The Life of Brian

back to school

2009-11-02T04:22:00.000-08:00

Okay wow. I haven't posted anything here in a while. I've been busy for sure but more or less just lazy with this blog. But here's whats been going on in my life more recently. For starters, we just finished our 2nd semester of school here at the orphanage. YESSS! haha. Its not just the kids who are excited when vacation comes around. Anyways, I did get a few things accomplished while on break. I sold my motorped and bought a honda civic. I applied for a marriage licence and had to swear that I wasn't marrying Dona just so she could become a U.S. citizen. We got the photographer organized and a bunch of other things too. Yeah it was a pretty productive vacation. The only problem with vacations is that you never relax on them. And when the time comes to get back to work you're not ready for it. oh well such is life. School here I come.

Shelby

2009-07-24T01:34:00.000-07:00

Okay so a few months ago I got my self a pet, but not just any pet. I mean I am living in the tropics so i had to go exotic. So I got a monkey and as you might have guessed her name is Shelby. She a baby so she still stays close to me and whines constantly. When I let her she sits on my shoulder while I walk around the orphanage, which lead me to this brilliant idea... how about I take her for a ride on my motorcycle! Hmm. well she did fine for the most part, just sat there and literally hung on for her life. But I think she was a little scared because no sooner had I stopped the bike , she proceeded to pee all over me! Yuck! Well i don't think we'll be doing that again any time soon. At least she doesn't throw poo at me:-)

Back "Home"

2009-07-10T17:20:00.000-07:00

If there is one thing that I realized during my time back in the states, its that the Philippines is where I belong. Its a little bitter sweet but all I know is that God is in control and thing will work out according to his purposes. I never could have imagined myself here 5 years ago. But that's whats so Awesome! God's plans for our lives are so much bigger and better than we ever could have imagined. All we have to do is follow him with all our hearts! And as I think about how much I will miss home, at the same time I have a peace about where God has me right now. In my new "home" half way around the world and still with in a short trip of family! Good is good! and I'm happy to be apart of his plan!

I killed a snake with my bare hands!

2009-03-09T21:30:00.000-07:00

Dear Everyone,
Hello again, I guess its been a while since my last update. In fact I'm way past due so here's what I've been up to lately: In February my parents came for a visit which was great. I was glad that they came and that they were able to meet Dona and see what I'm doing here at Sankey Samaritan Mission. My mom also helped me get my apartment organized!
During that same week there was a work team here from the states. They came to help us build a wall and do outreach in the areas around our church. One of the members of the team was a doctor and when we visited an area he and his wife would set up a clinic so that the people could get some much needed medical attention! Its was a great ministry and it provided many opportunities to share the gospel!
There was also an interesting thing that happened while the team was here. On the last day, before they flew back, we had taken them to Rizal re-Creation Center for some down time. Some of us were playing Frisbee golf when one of the guys on the team noticed a snake in the grass! I wasn't sure what kind it was but my general rule of thumb here is "kill it 1st them ask questions." So I ran to grab a coconut and repeatedly threw it at the snakes' head until it died. It was quite exciting and no i can claim to have killed a poisonous snake with my bare hands! OK so it was only like 2 feet long but still!
School is in its last month here and the kids are anticipating their summer vacation. So am I, but this summer i will be very busy with preparations for next school year. The staff and I are praying for 40 new students next year, which means a lot of work needs to be done on our part. We are spending our Saturdays promoting the school and trying to get perspective students and their parents to come visit and hopefully enroll for the coming year.
Well, i guess that about all for now thanks for your continued prayers and support I'm looking forward to seeing you all again soon! Hopefully, I'll be home in July for a friends wedding. Take care.
Love,
Brian

Floods, Ambushes, Bombings, Assanations & Gods Protection

2009-01-14T20:10:00.000-08:00

Okay so many of you may be wondering where I've been and what I've been up to but i had too much fun and I spent the last few days recovering from all the Excitement! Well as many of you might already know i just went to a place called Mindanao ( a Island in the southern Philippines) and together with Uncle Tom (Randall) and a basketball team from California we spent nearly two weeks play b-Ball, sharing our testimonies, doing half time shows on unicycles and handing out tracks for people to sigh up for a bible study course: all while dodging the things listed in the title of this email! so I'm going to try to be concise and yet give you the full story. Here Goes:

OK so first off we rented a jeepney to take us all over the island to and from games. The 3rd night, Denis the drivers helper prayed to accept Christ as his savior. He did it on the way back from one of our night games after hearing the testimonies and pastor's sharing of the gospel! Denis didn't have any shoes either so I gave him mine. There was alot of that going around. Aught to make us be more thankful once in a while!

