Bits 'n' Bobs

Ah, back again! What a great night - we had 40 Cell Group Leaders/assistants tonight being trained by Maureen and Sabrina from Cornerstone Singapore. We enjoyed it so much. It was brilliant for me to be one of the congregation and not the trainer. I could get used to it! The ladies had really prepared well ... notes for all the group, ice-breakers, interaction etc. We have around 16 cell groups in Santiago, but we need to go to the next level of multiplication. Anyway, I won't bore you with that now .. but if anyone is interested in cell groups (as opposed to Bible Studies, Focus Groups etc.) I can spend time with you when I get home.

Here is some 'catch-up news' from the Sefton Grapevine:

* Pastor Abe - had a tough weekend. Went to the Oncologist on Friday but the Doctor took all his information from the tests done in Manila. Abe was sure he was touched by the Lord and we should have taken new tests. Before he went to the Doctor he was eating lots of fruit with me and was off the IV drip. He was much happier and getting stronger. His spirit was positive.

I never saw him again until Sunday night because we had a busy weekend. But I was shocked,. His face was very drawn and he had lost weight. Gemma told me he was given these tablets that were 'better than chemo and no side effects'' and Abe had taken them for 2 days already. He had been constantly sick, had lost weight and was dehydrating. Abe said that he wanted to come off the tablets and just get back to where he was... trusting the Lord for a miracle. But he was discouraged.

Over the last couple of days he ha improved physically, emotionally and spiritually. He feels much better and is beginning to eat again. Please continue to pray for Abe that the Lord will continue to heal him day by day. We come home a week on Monday and I don't know how I am going to be able to leave him, as I feel he is leaning on me at this time. Please ask the Lord to give me grace, courage and wisdom.

* Weekend - We had an excellent weekend. Most of my time was taken up shooting the video for our DVD that we will show around the churches. I took all the Children's Home, School, Bible School, Jail ministry, feeding Programme, church etc. It is really time consuming but once it is done it will be worth it! I am working on the script now and will send it all away by Fed-Ex tomorrow.

We had a great couple of services on Sunday. Pastor Danny spoke in the 8am Tagalog service about 'Running the Race' and Maureen and Sabrina spoke in the English Service. They were excellent. In both services, many came forward for prayer. I was really blessed by one of our youth called Jonas (15) - he stood up and invited his whole class to church and 12 came to the service!

In the afternoon I went to our Church Plant in Nagassican. What a great time we had. There were about 45 adults and 25 children there and the young people led the worship. Many responded and gave their lives to Christ. So raw and refreshing!

* World Cup - Really enjoyed watching around 3.65 games over the weekend! I got this unusual figure because the kick offs are at 11pm and 3am local time here. Killer! I started to watch nearly all the 11pm games, but only got through the England one! How can England play so bad and still get through? Anyway. Last night I watched my team Ghana do really well against the mighty Brazil.. They played brilliant football but just could not score.. Shame. But it was good to watch a team outplay the Brazilians at their own game.

* Our car - Tonight, I sold our car. Well, it's more like a van actually! We have had it for tow years and it has been the best car we have ever had. We have driven 43k km .. most of which have been on the road to Manila picking up or dropping off visitors! It has been a great workhorse for Sefton Village and we had hoped to keep it for a few more years. But for various reasons, we decided to sell it. Some things are more priority right now. I drove it for the last time to church tonight and was a bit sad. It's a man's thing ladies!

Funny thing was that I met the new owner outside the church while the Cell Training was going on. We met inside my car and we signed all the documents and they gave me the money. The guy then said, "Can you pray for this car Pastor? Can you dedicate it right now?" So there I was, laying hands on the car and then laying hands on the couple who bought it. Right in front of all the tricycle drivers, security guards and dogs. Only in the Philippines. I had to hitch a ride home!

* Preperation for Home - Over the last couple of weeks, we have been so busy getting things organised - both here and at home. Mary has been working like atrojan since school opened and has had to change ebrey document in school because of teh new teaching session. She is also training maureen of how the school operates etc. I have a million things on my 'TO Do' list, but also seem to have a never ending stream of people at my front door! At home, all our families are working hard in various ways to help us when we get home. We are very grateful.

Below is a photo of our 'wee hoosie' in Shore Street, Fraserburgh (not sure which one it is). This will be our home for 6 months and we are so excited about having a base in Scotland. Will let you know address when we have it.




My eyes are rolling and my fingers going slower and slower. Hopefully, my internet is fixed for a while so that I will be able to get out more blogs. Until then ... goodnight!

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..............

Back ... but Frustrated!

AAAaagggh! We have been phone-less and broadband-less since early Saturday morning! Frustrating is not the word! Never mind, we're back in business now.

I am just going out to Cell Group Training, but here is a wee cartoon for you to look at until I return.

Just wait a while ... just like this guy below ...

Family

Well, after yesterday's epic, I thought I would do a short and sweet blog today! A few minutes ago I got an MSN invitation to join my brother David on a video call. Isn't technology amazing? I remember being in Ghana in 1994 and having to walk around 3 miles just to try and call someone! Anyway, we ended up talking to my mum and dad, David, Elizabeth etc. It was so great to hear and see them all.

I have been thinking a lot about family this week. I am so blessed. Amazingly blessed. My mum and dad have loved me and encouraged me since the day I told them I was going to Bible School (and well before that actually!!). They are completely behind all their boys and, even though we often make funny jokes about them, we really love and respect them both so much.

My brothers, Paul and David, both love the Lord and are serving Him full time. They are great at all practical things as well - they are the DIY experts. Me, I'm just happy the Lord gave me the lions share of good looks, humour and personality .. all mixed up with a great deal of humility!! Ha Ha

'Ma brithers' are married to two great ladies (I was going to write 'wifies' there, but they would kill me!) called Ashley and Elizabeth. They both love the Lord and serve him in their local church. And my nephews and niece ... well the are the best! Nathan is the eldest and is very grown up. I hear he is very smart and very gwapo (handsome in Filipino). He obviously takes after his uncle Mark! One of my favorite things I am going to do when I am home is taking Nathan to see Aberdeen play. Aaron will have changed so much since we last saw him and I hear that he loves sweeties, cakes and anything that the dentist says is not good. He is a lovely wee man and I can't wait to see his cheeky smile again!

We were so blessed to have David's kids here for 3 months at Sefton. Bethany is beautiful and was always out playing ... especially with water! Bethany and Lydia were so funny together - we used to call them Paris and Nicole. If you know who they are, you're up to date with Hollywood, if you don't then don't worry, you're not missing anything! Wee Daniel was the happiest, cutest and most content baby we have ever met. He loved to sleep, get cuddles, eat, crawl around and then sleep ... before the cycle started all over again!

Doesn't stop there! My uncles and aunties are all Christians and they are such a blessing and support to us here. I have noticed over the past few weeks that many of them have been putting 'comments' into this blog ... my goodness, I didn't know half of them had a computer!! Just shows eh? These 'older' folks may say that they can't even work a calculator .. but secretly they are tecky-web surfin' - Gig crunchin' whizz kids! Don't be fooled!

I am also very close to all my cousins and love it when we meet up for our family reunions! What a laugh! Cousin George never loves to lose .. even when playing 10 year old girls at table tennis! My cousin Andrew Jack is the funniest guy with the straightest face you will ever meet. My 'Peterheed' cousins are the nicest folk you could ever want to call 'family' and when we meet up it is as if we had never been apart.

