Youth Retreat In The Philippines!!

God gave me one of the most amazing weeks ever! For the past week, I was able to take part (in many ways) in the youth retreat that World Christian Fellowship has every year. It was busy, but it was amazing! I will not describe every little topic or thing that took place because I am terrible at writing. But during the whole week, the topics were centered around giving God every room in our house. Our lives is like a house and if we claim to be children of God, then God requires that we give Him everything. Not a little, not some, not most..but all! Some many times, Christians give God some of the things in their lives while holding on to others. They give Him the keys to some of their "rooms", but keep the doors lock to others. Everyone was encouraged to be honest with God and with one another asking the question...Have we really given everything to God? We had some good sharing time. And I strongly encourage everyone who reads this to ask yourself that question too! Too many times we get questions like this and think to ourselves "oh yeah, of course I have given God everything..." But a lot of times what that means is "I do not have time to answer that question. or I do not really want to see the answer to that question". Be honest before God! He already knows anyway.

We also did some public ministry in an area that the group had not been to. We had around 50+ youth on the streets preaching and passing out tracts. Wow! And I am talking about within an area the size of downtown Eastman. We basically invaded that town with the Gospel.

Apart from the main focus of the youth retreat...I had an awesome time hanging out with all the youth (from dasma and montalban together). We were like one big family! We all got to swim (first time swimming in the philippines...same experience but better just because I am in the philippines) in the pool there and play games and just bond together. It was great! Memories I will never forget.

And so as many of you know who are keeping up with it...I am down to my last week here. And to say that I am sad and that it will hard to leave is an understatement. But I know God is good! I read Psalm 112 today and in verse 7 it says " He will not fear bad news; his heart is confident, trusting in the Lord." For me, it may be hard for me to go back, but I know God is faithful and that if it is His will...He will let me see them all again. It may be in a year or 10 years. But in that wait I find joy in Christ! Pressing on!

Catholic Parade Night

it was a long night in Antipolo...but God protected us and gave us the strength to make it through the night! this event was an experience of a lifetime for me. i had never seen so many people in one place [actually one street] in my entire life. there was over a million people constantly walking down this road to visit a idol of mary. it was worse than rush hour in atlanta at this place. people were selling idols and pictures of jesus along the street. there were stations set up along the road as well where people would pray, take pictures, and worship pictures of Jesus. All representations of Jesus do not compare to who He really is...but there was one picture that had the actor who played Jesus in the "the passion of the christ" on it and everyone was worshiping it. they hand candles under the picture, people were talking pictures, and they were praying in front of it. this was 5 or so in the morning when i saw this and God just gave me a burst of energy, and i went in front of this station and preached directly to these people. here they are worshiping a movie star as if he really is Jesus. talk about Godly anger. the whole night was filled with things like this.

God gave us the strength we needed and shared the Gospel with these people - the truth. one thing about this event, and every year, is that some of these people believe that Jesus dies every year and they worship him in this way as such. Some people are not even catholic, they just follow the crowd. some just view it as another day at mass. so there are millions of people at this event who are ignorant to the truth or do not care about it. One scripture that was in my mind during this event was psalm 115:4-8, "Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; eyes, but do not see. They have ears, but do not hear; noses, but do not smell. They have hands, but do not feel; feet, but do not walk; and they do not make a sound in their throat. Those who make them become like them; so do all who trust in them". in my mind, that is exactly what these people have become...deaf and blind to the truth. they walk in darkness and they have completely lost all senses of truth. but praise God He has the power to break these barriers!

the story i spoke of earlier about the picture was one of the experiences i had. another door that God opened up for me is to share with one guy. thursday night probably within a couple hours of just getting at the event, a guy pulls up on his motorcycle and talks to me. i was wearing a sign that said do not make and or worship idols. this guy saw it and asked me why. so God gave me the opportunity to share, not only why, but share the Gospel with him. we only talked 5 minutes or so before he had to go but he was very open to what i was sharing with him. so pray for this guy!

thanks to everyone for all the prayers and encouragement for this event!

continue to pray for this upcoming week...we will be having our big youth retreat. As i said in the previous blog, pray for the hearts of the youth and that they are ready to hear from God. also pray for the leaders and speakers and everyone that will be involved in this event. pray for the public ministry we will be doing there as well. i will give an update on the youth retreat when we get back on may 1.

Enjoyment With Your People!

This past week since I have been back from the mountains, I have been a part of [through participating and teaching] youth Bible studies here. We gather to worship through song, reading His Word, and fellowship with other believers. It is truly some amazing time! Some of the leaders here have been doing a study through a book called "Cat and Dog Theology". I won't explain the whole study on here (it would take to long), but the thought behind it is this: The Dog says, "you shelter me, you feed me, you provide for me, You must be God" and the cat says, "you shelter me, you feed me, you provide for me, I must be God". We have been looking into every aspect of our lives and seeing if God is overflowing in every area, not just some. Are we God-centered or self-centered? It has been a good study.

I have also helped by speaking on "No Compromise". We looked into the life of Keith Green, a Radical (obedient) Christian in his time, who urged people to not compromise for the world. You are either all for God or you are not. Really an amazing story.