So basically what we would do each day was play 2 or 3 games and we'd drive into little towns in the middle of nowhere and waaala there was a b-ball court. we'd drive around town people would come, sometimes like 500+ (and few time too many to eve guess) and we'd play against the towns best players. At half time uncle tom and some of my kids from the orphanage would do a unicycle show and then we'd sing, share a testimony and pass out & later collect from the people who were interested in taking the bible study. we collected over 6000+ for the 10 days we were there. PTL and that's all in a heavily Muslim influenced area!

Okay so now about some of the things in the title. Did they get your attention bcuz they were meant to. First, on the way back from one of our night games I was riding on the roof of the jeepney because it just a better option than sitting inside next to 20 other sweaty guys. So anyways, all of a sudden Denis our "jeepney monkey" pops his head up and tells us to lay down so no one can see us.....! "okay sure." Later I learned that that road we were on was the 2ND most dangerous road in the Philippines bcuz of muslim ambushes and accidents of which we saw plenty! also later on once we were what i thought was in the clear we stopped for dinner. and well while we were eating dinner, across the road a guys was assassinated and the the guys who were there to protect us caught the killer. Again most of this I learned after the fact. It gives psalm 91 a whole new meaning huh?

Hmm what else. One morning when we arrived at our game we were greeted by swat like police all holding AK 47s and wearing full camo( for our protection) bcuz the night before 2 guys were killed on the court. oh yeah and there were 4 bombings near us in just the 2 weeks we were in Mindanao. Again didn't know that till after the fact but its all good when your trust is in the Lord!

When Sunday came the majority of the team went with Uncle Tom but a few of the Filipinos including Toto, David pastor Bernard, a few of our boys and myself went to a little "grass-roots" church behind the place we were staying. They had nothing. no walls barley a roof. no doors. a dirt floor and wodden benches nailled together for pews. one lone extension cord powered the old instrument they had, an old beat up keyboard. Toto and I both got the same idea and he stood up to announce that we would buy them a sound system and guitar. When he did that i heard the lady sitting next to the key board wisper, "Thankyou Jesus." They had been praying for it for a long time and it was nothing that they could have afforded! We bought the equipment the next day and gave it to them! Oh man I wish I could be there to hear them this sunday!
EBC a Special thanks to you becuase you provided the money to make this possible. I used about 300 dollars from the thanksgiving offering to purchase the sound equipment. so thanks again

okay just a few more then i'll be done. On the last day of our trip we all went white water rafting in the Cagayan de Oro River. with the recent flooding the river was at stage 4 rapids and 2 of our four boats flipped. not mine we had one lost tooth and several bruised egos but all was good and we made it back in one piece.. that is except for the missing tooth. The next day we left and its a good thing we did because the day after we left the city of cagayan de oro was flodded in waist deep water and the airport close indefinately. Some one big was one our side all the time we were down there! well theres more but i'm tired and fighting off a fever, cough and who knows what jungle viruses so i'm going to bed night ya'll

brian

Merry Christmas

2008-12-13T23:32:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas. Well i can't believe that's it already Christmas! Mainly because its 85 degrees outside right now and I'm cowering inside an air conditioned office. But i actually appreciate the sunshine today because its been raining for a solid two weeks, hence the reason for calling it the "rainy season." well I'm not sure how many of you know this but while i am really looking forward to Christmas, I also looking forward to after Christmas. Why? because I'm going on a missions trip to a place called Mindanao with a basketball team from the states. Its going to be awesome and I'm excited. well that's all the news for now I'll let you know how it goes. Have a great Holiday Merry Christmas everyone!

