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Here's a link to a video documenting our experiences:
http://vimeo.com/emcaz/httpvimeocomembraceandreach2013


I had a wonderful time in the Philippines.  I came there planning on touching the lives of the people in the Philippines,  however my life was the one that got touched.  I came in not knowing what to expect, but I believe that I helped to improve the lives of others.  It gives me a great appreciation for those who dedicate their life to traveling as a missionary to spread the gospel.  It was tiring just in those 2 weeks, and I had pleasure of meeting a Discipleship Training Team that was taught by one of the leaders of our Embrace and Reach team.  They had to do months of training, then they were able to go to a designated country.  One of them was a physician from Holland, she finished medical school and practiced for a while until God called her to a life of missionary service.  She and her husband bought along their young children for missionary service.  I could only image how difficult it must be to raise two young children in a foreign country while adapting to a new way of life while abandoning their jobs.

The residents of the Philippines were extremely hospitable and accommodating of us.  I've never been called sir that much in my life.  The native Filipinos who were part of our team were extremely kind and polite.  The members of assisting churches in the Philippines really lived to glorify God and make His name great.  Iris was attending bible college and planned on spreading the gospel with the people in the indigenous Filipinos in the mountains.  Many others were attending the bible college unsure of what they would do in the future, but letting God guide their paths.  As a careful planner, their comfort in uncertainty, made me think about how often I attempt to plan out my life without considering the plans that God has for me.  It was inspiring to see such passionate worship and service to the Lord, particularly among the youth.  They were so filled with love and joy.  I am grateful that I was able to meet some amazing people, who I hope to keep in contact with and build a quality friendship.

 They were generally pretty selfless.  At one of the medical clinics, I had forgot that I left an open bag of pistachios in my backpack.  The fire ants gladly reminded me as I returned to find a trail from my backpack to an ant colony.  I put on gloves as I frantically dumped out my backpack trying to figure out what the ants were after.  I was clearing out my backpack and found the ants in a small pocket.  This small girl, probably around 5 or 6, reached in and cleared out the ants from my backpack with her bare hands, making me look like a punk.  Then some other children also came over to help me clear out the ants.  I gladly bought them ice cream, then I got mobbed by the other children at the clinic.

It was great meeting and forming relationships with other volunteers from the U.S. on the mission trip.  I spent a lot of time with the basketball players, and I look forward to hearing about some of them playing professional international ball someday.

By the end of the trip I was pretty tired, partly because I had got sick.  I was grateful that I had gotten sick during the last day, after I had finished participating in the scheduled activities.  The 14 hr. plane ride wasn't very fun, especially as I couldn't sleep.  However, it gave me time to reflect and be grateful of the experience.

When I got home I just laid out on my bed and thought about how huge my room is.  It felt good to just go into the kitchen and be able to get a small snack at my leisure.  There is so much I take for granted, and traveling to a developing country has really opened my eyes to that.  I can't wait to go back as a physician and be able to do check-ups and prescribe medications myself.

Thank you for all those who supported me and made this trip possible.  May God bless you all.

Ingat ka!

Buffalo Soldiers

The Blacks and the Filipinos have a complex relationship dating back to the Spanish-American War.  Following the Treat of Paris, the Filipinos decided to revolt as they were led by Emilo Aguinaldo.  The U.S. sent over calvaries to stop the revolt.  Among these were the Buffalo Soldiers, an all-Black Infantry.

Many in the Black community, such as Booker T. Washington and Ida B. Wells, supported Filipino independence and advocated that the Buffalo Soldiers refrain from participating in the battle.  They viewed the battle as assisting in the same oppression that Blacks had been fighting against in the U.S.  

However, the Buffalo Soldiers and other saw the battle as a way to gain the respect and trust of the U.S. government as equal.  They saw the battle as a small step towards being acknowledged as Patriotic and gaining respects as equals.  They believed that fighting in the battle would help the oppression of their family and friends back home. 

