Winding Down

This past week I experienced my first bout of sickness since arriving here in the Philippines. Thankfully, it was only a virus resulting in a horrendous sore throat, fever, chills, and now congestion and a cough that rivals any lifelong smoker's. Just as I was feeling well enough to get out of bed, the rains resulting from a nearby typhoon began. I have never seen or heard it rain for three nights and days without interruption. With all the rain, we experienced two brownouts for 2-4 hours. On the third day of rain I couldn't stand being cooped up in the house for any longer so I ventured out to the Palengke (yes, the girls brought it to my attention that I was previously misspelling it as Palankay) to buy a few souvenirs. Even with my rain jacket and umbrella, I got so wet that even my underclothes were damp! Needless to say, I don't think the experience contributed to a speedy recovery.

Because of the rain and sickness almost all of my usual activities were cancelled. However, I was able to make it to Crystal Cave Public School on Thursday. This week we further discussed creation and what it means to be made in God's image. I took in a large mirror and explained that an image is a reflection. We were created to reflect God to all of creation. Just as God filled and subdued the earth, Adam and Ever were instructed to do the same. How ironic that the snake - the very creature that they were to subdue - ended up dictating to them what to do! As we read through Gen. 3 together, using the pictures I had drawn the night before, I explained how sin and death entered the world and how we came to have corrupt hearts that do not love God. I closed by calling their attention to Gen. 3:15, "the prolegamena." I had written the verse out on a poster and went through and explained that this verse is perhaps the most important verse in all of Genesis becuase it points the way to Jesus and His future victory over the sin and death that had just entered the world. I explained that becuase He came, all that had gone wrong in Eden has begun to be made right. And all that is wrong in our hearts may be made right as well. At times I felt like perhaps the kids were in over their heads but Pastor Max reassured me that it was apparent that they understood when he reviewed with them in their native dialect afterward. I also collected their observations from the next seven chapters of John. By next week they will have read through the whole book which is exciting to me. I know that the Word of God is living and active and that it accomplishes the purpose for which God sends it. I trust that this will be true in these fifth graders' lives.

Tonight I am hosting a girls' sleepover for all the high school/college age girls who attend CBCF. We're expecting about 10 total so it will be quite a houseful. The girls requested lasagne for dinner so yesterday I walked to the supermarket and came back with four bags of groceries including 4 - 1.5 L bottles of rootbeer and 3 L ice cream for rootbeer floats. Unfortunately, the walk back is straight uphill. Needless to say, I had to stop several times just to catch my breath, and I had to wave off several bewildered taxi drivers who couldn't understand why an Americano would be lugging all those groceries uphill instead of paying for a taxi ride! The probem was that I had no idea how expensive the ingredients for lasagne woudl be here in the Philippines when I agreed to have it for dinner. The cost of the cheese alone was about a fourth of my weekly food allowance for the girls and I! Now I understand why they requested it! Regardless, it will be fun to offer the girls something special tonight.

I also am hoping to have a "girl talk" tonight where we can discuss some of the current issues the girls are facing and may not feel comfortable voicing with older women. I am particularly concerned with their views on dating. It seem almost like a game here. One girl told me that she started dating her boyfriend becuase he had hurt her friend and she wanted to get back at him! Dating two people at the same time without either knowing about the other is also common. Please pray that God will teach them how to approach relationships in a way that honors Him and will help them develop healthy habits that can follow them into marriage.

Part of the problem may be that so few families remain intact here. Both of the girls who are staying with me have parents that have separated and have new "partners." D's dad even has a second family. When I asked her if she struggles with anger toward him she replied matter of factly, "God's forgiven me so I have to forgive him." I was challenged by her answer.

Perhaps part of what contributes to the disintegration of families here is that often one of the spouses goes abroad for years at a time to earn dollars or Euros to send back home for their children's college education (the exchange rate is currently 45 pesos per dollar and nearly 68 pesos per Euro). The girls told me that to even get a janitorial position here, the individual must have a bachelor's degree. The problem is that there are just not enough good jobs to go around and the competition is incredibly steep. It was sobering to realize that most of the college aged individuals in the church have chosen degrees based on what is most marketable rather than what is most desirable for their unique personality and gifting. Because there are many educated Filipinos and not enough jobs to go around, many apply for overseas jobs. It seems that at least 50% of the church families have this kind of arrangement where one of the spouses is working abroad. This puts a whole new spin on long distance relationships and I am witnessing firsthand the strain that kind of distance involves.

I'm coming up on my last week here in Baguio. Please pray that I finish strong. Pray that I might continue to make the good news of salvation clear to the kids at Crystal Cave and that they will respond with God-given and God-sustained faith. Pray that the message I present to the women at Benguet State University on the Canaanite woman of Mathew 15 will challenge them and encourage them to have great faith in God's goodness and concern for their lives. Pray that they will be relentless in their prayers and pursuit of Him. Pray that they, as well as the church members here at CBCF, will persevere in the midst of their trials, because they have many.

Pray that I will not come back the same Audrey. Pray that God will have His way in my life and that I might step back onto U.S. soil with a heart that more closely reflects His Son. Pray that I might learn everyday to walk more by His Spirit and less by my flesh. Pray that God provides direction for Ken and I as we face our last year at Moody. We desire to serve wherever He wants to use us so pray that He will lead us by His Spirit, to do His will.