Holiday Happenings

After non-stop typhoon relief efforts and an intensive training this past weekend for our church leaders, I decided to start the new year with a few days of rest. The house I’m renting has a little yard that needed work when I arrived in Sept., and even more so now that it has had three months of personal neglect. So for the past 2 days I have cut trees, dug holes, transferred plants, made a flower bed, and shoveled away mounds of accumulated dirt, causing some termites to wish they lived somewhere else. This morning I awoke barely able to move. I have a very sore back, aching legs, and a sunburnt face. I’m getting old. I reckon I’m going to have to figure out a different way to rest. But the yard sure looks good!

The urgency of the typhoon relief efforts has eased a bit, although the needs of those affected are still huge. On Christmas Eve, I took the pastor of Azle Baptist Church in Texas, and his family to see the results of funds they had given for building materials. After we were sang to by dozens of children, we handed out gifts and visited a few houses that were being reconstructed. The Southern Baptists of Texas Disaster Relief team left on Dec. 20, having cleaned and repainted a computer school and handed out building materials to about 20 families. Beginning Jan. 16 until the end of March, SBTC will be sending out teams to help rebuild an entire coastal community that was devastated by the typhoon.

Last weekend we gathered at a little retreat place outside the city and spent 2 full days training, feeding, and encouraging our house church leaders. We heard testimonies from each one about how God is at work in their churches, families, and personal lives. The training we gave centered on how to start new churches from the people they have in their existing churches. Much of our time was spent on practicing the lessons with each other, having learned that it is far more effective to give 20% knowledge with 80% practice (rather than the other way around as we used to do), so that they will be ready to apply what they have learned when they return home.

I spent Christmas Day morning in two of our government hospitals handing out gifts to patients in the children’s ward. It was tough being here on this side of the planet knowing all my kids were gathered at David’s house for the holidays. But I survived with a couple of lengthy Skype calls as the kids shared what they were doing each day. Hannah and Martha head back to school in Virginia on Monday. Here’s something you might enjoy reading, www.texanonline.net/archives/4752 . David, Hannah, and Martha were asked to give their reflections about mission work and being MKs. They had some nice things to say about their dad, which is another reason why it makes such great reading!

I hope your new year is off to a great start. Blessings to each of you who stay connected with me, my family, and our ministry work here in the Philippines.