Sunday, July 15, 2001

Today is our first day of tour.  Even before we started tour, we have already run into problems.  One of the team members almost did not make it on tour.  His mother was recently admitted into the hospital the night before tour began.  The cause of the problem was not known but she was rushed to the hospital.  The team prayed for him and his mother.  We were not exactly sure what the outcome was going to be, but we let it go and gave it to God to handle the situation.  When he showed up to the airport on Sunday, the team was encouraged and strengthen to see the awesome God we worship has come through for us again.  Since everyone showed up to the airport on time, we were able to check in without any incidents.  We had a great lunch at the airport and then split off into groups to pray for each other and the tour.   Our flight was delayed for over two hours.  We barely arrived Narita International Airport on time to transfer over to our next flight.  We almost missed that flight too.  One of the team members was in the restroom and we had to wait for him before we could board the plane.   Thank God that He made the plane to wait for us.  By the time we arrived at Manila, it was after 9:30 p.m.  It was a long ride for everyone.  We were all tired and exhausted.  As soon as the room assignments were given out, everyone rushed to the room to change and went off to bed.

Tuesday, July 17, 2001

Without Mongens and Uncle Marsh with the Sikkim team, John Ngai was alone to lead the team.  It is a scary unfamiliar territory for him to be in.  Everyone woke up early and were excited to start the day.  We began the day with orientation with the ministries that we will be involved.  Each group gave a presentation about their ministry and ended with open questions.  The team asked many questions.  They were very eager to learn and absorb the information that were given to them. In the early part of the afternoon, the team was split off into two groups to plan for the two activities we were involved in.  The first group was to go out to speak to the homeless children.  That group is led by John Ngai.  They team up with a team called 'MSF' to speak to the street kids.  They played games, sang songs, and taught the kids a few songs.  The second team was to teach English to the mainland Chinese.  The English classes is led by Deborah Lock.  She and the team split off into smaller groups to teach different levels of English.  By the time the team arrived back from their activities, we saw Uncle Marsh with the Sikkim.  We were all over joy to see them.  We also found out the Mongens is very ill.  Please pray for him for a speedy recovery.  

Wednesday, July 18, 2001

We sang at PCU (Philippines Christian University) Christian Formation Week chapel service at 10:00 a.m. for the 11th and 12th graders and 12:30 p.m. for the 9th and 10th graders.  We sang about 20 minutes per service, gave out testimony and also did a skit at the 2nd service.   Angel Huang is going to take Christine and Uncle Marsh to see the doctor for their skin rash and sore throat.

We called Mongens to see how he is doing. He has recovered from his illness. He is still a little sick but otherwise he is fine. As for Uncle Marsh and Christine, the doctor said Uncle Marsh was overdosed on antibiotics but Christine received a shot for her rash. We decided to take the afternoon off to recover from the time zone difference. In the evenings, the team was split into two and went out to teach English and to minister to the street children.

Thursday, July 19, 2001

In the middle of the night, the water and power at the YMCA was shut off. It was not available until 6:30 a.m. It was very uncomfortable for many of us. With no air conditioning in the room, it became very hot and humid. Most of the team members did not sleep well at all. Since there was no water (no electricity, no water pump), most of the team were not able to take showers. We left early in the morning (before breakfast) to arrive at a Christian high school. Uncle Marsh and Christine were left behind with Auntie Angel’s family so then they could get more rest to recover from their illness and rash. The school we were at was celebrating their 84th anniversary. Since Uncle Marsh was not able to conduct, Anna Yutan took over and directed the choir. Shortly after our first performance, the team was taken downstairs to a lounge for breakfast. It was filled with Filipino delicacies. The team was filled with joy. Some students from the school came in and interviewed the team about what we do.

After our second performance at the high school, the team rushed off and arrived at Asian Theological Seminary (ATS). There we saw Mongens preaching to the congregation. It was great to see him well again. By now, Anna was beginning to have a fever. After lunch at the ATS, Becki Pang led the team in a short practice. It was our first practice on tour.

We left ATS to arrive at Agoncillo Street Kids Center. There, Becki conducted the choir with few songs and a skit. In the middle of one of the songs, Uncle Marsh showed up. It was good to see him after getting some rest. He directed a few more songs and we left to minister to the street kids and taught English again.

