Day 4

June 10

Today is my birthday. Rob, Kris, Keith and Darryl came up and sang me a stunning rendition of Happy Birthday. A regular barbershop quartet. Rob also greeted me with chocolate cake and a white chocolate mocha from Starbucks. Yum!


From here we were able to go to Greg's office and call home. Taylor had left for Kids Kamp that day and I wanted to hear how he did. My mom said he cried a little and had a pathetic look on his face as they were driving off but other than that did OK. Since Austin and Taylor were gone we only got to talk to Emily and my mom and dad. Even though it wasn't everyone it was good to hear their voices. Around 10:00 we left for the feeding center.

This feeding center is run by CBC. They feed about 35 children a day. Without this center most would not eat anything all day. If that isn't bad enough a lot of them are told to only eat a portion of it so they can take the rest home.




I'm not sure what they were eating. It was rice with some sort of meat and I think potatoes.
Some were so little that they needed help eating and drinking.

After all the kids had finished eating we were taken on a short tour of the area where these children live. It was poverty at its worst. Tiny little alley ways between the houses wind down to the river. It is a maze that would be easy to get lost in had we not had a good guide. All of these 'houses' are built out of whatever they can find and are thrown together. Because they are by the river all of the lower houses are on stilts.



As far as you can see either direction down river there are houses. It is the saddest sight you could ever see. Thousands of families living like this.



This river is in the top three most polluted rivers in Asia. It is one polluted, nasty river. Even so it is able to produce a crop called Kang Kong. It is a leafy green vegetable that is high in calcium and a small amount will feed a large family. It's amazing how God provides for his people.


I don't know why but I love this picture. Out of all I took on this trip this one is my favorite.


One thing that I never got over was all of the kids that were unsupervised and walking along the busy roads. And it wasn't just here, it was everywhere. Kids as young as two that miraculously never run in the road and managed to stay unhurt. At least while we were around.

Across the road and down about 50 yards from the feeding center is another church plant out of CBC. In the short time it has been up and running it has over 350 people attending three weekend services. Amazing! They also started a preschool that is doing well. Greg is such a great business man. He has lived there long enough to know how the government works. I was wondering why they would start a church so close to the feeding center where they are also starting a church he gave two main reasons.
#1 Because all of the houses by the river are built on government land they will eventually be torn down and the government will relocate everyone and give them a piece of land on the outskirts of the city. The feeding center/church is on the river side so when thousands of people are ripped from their homes so will the church and feeding center that has been in their community helping them. The government will give the church land and without even knowing it help plant a new church.
#2 Due to some reason I didn't figure out Greg said that people on one side of the street rarely, if ever, cross to the other side. That is why having a church on both sides of the road is important. If only on one side everyone on the other would never take the opportunity to enter.

We held our second community rally tonight and Satan provided much opposition. When we got to the barangay hall they had double booked it and there was a basketball game going on. We weren't about to get on that court. We were finally given the OK to use the area outside the court for our rally.



We, again, split up into groups and passed out fliers inviting everyone to come. Filipinos love Americans so because of that they were excited to come see what was going on. I don't know if there were more people at this rally or if it just looked like that due to a smaller space but it was packed. We had just a few minutes to get ready to do our drama. We weren't at all ready when they started the music. We were scrambling around trying to make it look good when the power went out. The music stopped and while they regrouped and got the music going again we regrouped too with all of our props and were ready when it was showtime.

Clear vision also did their drama and right in the middle of it the power went out again and they couldn't finish it. Tough Guys got up to do their demonstration and, as expected, the power went out again. Something good must be getting ready to happen because things just kept going wrong. Even with all of those things the gospel was still given and many people heard and accepted Christ as their savior.

In the end that is what we were there for. The dramas are good, so are the karate demonstrations but our main goal was to provide people a chance to hear the gospel and we did that. After the program was done all of the kids starting asking for our autographs. They were going crazy trying to get every ones signature. It was a mad house but one we had to soon exit to go to dinner. After McDonald's we went back to the hotel to pack for our beach adventure.

