Mr. and Mrs. Jim Albright

I haven't posted in a long time! Finally we are back in the Philippines, still recovering from "jetlag," but enjoying the break. I don't have any official wedding photos yet, but I wanted to show you these few shots from the reception, (taken by my dear sister-in-law) just to prove that it really did happen. We are so thankful to God for a new son-in-law who loves Him and who loves Michelle. We could not ask for more! Michelle has graduated from university now, so we congratulate her on a job well done. She has worked hard and it has not been easy, but she made it! She now begins her new life as a wife and a nurse. Jim still has a few more terms of university to complete, so they will live in Texas where his school is located.

Missions Week

Missions Week is always one of the highlights of the year at ISOT-Asia. It's a time to focus our eyes on the unfinished task of bringing the Gospel to the whole earth. We had special speakers at Chapel each day, and last evening we ended with an International Food Festival outdoors (all wearing our costumes, of course). One of the sessions I enjoyed most was a video telling us that the task is overwhelming -- so the speaker gave the following advice: Aim lower, think small, give up, and go have a cup of coffee.

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Ha! That got our attention! Then he explained that the majority of people who become Christians do so before the age of 20. We need realize the importance of working with children and youth. It's more strategic to share the Gospel with younger people (Aim Lower!!) In order to reach them we need to think of training other young people to reach their peers. Kids can be evangelists (Think Small!!) Then he explained that when we are serious about devoting our lives to missions, we have to be willing to sacrifice for the cause, and to give up other things. (Give Up!!) And finally, we need to network with other believers who share the vision. Connecting with others in the body of Christ who have a similar focus will result in better use of resources. He suggested we start by meeting together with believers from other churches to discover how we can work together. (Go have a cup of coffee!!) It caught my attention and has made me think!

Davao Flowers

I have to show you the beautiful flowers of Davao! We went to an orchid farm one afternoon. If I were to buy an orchid and take it home, it would be dead in a week (I don't have a green thumb) so I will content myself with taking pictures.

One Kind of Ministry Week

This is a photo of James and his team in the ISOT parking lot, preparing to leave for Ministry Week. Twice a year all of the ISOT students and faculty head off to "the province" -- that's how we refer to anything outside Manila. The team spent the week working with a church in the province of Batangas, helping them to do evangelism in their community. Pictured left to right are James (from Canada of course), Thu Thu (from Myanmar), David (from the Philippines), Florin (from Romania), Seth (from Vanuatu), and Arnold and his wife Nomi (from the Philippines). They had a wonderful time and found many open doors to share the Gospel with high school students. The photos below show them in Batangas.

Another Kind of Ministry Week

While James and all the other professors go off to ministry week, the student wives are left behind on campus with the kids. I usually take the opportunity to spend a few days in the dormitory, staying with a different family each night. These are a few of the moms and kids I spent time with. The first photo shows Kuenrab and his mom Nengboi from Bhutan. Next is Suryoda from Nepal (during our outing to McDonald's). His mom Rita and sister Sukirti are in the third photo. The last photo shows me with Kuenrab. If you know me, you would know that I valued this opportunity to play with babies all day long for several days! (And then to give them back to their moms when I got tired!) It was also a great chance to have long sharing times with the moms after the kids were asleep. All of the ladies I stayed with are in my discipleshp group. I thank God for giving some rich times for mentoring.

Malaysia

I got back yesterday afternoon from my trip to Malaysia. I spent three days with our friends there. We talked and talked, did sightseeing and shopping, and generally just enjoyed being together. I asked you to pray that we would be a blessing to each other, and I believe that prayer was wonderfully answered. Thank you for praying for our time together! The photos are of me -- or general scenery -- to protect the family's identity, and to avoid creating unnecessary risks for their ministry.

More Malaysia

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Flowers

I had a wonderful trip to Malaysia. While there, I got a new camera, and decided to try taking some shots of flowers. I am inspired by my friend Doris who always has gorgeous flowers in her blog. All of these flowers are found in the Philippines too.