It has been a growing time with God!

This coming Thursday, we will have group of us here going to a "Catholic parade"...basically, a day that Catholics from all over go to this idol to see it and worship it. Big event! We are going to preach the Gospel to these people on the street for 12 hours straight, through the night. We will be right in the middle of the action! So please pray for our protection, that God would work through us, and that lives would come to Him through our obedience and His power. Also, pray for next week as we will be having our big youth retreat. We will be having different topics throughout the week, public ministry, activities, and worship. Pray that every youth's heart is open to hear God and that everything would go smoothly. Pray for the speakers as well: Derek, Jec, Richard, Agnes, Lean, and myself; pray that we would be prepared and ready for God to use us.

Back From The Mountains

wow...where do i start...some much has happened the last few weeks. as you know, i was in montalban helping out with the ministry there. what a refreshing time it was...enjoying the mountains, nice weather, the quietness, and great company. I was able to take part in the Bible studies there, going to people's houses and sharing with them about God. Every week it was a joy to go to these houses and pray and read God's Word with them. We also went to a new area to pass out tracks and talk to people. We had some good responses...some were Christians and wanted to know if they could have Bible studies. God is great!

I had a lot of experiences, but one that impacting me was the walk up the mountain. our group walked maybe 20 minutes up a mountain to a member's house to pray. maybe i should say that again...we walked up a mountain to PRAY!! wow, what an encouragement to me that was and such a conviction. I confess, sometimes i have trouble praying in my own room, much less walk 20 minutes to do it. we need more of this in America! we need to be a people of prayer!  

another great experience i had was with the youth overnight. the youth there gather every Friday night and on this particular Friday when i happened to be there (thank you Lord) we spend the entire night without sleep praising God through songs, activities, and the reading of His Word. it was a great time to hang out with the youth there in montalban and really get to know them. Not only that, but i had many visitors come a talk to me and get to know me throughout my whole stay there. I will never be able to express how much that meant to me! that was one of the many highlights of my trip.

I thank God for the opportunity that He gave me to spend time with the montalban group. One thing that went through my mind last year when i came was that there was no time at all to really get to know the montalban group like we know the dasma group. we were so busy that it was hard to sit down and talk with them. so i am very thankful that i got to do that and now i have 20 plus new friends and family!

All in all, my experience was amazing! Thank you montalban for taking care of me and for making me so welcomed!

going to the mountains

starting this sunday i will be in montalban for the next two weeks helping out with the ministry there. as some of you know, montalban is another area where world christian fellowship has planted a church and is led by pastor mandy. while i am in montalban, i will have little opportunity to use a computer so i will most likely not update anymore on my blog or facebook for the next two weeks. i will give updates when i return. please pray for us there as we minister to the people in that area as well as other areas around it. pray also for the church itself as it continues to grow.

Sowing

These last couple of weeks, we have been going out to different areas and preaching and giving out tracks. Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, we are in the field talking to people and sharing the gospel. Some of the places we have gone though have been harder for me personally because we would stand out in the streets without much interaction. Now, not all the areas were like this, but there were times where it just seemed like we were giving out tracks and preaching and no one was listening...no one was paying any attention to us. There were even a couple places we went to where it seemed like no one got even a track from us. (For those who don't know about how we do tracks here, we don't go around forcing them into people's hands...we hold them out and if someone wants it they will make the effort themselves. The thought behind this is if someone takes it on their own then they are more likely to read it) But through all of this, and it's always a topic within the team here, is how we need to stay faithful in going out and sharing the gospel to everybody no matter if sometimes it feels like nothing is getting accomplished. It can be hard to continue when times like this occur. But if we stay faithful in spreading the gospel, God is faithful in growing those seeds!


I have really settled in now with my family here. I join with them in prayer meetings and outings and it has been a blessing. It is amazing to be in fellowship with brothers and sisters across the world and to be a part of what God is doing here.

Continue to pray for the ministry here and for all the people we come across sharing the gospel with. We also have a huge youth gathering I think at the end of April so please be in prayer for that.

Take Joy In Our Trials?

I was really encouraged this week by a man that I met so I thought I would share it with you.

This past week, I believe Thursday, I got to meet a pastor friend of Derek's. We initially went to visit and pray for this man because he has cancer. However, I believe I was more encouraged by him than he was of us. This man was more joyful than any person I have ever met, especially for someone who has a life threatening illness. In fact, he was out visiting a member of his church who is paralyzed. He was still tending to his sheep even in the mist of his own illness, even in the mist of this big trial in his life.

How many times can you say about yourself that you were truly joyful in the mist of your trials? I think a lot of times what happens is that we find a way to rationalize that giving up and giving in is better than trusting God. Well, at least maybe easier, thus perceive it to be better. ( I know I have before) Don't get me wrong, it is hard when you go through trials, but as Christians we need to remember where our true joy comes from..Jesus Christ. Jesus never said the life of a Christian was going to be easy; in fact, He said we would go through trials. This pastor has in his mind that he is going to live for Christ no matter what. "To Live is Christ, To Die is Gain".  

