Dear family, brethren, and friends,

I got up before 5:00 AM Thursday to catch the flight to Narita, Japan where I was met by Kim Caa and two other men about 2:00 PM.  After getting a McDonald’s burger in the airport, they drove four hours to reach Shizuoka.  This drive was on a very modern freeway and it quickly became obvious that Japan is a highly industrialized nation as we passed factories and warehouses of all kinds and very modern looking city skylines.  You know you are not in the Philippines any longer when the temperature is in the 60’s rather than the high 90’s and when you travel a couple of hundred miles and see only one motorcycle rather than hundreds!

Mt. Fuji greeted us as the sun was setting just next to it, a beautiful sight.  While traveling we discussed the upcoming meetings and the efforts being made to gather not only saints scattered over here but also Filipino relatives and friends who are not yet Christians.  Naturally, they are trying to teach Japanese friends and contacts, too, but piercing through the long history of idolatry is a difficult challenge.
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Dear family, brethren, and friends,

About 2:00 PM on Thursday I bid goodbye to Rody and Tessie Gumpad, James Paet, and Rolly Salvador and his wife at the Laoag City airport and flew to Manila.  After a couple of hours there, I boarded a plane to Cebu City, but we sat on the tarmac for almost an hour.  The Filipino man seated next to me engaged with me in discussing the Bible when I explained I am here teaching the Bible.  He is a member of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP), an organization formed by several denominations merging many years ago.

I explained some differences between the teaching of Christ and the UCCP.  He sent his email address so I can continue to provide Bible study materials over the internet, in addition to a copy of “The One True Church” foldout tract which I gave him.  He is from Tabuk in the Province of Kalinga where I have visited through the years.  Perhaps it will be possible to visit him in the future and, meantime, I can put him in touch with gospel preachers who can help him begin to study the Bible.
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Dear family, brethren, and friends,

Saturday morning, we drove an hour into the foothills of the mountains to reach the saints at Baliuag, Penablanca where Alfonso Danao preaches.  An audience of 55 was waiting and we arrived as a gospel caravan with three vehicles and 14 motorcycles including brethren from Manila, the Bicol region, and Davao City on Mindanao.  The weather was extremely hot and humid again, but everyone was very attentive to the study of “The Resurrection of Christ” in Mark 16.  Rody Gumpad then summarized the sermon in the local dialect.

When the invitation of Christ was extended, five people came forward to submit to Christ in baptism from ages 54 down to 8.  Normally, Rody is able to convince an 8 year old that they need to wait and mature more in understanding, and we all waited several minutes while he tried to convince this young man.  But, he answered every question and could not be dissuaded from his decision.  Rody finally explained that if at a future time he concludes he was too young to make this decision, he should be baptized again at that point.  We rejoice with the angels of heaven for this harvest of souls.
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Dear family, brethren, and friends,

On the Lord’s Day I visited three congregations introduced to me by Domie Jacob about 25 years ago where his son Frankie still labors.  In the morning Willie Pastor drove me to the Cordon church where 47 souls assembled to worship and to consider sermons on “The Prison of Sin” and “Finish the Race.”  The one who decided to obey the gospel did not bring a change of clothes, so the baptism was postponed.

Next, we drove out into the countryside to meet with 31 people in the congregation at Der-an.  My topic here was “The Lord’s Supper: Memorial to Christ.”

After taking lunch, we proceeded another half hour to Villaros where 39 attended and I preached from Psalm 23, “God is Our Shepherd-King.”
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Dear family, brethren, and friends,

Our appointment for Monday was with the saints at Betis, Guagua, Pampanga where Jojo Tacbad labors in the gospel.  This was originally planned as a two-day lectureship, but Jojo learned that the whole area will be without electricity all day Tuesday.  This would leave us simmering and sweltering in severe summer heat, cooped up in a building without the AC unit and fans.

Today’s theme was “Life, Death, and Beyond,” with lessons covering “Why We Live,” “Why and How We Die,” “After Death, Hades,” and  “After the Resurrection, Heaven and Hell.”  Fifty-one souls joined today’s studies, and two precious souls decided to submit to Christ in water baptism for the remission of their sins.  Heaven and earth rejoice with them!
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Dear family, brethren, and friends,

By the grace of God, my flights Wednesday-Thursday from Louisville, Kentucky to Atlanta, Georgia to Inchon, South Korea to Manila in the Philippines were safe.  To avoid a terrible huge storm working its way across the U.S., our plane flew around it by going southwest when we would normally fly northwest.  This extended our time in the air from 15 hours to about 17 hours, with only brief periods of bumpy travel.

Four Filipino brethren met me at the hotel Friday morning to unpack the six boxes of Bibles and study materials I brought on the airplane and to reorganize them in order to ship some of them ahead.  James Paet, my driver, will accompany me on Luzon as we deliver other packages at various venue along the way.  Running errands today involved time at a huge mall which required a lot of walking, but sunlight and exercise are good remedies for jet lag and the 12-hour time change.
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