And More Flowers!

Another Trip

I am planning a trip to Malaysia this weekend to visit some dear ISOT graduates. I will leave on Saturday, August 12, and stay till Tuesday. Air Asia has some great deals these days and the cost of the trip was very reasonable. It started as a wish, and then a prayer, and is now becoming a reality! Pray that I will be an encouragement to this family and that God will use us to mutually bless each other. The last time I visited Malaysia was when I was 15 years old!

(Photo courtesy of Malaysia Tourism)

A Desire and a Dilemma

It all started with the desire of our ISOT international students to be used by God to help make disciples during their time in the Philippines. We have about 200 students at ISOT. About half are Filipino; the other 100 come from 20 different countries all over Asia and a few other spots on the globe. They are preparing themselves for ministry in some very strategic places. Take Phurpu, for example, a Tibetan student who is here at ISOT with his family. We know that God will use him in the future to reach Tibet, but Phurpu wants to see God use him now, in Manila. The dilemma is that while English is widely spoken in the Philippines, when Filipinos start talking about things that are really important to them, matters of the heart, they prefer to speak Tagalog. The result has been that our Filipino students have many great opportunities for ministry, but our international students often run into a language barrier.

We have been praying about this matter, and we asked ourselves, is there any ministry where it would be an ADVANTAGE to be an international? Then God gave us an idea! There are thousands of international college and university students here in the Philippines. They come here from all over Asia and the Middle East to study medicine, agriculture, computer engineering, English and many other courses. They come from some of the most unreached countries in the 10-40 Window, and many of them have never heard the Gospel, or even the name of Jesus. We realized that God has given us a golden opportunity! Seni, one of our incoming faculty members who comes from the South Pacific island nation of Tonga, had a concern for these college students. He agreed to give leadership to a team of ISOT students who will spearhead this ministry. James and I agreed to serve as advisors. About twenty of our ISOT students decided to join the team. Phurpu was one of them.

We met together to pray and brainstorm. The opportunities are so great! International college students, for once in their lives, are away from the social and family pressures in their own countries that might keep them from listening to the Gospel. For example, while they are here in the Philippines, they have complete freedom to attend a Bible study without being questioned by relatives or being found out by authorities. Also, international college students are often lonely and homesick, and they are longing to talk to someone who understands their struggles. Our ISOT international students do understand the struggles, and in many cases, they speak the very same languages as the international college students! And our ISOT international students have something to offer – they are ready to share the greatest news ever announced. The more we prayed and talked about it, we felt that we should assume that any international student or working professional we meet in the Philippines has been sent here by God to hear the Gospel!

We began meeting together with a core of ISOT student leaders, planning some strategies for reaching out to internationals. We targeted two universities near ISOT that have a large number of international students. We came up with all kinds of ideas, like offering help in adjusting to Philippine culture, learning English and basic Tagalog, soccer, ethnic foodfests, etc., etc. The more we talked, the more ideas came! Our objective is to find ways to connect with internationals, build relationships, and share the Gospel. With those who respond, we hope to disciple them during their years in the Philippines so that when they go home, they can have an impact for Jesus in their own countries.

We also decided to put up a website so that we can encourage internationals to visit regularly and learn about upcoming activities. Siby, one of our core members from India, is our computer whiz, and he is in charge of setting up the website. Our ISOT students went out and did surveys on the two campuses, asking international students what they would like to see on such a website. The response was enthusiastic, and just doing the survey already opened many doors for relationships. Of course, we needed to find an effective and attractive name for our website. It took weeks of brainstorming to come up with one that was not already in use on the internet! We had lots of clever ideas, but it seemed other clever people had already taken them. One of my favorite acronyms turned out to be the name of a website doing research on Islamic terrorist groups. Who knew?! Finally we came up with our name “The NETSPAN,” which is “The NETwork of Students and Professionals Across the Nations.” Siby is busy setting it up now.

