Since being pregnant with our son Josiah I've been having to stay away from the dump site a bit more because of the risk factors involved. It has taken quite a bit of adjusting as Ron continues to be there most days while I have more time at home.I miss him and I miss the children. Don't get me wrong, there is still plenty of work to be done, but the admin side is just not as fulfilling as being on the field and working side by side with my husband. I know in my heart it's important as well and I'm learning that the behind the scenes work is of value too.A few years ago I would have really super struggled with having so much downtime and not being hands on everyday.I thrived on always being busy,achieving, always doing.I actually used to feel quite guilty unless I was working. I think it's to do with identity somehow. At times my identity used to be wrapped up in what I could accomplish instead of who I am in Christ.
Now I can honestly say I love having more uninterrupted time to just be with the Lord. I love having more time to spend dwelling in the secret place with Him. Over the years the Lord has pressed upon my heart more and more the importance of dwelling before doing.
In mission work its so easy to slip into a mindset where we justify constantly doing- always being busy. There are always needs. There are always hurting people to help or hungry children to feed or some other thing that we just have to do. It would be easy to go months without a single day off or time away from ministry.We used to do this and it's not wise- you burn out fast.
We can try and justify that being busy all the time is okay because after all its all for God right?? But I personally have learned there needs to be balance. God wants us to love Him first and then love and serve others. Anyway, I cant give love away without first being filled up with Gods love and I need a re-filling everyday.
The truth is God wants ME. Continual relationship. Ceaseless intimacy. Constant abiding.He wants me before He wants the things that I do for Him. Being with God- pursuing His heart is above all- above all the work and busyness- Just dwelling with Him, leaning close to hear His heart is more precious and more vital than any other thing. It's the first thing. Only then will I be sufficiently equip to serve others.
Jesus is pursuing you. Seeking you. Desiring you. Loving you. Running after you. Singing and dancing over you. Totally passionate about you.
He wants you before He wants what you do.
The secret?
The secret is the secret place.
Working for God is second to being with God.
It's just you and me Lord
I shut the door- I enter in
Here to love and to be loved
In the secret place
"When you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut the door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place..." Matthew 6:24
April 18, 2011
April 9, 2011
Speak Life
Say that again -where did you say you were based? Did you say Tondo??!!
Tondo!! That's where all the murderers live!
Tondo is where all the bad people are!
Tondo is where the gangs hide out
Tondo is the most dangerous place in Manila
Tondo is dirty and people are all poor
There are many criminals there
Tondo people are the outcasts of the nation
If we go there we might get killed
Above are just a few of the things said to us on a regular basis when people find out we work in Tondo. The comments usually come from Filipinos. People from all walks of life have made really negative comments to us about Tondo from doctors to pedicab drivers. When our car breaks down we always dread getting a taxi to try and take us. They just won't go there. One morning 6 taxi drivers in a row threw us out and absolutely refused to take us!
There is a certain fear that comes with hearing the word Tondo. For decades it's been know for all of the above things. I was hopeful that if I entered "Tondo" on the Internet the description would be a bit brighter. Sadly not. Almost all the pictures and info that are presented are depressing.Here is what the encyclopedia has to say about it;
"One of the most densely populated areas of land in the world.Tondo is notorious for being the poorest yet most underdeveloped district of the country. Many of the city's slums are found in this area"
Doesn't exactly paint a pretty picture.
Some of the negative things said are true. There are murderers and gangs that hide out there. It defiantly can be a really dangerous place to be. We have seen and heard horrendous things happen. It's a place with extreme poverty.....
BUT the following are also facts about Tondo....
There are many hard working families in Tondo
There are young people striving with everything in them to graduate from school
There are children and teenagers there who are really talented and creative
There are community leaders who are trying their best to make things better
There are children, youth and adults who love Jesus with all their hearts
There are people who rise above their difficult circumstances to bring true worship
There is youth that have become leaders and amazing role models to the children
There are women who pour out compassion to those in their own community
There is a generation rising up who believe things can be and will be better
Some of the most beautiful people I have ever met live there.
