Missions Project at ACTS Bible School

When we talk to people about missionary work we always hear, "Oooh, I would love to do some kind of missions work!" Then, as you get talking to them you realize they really don't think they will ever have an opportunity to personally being involved.


They usually end up saying, "I will just help you go, 'cause I can't."

That is NOT true! This blog is for anyone who ever said, "I would love to do some kind of missions work" but only thought it to be a distant dream.

Announcing: A hands on missions project that ANYONE can find a part in! (It is not just about your money, it is about you being PERSONALLY present.)

The best money in missions is the investment in national leaders. With that in mind we would like to introduce you to the Apostolic Center for Theological Studies, the flagship Apostolic school of the Philippines.

The ACTS Bible School in Manila, on the C. P. Kilgore Memorial Complex, has been called "The most important facility in Asia." Though that statement may be debatable, what is not debatable is that this institution has been steadily producing quality ministers of the gospel for over two decades. Graduates from this school are now pastoring all over the world, not just in the Philippines.

James Kilgore is now the president of this fine institution and has contributed immeasurably to its present condition.

Brother Kilgore has given almost all he has for this school. Last week he spoke at the graduation service and told the audience, "I go home broke and happy. I go home broke and you also go home happy." And they laughed.

It is true. "Pappa K", as he is affectionately called here, has given, and given, and given, until there was nothing else to give.

So, that gives the rest of us an opportunity.

Kensie's Korner

Kensie is a college student in Ruston, Louisiana, who has already jumped at the opportunity to make a difference in this school. She is a close family friend who surprised us with a cash offering last month, "I want this to go to something in the girl's dorm. I want them to have something nice, something that I would also want as a college student."

Kensie, we have been talking to the staff there, and we have a proposal. (At least a start to what you want to do.)

The picture below is a private veranda off of the girl's dorm. It is on the second floor and is totally shaded by a large mango tree most of the afternoon.





How about we buy some outdoor tables and chairs so that the female students can have a beautiful place to study, or to just visit with each other? The dormitory is so hot that some students sleep outside because they are stifling in the unventilated confines of the dorm.


(View from "Kensie's Korner")



Kensie's Korner is still in the planning stages, and everyone is thrilled with some of the possibilities.

So, while the girls have a nice view and a pleasant place to retreat to... this is just the beginning.

There is one window in the girl's dorm and one ventilation fan. The problem is, the fan does not bring in fresh air because there is a wall on the other side of the fan. The humid and stifling climate is oppressive even when ventilated, however, when it is closed up, this place is almost unbearable. Because of this, mold and mildew is a constant problem.

We need ideas, and someone to sponsor the solution so these young women can have a place to sleep with at the very least, some fresh air.

(The "Fan to Nowhere!")



Here is where the girl's hang dry their clothes and the roof is an old metal structure that leaks badly in the rain.



Jordan was amazed that 30 - 35 girls lived in this very small, and sadly inadequate space. There are many more that would like to come to this school, yet can not afford to commute to school daily and then live off campus. We need more space.




Brenda, along with Nellie Gallemit (Dean of Women) explore some possibilities. Presently, the girls have no shelving, no lockers, no shoe racks, and do the best they can to organize their clothes in piles. They manage without complaint, but from our way of thinking, we just don't see how they can get by. We wouldn't last in these conditions one day, much less one year.



It would be so easy to put shelves and build an organizer system in their "laundry" room.



The two racks, (Pictures above and below) behind us, are where up to 35 girls to hang their clothes. The only way this works is that most of these girls don't have a whole lot in the way of material things.

There are two toilets and both need to be replaced. There are some real plumbing issues that need to be worked out. Also, there is no door, only a piece of fabric hanging over the opening. A door would be most appreciated.

There are two of these showers in the whole dorm.

This is the ONLY mirror in the girl's dorm. That they all look so neat, and all together, and have such a great attitude is a miracle that happens every single day.

The sink above and the area below is where the girls wash their clothes and brush their teeth...

Did you catch that? They wash all of their clothes by hand, in these sinks, while using them for the normal uses of a vanity.

The small shelf above serves as the only place they can store their toiletries.

The white bunks to the left are only plywood beds. Last year Melani, Brenda, Andrea and Becky put up the money to buy foam cushions for the girls to sleep on. Before that, they were sleeping on hard plywood.

We are pictured with Nellie Gallimet, Dean of Women

A student washing clothes.

Brenda is with a long time friend, Carmen Martinez. She is given the nearly impossible task of feeding the students on less than .50 per day. That's fifty cents!

There was a time when the students were asked to fast Saturday and Sunday, not for spiritual reasons, but because the budget wasn't there to feed them the whole week.

It is not uncommon for a 20 year old student to have a heart attack, or other serious illness, during exam week because they just do not have enough nutrition in their diets to sustain them.

Thankfully, "Pappa K" has done so much to help in these areas. However, there is a limit to what he can do. So there is an opportunity for others to step in.