2008-11-06T20:42:00.000-08:00

Hey! I know that its been a while since I've posted anything on here so let me just give you the highlights of whats been going on here. We haven't had any visits from the police which is good, but last week there was a prison break in the city of Lucena. There were 30 NPA (National peoples army i.e. rebels) members who helped to break 7 of their buddies out of jail and in the process 2 prison guards were killed and some civilians injured. so that was kind exciting... thankfully its wasn't near us at the orphanage. Hmm what else. Oh yeah we had a weeks vacation, which actually ended up being two weeks because the Philippine government will all of a sudden decide that its a holiday and not have school. Which doesn't really bother me! But anyways we are back in school now and looking forward to Christmas. And the closer that we get to Christmas the closer we get to the basketball trip to Mindanao to witness to the Muslims! Its aught to be great! I'm really looking forward to that! okay well that's about all, please pray for that trip that many hearts will be change through the preaching of the word and for protection.
see you later!

Exotic food

2008-10-13T21:29:00.000-07:00

Since comming to the philippines ive eaten alot of lets say "exotic" things. Normally, when I think of the word, I picture lush jungles, white sandy beaches, serene ocean views. But what ive learned is that exotic and food don't belong in the same sentence. Well all this is just to tell you about one of the nastiest things that have ever passed my lips and there have beeen of lot of them. Here's my top10 exotic foods ranging from bearable to most nasty... enjoy :-)

10) Frog. yum
9) Monotor Lizard adobo. lizard mixed with potatoes and a red sauce. it acutally does taste like chicken!
8) Snake- yeah... it tastes liek fish...kinda..Def not chicken
7) Young bamboo
6) Sisig- its pig brains with spices and it actually dosent taste bad.
5) Chicken feet- its self explanitory
4) Barbacued chicken intestine- Not everyting grilled is necessarily good!
3) Ocotupus cooked in it own ink- Looks like a nasty twist on fruit loops soaked in motor oil
2) Balot- a half developed chicken/ duck egg hard boilled
1) Pig intestines (and misc. other innards) boiled in pigs blood. it looked like chocolate. (Oh how i whish it tasted like it.) I think I'm going to be sick just thinking about it. Why did i eat it you ask? I don't really know. I was dared. I could win fear factor no problem!

Flood

2008-10-09T19:15:00.000-07:00

Usually I enjoy surprises. but this morning i woke up to the tune of 2 inches of water in my 2ND floor apartment. Yeah. Apparently we had a typhoon last night and my windows were left open and my porch flooded and water poured in! thankfully there was no damage but my living room and balcony was literally a swimming pool. I spent a few hours this morning scooping up water and throwing it over the porch while using a squeegee to get rid of the water in the bed room kitchen and living room. The rice fields were flooded as well they were under a good 2 feet of water and it was actually pretty to look at. each terrace had a waterfall and behind them was a beautiful rainbow reminding me that God said he would never again flood the whole world.. he didn't make any promises about my apartment. go figure! Well the house needed to be cleaned anyways.

Tensions

2008-10-08T04:42:00.000-07:00

well last week the police were here and you know the deal, they tried to accuse us of all sorts of things, from kidnapping to selling kidneys on the black market... I hear you can get $20,000 per! Wow! I should sell one! Anyways, Now we have received some threats so were upping the security around the orphanage. But we know that God is in control and only he can protect us. This is how I see it: the orphanage is doing what its supposed to, glorifying God and proclaiming the Good news of Jesus Christ. And the devil doesn't want that. So we have encountered so opposition But we know the Lord is on our side and his plans cannot be thwarted. I read in psalm 37 today and its all about what will happen to the wicked man. He will not prosper but will fade away and his plans will come to ruin. I am confident that God's work will go forward and his will will be done here. The Lord is Good. His promises are sure, and those who put their trust in him are never dissappointed!

running from the police and killing cobras

2008-10-03T02:47:00.000-07:00

Okay so did i get your attention?
Yesterday was quite an exciting day. As you might have guessed. The police came to do an inspection of the school and orphanage or so we thought. We had a program prepared for then but when the got here all they wanted to do was accuse the orphanage of kidnapping kids. Which is just crazy. But anyways they borough two kids who we had never seen before and said that we kidnapped them. Only problem is that the kids stories didn't line up and after long ordeal they said that the police had threatened them and told them what to say. Then the police/ prosecutor immediately took the same kids and left. So we are praising God for his protection of the orphanage. But please also pray for the kids who were being threatened by the police. The police are after money and corruption is the norm here not the exception. That's the short version. I'm still trying to figure it out since I don't speak Tagalog but i am being tutored now so i understand a little.