There is HOPE in Tondo
I wonder what would happen if the nation of the Philippines began speaking life over Tondo instead of death? I wonder if part of the reason that Tondo has remained one of the most feared places in the Philippines is because people have declared it to be that way? I wonder what would happen if the nation began speaking out how Tondo could be?
A long time ago people made really negative comments about another place. They were so sceptical that anything or anyone good could ever come from such a despised town;
"Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" John 1:46
How wrong were those people!! Jesus came from such a town and changed the world forever!
So I ask-can anything good come from Tondo?
Without a doubt... YES!
Let's start speaking about the changes that are happening, no matter how small we may think they are. Let Tondo no longer be called outcast but instead a place where the light will shine.
Let's believe that the generation that's rising up will do amazing things in the country and beyond. Let's believe that the sparks of change that have already happened will burst into a blazing fire and that with Gods help greater things are yet to come- greater things are still to be done in this city.
Tondo!! That's where all the murderers live!
Tondo is where all the bad people are!
Tondo is where the gangs hide out
Tondo is the most dangerous place in Manila
Tondo is dirty and people are all poor
There are many criminals there
Tondo people are the outcasts of the nation
If we go there we might get killed
Above are just a few of the things said to us on a regular basis when people find out we work in Tondo. The comments usually come from Filipinos. People from all walks of life have made really negative comments to us about Tondo from doctors to pedicab drivers. When our car breaks down we always dread getting a taxi to try and take us. They just won't go there. One morning 6 taxi drivers in a row threw us out and absolutely refused to take us!
There is a certain fear that comes with hearing the word Tondo. For decades it's been know for all of the above things. I was hopeful that if I entered "Tondo" on the Internet the description would be a bit brighter. Sadly not. Almost all the pictures and info that are presented are depressing.Here is what the encyclopedia has to say about it;
"One of the most densely populated areas of land in the world.Tondo is notorious for being the poorest yet most underdeveloped district of the country. Many of the city's slums are found in this area"
Doesn't exactly paint a pretty picture.
Some of the negative things said are true. There are murderers and gangs that hide out there. It defiantly can be a really dangerous place to be. We have seen and heard horrendous things happen. It's a place with extreme poverty.....
BUT the following are also facts about Tondo....
There are many hard working families in Tondo
There are young people striving with everything in them to graduate from school
There are children and teenagers there who are really talented and creative
There are community leaders who are trying their best to make things better
There are children, youth and adults who love Jesus with all their hearts
There are people who rise above their difficult circumstances to bring true worship
There is youth that have become leaders and amazing role models to the children
There are women who pour out compassion to those in their own community
There is a generation rising up who believe things can be and will be better
Some of the most beautiful people I have ever met live there.
There is HOPE in Tondo
I wonder what would happen if the nation of the Philippines began speaking life over Tondo instead of death? I wonder if part of the reason that Tondo has remained one of the most feared places in the Philippines is because people have declared it to be that way? I wonder what would happen if the nation began speaking out how Tondo could be?
A long time ago people made really negative comments about another place. They were so sceptical that anything or anyone good could ever come from such a despised town;
"Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" John 1:46
How wrong were those people!! Jesus came from such a town and changed the world forever!
So I ask-can anything good come from Tondo?
Without a doubt... YES!
Let's start speaking about the changes that are happening, no matter how small we may think they are. Let Tondo no longer be called outcast but instead a place where the light will shine.
Let's believe that the generation that's rising up will do amazing things in the country and beyond. Let's believe that the sparks of change that have already happened will burst into a blazing fire and that with Gods help greater things are yet to come- greater things are still to be done in this city.
Manila. Philippines. Let's speak life over Tondo!
April 6, 2011
A sigh and a song
With this work comes much joy and at times much sorrow. This week we have been working with 3 sisters who have suffered terribly severe abuse. The burden I already carried in my heart for them has just increased and feels like a led weight. I was watching their behaviour this week and wept. I tried to explain to someone that i believe God gives us these tears to carry for the children sometimes.Jesus feels. He feels their hurts and allows us to feel too so that we are moved to compassion and compelled to move.
