bureros bert mary 1996 philippines

Forwarding Agents CGGOYOW VOLCeY CHILOfteW S HOMC M/M Bert BurerosM/MBobPruitt Newsletter sent by P.O. Box 49P.O. Box 5614 Rogue Valley Christian Church 3515 Apam, CagayanGrants Pass, OR 97527 Medford, Oregon Philippines

January 1996

iJ^Hessagesf^rom tMirgand ^ert

Dear Christian Friends,Shoutwith joy to God, afl the earth! Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious! SaytoGod,'Howawesome are your deeds! Sogreat is your power that your enemies cringe before you. All the earth bowsdown to you; they singpraiseto you, they singpraise to your name.' Come and see what God has done,

how awesome his works in man's behalf! - Psalms 66:1-5

As we come into another new year and look back at the old one, we nmst say this has been a year of blessings. We raiseour voices inpraise to the Lord. As the Psalmist declared, we should never cease to praise our Lord for His mighty deeds,even in times of trouble or discouragement.

GOVS PHOVtSlon We praise God for your love, your support, and your prayers. After a fairly thin 1994 and early1995, we praise God that through your prayers and sacrifices in giving, we have had enough funds to meet our dailyneeds. WepraiseGodwehave been able to pay salaries on time, feedthe children well, andpay for other needed repairs.In addition, we were able to continue helping the Agta people, and repair our old Tamaraw (service vehicle) which hadbecome a hazard on wheels. Our thankfulness to you seemsinadequatecompared to what God has done throughyou,

STflOOTH GOniG One of our latest blessings is our new concrete driveway. Previously, our long, steep drive wasrough and very slippery during the rainy season. For several years, Eldon Potts has been working on raising funds tocement the road, hi Oct, Mary's brother-in-law, Joel Heisler, and his father, G&te, came to help make this dream areality. Unfortunately, we were not able to accomplish all we had hoped in the time they were here, as they both fell ill.However, because they were here, we committed to starting the work. We completed the road just in time, as the rainscamesoon after. What a joy to driveup our perfectlysmooth driveway! An added blessing will be less wear and tear onour vehicles. We are so thankful to Gene and Joel, and to Singing Hills Christian Church in Hillsboro, OR, for sendingthem. Thank you, Bldon, and all the other churches and individuals who contributed to this blessing

CHRIST771AS BIBSSUIGS It was a joy having all the children home for Christmas. Home for the holidays wereour four high school kids who board in the next Province, our three Seminary kids in two separate schools, our two invocational school, and Jessie in medical ' "school. They always enjoy seeing eachother again. One of our greatest pleasureswas listening to the children sing whileplaying the guitar, piano, or tapes. Theirsinging praises to God raises our spirits.We also have much joy as we see all thechildren maturii^ and growing. Sometimes we despair at their lack of spiritualmaturity, and other times rejoice as wesee them stand furo or show maturity.Please pray for all of us in this matter.

he gifts of many people, alongwith much hard labor

including help from the olderchildren), produced this fantasticconcrete road.

We want to express our thanks to all ofyou whocontributed special gifts for our Christmas. We bakedabout 2,000(?!)cookies, made popcorn balls, and enjoyed other fun activities. With all the contributions, each child received two nicegifts, and enjoyed adelicious and abundant Christmas dinner! Many of our neighbors were not as fortunate, as they werebusy dealing with rising flood waters. Wewere able to cook andgive food to some of them. Ourricefields flooded, buttheywere not damaged or destroyed because the waters receded quickly. Not everyone was as blessed as we. We havehada few storms in ourarea, butagain we praise God there was no damage.HARXTLD JTlSSCfllA3iIS We had a wonderful time of fellowship, prayer, and sharingin the Word as wejust completed our annual missionary get-together. It is such an encouragement to share with othermissionaries howtheLord hasbeenworking concerning ourneeds, problems, anticipations, etc. Marvinand Judy Carr brought wonderfulmessages about joy andavoiding depression anddiscouragement. Wepraise theLord that real joy comes from Him. Lifeis full of disappointment if welookonlyto material things or people to give us ourjoy. However, the Lord's unchanginglove never ends, and His power is always present We're praying we'll be able to attend the All-Asian missionarygathering in Taiwan in earlyJune.AGTA EJJUCATlCn Another recent blessing is the guar^eed sponsorship program supporting 22 Agta youth intheir education Coming from different villages, they live |in boarding houses and attend the public schools in twoseparate villages. Since their needs are provided, they will not have to miss school to go to the mountains with theirfamilies to find food This education will be the saving of these people. Praise God for those who have taken on thissponsorship, and for all ofyou who are helping us reach oi!it to the Agta people, by meeting their physical as well asspiritual needs.

