kids assembled. We gave them food, drink, and school supplies for those on the list. They were in amazement to see white people! They were really cool. Then, we went into the actual dump, where Marit, the Filipina who led us through the dumpsite last time and remembered us this time, went into the home area to tell everyone to come to the area right past the entrance. We gave the food, drinks, and school supplies out and hung out for awhile there. The kids there are great. We saw the little girl that we saw on our trip in January who has two twisted legs. I discovered that her name is Maricel, and she was not born with twisted legs. When she was younger, she fell into a hole and broke both legs, so they just grew very crooked. I was very much impacted by her, because at the very end of the semester, I broke my pinky and had surgery on it. A pinky finger! I had surgery, so my pinky will be fine, but poor Maricel broke both her legs and cannot walk, and she didn’t get to have surgery. It’s just not fair. But I told her that she was very pretty, which is absolutely true. She is a beautiful little girl. Her baby brother was sitting in the wheelchair with her, covering up her twisted left leg, so I got to hold him. I do love Filipino children!

This is me with Maricel...

And this is me holding her brother...

We hung out at that place for quite awhile, so it was neat to hang out with those who are the poorest of the poor, those who inhabit the ends of the earth. The darkness in this corner of the world is so thick. People live in terrible conditions without knowledge of a God who loves and saves. So we will tell them! :) I feel something drawing me to these places, that all may know our glorious God. Scripture promises that one day, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. So we pray that even in the darkest places on earth, where a baby doll is held high and worshipped, along with drugs and selling children as prostitutes, where young children scavage through garbage to find things to make money for their families, a place where people don’t know that they are loved and worth anything and that the God of the Universe has a glorious plan for their lives, that our God will break down every stronghold that stands and that He will be God of the Philippines and of all the earth. It is my desire to see all people praise the Lord and to be a part of what God is doing to lead us to that place. So I am very thankful to be here :)

We also bought 30 Bibles in Cebuano, because most of the people in the dumpsite are uneducated and cannot speak English. It was very neat to see how proud the people were of their new Bibles (Biblias). They were very thankful for them, and some even began to read them while we were there! A very cool opportunity, to give the Word of the Lord to those He came to save. I hope to learn a little more Cebuano so maybe I can go back sometime and teach them about the Bibles we gave them. After all, we were told to make disciples!

After staying in the dumpsite for awhile, we went to a squatter area that is very near the dumpsite, where Marit (our “guide”) lives. Her daughter is one of the 7 (we thought we would only have 5, but it turns out there’s 7!) kids that we have to choose 2 from to come live at Wesley. It is a crazy decision to be told to make, but we have prayed for God’s clear direction, so we trust that it will come in His timing and in His way. We met the 7 kids and their families and gave them a special bag filled with soap, toothbrushes, a washcloth, etc. Please be in prayer for us in the next few days as we select the 2 God would have come to Wesley. Pray that we may not choose based on the cuteness of the kids or simply what a paper says about them, but that we will listen to the Spirit’s guidance (they’re all adorable, by the way). We told the parents that they would find out by Friday who is chosen, so we need to bathe ourselves in prayer!

We also have another big decision to make while we’re here that we need your prayers for. The orphanage is in desperate need of a director, someone who will oversee things at Wesley, give the kids structured discipline, and lead them in spiritual matters. We long to establish a consistent Bible study time with the kids, so that when we leave hopefully it will continue. We already have one of the pastors from Zion Prayer Garden, a church in nearby Consolacion, who has volunteered to come every Saturday to spend time teaching the kids about the Bible. My prayer is that these kids and their families will love the Lord, serve Him, and seek Him. He has such incredible plans for their lives, and I can’t wait to discover what those are.