Right after the police and all the attorneys left we found a cobra in the gym. And a few of the staff killed it. I latter found out that they actually killed 4 cobras yesterday afternoon. Oh and by the way I took the boys camping last night in the soccer field by the school. Needless to say we ended up all sleeping in my apartment! Well that's about all the excitement for now. Thanks for your continued prayers.

Keping the rubber side Down..

2008-09-19T04:57:00.000-07:00

hey everyone sorry for not updating the for a while, the Internet has been down for a while and the only place to access it is the Mall. But let me just take the time to explain to you the title of this post... Last week end I went on my first road trip with my new motorcycle. Its a Honda CBR 150 for those of you who don't know.. and it has 150 cc's of pure nasty moped-esque furry) :-) well anyways to make a long story short 5 of us took the trip and only 4 of us made it. the guy in front of me was going 100 plus km/ hour and crashed and broke both arms and is lucky to be a live. his bones were sticking out through his skin it was nasty! needless to say it was a bad day. he's okay now and out of the hospital. please pray for him him name is Rene. Its a good lesson for me that I was able to see it happen and now I'll take it easy, and hopefully keep my rubber on the road. okay Ive got tons to do and I'm preaching at church again this Sunday on Psalm 46!
wooohoo
the Philippines are crazy!

2008-08-30T03:28:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone,
how are things going? I doing just fine. I'm recovering from the week of school and i use my Saturday's to prepare for the coming week. I've been spending Saturday mornings preparing for my Matthew class and Wednesday chapel. And In the afternoons, like today a bunch of kids usually come to the orphanage to play and we teach them a bible story. I say usually b/c for some reason they didn't come today. So i guess I'm just prepared in advance for next week. Oh and We did a feeding program this week as well. You see there is another school up the road from us here and last Thursday we ( the kids and staff) walked up the road and i taught a bible lesson using the sketch board while David translated. then some of our kids did singing and dancing and then we served the food. It just a way that we are trying to reach out to the community here b/c many of them are very poor. I notice that with many of the kids they are malnourished. b/c they have spots in their hair that look like they've been bleached but its actually a sign that they don't get enough nutrients well please pray that we can fill them with the gospel i have to go now...

One Month

2008-08-16T00:12:00.001-07:00

well I've officially been here one month and to tell you the truth its been more difficult than i expected. I often feel like I don't have enough time to get everything done. I guess that's life. Its been a struggle to adjust to some of the things back here. I guess that i thought that i wouldn't have to do much adjusting because i was just here for like 4 months in the beginning of the year and i thought it would be easy. I have been studying humility in my devotions recently and i have come to realize just how proud I am. Its difficult to let go of my pride and admit that i can't do something. I hate having to rely on other people for everything but then again I know the Lord is trying to teach me to submit and humble my self before him. And I admit that I'm a slow learner! Anyways this week we have vacation from school and i am going to Manila till Wednesday to meet with people concerning my missionary visa. I would have already left for Manila but i am preaching this week at the church here in Lucena and have a few things to do. For those of you who are praying for me thank you i need it and i appreciate your prayers.
please pray this week for
-Preaching at the church on Unity/ Humility
-That i will be a servant to the staff and kids here at the orphanage
- That i will be able to meet all the requirements for my 9g visa
- for the director of the orphanage Toto for wisdom
- Safety for the travels this week

Thank you and God bless!

Teaching & Preaching

2008-08-04T02:58:00.000-07:00

Today I had my first class with the kids. It went well i guess. i mean i handed out candy when they found a bible verse so I'm sure they thought it was good haha! It was about the early life of Jesus, while he was growing up. I wanted the kids to understand that Jesus identifies with them because he was one of them at one point and knows what its like to be a kid. We spent most of the time in Luke 2 looking at how "normal" Jesus early years were w/ a few obvious exceptions. Well anyways I kind of have an idea of where I'm going next, I'd like to teach the book of Luke to the kids because there are some great stories and accounts in it and they can understand 1 simple application. Well like i said I'll be assuming some more responsibilities this week, as Lacrosse starts tomorrow and I'm excited. The goals are almost done but i cant find fishing nets with which i planned to make the goalie sticks so I'll have to improvise. Oh and I'm preaching at Lord of Harvest Church in Pagbilao on Sunday! Its the church that we attend and i spoke at once last time i was here. I think the plan is that i will help to give the pastor a break one in while. tentatively its set at once a month so that will be a challenge well that's about it for now.

