Have a blessed trip to the Philippines

Podcast: Download (Duration: 9:36 — 6.6MB)

With a group of 15 people, we undertook a mission trip to the Philippines from March 15th to 29th, 2024, where we were able to serve the people for two weeks and experienced many things that subsequently impressed us greatly.

On the day of our departure, our group, led by Markus Rutz, met at Amsterdam airport. Most of us were meeting for the first time; some had gotten to know each other earlier through carpooling on the journey. Right from the start, we faced some challenges with our luggage, as we were not only supposed to take personal belongings but also musical instruments for the children's home in the Philippines.

But even this could be sorted out, and after a 17-hour flight with a layover, we landed exhausted in Manila, the capital of the Philippines. Immediately after landing, we made our way to the Village of Hope, our place of work. We received a warm welcome there, and I immediately sensed that this was a very special place.

Our deployment location

The Village of Hope is a children's home consisting of five houses where orphaned and abused children find a new home. We stayed in the main house while the children lived in the other houses. Being here means confronting stories of pain and suffering, as many of these children have already experienced terrible hardships. But what deeply moved us was seeing how the love and care they receive at the children's home transforms their lives. The children, who were once abused or neglected, now sleep in warm beds, have three meals a day, and—most importantly—they hear about Jesus and His saving love.

The place itself is not just a home, but also a school. Education is not a given in the Philippines, so it's a great opportunity for the children to learn here and, at the same time, gain a perspective for their future. The school offers individualized support, as each child comes to the home with a different background and is therefore at a different stage of development. Some of the teachers come from countries like Canada and Germany and work on a volunteer basis. It was moving to see how much love and dedication they invest in the lives of these children.

What particularly touched me was the children's attitude towards each other. Although they are all so different, they treat each other like siblings. My task was to care for Angel, a little girl with physical and mental disabilities. She was locked away without daylight during her early years, and it is believed that this caused her severe trauma.

Working with Angel requires a lot of patience, but the love I experienced from the other children for her was heartwarming. They help her wherever they can, feeding her, changing her diapers, and showing her around the grounds. I often thought of the words from 1 John 4:19: "We love him because he first loved us." The children express this love in a way that deeply impressed me.

Some experiences from our trip

Our days always began with a morning devotion and prayer, in which we asked God to bless our work and speak to us. We studied texts from the letters to the Colossians and Galatians and were able to edify one another. After the devotions, we divided up the tasks among ourselves. Some helped with the construction of a new building on the grounds, others assisted the daycare providers, or cleaned the school.

In the evenings, we often gathered with the children, doing crafts, playing games, and singing together. These were the moments when we saw the children blossom and experience joy.

A particularly heartbreaking visit took us to the so-called Baby House. This is located some distance from the Village of Hope, but will also be relocated there in the near future. Here live orphaned or abused infants, often orphaned due to terrible misfortunes. Here, too, we clearly saw the love of God. Children who have previously experienced much suffering in their lives are cared for here with moving devotion.

The slums

Another highlight of our trip was the slums of Manila. We had heard about them beforehand, but reality didn't live up to our expectations. Poverty there is omnipresent.

First, we visited a children's home in the heart of the slum, which also belongs to the Village of Hope. Here, mothers have the opportunity to leave their children during the day so they can go to work. The help this home provides to the families is invaluable, as many of the mothers are single parents and would hardly be able to care for their children without this support.

In the slums, we carried packed lunches to distribute to the children. When we arrived, they were already expecting us. The children were delighted by our visit, and we sang songs together. It was touching to see how happy they were with the packed lunches. We also had toys and sweets with us, but what they really needed was food.

A scene that always flashes before my eyes shows a child to whom we offered a packed lunch and a toy. The child firmly reached for the lunch and initially paid no attention to the toy. I compared this reaction to that of children in my everyday life, and it painfully dawned on me what the true needs of people in the slums are.

Walking through the slums was a difficult but necessary journey for all of us. The indescribable stench, the garbage, the dilapidated shacks, and the sad faces of the people showed us what it means to fight for survival.

It's not living, it's just surviving. We saw small children sitting hungry and helpless in the streets, rotting animals by the roadside, and a man searching for something to eat in a drain. The images of this poverty will haunt us forever.

Aftermath of the mission trip

This mission trip has awakened a deep sense of gratitude in me. How often do we take our comfortable lives for granted! 1 Thessalonians 5:18 says: “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

On this journey I learned how important it is to thank God for everything He has given us, while at the same time not closing our eyes to the suffering in this world. God calls us not only to be thankful, but also to open our hearts and hands to those in need.

We returned to Germany with these impressions and experiences, changed and deeply moved. Our mission was not only to help the people in the Philippines, but also a lesson for our own lives.

CDH Stephanus, Venne District Association

Janine Sonnenberg