The Filipinos used propaganda to capitalize on the conflict of interest, as written in an excerpt from:

http://www.nps.gov/prsf/historyculture/the-philippine-insurrectiothe-philippine-war-a-conflict-of-consciencen-a-war-of-controversy.htm

As the war progressed many African American soldiers increasingly felt they were being used in an unjust racial war. The Filipino insurgents subjected Black soldiers to psychological warfare, using propaganda encouraging them to desert. Posters and leaflets addressed to "The Colored American Soldier" described the lynching and discrimination against Blacks in the United States and discouraged them from being the instrument of their white masters' ambitions to oppress another "people of color." Blacks who deserted to the Filipino nationalist cause would be welcomed and given positions of responsibility. (23)

During the war in the Philippines, fifteen U.S. soldiers, six of them Black, would defect to Aquinaldo. One of the Black deserters, Private David Fagen became notorious as a "Insurecto Captain," and was apparently so successful fighting American soldiers that a price of $600 was placed on his head. The bounty was collected by a Filipino defector who brought in Fagen's decomposed head.

A Black newspaper, the Indianapolis Freeman, editorialized in December, 1901, "Fagen was a traitor and died a traitor's death, but he was a man no doubt prompted by honest motives to help a weakened side, and one he felt allied by bonds that bind. (24)

During this war, many black soldiers developed relationships with Filipino women.  One story told by the Filipino granddaughter of an African-American grandfather is chronicled here:  

http://woyingi.wordpress.com/2011/01/03/buffalo-soldiers-in-the-philippines-a-filipina-american-granddaughter-remembers-her-african-american-grandfather/

Filipinos: The Black Asians?

Some people have called the Filipinos the Black Asians.  I noticed a few similar generalities between the two cultures, some of these are a stretch but here it goes in no particular order:

1) they like to hoop:

• They hoop, and they hoop hard.  A common excuse to not being able to play well in the U.S. is not having good shoes.  It is not uncommon to see Filipinos playing basketball in flip flops on dirt roads.  One kid was even hooping with an unripe coconut; talk about dedication to your craft.  They really love the game. 

2) play oldies music/ Erykah Badu:

• I was surprised to hear the oldies music they played in some of the stores.  I'm not sure who the artist was, sounded like the Temptations or something.  I also heard Erykah Badu and similar soulful songs from Black artists.  

3) Darker skinned:

• From my limited observation, I noticed that some of the Filipinos are typically darker than other Asians.  However, I noticed many skin whitening/ lightening parlors in the malls we went to, and various billboards advocating for lighter skin.  In some ways similar to the black culture and actually most cultures around the world.  In most cases, lighter skin is considered preferable.  

4) Babies:

• Some of the healthcare professionals claimed that there are many jobs in pediatrics or ob/gyn because of the increasing pregnancy rate in certain areas of the Philippines.  Similarly, blacks are increasingly having many children at an early age.

5) Like to sing/ dance

•  There were usually dancers at halftime of our basketball games
• Filipinos love karaoke, and I had the pleasure of listening to some really gifted singers
• Similar to black functions where you're likely to have singing/ dancing

6) Black Nazarene

• They had a church with a Black Jesus on it!
• One legend says that during the Spanish missionary colonial period they brought a statue of Jesus along, however it was charred after one of the ship caught fire
• I think they got tired of seeing only white Jesus figures so they just painted it brown lol.  
• The procession of the Black Nazarene is the largest ceremony in the Philippines.  

7) Similar church services

• I really enjoyed the church services and sermons.  It reminded me of the old baptist church I used to go to.  The praise teams were super lively and the Spirit really flowed throughout the service.  The pastor at the church in the Philippines also liked to go on tangents as led by the Sprit, similar to the old baptist churches.  During those times you can forget about an outline, notes, or a schedule.  Likewise, these pastors are long winded.  Church starts at 10 and ends when the pastor has either lost his voice or passed out from lack of oxygen.  

