Still in Bonny Scotland ...

Still here ... only just! We have booked our flights 'home' for Monday (30th March) from Aberdeen. So we will have been home for around 6 weeks altogether.

We are sure that we made the right decision and we have been able to spend a lot of time with David & Wilma up in Wick. David had his 3rd chemo last Friday in Inverness and is learning to rest and not push himself too hard between treatments (not easy for us men!) The great news is that he gets his next one in Wick - so no 9 hour round trip by train. This has given him a real boost. But I think the greatest boost is to see Lydia & Josiah with him for a while ... they have been really good children. We were able to celebrate David's 66th Birthday last week (below).


It is always sad to say goodbye but our plan is to come home for itinerary next March, so it won't be long until everyone sees us again! Don't know if this is good or bad!!! We have been able to see almost all of our friends in the last few weeks, even our lovely friends down in the Central Belt.

Also been able to do quite a bit of ministry over here in many churches. I felt that the message God gave me was to 'look up and see the harvest'. I am preaching at New Hope, Peterhead on Sunday morning and I feel it will be a significant day. Pastor Neil Cameron and his team are doing great and I went there last Sunday night ... place was packed. On Sunday night we will be at Fraserburgh Elim but I will pop up to AoG to say goodbye to all our friends there.

I leave you with a new link from one of our churches in the Philippines. It is San Isidro and they have started a new blog. I apologise on behalf of all the other blogs, I don't know what has happened to the Pastors over there! When I get back i will try and inspire them to blog. I think the internet connection has been off for nearly a fortnight, to be fair.

But check this blog by Pastor Alex Ritua regarding San Isidro - it's encouraging! http://www.ccsi-online.blogspot.com

Don't worry ... we are still experiencing Filipino life over here! I can park my car down the harbour and within 5 minutes of saying 'Kumusta' to a Filipino fisherman (there are around 300 here!) there will be a crowd of Filipinos everywhere! Even in Wick, we bumped into a few in Tescos ... and took them out for a coffee (below)


Be blessed. Will blog soon ...

Back Home

Sorry for the lack of blogs recently. So many things have been happening in the last few weeks and we are just catching up with ourselves! The main reason we are back in Scotland is because Mary's dad - David - was diagnosed with a serious strain of cancer and we decided to come home to spend time with Mary's parents and help them at this difficult time.

We only had a few days to get things sorted out at Sefton. I think Mary and I had around 20 meetings with people in a couple of days. The great thing is that Keith & Anne are still there and will return to UK in April 7th. Matthew & Claire are also there, so we decided that we had a window of opportunity to come home ... and we did. We only have one life and we are often faces with difficult decisions ... but I often preach that 'people are more important than things." No regrets.

We arrived back to cold & snowy Scotland on February 13th. We spent the first weekend in Fraserburgh and had the opportunity to attend the Dedication of our wee niece Eve (Mary's brother's girl) This was a real unexpected bonus!


We then went up to Wick and were there for almost two weeks. David was diagnosed at the beginning of February and then immediately started his first treatment of chemo. Many are praying for him ... and we are seeing the results of prayer. He reacted very well to the fist treatment and felt much stronger. The pain in his hip went and he was able to walk and even drive. This gave him a real boost. We had a great time as a family, with the kids, and that alone was worth the air fare!

We drove him down for his second chemo two weeks ago and then I took the kids down to Fraserburgh to give David & Wilma some peace! Again, David reacted so well with the chemo. Mary stayed in Wick for a few days and then joined us in Fraserburgh. We stayed there over last weekend and I was able to minister in Elim and Emmanuel churches in Fraserburgh. Really enjoyed it!

We needed to get away as a family and we managed to book into a fantastic place called Crieff Hydro. All you Scottish people ... you need to come here! Amazing. Whatever the age you are ... there is something for you to do. It has definitely the best kids facilities in any hotel I have ever been to. Today, the kids went swimming twice, went to soft play, went to the outdoor adventure playground, ate at the amazing 'Kidz Buffet (with tons of good food and also Angel Delight etc!) and tonight they spent 2 hours at the Kids Club - completely supervised by staff. This is all free as part of your accommodation! Josiah told me that "it was the best day of his life!" If you don't believe me ... believe him!


We are going down to the Central Belt on Thursday to visit some friends down there. We will go back up to Fraserburgh on Saturday (I will be preaching at Fraserburgh AoG on Sunday) and then on to Wick Monday. And then ... we'll take it from there!

