A couple of blogs back (To Much Death in the Village) I introduced you to our friends the Epps who are working with the Agta. By God’s grace and His perfect timing, just this past February I had the privilege of flying in for a first time visit with the Agta. Also visiting for the first time were local pastor J.R. Santias, and NTM missionary, Gene Park from Korea.
Despite being just a day trip, what an exciting time this was to spend with the missionaries ministering to the Agta. Together we praised God for the work He has already done among these people and then we challenged one another to considered how we could be a part of moving the work forward. Please pray with us in this.
FAMILY TIME!
As much as I enjoyed my first visit with the Agta, the second trip was so much better. This time we were able to visit as a family and together we had the privilege of spending two nights in the village. The Epps were excellent hosts and our time with them made it that much more of a privilege to serve alongside them in reaching the Agta.
Besides spending time with the Agta, together we enjoyed swimming in the both the river and the ocean, a bond-fire on the beach, and for Sheila just your general run and play through the jungle, building jungle forts, collecting hermit crabs, and other little girl stuff. She had a really great time with her fellow MK’s in the jungle. Trips like that can be such a great time of encouragement. Please pray for God’s perfect timing & provision for similiar trips in the future.
HELPING TO MEET NEEDS!
Our time with the Agta though certainly wasn’t all play. In fact, not long after our arrival, Don and I flew to a small grassy area on the other side of the ridge so as to evaluate it as a possible alternative landing site for emergencies. We also used it as an opportunity to drop off a requested catheter to one of the families that lived there. We then dug our heels in for a two-hour hike (verses two to three minutes by helicopter) back to the village. The next day we were there to see a community well started which was followed by another hike to get a signature from one of the local leaders.
Then there is the tons of medical work done each day. Just days after our visit, an Agta couple flew out of the village headed to the local hospital in town seeking medical attention and so I had the privilege of helping out a couple of days along with our co-worker John. I used Tagalog to communicate with the hospital staff while John used Agta to communicate with the patients. It was somewhat commical watching two westerners act as translators between Filipinos. One encouraging email we received from Char read as follows, “I told one of the ladies, Marites sister-in-law that you guys went with them to the hospital and she was SO thankful, even releaved with joy on her face.” We live in a very needy world and there is much work to be done. What a privilege it is to be part of team reaching the Agta for Christ.
Living in a remote location is not without it’s difficulties. On multiple occasions now the missionaries have had to leave the village due to health issues. Due to bad weather, this last time one of the family members became ill, it took three days to get them out of the village. Please be in prayer for Don and Char Epp and family, for their partner John Burbidge, and for their new partners Jared and Bana Major and family who are in the process of moving into the village at this very moment.
“In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippianans 1:4-6 NIV
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