Manila sunset a view from our roof top

Life on this side of the world has been very busy, which is good, because God is doing many wonderful things through our labors. 

We just completed a leadership forum for which we hosted about 33 of our missionaries (plus their families).  The purpose of the forum was to brain storm  topics such as; how can we strengthen and broaden our partnerships with the local churches in the Philippines so as to effectively reach the more isolated people groups with the Gospel – Great Topic! 

We also had the privilege of hosting some of the staff of the OM Ship, “LOGOS HOPE”, they needed a place to stay while they were in Manila buying supplies and parts for the ship which is currently  “dry docked” a fews hours from Manila in Subic Bay.  You can see a video of the ship entering the dry dock at: http://www.omships.org/

We are now preparing for our next round of visitors, a team of Doctors from Toronto, Canada.  They will be using our mission center as their home base as they share the love of Jesus through their medical outreaches.

These are just a few of the things happening in and through our ministry.

We know God is ultimately the one who gives us what we need to continue to serve Him in the Philippines. We also know He uses people like YOU, as you pray for the ministry, as you give to help fund the ministry, and as you encourage us in many ways.  God allows all of us together to be His hands and feet to a lost and dieing World, THANK YOU SO MUCH![[Show as slideshow]]

Ed & Nick taking the team on a local tour

Mission Teams, veteran missionaries, new missionaries, pastors, teachers, evangelists, seminar leaders, families, just to name a few have all kept the Martin Burnham Mission Center buzzing with activity almost nonstop. One of those mission teams was a group of law enforcement officers from mostly California who came and ministered to the National & local law enforcement officials here in Manila. Ed and Nick were able to take them on a tour around some of the poor sections surrounding the Mission Center. It was a great opportunity to meet some of our local officials.
Along with all the guests and teams coming through we have had some bigger projects to coordinate in the midst of the exciting ministry activity. One of the projects that we have just completed was connecting our two buildings with a hallway. Lucas and his father-in-law, Roy, did most of the work on this wonderful new addition.
Another big and ongoing project is the re-surfacing of the older Guesthome building. The building has a cement and pebble finish (about 30 years old) which is coming off the face of the building and some chunks have already fallen, so we are removing the bad areas and replacing it with new.
Of course there is always the need for the general maintenance, like washing machine repairs, fixing emergency lights, the water filter system, and ice machine repair(just to name a few)
Please pray for safety for the workers we have here to do the re-facing of the older building.
Debbie’s mom needs to wait for more tests since she is having other physical issues before they can take care of the heart valve. This is stressful for all of us. Pray for peace and calmness as she awaits more tests and then the results.
Please continue to pray for the mission center, we are here to assist missionaries as they continue to evangelize, disciple and plant churches. Praise the Lord another people group is currently being taught God’s Word in their heart language – The Brook’s Point Palawanos.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for being a part of the ministry with us!

teaching God's word

As we approach the end of 2011 this letter comes to you with our hearts overflowing with thankfulness!  Another year of ministry together which brought about lives being transformed by the power of the Gospel. God is at work and He is using you to reach every tribe, tongue and nation.

God is doing exciting things in the Philippines. The Manobo New Testament is now printed in two different dialects and the Manobo churches are sending out their own missionaries! In another remote village and completely different language, missionaries have begun evangelistic Bible lessons. Over the past year four new missionary families have moved into three different villages to begin learning the language and customs of the tribe so they can one day teach God’s Word to these precious souls for whom Christ died.

In Manila, at the Mission Center, we have seen God put together a great team to run the center in our absence and keep the “hub” of mission activity running smoothly.

Back in June 2011, our “Home Assignment” started off with an amazing meeting at  Fellowship Alliance Chapel.  Debbie and I gave an update on our ministry in the Philippines and then we were followed by Gracia Burnham. She humbly shared God’s amazing work in and through her life.

Debbie and I will be returning to the Philippines in January 2012. We will be leaving our three precious children in the USA. Our “home assignment” has been a refreshing time for us as we have had an opportunity to share in person with many of you all that God is doing. It is so encouraging for us to see your enthusiastic interest in our lives and ministry.

Christmas together

Speaking of our three precious children; Eddie, Ashley and Brianna are really doing well as they all desire to obey and follow God with their lives.

Christmas breakfast

Eddie continues his studies at Philadelphia Biblical University to serve the Lord in youth ministry.