STATESIDE ADDPTIOfl In November, Daren (4 yrs.) waS adopted to a fine Christian family in Colorado. We havetwo otherfouryearold boys waiting for word on theirvisas, but with the Embassy and other government offices beingclosed, this is taking some time. We also have other children waiting to be placed Please be praying with us forChristianhomes preferring olderchildren, as they are harderto place.

SATELLITE UPDATE We praisethe Lordthat Frandsco accepted the Lord as his Savior and wasbaptized. Pray forhim as he grows in the Lord. The social workerthere has just resigned, and we need prayer for a Christian social workerfor the Satellite Home. The Davidsons are leaving on fiurlou^ in May.Thanks again to all ofyou who arepartners withus in this work. WeVe beenvery blessed by the Lordthrough yoa Mayyou all have a very blessed 1996 as we work together to bring the Good News of a risen Savior to a world lost indarkness. *'Butyou are a chosenpeople^ a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you maydeclare thepraises ofhim who cakedyou out ofdarkness inio his wonderfitl light '* (1 Peter 2:9)In Christ's love and service.

Bert and Mary ^

PRAISES1. God's wonderful love and gift of His Son2. A year of manyblessings3. The concrete driveway4. Sufficient finances5. Christmasgifts and a good Christmaswith the kids6. God's continualstrengthand help7. Sponsorship for Agta children's education

PRAlfERS1. Continued sufficient finances2. National Convention held in Aparri (in April)3. A teacher for our blind boy Dennis4. Needed staff - social worker, nurse, and house mother5. Our youngpeople's continualspiritualgrowthand maturity6. Hie Agta outreaches

Ai teNTIONi To protect your mail from increasing mailbox theft, your forwarding agents have a new mailingaddress: P.O. Box ^14,Grants Pass, OR 97527. We have NOT moved!Many have inquired about how to make out their checks! To satisfy the BRS, checks should be made payableto: PmUPPlNE MISSION CHURCHES OF CHRIST,Children's Home" if you wish.

You may designate on the memo ^Cagayan Valley

CAGAYAN VALLEY CHILDREN'S HOME

Newsletter sent byROGUE VALLEY CHRISTIAN CHURCH1440 S. OAKDALE 773-3144MEDFORD, OREGON 97501

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Forwarding Agents: CAGAYAN VALLGY CHILDKGN'S MOMG M/M Bert BurerosM/M Bob PruittP.O. Box 5614Grants Pass, OR 97527

Newsletter sent byRogue Valley Christian Church

Vledford, OregonApril 1996

fKOM MAKYANP l^LKT

P.O. Box 493515 Aparri. Cagayan

Philippines

Dear Partners in Ministry:

"If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer." - Aldtt, 21:22.This promise means much to us as we look back over the last few months. In many ways the Lord hasanswered our prayers. We depend upon your prayers, and ours, and the Lord working to answer them.

We praise the Lord that He has heard and answered prayers concerning financial needs. In January we wererequired to give salary increases, retroactive to December. Then we decided we needed to bring our salariesup to standard, especially for those who are professionals. That made a great increase in our budget. Priceshave gone up also. But because of your faith and generosity and listening to the Lord speaking to you. wehave had enough to cover those increases and have been able to pay the staff what they are worth. We doappreciate our staff and the long hours and hard work they put in.

