Home sweet home...

I am so thankful that even in the midst of all the craziness of my life I still find time to sit back and take in all of the wonder of God's creation. Like this little guy!!

What's been keeping me so busy? Lists. Many varieties, but for the most part: packing lists and lists of gifts/remembrances to buy. It's definitely a weird feeling preparing to come home. I feel ready to see all of my friends and family in the States, but I know I will never be fully ready to leave here. 

Pray for my dad, Billy Webb and his daughter Sarabeth - the three of them are currently on their way to the Philippines! They'll be arriving in Laoag on Thursday around 11:30 our time -- that's late Wednesday night in the US. I'll join them and some pastors on a trip to Fuga Island.... I don't know enough about the place to blog about it, so look for a blog when I come back. (And pictures! It's beautiful there!!) We're leaving on Saturday and should be home sometime on the 15th.

love,k

Youth camp - pictures

Before camp began, we surrounded the campgrounds with banners, declaring the place as belonging to the Lord.

Every morning began with a Bible study. Here I am teaching...I was a counselor for a group of ten 13-15 year olds.

A good friend came to visit and we sang together - Mark Schultz's "Remember Me." This was during one of the evening services.

Cheer dance competition! Every afternoon we (in four random groups) played games. In our counseling groups, we also participated in a singing competition and a spiritual cheer competition. It was definitely..interesting, to say the least.

Our bonfire on the last night....Before the bonfire some campers and leaders reenacted the story of Elijah and the prophets of Baal.

With my and another counseling group - this was our group for the singing/cheer competitions.

Water baptism in the South China Sea took place on the last afternoon. Around 15 kids were baptized.

Every evening we of course had a service and praise and worship. We had a guest speaker from another church in Laoag come and speak for three nights -- wonderful teaching, but I could only understand some of what he said because he preached in Tagalog and I speak Ilokano. (Tagalog is a language, Ilokano a dialect, for those of you who don't know.)

And of course, we had lots of time to just have fun! Here we are on the beach before going to take a swim.

So much to do, so little time!

Well, I made it through one week of camp -- one more to go!

Last week was the CMMP annual summer kids' camp. It's basically VBS in a camp setting. I taught one of the classes (12 years old). I definitely enjoyed myself, but it was an exhausting week. We stayed at CMMP's campground property in Gabu, a small town/village/whatever-you-want-to-call-it about 35 minutes outside of central Laoag and located right on the South China Sea. We all slept in tents and spent our week singing, playing games, learning, swimming, and getting pretty sandy. I don't think I got all of the sand off of me until I got home and took a bath.

Camp was for sure an overall success. I know the kids (and the staff!) had a great time. Many children were exposed to the Word for the first time, and on our last night of camp several of them accepted Christ. Praise God!

Agenda for this week: Leaving in a few hours for youth camp. Same type of setup, but totally different atmosphere. Hopefully my camera batteries cooperate and I'll have some pictures for you! (I'm serving as a camp counselor, praise and worship leader, and learning-new-songs instructor this week.) Keep us all in your prayers!

In Him,k

P.S. I don't know if you did or did not receive my email, but I still have many expenses to make and my funds for the rest of the year are running pretty low. I would appreciate any help you are able to offer me financially -- even $10.00 will help. If you'd like more information on my needs or where to send your checks, please email me at icekater19@yahoo.com. If you are not able to help me financially, I always appreciate and solicit your prayers. All my love --

Theme Thursday (late): Style

I'm posting this week's Theme Thursday a few days late, as I had a hair crisis and didn't want to post this picture until it was solved.

Style. How perfect, seeing as I just got my hair cut! Here's my new "style."

Theme Thursday: Collection

I recently stumbled across Missy's blog and discovered Theme Thursday. Every week Stacy announces a different theme and participating bloggers post a picture/pictures relating to that theme.

This week's theme is collections.

As far as actual collections go, I can't say that I really have any, so I decided that (since I recently posted pictures of the things that make me dread coming home) I should create a collection of the things I'm looking forward to about coming home.

Planting seeds

Most of the people I interact with here aren’t that big on the prophetic, or “words from the Lord,” or visions and dreams, or any of that stuff. It’s not that they don’t believe in it. They do, at least as far as I know. They just don’t do it. They don’t mind it being done, but they’re not going to be the ones doing it, if that makes sense. 

