My last post was 11 years ago. This post is to say that I am still here and will post new updates soon.

Highlights of 2010

God has blessed us with a new member of our family, Tahlia our granddaughter. It is amazing to see her grow and learn new things. Sarah and Tahlia live in Palmerston North where we used to live before moving to Hamilton. From time to time they come to Hamilton and stay with us. 

We have also been occupied this year between our jobs and our involvement with International Student Ministries of New Zealand (ISMNZ). Students come to our home every fortnight. Saling serve them with dinner and we study the Bible afterwards.

We were given the responsibility of coordinating the ISM Northern Region which includes Hamilton and Auckland. In spite of the amount of traveling involved, we find joy in the fellowship with our fellow workers in the Lord. It is always encouraging to hear what God has been doing through their lives.

We still continue to facilitate the monthly Bible study with our relatives and extended family members in Auckland and the Bible study with Filipino couples in the church we attend in Hamilton. 

In our last post we asked for prayer that Kotomi, our Japanese homestay, would come to know the Lord. Prayers have been answered because Kotomi asked The Lord Jesus into her heart before she went back to Japan. She together with three of her Japanese friends were able to attend a J2 (Jesus and Japan) camp as well. PTL!

We praise the Lord for your part in our lives.

Mario and Saling

We took students to Mt Ruapehu

Day Conference in Auckland 

(Kotomi is in front far right in gray sweater)

Tahlia Amores

Family

I worked on the blog this time.  The most recent experience that Mario and I have was the coming of Tahlia Amores in our lives.  Sarah gave birth to Tahlia on 3 February 2010 at 5.27pm and was two weeks overdue.  Normal birthing was tried first but since Tahlia was becoming distressed caesarian section was performed as a last resort. The choice was to wait 9 more hours or have the caesarian. The latter was chosen because her heartbeat came to almost 70 in the graph and was not stabilizing. 

Sarah requested that I be with her at the operating room so and I was seated close to her head when she was operated on. She requested this so that she will not hear the surgeons and staff talking about the surgery. I usually faint at the sight of blood but I thank God that He gave me courage.  I didn’t see so much blood but I saw my granddaughter when they took her out of Sarah’s tummy.  She is so beautiful and looked liked his father Andrew Coombridge.  Sarah was brave and did very well throughout the surgery. She recovered beautifully.  When she came out of the hospital after 3 days, I had to go back to Hamilton for my job as I may lose my job if I don’t report back. My superiors were gracious enough to put my absences as leave options.

At this stage in our life, we are learning how to be “safe” parents.  My daughter has her own child now and she makes decisions in consideration to a life given to her. We don’t give her advise without being asked.  We wait for her to ask us.  If she does not ask, we keep it in our hearts and just continue to pray for her.  Everyday I text a verse to her reminding that God loves her so much.  I keep on reminding her that she needs God in her life which she does not contradict. We are praying daily that she will return to her relationship with Jesus. We know that this will happen in God’s timing and grace.

We see evidences though of her applying what she has learned from us like orderliness in the home and handling finances. We want to help but she has chosen to live independently and prove to herself that she can do it on her own.   Sarah loves her daughter dearly and takes good care of her.

Sarah, Tahlia and Saling at Hamilton Zoo

Sarah and Tahlia have been staying with us for the last two weeks.  Both of them are bringing great joy to both Mario and myself.  We have had just good times together talking and having fun.  We are enjoying Tahlia’s smile and just her presence makes our life really joyful.  Sarah is maturing and growing in her responsibility as a mother.  She said recently, “Now I can understand what you went through when I was a baby. Thank you and I love you.”  Praise God for this stage in our life.

Ministry

Mario and I both work and are involved with International Student Ministries New Zealand (ISMNZ). Mario is serving ISM in the Board of Trustees and as the regional coordinator for ISM’s northern region that presently include Auckland and Hamilton. This requires regular travels for us to visit the team in Auckland. In Hamilton, the semester started with a welcome barbeque for international students. Mario and I attends the regular team meetings in both Auckland and Hamilton. We are also helping a group of Filipino couples at the church we go to in Hamilton by facilitating a study on ‘Growing Kids God’s Way’ and another Filipino group in Auckland who are mostly Mario’s relatives including the family of Erold Sana. Erold is the brother of Elbert Sana (who was discipled by Mario) and Erlyn Sana who are both involved with Reach ministries in the Philippines.

Welcome barbeque for international students

We are having a Japanese girl, Miku, who will be living with us as homestay from 18 April. She is going to do language study for four months with Waikato University.

Prayer requests

1. For Sarah to return to her relationship with God.

2. Physical strength and protection on our travels.

3. Sensitivity in God’s direction for ministry for ISM Auckland and Hamilton teams.

4. For Miku to know Jesus as Saviour while studying in New Zealand.

Much blessings

Saling

ISM's 10th anniversary

I posted in my last blog about the 10th anniversary of International Student Ministries that we celebrated in October 2009. Here is the link to the ISM newsletter featuring the 10th anniversary.