Effort Rewarded Our school year was completed the end of March. We praise the Lord for a goodschool year and for how well the children did. We will share some of the honors gained: James Paul, who isdeaf mute and in a special school, received 1st honors in the 5th grade class. He also received Best inEnglish and Best in Bible. In our A.C.E. school, Jacob received honor for the 2nd highest GRA in the upperlevel grades. Michelle received honor for the highest GPA in the lower level grades. Jordan received honorfor having the highest score on the achievement test and received the Leadership Award. Many othersreceived awards for their good character traits. In high school, Joyce received 3rd honors in the first yearclass. Norman graduated from high school and received Singer of the Year, Athlete of the Year, and Cadet ofthe Year (for Citizen Army Training, where he was an officer). The other high school students all receivedgood grades.

Joy Joy, who is studying at Philippine College of Ministry, in Baguio, (first year student) has the highest GPAof the school, all A's. C//ve has graduated from the Aparri Bible Seminary and has done well. Jessie hasstarted his 4th year of medical school this summer, and remains 2nd in his class. He is looking forward tograduation next year. We are proud of all our students and thank you who have held them up in prayer.Please continue to pray for them.

Tiny Blessing We praise the Lord we were here (because of yourKJi Agta baby born prematurely. She

iL February weighing only one kilo (a little over 2 lbs). She nowB f / I weighs 3.8 kilos (approx. lbs.). What a beautiful baby she is!

\4\

Adoption News The Lord has answered our prayers for Christianhomes for our adoptable children. In January, Jay-R (4 yrs.) left for hisnew home and family in Pennsylvania. In February, Rey Jon {4 yrs.)went home to his new family in New Jersey. In April, Nerly's (3 yrs.)new parents will come for her. Gil (10 yrs.) is waiting for notice to go gethis visa and medical clearance so his family can come and pick him up.Though it hurts to let them go we praise the Lord they now have families.Knowing they are in Christian homes eases our hurt. Please continue topray with us for more Christian families willing and able to adopt ourother children who are, or will be, available for adoption.

m ' Returned Home Besides those who were adopted, we have hadtwo other children go home to their families. Teresa (16 yrs.) has gone

Jenalyn home and is living with an aunt (who previously lived here). SamuelGuibong (14 yrs.) has also gone home to his mother and family. We pray they will grow in the Lord and beable to share His love. Samuel's family is not Christian. At the Satellite Home, Sammy (3 yrs.) went home tohis parents.

Angels Rejoice We praise the Lord for two recent baptisms in our church. One young lady is the newdaughter-in-law of one of our staff. The other, baptized Easter morning, is our maintenance man, who hasfc>een working with the Home since September. Please pray they will grow in love and faith in the Lord, and beable to share His love with others as well.

God has answered our prayers in making it possible for Bert to take another year of classes toward hismasters degree. He has done well, even with our hectic schedule. We pray he will be able to continue on andfinish.

Rejoicing And Renewing in April, the 87th National convention of the Churches of Christ in thePhilippines was held here in Aparri. The Lord answered many, many prayers in the preparation andpresentation of the convention. We praise God for the 20 people who accepted the Lord and werebaptized during that time. Financial needs for the convention were met (through God's provision) and it wasthe best attended National Convention so far (there were over 3,000 present for Sunday worship). The Lordgave beautiful cool weather, unusual for this time of year, and blessed in many other ways.

Please be in prayer for the upcoming Agta Convention, RAay 17-19. There is much work yet to be done.

So Good To See You Again! we were very happy and blessed by the visit of Mr. and Mrs. CharlesSelby, who have been gone three years. We are also pleased that Roy and Georgialee Mayheld (BibleTranslators) have come back for a visit, having been gone two years. The Agta people are especially happy,as the Mayfields will be here for the convention. We jiist had a short visit by Cindy (Moreton) and AdamPeterson. Cindy worked here at the main Home and at the Satellite Home for about two years. Itwas good tosee them.

We also were blessed by a visit from Terry and Amparo Knippers and their daughter, from the island ofBohol. They are taking a working vacation from their printing ministry and helping with plumbing and electricalproblems here.

Operational Needs Please pray with us concerning these needs:

Our A.C.E. school needs one or more IBM compatible computers configured as follows: A 386, 486, orPentium, with at least 4 MB RAM, a VGA video card, and both 3!4 and 5% inch disk drives. The computer alsoneeds a VGA color monitor, a 210 MB or larger hard disk, and a 2X or faster CD-ROM drive. (Ifyou would liketo help with this need, or would like more information please call Doug Addington at (805) 934-9763.)