So, when the Lord told me something I was supposed to share with the praise and worship team, I got scared. It’s not the first time He’s given me a word for someone (or in this case, a group of someones), but in the past I’ve been able to predict how that person would respond. This time, I had no clue. Would they listen to me? Would they freak out and think I was coming up with all of this on my own? Would they nod and smile but not take any of it into account? I didn’t know. So I just came up with excuses and made myself forget.

This week, my mom asked me about it. I felt so ashamed for not telling them about it that I got angry and just wanted to forget it. But as I prayed about it, the Lord gave me even more things to say and continued pushing me towards talking to them. So I did. And I think what I said stirred up at least a few of their hearts. 

I won’t go into too much detail about this, but I want to share some with you because I’d love for you to join with me in prayer for this group. 

Legs swinging beneath the table and palms sweating, I told the worship team what God told me: "I miss you."

Just as I miss hanging out with my friends and family, I said, He misses hanging out with them. And – I think this is something a lot of people don’t get – that doesn’t just mean prayer and time in the Word or in worship. Of course, those are great things, but it’s also important to go and sit at the feet of Jesus. I shared with them how how every second of every day I have to ask God to rip out of me everything that displeases Him – and still, I make Him sad at times. It's an everyday struggle. Before we can worship, before we can pray and before we can understand God's Word, we need to let Him clean us out. We need to find that quiet place and just be with Him.

Like I said, I wasn’t sure how they’d react, if at all. But they did! Our music pastor came up to me with tears in his eyes and thanked me. About half an hour later, as I was sitting in the street talking (my nightly ritual) two of the guys on the team came up to talk to me about it. I was able to share with them more personal stuff relating to this and get feedback from them. One told me that he felt sad as he heard me share, because he sees how true it all is.

I believe – I know – that the members of the worship team here are Christians. But I also believe that several of them have lost that pure, innocent relationship with God. The one where He’s all that matters, where you desire to be in His presence 24/7, not just during services or special events.

So pray for them.

love,k

Life Lesson #5

This fish is very similar to the one I accidentally grabbed ahold of (thinking it was a leaf) while swimming in the absolutely beautiful waters of Pagudpud last Thursday afternoon. Needless to say, I was shocked that my pretty leaf had such energy and I remained pretty jumpy for the remainder of the afternoon.

So, now for the life lesson --- Take opportunities, no matter how small. They might not come around again.

Some opportunities I've taken in the past week (in no particular order):

1. Travel out of town.

2. Take an unexpected swim in a warm river.

3. Go jogging in the mornings.

4. Try a new type of fish.

5. Share a word from the Lord with a group of friends.

6. Watch 2 traditional Catholic parades during Holy Week.

7. Talk to an old friend (which is a bigger deal than it seems).

8. Babysit.

9. Dance.

The people I'll miss when I go home...

SAVERS. These are the kids who make me smile every day.

Nanang Florie, my mom in the Philippines. :]

In the red is Auntie Pat, and above her in white is Auntie Azon. These are my other two housemates. Both are goofy and wonderful. In dark blue is Auntie Mercy and in light blue her daughter Sheng. Up top, Pastor Doe with her delightful son Jairus.

Praise and worship team. Not all of us are actually in this picture.

Aira and Faye. Aira's my nighttime talking buddy when I'm lonely and she's become kind of like a little sister to me.

Apple. She is literally the sweetest girl I know here and one of my best friends (worldwide).

My band. These guys were my first close friends here. They made my transition here a lot easier by treating me like one of them from the start.

All CMBI students. This is Michal, the one I'm closest to. She's going home this week and I don't know when I'll see her again. :[

My ballet students.

Dry spell that lasts a lifetime?

A close friend of mine (here in the Philippines)'s sister had a baby on Monday. Today I spent some time at their house visiting both mother and baby, both of whom are truly beautiful. It was possibly the highlight of my week! Babies are so perfect and innocent. Even their skin is flawless, something that I suppose won't last too long....