Please be in prayer for us, as we have only a week and a few days left before we head home. I can’t believe how fast the time has flown, and I am definitely not ready to leave my precious children! I feel like they have become my own. I feel like I am finally belonging in the Philippines! The culture shock was a little difficult at first, but I’m adjusting. I am definitely not ready to go home. But please pray for us continually, that we will use our time as God would have us. Pray that we have clear direction on who He would have come to live at Wesley and who He would have as the director. Please pray that we will be strong in His strength and feel His presence and guidance, as we have already experienced great opposition from the enemy. Our God is much bigger than anything in this world or outside this world. Colossians 1 says that all things were made by Him and for Him and that in Him all things hold together. Chapter 2 says that He disarmed that powers and made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. Our God is big, and He is mighty to save. Pray that strongholds and idols will come tumbling down, that God will have complete reign in the Philippines and in the dark places where children are prostituted by their families to make money and where kids scavage through garbage for hours to find things that can be recycled so their families can have money to eat. Pray for these people, the lowest of the low, that they may know God and that every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Pray that He would be the God of the Philippines and not a little baby doll. Pray that people would love God passionately and whole-heartedly and that they will serve Him. Pray that our God will take His place and be worshipped at His throne. Pray that our hearts would be strengthened, protected, and guided. Pray that we will encourage one another and be continually reminded that our God is greater than anything that can stand against. If our God is for us, who can be against us? Jesus Christ, who died and was resurrected, is at the right hand of God the Father and is also interceding for us (see Romans 8:31-34). May we cling to His promises and trust in His power. Greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world. Pray that the whole world, even the invisible things, will fall in worship and praise of our glorious, Almighty God. Pray that God will show His strength in healing the sick and lame, as He has done many times in the past, and that He will receive the praise. Pray that He alone will be worshipped and praised. May He have the throne of our hearts.

I hope all is well for you all back home. We miss you all, and we will be home soon! Pray for safety in travel and that until then we will make the most of every opportunity. God’s peace be with you all.

**This was written on Sunday, but I am only now having the chance to post it (on Wednesday), so sorry for the delay!**

Another Update!

Hi all! We unexpectedly got the opportunity today to come to SM Mall in Cebu City, which is a good distance from the orphanage, so we don't come here unless we need to. They have free internet here in the mall, so we are at Starbucks once again utiliting the free wifi! Arnell needed the driver to go to his office, which is not far from SM, so he said we should join him since our plans for after washing clothes this morning didn't work out. To update, Colleen arrived from San Antonio, TX, yesterday morning, just in time for our trip to Camotes Island! We weren't supposed to go to Camotes until today, but Arnell's friend who owns the ferry we rode called yesterday and said we could ride yesterday. Arnell told us we should leave in 15 minutes, but none of us had showered, brushed our teeth, or packed for an overnight stay! It was rather crazy. When we finally got to the boat, it was almost an hour since the time they were supposed to depart! Oops. We packed as fast as we could! Yesterday on Camotes, we visited the property Arnell owns there that is a possible new location of the orphanage, since the owner is selling the property we are renting now on Cebu Island. It would be great to buy the property from him, but it is very expensive. He is asking about $200,000 in American dollars, which the Rescue Ministries does not have, so if anyone wants to donate, send it on! :) But after we visited that site, Arnell took us to his friend's resort (I know, staying at a resort in a third world country is pretty crazy), where we got to swim awhile in the ocean. It was fun and very relaxing! And the ferry ride over was absolutely beautiful, but I forgot my camera (and my pesos!) :/ Oh well!

I am really glad Colleen is here now. She was a Journeyman in Manila for two years several years ago, at the same time Dustin was a Journeyman in Cebu. She is very familiar with the culture and is confident about going places and getting things we need. She is also a lot of fun to be around, so that is a good thing! :) I know she will add a lot to our small group and that our faithful God will continue to use her in amazing ways as He already has!

On Tuesday (the day before Colleen got here), we had a "courtesy call" (i.e., meeting) with the principal of the high school where our older kids attend. We told her a little bit about Wesley Home for Youth, and she told us about their school. It is very poor. She shared with us that each month, each student is asked to pay 45 pesos to help with the costs of the school, since the goverenment does not give much help. 45 pesos equals one American dollar. It costs a dollar a month for a child to attend school. But many cannot afford it, so many do not get an education. It costs a dollar a month for a child to stay in school so they can have a better job in the future. So...I'm thinking we need to do some fundraising or something to help those who cannot afford it. I can afford a dollar a month, no problem! There is a PTA meeting at the high school Sunday morning that the principal invited us to, so we may attend that.