Ashley serves  as an in-flight medic and unofficially as a “ Chaplain” to many.

Brianna is attending New Tribes Bible Institute’s two year Bible program and is serving with the high school youth at a local church in Milwaukee. She is putting into practice the things she is learning.

We are thankful for your partnership in our ministry. It takes a team, and without you we could not continue to serve in the Philippines.

First we fly into the jungle

We recently had the opportunity to visit some of our missionaries for a few days during Brianna’s school Break.  Our adventure took us to a remote village in the middle of the Jungle.  To get there we flew in a small Cesena air plane.  From the airstrip were transported over land on a “Skylab” which is a motorcycle with side boards for bringing in cargo etc.  Debbie & Brianna were the first to be taken while Ed stayed with the rest of the cargo at the airstrip.  The 7 kilometer trip was rough for us and the driver of the “Skylab” since the trail was muddy and rocky.

The "skylab"

What a privilege to be able to see firsthand what God is doing through Gene and Carol, the missionaries who have served amongst the Manobo people for over 20 years.  There is now a functioning church in the village with many believers reaching out to neighboring villages.  Gene and Carol are in the final stages of completing the New Testament, which they are hoping to get printed this summer.  It was great to have a chance to see what God is doing!

Brie with some of the children

During the three days we spent in the village we were able to help Gene and Carol  with some projects.  They were really glad for the extra help especially since their partners Trevor and Judy are not able to be in the village at this time because of some health issues.

a night out with Dave (in red) from NJ

It is hard for us as North Americans to tell time according to the seasons here in the Philippines.  There are no leaves changing color and the weather stays quite warm year round.  We do however associate time on who has been at the Mission Center or what events have taken place such as  seminars and training gatherings.  We have been jam packed with lots of events and mission teams coming and going.  There has been about one seminar per week with most having over 150 participants in attendance.

Women in Ministry

These conferences have all been for training of local Christian workers, pastors, etc.  Just this past Sunday morning we had two mission teams depart for their places of ministry, one was from Australia and the other from Hawaii.  We are amazed at all the various ministries we get to support through the Mission Center and because YOU are willing to support us we can continue to serve over here in the Philippines.

Our daughter Ashley recently arrived here in the Philippines and is now with the mission team from Hawaii continuing on a building project and serving the local people (mostly children) in a different part of the Philippines.  Ashley is so happy to be back in the Philippines, not only because we are here but because she loves the Philippines and the people over here.

Dana is our new partner in ministry at the Mission Center

Brianna is recovering nicely from the surgery she had on September 11th.  We praise the Lord for the wonderful medical care she received here and we want you all to know that the hospital, the doctors and all the medical staff were top notch. Thank you for praying!

Please pray for us as we have the constant pressures of keeping this wonderful facility the Lord has allowed us to care for running smoothly.

Pray for Ashley and the mission team she is with to have many opportunities to serve others and share the Gospel.

Pray for Brianna as she is really working hard in school, this is her senior year and also pray for her as she takes the SAT on Saturday Oct. 9^th .

Thank you so very much for the huge part you play in all that God is doing throughout the Philippines, you really encourage us through your love, prayers and support!

ahh yes a job well done

Things are somewhat back to normal after the flood, especially for us here at the Mission Center.  We still have many guests coming & going all the time which keeps us busy.

We have completed 7 queen size bedspreads and 13 twins size out of all that fabric we showed in a previous update.  We are also working on reupholstering furniture.  With 34 guest rooms there is lots of furniture to make, refinish, recover, etc.

What in the world does this have to do with Church planting, the Gospel and Bible translation?  It shows that we are all part of the team.  There are missionaries, language consultants, mission teams, family members of missionaries, pastors, doctors, training personnel, all staying with us at the Martin Burnham Mission Center for various reasons such as medical, dental, travel, some may be here for training seminars, well you get the idea all kinds of people using the Center.  Yes, we are all part of the team planting churches among unreached people groups.

Taltak & his mom Kilsit - Taltak needs surgery on his face

For example the picture attached of the boy Tatak and his mom are from a village where the missionaries will begin teaching God’s Word early next year, in the tribal language.  He was here for 6 weeks trying to get medical attention for the growth on his face (actually to find out the source of the growth).  He will be back in January to have this taken care of.

Thank you for being a part of God’s team with us in reaching the lost.

