May ...

Let me introduce May.  She is an awesome young girl with a small child and husband.  The story of her past is long and sad, however you can see Jesus in her face now.  She came to us about 6 weeks ago.  At that time, she was backslidden but desperately wanting to get back to the place she was before she was married. At School of Champions, she asked God to show her if He still loved her and if He was in her.  She then had a powerful encounter with Jesus and knew for sure of His love for her.  Since that day she has been set on fire for Jesus!

She came to train as a church planter last Monday.  We didn't realize that she was returning to her province which is about 7-8 hrs drive away from us.  She was eagerly soaking in all that we were teaching and at the end asked if we could do more training, so that she could learn and do the same in her province! 

Today, we had to say a sad goodbye to May as she leaves tonight.  She has bibles to give her family and has dreams of sharing Jesus with them.  God has given her dreams and visions about how he will use her.   Please pray for her as she goes back to a difficult home situation.  Pray she will be bold to pray for the sick and share the love and power of Jesus.

The speed at which God is moving in hearts is amazing!  May is a light for the nation.   We love you May!  Go change the world!

The Core Team

Well, we just got back from an awesome time down on the coast of our Island here in the Philippines (Luzon). Our core team went there for a retreat.  We prayed, played, planned and ate! :)  We are all so amazed at all God is doing with the people we are reaching and the plans are adventurous and full! :)

I wanted to introduce each person to you:

Of course there is me, and then my gorgeous daughter Yasmin, who is very creative.  Many of our photos recently have been taken by her and she is now the official photographer (taking after her grandfather - who was a photographer before he pastored).  She is also stepping up to co-lead the youth which will take some boldness but she has a wealth to give and many promises over her life that she will lead many like a Deborah.  So, this is a time of stretching for her and it will be very exciting to see all God does through her.  As you can probably tell, I am immensely proud of my baby who has grown so fast and is now a young woman.  She has coped with isolation from her friends in New Zealand, culture change, home schooling and the various other challenges of being a missionary kid.  She is simply the biggest blessing of my life.

Another blessing is Becs (on the far right of the lower photo).  She has been with us for almost a year.  She has very smart, methodical and organized and has beautifully complemented the team.  She has been tutoring Yasmin in maths and that has been amazing for me! (& Yasmin).  Becs and initiative go hand in hand and she is constantly looking ahead to see what needs to be done.  As well as being involved in many ministry areas, she's done an amazing job setting up and overseeing the school feeding program in which we are feeding 50 children now.  Always loving the one in front of her, she goes out of her way for people.  Sadly, she will be leaving us in December and will be hugely missed.

Paige and Kent are mega blessings also (left side of photo).  Kent was a Youth Pastor and later an Associate Pastor of a small church in Kentucky and is now studying full time at APTS.  He has a natural way of relating to the street people in particular and has been overseeing that ministry doing a great job as well as leading house churches, teaching in our School of Champions and filling in where needed.

Paige has a heart for people and is a worshipper.  She leads worship often for us and has done an amazing job of connecting with the ladies in particular.  God has given her a real heart to see people rise to their potential in Him and she loves to watch God change our ladies and see them grow.  Paige, like all the other team members is involved in almost all areas of the ministry and is an amazing, anointed gift from God.

I feel so blessed to have people like this running alongside me, and building God's kingdom.

What a team!  Thanks guys :)

Joy

For years, my daughter and I would pray together knelt down at the front of our church... 
"Jesus, we just want to be where you want us. You say the word and we will go for you, wherever that may be."

Never did I imagine it would be the Philippines. 
I imagined somewhere else. I imagined the cost. I imagined the losses. 


Never could I have imagined the depth of love I would feel for this nation. 
Never could I have imagined the joy.

The joy of seeing children coming off the street, in school, worshipping Jesus.

The joy of seeing family after family turning to Jesus

The joy of locals rising as leaders

The joy of hearing people so excited about all God is doing in their lives...

Today, at our after-school ministry for kids (pictured above), one of our sponsored girls, came bouncing towards me - face shining.

She told me how God had met her and some other young teens the day before. They had gone up on a huge rock and began to share their struggles and problems with each other. After this they relocated to one of the boys homes. When they got there the boy suggested they pray for each other and for their problems. As they did, the presence of God came into that house so strong. Chris May said to me "We did it! We had our own house church. Just like you do!" Jesus was shining from her. God is raising young revivalists. What a joy!