Summer is quickly coming. Ground-breaking for our
new church building is looming on the horizon. I hope
you will continue to remember our building program in
your prayers and in your giving.
The Bible reading for the month of May is John 16 -
Acts 16. Be faithful in your reading.
Following is a letter from Paul Wilson. Paul is a
graduate of Midwest Christian College and a missionary
in the Philippines. Our church has given Paul some
support and anticipate some regular support sometime in
the future. I found his letter to be very interesting:
Dear friends at Westside!
I am glad to report that we are doing fine. Just a
little nervous that I may get Dengue Fever again
because here you can't avoid mosquitoes. It was
interesting being in a hospital here in the Philippines.
Mary is doing fine, and school is out for the summer.
She is busy helping get the many boxes of Sunday
School materials from College Press ready for
another distribution to the churches. We are in
summer now, which is our very hot/dry season.
Temperatures are mostly in the high 90s with
humidity.
Last week, we visited one of the churches' VBS sites
and were encouraged to see all the kids everywhere. I
wish it were possible to show you all the areas your
financial support has helped in providing materials
for many churches. The churches are growing, and
members are encouraged. New Bible study groups
are being formed.
I also spoke at a church camp last week in the south
area of the island. They had over 100 registered in
attendance. A breath-taking location on the beach by
the ocean and yet so humbling to see the adults and
campers staying under tarps and plastic sheets for a
week of camp. Each church prepared their own food
over an open fire and had a very basic menu of foods.
Also, I spoke this past Sunday morning at church and
visited an outreach area that evening.
Busy and loving it!
Mary is sending out an e-mail with some pictures
and more information soon. God is so good!
Pray for God's help in trying to get land for a
church on Samar Island. It is the poorest church that
I have visited. They worship behind a house under an
old tarp stretched out on some small ropes to keep
out of the rain and direct sunlight. The lay pastor
drives a trycee to earn income, and the wife sews on
a treadle sewing machine and sells peanut butter to
help make a living. They have four little girls, and
when I was there a few months ago, I took them out
to eat to get a hamburger, the first time they had
eaten out in 1½ years (since I was there before). The
pastor has located a piece of land, and we hope to
buy it if the Lord wills; then, we hope to build a
simple chapel and a small parsonage. The pastor and
family will then have a place to raise chickens and
vegetables to help meet their daily needs. This project
at Cabayog will not only help a church, but also a
needy pastor's family! Pray that VFM can help this
church next. It is a great distance from where I live.
Getting there takes two days of travel each way. It
will be hard to help complete this project so far from
our home, but the need is urgent for this location.
We rejoice that the land we bought on Palawan
Island will have a new parsonage and temporary
chapel completed this month. They hope to have their
first service at the new location soon and then have a
medical mission in the new neighborhood near the
church. Praise God for the new land on Palawan
Island and the building project that is almost
completed!
The needs of the churches, especially the financial
needs of the pastors, are always heavy on my heart.
We have several livelihood projects that we are
working with to help the pastors. A major concern is
that the price of rice, the staple of their daily lives,
has recently increased by 50%! It will be a hard time
for many of the pastors and church members until
August, the next harvest of rice.
Thank you for your love, prayers, support, and
concern! We serve such a wonderful God! Pray that
God will give His wisdom in helping the churches
and pastors.
In His Service,
Paul