trials

2008-07-31T02:03:00.000-07:00

I'm almost finished my first week of school. Its tiring. And oh my is it ever hot! the new class rooms that we built when i was here last February don't have air conditioner's and from 1-3pm its crazy hot here. I guess i knew that before hand but its different when you re wearing pants and a polo shirt all day. Well so far this week I've taught devotions with the Sankey kinds in the morning. We are studying James and so far we've talked about trial, temptations and the importance of listening and Doing what God's word tells us. This coming week i will begin most of the responsibilities that i will have for the year. I'll be teaching a bible class on Acts Monday and Wednesday and then teaching P.E. in the afternoons Tues-Thursday. I've already bought PVC pipe and netting to make lacrosse goals and next week I'll introduce it to the kids! I'm looking forward to seeing them hack each other with the sticks! Should be very entertaining! So far God has been teaching me mostly about trials and how we aught to handle them. I know its easier to say when things are going good but none the less is true. This is what James says on the subject: " count it all joy my brothers whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance..." right now I'm trying to learn to persevere. thanks for all of you who are praying for me out there love Brian!

"Home" at last!

2008-07-24T17:58:00.000-07:00

I finally made it out to the orphanage yesterday and I'm getting settle into my new home, which by the way it really sweet. I am living on the 2nd floor of what is called the mission house and its really nice. there is a balcony, living room, kitchen 2 bed rooms and 2 baths. And it even has most of the furnishings in it already too, including the most important appliance in the tropics which is...any guesses? An air conditioner! YESSS! I'll post some pics of my new crib when i get the time. right now I'm busy unpacking all my stuff and making it feel more like home. It is good to be back "home" again and I'm looking forward to getting started! Mabuti ang Dios!

Suffering for Jesus...again!

2008-07-21T23:55:00.000-07:00

well I've only been in the Philippines for a few days and i feel a little embarrassed to admit that I've already been to the beach. Ha ha it's a tough life but some one's got to do it. Yeah so anyways, We (Prissy, Andrew, me Martha Udo and the kids) just got back from Puerto Galera and it was amazing! the weather was great and so was the scuba diving! Andrew and i did 5 dives and we saw all sorts of awesome stuff including 2 stingrays and a huge sea turtle which i actually touched it was awesome. We had a great time and now are back in Rizal at Uncle Joe & Aunt Tanny's place and we will be taking prissy and Andrew back to the airport and then eventually getting my luggage which is still at Martha's in manila and then finally back to Lucena. I can't wait it already been too long!! well that's about all for now...

Back In the Philippines!

2008-07-17T02:03:00.000-07:00

Well I'm finally back in the Philippines! whoohoo! it feels a little wired but I'm excited to be back. Thanks for all of you who have prayed for me! the trip was fine and there were no hang ups along the way. I stopped in Chicago to meet with the First Love board and take care of some paper work and spent the night with the Clinton's who were so nice! From there it was back to Chicago and on to japan and then finally to manila. Not sure how long it took me but it felt like a long time. well that's about all for now, Udo and i will look for motorcycles tomorrow and i will try to contact some of the first love people tomorrow. so that's the plan for now. maybe in like a week i can get down to the orphanage in a week we'll see. thanks again for all of you who are praying for me! love all of you!

Leaving

2008-07-13T18:21:00.000-07:00

Wow! I can hardly believe that its already time to leave Connecticut. I didn't think that leaving home would be so hard. It was difficult to hold myself together today in church. Why, I'm not sure? I guess because I finally realized that I am actually leaving for the Philippines in the morning. Leaving the people you love is always hard but i know that God is with me and he will be my strength! I go with God and that's all I need! Jesus' words seem to have more impact when you re facing uncertainty but the promise of his words are true! He tells us, "surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. "I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that this is what God had planned for my life before the beginning of time and I know he will be with me no matter what!"

