Thursday, January 10, 2008
Dumaguete City, The Philippines
Today 28 people became followers of Jesus Christ in a place called Mambaha, Mabinay.
It takes approximately 2 hours to drive to Mabinay (pronounced ma-BEE-nigh). You take the heavily traveled “National Highway” (a road roughly the equivalent of 16th Street Road in Huntington) north out of Dumaguete about 35-40 miles up the coast just past Bais City. At that point you turn left onto a secondary road, which winds its way 20 more miles up into the steep mountains. Mabinay is an area of what is called the “hinterlands” and the people are poor and uneducated – but very welcoming and gracious.
The National Highway carries heavy traffic north and south along the coast. There are many Jeepneys, Easy Rides, Pedicabs, and motorbikes, but the huge sugar cane trucks and busses that roar down the highway are kings of the road. Bais City is an important junction where traffic bound for the Negros Occidental capital city of Bacolod begin the arduous and dangerous journey across the mountains of Mabinay. All along the lowlands and in the highlands, it is harvest time for the sugar cane crop. The fields are full of workers chopping and bundling sugar cane, loading the bundles on large trucks and railroad cars. Recently chopped fields are set afire to clear the land for the next planting, and smoke hangs in a pall all over the area. It’s rough on the nostrils as well as the eyes.
We were packed like sardines in the back of Joseph’s Easy Ride for the long trip. Nine of us in the back, along with Joseph and Pastor Valdez who rode in the front seat made a total of 11 folks who were packed in there “up close and personal”. After arriving in Mayaposi, we also added the new bride and groom who Randall married on Sunday, and the bride’s mother and brother. The two ladies jammed in the back of the truck with us, and the two guys rode on the roof, for a total of 15 riders.
We stopped about 11:30 for lunch at a roadside restaurant (pictured above) just before we reached Mambaha. I had taken some bread and Slim Jim’s (supplied by Pat Gunnell) for a packed lunch, but I also enjoyed a fresh banana as well as a sweet, sticky rice snack wrapped tightly in banana leaves. From there we proceeded to the Mambaha Barangay Hall and public Basketball Court. We found no one there except some highway workers who were doing a digging project and manually hauling large rocks to a pile at the end of the basketball court. Confused, we backtracked to the Mayaposi Church where neighbors told us that most of the folks were gone to a neighboring barangay’s Sr. Santo Nino festival, and that most of them would not be back in the area until after 1:00. We went back to Mambaha, and set up our sound equipment.
Dumaguete City, The Philippines
Today 28 people became followers of Jesus Christ in a place called Mambaha, Mabinay.
It takes approximately 2 hours to drive to Mabinay (pronounced ma-BEE-nigh). You take the heavily traveled “National Highway” (a road roughly the equivalent of 16th Street Road in Huntington) north out of Dumaguete about 35-40 miles up the coast just past Bais City. At that point you turn left onto a secondary road, which winds its way 20 more miles up into the steep mountains. Mabinay is an area of what is called the “hinterlands” and the people are poor and uneducated – but very welcoming and gracious.
The National Highway carries heavy traffic north and south along the coast. There are many Jeepneys, Easy Rides, Pedicabs, and motorbikes, but the huge sugar cane trucks and busses that roar down the highway are kings of the road. Bais City is an important junction where traffic bound for the Negros Occidental capital city of Bacolod begin the arduous and dangerous journey across the mountains of Mabinay. All along the lowlands and in the highlands, it is harvest time for the sugar cane crop. The fields are full of workers chopping and bundling sugar cane, loading the bundles on large trucks and railroad cars. Recently chopped fields are set afire to clear the land for the next planting, and smoke hangs in a pall all over the area. It’s rough on the nostrils as well as the eyes.
We were packed like sardines in the back of Joseph’s Easy Ride for the long trip. Nine of us in the back, along with Joseph and Pastor Valdez who rode in the front seat made a total of 11 folks who were packed in there “up close and personal”. After arriving in Mayaposi, we also added the new bride and groom who Randall married on Sunday, and the bride’s mother and brother. The two ladies jammed in the back of the truck with us, and the two guys rode on the roof, for a total of 15 riders.
We stopped about 11:30 for lunch at a roadside restaurant (pictured above) just before we reached Mambaha. I had taken some bread and Slim Jim’s (supplied by Pat Gunnell) for a packed lunch, but I also enjoyed a fresh banana as well as a sweet, sticky rice snack wrapped tightly in banana leaves. From there we proceeded to the Mambaha Barangay Hall and public Basketball Court. We found no one there except some highway workers who were doing a digging project and manually hauling large rocks to a pile at the end of the basketball court. Confused, we backtracked to the Mayaposi Church where neighbors told us that most of the folks were gone to a neighboring barangay’s Sr. Santo Nino festival, and that most of them would not be back in the area until after 1:00. We went back to Mambaha, and set up our sound equipment.
The Mabaha/Mayaposi area is where young Joseph Zerna serves as mission pastor. He and his wife, Juvy, are doing a wonderful work there. The outdoor service began at 2:00 PM. Darrell sang a couple of songs, Randall brought a message, and I shared my testimony and a Gospel invitation and 28 adults responded to the call to repent and follow Christ! This brings us to a total number of first time decisions for Christ of 158. Praise God for another wonderful harvest. Joseph and Juvy will be very busy in working to disciple these new believers. These pastors are industrious and dead serious about the work they are doing here for the Lord. Please pray for them as they attempt to teach these new believers the important teaching of God’s Word.
Tomorrow’s schedule calls for us to leave for Mayaposi, Mabinay at noon (a late start for sure) for a service there at the church scheduled for 2:00 PM. We will need your prayers as each member of our team is still smarting and sore from today’s trip. We do not relish going though that ride again tomorrow !
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