Our last day in CDO allowed us to reconnect with a long-time ministry partner who we had just worked with last month. Our friends in the Christian Businessman's Fellowship had scheduled us through Thursday, but our flight left on Saturday morning so we called Pastor Noel to help us connect with some Pastors and Churches to evangelize in their area on our last day.
Our first 2 games were at a small court in Barangay Bugo. Our first game was played against some kids from a local Christian orphanage. To keep it as fair as possible we only fielded the 6 smallest players on our team, but it was still a blow out. We played a set score, and the final was 30-16. After the game, we just had a sit down with the 6 orphans and did our best to try to encourage them in their Christian walk. All of them are professed Christians, so we gave them New Testaments and prayed with them. They seemed encouraged that we took the time to talk to them and we were happy to meet some of our Christian brothers.
The next game was at the same court against some of the adults from the community. The game was no match on the basketball side of things, but with the heat and sun it was fairly difficult to get people to come out. We did our best to put on a good show and try to make as much noise as possible to spark the interest of anyone who could hear us. In the end, we may have had 75 people there. We did our normal presentation and Micah F shared his testimony. We made sure everyone got a tract, even people watching from close to 100 yards away from across a field. We won the game 40 - 28.
One of the more interesting things about our 2 morning games was an older gentleman that we met. When we first arrived he was very excited to see some Americans in his little village. He ended up being the ref of our game, and while his calls were suspect, his friendliness and hospitality were not. After our two games, it was about 11 am, which in US time would have been 10 pm CST Thursday night. Those NBA fans out there will remember that this was about mid way through the second half of game 7 of the NBA finals between the Lakers and the Celtics. We ended up inside the man's house and watched the last 45 minutes of the game huddled around a TV in his tiny living room area. It was pretty exciting and we were all going back and forth about which team we wanted to win.
Following the game was over we headed out to the van we rode in, while we were leaving I saw Pastor Noel talking to the man. Noel shared with me later that this man had accepted Christ many years ago, but had not been serving Christ for many years. He told Pastor Noel that he felt like Zacchaeus, and was so encouraged that we had spent time in his home he vowed to return to serving God then and there. We connected him with the local pastor who we had partnered with for that game and we are confident that this pastor will help get him back on the right path. What a blessing that God allowed us to be a part of this story. I don't remember the man's name, but please pray for the Bugo Zacchaeus, as well as the many other people who heard the Gospel on Friday morning.
After the game we headed to the local church and had lunch: The Pinoy equivalent to rotisserie chicken... so good! We had a chance to pray with the local pastor and gave him a good size love offering to help with his family and his ministry in Bugo.
We had a chance to rest at the hotel before our last game of the trip, then we headed back out to the Barangay Hall in Bugo. It started out with a small crowd, but by the time we got to half time, the place was pretty full. I would say that over 400 people were there and we handed out at least that many tracts. Micah G shared his testimony and Pastor Noel gave a Gospel presentation in the local dialect. The other team was very physical and played very hard, but in the end, we managed a 77-62 victory. Please keep all the people in Bugo in your prayers. Those who heard our Gospel presentation as well as those who did not but might come into contact with one of the pastors there.
The final game of this trip went great and we know that God is going to use it to enlarge His kingdom. It was however, a bittersweet ending to what I guess could be called a bit of an era. One of the people who have been instrumental in starting Buhay Sports and bringing it to where it is today, played his final game as a full time missionary in the Philippines. Daniel was on our very first trip over 4 years ago, and while we wish Daniel the best as he follows God's leading back to the states (June 30), we hope God will bless his plan to continue coming back for short term trips in the future. Thanks Daniel for all the work you have put into making this ministry what it is, we are blessed that God allowed us to benefit from the talents and abilities He blessed you with.
We have another trip starting July 14! Please keep us in your prayers as we prepare for another great opportunity to share the Gospel with many who have not heard, and many who need to hear again!
