If WE HAD YIELDED TO A RAT

Cultureshock

Psalms 19:14 “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. (NIV) 

Jim, myself and the singing group of young people arrived in Bohol, Philippines on June of 1982.We were exhausted from a long trip but excited at the same time.  After a few days the group would go back to the USA and we would stay behind on Bohol making this our home for the next four years.

The next day we headed off on a bus, stopping at various churches or towns outside the city, to minister and share Christ.  

CultureShock #1:  Riding on the roads of Bohol in a bus was interesting to say the least.  Rounding the curves at high speed made you feel like your life was over.  It was scary but somehow we all made it. The Filipino drivers seem to know every inch of that road and got us to where we needed to be every time in one piece.  

James 4:14 “Life is but a vapor it appears for a little while but vanishes away.” Everyday, after those bus trips,  this verse seemed to become a reality and an opportunity to realize our lives are definitely in the hands of God and not our own. :}

CultureShock #2:  After a week of setting up and taking down equipment you could sense that everyone was feeling tired and ready for their trip to end. The outskirts of Bohol was definitely not your 5 star hotel like in Manila, where we had stayed the weeks before.  Even though Bohol has postcard picture perfect beaches and is known for their gorgeous resorts, the interior part of the Island reminds one of the many needy areas of the world; Beautiful on the outside but hurting on the inside, many in need of hope, of Jesus.  

The standard of living is different and much poorer in some areas than what we might be accustomed to in America.  Many of the homes are made of a grass called Nipa or broken down termite infested wood or just cement blocks with cement floors. The kids may be running around with either panties on or no diapers at all,playing in the dirt or making up their own games and toys.

CultureShock #3:  On one of our last nights I remember this one home that hosted us for the evening. A small wooden home with dirt floors.  The men in our group stayed in one room and the women stayed in another one.  There were about 8 of us in one room.  We slept on bamboo beds with a small mat between the slates of bamboo and our bodies.

CultureShock #4:  The bathroom was a outhouse with a hole in the ground.  The people knew “the Americans” were coming so they went out and bought a toilet seat to put it over the hole for us.  Awww!  Wasn’t that sweet!  I guess we have a reputation!  

CultureShock #5:  As we tried to sleep we could hear what seemed like a big rat running and scratching on the ceiling. It was loud too!   

Our host family had been so kind! They had fed us with smiles on their faces.  Filipinos are mostly short and petite but very hospitable people.  I can still feel their warmth as they greeted us and made us feel so welcomed.  The food was good, too, even if we didn’t know all we were eating.  

We were thankful for all they had done for us, but as we lay there wondering whether that rat was going to fall through that ceiling or not, into our beds, to be honest, it was hard not to wander to life back in comfortable and predictable America.

The girls were complaining left and right, which I don’t blame them, but they were leaving and I was staying!  I lay there thinking: Couldn’t they have a little heart for my sake!   They were 18-20 years old and here I was 23, only a few years older, married and about to make my life here, for the next 4 years.  Didn’t they understand or care?  

Many of them had never been out of the States before and this was their first mission trip!  You can only imagine the emotions running through their heads much less mine as well.   

Of course, none of us could sleep.  I was the oldest and  leader’s wife so I felt like I had to set the example. There was not anything else to do but turn to God! These verses entered my mind.  

May the words of my month and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you oh, Lord”!  Psalms 19

“…work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.  Do all things without grumbling or disputing; …..so that in the day of Christ I will have reason to glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain.  (Philippines 2:12-17)

Did I quote these verses?  NO!  But the thoughts were there, nonetheless! My conversation with God went something like this:

One, Lord , “Don’t let that rat fall”

Two,Help me to help these girls see they need to trust you and overcome this fear!” “Help me watch what I say and do.”

Three, “Help me not kill em!” and

Four, “God help me to see the reason I am here!  Help me to learn to love these people!  Help me see that through any situation I can trust you too and not fear either!  Our host slept with us every night and they seemed fine, so if they can do it, so can I!”  

Oh!  I guess you want to hear the end of the story?  

We did make it through the night and we did get some sleep without being attacked by the rats!  “I guess we watch too many horror movies!”   

It was Worth it all!  We found out later that particular town had had missionaries in it 4 years earlier, before we came and the husband ended up cheating on his wife.  It disrupted the team, the whole town and defamed the name of Christ!  Everyone on that ministry team ended up leaving. Now we were here!  The whole Island had heard about what those missionaries had done and were wondering what the next missionaries from the States would be like and could they be trusted?  

Unknown to us, because we were willing to eat their food and sleep in their homes, unlike the other missionaries, the walls of distrust were being broken down. Instant trust had begun afresh! We were accepted and asked to come back again.  They said the way we lived was different than the way the other Americans who called themselves Christians lived.   

Our Team Leader, Glenn, who had lived in the capital of Bohol for a year, before we arrived, after hearing the story of the missionary in that town who left,  resolved in his heart that our team would not split up due to interpersonal issues.  He was going to do whatever to make sure we stayed unified and keep the name of Christ clean as long he was the team leader.  “They will know you by your love…”  (John 17)   

“Thank you Glenn and Sandy for allowing us the privilege to enter into what God was doing in Bohol.  Thank you God for allowing me the privilege to enter into what you were doing in the heart of the people and changing my heart to see it transpire.”

Where would Bohol be today if we let a rat scare us off?  Today, many years later, there are numerous church plants around the island run by nationals and missionaries being sent out from those churches because one man, one couple committed to going and others followed. What would we be like today if we hadn’t heeded the call to go join Glenn and Sandy, too? It was worth it all!  

Personal Reflections:  What cultural issues have you encountered or are encountering now?  What ways has or is God helping you through it?  It’s ok!  Maybe you need us to pray for you.  Please tell us your story(ies) in the comment section of the blog “If We Had Yielded To A Rat   

From One Pilgrim to another together on the journey,

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Consider how you may spur one another on towards love and good deeds….. encouraging one another–and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” Hebrews 10:24-25 (NIV)

“Together empowering a movement of mission focus women so that they will see God in their story, bringing hope and an more effective life and ministry”

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