Dear friends,

Duane and Kathy McKey arrived in the night . . . one day late. They were snowed in at the Dallas-Fort Worth airport of all places; six hours they sat in the airplane on the tarmac before returning to the airport. Kathy is the coordinator of a group of evangelistic meetings to the south of us [here in the Philippines] with orientation beginning on Wednesday. Duane will lead a group of evangelistic speakers that begins soon after. The five of us, Benny Moore included, breakfasted together this morning.

We have learned that an additional US$10,000 is needed to continue to provide transportation to the meetings at the AstroDome. The attendance is so large, it is costing PhP$135,000 per night to rent jeepneys and buses. The Central Luzon Conference is trying to figure out how to fund this expense, but what a wonderful problem! The auditorium was packed last night. There is one tier left that is not yet filled: I expect it will be overflowing on Sabbath.

Friday night, Don’s message was about God’s appointment with us: the Sabbath day. His words to remember were: Jesus made the Sabbath. He made it for me! Of course, the Sabbath rest was created during creation week “In the beginning . . .”  In addition, God placed the Sabbath as one of the Ten Commands. Jesus Himself worshipped on the seventh day. And the Bible declares that we will worship together on the Sabbath in heaven. Don asked the question, “Does it really matter on which day you rest and worship?”

To illustrate, he had seven ladies come onto the platform. Both the translator’s wife and I were among them. “Does it really matter which lady I take with me back to America?” he asked. “Of course, it matters to me . . . and it matters to the airlines . . . and to the passport control officers. Yes, it really does matter that we meet Jesus on His appointed day!” One pastor told Don that the live graphic made the point so clear.

Sabbath morning we went to the Pasay City Church where Don preached. We climbed the stairs of the Pasay City Adventist Elementary School to the fourth floor. There we found 900-1,000 people gathered to worship. Open windows allowed a cross breeze in addition to the oscillating fans fastened to the ceiling. Every bench was full!

Don noticed in the back room there were fifteen or so neckties hanging by the door leading to the sanctuary. He learned that you must wear a tie to go onto the platform . . . unless you are wearing a barong.

Pastor Jesse Acosta was smiling, easy going . . . and greatly loved. He told me, “I am like a father to my church family. They often call me Tátay.” I showed him my Tagalog phrase book. “One thing you could learn is, Mahál ko kayó! . . . you’ll win their hearts. The words say, I love you! And it expresses God’s love to them.”

The Pasay City Church sent 23 of its members to the ASI DVD training sessions. They will have sixty ready for baptism next Sabbath. I met two of their small group leaders:

Agapito “Boy” Clavero, Jr. conducts two groups, one near his home and one across town. He has 30 people who are interested and coming to the AstroDome. I snapped a picture of him with his family. Serving our lunch was Elizabeth Israel. She, too, is a small group leader. Working with her is a head leader and five small-group leaders. There are probably thirty or more, altogether, in the large group. After they meet for a little while, they break up into small groups. Elizabeth has eight in her small group. She invited a neighbor; and that neighbor invited two more.

Last night (Saturday night) a number of people gave testimonies of thankfulness to God.

A small boy, perhaps 8 or 9 years old: Speaking rapidly in Tagalog, he gave praise to God. Of course, I could not understand, but suddenly he repeated one of the phrases Don has taught nightly. He had been touched by the knowledge that although “I am guilty, Jesus will forgive me.”

Girl, slightly older: “Every night I feel the Lord is here. I pray that we will all be protected.”

Don’s phrase to remember was, We must obey God rather than man. Acts 5:29

Well, Don now has four beautiful barongs, the Filipino shirts with embroidery, which he enjoys wearing when he is preaching—green, cream, light blue, and the fancy cream-colored made of cocoon. Tonight it’ll be the blue one!

God be with you all. We appreciate your prayers!

Mahál ko kayó!
Marti (and Don)

From: Marti Schneider
Sent: Monday, March 10, 2008
To: The Quiet Hour supporters
Subject: Schneider's Manila Update #8

Dear friends,

One of the packages we brought with us to Manila was a beautiful set of children’s Bible story felts provided by The Quiet Hour. Janet Aldea, Don’s secretary, had spent considerable time cutting out the Bible characters and scenes, filing them in their two file boxes so that they are ready for use. We wondered who should receive these supplies. Then we discovered our answer!

One of the churches served by Pastor Fred, who is Don’s assistant here at the meetings, is only two years old. It is the Bagumbayan Church in Taguig City. It has grown rapidly, now having more than 60 members. Pastor Fred describes it as having 20 active families, 25 young people and 12 to 15 children who are two to five years old. As yet, they do not have a children’s Sabbath school room. Two jeepneys bring their people to the meetings. The pastor expects 15 to 20 individuals to be baptized at this time.

We met them outside at the jeepneys and opened the package as the children and adults gathered around. The children’s teacher received the felts along with the teacher’s guides. Adults and little tykes alike shook our hands and thanked us over and over. Duane McKey and Benny Moore came with cameras to catch the smiles! Pastor Fred saw the sanctuary felts and said, “I can teach the adults with these.”

Don’s message was entitled: “How to Prosper in Health.” Bottom line is Jesus is Lord of your body, your possessions, and your time. He has given us guidelines for health, for use of our income, and of our time. Don told the Bible story of the leprous Captain Naaman who was healed when he dipped seven times in the Jordan River at the instructions of Elisha, God’s prophet. Don’s words-to-remember were God can bless you best when you do exactly what He says. God did not heal Naaman after one, two, or three dips in the water. Just so, God can bless us best when we follow His will exactly. After Naaman had dipped seven times, he was healed.

Several people shared testimonies last night. A teen-aged girl said, “I made a decision to be baptized; but when I told my parents they didn’t really want me to do it. Then I remembered what we had learned, “We must obey God rather than man!”

Another said, “I understand now the day God planned for worship.”

Today (Monday) there is no meeting because the Astrodome is not available for our use. So we took advantage of the day to visit Corregidor, the island off the coast of Luzon, that was fought over during World War II. On the way back on the boat a 38-year-old mother, who was with a Christian school group of 4th to 6th grade kids, began to ask questions about what Don was speaking about. He shared a couple of the topics. She expressed real interest in learning about the subjects and might even come tomorrow night when he talks about what happens after death according to the Bible. She is a classy lady who spoke excellent English. Her business card said she is in real estate in Makati.

It is 9 o’clock in the morning in Silver Spring [Maryland]; but it is 9 o’clock at night in Manila. And Don just informed me I can find him tucked into bed. I’d better go!
 
Our love,
Marti (and Don)

Manila email reports: February 29 - March 3 | March 4-5 | March 6-7 | March 9-10 | March 11-13 | March 17

Bacolod email reports: March 10-12 | March 16-17 | March 19-23 | March 30