Countdown...

2008-07-04T22:02:00.000-07:00

Only 10 more days! wow i can't believe it. I still feel like I have so much to do before I leave. I'm excited and a little nervous but not about the normal things, like moving 1/2 way around the world. God has given me a peace about that and besides I've been in the Philippines more than I've been home and it feels like home there. I mean how often does someone move to the other side of the world and still end up with in 2-3 hours of family? God has me right where he wants me and I'm ready to face what ever challenges He throws my way! (oh and actually its 1 am so technically its only 9 more days but who's counting?)

Crunch Time

2008-07-02T06:28:00.000-07:00

Well the countdown has kicked into high gear and I'm starting to feel the pressure. Even though i know it will all eventually get done i still feel like there is so much stuff that i have to do before the 14th. Wow i can't believe that in less than two weeks that I'll be on a plane headed to the Philippines for 2 years!! I'm excited and i can't wait to see what God has in store for me! I'm a little apprehensive yes, but at the same time i have a peace about going that i can't explain. God has been there at every turn to encourage me that this is he place he wants me. Two of my relatives called me up and said that they would support me this week and that was a big encouragement. God is Good! Oh and the youth group at EBC raised 263 dollars towards my motorcycle!! Blessings are coming from all over and I know God is behind all of them! So even though its "crunch time" I am confident that God will help me get through it and finish everything that i need to. Isn't God Good!

God Is Good!

2008-06-24T19:34:00.000-07:00

What can i say? God is amazing! He takes care of his children and provides for their needs. God is Very Good! I just want to take the time to thank him for the blessings in my life! Uncle Tom suggested that I keep track of them and so here is just one of the many ways that God has provided for me. About 2 weeks ago the local news paper here in town ran an auricle about me going to the Philippines to serve as a missionary. I was concerned that they would edit out what i said and that it wouldn't be God honoring. Upon reading the article I found that they did a wonderful job and glory was give where it was due! I was excited and pleased with the outcome however I didn't think that anything would come from it and almost forgot about it. But a few days later I got a call from one of my high school friends and he said he was interested in supporting my ministry. I thought OK sure sounds great, so we talked about each other was doing and committed to pray for each other. That alone was encouragement enough for me! And a few days later i received a letter in the mail from my buddy; with it was a check for $1,000!! Wow, i was overwhelmed! Its really humbling! I know don't deserve it but God continues to bless me! And my Only prayer is that I can live a life worthy of Him and continue to trust Him! God Is So Good!

Last will & testament

2008-06-24T12:31:00.000-07:00

hey just so that i get in a groove and start writing in this thing i've decided to tell you about my will. I had to write one in case of emmergency... hope that dosent pan out. Anyways, Theres not too much to get excited about. Mainly because i don't have a whole lot. Tom: you can have my mustang, what ever its worth. maybe you can use the money to finish that coupe youve been working on! Chuck as promised you can have my guitar. But if you die i want mr. f. oh and our palm tree. mom and day you can have whatever is left and do with it what you feel is best. okay thats about all, like i said i dont have much to give away alright im out.

New prayer cards

2008-06-23T05:38:00.000-07:00

hey well there is still not a whole lot new. i just want to wrtie to keep up and get in the habbit of it. Today, I have a doctor's appointment to get a physical and or any other nessessary shots tha i might need then i have an appointmant with mr Higgins to go over my will. It seems funny that i woudl even need to make one but oh well. Oh and last night i finally got a good picture that would wrk for my prayer card and the guy finished them already and they look great i'm really pleased with them... well that's about ll for now only 22 more days....

2008-06-19T09:29:00.000-07:00

Just in case anyone actually does read this and they want to know information about what orginizaton I will be servign with in the philippines, here is their name and contact information. I will be serving with First Love International Ministries and they can be reached at:
First Love International Ministries
PO Box 15836
Loves Park, IL 61132.
or by email at:firstloveinternational@comcast.net

First Time

2008-06-19T09:03:00.000-07:00

hey! I'm not sure that anyone will actually read this but in case of emmergency I think its best to have a place where you can contact me or whatever when im serving th Lord in the Philippines. So yeah hope this works out b/c i dont have a clue.