Park Road Church Blog

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Family and Loved Ones,

Rejoice in the LORD for He is Good and Worthy to be praised! 
Actually Jesus Christ alone is Worthy of our praise...NO OTHER!  AMEN!

Well it seems like a long time since my last blog, sorry for the delay.

Tanaman Sa Kinabuhi (Garden of Life) School Garden/Park Project
I've been busy and staying up in the late hours of the night working on a proposal for a 5 year organic garden/park project we will implement at our local public elementary school.  We are adopting the school for 5 years and will do all we can to better the lives of the pupils, out of school youth and parents of our pilot community and hope that our project will be a model project which will be multiplied throughout the whole country and even internationally!  I've attached a copy of the proposal with the hope you may see the beauty of the project and support it anyway you can.  Thanks!

This scripture has taken on an entirely new feeling for me this month...
 "Behold I come as a thief.  Blessed is he that watches" Revelations 16:15a

Intruder Story
We have had a prowler coming into our compound this past month sometimes every night.  I cannot call this man a thief yet because he hasn't stole anything.  Maybe a trespasser at this point because we live in a compound surrounded by a brick wall and this person has come inside several times but hasn't broken into our house.  The first evidence was a large cut above the tail of one of our dogs which exposed the bone and was bleeding (the cut probably came from a machete).  The first thought of Lydia was someone wanted to eat the dog, but then the person returned again.  This time the broke a piece of wood I inserted into the door of our external kitchen to see if anyone went inside, they also left a foot print, and courteously closed the gate behind them leading to our other house...it's impossible to close this gate from the inside without jumping the fence as it's a double sliding handle.  So our pastor asked the young people to stay with us every night since.  One night when one of the youth turned on the light a man slapped the grill of the window maybe to install fear.  The next day I made a report to the police and stayed up all night with the aid of coffee and waited looking out the window with my machete clenched in hand.  Sure enough the visitor returned and this time was attacked by my dog just outside my back door where I was standing...so I followed the order of the police and called 911.  The military came to search my yard with their AK-47 and the trespasser escaped over the fence.  It's been rather peaceful ever since but I still wait and watch not knowing when he will return.  Moral of my story is this...WE MUST WAIT AND WATCH FOR JESUS AND KEEP UNSPOTTED FROM THE SINS OF THE WORLD, BE READY BECAUSE JESUS IS COMING LIKE A THIEF IN THE NIGHT AND NOBODY KNOWS WHAT HOUR HE'LL BE COMING!  ARE YOU READY?

2 Year Wedding Anniversary
On a brighter note we celebrated our 2 year anniversary on June 2 at a peaceful rest house on a beautiful beach and enjoyed some much needed family time!  It was sweet and the best part is we got an amazing deal on the accommodations because the owner of the place is the President of the Gideons brother in law, my friend.  Josiah had his first boat ride (and got seasick we think), first motorcycle ride, and first time sitting and playing in the white sand on a blue water private beach.

Josiah's Haircut
I surprised Lydia this month with a fresh new haircut...Lydia was in the training center conducting a mothers class so I decided to cut Josiah's hair, I also decided it would be fun to leave a half Mohawk on the back as well hehe, I still haven't shaved it off!  He has 4 teeth now and says mama and da da.  What a gift from the LORD!

New Staff
God has been faithful in providing us new full time staff this month.  Two staff left last month and we got 3 more this month.  Rachael Ann and Rhea Mae Almeraz (sisters) and John Rey Nanca the son of our pastor are now full time with our mission.  We are very happy with this addition as we have been training them along with the other young people since October 2008 as volunteers.  I've been praying that God would make a way for these guys to be with us full time as they are really faithful, dedicated, motivated and eager to reach the community by home visitations, children's program etc.  We enjoy each other as a family.  Thanks Jesus for providing this wonderful team! 

Minor Repairs to Our Multi-Purpose Training Center
We were able to do some minor repairs to our multi-purpose training center this month such as: repair the fence, layed tiles in the bathroom, replaced taps and faucets, installed a light outside to light the back area and hung educational posters (decorated).  We still need furniture like tables and chairs, beds, computers, clinic equipment and bed, paint, cooking utensils, stove, oven, fridge and freezer before we're ready to start receiving interns and conducting seminars, workshops and livelihood projects.  Step by step we are moving closer to reaching our dreams and goals here!  Thanks for those of you who donate to our ministry!

Parent Teacher Orientation Meeting
Our team was invited to share about our ministry, the plans to adopt the school for 5 years and our current programs and services.  This was exciting for us as we had the attention of over 200 parents and teachers, and we were received well with clapping!  We have such a joy that we will be able to start working with these precious people to help improve the quality of their lives!  Glory to God!

Children's CHE Program
We started our Children's CHE program every Saturday morning from 9-11am.  All children in grade 1-6 have been invited, we are preparing Bible storying mixed with songs and drama, physical health education and other activities.  Please pray God will bless these children and meet all their needs!  Our training team will continue to be available and serve with joy!

Special Visitor Marilyn Teasly
A very special visitor came to Davao to see us from June 8-11.  My YWAM - Foundations in Community Development School Leader Marilyn Teasly happened to be in Hong Kong for a conference and was so thoughtful and kind to make the effort to see us here.  Thank you Marilyn for  the visit, I was sad when you left...we're starting to do the Bible Storying method you taught me about, thanks for the Orality book.  Marilyn gave us a new strategy for evangelism, using Bible stories from memory to teach people with limited literacy skills.

Partnerships
God has connected us with some key people to help us meet the objective we've set out to accomplish.
-DepEd - Department of Education Region 11 - Agreed to allow us to use 1 hectare area of school property for our demo garden.
-City Agriculturist Office Toril - Assisting our demo garden project, and other services.
-USEP - University Southeastern Philippines - Obrero, Davao City Campus - Extension Division - Will provide resource persons from University faculty, students and outside agencies and pay their honorariums to conduct training for any of our programs.
-SMARRDEC - Southern Mindanao Agriculture and Resource Research and Development Consortium - Will assist in research, evaluation, and meals during our programs and activities.
-Toril Farmers Irrigation Association - We will become a member of this association and avail of irrigation for our school garden and help keep the trenches clean of garbage a debris when needed.
-Department of Agriculture - High Value Crops, and Livestock Division - Will donate a 60x60 sq.m. green house, seeds, technical assistance, garden plan layout, and other free services provided by the Government offices their connected with.

Church Extension
Our pastoral staff has recognized the need for all age Sunday school, but due to lack of time on Sunday morning we have come up with the idea of Sunday school extension.  The church was divided into zones and our zone meets every Wednesday night at our house.  We cater to the whole family and the lessons focus on strengthening the family.  We have over 30 people every week at our house and once a month we will have dinner fellowship where everyone brings their dinner here and we eat together.  Tonight will be the first dinner and we look forward to this special occasion.

Lunch With The Vice Mayor
I had the privilege of meeting the Vice Mayor Honorable Sara "Inday" Dueterte who is the daughter of the current Mayor and next in line who will run for Mayor next year.  She came to the MOA signing and irrigation rehabilitation launching Saturday June 13.  I was asked to lead the opening prayer for this event in the presence of the Vice Mayor and Congressman, what an honor the LORD has provided for me!  Afterward was group picture taking and I also got a photo with her.  We then all ate lunch together.  I was happy that day, as this was a very special time for me.

That's all for this month hope you made it this far in my long email hehe.

Thank you all for your unfailing love, kindness, and partnership in helping fulfill the Great Commission of our LORD and Savior Jesus Christ the King of kings!

God bless you and your family!  

In Christ,

Love

Jeffrey, Lydia and Josiah Smith