Monday, June 21, 2010
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Rain Rain Go Away... Day 4 Recap
Today was our last day with the Christian Businessman's Fellowship in Cagayan de Oro. We met up with a friend for lunch and then met with another fried for ice cream after that. We had some free time at the mall for a few hours and then we headed to our game. Thankfully, our game was just across the street from our hotel at Capitol University.
As we were heading to the court, I looked up and thought that I was sure glad that we were playing in a gym. It has rained every night since we have been in Mindanao and it looked like tonight would be no different. As we got closer to the court, I was disappointed to see that we were in fact, not playing in a gym, or even in a covered court. It was wide open. As our team huddled together to start the game, we said a quick prayer asking God to hold off the rain and give CJ the right words to share with the crowd at half time. Even as we were walking onto the court drops were starting to sprinkle down on the court. It was disappointing, but I just thought: "keep praying, God is in control of this." We were praying the whole game, and while the clouds never left and there was a little bit of lightning in the distance, after a few seconds of sprinkles, there was no more rain. It was amazing to see God answer that prayer within moments.
We got the game started against the Capitol College Varsity team. We extended the lead up to 10 or 15 on a couple of different occasions, but these scrappy players kept coming back and we had to hang on to win 85 - 80. CJ shared at half time, and because of the rain we had already handed out tracts to everyone in case we did get rained out. A local pastor again shared a message of salvation and led the crowd through the sinners prayer. The local businessman's fellowship and church members will be following up over the coming days/weeks/months. I hope we get a chance to hear how many people accepted Christ, but we know He did not hold off the rain for nothing! Keep Capitol University in your prayers!
CJ Sharing his testimony with the students and players from Capitol University. It is amazing how intently people listen when they know you can do a 360 dunk.
Our team listening as the local pastor shares the gospel with the spectators in their language.
Here is some of our team with the opposing team. Most of us were probably getting dragged off for other photo ops.
As we were heading to the court, I looked up and thought that I was sure glad that we were playing in a gym. It has rained every night since we have been in Mindanao and it looked like tonight would be no different. As we got closer to the court, I was disappointed to see that we were in fact, not playing in a gym, or even in a covered court. It was wide open. As our team huddled together to start the game, we said a quick prayer asking God to hold off the rain and give CJ the right words to share with the crowd at half time. Even as we were walking onto the court drops were starting to sprinkle down on the court. It was disappointing, but I just thought: "keep praying, God is in control of this." We were praying the whole game, and while the clouds never left and there was a little bit of lightning in the distance, after a few seconds of sprinkles, there was no more rain. It was amazing to see God answer that prayer within moments.
We got the game started against the Capitol College Varsity team. We extended the lead up to 10 or 15 on a couple of different occasions, but these scrappy players kept coming back and we had to hang on to win 85 - 80. CJ shared at half time, and because of the rain we had already handed out tracts to everyone in case we did get rained out. A local pastor again shared a message of salvation and led the crowd through the sinners prayer. The local businessman's fellowship and church members will be following up over the coming days/weeks/months. I hope we get a chance to hear how many people accepted Christ, but we know He did not hold off the rain for nothing! Keep Capitol University in your prayers!
CJ Sharing his testimony with the students and players from Capitol University. It is amazing how intently people listen when they know you can do a 360 dunk.
Our team listening as the local pastor shares the gospel with the spectators in their language.
Here is some of our team with the opposing team. Most of us were probably getting dragged off for other photo ops.
Finally, A Little Break!
This morning we woke up and headed back to Cagayan de Oro, the city we had originally flown into. We had to leave very early so Kirk could get to the airport in time to catch a flight back to Manila and then get to class at Ateneo. We met up with our hosts in CDO, the Cagayan de Oro Chapter of the Christian Businessman's Fellowship. After we dropped Kirk at the airport we headed to the hotel where we will be staying for the rest of the trip. We finally had some real time to relax. Up to now, it has just been a few minutes here and there, but because we had left so early we had a good amount of time at the hotel before our next appointment. We ate lunch together as a team at Pizza Hut. Real Nice!