Today, after we returned from Camotes (the ferry left at 5:30 AM this morning!), we got to go back to the high school because little Michelle's music class was doing a little presentation. I think it was supposed to be just for their class, but when she told me about it, I wanted to go! So the four of us went, and we were the only ones there to watch! The class (which is about 85 students..the teacher-student ratio is about 1/85 or so..crazy!) was divided into four groups, and each group presented a song with motions. It was fun to watch! And the kids acted like we were celebrities when we arrived. They all looked at us and waved and wanted to say hello! We get a lot of that here. It's not everyday that Filipinos see an American, especially at a high school, so they get excited when they see one..or four.

This is the class performing for us outside...

Today is Mrs. Pam's birthday! It is Filipino tradition that on your birthday, you give gifts and buy dinner for your friends, rather than them doing it for you. That's a fun thought :) But I hope she has a great birthday. We'll have to sneak off to buy her a cake as a surprise ;) This morning, after Michelle's presentation, Linda, the ya-ya (nanny) made Mrs. Pam chicken adobo, rice, and pancit (pronounced pon-sit) for her birthday. It is also Filipino tradition to eat pancit (long, tiny noodles) on your birthday for long life. We try to be cultural :)

This is a picture of her birthday breakfast...

Tomorrow we plan to eat lunch with Ben and Bayon from Project Mercy in Mandaue City and perhaps visit Prayer Mountain with Pastora Salve from Zion Prayer Garden, the church we attend here and are trying to partner with. She lives near the orphanage and has a mountain that she calls her Prayer Mountain. She has asked us to visit it, so maybe we can do that after we visit Project Mercy tomorrow. Then Saturday, we are planning to go to the dumpsite and hand out snacks and school supplies for the kids who cannot afford them. There, we will (hopefully) pick out 2 more kids to bring to the orphanage. So please pray for us as we do that, that there may be opportunities to make good relationships with these people, which is a big part of Filipino culture (close relationships), and that we may know whom God would have at Wesley.

These people are the poorest of the poor, the lowest of the low, those Jesus came to save, and those He has called us to. Pray that doors may be opened for the Gospel and that we may be prepared to share it. Please pray that we will be filled with the Spirit every moment we are here, that we will make the most of every opportunity, and that we will not miss anything God has for us to do. Please pray that the people here will be open to talk about the Lord and His Gospel, because it is very common for them to agree with a missionary and accept whatever he/she says because of their generosity and kindness without fully understanding. While we want to be generous and kind, we also want them to fully understand and not just say they do to please us. Pray that they may come to know God and love and serve Him faithfully. Pray that we will be obedient to make disciples of all nations, and not just church-goers or people who are willing to pray one prayer and never think about God again. We bought 30 Bibles in the Cebuano language, since most of them are uneducated and cannot speak English, so pray that as they are given God's Word that they will begin to love it and seek Him. Pray that doors may be open and that hearts will be tender to the Spirit's call.

Please also be in prayer for our team, as we are over the halfway point in our trip. Pray that we will be filled with the Spirit and be sensitive to what He would have us do. It seems that because Arnell has been so good about taking care of us and making sure we have a driver to take us where we need to go and because Mrs. Pam has been needing to rest because of her leg, that we have not gotten out into the community as much as we would like. It is absolutely wonderful to have our personal driver to take us places in the orphanage's Tamaraw, but we want to be careful to not seclude ourselves from the people. Please pray for boldness and opportunitites to engage in people's lives here, to get to know them and show God's love. Please pray that we will make good use of the time God has given us and that we will be on His agenda and not our own. Pray that we may be encouraged and unified, patient with one another, and patient with God. God always works on His time table and not ours, so pray for us to wait on the Lord, yet to not waste time. Pray that we will have the Spirit's strength to do the things we need to do, to go where we need to go, and to share where we need to share. Jonathan has gotten several opportunities to have deep conversations with Glenn, the oldest boy at the orphanage, the one all the other kids look up to for guidance and wisdom. He has been asking many questions about the Bible and has said that he knows very little about it, but he wants to know more so that he can lead the other kids in the right way for their lives. He shared with Jonathan the other night some things about his home life that were terrible situations to be in, so he is very thankful to be at Wesley. And we are thankful for him being there!

I know I've said it over and over, but please just be in prayer for us. Lift us up, for encouragement, guidance, wisdom, sensitivity to the Spirit, discipline to grow and rely on the Lord, opportunities, and everything we need. God is God of His mission field, and we are simply His workers. But please pray that we may be the faithful workers the Creator of the Universe desires and deserves. God bless you all!