It's not the place, it's the people

"It's not the place, it's the people" - this is a term used by my good friend who runs a wonderful place that fills hundreds of peoples lives with music. The phrase came back to me on Sunday in Tondo and I found myself nodding in agreement in the middle of what some would describe as a peculiar scene!

Piping hot atmosphere, children, teens and adults filling the rooms.... and no electric! No fans, no lights, no sound system. It wasn't really a big deal, but just quite funny to be part of. A  Pastor trying to preach while his power point came on and off along with an unreliable mic. A member handing out ripped up pieces of card board for the congregation to fan themselves with. Children becoming extremely hot in classrooms and as a result the behaviour was shall we say interesting! :) Cooks trying to cook and repair a generator that was noisy and kept running out of gas! Not your typical church gathering!

But, it was such a blessed day! People led into praise their Savior by one of the youth bands. The heart of worship was so present. Kids church teachers and volunteers under the age of 17 leading classes of children.Ladies preparing to serve through the feeding ministry. Hearts touched. Lives being changed in Jesus name. A group of people coming with willing hearts to minister to their God and serve others.

There were a group of children and parents from another area further away from the main dump we are based at who gave all they had just to be there. The vehicle we borrow to transport them could not be used. They sacrificed the little they had to afford public transport to get to church.

Beautiful.    

    

Sometimes it's important not to look past the small things. The gems that come from watching people with loving hearts serve others. The blessing of being part of one big family.  When Gods children gather, it's more than a "church service". It's royalty meeting to worship their Abba daddy, the King of Kings.

Yep, the people are dressed in what some would call rags. Yep, we are based on a dump site in a building that is falling to bits. But you know it's Gods princes and princesses meeting together.... and that's special.

It's SO not the place.... it's the people :)


"He raises the poor out of the dust, and lifts the needy out of the ash heap, that He may seat him with princes- with the princes of His people" Psalm 113:7

(this is one of the verses we got right at the start when we started working with the people on the dump site community... love it... love it.... love it!! :)

What is it about the M word?!

What is it about the "missionary" word?

Well for me a picture of a missionary used to look something like this....

A little lady, with her white hair pulled back neatly in a bun. She loves children, is soft spoken and sleeps in a hut in some far away land, perhaps Africa.

Oh my goodness - how wrong was I?!!!

It turns our the M word basically means " an act of sending" or "to send"... So that means a missionary is someone who is sent to serve in a different country than their own right?
WRONG!

Jesus said " ...as the Father has sent Me, I also send you" (John 20:21)

and

" .. . the harvest is truly great,but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into the harvest. Go your way, behold I send you out...." (Luke:2-3)

Wow -so if we know Jesus as our saviour we have already been sent!

The truth is every christian is called to be a missionary. Just because some are burdened to serve in a foreign country (for a time or forever) does not make them less or more important. We are told to "GO and make disciples of all nations" (disciple- follower of Jesus)

So if you faithfully GO into your little office and tell and show the good news, you are being obedient to this great commission right? 
RIGHT because the christian life is all about living on a mission. For some it means leaving everything. For some it means staying right where they are already.

Sometimes missionary jargon makes people a bit uncomfortable.. it's just something about the term. Honestly I used to cringe when people asked " so what do you do?"
"I'm a m-mm-miss...volunteer!"
 The reality is from the moment I came to know the Lord I was told to GO... from that instant I was SENT OUT...  and SO WERE YOU!

Just in case you were like me and missed the point for a while.....
Do you know Jesus? Are you a lover of God  and the people He created?  Can you share the good news?
Then YOU ARE A MISSIONARY :)

My sister reminded me of a song today called "people need the Lord" Do they need Him living on a poverty stricken rubbish dump? Do they need Him living in a mansion? Do they need Him working in a factory, school, office or ____________ (fill in the blank)??
YES! YES! YES!!

There are hurting people everywhere. There are people who need the hope of our God everywhere. There are people who think they have it altogether and have a gaping hole in their heart everywhere.

As for what the actual mission can look like..... I think that's a whole other blog :)

Newly born

"Bagong Silang" translated is newly born.  What comes into your mind when you think of a new born? Joy.... life.... celebration....that sweet smell of a baby's head!

This precious little new born is named Angel Mae.


She was born and lives in a graveyard.

The name newly born  is also the name of a  cemetery. It's the name of a place where around 1000 families live . Their make shift houses are built on top of tombs or on unstable bamboo planks above the trash filled sea.

I will never forget the fist time we went there in 2008. To this day the images  are engraved in my memory. As we drove over the muddy road through the gates, towered on each side above the ground were tombs packed one on top of the other.  It was then I saw one of the most heartbreaking pictures of my life. To my right  a skinny 3 year old girl sitting in between open tombs, surrounded by bones playing with a dead rat. 

 I could not and still cannot believe this is her reality.

To be honest it would be easy to become hopeless walking around Navotas Cemetery. There are layers upon layers of issues.At the same time there is a real sense of community and somehow it helps combat the feelings of despair that could creep in.
(click on the link below to watch a short video about Navotas)

http://www.vimeo.com/17426942

There is a beacon of hope there. A church lead  by the most joyful man I have ever met -Pastor Dodong. He is a faithful man who loves the Lord and loves people. His beautiful wife Virgie is an intercessor full of integrity. Each one of their 6 children are special and full of compassion.


They bring joy to a community that is full of death,love to people who feel unlovely and hope to families that have nothing to live for.

They could have moved to a better place. Even after their little son  died by falling through the shaky bamboo slats into the sea - they chose to stay and reach out to the people there

Sacrificial love.



Last week the local police warned them and the residents of community that the owners of the land are planning to burn down the houses.

The reason?

• They have decided they want the land back and as far as I understand, by law they are not allowed to just demolish homes. However there is nothing to stop an "accidental fire".

Maybe its just an empty threat?

• Last year a close by area in Navotas was burned down leaving people with nothing but the clothes on their back. This very day in fact we found out that the land owners started demolishing the area.

Now I have heard people say more than once over the last few years that its really the fault of the poor that they have nothing because they came to Manila when they had a home in the province. To say  I feel angry at this comment is a bit of an understatement....

So you are telling me these thousands of people who are squatting on open dump sites and cemetery's have chosen to be there? You are saying they have left the comforts of their beautiful provinces to steal land to build shacks made of plastic bags, wood scraps and chicken wire because they wanted to? Would you want to live amongst the putrid smells of human waste and rotting bodies? Neither do they.

Its true most of the people in these communities have come from the province. Most of their story's go something  like this......

 They left the province because there was no work and their children were starving. They desired to give their families a better life so they came to  Manila to find work. When they arrived they discovered the harsh reality that there were no jobs and so were stuck unable to afford the travel expenses back to their home. They did not want to beg so they moved to the dump site and cemetery and began trying to find ways to survive. Some pick trash- some clean graves - they work and earn what they can.

 

These families work hard. Every volunteer we have had come out here will testify to that. Yes earning penny's - but trying hard to provide for their families.  You know what? They are still welcoming. They would still push past their problems to bring you a smile.

Those who pray-please pray for the families in Navotas Cemetery. Pray that God would convict the hearts of the men who are plotting to turn this community to ashes.  Those who live in the cemetery and know Jesus as their saviour are just seeking Him and trusting Him at this time. Pray for those who are living in fear and uncertainty of whether they will have a home or not. Pray for our team who are working in the youth and kids ministry that they could help bring peace to fearful hearts.

Pray that this community would truly be newly born.... born again in Jesus Christ.