We are also in need ofsomestaff for the Home and the ^.C.E. School, so we askfor your prayers for the Lordto send the right staff.

Thank you again to all ofyou for your prayers and your generous and faithful giving to make it possible for thiswork to go on. We are always very busy with many visitors and activities, in addition to caring for the childrenand the Agta work. We praise Gc^ He is our strength to go on, and with Him we cannot fail or fall. Pleasecontinue to pray for us all (especially this summer with all the teenagers and everyone home.) May the Lordrichly bless each of you as you share in Hiswork.

Love in Christ,

Bert and Mary

PRAISES1. All the above mentioned Items2. Our new brother & sister in Christ3. The great Nat'l Convention4. Supplying our every need5. Increase in sponsors6. Health and strength



PRAYERS1. Summer activities2. Our continual financial needs3. Needed staff4. Our trip to Taiwan in June for the All-Asia Missionary

Get-together5. Agta Convention preparation6. Dick and Kay Davidson's (Satellite Home) furlough

starting in May7.1 Needed computers

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Dear Friends

tmrnm mLLE"^

Newsletter sent byRogue Valley ChristianChurch

July 1996

Messages From Mary and Bert

M/M Bert BurerosP.O. Box 49

3515 Aparri, CagayanPhilippines

"... The angel of the Lord encamps around those tvHo fear him, and he delivers them. Taste andSEE that theLord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge inhim. Fear the Lord you saints,for those who fear himlacknothing ... The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his earsare attentive to their cry; ... The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers themFROMall their TROUBLES... A RIGHTEOUS MAN MAY HAVE MANY TROUBLES, BUT THE LORD DEUVERS HIMFROM themALL; ..." Ps. 34

Oh, the precious promises, encouragement, and strength we get from these verses. As you read this newsletter you-will see how the Lord has heard, blessed, protected, and delivered His people here.

BREAK-IN! On May 19, while I was in Manila, Bert was taking visitors to the airport, and Jordan and Jacob wereattending church, someone broke into our house and ransacked our room. Stolen was our video camera, a large videocamera Hugh Kaflon had given us, and our 35mm camera we use for taking slides. All of these were gifts given for theLord'swork here. Alsotaken was our own personal money, some moneygiven us for certain projects, and some of thekids' money which we were holding for them. We do not know who did this, but have a very strong suspicion it was ayoung man named Angel. Angel grew up here at the Home, but we had to ask him to leave. He has been in troublewith us before, breaking into the chapel and the office, as recently as two weeks ago. He would have known justwhere to look for things and when no one would be around. That morning Angel and a companion were seen carryingthings, including a gun. In the hills behind our house. This burglary took place in less than one hour's time, from thetime Bert left until Jordan discovered it. We thank the Lord Jordan did not walk in on them as the crime was takingplace for he could have been shot! We never expected this to happen in our home. Of course, ifwe had known whichhour the thief was coming we would have been ready! We are on the !ookout for Angel, and praying for the Lord's helpfinding him so he cannot continue to cause problems for us or others. Unfortunately, we are not getting a lot ofprofessional help from the police. We are trusting the Lord to hear our cry for Angei's arrest and hopefully receivesome of our things back. Angel was raised on the Word of God and knows he is doing wrong. We are praying he willnot have any kind of peace until he repents and turns to the Lord. He is in the Lord's hands.

With all this happening, the Lord has not left us in want, and has blessed us in many ways. We did have to cancel ourtrip to Taiwan, but we were needed here at the same time. We would have enjoyed the All-Asia Missionary Ketreat,but we cannot pout, knowing God is teaching us to trust Him in all things.

