Journeys often take unexpected turns. Our journey was interrupted when we boarded our plane in Toyko for Manila last Thursday. We had traveled 16 hours by plane, plus our layover times and drives to the airport initially. We boarded our plane in Toyko which would take us on our final 5 hour journey to the Philippines.
We pulled away from the jetway and stopped. Mechanical problems had us stopped in our tracks. We sat on our plane for 4 1/2 hours before Delta cancelled our flight. That was disappointing but what came next surprised even us. The Narita airport, an international airport, closed every evening around 10 pm...that meant we were spending the night at the aiport (we couldn't leave the premises) with 800 others from our plane and another 800 from another plane that was grounded. Suffice it to say that waiting for our new plane to take off didn't happen until 1:00 pm the next day. We arrived in the Philippines exactly 48 hours after we left the States!
Five...that is the number of our Philippine friends who greeted us after they had waited about 4 hours at the Philippine airport!
Four...that is the number of hours we traveled by car to Nueva Ecjia. Wow, was it worth it! We visited 3 churches in 2 days, interviewing 168 children. What a privilege and a blessing it was to be with them. The Church of God has really grown in Nueva Ecjia! The service at Umuguam Church of God was high energy with lots of singing and praising God. We even took up 3 offerings! Our own Pastor Brenda Berry preached the morning service, sharing from her heart how good God is to us even in the face of tragedy. We enjoyed a great meal of Philippine food.
Three...that is the number of sponsors who are traveling with me. Two of them have never been to the Philippines. Even in the rural country side, the poverty our COP families live in can be disturbing to see. The fact that the children always appear to be happy makes witnessing this poverty bearable.
Eighty-five and 99...that is the temperature and the humidity level. I confess that I have not dealt with this type of heat in quite some time. Each day we have dragged back to our hotels. Even though we have been tired, our satisfaction is 100%. How can you top that?
One thousand children sponsored...that is the dream of Ofelia "Fely" Viray, director of Grace Family Helper Project (COP in the Philippines). My prayer is that we will have churches in the Church of God movement who will champion the COP efforts in the Philippines. We currently have over 100 children from the Philippines waiting to be sponsored. Just think, you only have to give up 5 McDonald's quarter pounder meals each month to give a child hope of a future where his or her life is transformed and they, in turn, can change their world. Already some of the sponsored children have graduated from the program and have earned scholarships to college. They are making a difference in their home churches and reaching out to children coming from the same circumstances they did.
Our journey continues tomorrow. Likely this will happen in the midst of a tropical storm that is making its way here. No problem. The resilient Philippine children and staff of Grace Family Helper Project are devoted to one another. What a pleasure it is to work with such incredible servants of God! Our time together is filled with laughter and joy. Their commitment to meeting the needs of the children is amazing. Their love is deep. Their compassion is inspiring.
Hundreds...that is the number of people it takes to assist the sponsored children in the Philippines. Pastors, committee volunteers, the national coordinators of COP, every parent or guardian, our great sponsors, and the staff in Anderson make this ministry possible. I hope you will continue to follow our journey. Pray for God's blessing on this troup of people. We hope to post pictures tomorrow. Wait 'til you see the beautiful faces of our kids. - Linda Mason
Hi, Linda and Team members,
ReplyDeleteIt is great to follow your safari. We are thankful the Lord is blessing by the numbers and I noticed all your numbers are positive! What a wonderful opportunity for the sponsors traveling with you to visit their children and experience their life first hand.
Talking about rain and humidity, consider that here in Tanzania we finally got some early rain.
We were here 140 days with absolutely no rain. We don't even get morning dew here. We have now had two late evening showers. They tell us we are going from dust to mud...
Thanks for sharing your experience with us. We will continue to follow your journey.
Ron Baker - Tanzania, East Africa