At the beginning of the year we were given a word from a good friend -"Take one day at a time." We didn't understand it then,but we do now! David gets his 3rd Chemo on Friday March 20th and we are praying for continued strength. If he does well we will plan to go back to the Philippines on the last week of March.

Pray for us as we learn to draw from God enough grace as we need for each day. Pray that we would do the right thing and not be impulsive in our decisions. Pray most of all for David as he journeys through these difficult days. For Wilma, as she supports him and tries to maintain her life. For Mary, as she tries to help her mum & dad at this time. It's not easy and she wants to do the best. For the kids, as they adjust to moving around and meeting new people. they are amazing really! For all at Sefton, as they have to adjust to us not being there.

Thanks for your love and encouragement at this time. Will keep you posted on any news.

Many blessings,

Mark

From Sefton to the World!

In December 2008 I challenged all our churches and Department Leaders to catch up with the rest of the world and start blogging! No excuse now ... we have quite a number of desktops and laptops around Sefton Village!


Well, most of them have accepted the challenge and have taken the first step - getting a blogsite! Most of them have followed (copied!) me and used Blogger.com ... mainly because it is so easy to use ... even for the most computer-challenged pastor!

So, here are their blogsites. I know that some have not even got their first blog in, but I have challenged them to get one in by the end of this week! Why don't you look them up, bookmark them and write a wee comment to encourage them. News from Sefton is coming faster and thicker than ever!

Check these out:

Winston (Youth Director)
Marilyn (Children's Home)
James Bastian (Ramon, St Mateo etc.)
Henry (Feeding Programme)
Danny (Nagassican)
Jun (Powerhouse Kids Club)
Daben (Youth Pastor @ Santiago)
Marlou (Pastor of Santiago)
Matthew Kerr
Joboy (Keyboard player @ Santiago)

There are a few more blogs coming, which I will give you next week.Here is the latest blog from Winston Bao-in - just to give you a flavour! Remember, when you read these folk's blogs, English is their second language - so be kind!

Hello everyone!

I want to share about a friend named George....


George came from a remote village in northern part of the island of Luzon in the Philippines. Hes family is poor so they decided to search for greener pasture, and in the process he and his family are scattered. Due to poverty, they had never been to school, so George can't read of write.

He got married and had 3 kids... In the course of time, his wife died while their kids are still small. A relative offered to help him raised the kids, and ask him to send one of his daughter to them in manila. His daughter is 9 years old that time. He send his child in a bus to Manila, and in the process, the daughter was lost. They searched for her, but no where to be found. In just two weeks, he lost his wife and a daughter.......

He got married again for the second time, and God blessed them with 5 children. They are now living in Nagassican, Santiago City, and a faithful member in Cornerstone Church Nagassican. 3 years ago, he was diagnosed with kidney failure, and it is really acute. The doctor sent him home to die, and said hes got only a month to live.

He and his family believed that God will heal him. He only take a medicine when someone give him, for they can't afford to buy.

George is still alive, but he can't work, for he is not yet well. When he gets worse, he said hes medication is prayer. At the moment, he is sick again and he's here in Sefton Village for prayer.

He said hes ready to be with the Lord. Hes prayer request is that the Lord take him very soon to end his suffering, but if God wants to use him for His glory. That he will receive his healing very soon, for him not to be a burden to his family.

Please pray with us, and my prayer is that the Holy Spirit will teach us how to pray for him and his family.

i Can Only Imagine

By our 'Theatre for Christ' group of young people from Cornerstone Churches, Isabela in the Philippines.

Their first performance!

Drole Scottish Humour

Keith gave me a book to read yesterday and it looks so good ... and very Scottish! It is called "Tom Shields Takes the Fifth" and it is full of stories, funny pictures, anecdotes, fables and hilarious stories. Tom writes a daily column in the Sunday Herald and Daily Record. Looks great!

Here's a wee sample:

"A linguistics class in a University in Ontario, Canada. The Professor tells the class, "In English, a double negative forms a positive. In some languages, such as Russian, a double negative is still a negative. However, there is no language in the world in which a double positive can form a negative."

To which a Scots voice replies, "Aye, right."


A Glasgow father was watching over his young daughter's shoulder as she sets up an email account on the family computer. She reaches the point where she has to put in the password and the message on the screen says that it has to have at least four characters.

So, after thinking about it, she types in 'snowwhitebartsimpsonshrekwoodie'.


A woman goes her personal trainer at her gym and asks, "Can you teach me to do the splits?'
The instructor asks, "How flexible are you?"
So the eager learner tells him, "I can't make Tuesdays."