BUSY BLESSINGS In April, Terry Knippers and his family came from their printing ministry on the island of Bohol tohelp us for six weeks. A plumber and electrician, Terry repaired and corrected all the electric and plumbing problemsthroughout the Home. He also installed a totally new main water line. What a blessing for us! We had put up withthose problems for a long time because there was no one here who knew how to fix them. We are so thankful for theirhelp and for the joy of their fellowship.AGTA CHRISTIAN CONVENTION Roy and Georgialee Mayfteid, semi-retired Bible translators, who had translatedthe New Testament into the Agta language, were able to be here for the convention. This brought great joy to us andthe Agta people. Attendance was not what we expected because of the weather, but we praise God there were newpeople attending, and there were 43 who were baptized into the Lord!

ADOPTIONS During that time the Lynn Ragsdaies from Crown Point, IN, came to get Neiiy (3 yr.), whom they haveadopted from the Home. Bringing with them a "work party", the ladies and Lynn held a VBS for ail our children,complete with crafts. What fun for the kids! George, the other man in the group, built a big cabinet in the boys' roomand a table and benches for our nursery. Their visit brought such joy and blessing to us. We do miss Nerly, whocame to us at 2 mo., but praise the Lord for the wonderful Christian family m'""""""He has given her. '

rr-About one month later, I took Gil (10 yr.) to Manila to meet his new parentsand go to his new home. The weather prevented them from coming to theHome, but we had some good days together in Manila before he left. Hewas so excited to have a mom and dad. Again we praise the Lord for awonderful Christian family. Gil and Nerlywill be living onlytwo hours apart.

CHRISTMAS IN APRIL We have had so many blessings theyovershadow the losses. When the Ragsdaies came they brought"Christmas in April" for the children (Eldon Potts could not come this yearbecause of health reasons). Gil's adoptive parents brought gifts of usedclothing and health items. There have been gifts and blessings from othersas well. Recently, a delivery truck arrived with 50 boxes of packagedsandwich cookies, a gift from someone unknown to us. We have snacksfor many days to come!

FAMILY CHANGES Sonia has chosen to go home to family. Her placehas been filled by another in need. Praline (10 mo.) came to us weighingonly2.9 kilos (about 7 lbs). She is an Agta baby and was near death frommalnutrition and sickness. She is now a healthy baby with fat cheeks and a Praline

beautiful smile. Racfy arrived at 3 mos. His father is an addict and the mother is no where to be found. The neighborswere caring for him. t/ze/came at 2 wks., another Agfa baby. Since her mother was sick, her father had been caringfor her. They had no money to buy milkand he needed to be out looking for food for the family. Her mother is gettingstronger. Moises came just 2 mo. short of his second birthday. He is an illegitimate child and his mother has severeTB, with no money to get medicines and no strength to care for her child. He adjusted very quickly and is a favorite.As I have been writing this letter, we have been blessed with another Agta baby, 3 mo. old Josie. Again, the motherwas not able to nurse the baby and had no money to buy milk. The mother is malnourished herself, and thus cannotsupply her baby's needs. They have three other children. They were going to give the baby away to a teacher, but thewife of one of our pastors working with the Agta advised her to bring the baby to us.

SATELLITE HOME Some changes have taken place in Solano, also. Little April Joy was born into the family as hermothercame seeking help before she gave birth. Randotf{A mo.) came a few days later, after having been left lyingin the park for several hours. The mother was finally located, but the situation is not good (the father is a marriedman). We praise God the Home was there to take in this little one instead of him being in danger or being abandoned.D/ck A Kay Davidson, the managers of the Satellite Home, left for a 6 mo. furlough in May. If you are interested inhearing them speak, contact their forwarding agents (406-293-j9218). Marilyn, our nurse and "in-charge" person whenwe are gone from the Home, is staying at the Satellite Home until the Davidsons return.

SUMMER CAMP Many children enjoyed going to camp this summer. Throughout the summer and during camp time(April - June) three of our young people as well as four other young people with whom we are connectedaccepted the Lord as Savior and were baptized. With praise to God for their commitment, we pray for continuedgrowth resulting in great servants for our Lord.