We headed to our game at 4:30 pm in Barangay Puerto. We arrived about 5:30 and there were a few people around, but there was no opposing team to be found. We waited and waited and by 6:45 there was still no team. I talked to our hosts and told them that if no one was there by 7:00 we would just do a dunk contest and play some games with the kids instead of playing a full game. I am not sure if that had anything to do with it, but the team showed up right at 7. One benefit of sitting there so long was that word had gotten out that there were Americans at the court. By the time the game started there were close to 2000 people crowded into the little covered court.
This is just a small section of the crowd. See how people squeeze in just to get a glimpse of the game?
Mark getting mauled by fans who want pictures, or autographs... or a lock of his hair
We had a great game, and while it was not a close score, the rims were back to regular size and CJ and Josh were able to keep everyone excited with some dunks (mostly CJ). The final score was 84 - 64. Micah F shared his testimony at halftime and we gave tracts to everyone. A local pastor shared a Gospel presentation and we invited everyone to visit the local church on Sunday. Pray that the words we spoke and the tracts we gave out will lead someone to give their life to Christ or stop in to church on Sunday and hear more about it.
Vince handing out tracts to spectators in Barangay Puerto
We headed to our game at 4:30 pm in Barangay Puerto. We arrived about 5:30 and there were a few people around, but there was no opposing team to be found. We waited and waited and by 6:45 there was still no team. I talked to our hosts and told them that if no one was there by 7:00 we would just do a dunk contest and play some games with the kids instead of playing a full game. I am not sure if that had anything to do with it, but the team showed up right at 7. One benefit of sitting there so long was that word had gotten out that there were Americans at the court. By the time the game started there were close to 2000 people crowded into the little covered court.
This is just a small section of the crowd. See how people squeeze in just to get a glimpse of the game?
Mark getting mauled by fans who want pictures, or autographs... or a lock of his hair
We had a great game, and while it was not a close score, the rims were back to regular size and CJ and Josh were able to keep everyone excited with some dunks (mostly CJ). The final score was 84 - 64. Micah F shared his testimony at halftime and we gave tracts to everyone. A local pastor shared a Gospel presentation and we invited everyone to visit the local church on Sunday. Pray that the words we spoke and the tracts we gave out will lead someone to give their life to Christ or stop in to church on Sunday and hear more about it.
Vince handing out tracts to spectators in Barangay Puerto
Tuesday: Big Games and Big Waterfalls
We woke up today at 6:00 AM to meet our hosts from the Iligan City Businessman's Fellowship. They have a weekly meeting where they play and this week they invited us to join in a quick game with some of their friends. By 7:30 we finished a short friendship game which we won 62-40. Immediately after we played a local barangay team that was made up of several local star players. Although it was 8:00 in the morning we had a pretty large crowd. It was by far the most competitive game of the trip and we came back from a 20 point deficit to win 132-120. Afterward, Kirk Long was able to share his testimonies with the local players and some of our security team that has been following us around for the last 2 days.
Our team posing with the guys from our morning games in Iligan City
Daniel with the guys from the Army who were assigned to our team while we were in Iligan City. No worries parents, this is just something that the local mayors like to do to make us feel welcome. We weren't really in danger, although, it should help you sleep a little better at night knowing we have 24 hour armed guards :)
After our game we had meetings with the local mayor and the congressman of the area. Then were able to take in some sightseeing and we visited Tinago falls. Tinago Falls is a great local waterfall where we were able to swim and cliff dive. Some of the missionaries who have grown up in the Philippines said it was the nicest nature spot they have seen in all of the country.
All of the guys who made the journey to the waterfall. It was a blast! There were a few kids who showed us how to climb the rocks for a good high jump into the water.
When we returned from Tinago falls we headed to our 3rd game of the day. As we pulled up to Tibangan court we could hear that the crowd was ready for us. The court was completely packed with well over 1000 people. Vince Burke challenged the crowd to give their lives to Christ at halftime and we handed out tracts to many eager fans. Generally we are able to get the crowd excited with lots of dunks, but the goals at this court were well over 10' 6" high... no one was dunking tonight, but the crowd stayed excited because the game was close... after a few scares, we pulled out an 85-80 victory.