A tale from the European tie penalty shoot out at Celtic Park. As the players line up for the vital kicks, a group of Celtic fans were discussing what to shout at the Valencia players to try and put them off. One said, "We need to shout out the Spanish word for Miss".

Raising his voice he shouted out, "Does anyone know the Spanish for miss?"
From behind, someone shouted, "Senorita".

In a similar vein, a friend of mine - a lady, wife and mother - out of the blue sent me some quotes about wives. She told me to read them but but maybe they should not be put in the blog. I read them ... and decided they would be great for my blog! Just the kinda stuff I like!!

I hope you enjoy them. I must say, at this point, that none of the below apply to my wife Mary. (I better get that off my chest because she told me to write that disclaimer!)

Ok ... here they are!

When a man steals your wife, there is no better revenge than
to let him keep her.
Sacha Guitry

By all means marry. If you get a good wife, you'll be happy.
If you get a bad one, you'll become a philosopher.
Socrates

Woman inspires us to great things, and prevents us from achieving them.
Dumas

I had some words with my wife; and she had some paragraphs with me.
Anonymous

'Some people ask the secret of our long marriage. We take time to go to a restaurant two times a week. A little candlelight, dinner, soft music and dancing. She goes Tuesdays, I go Fridays.'
Henny Youngman

'I don't worry about terrorism. I was married for two years.'
Sam Kinison

'There's a way of transferring funds that is even faster than electronic banking. It's called marriage.'
James Holt McGavran

'I've had bad luck with both my wives. The first one left me and the second one didn't.'
Patrick Murray

Two secrets to keep your marriage brimming
1. Whenever you're wrong, admit it,
2. Whenever you're right, shut up.
Nash

The most effective way to remember your wife's birthday is to forget it once...
Anonymous

You know what I did before I married? Anything I wanted to.
Henny Youngman

My wife and I were happy for twenty years. Then we met.
Rodney Dangerfield

A good wife always forgives her husband when she's wrong.
Milton Berle

A man inserted an 'ad' in the classifieds: 'Wife wanted'. Next day he received a hundred letters.
They all said the same thing: 'You can have mine.'
Anonymous

First Guy (proudly): 'My wife's an angel!'
Second Guy: 'You're lucky, mine's still alive.'
Anonymous

Theatre for Christ

Wow ... what a weekend! On Saturday morning I preached at the Cornerstone Men's Fellowship and I was so blessed with the great turn out. I talked about the story of Lot - "A Half Hearted Man and a Broken Hearted God." The need for no compromise!

On Saturday night, the very first production of 'Theatre for Christ' took place. My very first Premier! Theatre for Christ is the vision God gave to Jane Mangadap (above) - the lovely wife of Pastor Danny. When they were young they started a few Christian Theatre/Drama clubs in the Catholic church - and they are still going after 20 years! Jane is an amazing lady - I think she can literally do anything ... drama, singing, I.T stuff, art, video, Admin, writing etc. etc. - and she is such a blessing to the whole Cornerstone family. She is the Director for the Communications Dept. at Cornerstone.



She felt the Lord placing on her heart the need for a dance/drama group in Nagassican Church. Nagassican is a place that is really scorned by everyone in Santiago but God has promised us that he will make it a Place of Honour! And in the church many young people have been giving their lives to Christ. Many come from broken families and difficult situations. Many have not finished their schooling. But God is using these young people is wonderful ways. They have become intercessors and God is showing them - even the children - many visions and words. But that's another blog ...


Jane felt that she should open the 'Theatre for Christ '(TFC) to other Cornerstone Churches. So she ended up with 49 young people from 4 churches. Jane got a vision for doing a production about the story of the Bible - from Genesis to the resurrection. She put it all together - script and all - and called the young people to rehearse. They met every Thursday night and from 8-5 every Saturday from mid-December. A big commitment ... but it really paid off!


We found a sponsor from UK to buy all the materials for the backdrops, costumes, T-shirts, food for rehearsal days - a huge thank you (you know who you are!) Finally, January 31st came! To be honest, I didn't really know what to expect. But when I got there I could see that A LOT of effort had gone into this production by Jane & her amazing team.

They started. The young people were human trees ... then came Adam & Eve .. well, you know the story! The music was great and Pastor August did great voice-overs. Then we were taken to the 21st century to the effects of sin - drug problems, gambling, prostitution, murder etc. Then, out came the devil - Pastor August - and his two demons. They started throwing the people into hell (red lights and all!). They started running into the congregation to try and throw some of the spectators - frightening! My kids are convinced that Uncle Winston really is the devil (and I am having a hard time convincing them he is not)!


