Category: Mercy Ministry

From Elaine:

We first shared the story of 23 yr. old Reshel in Dec 2016. Our hearts were moved for this young lady. I knew there was a way to help, but the solution would take time.

My friend Angela and I set out to find a suitable walker in Winnipeg. God provided what we needed, now to get it to the other side of the world.  It was taken apart to fit in a box and left Winnipeg along with other donated blessings for the 3 month journey over the ocean to Siargao Island.

The really awesome part of this is that the box arrived in April when our Winnipeg team of Angela & Jeff, Dennis & Charlene and Brian & I did.  Jeff was very aware as he put it all back together, the incredible impact this would have on a young girl’s life.

What a joy to see the end result of how God worked!  We headed down the road in our Hope for the Island truck with Hope staff, to a village in the northern part of the island. In true island style we had no idea if she was home or not. You just show up and hope for the best! Reshel had no idea that we were coming and why!!!

The walker was unloaded. Reshel shyly peered around the corner of a curtained off room.

An explanation was given to Reshel as to who we were and why we were there. Tears flowed as Reshel took her first few shaky steps. Before long she was turning corners recklessly and soon needed a rest!

As we prayed and got to know her, we heard that she had been promised help previously and how that promise fell through. A huge disappointment only brought this young lady closer to her God as she persevered and intensified her prayers believing for a miracle. Her faith and love for God inspired us all.

Over and over again others and myself witness the way God works in this ministry. It gives those of us who live in the western world a visual of our God in action.

If we are hungry we can go to a food bank, if we are sick we can go to a doctor or hospital, if we need money we can get a job or apply for welfare.  We don’t need to apologize for our way of life and the privileges we have. It does however make we wonder if I would trust God as Reshel and others on this island do every day for their daily food, family, health and safety.

Read Reshel’s previous post 

Witness the answer to prayer as you watch a 2 min. video Reshel Video

 

Meet 23-year-old Reshel. She has only finished her 1st year of high school.

Her parents don’t know what has caused her disability. It started with her hands when she was five.  She used to live in Manila with her grandparents and had opportunity to go to a therapist and receive vitamins all free of charge.   A doctor indicated she does have a problem with her blood. Vague diagnosis or none at all is common.

She came to Siargao Island when she was 12 years old.  After being away from the source of vitamins and therapy, she got thinner.

Reshel has quit attending school because she is so self-conscious of her condition. Because of a lack of exercise, she is deteriorating more and more.  She longs to go back to school and to be more active.

Thank God we were able to get a much needed walker for her in Canada and it is on the way now in a box to the Philippines!

Vitamins and therapy are current needs.  Our remote location makes it costly to travel for the therapy.

Please continue to pray for her as she deals with these issues at such a young age. We are grateful for how God has already provided.  See a short video of Reshel

From Jing:

We enjoy spending time with and supplementing the diet of some seniors and widows in need.

Nanay (older mother) Ethan is one of those widows. Her grandchild Joy is actively involved in my discipleship in the Mia area.

I visited Nanay Ethan after hearing she was among those who had been poisoned. Because of hunger, many elderly widows head up to the mountain to find food that grows wild.

This time they chose the wrong mushrooms to eat and even gave some to a daughter who is breastfeeding an infant. Almost immediately after eating they started vomiting uncontrollably, urinating and had diarrhea.

When people realized they have eaten the wrong kind of mushroom, they found a way to take them to a doctor over an hour away in the south of the island.

Thank God they were treated right away and now they have all recovered.

Nanay testifies that God still has something for her here on earth that is why she did not die.Thank God for He is good to His children.

Please be with us in praying for these widows. Rainy season is approaching making it impossible for people to go fishing in the high winds and torrential rain. They have no fish most of the time. Farming is also very hard during this season. Most of the locals get very hungry and suffer many illnesses.

Maryjane and her sister Jeremay face many hardships at their young age. Their mother went to the big city with plans to send money to help meet family needs and with a promise to not be gone long. Six years later she still hasn’t returned.  Distraught and desperate, their father looks for any work he can find to make ends meet.  His efforts have come up short and his regular absence from home leaves his daughters in a lonely and hopeless place.

These sisters have been part of our daily Malnourished Feeding Program. Jeremay has reached the weight she should be, but Maryjane still struggles to reach a healthy weight and regain her health.

Please keep them in prayer as we minister to them weekly. Pray for opportunities for the father to find work near to home. Pray that they will respond well to the care and healthy food we supply. Food is cooked in the morning and they have to make it last until their father returns. Pray that their heart finds healing from deep wounds they have and for God’s love and hope to shine through our staff that spend time connecting with them each week.

Each week we look forward to times of joy as we connect heart to heart with the widows most in need. They often face an entire life of poverty related struggles alone and suffering horribly.

As we simply step into their world with love and compassion, life and joy is being restored in their hearts. Helping them find dignity and comfort is an honor and privilege! Love has such power.

As part of Mercy Ministry, Jing has been visiting three particular widows. She brings a meal and spends time reading to them from the Bible. We praise God that all three of them recently responded to God’s goodness and love in prayer by renewing their faith and hope in Jesus.

Although most find it difficult to read, we pray that faith will be stirred in their hearts as we speak truth and life into them through the Word! (Rom 10:17)

Nanay Tansya lives alone in the house we built for her. Link to Video and story She had an accident recently and hit her head hard on a rock trying to get Kalamungay leaves from a tree to feed herself. Thankfully, some people saw what happened and rushed her to the clinic. Each day she comes to Hope for the Island to have her wound cleaned. Please pray against infection!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We have the privilege of spending time with and serving many of the elderly in our community. Everyday you can see them by the road breaking rocks with a hammer. They sell the smaller broken rocks to construction companies.  This dangerous and difficult labor earns them some pesos to feed themselves. Each sack they fill earns them 20 pesos or about 50 cents.

Please stand with us in prayer for strength and good health for these dear elderly men and women.  Because they can’t put in a full day of work we help supplement their diet with vegetables and rice. Pray also for an open mind for the Word of God. It is often hard for them to understand or hear as we read to them. Their hearing and sight is failing. It can take them a minute or so to recognize us when we arrive to visit with them.

 

Pray for God’s blessing and provision to be upon these precious seniors that are the beloved children of God.