ISM 10th anniversary newsletter

Saling is in Palmerston North to provide support to Sarah when she gives birth. Sarah's expected dated to give birth is on 21 January. Please pray for a normal and safe delivery of the baby.

The year that was ...

We have had a number of highlights in the last quarter of 2009. Firstly was the 10^thanniversary celebration of International Student Ministries of New Zealand in October. This is the ministry Saling and I have been involved with in the last eight years. This was coupled by the birthday celebrations of Saling and Sarah who both have the same birthdays. Secondly, Saling and I celebrated our 27^th wedding anniversary in November. We have seen and experienced God’s loving grace through these years. And thirdly, we moved to another house in December. In all of these, God has brought people along our journey that have either ministered to us or we have ministered to. Hence, we are thankful to God for them all and for their part in our lives. So as 2009 comes to a close, we thank God for all His goodness and for the work that He has accomplished this year.

Participants to the ISM Conference from 14 countries

A blessed Christmas to all from the Garcia family.

Sarah, Mario and Saling

Settle Down

Where is home?

People have asked me if I would still go back to the Philippines or stay in New Zealand permanently. I find it difficult to give a straight answer to this question. Sometime I just reply with "I will take it one day at a time" or "I don't know what the future holds" or "It would be difficult to start all over again in the Philippines". Sometimes, my response was, "All I know is that I am in New Zealand at the moment."

However, one fascinating thing about our journey on this earth is that we have the Word of God to live by. How true is the everlasting statement of the Lord Jesus Christ when He said, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every work that comes from the mouth of God.'" Yes, when things don't seem to go the way it should, go back to the Word. When life is somewhat uncertain, go back to the Word. When question like the one I was asked above is asked, my mind tells me go back to the Word.

So what have I learned from God's Word in relation to the question asked? Let me take you to the account of prophet Jeremiah's in his letter to the Israelites who had been taken to Babylon as exiles. Jeremiah 29.4-7 states:

This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: "Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city into which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper."

Key words from the verses ... build ... settle ... plant ... marry ... increase in number ... seek peace and prosperity ... pray for Babylon.

The principle I learned from these verses is that wherever I am, I will make that my home. I have to think long term ... permanently perhaps. I have to settle it in my heart that I am in New Zealand and this country is my home until such time that God tells otherwise. Saling and I have already moved five times in our eight years of stay in New Zealand and these moves had been work related. The cities where our family have lived were Christchurch (Mario), Wellington, Porirua, Palmerston North. Sarah, our daughter is living still in Palmerston North. We have made friends and left friends there.

Saling and I live in Hamilton for 15 months now. This is now our home and we have placed it in our hearts to settle here so we can do what we have and can do for the ministry God has called us in. God graciously gave us jobs in this city and has blessed us with colabourers in ministering to international students. We also have an ongoing project ... a house build. Lord willing, we will move into this house second week of December 2009. Here is a peek of its progress.

The location of this house is close to Waikato University so it will be strategic in reaching out to international students. Many international students and their families had the opportunity to hear the Gospel and had the experience of a 'family' in our homes. We know that God will continue to use this home for His purposes in reaching the world through the international students that come to New Zealand.

Flooding in the Philippines

The recent typhoon in the Philippines locally called "Ondoy" created flash flooding in Metro Manila. Reports said that a month's worth of rain fell in just 12 hours. Our family home where my sister and her children and granchildren live was flooded for the first time in our lifetime. The water was about 1.5 meters deep. Everything was soaked overnight and all household items and clothings were ruined. Houses in other areas were submerged to the roof. One thing about Filipinos is their resiliency ... the ability to bounce back. Hence, my family there and the rest of the Filipino people are starting over again from the flooding. Here is a photo of our flooded house.

This house had been the venue of the early stages of the Reach high school ministry started by a team that was composed of Neneng, Elsie, Saling, myself and some other ministry friends who helped the ministry in the early stages.

Well, this is it for now. Till then with much blessings ...

Mario

Foggy Road

We left Hamilton at 6am last Saturday to go to Palmerston North. The first 2 hours of our 5.5. hour trip was under heavy fog. We can only see about 20-30 metres in front of us. In my (Mario) many years of driving I always wanted to see way ahead of me so I would know what to expect. But driving through the fog made me reliant on what I can see right in front of me with the aid of the car's headlight. This reminds me of my walk with God. There are times when what lies ahead is so clear but there are also times when it wasn't and yet both requires clarity of direction from God.

When we reached Palmerston North Saling spent time with our daughter Sarah the whole day and Mario attended the ISM Board meeting. Later in the day our family had dinner at a Korean restaurant called Arirang. The three of us watched the movie Transformers 2 over popcorn and drinks on Sunday. We all enjoyed it. It is always a joy to spend time with our daughter whom we miss every time.

On our way to Palmerston North we spotted a herd of sheep that were newly sheared. The photos of sheep that we see most of the time showed that they are covered with wool. They look different without the wool covering.

It was pouring with rain the whole time on our travel back to Hamilton but we made it just in time for the Amazing Race TV series that we avidly watch. We were like in the amazing race too - we travelled more than 900 km for this weekend trip.