SCHOOL TEACHERS School doors opened on June 3rd. The Lord has supplied us with two new, good teachers.Our ACE school now has 67 students, twenty of whom are in kindergarten, the remaining in grades 1-6. Included aresix children of the staff and one child from Aparri. We have not yet received our permit for this school year. We askyour prayers concerning this and also acquiring a permanent pqrmit. We also have 4 children in high school, 4 in Bibleseminary, 1 in vocational school, and Jessie in his 4th yr. of medical school. Arnold, who finished a vocational coursethis last year, is job hunting. Olive, who graduated from a 2 yr. program at the Seminary is helping in the ACE schooland the Home. In the Satellite Home, there is 1 in Seminary (Aparri), 2 in high school, 1 in our school. 1 in deaf school,1 being home schooled with ACE, 1 in grade six, the triplets in grade one and the twins in kindergarten. That leavesjust a few littleones home during the day.OPEN WIDE! We had a mouth opening experience when Dr. Ron Jurgensen, from Huntington Beach. CA, came fora visit. He examined, cleaned, pulled, and filled the teeth of pur children and staff. He also supplied us with toothpaste and brushes. Three women traveling with Ron helped him, "entertaining" as well as enjoying the kids. God hasrichly blessed us through them.

~OREATEST~BLESSINOne~of-our""gfâtsst blessings~i3 '^QiiT~^nthful love^^giving,"and prayer~foiMis~her67V/ithout"each of you we could not provide this home for the children Who are suffering. We could not give them a chance toknow the Lord and to live a life within His will. We could not teach them to avoid the very pitfalls of their parents asmany come to us as a result of man's sin. But praise God we can help make a difference in the next generation (thehope of the future) and beable to share with them the Iov|i3g-gfê'ufi;ur4=ocêsus Christ. Thank you each one foryour partnership in these children's lives. Thank youjggiose who ojêxtra wffei:me have special needs. (Thank youto all ofyou who gave for Joel's surgery. ThôcSrhas decidedroWaitlo do th^surgery). We praise the Lord fortheencouragement andstrength weiee\,krf6wing you are praying and workiriqdoaetTOr with us.In Christ,

Mary and Bert

PRAISESContinued safetyThe many, many blessingsThe visitorsThe new ChristiansNew plumbingWonderful Christian families for adopted children



MISSIONS DEPARTMENT

Address Correction RequestedHorizons MagazineMissions ServicesBox 2427Knoxvllie TN 37901-

PRAYERSContinued strengthChristian growth for allSchool permitFunds for guest housingAdoptive families for childrenContinued finances

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Fonvardmg Agents:M/M Bob PruittPO Box 5614Grants Pass. OR 97527

Newsletter sent byRogue Valley Christian Church

Oct. 1996

M/M Bert BurerosPO Box 49

3515 Aparri, CagayanPhilippines

Messages from Mary and Bert:

Dear Christian Brothers and Sisters,

'And we know that in all things Qod works for thegood ofthose who love him, who have been calledaccording to his purpose, .,.lfQod is for us, who canbe against us? He who did not spare his own Son,but gave him up for us allhow will he not also,along with him, graciously give us all things?...in allthings we are more than conquerors through himwho loved us. For I am convinced that neither deathnor life, neither angels nor demons, neither thepresent nor the future, norany powers, neither heightnor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will beable to separate us from the love of Qod that is inChrist Jesus our Lord.' Romans 8

How we do praise the Lord that nofhing can separate usfrom His love, and th^ He is constantly watching over usand taking care of our every need. Even when thingshappen that we do not like, when Satan is trying everythingto cause us to have trouble, or to become discouraged, or tomess up the Lord's work, we know the Lord is in controland will work it all out for His good.

Robbery Update in the last newsletter you wereasked to pray concerning the robbers and for ourprotection. Much has gone on because of these robbers,who, it turns out, are members of a syndicate. In earlyAugust, Angel, the boy who had lived with us and wesuspected was the one who had robbed us, was arrested.He is the one who had led the robbers in our house, but heis not the one who was using a gun. All of the items stolenwere taken to Baguio City and sold, and Angel onlyreceived a small amount of money for his work. He saysthat he does not know who the leader of the syndicate is,but I would assume he is also afraid to talk, as they couldeliminate bim if they wantedto. Angel has been scheduledfor a hearing twice, but his lawyer was not ready so it isnow postponed until October 15. Please be in prayer forpeaceful proceedings.