Can you see why missions work is so rewarding? It is sooo easy for us to make a MAJOR difference in some one's life over here.

You can too.

Experience with 120 Inner City Kids

(There are 2 videos to the right)

This was a day of 120 Cinderellas, and we didn't truly realize this fact until later. We have never posted this many pictures on one blog and I think you will understand why when you see them.

This story takes a heart wrenching twist at the end, so be sure to read all the way through.

It is said that Manila has almost 1,000,000 kids that roam the streets on any given day. Many of them malnourished and far to many orphaned. So we found out that a church in the inner city had a vision to reach out to these children and we asked if we could participate.

The church is in the densely populated area of Manila called Tondo. Pastor Nomer Trinidad and his wife Sonia have a special burden for these children. When we walked into their neat, and air conditioned church, we could hear the children singing upstairs in the sanctuary.



Their voices were strong and beautiful. In fact, we were amazed that these were "street kids" and not the normal Sunday School crowd, by the way they sang.






Sister Sonia Trinidad, the pastor's wife, has a real gift for leading children and we were amazed at how orderly and behaved the children were.





After all, these were "street kids" weren't they?




They all had name badges so that when the church bus goes into the neighborhood not just any kids can get on and score a free meal.

I spoke for just a few moments and used the story of David and Goliath.

To illustrate the story, our son Jordan, who seems like a giant to these kids, played the part of Goliath. A small, little guy named Anson, played the part of David. (Remember Anson, he comes back into the story later.)

These children are faithful, they come every single Saturday.

They are taught things like, honesty, self esteem, personal hygiene.

In fact, one of the lessons they teach them is how to brush their teeth. This is a new concept to these kids who live on the street.

They are taught practical, as well as biblical principles.

(We are hoping to be able to come back and give each one of these kids a tooth brush and some toothpaste.)

After I spoke, Sister Sonia invited the children to pray, and did they ever pray! It just flowed from them like water from a spring.

No one was disorderly, the Children's Staff didn't have to spend their time coercing, or corralling, they just went into a place of brokenness.

Little hands raised, and eyes welling with tears... they prayed.

They prayed for a good while, and we tried to touch every one of them.

We asked if there were any sick among them and several came to the front and we anointed them with oil.

We prayed for God's protection over everyone of them too.

Then it was announced that "Brother Jeff, Sister Brenda, Jordan and Kori, have sponsored a meal for ALL of you." The kids were overjoyed.

They were getting a hot meal, a full meal today! (Morgan you are in on this too).

So, while the very efficient and organized staff was getting the meals served, the kids sat orderly, awaiting their turn with patience. I guess being familiar with hunger teaches them that, because they didn't even begin to resemble some kids I have seen in America when they wanted something.

The staff brought out plates to the smallest children, and the bigger kids formed a line and picked theirs up from the ladies at the front.The Tondo church is divided into four ladies groups and they take turns each Sunday staffing the children's ministry. No one gets weary with well doing this way. Even the smallest children ate the entire meal. I mean, they cleaned their plates!

Jordan made friends with so many and was used by God today. Exposure to things like this a few times is the cure for the common teenager!

Anson, (above) the little guy who played David in our illustration.

Pastor Nomer said that most of these children wore clothes that came from the dump. Their parent's made their meager living from rummaging through trash.

Tim Rutledge was able to join us for this deal. Tim and his wife Kim have felt that they need to adopt a child from somewhere in Asia.

He had traveled 26 hours from Alexandria to Manila, arriving last night, but when he heard what we were going today he said, "Shoot yeah I'm going!"

A Staff member with a child.

This little girl (below) stole our hearts... ok, they all did, but she was just so cute, like a china doll.

After they had eaten each child received a few pieces of candy and immedialtyl began to trade

Picture time!!!!!

When Sister Sonia announced that it was picture time, these kids came out of their chairs. They had been so calm, and organized until now, and then happy bedlam ensued.

Kori was joyfully mobbed and was loving every minute of it.This little girl grabbed her and would not let go.

Any of you that know Tim knew exactly where he would be.

The little girls seemed to gravitate to him.

They were all competing for attention.

Tim and Kim are personally sponsoring the next three dinners for these kids. He gave Pastor Nomer the money on the spot.

The combination of a full stomach, a touch from God, and a whole lot of love from people caused these children to light up like the sun, moon and stars.

If you want to have a lift to your day... no your month... no your life... get in on something like this! These kids will change your life!

This one, like so many, was cute and had loads of personality.

Then, it was time to go home. They didn't want to go, and we didn't want them to leave. It felt like OUR kids were going, and we didn't know where.

They boarded the church bus with smiles, cheers, and "Thank you!" shouted out the bus windows.

They reached for Tim out the window and with misty eyes, Tim reached for them.

We watched them go and everyone of us said, "I want to see where they live."

We had been told they were "squatter" kids and that they lived in poverty, but we had no idea what we were about to find.

We waited until the bus was out of sight and then followed them.

