Philippines 2019_Day 8_Sunday

Wang

Today is the last day of BLi 2019 Philippine missionary trip, and so many amazing exciting things has happened. I was so encouraged to meet the team members with diverse cultural backgrounds around the world. Everyone came to this trip with full commitment and passion to serve God, which united the team as one body. This is a team that any CEO dreams to have! 

The moment I walked into a ROLM service, I was astounded by their worship - they worship with their hearts and life, more than just songs and words! This was just the start of an eye-opening & mind-blowing journey, I was continually amazed more and more every day while witnessing and experiencing God’s almighty power and unconditional love. God’s healing power has been with the team since day one. I saw the lame walking, the pain receding, the blind seeing, and the hemiplegic woman pacing at our clinic. My stubborn heart did not want to believe what I was seeing, but God let me experienced His healing power. 

God has been providing very generously. The ROLM church have been purely dependent on donations, and now establishing multiple congregations, and raising up 45 children in the care home for more than 10 years. They were given farm lands, a rice mill and now a tractor, which could provide food for the orphanage. But God wants to bless them more, a business fund and an advisory board has been established to help them start an entrepreneurship.  

Before joining this trip, I gave up all my personal prayer requests, and just prayed that I will be available to do God’s work in these two weeks. When I prayed to ‘be close with God’, I did not realise I will be so close that i feel like I am living in His house, feeling him, listening to him and talking to him every day! When I prayed to ‘be obedient to do whatever is needed and is useful for God’s purpose’, I thought it meant financial contributions, supporting medical clinics and possibly establish some businesses. I did not realise God will use me to heal the sick and comfort the broken hearts through prayers, to see past-current-future of the ROLM church and their people, to share His visions and messages with others! When I prayed for my faith ‘to dwell in God’s power and love, and accept all the amazing blessings He shows me’, I did not expect God will shower me with gifts of the Holy Spirit: healing, faith, prophecy, discernment of spirits, and also the gift of wisdom and knowledge. 

I felt very confused and challenged as never experienced these before. I was born in non-religious country, well educated at the best Universities at China, UK and USA, and have been working in Science and Engineering Academy for over ten years. I am very good at logic and analysis but do not really understand what these mysterious things are. I felt irrational and implausible to hear voices and see visions. I felt even more struggling to tell others about these experiences that I do not understand, as I felt ‘stupid’ and would get myself humiliated if they rejected or laughed at me. 

I hesitated and shook my head for a couple of days. I tried to put things in logic but failed, until God reminded me of my initial prayers while preparing for this trip. I prayed that I wanted to be ‘obedient’ to do his work, and then God gave me a message to pass, but I shut my mouth. God offered me His gifts so I could be equipped to do His work but I rejected most of them. Then God brought back my old memories of ‘receiving gift’: a brother taught in bible study group that ‘God loves us so much and He has lots of great gifts and wants to bless us, do you want them?’ I laughed inside and thought: ‘who does not like good gifts, give me all!’  And then here, I was scared and rejecting His gifts.

I suddenly realised how stubborn I was, and how stupid I was to believe in my own logic above God’s almighty power. I repented to God and offered my heart obediently to believe and accept. After emptying my logic thoughts, I make space to let God in and see How He works. This is so great and wonderful, and my heart is full of content, peace and joy! 

God has a unique plan for each of us, and your experience with God might be very different with mine. But sisters and brothers, when the moment you hear God calls, walk in obedience, even it means denying yourselves. Then you could be blessed and follow our God Lord to an amazing journey beyond best imagination, as He has promised: 

‘Walk in obedience to all that the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land that you will possess.’ Deuteronomy 5:33

‘…Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.’ Romans 12:2

Yang

Today is Sunday, the last day of the trip. The night before had been one filled with great celebration, songs, food and lots of gifts, which was followed by a fierce cake fight with lots of laughter. This morning, everyone has a little bit of a lie in.  The only lie in of the week as there is no children’s devotion on Sunday. The team had done so well this week, which I am truly grateful for. The week here serving with the local ministry had opened up our eyes to see the beauty of the body of Christ, and how when each part plays their role, the kingdom is demonstrated and advanced. We do have many differences: background, nationalities, level of education, wealth differences, experience in ministry, levels of openness to serve a higher purpose. However despite that, I am truly convinced that this week of serving together has encouraged, challenged and sharpened everyone in the team as well as the team from the Philippines. As cliché as it sounds, our lives truly will never be the same again. 

I slowly rise  from my bed with a thankful and slightly heavy heart, knowing that it will be a while till I’ll be back again. I drag my half-awaken body to the balcony to take in the beautiful view of the village and the river running in front of it one last time. The air is filled with mist, and the temperature is cool. The morning chill is refreshing to the skin. The river has risen higher than usual as it is high tide, which means that the water is clear and the debris that usually floats along the river has all washed away. 

As I glanced through the river, I see a boat ready to leave the shores of San Isidro (our base). After a few seconds, I realise it is Clarie (my favourite worship leader), Margie (one of the youth leaders which I have served with closely) and a group of others from the orphanage that looked like they are leaving. I’m a little confused as they have not said their goodbyes, knowing that it is our last few hours before leaving. I rush down to them quickly. 

Upon joining them at the shore, I’m told that they need to leave soon as they are going to the churches of River of Life Mission (ROLM) across the region to start the respective Sunday services. 8:00am at Arogana, 9:00am at Libertad, and 10:00am at Dolores. A moment of realisation hits me as I say my goodbyes and give them the tightest hugs. The lovely people of the orphanage and the ministry here do not just do outreaches and preach the good news to the people around them when missionaries come join them once or twice a year. They aren’t reaching out to the lost every month or bi-weekly when there is an evangelism programme organised by a pastor. They don’t just sing praises and proclaim the good news of Jesus every Sunday service and then return back to what we deemed “normal” life that the gospel can sometimes feel so exclusive for certain days, events or season. 

The people whom we have served with over the past 7 days all across the region, as tired as they are physically and as much reason as they can get to have a rest day over a really powerful and fruitful week, carry on with their service to the people and to God each and every day. The team here at River of Life Mission, from the youngest to the oldest have really laid their lives as true missionaries that share the good news every day of their lives, running church services, leading songs, loving on the prisoners, teaching and serving the orphans, and reaching out to the surrounding villages every day of their lives. Every day. The sheer fact that our team is leaving today after serving in this region for 7 days straight contrasted much to their continuous “carrying of the cross”, onward and forward. 

Their obedience, persistence, and laid-down lives for the gospel are a living lesson being unfolded right before me. Despite their youth, and what some may deemed lack of future in this corner of the world, they live with such resounding purpose that had really shaken me. The image of Clarie, Margie and the group leaving on the boat on Sunday morning before our team have even fully awaken has stuck so clearly in my mind. 

Then he said to them all: "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it…” Luke 9:23 -24

I thank my brothers and sisters here, that have shown me what taking up their cross daily looked like. Truly we serve the Lord not just in our free time, in our convenient times, in times of passion and in times when we feel like it. We are but to serve Him all the time, to continue to pick up our cross every day, to challenge others to do so as well, because He is our Lord all the time, He loves us all the time, and He is our Saviour all the time.