Because of the use of a gun, Mary and her two boys stayedat the Satellite Home in Solano for close to 2 months.During that time, and until now, there was no threat, butthat the others who had been with Angel were seen aroundthe home area at times. Because we have no proof ofanything they cannotbe arrested. Please pray that the Lordwill, in His own way and time, bring an end to thissyndicate (they are also stealing from and bothering otherpeople), but especially pray that somehow, through all ofthis, we can make the Lord's love known to these men. Weare also praying that through this Angel will accept theLord. He grew up with us, he knows who God is, whoJesus is, and what Jesus has done for him, as well as whatGod expects from him. Just pray that he will confess hissins and accept Christ as his Savior.

The Good News Even as we are saddened by theactions of Angel, the Lord also gives us encouragement.Sometimes it seems that our work is useless, or we arediscouraged because of diose who have chosen to not yetfollow the Lord and not follow what they have been taught.But then there are ones like Joy (formerly known as JoyJoy). Last year, her first year in Bible College, she had the

top GPA of the school. Because ofthat she has free tuitionthis year. Also, because of her good conduct and goodstudies she was recommended by the missionaries there fora scholarship to pay her room, and there is some lefttohelpwith her board. The teachers only have good things to sayabout her, and she is growing and very excited in hertraining, and applying it to teaching children. She is alsovery musical and is using her talent for the Lord everySunday. We praise the Lord for her growth in Him. Wehave many more children who are trying to walk in theLord and do His will. Please continue to pray for them.

Comings & Goings We have had several changesin the two Homes. In Lal-lo we took in one new girl. Likacame just before her 6''' birthday. She is the sister of JessandJoseph, who came almost twoyears ago. Shehas beenstaying with her mother, a widow, who has beenemotionally disturbed. Her mother was doing better andhas gone to lookfor a job so she 0^4can eventually ^get her family *^(1.back together. iShe is a ft. - - - MChristian lady, ^but is still ^ 'having some '

praise the Lordwe were able totake Lika in so v....,that she can ^have some ~ '^stability in her 'life and be withher brothers. \They are very ^-^^^^^^* '^^ ^1'''*'"*''happy to have Likaher with them also.

In Solano (Satellite Home) they received three newchildren. First came Janita, 2 months old. She is a twin, ina family of 8. Her mother could not nurse both babies andthey had no money to buy milk to supplement. The babywas very tiny, partly because of lack of milk, but alsobecause they were bom tiny. She is now growing rapidly,is very bright and aware of all that is going on around her,and talks a lot. Next came AbrioL a 9 mo. old boy. Hismother had died soon after he was bom. Otlier members ofthe family had tried to help care for Him but they were allpoor and could not really afford to care for liim. The fatherhad the older son, and had to work in the fields. Abriol wasa very active and growing boy. About two weeks ago.while the Auntie who was watching him was changinganother baby's diaper, he climbed up on a table and fell off.They rushed him to the hospital, but within 24 hours he hadgone home to be with the Lord. It was a very sad' thing for

staff and family, but we can rejoice in knowing that heis with the Lord. Pray that through this we have been ableto show God's love through Christ to his family. Nextcame Janice, 18 months* She is a product of rape, and hermother has had a difticult time. She was in a rehabilitationhome for a while, to help her get over the anger of whathappened to her. But she is still young and cannot support

the baby. She is an orphan herself, and her brothers havehelped her out some. Sheis notyet sure if she wants to putJanice up for adoption.