And then there is Mary's side of the family ... they also are such a blessing to us. David Flett is a constant source of encouragement. Before we came to the Philippines he bought his first computer. I remember writing down 'How to Save'... step by step. Now? He is a hundred times further on than me. If I have a problem I go to him!! Another one of these quiet tecky-whizz kids disguising themselves as Grandas. MMmmm. And Wilma Flett - who could ask for a better mother in law. I mean, all these jokes I hear about MIL's are just not true in my case. When we go to Wick she cooks lovely meals for us, does jigsaw puzzles with us, plays with the kids ... and EVEN watches the football with me and David. Can a man ask for a better mother in law?

Mary has a brother called Bruce - a topper of a guy. Like me, loves gadgets. Loves cars, music, PA Systems, motorbikes and Aberdeen Football Club (well you can't have it all good!) He is really helping us to prepare for coming home. He found a car for us to buy and we are so grateful. He is married to a lovely lady called Alison. She is so gentle and caring ... God knew what Bruce needed! They both came to visit us last Christmas and we had a great time. Can't wait to see them again.

I think that's it. Why am I writing this? Well. last week, I really felt that Abe needed a boost. Abe was orphaned at a young age and did not know a father's love. When my dad came out in 2001, Abe and him became very close. Abe said to my dad before he left, "Is it ok for you if I call you dad?" My dad said, "No problem Abe." Last Tuesday I passed the cell phone to Abe and I heard him say, " Hello dad .. so good to hear from you again.How's mum?"

I tried to imagine what it would be like to live with no father or mother; what it would be like to have no father's advice or no mother's unconditional love. What would it be like to have no close family around you ... no brothers to banter with or sisters to tease. Uncles and Aunties that hardly knew you and cousins you only met at weddings and funerals.

Out of everything, being far away from our families is the greatest cost and sacrifice we are having to pay. Sometimes you have to bite out lips and move on. But at least .. we have family. At least we will be with them soon. And we are so grateful. We cannot wait. We are blessed.

How about you? How about your family? Treasure them. Cherish them. Contact them. Love them. Because days may come when you wish you could.

So much for short'n'sweet!

The Tide is Turning ...

This is a longer Blog than usual. I don't apologise because I don't want to miss anything out. If you read it to the end, you WILL be blessed!

This time last week I was in a Manila hospital with a very gravely ill friend and co-worker, Pastor Abe. He could hardly move and was in great pain due to major surgery he had one week before. The Doctors had given us their opinion - "No hope .. Nothing we can do medically ... 4th stage of cancer ...only supportive care."

Our family were only four weeks away from coming home to UK and our plans and preparations were hardly off the ground. I remember crying out to God and saying,"Lord, why? Why are all these things happening? Why now? It does not make sense. Pastor abe has not been sick for a day of his life and now, out of nowhere, a death sentence is upon him. In his prime, with two lovely kids. Why? For what reason?"

Good thing is, you can be truthful with God (even pastors!). He is well aware of our suffering and questions; He knows pain and he knows the reasons why. He sees the big picture, and where we don't understand, He does. Where we can't work things out, He can. Where we don't know what will happen tomorrow ... He's already there. But sometimes - it is hard to trust and believe. Especially when you cannot see the way ahead

That is how I felt 7 days ago. I had left Sefton Village on the busiest week of the year. I thought I would be there for a couple of days, but knew in my heart it would take longer. Financially we were shot, and we were beginning to eat into the money set aside for airfares home. Gulp! Believe it or not, this poverty stricken Island of the Philippines has the most expensive medicine in the world. Hundreds of pounds slip through your fingers in a few days! But your friend is dying and needs it! What can you do?

What did we do? To be honest, we were struggling. But, aren't you glad that God doesn't want us to dwell in the land of discouragement?

I waited patiently for the LORD to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along. Psalm 40:1-2 (NLT)

We turned to the Lord. A couple of significant things happened that changed our hearts and our outlook. There is a lovely man from an AoG church in Prestwick who was told a very similar report by a doctor in Scotland. His cancer levels were unbelievably high and he was given a certain time to live. He was devastated but began to believe God for a miracle. A sudden miracle never came, but God challenged him to live in the Word of God & in God's blessing every day.

Bernard began to memorise the Word of God. He began to confess the Word of God and declare them by faith. After 6 months, his level of cancer had gone down to normal levels. He began to memorise and speak out up to 60 verses three times a day ... God's medicine! He sent me a 4-page email to be read to Abe, including all the scriptures. In many instances he had put Abe's name into the verses to make it personal.

Last Thursday, I read out the whole email, including the verses, to Abe while he lay on his bed. I tell you. all in the room felt the incredible anointing of God. At the end of the email, Abe said "Mark, feel my stomach! God is doing something inside me!" His stomach was moving around before our eyes. This gave us hope. We have read that email many times since and it is one of the most powerful words I have ever read.

On Friday, the Specialist gave us the up to date news with the results of Abe's endoscopy. The worst news. It was cancer of the stomach and was very fast moving. Abe would have 6 months to live, although Chemo would prolong life for a few months. When the Doctor told me & Abe this, I will never forget what happened. Abe smiled! It was a smile of faith!

That night he had a dream of two angels coming and taking him away in his wheelchair. He said to the angels, "Where are you taking me?" The angels replied, "We are taking you to the healing room ... don't you want to be healed?"

We came home early Sunday morning. Abe was still in some pain, but his spirit was changed, He was walking by faith. I got a shock phone call at 6:30am on Wednesday ... from Abe's phone. my first thought, "Oh no!" (Man of faith!). But Abe was sounding great! He had has old strong voice back ... not the whisper he had been speaking with the day before! "I am here outside the Bible School. I am here with these lovely students. I have walked right around Sefton Village (with drip attached!) with Gemma and I know I am changed. I have been sitting down for one hour. I woke up this morning and I was thirsty and hungry. I feel strong! God gave me a dream ... come and I will tell it to you."

I went down and he and Pastora Julie were sitting there in the Nipa hut (left) I said, "Wow, is this the new Out-Patient Clinic at Sefton?" Abe told me that during the night he had a dream that he was fighting a huge snake. Finally, Abe grabbed it by the throat and choked it. he threw it away. Then the voice of the Lord said, "The enemy has given up." When he woke up, he was strong. he told me he was going to preach in the chapel service before the week was out! Now that would be a miracle. From bed to pulpit in two days?!

Last night Abe had a text at 3am. The Pastor who lead him to the Lord was woken up by the Lord and was instructed to tell Abe that the Lord had healed him and what he had gone through would prepare him for a greater ministry.

So today, I bring you better news. Of course, medically the news is not good. Tomorrow we go to the Oncologist here in Santiago. But we go in the knowledge that the greatest Doctor and healer of all will give His report on Abe ... and we believe that it is a good one.

Keep praying. Keep believing. Keep trusting. Keep in touch. And no matter how hard and difficult the situation you find yourself in ... Your HOPE IS IN THE NAME OF THE LORD!

Home at Last

Back home ... at last! It was so good to return home after a week away in smoggy Manila! I had such a frustrating day on Saturday - it took us almost 5 hrs to get Pastor Abe discharged from the hospital! Don't ask me why or I will lose today's joy as well! Suffice to say that sometimes trying to get discharged from a hospital here makes you feel like a criminal ... as though you are guilty of something. The cartoon (left)is how I feel right now!!!

