Pasaylo-a ko (I’m sorry) for being so late putting out an update. We’ve been extremely busy lately. A funeral (in this country, it’s a week of meetings rather than one or two), car problems (including someone crashing into me [no one was hurt]), working on the new home, etc.
Dearly beloved Lipuy was five when she passed away. Her parents, Alexis & Aisha, have been a part of us for nearly two years. DCO provided them with over $500 for the medical & funeral expenses. We were already cash-strapped because of moving from a furnished place to a much bigger unfurnished place. Please consider helping us. (We did receive almost $200 in special gifts for Lipuy from a Facebook appeal, so that helps.)
OK, I was too optimistic about how quickly JulieAnn would recover from the surgery. About a month later, she still has serious scars. But she’s very happy because she knows that soon she will look better than ever! (See last month’s report for the ‘after surgery’ photo, & the previous report for the ‘before’ photo of her giant mole.) Davao City Outreach is providing the funds for her tests, medicines, bandages, ointments, etc.
The new home is a huge blessing. Rent is only $760 per month for 5BRs, 5 restrooms, 2 kitchens, 2 large living rooms, & plenty of room outside for kids’ ministry, with lots of storage space. Plus we’re very close to many of our friends.
We put the four extra bedrooms to good use. We now have nine other people living with us (a few only part-time for now). Most of them were in very bad situations before, & I don’t just mean financially (though that certainly added to their troubles). Because those situations involve families, I’m not at liberty to share names or details. They are all very happy to be part of our household. And we are certainly discipling them all. We work, pray, & eat together like a big family.
Our new home has a long, built-in table for kids’ ministry!
What do you do when you want to add a different song to the list for a church service, but it’s too late to make a lyrics power point? Print a bunch of copies & hand ’em out. 🙂
We recently had to buy that TV, BTW. The one we were using last year is owned by the landlord. We were given a second-hand projector that we used our first week in the new place, but it broke after that one use. We learned that projectors cost more than big TVs here, & a TV has a better image than a projector anyway, so we went that route. (Gina & I never watch TV; it will only be used for ministry.)
When the dining room is full, folks can eat outside in the shade.
Kids always come early for church & stay late after church. One reason is that we have the only lawn in the neighborhood that I’m aware of. If there’s another one, it’s private & not available for these kids.
The busyness continues: This week I’ll be out of town teaching the Kairos missions course (one of our new house-mates will be a student). Also, during the next several weeks, I’ll spend many hours teaching missions in a local university.
I have a confession to make: I don’t think I have had a complete day off since September. Probably the same is true for Gina. I know, that’s not healthy, & it’s not Biblical. Please pray that God would help us settle into a weekly schedule that includes a day off.
Ripe For Harvest tells me that in December they had “two stock gifts that have been sent to us but have no name designation” from Wells Fargo (WFC) & from Intel (INTC).
Are you one of those donors? Please tell me so I can tell them to add it to DCO’s account.
We thank God for all of you who faithfully pray for us often, as well as for those of you who give & give & give to this ministry!
For those who would like to help us financially:
http://ripeforharvest.org/home/donate/
(Please specify John Allcott or Davao City Outreach)
Please forward this blog to others who might be interested!
Gina & I would love to connect with your fellowship group, Bible study, or church through Skype! We could talk about whatever you’d like: the Philippines, our mission, our personal testimonies, or to urge folks to prayerfully consider serving the Lord in another culture. I think it would be encouraging for your group–it would certainly encourage us–& it might inspire more prayer supporters & financial helpers for Davao City Outreach. And it would be a chance for us to “see” the US again for a while. The time factor should be easy enough to work out–your evening is our morning.
Please pray that God will send more laborers into his harvest field.