hear and learn

We hosted the weekly neighborhood Bible Club this Saturday,

a small group of 'mga bata' (children) who come together to learn and pray,

sing and memorize.

First we had a Bible study, using the Bible in Cebuano,

...and some English materials from Child Evangelism Fellowship.

Julie Mae reads God's promise from Hebrews to never leave or forsake her...

We sang songs in Cebuano: Jesus Loves Me and This is the Day

Kali is so excited to choose stickers for memorizing from 1 John 

We taught a craft - no-sew fleece pillows (click for a tutorial!)

 Though many fabrics are available here,

fleece isn't.

(Who needs fleece when it's 90 degrees?)

But we found some fleece-like blankets

which we cut up into pillow forms.

Our hope is to teach some skills these children could use to generate income

Amy helps get things lined up

A finished pillow

 We used cotton balls to stuff the pillows,

but a lower-cost option would be to stuff pillows

with either shredded plastic grocery bags,

or even snack wrappers that have been washed.

I never would have dreamed of that solution on my own,

but a Filipina friend suggested it - 

Filipino ingenuity at work again!

Arjay works on an entry for our artist competition, as we look for potential talent.

After a snack they enjoyed some playtime.

The rope swing is always a big hit!

And a few kids volunteered to do some weeding for us, not for money, just in thanks!

This thankful response is in itself 

 a beautiful testimony 

to how God's Word is influencing these young lives!

"Their children, who have not known, 

will hear and learn to fear the LORD your God..."

Deut. 31:13