Handumanan

My village.

A little presumptuous of me to think of it as such--but I do.

One of the loudest messages I've ever heard from God was when I drove away from the village for the first time in 2006 and heard Him say we were to partner with it.  To see what God has done in just 3 short years just overwhelms me.

This visit was just as powerful as my last ones have been.  

When we drove up on Sunday morning, the people were already singing.  But there was still a crowd by the door waiting for us...touching us...smiling...crying..."Welcome back, m'am!"...."We love you, m'am!"..."Praise the LORD! m'am!".  Kendra started crying the minute she walked through the door and doesn't remember much for about 15 minutes...smile...I totally understand...

The presence of the Lord was incredibly rich there this past Sunday.  A weeping spirit...a thankful spirit...thanking HIm for His goodness...

Pastor Tom and Sister JiJi and their staff are entrenched in our hearts.  When God connects, it's just connected. I love the way God does that.

I love the children of Handumanan.  They are absolutely just as powerful in prayer as the adults.  When they sing, heaven comes down.  I also love how this church allows their children to minister in such a powerful way.  They sing, they play, they are in front, they worship...oh my.  It's amazing and powerful and there is no doubt in my mind that many, many of them are going to be powerful ministers in just a few short years.

Kendra greeted the congregation...and I was much more moved than they were.  smile.  My kid, ya know?  She exhorted them to remain strong as people who are called by His NAME...and His Presence confirmed her exhortation.

My subject was "All You Need is in His Presence."  And His Presence was so powerful there, until it felt as if it was pushing me--lifting me up--it was so easy to say what needed to be said.

Prayer following the speaking lasted for about an hour.  Every single person in the building was weeping and travailing and interceding and rejoicing in His presence.  

You can watch the video of this baptism on youtube.  Go to youtube.com and search for "Baptism in Bacolod".

Then....the gifts....the baptism of the brand-new couple in the barrell outside...the tour of the improvements which have been made since our last visit...fellowship together around the small table in the tiny schoolroom with homemade eggrolls...vision casting....there were people standing--the back wall of the sanctuary needs to be knocked out to enlarge the church so more can fit...laughter...sharing details of our lives and our families...

My last words:  "I am no longer a guest here, but family.  Good-by for now...I'll be back."

And I will.