Home Assignment, Regional Conferences, and HOME!
Kevin and I have been traveling since August 6, 2019. We arrived back to our home in Taytay, just outside of Manila, on Sunday and we really are enjoying being back in our own bed.
We want to say, Thank you, so much for your support, friendship, love and care during our Home Assignment and beyond.
We have traveled in 2 countries and 6 states, spoke in 14 churches, 2 Work & Witness Conferences and Point Loma Nazarene University Chapel Service. We connected with our partners in ministry at every opportunity, and enjoyed a week long Missionary Training, the AP (Asia Pacific) Regional Conference and Missionary Retreat in Thailand.
We found ourselves deeply connected to the churches who encouraged our hearts, listened to our stories, and shared our passion for missions. We enjoyed time with our families and friends. We ate, played, shared, took walks and watched tee-ball/soccer games. They nurtured us and cared deeply about our mission. We learned about fundraising, culture, missionary computer systems and self care in our training. Better than that, we put faces to the people who help us at Global Mission in Kansas City. We shared our passion for the Philippines-Micronesia Field at our Work & Witness Conferences, building interest and connections with communities that LOVE Work & Witness. We traveled to Thailand and gathered with 480 people from the AP region to celebrate all God is doing in our fields, learn from each other and Unleash the Holy Spirit in our work and lives. Then we had the opportunity to play a bit and learn to thrive on the mission field at our regional retreat. All I can say is WOW!
Now we are back to work, actively planing Work & Witness teams that will be in country from January 23 to March 5, and most of the month of May. We jumped back into our work at Asia Pacific Nazarene Theological Seminary. We are so encouraged by the work of staff, administration and faculty who have continued without missing a beat as we look for a new president. God is so Good to us and is blessing the work in the Philippines. We have two Work & Witness teams coming to Micronesia this year. We are so excited!
- Things to pray about:
- A new President for Asia Pacific Nazarene Theological Seminary
- Wisdom in planning for 2020 teams
- That God would call teams for 2021
- and Provision for the Shechem Home project
As many of you know, our hearts are intertwined with the children of Shechem Home for Children. Here, children who have been rescued from Online Sexual Exploitation, or OSEC find trauma informed care, hope and Jesus in this home, not facility care. They receive assessment, therapy, medical care, and love as they are prepared for the next step. We are completing our first year and we have learned a lot in this first ever assessment home! One thing we have learned is that the operating expenses were bigger than expected.
We have learned many things this year. One thing, is that we have underestimated the operational costs of the home. This would include food, utilities, 24-hour security, and house parent’s salary and benefits. We have an amazing staff who pours themselves into this ministry. We are successfully impacting the children who come through, enabling them to look to the future with hope in their next step.
Would you consider and pray about partnering financially with Shechem Home for Children, and joining the organizations and individuals on the team? We are looking for monthly, quarterly and annual partners with gifts like $25, $50, $100, $1000. Or perhaps God would call you to sponsor one of our house parents each month, or to cover our security costs each month.
For more information, click here… https://www.ncm.org/blog/shelterforchildren
To GIVE, click here… https://give.nazarene.org/donate/f/134068