Friday, July 20, 2001

Vision arrived at Chinese General Hospital to minister to the elderly and to the children. At the children’s wards, the team split off into smaller teams to go into different wards to pass out toys and to pray for the team. Many of the parents that were there were touched and blessed by the music and prayers. To see God to do His work was indeed a blessing. After ministering to the elderly at the hospital, the team was taken on a short tour of the Chinese cemetery. There are many elaborate burial sites there, almost full of houses with air conditioning (for the visitors on all Saint’s Day). To the locals, it is a way of displaying wealth and honor to the dead.

We arrived at the Youth Gospel Center that brings students from local high schools to know more about Jesus. The team sang songs, skits, and interacted with the students. As we were preparing to leave, we found out the Youth Center was also expecting us to return there to minister to the college fellowship. With the miscommunication, we were not able to commit to go back to the Youth Center. John Ngai volunteered to go back to the Youth Center to preach to the college group. The passage was given to him to preach was on Romans 13:11-14. Oh what a challenged it will be for him.

After a quick dinner, we arrived at the Chinese United Evangelical Church (Were Rev. Chua pastured) to join a weekly fellowship of Chinese scholars. Because of some confusion, the leaders of the meeting did not expect us but finally agreed for us to sing. When we sang “Amazing Grace”, several students had tears in their eyes and even though we had to leave, we were asked to return. It turn out the person leading this meeting is Victor Chiong (Lucy Fan’s brother) who attend FEC in the early ‘70’s. He kept asking Uncle marsh if he knew Marshall Huang and when he was finally convinced Uncle Marsh was the same young fellow he knew back then, he was beyond himself with joy and apologies. What a sense of humor God has!

Saturday, July 21, 2001

Today was an exciting day for us. We teamed up with a ministry called, “Reach Youth.” They are a group of adults, mainly volunteers, to go out to the slums to reach out to the youths. The team split off into four small teams and went off with the teachers to minister to the children. As we came back from the street, everyone felt blessed by the ministry and the time we spent with the children. We ate lunch with our teachers and ministered to them. We prayed for their ministry and they in turn sang a song back to us and prayed for us too. It is great to know that we have brothers and sisters oversea that are praying for us!

We arrived back to the YMCA to rest a bit before heading off to have fellowship with the Union Church. While the team was fellowshipping with the church, John Ngai was preaching at the Youth Center to the college group. It was his first time to preach to a group of students. The fellowship was hungry to hear what he had to share.

Meanwhile back at the church fellowship, the team played game, sang songs, bible study. They were also given a tour on the roof to view the city. Indeed it was a great view. As the team was preparing to leave for dinner, guests of Elsie’s Cokeh’s sisters and brothers, we accidentally left two members behind at the church. We were not aware of this until we arrived at the restaurant. Uncle Marsh made several phone calls to the church members to locate them. They were found shortly after and were escorted back to the YMCA for dinner. The team went off to bed early to prepare for another early morning the next day.

Sunday, July 22, 2001

Today is an exciting day for us. Everyone was able to come back to join the team from their illness. We woke early today and left before the cook arrived to sing at the first two services at Jubilee Evangelical Church. This is Mongens’ grandmother’s church and he had invited some special friends to attend. Their services run about an hour and a half each and we were given a full hour to sing, give testimonies, perform skits and for Mongens to preach. The programs were well received, but we had to leave immediately after we sang at the second service to go to Union Church and sing at their third service while Mongens continued preaching. In between, Angel, being an angel, brought us doughnuts so we were refreshed enough to last the morning. The testimonies, given by Taver and Melanie, were very real and shared of things that happened to us this past week, not stale testimonies of how God worked years ago, including the story of the two lost Visionares from last night, because of our weariness and lack of attention. It was like a warning from God to wake up and pay attention! At Union Church, where we fellowshipped with their College/Young Career group yesterday afternoon, we sang at their blended worship service, only one song and the first third of Holy, Holy, Holy as a call to worship. After that, we were met by Wayne’s two uncles from Taiwan who just happened to be in Manila on business. They (non-Christians) took us out for a wonderful lunch, so that takes us to this moment when we are at the school Angel teaches to use her email. We have no set plans for the rest of the day but to rest up a little and catch up on devotions.