Each week, our ISOT students are grabbing opportunities to go out and meet international college students. They introduce themselves as members of NETSPAN, a group dedicated to helping international students and professionals in the Philippines. Just yesterday Phurpu told me he spent three hours at the University of the Philippines talking to a group of international students in their dormitory. They were eager to pour out their hearts to a new friend who understood their struggles, and they asked him to come back again. The strategy is working! Please pray for us. We keep getting more ideas and we need God’s wisdom and direction about which ones to pursue. Pray that that this new outreach will result in a great harvest and that our international ISOT students will have many opportunities to make disciples.

Thanks for your partnership with us. Together, we are reaching the world!

Top of the World!

We flew to Nepal on April 30, after two weeks of praying and checking the news daily. The political situation was incredibly peaceful, in total contrast to one week earlier -- more about that later. Nepal is the home of Mount Everest, the highest point on planet Earth. But for me the high point of the trip was not Mount Everest -- in fact we did not get to see it because it was too cloudy. (This is a borrowed photo!) My high point was worshiping in a church in Jorpati, Kathmandu with a congregation of mostly young people who were singing praises to God in their own language. Their pastor, one of our graduates, turned to us with tears in his eyes and said, "They are your grandchildren!"
We heard that phrase over and over, as our former students introduced us to their students, their members, their friends, and said to us, "I've been teaching them what you taught me! I did with them what you did with me!"

We visited 16 of our alumni (ten of them are pictured with us here). We visited their homes and we ate with them. We worshipped in their churches and we ate with them.

We attended their Bible School graduation. We went to schools and organizations where they work. And we ate with them.

We listened to their stories. Did I mention that we ate with them? Nepalis express their love by feeding you! Only my Ukrainian mother-in-law can outdo them in this regard!

The night before we left, several of them complained, "You didn't stay long enough! You didn't meet enough of our people! We wanted you to eat with us again!"

We laughed because we knew that no matter how long we stayed, they would still say that. They were really enjoying the encouragement and the fellowship and the fun of sharing with us what God was doing through them. And we loved every moment too. We are eager to go back!

The political situation was more peaceful than it has been in years. Our CCC director in Nepal welcomed us with the words, "You have come to a new Nepal!" This week, for the first time in centuries, although it is still filled with Hindu temples, Nepal is not a Hindu kingdom anymore. It has been declared a secular state and all religions are considered equal. This is an awesome step forward in a country where many of our brothers and sisters have spent time in jail just for being believers! The Christians are very excited about that. We need to continue to pray as they frame a new constitution. It will not be an easy task.

Do you remember my blog a few months ago about Madan, the young Nepali guy who became a believer in Manila? He sent a gift with us to Nepal for his sister, which I had to deliver to her. (That was his intention, because he wanted me to have a reason to meet her.) She was delighted, and although our time together was short, it went really well. She started calling me "Didi" which is Nepali for "elder sister" and we exchanged email addresses. Since then we have chatted several times and are becoming on-line friends. Please pray that God will use our relationship to help draw her closer to Himself. Her name is Santoshi. She is still a very devout Hindu. Madan plans to go home soon, and he will share the Gospel in depth when he visits her. I am just helping to prepare the soil before the seeds are planted!

Ready to Fly

Finally we are ready to fly! Nepal has been through a great deal of turmoil in the past three weeks, but amazingly, in the last five days, things have become more peaceful than we ever imagined! The king has given power back to the people, the Parliament has met for the first time in four years, the Maoist rebels have declared a three-month ceasefire, and the people are feeling very hopeful. The next thing on the political agenda is an election for a constituent assembly whose task is to write a new constitution. Pray that this constitution will create a favorable environment for the Gospel. (I Timothy 2:1-4) Pray that God will use us to encourage the alumni we will be visiting. There are nine couples in ministry in Nepal who are ISOT graduates. We are really looking forward to spending time with them!