8) Chicken

• They go in on the fried chicken in the Philippines.  They even served it at McDonalds along with spaghetti; known as the McDo or McDoo-Doo, as one of the players who didn't like the dish referred to it as.  
• Most days we ate chicken on a stick and rice, either at Inasal or at the hotel.

9) They sold FUBU at one department store we went to and RW/ Phat Farm/ Jordan shoes

• We saw a store selling FUBU, yes the 90's clothing line with the jerseys.  Platinum FUBU was awesome, the Muhammad Ali shirts were dope.  They also sold Rocawear and Phat Farm.
• On the street they sold retro Jordans, they looked official from far away, but up close they looked fake.  They also had various street shops selling Nikes.  I actually considered buying a pair, but I didn't have pesos on me at the time.  I surely would've been roasted by the players and the Jordan connoisseurs in the U.S.

10) They start everything late

• The scheduled time is more like a suggestion; our games usually started late.  No problem for me, I'm used to scheduled events starting late among Black people.  
• We're both on colored people time  

11) Mom is center of the household

• In both cultures, the mother is revered as a pillar of the household.  Unfortunately, many times this is because the father isn't present in the household.
• In the Philippines, the mother is generally highly respected and handles many of the household decisions and responsibilities.

Spirit of the Glass

Watching the Conjuring, which I thought was a quality movie, reminded me of an article I saw in the Philippine Star.  They had a section where they mentioned 24 high school girls being possessed and collapsing at a school in Mandaluyong City after playing Spirit of the Glass.  Subsequently, classes were cancelled for the rest of the day.  One of the students said she saw a "talk and dark woman" lurking outside of her classroom just before she collapsed.  The full articles can be found here:  http://www.philstar.com/metro/2013/06/28/959067/24-students-possessed-spirits-mandaluyong
http://www.philstar.com/nation/2013/06/28/959301/mandaluyong-students-faked-demonic-possession-official


There is a suspicion that the students previously coordinated this act and were faking their possession.  Other students recounted that the "possessed" students acted violently with their eyes bloodshot red.  The fact that the school officials decided to cancel classes and parents rushed to take their children out of school represents the perceived threat of the situation.  In Bakersfield, they probably would've attributed the passing out to dehydration or something; a spiritual discussion in the schools would've been out of the question and classes would've resumed.  If the possession was fake it was a clever, yet exaggerated, way for the students to get out of class early.  If it was real then then I'm sure their classmates won't be playing Spirit of the Glass anytime soon.  Either way it's a reminder of the spiritual battle that is going on around us that we tend to so easily forget about, especially in the U.S.

Ephesians 6:10-12
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood,but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Traffic

 

The traffic was very congested in some areas, especially in Manilla.  By looking at the taxis and jeepneys you can see the inovation that Filipinos are known for.  Sometimes they'll combine parts from different makes and models of motorcycles, so you'll see two or three different logos on one bike.  However, since there are many old vehicles on the road and there are no emissions control there is alot of pollution.  Therefore, many people walk around with handkerchiefs over their face to avoid inhaling the pollutants.  It is no surprise that we see many complication due to upper respiratory issues.  Then they attach a side car to that motorcycle to add more passengers.  Riding on the back of the motorcycle was one of the scariest rides of my life.  The driver was weaving in and out of traffic through both sides of the road and my legs were dangling off the side so I kept thinking I was going to get hit.  They don't use turning signals out there and the they constantly cross double yellow lines to overtake other cars, even if there's oncoming traffic from the opposite direction.  The unspoken rule is the bigger car wins, so if the smaller car usually just pulls over to the side when two cars are heading towards each other in the opposite direction.

We didn't help the traffic as when we were riding in the back of an open top vehicle or if we were standing outside we would stop the traffic.  The drivers would stop and stare or take pictures.