Monday, July 23, 2001

For the first time on tour, Vision had a chance to sleep in.  The team woke up at 7:00 a.m. to have breakfast and devotion.  We debriefed a little Sunday evening after dinner and went to bed early.  After devotion, the team left to minister to a deaf school across the street. We weren’t sure as to what to expect as we got there.  We wondered if they use the same sign languages as we do back in the States.  It turns out it was and it was a relief for us.  Since two of our team members know sign languages, we were able to communicate with them.  Also, we wrote our thoughts onto a piece of paper to communicate with them.  We played games and did crafts with them.  We took the afternoon off to recuperate from our hectic schedule.  Some people used this time to sleep and others went shopping at the mall.  Since it has been raining on and off on tour, we have combined the two teams to teach English and canceled the street kids ministry for the night.

Tuesday, July 24, 2001

As we arrived back from the English class last night, we found out one of our drivers’ father-in-law passed away.  So we were down to only one van.  God came to our rescue and one of Uncle Marsh’s friends provided a van for us.  The only problem is that they don’t have a driver available.  Uncle Marsh volunteered to drive the van.  We were pretty scare to have the idea of Uncle Marsh driving.  People in the Philippines don’t drive as the same way as we do.  They weave in and out of traffic and drive on the other side of the road.  So Auntie Angel then volunteered to drive the van.  She didn’t sleep the whole night since she was worrying about driving the van.  By God’s grace, we were able to locate a driver in the morning.  We went to a local secular high school (Mandaluyong Science School) to minister to two classes of students.  After we sang, we were able to break off into small group to share the four laws with them.  Most of them are Catholics and Christians.  We then went to a women’s prison to sing.   This was our first experience at a women’s prison.  They were very happy to see us.  They clapped several times throughout our first song. It was a weird experience.  No one seemed as enthusiastic as this crowd.  They cheered and clapped for us.  We invited the audience to participate with the team during the ‘Brain’ skit.  They really enjoyed the skit.  There were much laughter and joy in the audience.  After we finished singing, we interacted with the inmates.  Several of them offered us to buy their crafts.  The inmates even danced and sang for us.  The wife of the superintendent of the prison ward invited us back to minister to the men’s prison.  Tonight unless it rains, we plan to divide the team to do street kids ministry and teach English as usual.   As this point on our trip, about half the team is sick with various coughs, sore throats, and an upset stomach.  Nothing too serious, but we invite your prayers.  

Please pray for us on Thursday when we will be ministering to another non-Christian high school.  This will be another opportunity for us to evangelize to key leaders of the Philippines of tomorrow.  

Wednesday, July 25, 2001

We woke up early to drive to Pampanga, more than two hours north of Manila, where Leah's father, Remy Chu lives. He had arranged for us to sing at the Chinese United Evangelical Church of Angeles, a Chinese school and church there. The day before, Uncle Marshall had asked his friend Din Din and she had agreed to loan Vision a van for the rest of the week so we could save a lot of money by not hiring a van driver every day. Unfortunately, the driver Angel found did not show up on Wednesday, so Uncle Marsh ended up doing the driving. He drove from Makati to Quezon City where we met up with Mongens. Mongens then ended up doing the rest of the driving, but Uncle Marsh drove the streets of Manila and we all survived to talk about it.

We sang to about 80 students after we arrived and broke them into grades 1 to 6 and older, where Uncle Marsh talked to the younger ones and Mongens talked to the older kids about Missions. We then all drove to the regional governor's summer house, which was built by Remy Chu and which he borrowed so we could eat lunch there and just enjoy the pristine beauty of the countryside. The food was wonderful, and included a whole roast pig (lechon). After relaxing, we drove back to do the Chinese school and street children ministry. It turns out this will be the last night of street ministry. This night, we went to "The Crossing", a highway underpass, just next to the Shangri-La Hotel. The contrast between the poor and rich is remarkable. Less than 20 feet away stands a magnificent hotel, one of the richest in Manila. Across a street, between a divided road, is a sheltered area where the poorest of the poor come for shelter. Here, we met two ministry groups, a Doctors without Borders (MSF), a quasi-Christian group which tries to give medical assistance to the poor and a Bible study group which brings food to feed the children, The children were delighted to see us, and greeted us with huge smiles. They then proceeded to find a large dead rat and play soccer with the rat, kicking it back and forth before we made them give up the game. When they were fed, we noted that one of the little boys did not get food but a little girl went and shared her plate of good with him. A 14 year old girl with a large smile got her food and although she had not eaten all day, immediately offered her plate of good to Wayne and then Uncle Marsh. How did she learn such generosity in the face of such poverty? Our hearts were broken for her.

