Scouting

On Tuesday morning Jake and I left Lucena to go meet with the Captains of different villages to set up the upcoming basketball evangelism tour at the end of Dec-Jan. It was quite an adventure! The day started off early when we caught a public transportation bus that would take us to the area we were going. The bus was jammed packed when we first got on. The seats were very hard, but I had such a great time looking out the windows getting a peek into a different part of the Philippines. We were headed into a very poor area, where the houses are made of bamboo. The trip on the bus lasted for about 4 hours, and by the end of it I was definitely ready to get off that bus and start meeting the Captains to set up some of the games.

We met Pastor Dan, who only spoke Tagalog, and he took us on his tricycle (motorcycle with sidecar) to the small town where we were going to make our base camp for the next couple nights. The ride was hilarious. Jake was in the sidecar like an Emperor, while I was on the back of the bike hunched over because the roof was made for someone that was 5 ft 6 in. I got some more rural sightseeing in, and about 45 minutes later we arrived at our temporary home. The place was a home connected to a church, and we were able to get out and stretch a little before heading out to meet some of the Captains. The Captains, as far as I can tell, are like mayors in the U.S. So after a short rest we climbed back into the tricycle and headed out to set up some games.

The travel from place to place was quite an experience! Everywhere you look is green. We were traveling through jungle areas. It was like something out of a movie. I felt like I was in Rambo or Platoon. The people love seeing an American and I got a lot of “Hey Joe” from the villagers as we rode past. The roads are rarely paved, so most of the tie we travelled on gravel/mud roads. It was so cool to look out and see the surrounding area. There were all kinds of trees, rice patties, animals, and little huts. I saw pigs, goats, stray dogs and cats, carabow, and even a few monkeys. Most of the houses we saw were little one-room houses made of bamboo. Only the Captains had bigger houses, and that tells you a little about some of the shady characters we had to meet with. Not to say all of them were bad people, far from it, but you can also see which ones are in their position to help others and which ones are in their position to help themselves.

The second day we unhooked the sidecar and Jake and I were on one bike while the two pastors that we were with were on the other. I wish I had a picture of our bike with us on it, but if you need a visual it was very reminiscent of the bike trip in Dumb and Dumber.  The two of us could barely fit on the bike, and though it wasn’t comfortable it was something I’ll never ever forget. We rode all over the surrounding area setting up games. The views are amazing, and it will be such a blessing to get to play and talk about Christ to the people in those areas. The people in most of the villages are dirt poor, and it really is such an eye opening experience to see people truly just getting by. The people work for food, and nothing more. It’s heart wrenching to see how these people live. Maybe it’s just because I’m from America and don’t see this everyday. It puts a whole new perspective on third world poor for me.

 The kids are so awesome. They seem oblivious to their situation, running around in the street in tattered clothes and even sometimes with no clothes. I had such a great time making funny faces and getting them to smile. This was also very easy because they never really see Americans riding on the backs of motorcycles through their villages. It was great to see all the double takes, and smiles as the realized I wasn’t from around there.

The third day was just as great, even though as we started it began to rain. We pushed through though and finished setting up the games for the upcoming trip.  Thursday night I was asked by Pastor Dan if I could speak to his church, and with the help of Jake as translator I was able to talk about keeping the faith during hard times. I found out I was going to speak on Thursday morning, so I had a few nerve racking hours of figuring out what I was going to say. One of my favorite musicians, Jack White, has a quote that I found very fitting for this occasion “Nothing breeds creativity like necessity.” I had to come up with something and with the grace of God I was able to put together a fifteen-minute talk that involved Hebrew 11, Lord of the Rings, Noah’s ark, and most importantly how Jesus kept the faith. A couple of years ago if someone told me that I would have to talk in front of a group I would be terrified. Now, though I still get nervous, I’m not as fearful to get up and talk especially if I have a chance to talk about Christ. So praise the Lord, and hopefully that continues to get better!            

It’s so cool to think about how many of these people we are going to be able to share Christ with. Uncle Tom has an amazing gift for evangelism, and if you haven’t met him you need to. I think of him as a modern day Paul, and to be able to help set up his upcoming trip has been such an honor. To take part in his great ministry has been such a blessing. His love for Christ and his desire to reach out and share the Gospel is an inspiration beyond words. This upcoming trip is going to be full of adventures, and I’m so glad I got a sneak preview of it as a scout for Christ.