I can't help but be saddened by the situation, though. This young mother is not married and has not yet finished college. She lives with her boyfriend but I am unaware of their exact circumstances. Of course, this is not uncommon, even in the church (sadly enough). However, today I was reminded of how much confusion there is among the young people here. I realize that this is a worldwide problem, and one not only found in teenagers, but my heart continues to go out to this specific group of kids. None of them are "bad," so to speak. They are respectful most of the time, they work hard to help their parents and those around them, and most of them are pursuing or have already received a college education. They know Bible verses, they come to Sunday services, and they love the Lord. But it's all kind of routine; they're just going through the motions, and frankly, things are quite dry.

They kind of remind me of myself -- before.

Before I fell in love with the Lord. Before I knew what it was like to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Before I finally decided to give myself completely to Him. Before my relationship with Him became real to me.

The things I have now, the gifts and experiences that God has given me, are what I want for these kids. I don't want to see them in a lifelong dry spell. I don't think they even know what they're missing! I sometimes wonder if even the Bible students know what it feels like to be desperately in love with the Lord, so much that I can't even describe it. I hope they do, but I don't know.

Tonight as I was praying during our youth service, I was reminded (for probably the millionth time) that I really can't do anything about this. I can't make these kids change. I can't bring them experiences. The only way I can help them is by doing these things myself -- by showing them. This is a lesson I always seem to forget, but the Lord continues to remind me.

I don't know why I feel compelled to write a blog about this, because I know I wrote a similar one a while back. But nonetheless, here I am again. Pray for me?

love,k

Life Lesson #4

If God wants something to happen, He'll make it happen. If He doesn't want something to happen (that is, unless we are to learn from it), it won't happen. Period.

StreetJAM '08

Well...StreetJAM: Jesus And Music, the Christian battle of the bands that I was a part of, was a success!! For those of you who aren't already aware, here's how the process worked.

1. Bands from various churches throughout the city and the province composed original Christian songs of any style. (I'm with five guys and I sing lead.)
2. Bands practiced like crazy and went to Praise Charismatic Fellowship, the church that sponsored this event, to record the song to a CD.
3. Judges then listened to the demo CDs and selected bands to perform in the final event. (14 bands were selected this year.)
4. At a prejudging event, bands performed their songs and received constructive criticism from local judges and were given a few weeks to improve.
5. On Monday, February 18, in the Laoag City Amphitheater, the final concert was held. Judges came from both near and far and selected 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners. A Texter's Choice Award was also given.

Although my band didn't win the competition (or place, for that matter), I really enjoyed being a part of things. This is the first time this type of event has ever taken place in Laoag and they plan to continue it for years to come. I had a blast at the concert - listening to other bands and cheering for them, hanging out with the other members of my band, etc. I'd love to return to watch next year, because I know it will definitely be much improved. I think pictures will be up sometime on this website, but they're not there yet.

:]
love,k

"You are not welcome back here."

....That was my dad's comment when I told him my opinions of chicken head and feet, both of which I tried for the first time last night. (I said they were yummy. They are!)

See, I have this little "game" with some friends here wherein I have to try one new and exotic food each month. We started in December - I ate balut for the first time then (and actually liked it!). Not sure what my task for February is, as I've proved pretty easy to please thus far and am seeking more of a challenge. Ha. :]

In other news, our trip to Manila was wonderful. I had a blast shopping and being in the city (although the traffic is atrocious), and more importantly the conference was wonderful. Anne Graham Lotz spoke twice - her first session was called "Jesus is our Savior" and focused on the cross and His death, and second session was "Jesus is our Lord" and focused on the resurrection. Hearing her speak helped me get some things back into perspective and it was just what I needed. A very tiring weekend, but a blessed one.

love,k

Fernando Ortega, here I come! :)

Ack! A month without posting! What's happened to me?

Well, to be honest -- not a lot has happened to me. I can't say that I've done anything significant or out-of-the-ordinary this month, and I guess that's why I haven't been posting. Whoops.