I just encourage everyone who reads this, including myself, to have this mindset that no matter what...through it all...that it is all about giving glory to God. That nothing should stop us from praising God and giving thanks to Him for what He has already done for us! Like I said, this was an encouragement to me...a look in the mirror...and I hope it encourages you as well.

Public Outreach!

since our exciting day in pasay, we have been going out in other areas giving out tracks and spreading the gospel. we typically will be doing this every week lord willing. one place we went to is a college in indang where many of derek's youth go to school. we stood outside the front gates and passed out tracks that stressed that sex before marriage is a sin. (something obviously we need to do in america considering the amount of young people who get pregnant without being married) i don't know the exact amount we passed out, but it was a lot. and i feel like a majority of them really read our tracks. the other place we went to was another area called emus, which is basically a huge open market, so there were a lot of people there. this particular outing was the first time i actually had anyone stop and talk to me. i had one family who stopped who had just gotten back from california and wanted to know why i was here, so i got to share with them what i was doing. i pray that god will give me more opportunities! i also had a mulism come up to me to see what our tracks were about. he did not talk much though after i asked him if he knew who Jesus was. none the less, he got a track and i know if anybody can change his heart, it's God.

we had a lot of encouragement from some pastors and other people just walking by as well. it is always great to get encouragement! And then i had a group of young people stop to have a picture with me...what can i say? it is encouraging to know that i am known all over the world. (it's really not me, it's just because i am an amercian)

oh yeah, one thing that i started this week as well is my chores...yes, you read right..chores. no special treatment; and i would not expect it. i am like the big brother here. i clean and wash dishes. (this is normal for me, right?) :) really though, it has been a great time helping out around the ministry center and being a part of what God is doing here! 

continue to pray for us here as we continue our ministry and continue to share the gospel with more and more people every week.

Valentine's Day

While Valentine's Day is a day that most people show their love to their significant other by buying flowers or chocolate for them or maybe taking them out on a romantic date or expressing their love through all the other means out there, it is not like this for everybody around the world. I found this out very quickly when we got to Pasay. A team of us went out for the soul purpose to witness and share the name of Jesus Christ with the pimps, prostitutes, and other people in the area.

You see, in Pasay, Valentine's Day is not just a day that people express their love to their significant other...it is a BIG HUGE buisness day for pimps and prostitutes. They have hotels (called short hotels) specifically set up for people who want to engage in sexually immoral activities for 2 or 3 hours.

Our team stood in front of these places and all around them sharing the Gospel and preaching against sex before marriage, sex between boyfriend and girlfriends, and sex between boy-boy/girl-girl. It truely was a spiritual battle. But praise God we rattled some chains! Psalm 81:15 says 'those who hate the Lord will cringe before Him'. And they did! They did not like us messing up their business and way of life. We even had one pimp run us off...literally chasing us down. He was kicking doors and fuming with anger. I have heard many stories from pastors about demon possessed people, but I personally have never encountered this. Now I don't know if this pimp was demon possessed, but he definitely had a bad spirit about him. You could see the hatred in his eyes and in his actions. I wish I could really do justice in describing this moment but I can't. It was evil. It was probably one of the first times in my life that when I was witnessing, I was on my toes a little. But praise God for His protection and His strength!!

It was amazing as well to watch some of the people around us...you could tell that they were at least thinking on what we were saying. One moment they were thinking about going into these hotels...then the next moment as they are listening to us and reading our signs, they turn around and go away.

God was at work! We had one guy on our team who even got to pray with some people.

Continue to pray for all the ones who recieved our tracks and heard the truth go out. God is already answering prayers as Derek has already recieved some texts from people who got our tracks. Continue to pray for me as I continue to seek to grow closer in my walk with God. Pray for our protection as we continue to go out to places like this.

Arrival

I made it safe and sound! I had a hour or so delay, but I made it! Now, I'm getting acclimated back to the Philippine area. It is so great to back with my friends in the Philippines! More to come in the next few days...

The Journey Begins...

Well, I am one day away from heading to the Philippines where my home will be for the next 3 months.

People use the phrase " if you would have told me I would be doing this years ago, I would have said no way". As much as this phrase is used, I can honestly say it speaks of me at this moment of my life. I would have never imagined me going overseas period, more or less going for 3 months. It's not that I don't like traveling or flying, it's just that I never though about it. It wasn't something that I had always dreamed about doing. However, God has been working in my life and has given me this new passion for wanting and being willing to go other places in the world for His glory. And when I speak of "new passion", I really mean a passion that has been covered up by the things of this world; the American dream. As Christians, we all should have this passion in us for the dying world around us. So I thank God for allowing me to take part in this journey of my life, and I thank God for giving me the willingness to go.

While in the Philippines, I will working side by side with Derek Johns, a native of Eastman, Ga. There are several big events that will be taking place in the upcoming months and those details will come as they approach. But mostly on a day to day basis I will be in fellowship with other believers, studying the language, witnessing, and studying God's Word. Of course, I can't account for everything that will be taking place so I will send out prayers, events, and other things that come up along the journey.

Thanks to everyone who has supported me on this journey rather it was by finacial means or prayer...THANKS!! Continue to pray for my trip there and that God would rock my world while I'm there.