As we left the game we headed to a short dinner where we were able to meet with our opponents in a smaller setting and Daniel was able to share the Gospel with them. Please pray for these players as we challenged them to make a decision for Christ.
Our team posing with the guys from our morning games in Iligan City
Daniel with the guys from the Army who were assigned to our team while we were in Iligan City. No worries parents, this is just something that the local mayors like to do to make us feel welcome. We weren't really in danger, although, it should help you sleep a little better at night knowing we have 24 hour armed guards :)
After our game we had meetings with the local mayor and the congressman of the area. Then were able to take in some sightseeing and we visited Tinago falls. Tinago Falls is a great local waterfall where we were able to swim and cliff dive. Some of the missionaries who have grown up in the Philippines said it was the nicest nature spot they have seen in all of the country.
All of the guys who made the journey to the waterfall. It was a blast! There were a few kids who showed us how to climb the rocks for a good high jump into the water.
When we returned from Tinago falls we headed to our 3rd game of the day. As we pulled up to Tibangan court we could hear that the crowd was ready for us. The court was completely packed with well over 1000 people. Vince Burke challenged the crowd to give their lives to Christ at halftime and we handed out tracts to many eager fans. Generally we are able to get the crowd excited with lots of dunks, but the goals at this court were well over 10' 6" high... no one was dunking tonight, but the crowd stayed excited because the game was close... after a few scares, we pulled out an 85-80 victory.
As we left the game we headed to a short dinner where we were able to meet with our opponents in a smaller setting and Daniel was able to share the Gospel with them. Please pray for these players as we challenged them to make a decision for Christ.
June 2010, Trip to Iligan City and Cagayan de Oro, Mindanao Island
Today was a long, long day. We woke up at 2:00 a.m. to meet up and load the van for our trip to the airport. We headed out at 2:30 and arrived at the airport at 3:15 for our 4:20 flight. We made it through check in pretty quick but by the time we got through all of the security checkpoints it was time to board the plane.
Our plane landed at 5:30 a.m. and our hosts from the Iligan City Christian Businessman's Fellowship were there to pick us up. They really rolled out the welcome wagon! As we walked out of the airport they had a large banner welcoming our team and they gave us all medallions to wear around our neck. As we went throughout the day, this treatment would continue. It was such a blessing to see people so excited about getting involved in ministry to their community.
One of the biggest blessings was reconnecting with Brother Nelson, who Josh has worked with the last couple of years. He was the one who helped coordinate the details of our trip. He is a local businessman in Iligan City and Cagayan de Oro, but his passion for ministry is evident and the smile never left his face as we traveled around to our different events.
After stopping for some breakfast we headed 2 hours north to Iligan City, where we will spend our first two days. We got situated and had about 30 minutes to relax, then we went out for the motorcade. This consisted of driving around to the main parts of town and throwing out fliers from the back of the trucks we were riding in. It was going great until it started raining. We still did our best, but by the end it was pouring so had that we all got inside the trucks and rolled the windows down to invite people to come to our games. We also stopped at the mall to hand out fliers and invite people to the games as well.
The view of our motorcade from the front vehicle. This is before the rain came pouring down!
At the mall inviting people to come to our game. Everywhere we go, people want to take pictures of us with their cell phone cameras! Isn't technology wonderful?!?
After the motorcade we traveled back to the hotel and prepared for the game. We had a few minutes to relax, and then we headed to the game. We arrived and the game went as normal. It was a pretty tough team, but we maintained control pretty easily with the help of our late addition CJ, who is a friend who does sports ministry in Cebu City. Josh shared his testimony at half time and a local pastor followed up with a Gospel presentation in the local language. We gave the over 1000 people in attendance a gospel tract that the pastor also explained in detail. We went on to win the game 87 - 75.