We travelled during the night and arrived at 6:30am. I tip-toed into the house, put on the kettle, collapsed into the Sofa and hoped for a 30 min nap! Well, after 2.5 mins two little kids came running through the living room shouting, "Daddy's home, Daddy's home .. weyhay!" The welcome was worth losing sleep over! It was so good to see Mary, who has had a tough week holding everything together whilst I was away. We decided to miss the first Tagalog Cornerstone Service that started at 8am. This reminds me of a funny story I heard once:

Son: "Mum, I'm not going to church this morning" He pulls the duvet over his head.

Mother" You should go. Can you try and go .. pleeeaaase?

Son: Give me 3 valid reasons and I'll think about it.

Mother: One, it is the house of God and you should not forsake meeting together.

Son : Mmmm... not bad.

Mother: Two, God is waiting for your praise.

Son: Mmmm... true.

Mother: Third ... you ARE the Pastor!

That was me on Sunday 8am - Pastor Missameetin Ritchie. But we made the 2nd service arrived just in time for all the dads to recieve a Fathers Day mug from all the ladies in the church ... accompanied by a song - "Thank You for the Cross Lord" (I thought the title of the song was ironic, but kinda funny!) We had a great service and I really enjoyed seeing everyone in the church again.

Today (Monday) has been a day of catching up with everything. There is a pile of stuff on my desk to sort out from last week. I went to visit Abe & then Pastora Julie. You know, it's amazing. Pastor Julie's stomach has shrunk to normal size, she is eating well, walking a lot and her hair is growing back. Pastor Abe doesn't have far to look for inspiration! I'll take photos of Julie so you can see the difference from a few weeks ago.

We had orientation and a welcome party for our new students at the Bible School this afternoon and tonight. We have 25 new 1st Year students and around 10 have stayed on for 2nd year. Praise God .. in all the hard times the Lord is always calling and anointing people. Moe photos and news from SBTC later in the week.

We also welcomed Maureen & Sabrina from Singapore tonight. They are two lovely ladies who are here to cover the school for us over the next couple of months. They will also keep an ye on the Children's Home and help us in the church. They are so lovely and they are from Cornerstone Singapore. We are so blessed with them. Another lady from Cornerstone, Brenda, will come from July-January to take over the school etc. GOD IS SO GOOD.

Well, after all my excitement about the World Cup being here, I have to tell you that I have only seen one game! My team are doing well now - GHANA! I love Ghana as a nation and as a people. I went there for 6 months in 1994 and saw the Lord do great and wonderful things. You should see the smile of a Ghanaian! So come on Ghana. One more win and we are through!

England? What can I say? Scrape through with a own goal in the first game and a couple of goals against the world class Tobagoans in the second. Never mind, maybe by the time Josiah is 18 Scotland will be good enough to qualify! Until then, we will just dream of '78!

Who's Report Will You Believe?

This morning I spent some time trying to sort out our itinerary for coming home to Scotland. Everything has been put on the back burner with Abe’s condition, but I had to send out emails to the Pastors so we can begin to plan our church visits in UK.

Things are working out well about coming home. We have a little house in Shore Street, Fraserburgh and Mary’s brother Bruce has found us an ideal car to buy. Over the next few weeks we will be preparing the teams over here for the 6 months without us. Praise God, Cornerstone Singapore are sending 3 teachers to cover the school for us while we are home. They will also really help us in the church. Gillian Saunders will be coming out at least once to help with the Powerhouse and Steve & Molly Ritchie will be coming out for November. So we are really grateful.

We were hoping to be preparing for coming home at this time – our presentation, powerpoints, pens, information leaflet etc. – but Abe has my full attention right now. Please pray that when I get down to the things above, God will give me a creative mind and fast thinking mind (no jokes please!)

I had a long talk with Abe today .. the longest since we came here. He has really been thinking and praying things through. The main thing he said today was that he was full of peace. He had no fear, no worries and no doubts. Only a deep peace. He is sure God will heal him. Yesterday, Pastor Ed Guererro visited Abe all the way from Isabela. Ed had a similar experience to Abe. Sudden caner, given no hope, medical results were terrible … but the Lord took out his tumour overnight! The Doctors were astounded and for the last 4 years he has been completely healthy. Abe was really encouraged by Ed’s visit.

Abe is eating better now, drinking regularly and going to the tolilet regularly. he is much brighter today and his spirit is good. At the end of the day we pray and we believe for a miracle. Tomorrow we will get the report of the bi-opsi. We will take it from there. Tonight I read out the story of Elisha and his servant. The servant was full of fear when he saw all the Assyrian soldiers surrounding the town … ready to kill Elisha the man of God. “We are finished. We are going to die. The game is over” was what the servant shouted at Elisha.

You could almost hear Elisha’s smirk and laugh as he said, “There’s more that is for us than is against us! Lord, open his eyes.” And there they were … many warriors of the Lord, warriors of fire in mighty chariots in the sky. Everything changed!

As we wait on the report of the Doctor, I reminded Abe that it was not the most important report. We will wait on the report of the Lord! Whatever He decides is the best. Until then, we will believe for a miracle for Abe. Tonight we had a tremendous time of prayer for Abe. We felt the power and presence of the Lord in that little room.

When I was a boy, I always got a ‘nae bad’ report card, but the teachers always wrote, “Mark could do better”. I don’t want that on my report from the Lord. I want to hear the report, “Well done good and faithful servant.”

Survivor .. Outlive & Outlast

I will give you a wee report about Abe at the end of this blog, but life is still going on fast'n'furious at Sefton! I am so blessed by our different 'teams' at SV - at times like these everyone just pulls together a little bit harder!

Actually, we have almost 40 full time staff at Sefton. We also have another 10 who are in our church leadeship team but who are employed in the secular world. In the Philippines, the leader of the company or business or ministry has to try his/her best to look after each employee ... and their family! So, as you can imagine, there is a lot of 'looking after' for me and Mary to do. We know we are responsible for these lovely co-workers and we always try our best to help out in whatever way we can.

Over the last few weeks, Mary has been very busy with the teachers preparing for the school opening. Yeterday, school re-opened after our Summer break. All the kids arrived with a lot of excited faces and smiles! This year we have extended our number of classes. Before, we had 3 sessions in teh morning and 3 sessions in the afternoon. Now we have added a new session over lunchtime which gives us 9 classes per day ... an extra 80 kids can be educated! As you can imagine, there has been a lot of changes in the admin side, Mary had to find 3 new teachers assistants and train them all up! But, praise God, everything went smooth yesterday and Mary was very happy.

Yeterday was also the start of the school year at Sefton Bible Training Centre. Praise God, we have interviewed 21 new first year students and around 10 students will stay on for 2nd year. We also have many day students who will enroll in various courses. I wish I was there to meet the students, greet and encourage them etc. But me and Pastor Abe are here, so it is time that the young leaders in SBTC will rise up and do what we have taught them to do! They are well able and I love them dearly.

Children's Home is going well and Marilyn is doing a great job. Some children have gone home in the last few weeks, but some have also arrived! I will get Mary to inform you of the changes if and when our lives get back to normal (whatever that is!!)

Thanks to everyone who have texted, emailed or called me. I have tried to pass on all teh messages to Abe and he has been really encouraged. Please send this blog address to as many people as you can so we can share the prayer burden and so people can be well informed as to what to pray for.

Yesterday was a better day for us all. Abe and Gemma was much more positive about things and we had a great time of prayer in the evening. Abe had an endoscopy test and the doctor wanted me to be there. I couldn't believe it as the small camera went through Abe's body and reached his stomach (almost put me off my KFC later!!) The Doctor pointed out that the walls of Abe's stomach should be smooth, but they were filled with cancerous tumours. They took some samples for biopsi. I spoke to the main specialist in the afternoon and he basically said that it looked like a type of cancer that was very fast spreading. If it was this kind of cancer, there really is nothing they can do except chemotherapy, which would only extend his life by a few months.