Then Pastor James Aquino came and spoke for 5 minutes about "There is No Hope." Really really powerful. Next scene was the birth of Jesus and the dancers danced to 'Joy to the World.' Probably the most powerful time for me was when they sang "I could only Imagine' and they portrayed the healing ministry of the Lord. Then they acted out the crucifixion to 'Above All' - so powerful.


Curtain down ... Pastor Winston came on and spoke about "There is Hope ... the Cross" He showed a 5 minute video. Again, really hard hitting. Part 3 was about the resurrection ... joy! All the young people danced and it was exciting to see them all dance together at the same time. Pastor Marlou finished things off with a challenge - "Your Commitment to Christ"


Then they had 'Curtain Call' and all the young people from the different churches did their own dance. There was such unity amongst these kids! They all gathered in front of the video screen and watched the credits and they even had a section of 'Bloopers' ... so funny.


I cannot describe the joy and emotion I felt that night. As a Pastor, I just stand back an watch in wonder as the Lord takes ordinary lives to do extra-ordinary things. It is on nights like these that I really think, "It's all worth it!'


These 49 kids - so many from broken homes and difficult lives - so professional, humble and disciplined. So happy. Full of joy. Hearts of gold. The main purpose of TFC is to 'Bring Christ to the Streets' and they have plans to do a lot of street work, evangelism and schools ministry. Right now, almost every school is open to Cornerstone - even the 4 High School are asking for us to come and minister to the kids. We are entering a season of harvest ... an these young people are key.


Enjoy the photos. They are good ... but you had to be there! Pray for Jane and her team. Pray for these young people. Pray for the ministry of TFC.

The Day the Wee Man Got Me!

Here is a classic moment for a wee boy who knows he has his daddy round his little finger and in a sticky situation!

We are at Cornerstone San Isidro Church and Josiah has been practicing his 'One Way' song all the way there in the car. But... when he gets up and Daddy announces that Josiah is going to sing, Josiah decides to pull a sucker punch. "Ayow," he says and repeats.

Ayow means, "I don't want to" in Tagalog.

Then, as quick as a flash he says, "Daddy, I have something to tell you. I will whisper in your ear. I want a little green toy tomorrow and a black one the next day. Then he starts singing .... ONE WAY, JESUS ..."

And he sings away like a choir boy! He got me real good. Check out his cheeky wee grin when I am taking him off the seat!

Yup, this kid is smarter than you think!

Let the Earth Hear His Voice ...

What a historic day! Today was a great day. I have loved living today.

Today we had the groundbreaking service for the new FEBC Radio Station here at Sefton. For those of you who don't know ...here's the story! In 1999, whilst here on our first visit to Sefton, on the day that we knew God was calling us here ... the Lord woke me up in the middle of the night and showed me a vision.

He told me, "Sefton Village will become a centre of fire." In this vision, as real as watching a movie, He showed me many things. He showed me children praying with tears. I saw young people prophesying and reaching out. I saw SBTC students going with fire torches into the darkness. I saw many being healed. And I saw a Radio Station. In the vision, I saw someone speaking into a microphone and at the same time I saw people listening to the radio, falling to their knees and accepting Christ as their Saviour. I was amazed.

As we went around the churches in 2000, I told them, "One day we will have a Radio Station at Sefton Village!" In truth, it seemed almost impossible and very unlikely. I know absolutely about Radio Stations, construction or programming. I had no contacts in the media world. But I had a vision ... and I knew that someday it would come to pass.

In 2003, still nothing had happened with the Radio Station vision. I remember thinking, "Lord, I am not going to push this vision right now ( I was so busy with SBTC & the Fire Centre building) ... but if it is of you ... show me what to do." A few weeks later I was invited to a presentation by FEBC radio here in Santiago. Well, as I sat in that church, the Lord spoke to me and said, "This is the time for the birth of my vision." At the end of the service I stood up, went to the front and said, "Don't worry, I know were your Radio Station is meant to be!" Kinda bold (especially as they thought they had land to build a Radio Station at Cauayan - a town 30 miles away!)


I met the FEBC guys and asked them to pray. Another 18 months passed .... nothing much happening. I heard that FEBC had a new Director - Mr Dan Andrew Cura - who I knew and recognised from the TV. He was a very well known News presenter on the Philippines' biggest channel. We met ... and became friends with a mission. We have met many times since over the last few years and have taken things step by step.

We leased a large portion of land to them at no cost for the next 50 years. I am pretty sure I won't be at Sefton at that time but if I am, we will sign it again for another 50! Pass me my zimmer ...

