Why Am I Sick, Lord?

I would like to introduce you to our good friend Raquel. We are in the same Growth Group in our church, Greenhills Christian Fellowship North (or GCF North). We have known Raquel for 25 years. When we were young CCC staff members doing campus ministry, she was a young college student involved in our ministry. She spent many years working with Philippine CCC herself, and later became a teacher. Now, she has almost finished her PhD in Clinical Psychology -- she'll be defending her dissertation next month.

About four years ago, Raquel discovered she had breast cancer, and went through months of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. She recovered very well, and so far, she's free of cancer. Around the same time, another couple in our church, Bong and Dory, went through a trying ordeal when they learned their daughter Polly had brain cancer. She too, recovered from the treatment and is cancer free so far. Here is a photo of Dory and Polly.

Other members in our church, on the other hand, died of cancer or watched their loved ones die of cancer. Raquel, Bong and Dory recognized that people caught up in the pain and confusion of dealing with cancer need help. They formed a support group called Rainbow Ministry. The group has been going for two years now, and has ministered to many, inside and outside our church, by walking alongside people who are dealing with cancer. A few months ago, Raquel had the idea of offering a session to the Rainbow Ministry group on what the Bible teaches about illness. Many people look at it as a punishment from God, and are confused about how Christians should respond. She asked James to develop a lecture on the topic, and we came up with the title, "Why Am I Sick, Lord?"

James provided a biblical overview of what the Bible teaches about sickness and healing. The audience really enjoyed looking at the topic together.

After the lecture we had small group discussions about how we could apply what we learned.

Finally, Raquel used her training as a counselor to teach the members how to provide a listening ear to those who are facing illness. The man on the right in this photo, who is doing the demonstration, is Bong, one of the Rainbow Ministry founders.

We always say that our ministry is full of variety! "Why Am I Sick?" was a good example of that.

Yehey! The Box Is Here!

There are lots of photos in this blog! I will just tell you the background and let the photos tell their own story. A good friend of ours from Kentucky, Linda Dunagan, has been an advocate of our children's school at IGSL from the time we opened it five years ago. She prays for us, gets others to pray for us, finds books for our kids, gets others to find books for our kids, is excited about what we are doing, gets others to be excited about what we are doing, and on and on. She is a great gift to us. While James and I were on furlough recently, Linda started collecting books and puzzles for our kids, and raising funds to ship three big boxes to us. Linda and Susie (another friend from Kentucky) sent the books, and we've been looking forward to seeing those boxes. A few days ago, the first box arrived. We made the kids wait for our photographer before we allowed the box to be opened, and they nearly died of anticipation! And then of course, they had to pray and thank Jesus for the box . . . so they had to wait a little more. FINALLY, the box was opened, and they have been reading ever since! It is so much fun to watch them enjoying the newly expanded library. Thanks, Linda and Susie, and ALL the friends in Kentucky who made this happen!

Personal Spiritual Growth

My apologies for not blogging last week. We still don't have internet at home, but the internet company promised we would get it this week. I hope so! I am grabbing a few minutes in the office to give you an update.

I have started teaching Personal Spiritual Growth to a new group of students in Partners in Ministry (PIM). This morning was our third class. I think this is my ninth year to teach this subject! I believe the course is improving, as I think of better ways to communicate with my students. It's a challenge because I have to keep my English simple for those who don't speak much English. At the same time, many of my other students speak English very well, and I don't want them to be bored. Pray for me!

During the first week we talked about spiritual growth, and I brought in a variety of plants, some healthy, some sick, and one that was plastic. It's always an interesting discussion as we try to evaluate our own current state of growth.