That is the medical report, now for the spiritual one! Abe is a servant of the Lord and our King is a healer! Abe is very strong in the Lord. There have been a few issues that he needed to deal with and we prayed about this yesterday. After his endoscopy, he turned to me and said, "I will come through this Mark. And after this, we will serve the Lord with greater power," We hugged and prayed for each other. What a precious moment. I prayed for him and we believed for a great miracle together.

In the evening, he told Gemma that he did not want to wear his hospital pyjamas, but a t-shirt that I bought him from Singapore. It was a 'Survivor' t-shirt! He smiled and clenched his hands in faith. These are good signs.

This morning (Wed) he has eaten for the first time for ages. A little only, but only a little is a victory! He has also been to the toilet for the first time in a long time. These are all little signs of encouragement.

The situation is still the same - we need a miracle. But God can choose to give a complete and absolute miracle in a moment, or he can give strength and healing every day until he is healed. We want an immediate miracle, but right now I would gladly accept a gradual one! I don't known the plan of God, but I know God has a plan.

Thanks for your prayers. Thanks for your support. Please pray for Mary at Sefton - she is carrying a heavy load right now due to me being here in Manila. Please spread the news and burden. I will try my best to blog every day, so please point people to this page for up to date information.

Something really touched & challenged me yesterday. Gemma called home and spoke to her kids. The oldest is called Angel Paul who is 8 yrs old (below), and the youngest is Renz Abe and he is only 4 yrs old. At the end of their call, Angel said, "Mama, please tell Daddy I love him." This really broke Gemmas heart as it was the 1st time Angel had ever said those words. It gave her hope and focus.

So today, while you have time, if you really love someone ...really tell them. I know that they know that you love them. But tell them.

Biting The Bullet

Today has been one of the hardest days of my life. We drove down overnight to Manila and went to the UST hospital. Abe was checked over and we waited for a Doctor to come. Abe had been in a lot of pain after his long journey. At this point, Gemma and Abe were not aware of the awful truth, The Doctor arrived and, after onky a few minutes of reading the notes, called me and Gemma over.

He was very abrupt and his manner was not very good. He basically said,"There is nothing we can do. He is at stage 4 of cancer and we cannot operate or give chemo. The cancer is right through him. We can only give supportive therapy now." Poor poor Gemma. I talked to her and tried to console her a little. She had hoped for far better news. After a while she said, "Let's tell Abe." We went into his cubicle and Gemma just said, Pastor Mark has something to tell you." ... and walked away!

I told him as best I could. In a way, I think he knew. He nodded from time to time. I told him that humanly speking, nothing could be done. But that is precisely the time sometimes when God shows up. One word from the Lord changes everything. Abe wanted to go home but I convinced him to stay one night so he could rest. We waited over 7 hours to be admitted into a room.

I have cried so much today. I cannot believe it. Why Lord?

Shortly after we came to the Philippines, two American missionaries were taken hostage by the Abu Sayaf - Islamis Terrorists. It was so tragic as we watched them treck through the jungles barefooted. It was ironic that the TV cameras could easliy find them and interview them ... but the whole Philippine Army could not! The whole story is in an amazing book called "In the Presence of Mine Enemies" written by Gracia Burnham.

They were dragged through the jungle for a whole year. Tragically, Martin Burnham lost his life in those last few minutes. Later, his wife recounted his last words and actions. You can read them:

Some of Burnham's last words in the United States were also the last words of Jesus recorded in the Gospel of John, said Ralph Burnham, Martin's uncle, during yesterday morning's service at the church. "His very last words were, 'Follow thou me.'" Ralph Burnham said, his voice choking up. "Martin not only spoke of following him, but he took on that responsibility. Of course, at that time neither he nor any of us expected how far he was going to be required to go to. But he was willing to go."

Martin Burnham, 42, kept that attitude throughout the 376 days he and his wife, Gracia, 43, were held captive by the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group.

Just before a Philippine military raid on the kidnappers that led to Martin's death and Gracia's freedom, the two huddled together in a hammock under a makeshift tent.

"Martin and Gracia had really been thinking that there would be a chance that they would not make it out alive," said Martin's brother, Doug, relying on a phone conversation with Gracia. "Martin said to Gracia, 'The Bible says to serve the Lord with gladness. Let's go out all the way. Let's serve him all the way with gladness.'"

The two then prayed in their hammock, recited Scripture verses to each other, and sang. They laid down to rest. Then the rescue assault began and bullets began to fly, puncturing Gracia's leg and Martin's chest.

"That was Gracia's last [memory] of Martin, that to the very end he served the Lord with gladness,"



Today, especially me, I want to serve the Lord with gladness. the joy of the Lord IS my strength! Tomorrow is a new day of greater possibilities.

I have a Shepherd, One I love so well;
How He has blessed me tongue can never tell;
On the cross He suffered, shed His blood and died,
That I might ever in His love confide.

Chorus:
Following Jesus, ever day by day,
Nothing can harm me when He leads the way;
Darkness or sunshine, whate'er befall,
Jesus, the Shepherd, is my All in All.

Pastures abundant doth His hand provide,
Still waters flowing ever at my side,
Goodness and mercy follow on my track,
With such a Shepherd nothing can I lack.

When I would wander from the path astray,
Then He will draw me back into the way;
In the darkest valley I need fear no ill,
For He, my Shepherd, will be with me still.

When labor's ended and the journey done,
Then He will lead me safely to my home;
There I shall dwell in rapture sure and sweet,
With all the loved ones gathered round His feet.

Leonard Weaver

Only a Miracle

I am so sorry that I have not been able to write a blog recently. The last few days have hit us with terrible news. It seems as if Pastor Abe has advanced stages of cancer and right now I am preparing to take him and a few others to Manila for thorough tests. The Doctor here has shared to me the seriousness of the situation, and it does not look good (in the natural).

It seems so incredible. Just a month ago he was working in the fields at harvest time. Three weeks ago he was interviewing staff for the school. Today, he is in a hospital bed fighting for his life.

Please pray:
* For a good, safe journey. Abe will go in ambulance with his wife Gemma. I will follow in my car.
* For Abe to have no pain on the way to Manila (8 hrs).
* For the admission to go smoothly (sometimes it can be a nightmare)
* For Abe to get the best medical care possible.
* For me, as I will be the one to pass on any news - good or bad.
* For Mary, as school starts tomorrow. Bible school also begins tomorrow.
* For us as a family - this will add major stress on top of the major stress we already have!
* For the wisdom to know what to fight for and what to lay down.

Abe was in a bad way last night. He could barely whisper. But what he did say was this,"I had so many questions, but I have no more now. I am ready for tomorrow, whatever tomorrow brings."

PLEASE pray for Abe. He needs a miracle. One touch. One moment. One more prayer?

One last question: Are you ready to face tomorrow .. whatever tomorrow may bring?

A Crazy Few Days

A couple of weeks ago we had THE most amazing youth camp here at Sefton. It is certainly worth a blog! I was responsible for getting the speakers .. and again I turned to my friends from Malaysia - Pastor Joe Ramayah (above, standing next to the handsome guy), Clarence, CK, Ravi, Jesu & Nesan of Christian Life Center in KL. They came to the camp in 2005 and we had a fantastic time.