Some things I have noticed about the Philippines so far...
*there is police and security presence everywhere. every store we enter, every place we go.
*the police are often times accompanied by a metal detector. if a metal detector is not present then that means you have to open your bag for a search and you get a mini pat down before entering.
*driving lanes are more like guidelines.
*you can order fried chicken and spaghetti at any fast food restaurant including Wendy's, KFC and McDonald's where it is called McSpaghetti.
*the entire country is loud. the music is deafening.

Day 3

June 9

We got to sleep in today. The first time in may days. Today we were taking the train to see The Church of the Black Nazarene. Because we were a big group they brought some of the men from the tough guys(martial arts) ministry to escort us down there. The first train we got on was packed. They warned us against being nice and said if it's time to get on the train you best be gettin on or you'll get left. Not something that I wanted to experience so as soon as the doors opened I was pushing and shoving. We ended up taking two trains to get there.

We got off the train and this was our first sight. The market that we would have to walk through to get to the church. We go the "keep your purse in front of you and hold on to all valuables" talk again and we were off.

It's a little frustrating trying to show what Manila was like in pictures. In this one it looks like a nice market. Let me assure you it wasn't. The filth and the smells mixed together were terrible. The people, they were just everywhere. And nothing says tourist like being a large group that are much lighter skinned than everyone else. We actually had a guy following us from the train station, through the market and to the church. Thankfully we had the tough guys with us. Vincent watched him for a few minutes and finally talked to him and told him to leave.
Here is the church of the black Nazarene. There are said to be three churches in manila that have the most power and this is one of them. People will come here and spend all day praying to and touching the idols that are set up around the church.

There are various merchants around the church that sell candles and idols as well as palm and tarot card readers. Witchcraft and voodoo is nothing new, however, the priests from the church will come out and bless these evil things and after you buy something, an idol or even a black candle to put a curse on someone, you can take it to the priest and they will bless it again. It's no wonder this world is so lost.

We walked around the back of the church where there are four idols, three of Jesus and one of Mary. There were a few people praying so earnestly. And to what? A man made image that can do nothing for them. It is heart breaking to watch.
It is a little hard to see in this picture but if you look close you can see that Jesus hand and face are lighter color. That is from all the people touching him and praying to him. They believe if you touch the idol your prayers are more likely to be answered.

The inside of the church.

Directly across from Jesus is this statue of Mary. You only have to look at the picture to see how desperate this man is and he is praying to something that can give him nothing.

Back outside the church we were told we get to ride trikes back to the train station. These trikes held seven people each. Eight if you include the driver.

We had six people hanging on the outside of ours and one inside. There were four of us on one seat trying to hold on. Because we were in the market we didn't go as fast as they go on the open road but let me assure you these guys are nuts!

We made it back safely and ate lunch at the mall. Chrisanna and I decided to head to the market and see what we could find. We didn't have a lot of time but we stretched it to the last possible second. We both bought a 'LeSportsac' purse and because we took so long deciding and bartering we ended up having to run halfway back to the hotel. We were supposed to leave to do our first community rally and even though the bus was there no one was on it so we had just enough time to use the bathroom and throw some more deodorant on. A much needed thing in this climate.

The rallies are held at covered outdoor basketball courts called barangay halls. We set out with one of the Filipino team members (ours was Pastor Lito) to hand out fliers and invite people to come. We stayed out for half an hour then he needed to get back to help out. As soon as we were back people started coming. They seemed to be mostly children up to about 13 or 14 years old. They love having their pictures taken so they can see it on the camera so I spent probably 45 minutes taking pictures of kids. That's a lot of pictures.

The rallies usually include a dance by their hip hop ministry (they are only slightly better than the BABC dancers. ha!), a demonstration by the tough guys ministry (in the picture he is chopping through four large chunks of ice) a drama and a short message.

An excerpt from my journal--"I have no idea how many people accepted Christ but many heard of him and what He can do in their lives. That alone was worth coming all of this way for."