Pray for Our Trip to Kathmandu

We began praying three years ago for this trip. We wanted to have an opportunity to spend time with some of our graduates there, knowing they needed encouragement. In December, many of you gave special gifts to enable us to purchase the tickets. We scheduled the trip for April 16, and began making plans. About 10 days ago, a series of nationwide strikes began, calling for the king to step down and restore democracy. There have been tens of thousands of people demonstrating daily in the streets. After watching the news and consulting with our Nepalese students here in Manila, we decided that it would be wise to postpone our trip. This was disappointing, but we are not giving up. We have re-booked our tickets for two weeks from now. Please pray with us that our trip can push through as planned. And more importantly, pray for peace in Nepal.

Days of Celebration

The last few weeks have been filled with celebration. All kinds of special programs...The closing program for the kids school, the annual ISOT banquet, the formal graduation program, and the 25th anniversary of ISOT. Add to this all the last meals together with students we won't be seeing again, along with late nights talking with alumni who came to town for the 25th anniversary. I love partying, but even I had had enough by last week! Here are some glimpses...

This is the closing program of the little school at ISOT (Achiever's International Elementary School). They used the "Under Construction" program generously donated by friends in Somerset, Ky. and it was a hit with everyone.

This is Yajak and Jyoti Tamang. Shortly after they arrived at ISOT four years ago, doctors discovered a large tumor in Yajak's leg. He was told that the tumor was malignant and that his leg would have to be amputated. But God graciously intervened and the tumor was successfuly removed and his leg was saved. Watching Yajak WALK across the stage to get his diploma was a very sweet moment. This photo was taken during the banquet for graduates and their families.

A special part of the banquet was a foot-washing ceremony in which the discipleship group leaders washed the feet of their graduating members. James is washing the feet of Kap from Myanmar. Last night we had dinner at Kap's house -- he cooked goat stew for us!

This is a shot of the graduation itself -- we had 50 graduates this year, and not all of them can be seen in this shot. Just wanted you to see our speaker, center of the front row. This is Steve Douglas, the president of Campus Crusade for Christ.

This was part of the 25th anniversary program, which we celebrated later on the same day. It was colorful, inspiring, challenging, and encouraging! Days like this make us realize how privileged we are to work at ISOT-Asia, equipping leaders for the Asian Harvest. Thanks for making it possible for us to be here. Pray that God will give us strength and wisdom to carry on with this wonderful job we have!

My Son Was Right!

Matthew warned me that maintaining a webpage is not easy. He said, "Mom, if you don't update it regularly, your friends will get tired of checking it!" Of course, I insisted that it wouldn't be a problem... but now I have to admit he was right. Sometimes I have several ideas in a row for what to write about . . . and then a few weeks go by where nothing inspires me to blog. So here i am, three weeks later, finally posting again. And just to make you laugh, I am including a photo sent to me by one of the ladies in my office.

Our Little School

ISOT is a graduate level seminary, but in the middle of our campus you will find 29 elementary school students! These are the children of our international students. We have four teachers in multigraded classrooms. The kids are using the Alpha and Omega homeschooling curriculum.

One thing you will notice is a nice collection of library books. These were lovingly collected and sent to us by a group of friends in Somerset, Kentucky. One of the goals of our teachers from the beginning has been to create a "GLR" -- a "Genuine Love of Reading" in the children from a very early age. The library has been a great help with this! The kids love this book corner.

This is Allyne from Bangladesh. I guess books about dinosaurs are a hit with kids on any continent!

Notice the backpacks? Why do kids love backpacks so much??? These children live about 20 yards from the school but it seems that backpacks are a must . . .

Another thing that you will surely notice is that our ISOT kids are incredibly cute! This is Glory from Indonesia.

PSSSSST!

It seems the "GLR" is really there!

Did I get a perfect score?

Please pray for our international ISOT kids! They are in a strange environment, far from home and everything familiar. They have to learn English quickly, not just for conversation and play, but as the medium of instruction. There are many cultural differences between their countries and the Philippines -- lots of adjustments required. Pray for sensitive hearts for our four teachers. We are praying that our students can be recognized under the umbrella of a local Christian school without having to pay the large fee usually required.