One cool thing I did do this month was preach. It was my third sermon ever, and I'm still not used to it. I preached out of Jeremiah and Hebrews on the new covenant and how it allows us to enter into the Lord's presence -- not like it used to be, where only the high priest could enter the Holy of Holies, only once a year, and only after a sacrifice was made. I discussed how Christ served as both the high priest and the sacrifice, and how He entered not an earthly Holy of Holies, but a heavenly one. When He made that sacrifice He gave us two things: 1) salvation and eternal life if we choose it -- this is the thing that most people think of -- and 2) the ability to enter into His presence on a regular basis. I then went on to explain how we should be when we do enter His presence: I used Hebrews 10:22 to name four characteristics we should have: a devoted heart, a surrendered life, a clean conscience, and internal purification. If you want more details let me know, but that's the gist of it.

Tonight I am taking the 8 PM bus from Laoag to Manila with several women from the church and other nearby churches. That's a 10-hour bus ride for those of you who don't know, and I'm praying I'll spend most of it asleep!!! We will be attending the Just Give Me Jesus crusade this February 2nd in Manila's Araneta Coliseum (fun fact: it's the largest coliseum in the country!). Anne Graham Lotz will be the main speaker, and Fernando Ortega is leading worship. It's an all-day event, and I'm so excited! We'll be spending Feb. 1 out and about in Manila, which is something I haven't done yet so I look forward to that as well.

And, as always, I'm anxiously awaiting SUMMER! (For me here that means late March through mid-June.) Maybe I'll actually get a tan - because right now I'm still just about as white as it gets. :]

love,k

Life Lesson #3

God uses every opportunity to teach us something, and we need to accept that and be thankful for it.

Until recently, probably just this year, I was one of those people who constantly asked God (and others, but mainly God) "why." -- Why are You allowing this to happen? Why do I have to go through this? Why is everything so hard? But now, I'm not. I can't ask why because I'm realizing that if for nothing else, most things I go through happen because God is trying to teach me. Little things like a friend making a rude comment to me or big things like moving to the Philippines -- they're all lessons. I feel thankful because God is giving me huge amounts of understanding. If I'm going through a hard time I understand why it's happening, I understand how God is using it to grow me and to glorify Him. I may be miserable, but I get it, and that allows me to be thankful. I used to wonder how we could possibly be thankful and joyful in all circumstances, because some things seem purely awful, but now I see that I'm learning, and that in and of itself is something to be thankful for.

:]

Just hear those sleigh bells jingling.... Or calesa bells?

Well, the holidays have come and gone. It's another year -- wow!

Probably my favorite part of Christmas here is how low-key it is. In America, I associate Christmas with hustle and bustle, with shopping and last-minute gift wrapping, with hectic schedules and with family. The last is, of course, the most important -- but it is sometimes overshadowed by the others. Here in the Philippines, though, it's not like that. In the months, weeks, days, and even hours leading up to Christmas I really didn't feel in the Christmas "spirit," and I realized that was because things weren't so commercially focused (if that makes sense). It's not the weather that makes it different, or the food we eat, or things like that -- I guess it's mostly the traditions, or lack thereof.

Let me give you an idea of a typical Christmas here, or at least what I know from the people I interact with.

On Christmas Eve (Noche Buena), everyone cooks a big meal to eat at midnight with their families and friends. They spend that entire day cooking the meal, shopping for food, etc. The next morning is just like normal -- families wake up, greet one another "Merry Christmas," then go about their usual business. People can still be seen shopping on Christmas day (and of course wrapping presents), because gift-giving is done later that evening, if at all. Most families don't give one another gifts. Here in our church we have a Christmas service, and at the end of all the presentations everyone runs around and hands out gifts to their loved ones in the church. Other than that, nothing major is done. Some people have Christmas trees, and there are usually lights up on houses, but it's just....It's just not a big deal.

What is a big deal here is New Year's. In short, it involves another late-night meal (here we had a church service so we ate afterwards), time with family and friends, and lots (LOTS) of fireworks. The streets are filled with ash and smoke and it's impossible to walk down any one street without having to stop several times to allow firecrackers to go off!! At midnight the superstitious jump a lot -- so they will grow in the coming year. ;) I had a lot more fun at New Year's than on Christmas, I think.