Even in the few days we have been here the team from Greg's church has been such a blessing to me. They work their tails off and never complain. They see the big picture. They know that their service every night brings new people into the kingdom. All their hard work is worth it. And one day in heaven they will be greatly rewarded. And they will deserve it.

Dinner was Yellow Cab pizza. I was exhausted and had only enough energy to walk around the mall a little then go back to the hotel and watch people swim. It was a good day.

Days 1 & 2

I am finally up and ready to blog our trip. Since this is for my records these may be long. Very, very long. Sit back, relax and enjoy.

Day 1

What better way to start off a 12 day adventure than being up at 2:30 a.m. and at the airport at 4:00. Kris and Melissa were kind enough to come pick us up at 3:30 and we were at the Harrington's by 3:45. Working on roughly three hours of sleep was going to be fun. We got checked in with no problems other than Rob being flagged as usual. We thought we were going to have some problems with the luggage weight limit but they finally figured it out and let us go. Security was no problem and we were off the ground at 6:00 heading for LAX.

We landed in L.A. at 7:25 and had a mere five hours to kill before we took off again. We found a spot in the international airport to camp out and we sat. Chrisanna and I found a Starbucks all the way on the other side of the airport to get breakfast and a little pick me up and after that little trek we still had several hours to wait. So we did. We laughed, talked, the guys played hacky sack and football and thankfully didn't get us kicked out of the terminal and before we knew it is was time to check in for our flight. All checked in and still plenty of time to wait. Back up to our camping spot to do more of the same. Finally it was time to head to the gate. And there she sat. A 747. Double Decker and big as can be. I know it's done every day but can that thing really get off the ground? We'll soon see.

All aboard the Korean Air plane and time to get moving. The first thing I notice is the uniforms they are wearing. They are dressed very nicely but they have these bows they tie around their necks and they stick out a good six inches on each side. Don't those things get in the way? Guess not, but hey bother me. Things are all set to go and we taxi down eh runway for takeoff. My mom said she was in a 747 when they went to Hawaii and she said it was the smoothest flight she had ever had so even though I'm not a really nervous flier I have always said that I hate takeoff the most because most planes that crash do it right after takeoff so I was ready for it to be over with. We cruise down the runway and start to lift off and the plane starts to shudder. Not just a little shaking but a loud noise and constant shuddering for about 30 seconds. Seems like so little time unless you are close to crashing. I asked Rob if that was normal for a large plane. He said no. Great. I like to watch the flight attendants because I figure if we are going down they would know it. There were two just up and to the left of us and after maybe 10 seconds they gave each other a funny look. Hello. I can see you. This is why I hate taking off. Eventually it stopped and we were at the beginning of a very long 12 1/2 hour flight.

The great thing about oversees flights is you get a little TV with movies, games, and all sorts of other stuff to keep you busy. I also had an ipod filled with movies. Funny thing is when you have all that time to sit even all that stuff doesn't pass the time. I watched three movies, got caught up on Grey's Anatomy, we ate dinner and still there was more time left than I cared to think about. I tried to sleep with little success and just when I think I couldn't handle any longer there were still three hours left. I was not in a good mood when we landed in Korea.

We had a three hour layover in Seoul, Korea and there was nothing to do. Down by our gate their chairs didn't have armrests between each seat so it gave me the opportunity to stretch out and get some much needed sleep. Even if just for an hour or so it had me feeling so much better. Onto another plane for another four hour flight to Manila. Thankfully we were on another 747 and there was nobody on the flight so everyone got a whole row to themselves. Before I fell asleep I wanted to eat so when mealtime came around I got the Korean dish called Bibimbap. Big mistake. I had heard from a couple of the girls that it was "sooo good" so I thought I'd give it a whirl. Even thinking about it now makes me nauseous. It is different mixed veggies like mushrooms, spinach, two kinds of sprouts, some sort of meat substance, and other vegetables I couldn't identify and you mix it with white rice, hot chili paste, and sesame oil and eat. The thing was I couldn't get past the smell of the oil or the look of the vegetables. As a bonus it came with a side of seaweed soup, which tasted like I was licking a pier. Calling the entire meal nasty is an understatement. Horrible. Awful. And since the plane ride was bumpy, and I was tired and now nauseous all I wanted to do was go to sleep. Thankfully I did and slept for the rest of the flight.