Over the last 18 months FEBC have sent up Radio Station managers to set up the ministry. They are a lovely couple called Em & Miriam Perez. They have ministered at FEBC for many years! They have trained many new programmers who speak many languages. This is the first Radio Station FEBC have started since the 1970's .. so we are all kinda new at this stuff!


The station is called DWMR 1143 they were joking today that MR stood for Mark Ritchie but actually it stands for Mission Radio!) The main aim of this station is to present the gospel in many different languages to many different people groups. Fantastic. There are around 5 or 6 Cornerstone Pastors who have already been trained.

So today we all met together to thank the Lord and break the ground. We met beside the new school building and many were there - Pastors, SBTC students, Programmers, Politicians, FEBC Staff and Board Members etc. We had a short service where many spoke, encouraged and shared. I was meant to give the Welcome Address but it almost turned into a preach! Only 7 minutes though ... good for me! I felt so fulfilled and delighted.


We went down to the actual place where they will build and broke the ground and cut the ribbon. I was so excited. The vision, though it lingered, was coming to pass before my eyes. They are expecting to complete all the buildings in 5 months and start going full time on air by May. Almost all of the northern Philippines will hear Christian Radio ... all the way from Sefton Village! Can you believe it? God's words are sure and his promises will come to pass.

I leave you with the words of the one and only song we sang today. But these words are a declaration that the world WILL hear about the Lord.

Be blessed ... dream, and don't doubt!

To God be the glory, great things He has done;
So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
Who yielded His life an atonement for sin,
And opened the life gate that all may go in.

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
And give Him the glory, great things He has done.

O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood,
To every believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.

Great things He has taught us, great things He has done,
And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son;
But purer, and higher, and greater will be
Our wonder, our transport, when Jesus we see.

'Under the Cosh'

A good friend of mine emailed me today and commented - "you sound like you are under the cosh?" Been thinking about it all day -what on earth does this phrase really mean? It's one of those phrases that you know what it implies but don't exactly know what it means.

What's a cosh? Being an Aberdeen supporter for many years - of course I know what under the cosh means!' But do you know know what a cosh is? A cosh is a 'weighted stick" and to be under the cosh means to be "under threat or coercion". The Cassell's Dictionary of Slang says it is a 1950s phrase, but relates it to a late 19th century American phrase "under the gun", with a similar meaning. A cosh is a weighted weapon to attack or hit with ... a weapon.

There you go! Are we under the cosh? Yup, we are! There is no doubt that we are under pressure right now from many angles, situations & attacks.

Right now, there are so many brilliant things happening in and through Sefton Village:

* These last two weeks have been amazing as far as the influence of our School is concerned. We have a lovely couple called Simon and Pauling Marsh here from England. Simon is a retired Headmaster and was the chairman of Christian Head Teachers UK for many years. They have been doing seminars for all Private School teachers here in Santiago and it has gone wonderfully well.

After the initial seminars last week the Chief of the Department of Education set up another seminar for today! And they have arranged for between 100-200 teachers to attend another seminar on Friday! And Simon is teaching principles straight from the Bible!

Two years ago, the Lord spoke to me and said that Sefton was going to be a source of blessing to the schools in Santiago. Id didn't know how and I spoke to Mary about it. But now ... it is happening before our eyes!

* Bible School is going great. Lorenz and Joy continue to bring excellence and challenges to SBTC.

* FEBC - Ground breaking service tomorrow! Wow.

* Street Pastors - we are beginning to realise that we have to begin to pastor people where they are...on the street. It is significant that probably 90% of the ministry of Jesus was on the street, in the marketplace. Probably 90% of any church's ministry today is in a church building. Major problem. More about this soon.

* Jail - Pastor August and team continue to see amazing things happen in BJMP. More conversions, more discipleship, more baptisms.

Top guy at BJMP says that since Sefton came, the jail has completely changed. Before' they fought like dogs ... but now they are encouraging and praying for each other'. You can feel the presence of God.

* Feeding Programme - Henry now doing feeding programme 3 days a week. Around 2000 kids a week! At the same time Pastor Jun is teaching the kids through the Powerhouse ministry.

* Hospital - wide open for us! We go every Wednesday but chief of hospital wants us there 'as much as possible Pastor' Now ministering in Cauayan hospital weekly as well.

* Churches - all growing! New churches being planted! Pastors full of vision and fire. God speaking and we are trying to listen.

Amazing things happening in Nagassican. Every morning this week they are having 'Jericoh Walks' from 3-6am! On Friday we will walk around Nagassican and anoint with oil as we go. The young people an children there are receiving visions and words from the Lord. Amazing. 'Nagassican is for the Lord,' Danny told me tonight. Another blog on another day.