Joe & Co literally flew to Manila, were picked up and travelled to Santiago with a mad driver! They walked out of the van and on to the stage! They are excellent musicians, and amazingly enough, they are not moody, ego centric or emotional (as many music people seem to be!) Hey, I'm a music guy too so don't get mad with me! In fact, these guys are the best. They are a superb bunch of people who just wanted to come and bless the youth of the Philippines, set them on fire for the Lord and be used powerfully by the Lord. Every objective was achieved!

The theme for the camp was 'Dare to Dream'. Around 500 young people packed Sefton Village for 3 days, swelling to around 700 in the evenings. Joe was the main speaker and he was so anointed. He had these young people hanging on every word. The only un-anointed parts of his message was when he was taking the mick out of me and making up completely untrue stories about his so-called Scottish friend. Other than that, the man was good!! Clarence (above right)is an excellent worship leader and the rest of the music team put in so much work for this camp.

Joe preached every night and also in the morning sessions. His team led all the worship and we learned many new songs. The youth absolutely loved it. I have never seen a bunch of young people so excited about worship and about God. They danced and danced and danced. Also, at the end of many services, Joe gave a challenge or appeal. It was great to see so many young people respond to God. Our Cornerstone Youth absolutely loved it and were totally inspired.


What an incredible few days. For me, it was great to catch up with Joe and the team again. I love being with these guys. We laugh so much. You know the kind of friends where you can really just enjoy talking about anything. We call it good banter. Actually, in the Philippines I have really missed this. I think I have become more serious than before. All the responsibility gets to one you know!

But I love just being with a crowd and being myself. I have friends in Scotland where I can really be 'me' ... my brothers, David, Kenny, Ben, Andrew etc. I am still 'me' here, but a different kinda me. My goodness, what is happening tonight? I'm losing the thread of my blog ...

Youth camp! On the last night all the youth were asking the Malaysians to sign their ID badges, Bibles etc. They all thought I was their official manager and asked me to sign too! My few minutes of fame and popularity was great! Gave me a taste at what could have been ... Ha Ha. We drove Joe and the team back to Manila and we stayed in a hotel overnight before they flew. They surprised me with a Birthday Meal .. including cake! Top notch.

If ever you hear of guy called Joe Ramayah coming to preach at a church near you ... go! He says it as it is. So be prepared. If you want to hear someone who will tickle your ears, don't go. He is seeing God do brilliant things in a country where it is so difficult to be a Christian. I am honoured to be one of 'the team'. Thanks Joe. Thanks guys. Until next year ...

Where on Earth Are You?

A few people have been asking me where I got the amazing picture of Northern Philippines a few days ago. Actually it was the FEBC guys that told me about an amazing website where you can zoom in and zoom around the world from your desk! It is great for projects, powerpoints etc. Above is the satellite map of Scotland.

The web page is "Google Earth" and you just need to download their free software. It is amazing - you can check out your hometown , zoom into 3D maps, check where roads/buildings etc. .. all in beautiful colour. Best thing of all .. it's free!

Please pray for pastor Abe. He had his operation two weeks ago and should be well on his way to recovery. But over the last week he has hardly been able to eat, sleep or drink. We had to re-admit him to hospital because he is so weak. There is something not quite right and I feel there is a problem in his stomach. He has no energy - even to speak or smile (see picture) Financially, it is very difficult. Between Abe's family, us and any help we can find, we have spent almost 900 pounds so far for his medical bills.

Please pray for Abe, his wife Gemma and hi two boys Angel & Renz (who are running crazily about my house as I speak with their best friends Lydia, Joanah & Josiah) In fact, I'll take a picture. Wait .. SNAP ... there you go ...oh man , where did Angel go? Never mind! Do these four look as though they know something we don't? MMMmmmm .... How's a man meant to write a blog with all these 'wains' flying about?!


Fathers day is fast approaching here in the Philippines and it is a BIG day! I came across this funny story:



There was a woman who was pregnant with twins, and shortly before they were due, she had an accident and went into a coma. Her husband was away on business, and unable to be reached. While in the coma, she gave birth to her twins, and the only person around to name her children was her brother.

When the mother came out of her coma to find she had given birth and that her brother had named the twins, she became very worried, because he wasn't a very bright guy. She was sure he had named them something absurd or stupid.

When she saw her brother she asked him about the twins.

He said, "The first one was a girl."

The mother: "What did you name her?!?"

Brother: "Denise!"

The Mum: "Oh, wow, that's not bad! What about the second one?"

Brother: "The second one was a boy."

The Mum: "Oh, and what did you name him?"

Brother: "Denephew."

One last laugh for you:

Power Weekend...

G'day folks. Hope you had a good weekend ... we did! On Saturday we had our monthly Powerhouse Kids Club at the Fire Centre. All the team arrived at 11am for prayer, planning and lunch. We have around 35 of a team and they all have a role to play - on the buses, set up, drama, toilet duty, puppets, up-front, powerpoint, PA system etc. Most of the team are our young people - what a blessing they are! Their normal weekend is so busy - on Friday night most of the youth have a music practice, on Saturday they have Powerhouse, Saturday afternoon they have their Youth Cell group or service, Saturday night is church set up, play instruments at two services at Santiago then go as part of the evangelism team at Nagassican! Phew! Even writing what they do makes me feel tired!

On Saturday the buses went out at 1pm to pick up all the kids from all around Santiago. Around 300 kids arrived all excited. Many of the kids come from very poor and disfunctional family situations. Pastor Jun and his team lead the Powerhouse programme for 1 and a half action packed hours. The kids go home happy and with a packet of biscuits in their hands!

The team meet for feedback, debrief and prayer. What an amazing ministry! The first Saturday of the month is the big Powerhouse celebration, and every other Saturday morning the team go out in the Powerhouse Truck to different barangays around this area... ministering in 11 during the month!

On Sunday, we had our second Cornerstone United Service in the Fire Centre. All four churches come together for worship, fellowship, the Word, Baptisms and sport! I preached about 'Moving Up Another Gear' and challenged people about the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. So many responded ... and so many were filled and touched by God!

I also gave a call for healing and again so many responded. Pastor Julie was sitting in the service just outside the House of Refuge ... and she came forward. We prayed with her and the power of the Lord touched her powerfully. Keep praying for a complete healing in her body.

Last night Mary and I had a lovely evening together ... doing a lot of administration for today's Parents Information day at School!! I am so proud of Mary. She has done so much work for this new school year. We are moving to 9 classes a day now, so she has been working so hard recruiting staff, making timetables, writing up class lists etc. We finished after midnight, but at least we finished!

This week is a busy week. We have the SBTC Week of Refreshing that starts today. All ex-students are invited to return so we can listen to them, inspire them, encourage them, laugh & cry with them and send them out again! I am one of the speakers so please pray for me. I am trying to do a lot of video shooting for our new DVD that we will take around the churches. Also, this is the week designated for interviews for new students at the Bible School. Mary is very busy every day with the Teachers setting up the new school year. Please pray that nothing 'out of the ordinary' crops up this week!

I am so excited though ... the World Cup starts this Friday. This is one of the things in life that I look forward to every four years. I even remember the 1978 World Cup! Dalglish, Jordan ... and who can forget the amazing goal from wee Archie Gemmill? Priceless. Every other World Cup since then has been excitedly anticipated by yours truly. Even the ones where Scotland did not make it.