The last picture I got off the internet, but I did see 5 people on a motorcycle including a baby.  Sometimes they attach a long wooden board to the seat of the motorcycle so that people can sit on the board which hangs off the side of the motorcycle.  It seems crazy, but I guess if you gotta get there you gotta get there at all costs.  It really made me grateful for my car to say the least.

Speaking at the Elementary Schools

I went to a couple elementary schools to speak and help out with a skit.  It was fun interacting with the children and getting to know them.  Most of them were fascinated by my hair and some had watched me play basketball the day before.  They were a friendly and joyful bunch of children.  It's funny because sometimes the interaction seems like they're observing an alien.  They peek from behind their friends to catch a glance, the children upstairs were glancing over the rail, but they keep their distance and make a large path when I walk by.  That is until that one bold child comes up and touches my hair from behind or one student comes up to give me a high five, then before I know it I'm surrounded by and talking to a mob of students.  The children are generally very passive and observant initially, but they warm up very quickly.

The team leader led a skit where we made a chant where the first four people stated what gave them comfort and joy.  One person would say something like "I smoke, i drink, i blow my mind til I can't think" or " I'm buff, i'm tan, I'm the macho man..."  but were all sad at the end.  She finishes up by stating that Jesus gives her joy and comfort and she's the only one satisfied at the end.

Then I spoke about how sometimes it's tough to follow a life of Christ, especially if the most popular children are doing things like bullying, being disruptive, and saying bad things.  I tried to encourage them to continue to strive to do the right things and even if that means they lose some of their friends who are doing bad things it's okay because they'll always have a friend in... (and the students said on queue).. "Jesus!"  They were very attentive and interactive for the most part, except for the small group led by the student with the marijuana leaf hat.  He was singing an old Wiz Khalifa song as I was talking to him.  He was a funny kid.

I got interviewed by a third grade for his class project.  He asked a few questions like: what is your missions trip for?  What do you think of Filipinos?  How have you liked it here?...    That student was a good listener and very insightful.  Afterwards the students asked for autographs, so I signed them along with a bible verse.

As the students were playing basketball and in other areas, I noticed something peculiar.  Whenever i have been shooting around here in the States, you don't get the ball back unless you make it.  However, as they were shooting around in the Philippines the shooter gets three tries to make it, and if they do make it they don't get the ball back.  It's a small observation but I think it speaks to the overall generosity that I've noticed during my short stay in the Philippines.

To wrap up our visit we got a chance to talk to the principal.  It's amazing that we were even able to have an assembly on short notice.  The schools our team goes to speak at are not always Christian schools, however they still manage to accomodate us.  The separation between the church and state is not emphasized in the cities we went to, and Christianity is influential in the places of government that we visited.  What we did wouldn't be hard to do in a secular school in the U.S.  It was refreshing to see Jesus glorified at a public school.  She was very flexible and she thanked us for coming to speak to the children.  Then we prayed with her and took pictures.

Sunday Service

     

We took a plane flight to Cagayan De oro City, Mindanao from Davao at 5 in the morning.  We rode on a small airline and many of the players were cramping up.  The plane ride was about an hour.  Then we went to a youth rally at the church that supports our missions, the church of Pastor Ellpie.  We had a great time worshiping and fellowshipping with their church.  Then we split into small groups and went to various churches throughout Cagayan.  The church I went to was very small and most of the message was in Tagalog.  Me and the others got to share our testimony.  We also met another group of foreigners who were doing their 3 month Discipleship Training through a local school.  I met a family from Holland, and people from Jamaica, Ecuador, Hong Kong, and Egypt.  I can only how hard it is to manage a family with young children as a missionary, and I am praying for God's grace to be upon them throughout their stay.  

The children did a short skit/dance about this girl who was contemplating suicide.   She was tugging back and forth with demons until Jesus pushed the demons away and held them back as the girl ran to safety.  At the churches here the youth are really on fire for the Lord, and it is very inspiring.  They are generally not worried about their appearance or being cool and really focus all their efforts on praising the Lord.