Yup, the enemy is standing up and applauding what is happening here! Nope. For every advancement and victory there is a battle and a cost. Dodging the bullets and being under the cosh is difficult and we have faced these times before, and surely they will come again.

What are the main difficulties right now?

1. Finances - wish I could wave a magic spiritual wand and get the pound back up to 93 Pesos to the Pound (like it was in July!), but it ain't gonna happen. It has dropped like a stone. Yesterday we got 62 ... the same rate as we got when we came here 9 years ago! Nightmare.

Taking inflation of prices, we are probably getting only two thirds of what we were getting last year and half of what we were getting in 2000. With nearly 50-60 staff, a children's home and all the above ministries to run ... we are going under! We either have to pray for more monthly support from UK or begin to cut down our staff numbers here at Sefton.

The potential of revival is the point of recession!

Still praying and trying to find the Lord's mind on things. I am well aware that the whole of the UK is in financial crisis ... but we often preach about God's amazing economy ... now is the time to see if it is true! One thing's for sure ... He has never let us down yet!

Big pressure is also the building of the new school. If the pound had not dipped we would have had almost enough to have finished stage 1 of the building. But, because of the exchange rate, we are well behind. We need to be finished by June but as I speak we are down to our last few pesos with none at home!

We are at the end of the rope ... but 'without faith it is impossible to please God." If it's where God wants us to be it certainly is not where we would choose to be!

2. Physical attacks - we are well aware that many of our families are becoming sick. Pastor Jun's motorbike was stolen during the service. Today, on the way to hospital ministry I had a flat tyre, Marlou had a flat tyre and the chain and sprocket of Danny's motorbike was destroyed. OK, maybe you say these are all coincidences ... but I have lived long enough to recognise that the enemy works discouragements in this way.

3. Future plans - all of us Missionaries at Sefton are really trying to find the mind of Christ as far as to what our own future's hold and what is the plan of the Lord for Sefton. Should we hand Sefton over? If so when? If so, how? If so, to who? Huge. Major implications.

It is good for all of us to ask these questions because we don't want to go home early .. but neither do we want to stay a day too late! Don't worry ... we are not planning in moving on or coming home this year. But we are seeking the Lord for His PERFECT will.

4. Mary's dad - David has had a real difficult time of it over the last 4-5 months with one thing after the other. Recently he has been in real pain wit his hip. On Saturday he was in such pain that they had to take him by Ambulance to Inverness. They found out that his hip is actually broken ... but he has never fallen! He is having tests this week to find out what has happened.

As a missionary, these are the toughest time. When our families are suffering at home. It is so hard for Mary right now and she is literally taking one day at a time. Please pray for David, Mary's mum Wilma, her brother Bruce and for Mary herself. Thanks.

5. Busyness - since New Year it has been non stop. Meeting after meeting after event after event! Keep waiting for a 'normal' week to arrive! We've had quite a lot of visitors at Hotel Ritchie and there has been a lot of 'extra things' recently. Sefton is getting busier (typed that word a few times and still doesn't look right!) and the harvest is getting bigger!

Well, there it is! My heart has been opened up. I wrote on my Facebook that 'I am struggling' and I really was...and in many ways I still am. But I am not down, or depressed, miserable or moaning ... I am just a bit tired and a bit unsure of some things.

I'm at the amazing place where I need to see some miracles! and grace. But, been here before and I know, like Bear Grylis, there is always a way out!

Have to have attitude of the amazing Paul ...

'We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.

We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies. That is why we never give up.

Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!

So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.' (2 Cor 4:7-18)

Yes, we are 'under the cosh' right now ... but don't worry, like they said about those Hebrew young guys who were thrown in the fire - "there is another man in there with them."

Even 'under the cosh' ... Jesus is here! Selah!

Pastor Jun ... Still Smiling - but only Just!

Sorry for the long wait for a new blog. Been totally, absolutely, crazily frustrated with almost a complete lack of broadband in the last few weeks.

Many of you know Pastor Jun ... the guy who is always smiling! He has an amazing testimony and is really a trophy of grace. He is our Children's Pastor at Cornerstone and is a brilliant guy! He is married to Emmy Lou - one of our Teachers - and they do a great ministry with Powerhouse Kids Club, in Cornerstone Santiago and recently they have started a new church in Sinilli.


I did a staff appraisal with Pastor Jun and he was so excited about 2009. He is doing brilliant in the new church and uses his wee red motorbike everyday in every way. Lydia and Josiah are regular passengers on the bike (but don't tell their Grandas!!!) But, alas ... disaster struck.

