35 Years!

Yesterday marked the 35^th anniversary of our initial arrival in the Philippines! Indeed, 35 years ago (Mar. 26, 1984) Ruth and I arrived in Manila for what turned out to be a 28-year journey which included language and culture learning, hosting and teaching children’s clubs, training children’s workers, church planting, mobilizing Filipino youth into mission, revising Bible study materials, Daily Vacation Bible School Training, filling in at the mission Guest House and Business Office, and finally seeing the birth of VOICE (Values Orientation In Classroom Education) Philippines. How can we ever forget that night 35 years ago as our plane circled the city, viewing the tiny lights of Manila. Our national co-workers met us at the airport and took us to a Pasay City guest house where we had a few days to get over jet lag and begin our adjustment to the new sights, sounds, smells, and so much more. Eventually all became familiar and “home” to us, as we can testify having just returned earlier this year for a short visit—there was that sense that we had “come home,” while knowing that it isn’t “home” but for sure some of the dearest people on the planet live there! We had no idea what God was going to do when we stepped off the jet 35 years ago, but knew that He had led us there and would be faithful. And indeed He was and is, including His gift of persevering “rope-holders”—a team of churches and individuals who stood with us in prayer and financial support. Our hearts are full of gratitude to our great God.

Yes, we did celebrate the milestone. After taking my Mom for a medical test in the city, she supplied pizza and ice-cream! Soon after, we were wonderfully reminded of another nation close to our hearts—African Beth, our Ugandan friend and colleague, phoned with updates of what’s happening with her (currently in the USA) as well as news from the Pearl of Africa and other nations of East Africa. How blessed we are.

Whirlwind Month-long RV Road Trip

Last year, while still in Uganda, planning started for how to best use our final year of Home Service. We determined to see EVERYONE who has been part of our support team if at all possible, something we have not always been able to do.

Admitting that our “discomfort” with winter weather played a part in the planning, we targeted January into early February for a visit to Kauai, Hawaii, to visit one of Laura’s long-time supporting churches whom she hadn’t seen in more than ten years, and then continue on to the Philippines to see as many of our friends and colleagues there as possible.

Then we planned to visit people in the southern States and eastern seaboard. The initial plan was to fly to Texas, rent a car, and spend about a month visiting supporters, family and friends as we drove back to New Hampshire. While I (Ruth) was back in NH in July, I casually shared those plans with my brother and his wife, mentioning the mutual family and friends that we planned to visit. The next morning, they surprised me by saying that they would like to do that trip with us in an RV which they were planning to purchase in preparation for their eventual retirement. And so that’s when the month road trip began to gel. Before long they located and purchased a good used RV and preparations began in earnest. Since they are the owners of an organic dairy farm, a month-long vacation would be a new experience for them! But God had put things in order for them by bringing a man and his family to work on the farm with the ambition to eventually purchase the farm. So finally they had someone who truly felt responsible for what happened and would do his best to keep everything running as smoothly as possible. (And other than a few inevitable hiccups, all went well—something to praise God for.)

I worked on the skeleton route to include as many family and friends as possible and organize dates with each of the people involved. Beth, my sister-in-law, worked on finding campgrounds in the areas where the distance was too long to travel in a day, fine tune the routes, plus add the “domestic aspects” of making an RV a home, especially for four people. John, my brother, worked toward winterizing the RV and all that goes into making a new-to-you vehicle ready for a long trip. And Laura found plenty to do as we all finalized the program.

And now the trip is history! For those who like statistics:

·         Left Sunday evening, Feb. 10, rather than the planned day of Mon., Feb. 11,  to get ahead of a snowstorm, driving through the night. We returned Saturday afternoon, Mar. 10, rather than the planned day of Sun., Mar. 11, having driven all night to once again get ahead of a snowstorm!

·         5,145 miles in the RV; Laura and I rented a car for additional visits in Texas and put on about 600 miles.

·         We went through 22 states

·         10 nights all 4 of us slept in the RV at campgrounds or people’s yards

·         We stayed at 5 different campgrounds

·         Laura & I slept in 11 different beds, with one of them being a Texas motel and another a lovely Air B&B.

