Mindanao Missions, Spring 2017

"In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. ² Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. ³ And one cried to another and said:

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
The whole earth is full of His glory!”

⁴ And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke.

⁵ So I said:

“Woe is me, for I am undone!
Because I am a man of unclean lips,
And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips;
For my eyes have seen the King,
The Lord of hosts.”

⁶ Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar. ⁷ And he touched my mouth with it, and said:

“Behold, this has touched your lips;
Your iniquity is taken away,
And your sin purged.”

⁸ Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying:

“Whom shall I send,
And who will go for Us?”

Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”

-Isaiah 6:1-8nkjv

Friends,

Thanks to jet lag, it's around midnight and I finally have time to sit down and write to you all about the great time that I had in the Philippines over the last two weeks. God is so good, and I haven't really been able to process all that I saw while I was there. But, I do have some testimonies to share in the mean time, and I'm sure as I get back into the swing of things at home and back to work, I'll share more pictures and videos when I can.

Bobby and I leading worship at KJCF Kabasalan

Let's start from the beginning. Back in January, I was asked if I would like to go to the Philippines by a good family friend, Bobby Chance. Bobby has been kinda like a spiritual grandfather to me. He and his lovely wife, Dot, taught my family how to "go into all the world" and I've been doing street outreaches all over the United States to the Garbage Dumps of Mexico since I was just 8 years old. I started believing. Things got crazy at work with SERT, we had major high risk operations taking place, the headquarters was full with families and people we had rescued nationally and internationally. So time really flew by before it was time to get on the plane. I was so busy, that my mom said about 3 weeks before my trip, I should probably start fundraising...because I totally didn't even think about that. The money came in, and God supplied my every need for the trip. I am so grateful to those who gave financially!

One of my favorite parts about my time in Mindanao is trusting God before, during, and after. This trip really taught me to trust, and I think that's one reason why the Lord had me GO. Mindanao is not the safest place. It is overtaken by Islam, terrorists, and people who openly reject the name of Jesus Christ. The terrorists target westerners (americans) and there have been several reports of them being kidnapped, and/or injured while they are in Mindanao. I had been warned by several different people about the security issues, and was ready to be alert and confident in Christ while I was there. Thankfully, I made it to and form Mindanao alive and well!

One of my favorite things hearing on this trip was, 

"Miss Madeline, thank you for not being afraid of my home...

Thank you for coming and bringing the love of Jesus to Mindanao."

Revival- Worship Service at Family Camp

But the good news is, the church in Mindanao- the TRUE born again believers of Jesus are so alive and on fire all over Mindanao. I got to be a part of a Family Camp where 400+ people came to a part of Mindanao just to be in the presence of God together. The church there said it is the highlight of their year, because they all get to worship and get in the word together.

Traveling home through the jungle and a rainstorm for 5 hours from the Revival

I was honored to be a guest speaker at the big revival! People came some as far as 26 hours by motorcycle. Others rode in the back of a truck together. Some even slept outside for a whole week in rainstorms because there wasn't enough room inside the buildings on the ground where everyone else slept.

Class Picture- Can you spot me? :)

These kids were in my main class- all 100 of them. The ages they were ranged from kindergarten to early high school...the average age being about 10. So as I prayed about what to share, I got to speak about Jeremiah 29:11. That verse helped me so much when I was 10 years old, and taught me to TRUST in God and know that His plan for our lives is good- even through my mom being healed of cancer. After my message, many kids came before the class and asked for salvation for their families, healing, and that they would  trust God with their lives. We all stood, prayed, and jumped up and down for Jesus. We took some selfies after too.

Children's Prayer & Worship

Seeing people's, especially the kids, love for God is amazing. They sparked a fire in me for worship that I missed. Just to see them sit in the presence of God and worship him just because HE is HOLY, is an amazing thing. Worship services lasted until early hours of the morning...and started again just a few hours later. Truly, "no place I'd rather be..."

Singing "How Great is Our God" with inmates at a Jail in Mindanao.

Jesus said to visit those in prison. The prisoners need freedom in Christ too. Singing, "How Great is Our God" with 98 men who are stuck in a jail cell smaller than my little bedroom 24/7 is something I will never forget. Many of them received salvation during our praise and worship.

I got to meet a beautiful friend who takes care of 60 orphans, ages babies to high school. She told me about how her children and her hike to the top of a volcano mountain together by 4am and pray over their city for revival. They pray for peace, repentance, and worship and believe together for their city.

Squatter Outreach to 300+ Children

I met 300+ kids who live in a "squatter slum" and they were so thankful for lollipops and hair bows that I brought over from the USA. We danced and sang together about the Freedom of God. No more shackles. No more chains. No more bondage...WE ARE FREE! And we tasted and saw that the Lord is good- because he supplied rice soup and lollipops for us to eat together that beautiful afternoon in kabasalan.

I got to be a part of a church family that made me feel at home so far from home. The hospitality I felt at KJCF is something I will never forget. It's something to read about how Christians met from house to house throughout the new testament, but it's another thing to really feel it and do it. I love Joy and Pastor Gerson, and are so thankful for them making me feel at home in Mindanao!

I look forward to returning to Mindanao and continuing the work there.
To continue to support my missions as I work for the kingdom through SERT-- please GIVE financially to keep it going. When you give, you get to be a part of revival. God is so good.

To Give: paypal.me/sertministries

Thank you friends.

Love Always,
Madeline