Sportsfest
In the second week of September, PCL held its annual
‘Sportsfest’. This is one of the most highly anticipated events on the school
calendar.
The event ran from Tuesday 10th til Thursday 12th.
It started with a kind of opening ceremony, as all four teams paraded down
towards the basketball court, sang a worship song, received a message of
encouragement from our PCL President and prayed. This was followed by a
cheering competition. I wish that I could include video in a newsletter,
because the cheers were fantastic, including choreography, chanting, props and
lots of creativity.
The sports played were basketball (male and female),
volleyball (mixed), indoor sports, a dodge-ball game with a Filipino name I
could never quite remember, a quiz night and a four-part team challenge. I even
took part in an exhibition game of basketball – students vs committee. I have
played very little sport in the 11 years since injuring my knee, so I was a bit
nervous. However, it was lots of fun! Another absolute highlight was the
Wednesday evening talent night. We had an ‘a capella’ (inspired by the movie
‘Pitch Perfect’) song, a fantastic dance, a highly entertaining play and a
mishmash of all kinds of things put together. It was a fantastic night, and as
one of the judges, I had a front-row seat.
On Thursday afternoon we held our award ceremony which
acknowledged not only the sporting achievements but also students who showed
great character. Through the entire week, the students sought to glorify God
through their attitude, sportsmanship and team spirit. In the end it was the
‘Green Warriors’ who were the champions.
Johnnyboy and Elaine
Every week, in my prayer requests, I mention Johnnyboy and Elaine, the
students we have brought here from Pangapasan Island, near Bohol Island. I
would like to tell some of their story.
Pastor Lee, our Korean missionary pastor and the founder of PCL, first
met these children two years ago, on a mission trip to the tiny island of
Pangapasan. His heart was touched when he heard that their parents had
separated, formed new families, and left their children. They, along with their
three younger brothers, lived with their grandmother who struggled to support
their needs. Both Johnnyboy (14) and Elaine (13) showed a high level of
intelligence and a good attitude but had little opportunity to pursue their
education, as they needed to do anything they could to survive. Johnnyboy told
me that every day, rain or shine, he would go fishing, just to survive. His
siblings would also go to the seashore to collect snails and other seafood to
eat. Because of this, the children could not go to school.
I met them in April 2012, when I joined the mission trip to their
island. From that time some of us gave some money to support their education on
Bohol Island. However, it was still not ideal, as there was nobody to look
after them. We prayed for a way to bring them to the mountain, where they could
be well looked after, but there were some legal matters that needed to be
worked out.
In May this year, when I returned
from a visit to Australia, I was thrilled to find them living here! Now, they
have wonderful, caring people to look after them and are doing so well in
school. Johnnyboy was even the top student in his class. When he was young, he
dreamed of becoming a marine engineer. Now, because of what God has done in his
life, he hopes to one day become a pastor. Sometimes they are sad because they
miss their grandmother and brothers. However, they know that God has a purpose
for them and they are so thankful for the opportunity they have been given,
knowing that an education can make a huge difference to their future. They have
become a special part of the Prayer Mountain family. I know that God has a
great plan for both of their lives. We continue to pray for their brothers
Jhonloyd, Niño and Richard, as well as their grandmother back on the island.
Special Moments
For the past 18 months, I have spent my weekends living on
the third floor of a friend’s church. We call the third floor ‘Faith House’ and
there are about 7 youth and two families who live there. I was very blessed on
September 20th to be asked to be the ‘Ninang’ of Nicole, an 8 year
old girl whose family is staying there. It was her Girl Scouts ceremony, and as
Ninang, I was the one to put her hat on her head. Special moments like this
remind me of how blessed I have been to have a ‘Faith House Family’. While I am
really excited about having my own home after I am married, I will certainly
miss these wonderful people, to whom I have become so close.
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