“I appointed you that you should go out and produce fruit and that your fruit should remain.” (John 15:16) East Samar, Philippines - May 2016. People often ask about the long term impact of a Journey of Compassion on the places where we go. This is a very legitimate question.
Borongan, Philippines - May 25, 2016
It has been a very full trip; we have ministered in eight different barangays (communities) in nine days. We reached three barangays by boat--two were a long way up rivers and one was on an island across a strait. In each community we watched as Jesus miraculously healed men, women and children. (Just before I sat down to write this, the Lord healed a woman of severe hip injury and pain. She shouted with joy as she was instantly able to walk freely again, as her husband cried tears of joy).
Often in our Impact Nations articles, we report on what is happening in the various developing nations where we are at work in order to encourage one another and to remind ourselves that we serve a faithful Lord. In fact, this article finishes with a terrific report from DD, our partner in Haiti.
“This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. 27Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how.28All by itself the soil produces grain” (Mk 4:26-28 NIV)
I have been thinking about all that is going on right now in the Impact world. This morning I received pictures of the new piggery in Kalonga. The roof was completed just today. Now our Ugandan partners have doubled their capacity to raise and house pigs–-to about 70. Pigs are one of the most profitable ventures we have in Kalonga, helping to pay for food for orphans, teachers’ salaries, and starting new ventures for women-at-risk.
What joy awaits both the planter and the harvester alike! 37You know the saying, ‘One plants and another harvests.’ And it’s true. 38I sent you to harvest where you didn’t plant; others had already done the work, and now you will get to gather the harvest.” (Jn 4:36-38 NLT)
As we prepare to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus and His resurrection life and power in us, I am reminded of this testimony from last year’s Philippines Journey of Compassion. We were in our final barangay, giving out bags of rice and distributing water filters among the village that had been ravaged by two different typhoons. As we came to the door of one house, we could see a woman trying to come to us.
Recently I re-read Eager to Love, Richard Rohr’s remarkable book about Francis of Assisi. From my earliest days of following Jesus, I have been fascinated, moved and challenged by the life of Francis. This book is filled with much to ponder.
When I was young, I used to listen to Paul Harvey’s The Rest of the Story on the radio. He would tell a really interesting story, then inform the listeners that there was an even more interesting follow-up. Last month, I was with a good friend in Kenya who told me “the rest of the story”.
A few weeks ago I met a woman in a large city in Tanzania. She was striking––both her physical beauty and her confident bearing immediately stood out. “Anne” was a very successful businesswoman. She traded in various grains, importing and exporting to various east African countries. My friend told me that Anne was, by Kenyan standards, a millionaire. Then he informed me that just three years ago, Anne was working the streets as a prostitute. Having just conversed with this self-assured, professional woman, I confess this was hard to imagine.