Oh, I left out one other detail about my holidays:

MY MOM CAME!!!!! :D
She arrived here on Saturday the 22nd. Pastor Florie had mentioned a guest who was coming but wouldn't say who she was and only said that she was flying in from Manila. I had a suspicion that it was Mom but pushed it aside because I didn't want to get my hopes up. When Pastor brought me to the airport (telling me that this person "really wanted to see me") I became more suspicious but continued to think "no, it's not Mom, it's just someone who's heard about me." But sure enough, it was her! My reaction was priceless -- my jaw dropped, I gasped and couldn't stop shaking for over 5 minutes! I felt like I was dreaming. Apparently this had been planned since September - wow! We had a great week together -- she spoke at our national youth convention (the 26-28th... it went quite well...) and at our church's Christmas service, but we mostly just got to hang out and catch up on lots of talking. She was scheduled to leave on Sunday the 30th but her flight from Laoag to Manila was canceled so we got one more day together and she left Laoag on the 31st. She'll be back in Roanoke on the afternoon of Jan. 1. I still can't believe she was here!! She told me that she was sending me a Christmas package and every day I looked for it in the mail -- well, she was that package. What a great present. :)

love,k

P.S. A calesa is a horse-drawn buggy used here for public transportation.

Life Lesson #2

"Hey, at least it's not raining." -- Meaning, it could always be worse.

I spend so much time dwelling on my own problems. When attending the necrological service of a 28 year old who recently died and left behind a heartbroken husband and a 1 month old son, I realized just how trivial those problems are.

Life Lesson #1

When traveling (or living) overseas, never use a slang expression that has the potential to be deemed cruel or disrespectful.

Yikes!

Miss Atkins, student and instructor

You know, I'm really enjoying being a teacher -- English and ballet. It's so thrilling to help others learn something new, even just one tiny thing like how to correctly releve in fifth position. And teaching is such a great learning experience, too.

I am so in love with my ballet class!!! We're currently preparing for another performance on Christmas Day, and we're all tired but having a blast! I love it, because the longer I teach them the more I learn. I'm learning to balance fun times with serious, stricter times, and I've come up with some really great (not to toot my own horn or anything) on-the-spot games and ideas for our classes/practices that have made them really enjoyable. I feel like I'm getting closer to the kids, too. They used to be shy to speak English to me, or to tell me anything about themselves, but now it's like I have 11 new brothers and sisters. On that note, my class has gro-o-o-wn!! I'm happy to know that more kids are interested in joining, but I finally had to set a cut-off date. It was getting to big for me to handle. We've practiced every day this week, which is pretty tiring -- but it's a great feeling to know that they're so excited to come every day. Last week I traveled to Baguio and they all groaned when they heard we wouldn't be practicing for two days in a row. :)

In other news, the Christmas break is coming up and I just gave my English students their second exam. Two of them have improved significantly, and I'm excited. It's better than none! As with the ballet class, I feel like the longer I teach the more ideas I get and the better I become at it. I never thought I'd enjoy teaching this much. I still don't think it's something I'll pursue as a career, but we have teaching opportunities every day and I'm glad to know that I'm not terrible at it. Oh, I just wish I was staying here another year so I could teach for an entire year and use all of my ideas!

I love you all and hope you're each enjoying a blessed holiday season!
love,k

Responsibilities, or lack thereof

Hey guys, just have some thoughts I feel like sharing. Lately I’ve been having a hard time with several things (you’ll see what some of those are) – I’ve been up and down emotionally, spiritually, and every other way. But (praise the Lord) things are incredible now!

I think what helped me the most in all of this was coming to grips with my pride. It's something I've always struggled with, but until now I didn't realize just how bad things had gotten. It's taken over my thought life, my speech, my attitudes, my opinions, even my emotions!! This past Saturday afternoon I talked with a friend of my dad’s about several things, and it really helped me out. I already listed them in another email, so I'll just copy/paste it....

