Youth Mission Immersion 2006 - Tuao, Philippines
I want to start by saying that I believe God has really chosen each and every one of the 13 youths and 5 chaperons to go on this mission trip to Tuao, Philippines. And he has made use of various ways to make this trip possible for each of us. Even though I think none of us can say that we were completely prepared for what lay ahead of us, I think God had really use what we have and work his way in them. I had wanted to go on this trip because I hoped to take my relationship with God to a whole new spiritual level and to see and experience more things so that I would become a nicer and more matured person.
The trip started on a good note and we arrived at Clark airport at about 1130am as planned. However, the van in which the girls were traveling in soon began to malfunction and we had to stop at three different locations to have it fixed. The last stop at a village was the longest and lasted for 2 hours. As a result, we were unable to reach Ramon by the intended 7pm and I finally understood why it was intended to have it that way. As Philippines is located more towards the east, the sun somewhat sets earlier and by 530pm the sky was like what you would see at 7pm in Singapore. I remember looking out of the vehicle window and seeing absolutely nothing as the darkness was just so penetrating. Thus driving was actually a very dangerous task as the streets often lack lampposts. This task was even made more dangerous by the fact that we had to navigate through two mountains on these curvy roads and dodging those approaching trucks. Olivia actually got motion sickness from all that swirling but she didn’t even utter a word of complain. It felt as if the devil was trying to dampen our spirits for serving the Lord although I highly doubt he was successful.
We went paddy rice planting at wet rice cultivation on our third day in Tuao. I have never seen so much mud in my life but I have to say that I wasn’t a least bit worried until I took my first step (the only time I ever saw a wet rice cultivation was in my geography textbook). I cannot remember much of the experience because everything seems to have past by in a whirl but I heard I pulled along quite a number of people into the shin-deep mud. Every step I took was somewhat a screaming hysteria for me as I struggled to not fall into the mud while my very untrusty flip-flops kept on getting stuck and sucked into the mud like quicksand. We found the back-bending rice planting activity rather enjoyable as we only did it for half an hour but those farmers actually wake up at 4am to start work. I am glad I got an opportunity to try out rice planting and now I can proudly say that I am not as afraid of getting dirty and muddy when required anymore.
Fishing was also something I tried my hand at for the first time on Wednesday and I have to say that it is a real test of patience. My fish took the longest time to bite onto the hook/bait but I got to say that the wait was worth it as I caught the largest fish (: It was definitely a camera-worthy moment as Nehemiah and uncle Edward took a picture of everyone with their fish. We did not exactly fish in a pond or river – it was a fish farm. Not exactly the most inspiring spot huh.
Majority of our last day in Tuao was devoted to mountain climbing at a mountain which was a one-hour jeepney ride away. It was not an easy route up and all of us were tired but happy that we managed to scale a real mountain and not just the cemented path of Bukit Timah Hill. We had our lunch at a pavilion at the top of the mountain and ate the food prepared by our sisters in Christ on site. Another cause for rejoice is the baptism of a sister in Christ at the foot of a waterfall. It just seems so surreal that in the middle of all this nature someone is getting baptized being added into the kingdom of God. During the trek down the mountain, I got a stick that was to act as a staff to help guide my path down and that stick provided me with so much support, relief and hope. The first part of the Bible that occurred to me then was what King David wrote in Psalm 23 “Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me” If even a stick can provide me with so much ease in my trek down, I cannot even begin to imagine what having God in my life and trusting Him can do to my life.
I think this trip and the building of bonds with many Filipinos have also taught me to be more people-conscious, more contented and less selfish. We were all brothers and sisters in Christ but theoretically speaking, we were strangers whom have never met one another before. However they never hesitated to give us the best they could provide. They cooked us simple but delicious food with all their sincerity and went out of their way to serve us even though we were there to serve them. And many a times, e.g. the mountain trek they carried all the stuff while we carried nothing. Also Elgin often offered to help carry my belongings and even though I admit that I do as him to take my stuff occasionally, he offers more than I ask. I think this is a rare sight because in Singapore if you ask children to carry plastic bags, they will start complaining and insist that they don’t have to and don’t want to, as it does not belong to them. I think the Filipinos truly demonstrated love in its purest and simplest form just like how Christ’s love for us is so unconditional and everlasting.
As I have failed to mention before, Elgin is a eleven-year a boy whose family hosted me and charmaine during our home stay for two nights. I have to say that those two nights were one of the most unforgettable experiences ever. One of which was hoe Charmaine and I bathe in this open space that was only surrounded by haversacks and the haversacks only covered us till about our waists, which means we had to squad to bathe. There was no floor, just soil with two stone slabs laid over it. Charmaine and I had conveniently found this experience extremely hilarious, which resulted in non-stop laughter through out our bath. Honestly, it sounds funnier when she recollects it so I shall leave it to her to report it. O yea did I also fail to mention that I pee-ed in a potty as there was no toilet at Elgin’s house.
Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday also saw Tuao East being plagued by a power failure, which resulted in the entire village being plunged into complete darkness. We could only see a few feet ahead of us with the torchlights that we were carrying. Furthermore the ground was extremely muddy because of the constant downpour. As a result, turnout for the Bible class on Monday was a tad bit disappointing. However I think Irvin did a fantastic job at being not too affected by this and delivered an impactful lesson about sin nevertheless. Valmond and Chenyi then followed up with the lesson on Tuesday and Wednesday. I guess what is really miraculous and definitely the work of God was how Thursday was greeted with the return of the power supply and a clear sky. I think this is really special because Thursday was the campfire night and it was an amazing opportunity for us to reach out to more people and tell them about God in a different way. And God made it so much easier for us by presenting this opportunity with such favourable conditions. Many people turned up and I am convinced that they did receive the message we were trying to tell them and now its only left to God to work his magic in them.
There was not a dry eye in sight while we got ready to leave Tuao on Friday morning. Seeing sister Babe cry and singing “If We Never Meet Again” certainly brought tears to my eyes. But they weren’t tears of sadness they were tears of joy. Joy at how each and every one of our lives were touched and changed by the Holy Spirit. And even though there were definitely feelings of missing them after spending ten days together and although some of us may indeed never see each other again, we know we will once again meet in Our Father’s kingdom.
Those ten days were filled with much fun and laughter-infused moments, however this immersion was so much more than just fun and laughter. It is undeniably the most uplifting, memorable and purposeful and experience-filled experience for me. I feel so blessed by this trip because I did so many things I never thought I would do and experienced what it felt like to really go out there to do mission work for the Lord. And to learn that he has a far more perfect and wonderful plan for everyone and thing as our self-drawn up schedule simply crumbled. Nothing was ever for us or about us but for Him and about Him. I use to want to go for camps during June and December because it always leaves me with a period of emotional high after that. But like Irvin had said during the sharing at Cassily: feelings of spiritual high are not what we want because feelings will eventually vaporize and we would be back to where we were before. Instead we should aim to bring our relationship with God to a more stable level for it to last. Even though I don’t feel like this all of a sudden drastically changed and scrubbed young lady, I know that God is slowly working in my life and changing me to be the person He wants me to be.
Cheryl Soh