We landed in Manila at 10:55 p.m after having traveled for roughly 29 hours. I was exhausted and more than ready to have a bed to sleep in. We made it through customs with no worries although I was wondering what we were getting into when at the bottom of the customs form it read in bright red letters "Warning: Death to drug traffickers under Philippine law". Better hide my Tylenol. We had to wait what seemed like forever for the bus to finally come around to pick us up. There were hundreds of people waiting to be picked up, it was extremely hot and there were cockroaches running around. Finally it came, we loaded up and made our way to the hotel. Even at almost midnight there were cars everywhere. I don't know how long it took us to get to the hotel but we finally pulled up and I was so happy. It was about 1 a.m. and I was done. We got our room and immediately unpacked for our long stay. All of the girls were in one suite so it was Chrisanna, Alisha, Carolyn, Kathryn, Alicia, Katrina and I. We were in bed around 2 a.m. and I was not looking forward to our 7:00 wake up call.

Day 2

It came way too early. Although I was still not working on enough sleep to keep me happy I did surprisingly well. I think because there was so much to do and see it was easy to not dwell on being tired. We went to both the early and late services which was a little redundant but still so cool to see all the Community Baptist Church is doing.

Before services started they came around and gave us all a flower lei. Nothing like pointing out the white visitors. Church services were good although I only understood about half of it. Filipinos speak Tagalog which is part Spanish and part something else. I could catch some of the Spanish and every so often the pastor would say something in English but only half of a sentence or a small phrase then finish in Tagalog. They sang all of their songs and read all of the Bible verses in English though. I never quite figured it out. At the end of the service they called us all onstage and introduced us then gave us a gift of Coco Jam. The ingredients are coconut milk and sugar so although I haven't tried it yet it sounds pretty good.

After church we went to the very authentic Filipino restaurant Shakeys Pizza.

They had already ordered for us so we received the 'buffet on a plate' lunch that included spaghetti, garlic bread, a small piece of Hawaiian pizza, a piece of fried chicken and two potato wedges. We learned from the first day that portion sizes overseas are far from being the size our are here. We were all looking to others plates hoping to grab another morsel of food only to realize that everyone else was looking too. After lunch we had a small orientation with Greg.

They gave us welcome packets that included a map of the city, hand sanitizer, Kleenex(99% of places don't supply toilet paper) some cultural tips, all the phone numbers we would need while there, a small journal with pen and some ministry info. Some things we learned are:

-do not drink the water!!!

-'LBM' or loose bowel movement. Something you get from drinking the water or eating at any unapproved places. That phrase was used quite often on our trip.

-there are lots of thieves so keep watch of your things.

-raised eyebrows mean hi. that took some getting used to. it's hard to walk by a man and have him raise his eyebrows at you.

-you can pick your nose in public but picking your teeth is offensive.

-be prepared to lose all personal space

After lunch we had just a couple of hours before we went to church that night. Chrisanna hadn't changed her watch so we walked to the mall thinking we had several hours when in actuality we had just over an hour. We exchanged money then had to race walk back to the hotel. We went to Daniel and Lot Lot's church which is a church plant out of the Lyon's church. We arrived early and were split up into groups to go and hand out fliers and invite people to come see our drama. This was the first time we were out in the neighborhoods. It was definitely a sight. Their houses are just shacks built out of anything they can find. And kids are everywhere. Everywhere. There is a staggering statistic that says there are 16 million people in Metro Manila and something like 75 or 80% are under 25 years old. There were about 150 people there, mostly children and young adults.