Pastor Jun was leading the Sunday evening service at Cornerstone a couple of weeks ago. When the service was over he went out with Emmy Lou to go home ... no bike! Gone! All the members looked everywhere ... but it had been stolen. They were really upset for few days. They had been paying off the bike for almost two years and they were finally going to own the bike in August.


But they have really reacted in a positive way this week. Jun says that someone has 'borrowed it' for a few weeks! He is still full of smiles ... just! In the UK, it would be like getting your car nicked. Only problem here is that they have no insurance, so they cannot claim back anything.

Please pray for Jun & Emmy Lou. It's a tough break. When we started Street Pastors I felt that we would come under attack and it has happened to many of us. This last week has been super tough for me, as well as many of our pastors.

Will share more news soon ...

... in the meantime ... keep smiling!

Here's a wee cartoon to hep you! Goodnight...

Christmas @ Sefton (Part 1)

Well...what a Christmas that was! Last year, we had a huge Sefton Village Party on Christmas Day ... but it had become far too big and the kids were being neglected on the big day. So we decided to have parties by department.

So my first was the SBTC party on Dec 12th. We had a great night. I bought a Lechon (suckling roasted pig - above) for the students as a 'Thank You' for all their hard work during the Tri-District Conference. But first we played some great games in the Fire Centre and had a great laugh. The last game was one that Gowan and I used to do back in Scotland - Egg Roulette. Take 12 eggs, hard boil 6, let them cool, put them in an egg box and give them a number. Take 12 gullible people and let them choose what egg to hit on the other person's head ... result - a great huge laugh ... and a lot of mess!


On the week before Christmas I went down to Manila, bought a heap of last minute shopping and stuff for Sefton Village and then picked up the Strachan family at Manila Airport. We travelled straight up overnight (they were brave) and we were rally rushing because wee Josiah was singing and dancing in his School Christmas Performance. Well, we were doing pretty well and then, one hour from Sefton, we had a flat tyre! Middle of nowhere ... pouring rain! Disaster!

David 'Mr Fixit' Strachan made a grand effort to get the spare wheel off, but to no avail. Away Pastor Danny went to find someone. 'Fat chance', I thought! Middle of nowhere. Not even Danny, with his millions of uncles, brothers, friends and mother-in-laws could find someone on this mountain!


But, would you believe it ... back he came with a wee guy in tow, "He is a vulcaniser' beamed Danny. And a vulcaniser he was! This wee guy was like Asterix the Gaul or Popeye! He changed the tyre in seconds and soon we were on our way ... with a few laughs on the way home! Bad news ... missed Josiah by 10 minutes. Good news ... we didn't miss much - it was a 'no show' day for the wee man!

After a bit of a rest it was all go for parties. So on Friday 19th we went to the Cornerstone Party - a few games of bowling and then back to the church to eat. All the pastors with their families were there ... great night. It was also Peter Strachan's 16th that week .. so we got the big guy a cake and celebrated Cornerstone style!


On Saturday morning Lydia was performing at her School Christmas Performance ... now she was a star! Her class recited a Christmas poem and did a fantastic ' ' dance! I had hoped to have downloaded already, but our Internet has been terrible these last few weeks) Someone in the UK had given David & Grace money to take the children's Home to McDonalds ... and that was a great time.

I had a great week because poor David was the popular choice for all the Christmas events and parties - jail ministry (twice), Sunday services, Men's Ministry, watchnight services etc. He worked like a Trojan! I was his official driver! One of the highlights came on Christmas Eve in Nagassican. What a night!

The place was packed with people. All excited. Most had very little of this world's possessions but I guarantee you could not find a happier place on earth that night. We sang, the youth danced and David preached. David went out and put on his Santa's outfit ... you should have heard the gasps from the Filipinos! No-one here has even seen anyone dressed as Santa. So David brought the house down.


The kids were all given a gift (chosen and wrapped by Pastor Danny and his wife Jane) and the kids just hugged and held their present for ages, before opening. Some kids never even opened their gift .. and I asked the parents "Appai? Why?" Because it is the only gift they will receive on Christmas day and they want to open it tomorrow.

Selah.

I will take up the story again ... tomorrow! Goodnight ....

Catch Up After Christmas ...

Merry Christmas ... Happy New Year ... Happy Valentines ... life moves on so quickly!

So much to blog about. So many things have happened. So many things going on. So many things to do. So many things planned. So many ...