These girls are only 9 ,7 and 3 and have had to endure starvation as their father squanders money on drugs. Their young hearts have been forced to break and re-break as they watch their mother get beaten and told it's their fault -the very child in her womb fighting daily for survival. A younger sibling already died at the cruel hand of neglect.Her sisters watched as she was poisoned,their emotions pressed down as they grieved in silence. These 3 precious girls have been subjected to horrors upon horrors at all levels of abuse. I would not begin to share them here.
I'm so thankful for HOPE. That Jesus can take a broken life and make it something beautiful. He really can. He's the only one who really can.
The girls are under the care of our team 24 hours a day now and living with our staff.
Pray for them. Pray for us as we help them.
If you are compelled to help in a practical way, we are still in need of sponsors for their food; P100 a day for them -£1.40
If you can help with even part of this it would be a real help at this time.
There are times when all we can do is pray. I was reminded of a song I wrote years ago when I was a student in a school where out of 29 children 22 were being abused in some way. Prayer is precious gift to us - it reaches the heart of the feeling Jesus..
Send them an angel
1
This child is suffering. In his eyes so much hurt
Stories untold and secrets kept deep inside
He looks so lost right now like he has wandered out of reach
But in his heart he's crying out "has everyone given up on teaching me?"
chorus
Send him an angel to guard him in the night
Jesus draw near to him in the morning light
I pray, give him a strength through the day that he does not quite understand
Stay close. Keep him safe in Your hands
2
This child is suffering. She has a beauty that's unseen
To some she's just a no-one and she never will be
But she is precious. She is much deeper than she seems
She asked me this question-"Am I still a princess"
I said yes.
chorus
Send her an angel.....
3.
This child is suffering. Now he carries many scars
To most he's just trouble and he'll never make it far
But under the surface he has so much more to give
He reaches out longing to feel more than pain
His hands are reaching out for just one touch of love again
chorus
Send him an angel....
"Arise cry out in the night, at the beginning of the watches;
Pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord.
Lift up your hands toward Him for the lives of your young children, who faint from hunger at the head of every street"
(Lamentations 2:19)
Red flag
Last year we were blessed to have a special team come to do short term mission with us. They are going round 11 countries in 11 months! They were a great help are still very much on our hearts and the hearts of our children here. Now and again I check up on their blogs to see how best to pray for them. They are currently in Uganda.
3 of the girls Amy, Kelsie and Samara posted blogs about their time in Uganda so far. They are right in the heat of a battle! A raging war that is leaving young people tormented.
They have been visiting a boarding school where the principle is deeply involved in the occult, even forcing the students to offer animal sacrifices. I know some reading this may think that's it's a load of old nonsense. Come on- demon possession is just in the movies right?
How subtlety the enemy has blinded the eyes of people to think there is no such thing. There is a very real battle going and it's not of flesh and blood, but in the spirit world.
Here is a little from one of Kelsies blogs;
Okay Joanna, so some crazy American girls told you about witnessing demon possession in Africa you say..
Sadly it's very real here in the Philippines too. Although the country is predominately catholic, many of those who come from the provinces bring witchcraft and occults practices. Even in the poorest areas like the dump site and cemetery, occult rituals are frequently carried out. There are so called "faith healers" and white witches living in both communities. I remember we were shocked to find out that almost every one of our youth had visited them in the past- almost everyone! The enemy has cleverly disguised it as being "just part of the culture". Well I know this- It's not kingdom culture! Praise God once the young people know the light of the world Jesus they can begin to walk in the light.
We have experienced more than once a young girl collapsing to the ground, cowering in a ball being tormented by demons. For an extended time she kept hitting her head off the ground until she bled. But JESUS is the Great Conqueror! The team laid hands on her and we all prayed ordering the demonic spirit to GO in the name of Jesus. We declared peace of mind in Jesus name. It's a beautiful thing to see a once contorted face overcome with peace and love.
"For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places" Ephesians 6:12
No wonder we are instructed to put on the armor of God! Never forget you are in a constant battle - don't let the enemy fool you!
Be encouraged....
We are not on the side that's winning....
We are on the side that's WON (Pastor Jack Glass)
3 of the girls Amy, Kelsie and Samara posted blogs about their time in Uganda so far. They are right in the heat of a battle! A raging war that is leaving young people tormented.
