Weekly Update from the Philippines - March 3-10

Recently, we are finding value in offering a consistent presence of service with our efforts in the Philippines, from our tutoring program to continued gatherings for fellowship and worship to the development of our community garden.

Clark Miller’s weekly tutoring session at Baras Elementary School is ongoing, as he assists children who are behind gain the necessary skills to catch up with their classmates. We are hopeful that his consistent example will inspire others to get involved in this kind of activity. There’s a lot of educational need just in the area surrounding our community center in Palo. It's a microcosm of a broader issue in the Philippines related to a lack of infrastructure and personnel prepared to handle the volume of students pouring into schools.

This week also consisted of the regular gatherings and times of Bible Study that occur at Tahanan, our community center. The group of people forming there are growing closer to one another and the Lord through these times of fellowship.

Finally, the garden project that began in November at Tahanan is progressing wonderfully. The team has recently planted talong (eggplant) and sili labuyo (chili pepper) and implemented innovative measures to protect the crops with rolled banana leaves. They’ve planted 525 seeds and continue to expand beds.

Clark has also constructed bamboo vertical trellises for vertical growing. He takes this endeavor on with fervor and faithfully demonstrates the kind of growing available to people who live in the area. This kind of bio-intensive gardening is a model that those with little land in the area can implement on their own property in order to grow a variety of crops in a minimal amount of space.

Continue in prayer for the team as they make preparations for students who will soon be on summer break and have more time on their hands to take advantage of the variety of opportunities we are making available at Tahanan.