July
10, 2004
Dear
Friends and Family,
Well, we are back in Boise, ID from gallivanting around the
world. Our trip to the Philippines was June 12-26 and two weeks later we
have finally recovered enough to tell you about it!
Our adventure started off with a 30 hour trip from Boise, US to
Tabuk, Philippines and a time change of 14 hours – talk about jet lag!
During our long trip we hooked up with four ladies from the Austin, TX
Vineyard and two men from the Las Cruces, NM Vineyard, which brought our
traveling team up to nine total (including Vicki Penwell – out trip leader
from Boise).
Our destination was a new midwife clinic in Tabuk which Vicki established in
February. This clinic serves as an alternative to the filthy and crowded
(several ladies per bed) local hospital or to home births overseen by people
with no training who often employ dangerous tactics which lead to injuries
and death for both the babies and their mothers. By providing this clean
and safe alternative, the clinic serves a two fold purpose of saving lives
and providing spiritual guidance.
The first several days at the clinic was spent helping renovate
the building, for while it was already fully operational (the morning after
we arrived there were two births!) there was still a need for various
construction projects. Josh worked with Duncan, one of the men from Las
Cruces, building a much needed closet for the midwifes’ dorm where students
from Vicki’s Boise-based Midwife school stay during their year’s practical
experience in the Philippines. They also built two custom cabinets in the
clinic’s prenatal and birthing rooms to hold all the medicine and supplies
needed to run the clinic. During this time, I (Emily) worked with the
girls from Austin to transform the second floor from dark, bare cement and
dirty puke green into a much lighter and more cheerful place to live. A
little bit of paint does wonders!
Every
Wednesday the clinic is open to the public for prenatals. This day opens
with some worship songs and a brief Bible teaching from a local pastor and
then a short teaching on simple things to ensure the health of their babies.
The females on our team got the privilege of “helping” the midwives perform
individual prenatal check-ups. We learned a lot about midwifery and the
prenatal process as well as getting the chance to pray with each of the
ladies afterwards. The ladies return every month or every week for these
check-ups, depending upon their stage in pregnancy. Because of this the
midwives are able to build relationships with them and share Christ as they
minister in this practical way.
Towards
the end of the first week, our team and as many of the midwives as could be
spared from the clinic, went to a tribal resettlement village near Tabuk for
a medical and children’s outreach. The Austin crew brought all their
children’s material and entertained the kids (and their mothers) while they
waited to see the doctors. Those kids were blown away! They experienced
face-painting for the first time, received stickers and balloon figures,
and got to color. They also were given salvation bracelets with the
different colored beads which correspond to parts of the gospel message. I
was able to join in on playing with the kids (and handing out lots of
stickers) and also act as scribe & prayer partner at a couple prenatals.
Josh joined in on the medical side, taking blood pressure and handing out
medicine as the doctors called for it from the boxes we brought with us from
the States.
The
next day was the beginning of our medical outreach trip up to the mountain
tribes. We all piled in or on a jeepnee (right) for the 5-hour windy ride
up the mountain. After the drive we hiked another ½ hour – down steep
steps, across a swinging bridge high above the river, and up more steep
steps - to get to the first village we visited. This village was high up in
the mountains surrounded by the 8th wonder of the ancient world: terraced
rice paddies where pieces of the mountain have been claimed to grow rice.
The thatch roofed huts were up on stilts, crowded closely together on tiers
cut into the mountain. Their pigs and chickens wander freely about under
the huts eating the scraps thrown down through small holes cut in each
kitchen floor. The two huts I saw had two rooms – a kitchen and a
living/sleeping area. The bathroom was either the great outdoors or a small
outhouse shared among many families.
This
village has about 1000 people, nearly half of which have become Christians
through the efforts of just a few – including Cathee, Vickie’s good friend
and granddaughter of a former tribal chief. Cathee occasionally takes
medical teams like us up to offer practical help to her people. She herself
goes up every month to spend time and minister. She has been able to save
many lives not only physically, but also spiritually. It was a great
feeling to know that we were part of making a larger difference in people’s
lives than we could accomplish in the short time we were there!
The
day after we arrived was spent ministering like we did in the resettlement
village – half the team doing medical and prenatal check-ups and giving out
medicine while the other half ministered to the kids. Unfortunately, I had
to return to Tabuk with Vicki and a couple others with nausea and diarrhea,
which made it impossible for me to stay for the 3-hour hike planned for the
next day.
Josh
stayed with the rest of the team (lead by Cathee) in the village. At first
he wasn’t sure where he fit in to the outreach, but then God reminded him of
a very important ministry: prayer. So, for the next two days he and a
couple other team members had the privilege to pray with each patient after
they saw the doctors and picked up their medicine. Even though there was a
language barrier, he could tell that many of the people could feel the
presence of God as they prayed!
The
next day the team hiked on to a second, more remote village for another
medical outreach where Josh continued his prayer ministry. The medical
clinic started at 3 pm with Josh feeling very sickish and the stream of
patients didn’t slack until 9 pm, well after dark. However, Josh was
feeling better at the end of the clinic than when it began – God is awesome
and very faithful! Early the next morning they hiked out to catch the
morning jeepnee down the mountain to Tabuk.
While I
missed the ministry time up in the tribes, I have just been realizing how
much I benefited from the time spent at the clinic without the rest of the
team. Besides the much needed rest, I also got to experience day-to-day
life at the clinic and to spend some time with the midwives and staff that
were there. It brought up a lot of possibilities for the future as we’re
still trying to figure out what kind of ministry God has for us on the
mission field. I have been considering going through Vickie’s midwife
school – a skill always useful when working in third world countries.
Another idea that seems to fit me even more is starting a baby home in
conjunction with the clinic for abandoned, unwanted, or orphaned babies and
children. God knows my heart and I know that he has a wonderful plan in
mind for our future work.
We
spent the rest of our time in Tabuk finishing up our painting and shelving
projects as well as getting to help out with another prenatal day and a
prayer walk around the neighborhood. Of course, we also found time to go
into the market and experience a bit of culture.
Thank
you all so much for your faithful prayers during our trip. They were
definitely felt and appreciated. A big thanks also to those who made it
financially possible for us to go as well. God’s timing is definitely
perfect; he brought in all our support just in time for the trip and a job
offer for me just three days after our return! We pray that the Lord will
bless you all richly in the days to come, just as he has blessed us.
In
Christ,
Josh &
Emily Hopping