1. We should take every opportunity to let people know we are Christians. This does not necessarily involve saying "Hey guys, I'm a Christian, and if you're not you should be!" as much as living a Christlike life. As my dad’s friend put it, "when you are real, people know it and even though it may seem people don't listen, when the chips are down and people are in trouble, they'll remember you and trust you and turn to you." I'm excited because I've seen this in my own life. There are people who know I'm a Christian, and I've never once told them that I am. I'd like to think that they know through my actions and speech; my attitude. However, lately this has been something I’ve forgotten about. I haven’t been concerned about the opinions people here have of me, because of course they know I’m a Christian! I’m a missionary, right? But the point isn’t them knowing whether or not I’m a believer, the point is them seeing that I’m living for Christ. – On a side note, this was also Pastor Florie's sermon on Sunday – another confirmation that the Lord wanted me to remember this!! I've been reminded lately of 1 Timothy 4:12, and that in order to bring change to the people here (who are believers), the most important thing to be doing is living for God. This goes along with point number 2.....
2. We are in no way responsible for changing people's hearts; for converting them. Only God can do that. We are, however, His ambassadors (see 2 Cor. 5:11-21), called only to "act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:8). Through fearing the Lord and doing what He has asked – commanded – us to do, we'll persuade people to do the same (2 Cor. 5:11). God does these things THROUGH us. We do nothing FOR Him.
3. God is a God of relationship... This is a common theme throughout Scripture. These relationships include: God in relationship with Himself, God in relationship with Creation, God in relationship with man, man in relationship with man, man in relationship with God.
4. (This kind of goes with #3) God is our model for literally everything. Such an obvious "point," but something I personally often forget.

I had really been struggling with #2 – not in the sense that I feel responsible for converting people, but that I sometimes feel responsible for the choices, lifestyles, and mindsets of other people – especially now that I'm over here. It's like I want so badly to help the youth group here, and sometimes I forget that I will never truly be able to make them draw nearer to the Lord. That's between Him and them. It’s so nice to know that.

Also, my desire to spend time with the Lord has been renewed! Rather than dutifully pulling out my Bible and reading one chapter a day, I get so caught up in what I'm reading that I don't want to stop!! I'm reading through 1 and 2 Samuel right now – books I don't think I've ever read straight through – and loving it. I'm learning a lot and I'm so excited to be so excited. It's great, because even though there have been "slow times," I'm learning to spend those times with the Lord, rather than spending them sulking.

Thanks for your prayers and encouraging words!! I feel so blessed by all of you.

love,k

Pen and paper. Or, in this case, keyboard and monitor.

I've always loved writing. When I was a kid, I spent lots of time on the computer (remember, we are in an age of technology!) or in notebooks writing stories and keeping journals. I've never really gotten bummed out about writing assignments in school, no matter how boring or exasperating they may seem to other people. To me, writing is a privilege, no matter what I'm writing about.

Despite how much I love writing, I often leave things incomplete (unless their completion is required). I've started so many stories, but most of them have stopped because I wasn't happy with the way the story was going. Rather than backtracking and fixing certain elements, I abandoned the story altogether. I'd rather start from scratch than go back over and edit the whole thing. It's not a big deal to me, because those unfinished stories are mine - they're not for no one else; no one is counting on their completion. Same thing with journal writing. I've never been good at writing regularly, not for longer than two months anyway. As with my stories, I've come to the realization that this doesn't matter because no one reads my journals. I write when I have something to say, and don't waste ink or paper when I don't. (Although.. Some may argue that this is a bad thing, because I've gotten in the habit of leaving things incomplete. I don't know. I really only see this pattern of not finishing what I've started in my writing.)

The only problem is -- with a blog, there are people reading. There are people out there wanting to read the things I write, wanting to hear what's going on. My apologies. :( I'm really going to try harder.

Several things have been going on in my life lately that I've allowed to distract me -- from spending time with the Lord, from getting work done (college, my classes, etc.), and from writing to you guys. At first I didn't realize it, but now I can see what's been happening and I'm asking the Lord to help me get back on track. Hopefully you'll be hearing from me more often. I'd like to be able to write more than "this is what I've been up to lately," but because my posts are so spread out, that's all they consist of. If you're keeping up with this blog and notice that I'm not posting, say something! I do love writing in here, but sometimes I don't think about it.

love you all,k

P.S. Sem break is over. I'm back in my English class and down to two students -- one (Minerva) is taking a one-semester break (she was ahead by one sem) and the other (Ruth) transferred. I think it's a blessing in disguise, because I'll be getting closer to these two girls (Cheryl-Lai and Baby Rose). Also, tonight is the service for the CMMP-CMBI 12th anniversary. My ballet students are performing, SAVERS are doing a few things, and I'm singing! I'm excited.