·         Although the weather was often overcast, drizzly, and slightly chilly (but no snow or ice!), we did enjoy four picnics outside

·         2 days were spent sightseeing – one on a Florida beach (unplanned by us) and one at the Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, NC—both were a wonderful change of pace with gorgeous weather

·         We were able to spend time with 75+ people! Of those

o   9 people/groups are connected to our families

o   12 people/groups were fellow missionaries, most from the Philippines

o   7 people/couples support us financially

o   1 former pastor/couple, 1 former neighbor/couple, and 1 quilting friend/couple (Beth’s)

It has truly been a trip of a lifetime for all four of us and has left us with many memories (and pictures) to recall and even laugh about whenever we’re together! Each visit was unique and special. We treasured the time to catch up with people’s lives at least a little bit, and left encouraged; we hope that encouragement was mutual. Often our visits ended in prayer, especially focusing on the next leg of the journey—very meaningful. In so many ways, we were assured of God’s presence and protection…even as we drove through New York City at 3 AM during the final night of driving! Thank you for remembering us in prayer; God has certainly answered!

Yet Another Testimony of God’s Provision

Raising financial support for ministry has been one of the greatest faith-stretchers as well as one of the most amazing part of the journey these past 37 years. As others have often said, God delights in providing through the most unlikely people and means.

Case in point….back in the early 2,000s, I, (Ruth), accompanied my parents to Texas to visit my mother’s sister and family. One Sunday, my parents and I visited a church slightly northwest of San Antonio, TX, which my cousin, Paul, and his family pastored. Paul, asked me to share briefly with the children during the Sunday School opening. After that, I found my way to the women’s Sunday School class to join my mother. As I walked into the class, the teacher said “We’re studying the sanctity of life, something all of us believe. We don’t often have a missionary among us, so let’s just let her take the rest of our time together.” As I began to share off the top of my head, the ladies started peppering me with questions and the entire class time was soon gone. We joined the church service, shook a few hands as visitors, and then went on with our plans. A few months later I was shocked to see a monthly financial gift coming from that church! As time progressed, my cousin left that church and my support was dropped…but almost immediately I saw the names of two couples from that area appear on my donor records; soon their giving surpassed what the church had sending in! Two couples whom I didn’t remember meeting now giving generously…only the Lord!

As we began planning this year of home service, I told Laura that an absolute must was to meet these two couples in Texas and thank them personally for their long-time support, despite their not knowing me personally. And so this one-month “road trip” was planned, during which we could see many others but they were high on the priority list. About a week before our planned visit, they told us that a Prayer Group from their church had rescheduled for that week so that they could also meet us and a pot luck supper/dessert were planned.

As we entered Texas last week, I came down with some kind of stomach bug with extreme weakness. God provided a Bed & Breakfast the night before we planned to drive southwest to see them. As I lay shivering and weak that night, I pleaded with the Lord that somehow we could still go to visit them. Unknown to us, the friend who provided the B & B for us sent out an email to a number of mutual friends asking them to pray for me too. When morning dawned, I felt much better and we sensed that we could proceed with plans. During the 6+ hour trip there, I once again began to not feel so well, and gratefully curled up in a motel bed for over an hour before getting ready to go to the church. Praise God, I was able to tag along with Laura and at least meet those two dear couples (minus the wife of one couple who was out of town) as well as the church prayer group. Although I couldn’t enjoy the wonderful evening meal they prepared, it was a special time of re-connection. I learned that the wife of the one couple was in that Sunday School class that morning and remembered me! The husband of the other couple also remembers meeting me that day. It was so humbling to be with these faithful partners in the Gospel, and I’m so grateful that God enabled me to extend my thanks to them personally.

Since I didn’t have the strength, Laura gave the report to the prayer group plus Ernie helped "break the ice". The Pastor closed our evening with a touching prayer for us. And as icing on the cake, seven from those who were there asked to be put on our mailing list, affirming their commitment to continue praying for VOICE Philippines, VOICE Africa and beyond.

I slept well that night and felt much renewed the following morning…and we went on our way rejoicing in the Lord!

40 Years, Can It Be?

As we drank in the beauty of the Hawaiian Island of Kauai, it dawned on me (Laura) that it was this month, January 1979, 40 years ago, that I began my cross-cultural missions career! My then co-worker, Mary, and I were headed into a Christian Education ministry as part of a church plant on the island of Majuro, district center of the Marshall Islands. The only way to get there was through Hawaii.  Since Mary had previously served as a short-term missionary on Kauai and we needed to purchase supplies for setting up house/ministry on Majuro, we decided to spend some time on Honolulu as well as visit Kauai. Forty years ago, I remember Kauai: sounds of roosters, eating lots of delicious pineapple, sightseeing in a loaned Volkswagen, the friendliness of Anahola, and sitting on the lanai (church patio) for conversation and fellowship after service times.  Little did I know what God had in store for me including the generosity of that church when they started to pray for and support me. That partnership has continued to this day! As always, they royally spoiled us during our week’s visit—very humbling. Praise God for His faithfulness and the faithfulness of His people.

