We are excited to be writing this letter from the Philippines! God has provided abundantly for us, and continues to guide our path one step at a time. Thank you all for your love and support, we feel very covered in prayer! In this letter we will share with you a little update from these past few weeks, what we are up to now, and some prayer/praise items.
What Have These Past Few Weeks Looked Like?
Leading up to our departure, we were able to say our goodbyes to family, friends, and to Canada. Despite the sadness of knowing that we will be physically apart from some loved ones, God gave us an overwhelming sense of peace, knowing that the bond of Jesus unites us from wherever we are in the world.
Thankfully there were no hiccups with the visa process and we were able to fly directly from Toronto to Manila. We landed in Manila on August 6 and headed to our hotel for a ten day quarantine. We were incredibly thankful for this time as it was a great space for us to get over jet lag and prepare for the school year. While we were in quarantine we attended Faith Academy’s virtual All Staff Gathering. It was a week of prayer and reflection, meeting and connecting with our colleagues, and hearing Faith’s vision and goals for the school year. We were greatly encouraged by Faith’s transparency and their genuine desire to grow. This year, a school-wide goal is to prioritize discipleship. This was encouraging for us to hear because during this past year of preparation, we felt quite strongly that the Lord has been putting discipleship on our hearts.
Our mission and vision:
Vision: To contribute to the Great Commission and the furtherance of the gospel in the Philippines, Southeast Asia, East Asia, and beyond. Mission: To create disciples who make disciples through the organic relationships we are able to build through teaching and coaching, to support missionary families, and to serve and get involved in a local church and community.
What Are We Up To Now?
Since getting out of quarantine, life has been a bit of a whirlwind but we are slowly settling into life here in the Philippines. School started last week and we are really enjoying the courses that we are teaching. There is a lot to learn but we are already finding it really rewarding. Moving into our home has been challenging. We are taking care of a cat until the end of September, and unfortunately her food became infested with cockroaches! We have leaks in our walls and ceiling and the car we inherited had a flat tire and no working breaks. Our dryer broke so we’re learning how to dry clothes in the Philippines’ wet season. Despite these challenges, God has continued to take care of us and has given us strength for each day. Slowly but surely, the cockroaches are disappearing. Our neighbors have been incredibly helpful and are teaching us how to take care of a cat! Our good friend actually took our car in for us and it is now fixed! We have been invited over to many people’s houses for meals and people have dropped baked goods off at our place. We have been touched by such a warm welcome from our community.
Prayer Requests
- Prayer for continued growth, protection, and unity in our marriage.
- Prayer for discipleship opportunities. Building relationships looks different online, and so we would appreciate prayer for creativity and discernment as we connect with our students.
- Prayer that we would manage our time well. Life is pretty busy right now and we would love prayer for wisdom to know when to carve out time for rest.
- Prayer that we would be able to build authentic communities here.
Prayer that God would direct our steps in regards to finding a local church.
Thank you so much for your prayer and support. It really means a lot to us. Please let us know how we can be praying for you!
Much love, Britt and Grady
