When we moved to the Philippines 46 years ago, we shipped whatever we didn't think we could do without in three barrels. These heavy-duty 55-gallon drums had thick plastic liners, were nearly bullet-proof, and were padlocked shut -- my Mom was still using them for storage in her garage a few years ago.
The contents survived everything but the Philippine customs service. My left-handed baseball glove (impossible to replace) didn't make it, along with a number of other items, including one boot. At least we still had the other one.
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This is Nathan.
He is a 21-year-old blind Christian, living some distance from Manila. He messaged me several months ago, asking if he could go to high school. I referred him to our Manila office.
Like a blind man many years ago (Luke 18), he tried again, "Please help me!" He's persistent. It turns out that his immediate need, as an
8th-grader, was for Braille paper. He had exhausted the supply he received from RBI four years before.
So, fearfully remembering my childhood experience with Philippine shipping, I sent him paper, two canes, and several inexpensive audio players with Gospel content. At the USPS counter, the clerk called his supervisor over for help. She said in all her years she had never done an international "Free matter for the blind" shipment. Ominously, they told me that tracking would end at Manila.
While you are waiting to hear what happened, here is a photo of Nathan using a bicycle to get around during a recent typhoon-related flood. (Note: I know my blind father could ride a bicycle in rural South Carolina because the dirt roads were higher in the middle to help with drainage; I'm not sure how this works on flat roads under two feet of water
.)
Nathan's caption? "You're just a flood. I'm Filipino!" He's persistent.
Weeks passed. Nathan asked for tracking info, which ended at Manila. I perhaps failed to mention that most Philippine locations don't have residential postal delivery. You ship to a third-party location, then somehow the recipient finds out and comes to collect the package.
More weeks passed. He made several visits to the mail service (he's persistent). They asked for tracking info, which of course ended at Manila. We started to make other plans: "Could he travel by bus to the RBI office?"
Then, success!
Maybe you are wondering why I sent him two canes. I'm praying that his persistence will one day translate into a blind disciplemaker who cares about others. Sharing a spare cane will be a start.
Along the way, we'll try to encourage him in his walk with the Lord.
As you wait and long for a greater Gift during this Advent season, would you pray that the Lord will raise up more persistent blind disciplemakers?
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