But in 2002 .. guess what? The Philippines was the ONLY country in the world that did not show any live games!! AAAaaaggghhh. It was agony. I remember watching England v Argentina 8 days after they played - by then every one and their dog had told me the score! But this World Cup - yehey - I have found a Soccer Channel on my local Cable Station and they are going to show every game live!! The price? A bag of donuts for the staff every week. Not bad eh? Cheaper than Sky!

I just wish my wee nephew Nathan was here to watch some of the games with me. Never mind, I'll soon be home to take him to see good old Aberdeen! Can't wait Nathan ... just me and you ... and a couple of greasy pies!!

With This Ring ...

We went to a wedding this morning. Charlene - one of our teachers in the school - married Ray, who is one of our former students in the Bible School. Around 700 people turned up. At home, we have invitations for special guests, but here in the Philippines basically anyone can come as long as they remotely know of the couple!

Lydia was a beautiful flower girl today and she performed her duties well. Well she has had enough practice ... she's been flower girl 8 times in her short life! At the end of the service I heard her ask her mum, "When are you having your wedding here mummy?" Mary said, "Oh no Lydia, I'm not getting married here!" Lydia replied, "Are you finished already mummy?"

I will not tell you what mummy said ... and please don't start any rumours!

Josiah was in top form and is doing great. He was caught a few times running towards the canteen for juice and sweeties with his uncle Winston! Look at his face - guilty or innocent??? MMmmm...

Anyway, here are a few wee quotes on marriage ... since we are in the mood:

One woman to another at the office, "Did you wake up grumpy today?"
"No, I just let him sleep in."

Marriage is when you agree to spend the rest of your life sleeping in a room that's too warm, beside someone who's sleeping in a room that's too cold.

"An archaeologist is the best husband a woman can have; the older she gets, the more interested he is in her."

There were two lines of husbands in heaven, one for the dominant husbands and one for the passive, submissive husbands. The submissive husband line extended almost out of sight. There was one man in the dominant husband line. He was small, timid, appeared anything but a dominant husband. When the angel inquired as to why he was in this line, he said, "My wife told me to stand here."

Two men talking. One, "I got this poodle for my wife." Other: "Sure wish I could trade mine in for something like that."

A Sunday school teacher was trying to demonstrate the difference between right and wrong.
"All right children, let's take an example," she said. "If I were to go into a man's pocket and take his wallet with all his money, what would I be?"

A child in the back answered, "You'd be his wife."

Selah ...

Problems or Opportunities?

Well, yesterday was a day of confronting problems! You know, one of those days when you just come up against obstacles that you just have to tackle head on. UUugghh ... I hate these kinda days, but although it is hard to confront issues, the future benefits far outweigh the present discomforts.

The first problem was a biggie. It was a church problem and had to be tackled. We, as leaders, had an interesting dialogue on how to deal with the problem. Someone was caught red handed doing something that she should not have done. The Filipino consensus was to ignore the problem, set up a new system and move on. The British way was to confront the issue head on - talk to the person, show the evidence, pray for admission & repentance and believe for restoration.

In the end, we went for the British plan but in a Filipino way! Praise the Lord, the person admitted, repented and agreed to say sorry to the leaders of the church. So we all met together ... it was not easy. But forgiveness was asked for and forgiveness was given. We all learnt many things yesterday! I had another two problems to tackle, although they were not on the same scale! So, my head was buzzing when I went to bed last night.

Please pray for Mary & I in these next few weeks. We wrote down a list of all we have to do and it scared us! This week, so many unexpected things have taken up our time and it feels that we cannot get started in organising our itinerary, making a DVD for going around churches etc. Pray that we will have wisdom to do the things we have to do and time to do them.

Well, after all my problems yesterday, I thought I would give you a wee puzzle to solve. Actually, my brother David told me this one and I cannot work it out. You try:

Three friends wanted to buy a stereo from a shop that cost $30. So they chipped in $10 each and bought the stereo. Just after they left the shop, the manager realised that the stereo was actually on sale and should only have been $25. So he decided to run after them. He thought, "I can't divide $5 between three people, so I will give them $1 each and I will keep $2." That's what he did.

Now each friend had paid $9 = $27
The Manager kept $2

That adds up to $29. What happened to the missing dollar?

Please give your answers in 'comments'.

By the way, if you double click the map to the right of the blog you will see all the places in the world where people have looked up this blog. Let's try and fill up more countries! If you know anyone in Africa, Middle East, South America etc. then send them a link for this page and let's see how many we can find.

Have a great day. I pray that today you will heave a 'no problem' day and that you will be given wisdom to find the answer to my puzzle.



"Every problem is an opportunity to prove God's power. Every day we encounter countless golden opportunities, brilliantly disguised as insurmountable problems."

C. Swindoll, One Step Forward, Two Steps Back, p. 35

One Enchanted Evening ...

Well, what a lovely night Mary & I have just had. It is very, very rare that we ever get out on a 'date night', but tonight sure was different!

We left the kids with Aunty Vivien & Aunty Jackie, and away we went to our destination. When we arrived, we noticed many people were there. All were dressed in lovely clothes - mainly white. They all seemed to be so happy. A brass band was playing nice music - slow waltzes one minute and the quickstep the next. We went inside the main room and there were so many people talking, laughing and obviously happy to be there. Kids were running around with balloons and plates of beautiful food were being passed around. Some people were playing board games - scrabble and Uno seemed to be most popular - although chess was also to be seen. Young people were impersonating Elvis with a guitar in the corner. In the next room many people were eating together and the menu was extensive - pansit, adobo, various chicken dishes, many pork dishes - and the fruit was in abundance. Everyone was happy and Mary and I caught up with some old friends.

Where were we? Guess? Come on. The cinema? No. A Party? No. A church event? No. A restaurant? No.

No, No, No. Actually, I'd better tell you as you will never guess. We were at a FUNERAL WAKE for an old lady whose daughter we have only met once but who is very friendly with a friend of ours. Got it?

Mary & I had to walk up to the body of this old lady we had never even met and whose name we could not pronounce. We had to talk to her and say how lovely it was to be there. We gave our words of respect and then we prayed for the family.

You see, Filipinos have a different way of dealing with death and dying. We Brits are quiet, respectful, solemn. You would never ever dream of going to the house of your newly deceased Great Uncle Charlie and getting the Monopoly or Twister out accompanied by a few of the youth singing and playing the guitar! In one home, I saw the wife of the dead husband playing Uno on the lid of her husbands coffin. She laughed and said to him, "You cheated all your life at cards, but you can't cheat now!" I almost swallowed my banana!

Here, death is just a part of life. They really celebrate the life of the person who died. Tonight, there was a Karaoke machine there being played in the corner! This is a family time. A time to catch up with fiends. A time to laugh with people they had not seen ... well, since the last funeral! A time to eat good food and talk about many things. A time to remember all the good times they had with their deceased.

They had been there for 7 days and this was the last night. None of the family or friends were going home tonight. There are people to 'accompany the dead' 24 hrs a day, until the person is buried.

These wakes takes a little bit of getting used to and it is difficult for us to take in. But ... it seems to be the only time when Mary & I get out together, so I can't wait until the next one!

Ritchie, Mark ... 37 Not Out!

Today, I celebrated my 37th year on planet earth! A long time ago, Mrs Mary Ritchie gave birth to a wee 6lb bundle (no jokes please). Birthday celebrations have come and gone - parties, fancy dress nights, Indian meals, Chinese Meals etc. etc. The Special Birthdays have fond memories - 10th, 16th, 21st, 30th ... but the rest are just a blend of food, friends, family & even more food!