We did our drama and it went pretty well until the end when nobody had told them to fade the music. The song is only about half over when the drama is done so we laid there...and laid there...and laid there. Probably for a good minute to a minute and a half. I started laughing and Chrisanna said it made her laugh because she could see my shoulders shaking. What else was I going to do. We looked like dopes laying on the floor not moving. The music finally stopped and we were able to get up. The message that night was almost completely in Tagalog so I didn't catch much of it. Plus I was tired. It had been a long day preceded by a long couple of days.

We cleaned up and it was dinner time. KFC. Not so finger lickin good. I didn't really pay attention when I ordered so when I thought I was getting chicken strips and mashed potatoes it turned out to be chicken strips and white rice. The chicken strips were all dark meat(sick) and the rice was, well, plain white rice. There's not much you can do with it. We had a casual dinner, got to talk with Greg a little and before long bed was calling my name. The end had come to our first days in Manila and so far they have been great.

jet lag stinks

i never thought it would be this hard. i didn't have any problems going over there so i never thought i would have any problems coming home.


but i have.


big time.


i felt fine when we got home on wednesday night. slept in thursday morning and other than being really tired felt fine thursday. then friday came. i woke up and my legs ached. i couldn't get comfortable and felt like i'd been hit by a truck. i laid in bed all day until it was time to go to the dairy days parade. i mustered enough energy for the carnival and the parade and made it home just in time to get to a bathroom. things south of the border weren't feeling so good. a few imodium later and i was feeling better.


saturday there is a farmers market at the nazarene church on eagle rd and i really wanted to go. finally at 10:30 i managed to get out of bed and into the shower. by the time i was done i was exhausted. i had to crawl back in bed with my aching legs and stay for another day. the imodium worked until saturday night and then things went south again. literally.


sunday i felt a little better. i still didn't get out of bed till 11:00 but at least once i was up i didn't have to go back. i watched emily swim in the pool and finished my book while rob and the boys took kya for a run. terry called and asked if we wanted to come over for dinner. heck yes. finally a home cooked meal. and one that i didn't have to make.


this morning i still feel like i got hit by a bus. it's really hard to wake up and once i do i feel like i'm in a dream. i've been told jet lag lasts for about a week. can't wait till thursday.


i have lots to say, even more pictures to share but until i can clear my head a little i will eave you with a picture from our beach resort stay. and before you think "how lucky are they" i use the term 'resort' very, very loosely.

This is it!

I am spending the day getting all of my last minute stuff ready. Making sure I have everything in my carry on and making sure everything is in my suitcase that I will need. Making sure all of the kids have enough clothes for 12 days and packing their camp suitcases. Oh, and totally not believing that this time tomorrow I will be on an airplane for 14 straight hours flying to Korea and then to Manila. Crazy right? It's hard to believe that in 13 hours we will be at the airport checking in.

I have been on the verge of emotional all day. I had to email something to Jimi about Taylor and at the end I told her to make sure and give him lots of hugs for me next week...and I had to blink back the tears. Silly, but it is so hard knowing I will not be here to watch the bus pull away as he goes to his first Kids Kamp. I know he will have a blast but being thousands of miles away will be hard.

There are so many things I need to finish so I better get to it. I have a list of things for me specifically if you want to pray for them.

*safe travel
*my parents and Rob's parents as they watch the kids
*Austin and Taylor at Kids Kamp
*our luggage making it all the way
*good health while we are away
*that we will make an impact on the city
*that the Lord will work in our lives while we are gone

I am more than excited to be going. See you in two weeks!

My last few days have included...

*dance pictures.

Be still my heart.

*a court appearance. we got a little over half our money back through mediation so we were happy.

*lunch at chili's with my hubby.

*a little Philippines shopping.

*a dress rehearsal.

when she came out in her curlers people were oohing and awwing. she was a little embarrassed.

*a recital

*a graduation

*a birthday party for Rob
*Non stop laundry
*Getting myself almost all the way packed.
*helping at field day
*watching the kids swim
*towing my dad's broken down truck home from Caldwell. that was an experience but we made it.
*a stress level to which i am not accustomed

*knocking around the idea of starting a new ministry with steph

*dreaming about school being out. one more day!
*packing the boys for camp
*and this morning...chocolate chip pancakes.