This trip has been a study in contrasts!   We've seen unbelievable poverty.  Can you even imagine little children living in tombs where the bones of the dead have been emptied and people crawl into the tomb to sleep.  Imagine raw sewage, bags of rotting bones, the stench of death.... that was just one place we visited.   People with no hope.    Imagine a village built on stilts over sewage filled water filled with incredible poor people where none of the children attend school.  Again, no hope...

Then imagine some of the most beautiful scenery on the planet....

What God has created - and what the sin of man has made.

The only hope is Jesus and His Word.  Everywhere, everywhere - "Please send us Bibles"   "People need Bibles!"   In the midst of the worst poverty I have ever seen - we have seen people transformed by the power of the Word of God.  

People are pleading for God's Word.   Will we listen? 

I am so excited to share the trip with the BBL listeners - and can't wait to see what God is going to do to use WRFD listeners to bring hope to this part of the world.

I'm tired, homesick, but so blessed to have the privilege of being here.

Lord willing, I'll be talking to you soon on BBL.

We finally arrived safely in Manila.   Good flights, smooth just really, really long!

We came straight from the airport, checked into the Hotel and immediately went to the Bible League office for interviews and work.   Sweet people who really love Jesus.

There are 80 Million people in the Philippines - and most are religious, but lost.   There is a desperate need for Bibles.  The Manila director told us that they need 50,000 entire Bibles in Tagalog (major language here) immediately.   She said, "yesterday".   There are over 7,000 individual islands - and God is at work on most.   People are coming to Christ by the thousands - but they need God's Word.

Well.... totally exhausted - and off to bed in a little while.

Thanks for your prayers!!  

I'm sitting at the Los Angeles airport waiting for my flight to San Francisco - then on to Hong Kong, the Philippines, China and then back home.   I was so fortunate to spend a couple of days with my family here in California.   My mother is in a nursing home because of the distance and time between visits I never know if this visit will be my last with her.   What a blessing she is.   She hated the nursing home at first.  Her independence was gone and she was simply not a "happy camper".   That was then....   Now, she is serving God faithfully where God has placed her.   She has made up little 3X5 cards with scripture verses on them.   She distributes them everywhere.   She slips one under a door here, on a bedside there, at the nurses station over there.   She's constantly telling the staff about her wonderful Jesus.   She told me today, "I'm so ashamed of the way I acted when I first came here.   Now, I know God placed me here for ministry."   That's my Mom.

On Sunday, I had the privilege of preaching out in the California desert at the church where my sister's husband pastors.   It's certainly not a large church - but talk about alive!  The singing and worship was wonderful!!   And then there's my sister.   She was suppose to die 11 years ago with cancer - the doctors had given up.   God knew better.   Then, she was suppose to die 3 months ago...  Well, again, God knew better and we had a sweet time of fellowship.   I also had a wonderful time with my younger brother.   We share much including a love for all things cars...

I would appreciate your prayers for me and my family as I journey to the Philippines on behalf of the Bible League....  Can't wait to tell you the stories when I return.    I'll try to "Blog" as often as I can....  also, I'm going to try to send audio updates for BBL...

God bless!