Contrast- a state of being strikingly different from something else. The mall is usually the place to be here in the Philippines. It’s where we shop for groceries, clothes and the hardware store is there, movies, and restaurants. Of course Starbucks is a must as one goes about your busy day and marks off that to-do list. The mall is almost empty now! Entry is restricted, face masks and face shields are required. You must have your own personal QR code scanned before you can enter and that is of course after you have had your temperature taken. Plastic barriers are up between seats at a table and there are no movies or activities open. Each store requires you to fill out a health and tracking questionnaire on top of what you had to do just to get in the mall. Then there’s Starbucks… even with all the restrictions, even with it being so overpriced compared to how much money people make here, it’s still packed. I have not walked past once where there hasn’t been a long line. Now compare that to my drive home when I literally see people picking through the trash to find something useful. At any intersection or even shop I stop at there is someone begging for spare change, most of the time children. How are we supposed to reconcile these contrasts? As Christ followers what are we to do? This reality has never been so true then in these last 9 months. Not only do we live in a country of extreme contrast, but everything seems to be upside down as well. It seems hard to make sense of things going on. I’m not even going to pretend that I have the answers because I don’t. It’s been hard to write an update because nothing much has changed in all these months. Right when we think we are getting some of our freedoms back and more things open up, the cases rise and now we are back to a 7pm curfew. The pool where we use to be able to bring the boys to swim is no longer open for kids. Like many around the world, we sit and wait for life to return to “normal.” Remember those days when kids were allowed out of the house? When they could go to school and we could go to church? That seems so long ago. Right now, everything is still the same. Online school, online church, online ministry. Sometimes we have been able to meet with a small number of people and that is a real treat. What about the holidays coming up? What about Nhaya being able to come home for Christmas? All of that is going to have to stay on hold as we continue to wait. We do the best we can to stay sane and healthy. We can walk and ride bikes in our neighborhood (as long as we have masks). God has blessed us with neighborhood friends to hang out with. School is doing the best they can to be creative and engage the kids even in an online platform. But who’s kidding who, those hard days are there too. Those days when we can’t see an end in sight. When we worry about visas and our daughter across the ocean. When we worry about support and the fact that many of our supporters have been hit hard and might not be able to give. We worry about the ministry plans and continue to commit them to God as we try to make sense of what might be happening this summer. So, as far as updates, there’s not much to report except... waiting! Please pray for: -Luke, he does not do well learning at home. It has been a struggle for the whole family in such close quarters. Pray for wisdom for us as parents and patience with him in those stubborn moments. -Ministry opportunities. Zoom fatigue is a real thing and we are learning how to deal with the hand we have been dealt. -Our older kids are hanging in there but this isolation has sure been hard on them too. Please also pray for Nhaya as she continues to adjust to college life and the disappointment of not coming “home” to be with family at Christmas as planned. (Travel restrictions have hit missionary life hard!) -Gilmer as he continues to serve as missions pastor amid his other ministry responsibilities. He’s also been able to connect and lead an Indian ministry with the stranded Indian students studying here in Davao. Praises: -Praise God for health and safety amid the rising cases and restrictions in our city. -Praise God for the opportunity to help where we can and encourage those who are in need. -Julie was able to extend her visa. -Since the government has restricted having parties and gathering together this season, our local church is using the money normally spent on those parties to share with those families struggling. Each of our care groups are giving what we can to help. | 
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