They have been visiting a boarding school where the principle is deeply involved in the occult, even forcing the students to offer animal sacrifices. I know some reading this may think that's it's a load of old nonsense. Come on- demon possession is just in the movies right?
How subtlety the enemy has blinded the eyes of people to think there is no such thing. There is a very real battle going and it's not of flesh and blood, but in the spirit world.
Here is a little from one of Kelsies blogs;
When we got there we entered a high school that was being affected by witchcraft from the highest levels of authority at the school. They were making sacrifices ultimately to Satan in hopes of progress and elevation in their school. They had cast spells on cats that roamed the grounds making the cats lives tied to the childrens'. So if a cat gets hurt, so does a child. If a cat dies, so does a child. Just the night before we came they had called in witch doctors who made the students participate in animal sacrifices and all the rituals associated with them. If they refused, they were caned. They targeted the non-Christians because they knew they would be the easiest to consume. Ceremonies like that one open the doors wide for demons to come in and take possession of the students and specifically for us, young girls.
When we got to meet the girls, there were at least five who were still possessed. So we immediately started praying. I have experienced demons before and seen them manifest but this was different. There were so many. At the name of Jesus, the girls' bodies started to thrash as the demons manifested. They were getting scared. The girls' eyes would clamp shut and they would hide their faces, because demons know they cannot stand before the living God. Some of the girls took longer than others and some demons put on a bigger show but all were released and freed from the stupid, evil grips of the devil. It was amazing watching the immediate change in their countenances as soon as the demons left. They sat right up, looked all of us in the eyes and were able to start eating and drinking. They were freed. Smiles returned to faces and tears fell. Lifeless hands we'd been holding returned a grip. It was beautiful.
These attacks are real and we need to be ready! I shared with the girls a mental picture inspired by my Pastor....
Imagine holding a red flag.
Red is a symbol of a warning - the warning sign of the blood of Jesus Christ. Satan cannot stand being reminded of the blood of Jesus if proclaimed in authority. He and his demons fear and tremble at the very mention of it... and at the mention of the name of JESUS.
If you are a child of God you have been given the authority to trample Satan. God Himself crushes Satan underfoot.
I love to imagine waving that red flag... the demons scream and run! That red flag reminds our old enemy that he was and IS defeated! One proclamation of the blood of my Jesus and he quivers and shakes!
Red is a symbol of a warning - the warning sign of the blood of Jesus Christ. Satan cannot stand being reminded of the blood of Jesus if proclaimed in authority. He and his demons fear and tremble at the very mention of it... and at the mention of the name of JESUS.
If you are a child of God you have been given the authority to trample Satan. God Himself crushes Satan underfoot.
I love to imagine waving that red flag... the demons scream and run! That red flag reminds our old enemy that he was and IS defeated! One proclamation of the blood of my Jesus and he quivers and shakes!
Greater is HE who is in you than he who is in the world" 1 John 4:4
Okay Joanna, so some crazy American girls told you about witnessing demon possession in Africa you say..
Sadly it's very real here in the Philippines too. Although the country is predominately catholic, many of those who come from the provinces bring witchcraft and occults practices. Even in the poorest areas like the dump site and cemetery, occult rituals are frequently carried out. There are so called "faith healers" and white witches living in both communities. I remember we were shocked to find out that almost every one of our youth had visited them in the past- almost everyone! The enemy has cleverly disguised it as being "just part of the culture". Well I know this- It's not kingdom culture! Praise God once the young people know the light of the world Jesus they can begin to walk in the light.
We have experienced more than once a young girl collapsing to the ground, cowering in a ball being tormented by demons. For an extended time she kept hitting her head off the ground until she bled. But JESUS is the Great Conqueror! The team laid hands on her and we all prayed ordering the demonic spirit to GO in the name of Jesus. We declared peace of mind in Jesus name. It's a beautiful thing to see a once contorted face overcome with peace and love.
"For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places" Ephesians 6:12
Be encouraged....
We are not on the side that's winning....
We are on the side that's WON (Pastor Jack Glass)
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