Nick (works with Ed), had the radio playing in the workshop and a song came on in English which sang about being “blue” and he asked “what mean blue, the color blue?”  and Ed told him malungkot (sad) and proceeded to tell Nick that is how we are feeling now as Thanksgiving and Christmas approach because we miss our friends and family back in America.  So please pray for us as we do MISS YOU!

People in the village soon to hear the gospel!

Prayer Requests:

Please pray for Tatak, his and the many others in his village that God would continue to prepare their hearts and minds to understand and receive the Gospel.

Pray that we can encourage those the Lord brings through the Mission Center to continue on serving as we do not know how long we will have the freedom to spread the Gospel in this or any other country.

Pray for Debbie as she will be having some major dental work done Thursday night your time (4 old crowns redone) they are decaying underneath.

We do Praise the Lord for the health and strength He gives us to serve Him.

Thank you for praying!

May God richley bless you!

Tropical storm Ketsana besieged the Philippines capital city and nearby provinces with a nine-hour deluge that left some places under 20 feet of water. It is said to be the heaviest rainfall since 1967.

“NTM’s leaders in the Philippines reported. “Relief operations are under way across the city with many missions and individual missionaries involved.”

Several thousand people were rescued from rooftops and stranded cars. At last report, the government estimates there are more than 435,000 people displaced and at least 140 dead, with the death toll expected to rise as the flooding subsides.

The houses of several NTM missionaries were flooded. Belongings were destroyed or washed away, and vehicles were submerged. However, none were reported injured and all of those who were in precarious situations are now safe.

Pray that NTM missionaries can be a blessing to those who have lost loved ones and property.

Have you ever wondered if time is speeding up? It seemed as though we were in fast forward mode for the past 6 weeks since Eddie and Ashley were here and now gone. Eddie and Ashley are our 2 oldest children now studying in the U.S.. Actually it has been more than 7 months since we returned to the Philippines, so maybe we are stuck in FF>>.

We did have a great time having Eddie and Ashley with us and we even got to spend lots of time together having fun as we got to serve together and have some time away from the mission center. We also had friends from Wisconsin come out (Brian and Breanna) as a father-daughter mission trip. They were able to help on some projects around the Mission Center and we did some work on Nick\’s house, Nick is the local guy who has worked with us at the mission center for over 2 years now.

Just recently we had youth workers from Hong Kong meeting with youth workers from the Philippines for a first ever Asian youth summit and they were using our facility for their meeting, eating and sleeping place.

We are privileged to being a part of a variety of different ministries and that happens because you have been a part of our ministry, for without you we could not continue serving overseas.
Thank you for your prayers, support and friendship we truly appreciate all you do!

We are full into the ministry at the Martin Burnham Mission Center. We have been hosting missionaries that arrived back into the country and are preparing to move into a village to learn the language, help the people physically and most importantly teach them God’s Word. There has also been medical needs among some missionaries, Interns arriving from other missions, work to be done on our building, needs among those who live near us and plenty of hot weather to get used to, every day.

On another Island where some of our missionaries are serving 43 Bible teachers attended a teachers’ seminar. The new and veteran teachers have shown true commitment and desire to take God’s Word to their people in other villages.

-Pray for our strength as there are times we feel lacking.
-Pray for those who attended the teachers seminar that they will not get side tracked but have many opportunities to preach the gospel in many villages.
-Pray for Brianna, she needs to take Mid-term exams from Lenape so she can receive credit.  Also pray for her knee that the extra bone growth that has caused her pain and restricted activity will desolve away.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRAYERS, SUPPORT AND WONDERFUL FRIENDSHIP YOU ARE AN IMPORTANT PART OF WHAT GOD IS DOING IN THE PHILIPPINES!

“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds ” (Hebrews 10:23-24, nasb).

Please pray for us as we return to the Philippines in the beginning of January 2009.  Smooth trip and transition.

Pray for packing, sorting and shipping things we need in the Philippines.  We are  gather things that are hard to get in the Philippines and ship them over.  Thank you for your donations!

Pray that our final visits with friends and family would be special.  They were! BUT now we miss you again:-(

Pray for Brianna as she starts a new school when we return to the Philippines.  She did Very well!

Pray for Eddie and Ashley and us too, as we leave them here in the United States.  Great job Eddie and Ashley!