What a great Christmas we had! The Strachan family (David, Grace, Peter & Grace Louise) from Peterhead came and visited us over Christmas. We had a wonderful time ... especially me, because David ended up preaching at all the Cornerstone special Christmas parties and events!! Weyhey! I felt like I had a week off!

Over the next week I will write blogs about:

* Our kids @ Christmas
* Christmas @ Sefton
* Street Pastors
* Singapore
* Manny Paquiao

* 2009 Plans

I have challenged all our Pastors and Leaders of Ministries here at Sefton to start up their own blogs so that the amazing things they are doing can be spread around the world. So, hopefully, you will be able to keep track of most of our Cornerstone Churches, an SBTC blog, Feeding Programme Blog, Powerhouse Blog etc. I will let you know all their website addresses after they report back to me this week. Should be great!


I want to start the year off with a bit of a laugh. Mary & I have some friends that always say the wrong word at the wrong time. And, although the word is completely out of context, it sounds so funny. Know what I mean? We all know folk like that. Anyway, I have just read a BBC article about some of the clangers that George Bush has dropped. I know he is a Christian man and that he is the President of the USA, but he is not so good at articulating what he thinks. They actually have a new word that describes the problem of poor articulation - 'Bushism'

Just read these quotes and have a giggle (no offence intended!):

"They misunderestimated me."
Bentonville, Arkansas, 6 November, 2000

"I want to thank my friend, Senator Bill Frist, for joining us today. He married a Texas girl, I want you to know. Karyn is with us. A West Texas girl, just like me."
Nashville, Tennessee, 27 May, 2004

"For a century and a half now, America and Japan have formed one of the great and enduring alliances of modern times."
Tokyo, 18 February, 2002

"There's an old saying in Tennessee — I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again." —Nashville, Tenn., Sept. 17, 2002

"I think war is a dangerous place." Washington DC, 7 May, 2003

"The ambassador and the general were briefing me on the - the vast majority of Iraqis want to live in a peaceful, free world. And we will find these people and we will bring them to justice."
Washington DC, 27 October, 2003

"Free societies are hopeful societies. And free societies will be allies against these hateful few who have no conscience, who kill at the whim of a hat."
Washington DC, 17 September, 2004

"You know, one of the hardest parts of my job is to connect Iraq to the war on terror." CBS News, Washington DC, 6 September, 2006

"Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning?"
Florence, South Carolina, 11 January, 2000

"It's clearly a budget. It's got a lot of numbers in it."
Reuters, 5 May, 2000

"Too many good docs are getting out of the business. Too many OB/GYN's aren't able to practice their love with women all across the country."
Poplar Bluff, Missouri, 6 September, 2004

"Will the highways on the internet become more few?"
Concord, New Hampshire, 29 January, 2000

"I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully."
Saginaw, Michigan, 29 September, 2000

"Families is where our nation finds hope, where wings take dream."
LaCrosse, Wisconsin, 18 October, 2000

"Those who enter the country illegally violate the law."
Tucson, Arizona, 28 November, 2005

"And truth of the matter is, a lot of reports in Washington are never read by anybody. To show you how important this one is, I read it, and [Tony Blair] read it."
On the publication of the Baker-Hamilton Report, Washington DC, 7 December, 2006

"See, free nations are peaceful nations. Free nations don't attack each other. Free nations don't develop weapons of mass destruction." Milwaukee, Wis., Oct. 3, 2003

"Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we." —Washington, D.C., Aug. 5, 2004

"We spent a lot of time talking about Africa, as we should. Africa is a nation that suffers from incredible disease." —Gothenburg, Sweden, June 14, 2001

"We both use Colgate toothpaste." —after a reporter asked what he had in common with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Camp David, Md., Feb. 23, 2001

"For every fatal shooting, there were roughly three non-fatal shootings. And, folks, this is unacceptable in America. It's just unacceptable. And we're going to do something about it." —Philadelphia, Penn., May 14, 2001

"It is white." —after being asked by a child in Britain what the White House was like, July 19, 2001

"The most important thing is for us to find Osama bin Laden. It is our number one priority and we will not rest until we find him." —Washington, D.C., Sept. 13, 2001

"I don't know where bin Laden is. I have no idea and really don't care. It's not that important. It's not our priority." —Washington, D.C., March 13, 2002

"I'll be long gone before some smart person ever figures out what happened inside this Oval Office."
Washington DC, 12 May, 2008

Enjoy 2009 .... and May the Lord bless you and your family.

P.s. - Little Eunice Hope has made a prefect recovery. Pastor Winston wants me to thank all who prayed for her. Thanks!