Philippines E-Camp Part 5 - Fight On (Tagum City, 11/08)

I decided to use the Cross magic trick that morning, as I figured that high school kids might want something more visual. Alina demonstrated it once, but I hadn't tried it out. That was the first time I'd be doing it in the classroom. I prayed fervently that it would all work out, that the colour of the water would change from dark to normal when I put the Cross in. And thank God, it did! Thank God for Beverly helping me too. But what encouraged me most was that someone texted Ate Abigael, thanking her for someone sharing about Jesus with her. Thank God for using weak vessels like us to bring the Good News to people...

We didn't have room-to-room opportunities at our second school. Instead, we could gather students and start sharing the Gospel with them. I was worried initially. In room-to-room evangelism, everyone would already be in the class ready to listen. But in group evangelism, I was afraid that no one would bother about me. Well I was wrong. I prayed for courage, and thank God for the opportunity to speak to 3 groups of students. It was really nice when students passed by in the midst of my sharing, and joined the group to listen. It was probably out of curiosity regarding this foreigner, but we can never underestimate the power of the Gospel. Thank God for the friendliness of the students and their willingness to listen.

Several of the students from my first group

Thank God for His grace and strength for the rest of the day. One of my evening classes was actually held in a garage. When Ate Melai was leading me to a class, I'd expected a normal classroom of students. When I realised that I'd be speaking to an all-guy class in a huge garage with lots of background noise of the guys working on their cars, I was a little apprehensive. But I knew that it wasn't about the audience or the venue or the conditions, it was about reaching out to the lost. Thank God that the place quietened down, for giving me the voice to battle the surroundings, for giving me ideas to tweak my illustrations to better appeal to the crowd, and for the students listening attentively.

I was just chatting with Alina while waiting for the rest of the team to be done, and we were talking about why we decided to go for the campaign. I was truly blessed by the sharing. It was really encouraging hearing about how she made the decision to go, how it was initially a mere promise but eventually became a sincere desire to serve God. It's remarkable, how God works in people's lives and changes their perceptions when there is a genuine willingness to honour Him. Even hearing about how Charmaine and Pearlyn decided to go, it's just amazing. It's so nice when people put aside their cares and concerns, their doubts and fears, to serve Him. I'm so thankful for them going, and I'm really glad I went!

On top of all that, it was a great rooming with Janice, Beverly and Jill for two nights. The times of talking and praying, having different roommates and getting to know Beverly so much better... It was really nice. Thank God for them! :)