But here in the Philippines, birthdays are BIG occasions. In fact, to us Brits, most celebrations here seem 'over the top'- Wedding Anniversaries, Engagement Anniversaries, Death Anniversaries, birthdays etc. They are really big on 'Dedications' - I have dedicated a horse, cars, houses, shops, tricycles, bikes, musical instruments - anything that moves can be dedicated! They even asked me to pray at the 'celebration' of a wife that separated from her husband one year before!! I think the reason for the OTT attitude here in the Philippines is because they have no social life as we know it. So any excuse to meet together is warmly embraced.

So ... here is my extra special 37th Birthday report from yesterday! To be honest, the day before was a terrible day. Things were going well until Vivien's bag was stolen from right under our noses in McDonalds. Couldn't believe it. We have been here 6 years with not even a peso being stolen, and poor Vivien lost all her money, bank cards, phone - everything. We all had a sickening and angry feeling in our stomachs. Guess what - one of the customers 'knew' who stole the money! So me, Vivien, Jonathan and Pastor James -along with the security guard from McDonalds! - staked out her house. So exciting. But ... it turned out to be the wrong house. The person who lived there was the principal of the local school and a well respected man!! OOopps.

All this detective work was far more exciting than planning all the stuff for church (joke), so I was up until all hours doing powerpoints etc. etc. So, at 4:45 AM, I could not believe it when Mary woke me up to say that there were heaps of people outside singing. It was some of the church folk (see above). They came, sang, prayed for me - and even had prepared breakfast! What a bunch. Sorry if I look a bit disheveled ... all that detective staking out is very emotional!!

At 7:30am I headed off to one of our churches - Cornerstone San Isidro. We had a wonderful time there. I preached about "The Church God will Bless" and many responded. At the end of the service they made a delicious merienda (snack) - rice cake, ube cake, pansit and tambo-tambong. MMMmmmm....

After that it was back to Santiago for the 2nd service at Cornerstone. I dedicated a beautiful baby boy called Kurt Iverson Bartido. The mother, Ivy, is a mum from our school - so Mary was so delighted that they see Cornerstone as their own church now. After the service ... another merienda! They gave balloons and made me blow out a cake with 37 candles. Took me forever! We all went to the home of baby Kurt for ... you guessed it .. more food! We rolled out of the house and into the car!

We had a wee dip in the small pool with Lydia, Josiah and all the Children's Home kids and in the evening we went out for dinner. What a day! It's so hard being so handsome, so popular and so humble!!!

Today, it's all over. No more hugs, kisses, congratulations or shoot outs. Normal food; normal routine; normal problems. But, hey ... now I'm 37! It feels completely different from 36 and I can't wait for 3 years time when I can really begin my life! They all say that life begins at 40 - I will let you know when I get there!


By the way, Happy Birthday to my brother Paul - 35 today. If anyone in the Fraserburgh area wants to go to his house at 4:45am and wake him up with extra loud singing, that would give me a TRULY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Promise Keeper

Here I am again! I wish I had the energy of some of our young people to get through this week! We finished Youth Camp yesterday - we had an excellent few days with the youth. You should have seen them as they praised and worshipped the Lord. Incredible. More about that soon! Yesterday we took Pastor Joe and his team down to Manila and today we saw them off to the airport. We drove back to Santiago and so here I am. It's almost midnight but I know I have to do this blog or I will be kicking myself all night!!

I want to share with you a wonderful story that is based upon an even more wonderful truth - GOD IS ABSOLUTELY FAITHFUL. When Mary & I came to the Philippines in 1999, to be honest I did not want to come. God ambushed us! My heart was set on going round churches in Scotland and building them up. After that, we would be going to Africa, thank you very much! The Philippines was the last place on earth I wanted to go! But we felt that God wanted us to come on a 'reckie trip' ... so we came.

After two days of being here, the Lord made it clear that this was the place that He wanted us to minister. This was the place that He had been preparing us for. When I was 22 years old, the Lord spoke clearly to me that I had to minister and serve under other men and learn from them. The Lord promised that if I was faithful in this, then when I was 30 years old He would open an incredible door of opportunity for me. At that time 8 years seemed a long way away, but I stayed faithful to the word of the Lord. I had a few opportunities to 'be my own man', but I knew it was not right.

We came to visit the Philippines in June 1999 - a week after my 30th Birthday! God IS SO FAITHFUL. On the night that we decided to commit ourselves to Sefton, God woke me up and showed me an open vision. A Vision of Fire! One of the things I saw so clearly was a Radio Station and the Lord said to me that one day we would have a Radio Station here. I saw someone speak into a microphone and people would listen to their radios and give their lives to the Lord as they listened to the words. I went around the churches in 2000 and claimed the promise that one day we would have a Radio Station at Sefton.


In 2003, the leaders of Far East Broadcasting Company (FEBA in UK) came to this area and expressed their desire to have a Radio Station here in Cagayan Valley. Something in my spirit clicked, and I knew the Lord was in it. I shared my vision with them and that was the start of the relationship between Sefton & FEBC.

To cut a long story short, we are planning to have the 'Cagayan Valley Missionary Radio Project' up and going by April 2007! It has the potential to reach millions of people and the whole purpose of the radio station is to reach the lost. We will start broadcasting in 6 languages, but our aim is to have 18 languages broadcast.

What an incredible story. What seems impossible with man ... is possible with God. I tell you this for a few reasons:

* What are God's promises to you? What has He said to you about your life, your plans?
* Whatever He has promised ... He will be absolutely faithful to you and to His word.
* No matter how unlikely it may be ... whetever God asks you to do, do it.
* Don't let anyone try and talk you out of a promise that God has given YOU.

My eyes are closing, my brain shut down 30 minutes ago, my fingers are typing in auto-pilot and ...

...ZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzz....

C'est La Vie ...

Sorry ... couldn't resist it! Funny eh?

Since my last blog, life has been a bit crazy. Many things are happening every day -good, bad and ugly - but the problem is that no sooner have I thought of what I am going to write .... when here comes something else!

Last weekend:
* On Friday, my friend Pastor Abe was taken to hospital in real pain. He has been in pain for a couple of months and last week he took some tests. It was found that he had a large stone in his galbladder, one side of his liver had shrank and most worrying, he had some sort of tumour in his urinary intestine. We were so worried but I just prayed for him before Manila .. believing that God could speak a miracle into the body of Pastor Abe.

* Our family all went to Manila on Friday afternoon - slightly exhausted!

* On Saturday I bought ALL the Christmas gifts for the kids in the Children's Home. We are not sure about what is going to happen so we thought we would get the gifts and tick another wee thing off our box. I'm a 'right wifie' according to Mary!

* We met our good friend Catherine Young and caught up on all the news.

* Lydia & I went to the airport on Sunday to pick up Mary's cousin Vivien, who is here until July. Lydia had her speech all ready with hugs and kisses in tow ... but when she saw her aunty Vivien she went into a state of shock and bewilderment! She didn't talk until we reached the hotel! After that, it was business as usual - jumping, skipping, kissing, hugging and bungee jumping off poor Vivien!

* We left Manila at 10pm and travelled 8 hrs through the night to Santiago. Everywhere you turned your head or arm in the car there was a bag with a gift in it poking you. Very uncomfortable.

* Arrived at 5am very sleepy. Desperately prayed for Lydia & Josiah to continue sleeping .. but they did not. Daddy & Mummy shattered ... kids jumping everywhere. Sigh.