Thursday, July 26, 2001

Another early morning, this time we went to sing at the chapel service at Jubilee High School. The team looked a little weary but by the grace of God, we were still able to perform to a crowd of several hundred juniors and seniors. Since we were delayed by traffic, Mongens preached first on the topic of "Taking God's Name in Vain". After breakfast, we found out our visit to the secular school was canceled but we were able to go to the Church of the Good Shepherd and sing to their chapel class. We sang a standard program and skits and Mongens preached. About a dozen kids responded to his call to accept Christ. The church served us lunch, and we went back to the hotel to rest and all of us went to the Chinese class to teach. There were about 30 students, mostly in the intermediate class. We had a chance to share our testimonies with them and introduced the four spiritual laws by handing out gospel tracks. After a time of taking group pictures and singing "The Lord Bless You and Keep You", one of the students said as we left, "I might not see you again, but I'll see you in heaven."

Friday, July 27. 2001

Today started like Thursday with a chapel service early at Jubilee. Mongens was very effective and at least 20 students raised their hands to accept Christ. We then had a time of debriefing where Vision members shared how God had worked within each one of them during the course of the tour. Many expressed how blessed they were to go through some personal struggles and how it had stengthen their faith in God. Afterwards, we proceeded to went to Hope Christian school where we would perform for the teachers and other staff members. Anna and Leah recognized several of the teachers there. We then proceeded to Ching and Thang Ngaihte's place, about two hours from Manila. There, they prepared a feast for us and some of their neighbors. After dinner, we went over to a church that is several miles away from their home. When we arrived, we realized that there was no concrete at all. Since it had just finished raining, the ground was filled with mud. The church we went to was in the middle of a slum area. The church itself was not fancy or big. In fact, it was just one big room that is filled with chairs. We were very touched when we arrived there. They had greeters at the house waiting for us. They had even made a welcome banner for us. As we walked in, a group of young kids were doing a body worship dance. It was great to see how these kids love to worship God. What touched us a lot was the fact that these people are contended with what they have. It really humbled many of us. After the concert, we drove back to the Y and ran into traffic. We began to pray that God will clear a path for us. As soon as we finished praying, God opened up a path for us. It's amazing how God answers our prayer. We did this several times, and each time God answered our prayers immediately. What a mighty God we serve. We also found out after we returned back to the States from an e-mail from the Ngaihtes that about 10 people accepted Christ that night at the meeting, the first fruits of the Ngaihte's slum ministry there. Praise God!

Saturday, July 28, 2001

We took a day off today and went to visit a place called Villa Escudero. It is a beautiful place. This place used to be occupied by the Japanese during World War II has a hide out place. Since then, they have converted it into a tourist attraction. The drive was approximately over two hours. It was worth every minute of it. The nature was breath-taking. There were some left over armor tank, fighter plane, etc. around the site. There was even a man made waterfall. It was beautiful. The team had a great time relaxing and catching a breather after two weeks of grueling work. We left Villa Escudero early in the afternoon to come back to have dinner with Mongens' family.

Sunday, July 29, 2001

Today is our last day on tour. We started off our day early as usual. We arrived at Ellingwood Church to sing at their morning service at 7:00 a.m. When we arrived there, we found out we were only going to sing one song. We also found out that we were at the end of the program. It was difficult for us since we need to sing and leave immediately to go to another church. We scrambled ourselves to try to change the program with the church. Through God's intervention, we found we didn't need to leave as soon as possible since one of the churches we were supposed to sing cancel on us. So we were able to sit through most of the service and not rush. We then went to Diliman Bible Church to sing at their English service. This was a Filipino Church, with a wonderful worship time. Even though Tina sprained her ankle getting on stage and had to sit through the service in pain, we were able to sing and Mongens preach to a very appreciative audience. We then left to go meet up with Melanie and Dillon Go's relatives for lunch. It was another feast. God has provided us many feasts throughout this tour. He has been very gracious to us. We headed back to Jubilee Church to finish our debriefing and prepare for the farewell party with our host church. After the party, the team went out with some of the church members to the Mega Mall for their final night out in the town. The next day, we got up before dawn to catch the flight back to the States.