There have been several children who have gone home. InSolano Carmina, 2 years, old, has returned home with hermother and father and brother. They were very happy thatshe was able to rejoin her family and she is very happyalso. The twins, Peter and Pablo, 6 yeare, were adoptedbya family in thePhilippines. They were so excited to have aMama and Daddy, andtheir new parents were so excited tohave two boys. We continue to pray for them and theiradjustments. Their family is nota strong Christian family,butwearepraying that through ourcontact with them theywill come close to the Lord. Joy is near and she will bemaking contact with them to encourage their Christiangrowth. Joel Tomas, who came to us 2 months old and isnow 14, decided to leave the home one day. It was a greatsurprise which came after it was discovered he had takensome of his tuition money instead of paying (about$13.00). He is a good boy, a bit immature, but it doesconcern us. He has a job in Tuguegarao and seems to befme. Pray for him to continue to follow theLord. He hasaccepted Christ as his Savior, but is stillquite young.In Lal-Io three of our big boys decided to go home. Theydecided they didnotwant to wodc on their school work andfollow therequirements. It is sadforus tohave them leave,but they have made die decision themselves. Felipe, 14,Gilbert, 14, and Romy, 16, are now living with relatives orworking. We have b^n concemed about Felipe because ofhis lackof desire to follow spiritual things. But he is nowliving widi a Christian family and helping in their businessand seems very happy and doing well. Pray for him toaccept Jesus. Gilbert, who hasnotbeen a trouble maker, isliving with his Christian grandmother. Romy, who is ar^iiricrijin la liflvino a HnrHrr rime nf itC/Iili5uali) \o iloViUg U UiUUWT liUiw \/a mo laaiiwj cui%a ^ pmother are not Christians and are finding it difficult toaccept Romy as he is. Romy almost died just before histhird birthday from encephalitis, and is mentally slow. Heshould bea vegetable, butpraise theLord he is in 3rdgradein school, can work and understand and is a very helpfiilboy. But the adjustments have been so difficult Pleasepr^ for tiiese boys.

Adoption News We have two more children in theprocess of adoption whoshould be going home soon. ThePhilippines is in need of good Christian families to adoptchil(ken. If you want more information, contact theforwarding agents or MaryandBert in the Philippines.

Needs and Projects We are so thankful toall ofyou who have been a part of this ministry. Your love,support and prayers are so important as we try to bring lifeand new Life to these childrra. We are not able to write



you individually, butwe want toexpress ourthanks to you.Besides the regular sponsorship of the children and theneeds for the general fund and the Agta work, there areother needs and projects in progress that so many of youhave been generous and faithful in meeting. Pleasecontinue to pray for these projects andneeds:1. Funds for our Guest quarters (we have about half the

needed funds)2. Funds for the continuation of repairing and improving

the youth campground in Cebu. Bert's brother,Armando, will be going there to manage the camp andto provide maintenance.

3. Computer(s) for our school. (Ifyou would like to helpwith this need or would like more information pleasecall Doug Addington at (805) 934-9763).

4. Because of thehiring of 6 new staff(2 teachers, 1socialworker, 1 nurse, 1 mid-wife, and 1security guard), andbecause of the extra expenses caused by the robbery,plus increasing costs, we are having to make some cutbacks in our budget.

A season of several typhoons has caused minor damage.The storms have brought good in the rains that raised theamount of water in our well. Having had water problemsfor two or three summers, the abundance is a blessing.

This newsletter is being written in the States as Mary,Jordan and Jacob came in September to attend the 50thwedding anniversary of her parents (Thanks to their homechurch and others who helped them come). This was asurprise for her parents (as well as the attendance of herolder brother Emie, and his wife, from New Zealand). Theywill be flying back to the Phil, on October 19. This hasbeen basically a family time, and all have enjoyed. Bertstayed as he is going to school, working on his masters inSocial Work, and also because of the hearings and other

nn at thpi Hnmft

Thank you again so muchfor all your prayers and support.We could not do this woik without each of you who isinvolved. May each of you each receive the Lord'sblessings as youshare in this work, and in the Lord's workwherever you are.

Love in Christ, Bert&Maiy

Praises1. Safety|2. Angel's arrest3. Safe trip to the States|4. Your faithful support5. The Davidson's safe

frurlough so far6. The joy ofbeing God's

chil^en and underHiscare.

Prayers1. Continued safety and

protection2. For Angel and the others to

know the Lord3. Safe trip back to the

Philippines4. The needs previously listed5. Strength and safety for the

rest of the Davidson'sfurlough (December)

Non-Profit OrganizationUS Postage Paid


MISSIONS DEPARTMENT

Address Correction RequestedHorisotis MagasitieMissions ServicesBox 2427Knoxville TN 37901-

bureros bert mary 1996 philippines

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