As we drove our driver pointed to a hulking mountain in the middle of these concrete government housing units and said, "That is Smokey Mountain."

A chill went down my spine. The infamous Smokey Mountain! The place where the first saints of Manila were won from back in the early '70s. It was the Manila dump for many years. So many years that a "mountain" had risen from the years of trash.

Thousands had built shanties on this mountain until there were "cities" all across this smoking, pile of rotting debris. Fidel Ramos, when he was president of the Philippines, closed it down as it had become an iconic symbol of third world poverty in the Philippines.

He had built all these concrete apartment buildings and moved the population of the shanty towns into them.We watched as the children disappeared into the cavernous, dark opening of one of the monuments to poverty.

"Our" children, the children we had just held, prayed with, fed, become friends with, laughed with...

How was it even possible that "our" children could be running into one of these terrifying places?

After they disappeared I went into the building, hoping to catch a glimpse of one of them, but they were gone. In their place was a scene from my nightmares.

There were no lights visible anywhere. Clothes were hanging all throughout the spacious inner court. Children were everywhere, as were adults. Some were taking baths in buckets, some were cooking on fires, some were in groups talking.

They all stopped to watch me when I walked in. I didn't feel threatened, even though this area is known for its high crime.

I just felt so out of place. I had shoes on. It was obvious that I had eaten well, perhaps too well.

I put my camera up to take a picture, then I stopped. I was in their home, uninvited. This was not a zoo! I put the camera down and said a silent prayer for them instead.

We left that place and drove by a part of Smokey Mountain. It's ragged cliff face was visible from the road, and you could see the layers of the the filth of ages.

Strata's of waste, generations of people living on waste, a legacy of outcast.

No wonder the Trinidad's teach these children self esteem.

We didn't go far when our driver, a church man, said, this is where some more of those children live.

I took pictures here because I was out in the open. Children were everywhere you looked.

And here we found Anson.

He had played the part of David, and now my words echoed in my ears, "You can beat any giant. God wants to be your partner." Things to that effect.

But now we were staring at Anson's giant face to face, things seemed a little different now. It isn't just up to God, it is also MY responsibility too!

We fed him once. That is great. But what about shoes?

He doesn't have any.

What about a tooth brush?

He probably doesn't have one of those either.

What about clothes that DIDN'T COME FROM THE DUMP?

I remembered Anson when he came up to quote his memory verse. That was great, but I am compelled to go beyond the words of the bible and actually BE the bible.

We are going back to Anson's world and we are going to invite anyone else that wants to come also.

It is easy to be a missionary. You can be one for a week. Don't think you can?

Can you help feed a child? Can you give a pat on the head? Can you gather clothes from your church, box them up and send them over? Can you take your family vacation to a place like Anson's world just once, instead of Mickey Mouses'?This is not just a thing to feel good, this is bible... remember that thing about doing stuff for the least of these? If you think this is for you, please let us know. There is so much that can be done, with so little.

Our family spent about $100 of our personal money today and it was one of the greatest experiences of our entire lives. Can Mickey beat that?

With the Captain and former cult leader

Few people know how to show hospitality like the Filipino and did we have a good 'ole time today!

Green mango, rice, jicama (white root), watermelon, and the king of all fruit, the Philippine mango were only part of the feast today.

It was Sunday and we were privileged to be in a brand new church that was full of great stories.

The pastor, Captain Noel Mayor (pictured in the purple barong below) is a captain in the Philippine police force. He is head of security for the Manila Airport complex, which is a job with great responsibility. Many of you who have visited the Philippines have been greeted by the Captain. It is quite an experience to walk through the airport with him and have dozens of people salute as you pass.

Pastor Mayor has only been a pastor for 3 years but is about to start his fourth church! He is a man of a driving passion, a natural leader of men and a lover of truth and righteousness.

He could not do what he is doing without his wife, who is a realtor. She laughed as she commented on her husband's plan to start his fourth church, "Again? Starting churches cost so much money!" She works so hard to help provide the necessary funds to open up all these new works.

Another great story in this church is Assistant Pastor Condicion (in the salmon colored shirt).
Just a few years ago, Pastor Condicion was the second in command in a local Philippine cult that operated north of Manila in the mountainous area of Dona Remidious.

Just a few years ago he renounced the cult and became a Pentecostal bringing about half of the cult's members with him. Brother and Sister Condicion have 6 talented children who are an invaluable part of the church.

We were so impressed by the spirit of worship this church had and the surprising number of talented members in a church so young. It seemed like everyone could either sing or play some sort of instrument.

Jordan and Kori pictured with some of the young people of the church.


The Condicion family. The youngest son is the drummer, the other son is the keyboard player, the youngest daughter, (to the right) was the bass player and the three other girls were the singers. Not only did they sound great, they were true worshipers.

We had planned to go the the location where the former cult was today, but it was deemed to dangerous for us to go at this time. The area is known for its communist rebel activity so we will have to go to Kalawakan in the future.