It has only been two weeks,but the month of April has been full! We started right away on Good Friday... We "overbooked" ourselves so Jun went to Mabini to participate in their Good Friday Service. I stayed home and attended a neighbor girl's "debut" party. It is still a little murky as to what the service/party really is but prayers are said over the celebrant and special speeches are said by people she has chosen and a pastor gives a brief message. I was asked to be on of Jewel's treasures. I was able to tell her she is more of a treasure to our family than anything I could give her, but to also remind her that the best treasure is having God fill her up so she can share him in her life.
Jewel and Christine at the party...
Resurrection Sunday was even better! Together we traveled back to Mabini for a sunrise service with our partner mission in Valaga, Mabini. There Ma'am MaryDel has challenged her members to memorize scripture. After a service of celebrating the Resurrection and participating in Communion, we heard about a dozen adults and one child reciting two verses each. Great way to get them to dig into God's word even if it is just to search for short verses... 😉
Christine with one of the grandmother's of the Mabini church. Both her daughter and grandchildren have been in English class with Christine.
Jun taking a group photo of the usual group that supports the ministry in Mabini.
We were also abundantly blessed from our US family and friends. Our compound received boxes from MI and CO this month. They were filled with good things that bring a taste of the US for comfort. There were also great things to use for teaching and ministry aids like games and books and prizes. But we also have the opportunity to share clothes, shoes, and basic first aid supplies to some of the poorer areas of Juagdan...
Jun and our dog Jebol with some of the donation boxes. Even Jebol was excited the day they arrived!
This past Friday instead of regular class in Mabini they invited us to join in a special day of praise and prayer. It is intended for youth and so the kids lead most of the morning activities. It is awesome to see and hear these kids following the Spirit's leading.
Last month with our travels the return to classes in Juagdan didn't go so well. But we will try again this month. On Saturday we invited one of our more eager families to spend a little time with us. Mom came with her four kids and a niece. We did lots of reading and talking about the books for their first round of Reading Club. Then we introduced some food vocabulary with simple worksheets. At church next Sunday I will announce the start of the Read Aloud Class. So on Tuesday afternoons I will read from CS Lewis's the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Each week we will do some activities to verify comprehension but also at the end of the book have a movie time to watch the newer release as we received it in one of the donations!
Neighborhood mom and kids doing matching and spelling practice with fruit and veggies.
Some of the Sunday school kids playing the new "Word Search" game.
This brings me to yesterday. Our new church family in Valencia celebrated their 14th year! A senior neighbor in Juagdan used to beat part of this community so we were able to provide transportation for him to join us for the visit. I wish I had taken more pictures, but I was trying to be a more active participant. The guest pastor followed the "Keep Moving Forward" theme and talked about some of the places we get parked that are misleading... But the ultimate goal is to not park, but keep moving forward towards God and His way for us.
Thank you for taking the time to see what we are up to! Be blessed!