After the game, we met the opposing team for dinner at Ritzas. After a great meal of Lechon Baboy (Whole Pig Roast) we had a chance to tell them about Buhay Sports and then share a more specific challenge to them as athletes to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. CJ is a friend of ours who is just out of college in the states and is spending the coming months in Cebu City helping out with sports ministry teams there. He told him that when his life was centered around basketball it was never going to last forever, but when he committed his life to join the team of Jesus Christ, he was on a team that would be playing for eternity. It was a really great perspective to share with athletes. After CJ spoke, we had a local pastor who came up and led the players in the sinners prayer. We don't know how many of them said it and truly made a decision to give their hearts to Christ, but a few of them talked to our hosts after the dinner was over and said they had accepted Christ. Our hosts and the local pastors will continue to follow up and hopefully we will get a full report down the road, but at this point, even to know that 1 or 2 have professed salvation makes the long long day worth it!
Here is CJ at the restaurant sharing his testimony with the team we had just played
Keep the people from Iligan City who heard our presentation and the players who we shared with after the game in your prayers. While some of them made professions of faith, there are still more who need to give their life to Christ.
Our plane landed at 5:30 a.m. and our hosts from the Iligan City Christian Businessman's Fellowship were there to pick us up. They really rolled out the welcome wagon! As we walked out of the airport they had a large banner welcoming our team and they gave us all medallions to wear around our neck. As we went throughout the day, this treatment would continue. It was such a blessing to see people so excited about getting involved in ministry to their community.
One of the biggest blessings was reconnecting with Brother Nelson, who Josh has worked with the last couple of years. He was the one who helped coordinate the details of our trip. He is a local businessman in Iligan City and Cagayan de Oro, but his passion for ministry is evident and the smile never left his face as we traveled around to our different events.
After stopping for some breakfast we headed 2 hours north to Iligan City, where we will spend our first two days. We got situated and had about 30 minutes to relax, then we went out for the motorcade. This consisted of driving around to the main parts of town and throwing out fliers from the back of the trucks we were riding in. It was going great until it started raining. We still did our best, but by the end it was pouring so had that we all got inside the trucks and rolled the windows down to invite people to come to our games. We also stopped at the mall to hand out fliers and invite people to the games as well.
The view of our motorcade from the front vehicle. This is before the rain came pouring down!
At the mall inviting people to come to our game. Everywhere we go, people want to take pictures of us with their cell phone cameras! Isn't technology wonderful?!?
After the motorcade we traveled back to the hotel and prepared for the game. We had a few minutes to relax, and then we headed to the game. We arrived and the game went as normal. It was a pretty tough team, but we maintained control pretty easily with the help of our late addition CJ, who is a friend who does sports ministry in Cebu City. Josh shared his testimony at half time and a local pastor followed up with a Gospel presentation in the local language. We gave the over 1000 people in attendance a gospel tract that the pastor also explained in detail. We went on to win the game 87 - 75.
After the game, we met the opposing team for dinner at Ritzas. After a great meal of Lechon Baboy (Whole Pig Roast) we had a chance to tell them about Buhay Sports and then share a more specific challenge to them as athletes to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. CJ is a friend of ours who is just out of college in the states and is spending the coming months in Cebu City helping out with sports ministry teams there. He told him that when his life was centered around basketball it was never going to last forever, but when he committed his life to join the team of Jesus Christ, he was on a team that would be playing for eternity. It was a really great perspective to share with athletes. After CJ spoke, we had a local pastor who came up and led the players in the sinners prayer. We don't know how many of them said it and truly made a decision to give their hearts to Christ, but a few of them talked to our hosts after the dinner was over and said they had accepted Christ. Our hosts and the local pastors will continue to follow up and hopefully we will get a full report down the road, but at this point, even to know that 1 or 2 have professed salvation makes the long long day worth it!
Here is CJ at the restaurant sharing his testimony with the team we had just played
Keep the people from Iligan City who heard our presentation and the players who we shared with after the game in your prayers. While some of them made professions of faith, there are still more who need to give their life to Christ.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)