Following that week, we boarded an early morning flight to Honolulu…Guam…Manila to once again be in the nation I never dreamed I’d serve in when I was in Kauai 40 years ago, the Philippines.  The three week visit in our beloved Philippines went all too quickly.  We were blessed and humbled as we connected with many friends, both Filipino and missionary, as well as VOICE Philippines.  Testimonies and growth of the ministry brought tears.  Friends provided their spacious apartment for our days in Manila. For more than a week of that time, we traveled to the northern Philippines as well as to our former favorite vacation spot, Baguio in the mountains. In each place, we renewed acquaintances and visited meaningful places. How good God has been these 40 years and we know He will not change. Praise Him!

God in the Details

The One who sees the sparrow fall and has numbered the hairs on our head reminded me this past week how He cares for every detail, including my getting from Point A to Point B.  Ruth and I enjoyed celebrating Christmas and New Years with our separate families and in our separate nations. The time had come to join forces again and prepare for the next 2+ months of almost continual travel. My plans were all in place—my brother and sister-in-law would drive me on Saturday to Bangor where I would rent a car and drive to Claremont, NH, making it possible for Ruth and me to return to Canada later in March in one car rather than in separate cars.

Then news came that an Uncle had passed away on New Year’s Day and the funeral was Saturday. Back to square one…but only temporarily until my sister-in-law called me with news that a car rental agency at the Saint John Airport had a US plated car they wished to have driven back to the U.S. and would waive the drop-off fee. Due to weather concerns, I opted to leave a day earlier. All went well, except for an unyielding dashboard warning of low tire pressure…but praise God, I arrived safely in Claremont, NH. When I returned the car to the car rental, I mentioned the added stress that the warning light added to the trip and, to my surprise, I was only charged half of the rental price. As an added reminder of God’s goodness, reports came that on Saturday, the day I had originally planned to drive to NH, black ice on one of the NH Interstates had caused accidents. Praise God for His protection, help in stretching the dollars, and making it possible for Ruth and I to prepare together for all that God has planned for the next couple of months.

Tanzania Tidbits

Recent “Whats App” messages from Tanzania via Beth B., the Scripture Union staff leading the VOICE Africa team, have made us smile from ear to ear. All of these testimonies come from places where English is understood enough by the children/youth to use the Ugandan curriculum. Several modules are being translated into Swahili but are not yet ready for use. Don’t try to understand every detail (we don’t either), but rejoice in what God is doing.

·         Apparently coming from a trained VEC teacher:
“I already have an elementary school with about 500 students in a town Morogoro (a town of 300,000+ in the eastern part of Tanzania) that wants to have the Values Education Class.”

·         Coming from a high school student six months after he/she attended a Scripture Union camp where the Biblical Values were taught:
“It helped the following ways:

1. Through the seminar at the camp we were taught about purity…so it helped to know more about purity and why should I stay pure and so it helped to overcome lots of challenges.

2. It gave me more knowledge and awareness to music…the ungodly music.

3. At the camp we were taught about the values that helped me a lot to live well with people around me, friends at school and home, teachers, elders and parent. A so a lot things I have come to see.”

·         Apparently coming from the values teacher who taught the above high school student:
“We taught them Lesson 1 of each of the six values. This training is excellent. Today I am meeting the School Director for Values Education Class Teaching at her school in 2019. God is good!”

·         Apparently coming from a trained Values Education Class teacher:
“I'm teaching VEC in Moshi (a town of 200,000+ in northern Tanzania, near the Kenyan border). The young class I am teaching for three weeks, 6 days a week, three hours every morning. The group are performing very well.”

·         And a few pictures that were also sent to us:

Wow…Amazing Progress!

Two close-to-midnight phone calls (one from Kenya and one from Ethiopia) from our colleague and friend, Beth, and then multiple texts have brought astonishing and exciting news. Scripture Union Ethiopia has finished translating into Amharic not one but two modules of curriculum, Truth and Honesty,  on two age levels—Upper Primary and Secondary! But that’s not all…at least the Secondary level for both modules are already published and ready to be used, complete with visuals and Activity Sheets! And not just a few copies…a full 1,000 copies of each! 

Sooo, now we know that is why Beth is in Ethiopia right now and 11 senior staff representing every region of that nation have gathered together…they want to be trained how to use this newly published curriculum to reach more children and youth with the Gospel and disciple them to walk as Jesus did. Praise God with us and pray that God will mightily bless the work of their hands and bring in a large harvest in Ethiopia for His glory.