* On Monday morning I had to attend meeting with FEBC Radio about our Radio Station that will begin in 2007. So exciting. Will share the news in another blog.

* Met Joe Ramayah and team from Malaysia - they are here to do our District Youth Camp. The theme is 'Dare to Dream' and there around 5-600 youth here. Sefton is very quiet .. NOT! They had done well - left Malaysia at 3am, flew to Manila, travelled by extremely fast van by my extremely mad driver friend! They arrived frayed at the edges but ready for action - what a night! Fantastic. To see these young people praise & worship was electric!

* Today I had another FEBC meeting followed by a SBTC School Board meeting all afternoon - so hot man (36 degrees)! We are planning our new 3 year course and things are going well.

* Pastor Abe had 2 operations, the last one being today. They removed a huge stone on Saturday and guess what? When they went to investigate his tumour ... IT HAD GONE! DISAPPEARED! The Doctor was amazed and took another ultrasound and x-ray. He said that where the tumour had been there was now a small scratch as if a finger had gently removed the tumour. We know who. More about this exciting testimony later on in the week.

So you can see why I have been struggling to get my blog done - not lack of news ... but lack of time. Pray for Abe, for youth camp, for the FEBC Radio project, for the Bible School, for Pastora Julie, for our family and for Vivien. Keep looking at the blog and I'll make sure to give you updates ASAP.

Life's Little Annoyances!

Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. That's a sorry for each of the three days I have been unable to put a blog out for you all. The reason is that our internet has only been on for around 6 hours in the whole week. Any idea how frustrating that can be? Coming from the UK, there are some little frustrations that make you cry at the time but you laugh about later.

Such as:

* Filipino Time - an hour late is an hour early. But who cares anyway? If we're all late then we're all on time! Right? When a service starts at 8am, that is when we Filipinos start to get ready for the 8am meeting. Same problem in Africa. How do we Brits handle it? Well, in the first year Mary & I tried to change the whole Filipino culture .. starting at Sefton. But most people just did not get it, and we ended up going to things hours before they started and getting a bit frustrated. So guess what we do now???? Yup, Filipino-Scottish time! We're always officially late but unofficially early. It's great!

* Filipino 'Yes' - Here in the Philippines 'yes' is an amazing word. In the boring old UK, yes means yes. But here it can mean ALL of the following - maybe, what do you mean?, I have no idea what you are talking about but I will pretend that I do, no, I will ask someone later ... or yes. So you can see that we got into big problems when people responded 'yes' to us!

* Filipino Aircon Buses - I love living in the Philippines -don't get me wrong. But there are things - whichever way you look at it - that are just plain wrong. Buses. The normal way of travel here. During daytime, it is scorching hot. During nighttime it is cooler. So when does EVERY Filipino bus company send out their lovely aircon buses? Nope, you are wrong. The answer is ... Nightime. Result? During the day a bunch of roasting hot Filipinos with every window open and the bus full of fumes. During the night, you will find a bunch of freezing cold Filipinos who are almost at deaths door because of the cold - all wrapped up in blankets and wearing thick socks. Absolutely true. Ask Craig Burrows or Catherine Young, our missionary friends!

* Filipino Mathematics - Filipinos cannot function without calculators! Arithmetic is not their strong point. For example, one time I went for lunch at a fast food restaurant. My meal was meant to have 2 cups of rice, but the lady only gave one. I was a nice Christian at that point and so I decided to say nothing. However, after I sat down the lady came running over and said,"Sir, you should have 2 cups of rice!" Guess what she did? She scooped off the one rice on my plate that was still untouched, and added 2 new ones! Why could she not just add her one to my one? That actually makes two!

* Filipino Signboards - Because English is the written language in the Philippines, we can understand everything! Sometimes we have seen funny things written down on jeepneys or houses. For example, this week I saw 16 young people on a tiny tri-cycle with the words 'Jesus, make me wise as I travel' written at the back! I saw a sign on a gate once that said, 'Please, no men urinate here ... only dogs' The classic is the roadworks sign that says, 'Slow men at work'... and it is true! I have included a few Japanese Signs at the top of this blog just to show that even developed countries can make mistakes in their Engris!

These are only a few things that makes life more exciting here in the Philippines. Like I said, you can have a good laugh later, but at the time they drive you cRRAAZZYYYY! Maybe I will share some more next time I am frustrated with my internet!

We are going down to Manila today to pick up Mary's cousin Vivien and to get all the Christmas Gifts for the Children's Home. Have a great weekend and I will write soon.

By the way, can you spread the word around about our Sefton blog. Get your Pastor to announce it on Sunday. It's the best way to find out what's going on over here.

Hey, and why don't you write some of your funny stories or Cultural annoyances on 'comments' and let everyone have a laugh. A free nightime Filipino bus trip will be given as a prize (duvet not included!) Go on ... surprise yourself.

Encouraging Signs

Well, we are back from our weekend away! We had a great time - games, sport, worship, bonfire (taught the Filipinos how to make chocolate-marshmallow-bananas!)good ministry and lots of laughs. We only gave the church 3 weeks notice but we had over 100 turn up. The typhoon caused a great deal of rainfall on the last day. Never mind - we had planned to go swimming anyway, so when you are wet .. you can't get any wetter! The typhoon also knocked our internet down from Saturday until today - so apologies for no blog yesterday. Sometimes living back in Scotland seems so straight forward ...

On Saturday, we took Lydia back to Santiago for her ballet performance. She went to 'Baby Ballet' for 3 weeks, and on Saturday it was the time to show off her stuff! She did so well and even got a Certificate for 'Most Energetic' (don't know if that is actually good or bad!) Wasn't she beautiful?

On Sunday I spoke about "The Power of Encourtagement & Affirmation". Sounds a bit boring I know, but actually my message had a big impact on many people. You see, the Philippines is low on encouragers. Before I came to the Philippines I read in a book of the story of five crabs being boiled. Just when one had finally reached the top of the pot .. the other 4 pulled it back down! This is the general trend in the Philippines (although there are exceptions). In UK, we tend to encourage each other by saying things like, "That was great, or keep going, or don't worry you did your best and that's OK". Here, people just keep quiet and say nothing! The Lord placed on my heart that Sefton was going to be a PLACE OF ENCOURAGMENT! And it is.

Here is a good quote I used on Sunday by a guy called William Arthur Ward:

"Flatter me, and I may not believe you. Criticize me, and I may not like you. Ignore me, and I may not forgive you. Encourage me, and I will never forget you."

So here is a little bit of encouragement for you:

Pastora Julie - I have visited her every day and many of our staff have been praying for her. She looks and feels so much better. On the first day she could not walk and was carried in. Yesterday she was sitting at the edge of her bed and had walked 3 times around the Fire Centre! She is eating much better now and her spirits are lifted. She still has a very large and hard stomach where the tumour is, but I am believing that this will go in the name of the Lord. Keep praying and I will keep you in touch.

Baby Larah - Baby Larah is home from hospital now, having undergone a blood transfusion and a bone marrow aspiration test. We were not allowed to get her home until her platelet count had reached 50, and she is still on steriod treatment to increase her platelet count.

Today she went back for check up, and although the platelet count has gone up, it's not really the inprovement the Doctor was expecting. We have 2 more weeks to really soak Larah in prayer before the Doctor will do more tests and possibly diagnose leukemia. Thank you so much for your prayers. We are positive about Larah as she is looking so much better. Keep on praying for a miracle. (Incidentally, Lyrah who is also with us is thriving! Praise the Lord!)

So be encouraged .. and even better ... be an encourager!