365 Devotions to Love God and Love Others Well

Image | March 8, 2019 | wlucia

The book look quite nice as a gift, with hard cover and nice graphics. Most of the topics everyday are helpful and practical, with good examples from everyday life. It is a helpful devotional book when you can’t think of what verses of the Bible to read for a day -it could be your go-to book.

Some things that can be improved are:
– the Bible verses are quite short. To avoid ixegesis it might be helpful to put the verses in context (E.g. a paragraph or a few verses instead of just 1 verse)
– sometimes it feels like the author just wanted to write about certain topics (which might not be the main message of the verse), but she’s just quoting a verse to support that message
– I prefer Bible versions such as ESV and TNIV, so am quite disappointed that the author uses a lot of “The Voice” translation when quoting Bible – as “The Voice” is not as mainstream a translation as some of the other translations, and so as such might not be as accurate a translation as some of the other versions of the Bible like ESV.
Overall though the book provides some interesting and practical stories. However I prefer to actually read the Bible itself for devotions – and do inductive devotion / Bible study from the actual Bible itself instead of relying on devotional books.

What I’ve learned from typhoon victims

I interviewed beneficiaries during food distributions we did in partnership with the World Food Programme to write the article below:

https://www.samaritanspurse.org/article/what-ive-learned-from-typhoon-survivors/

In February, I spent two mornings visiting several Samaritan’s Purse food distribution sites in Palo and Tanauan, municipalities hit hard by Typhoon Haiyan. Until February 28, our food teams distributed bags of rice to an average of four sites every day, in partnership with the World Food Programme.

When we arrived at each site in the morning, there were already people waiting under the scorching sun. I had a chance to interview several people to listen to their experiences during and after the storm.

Many people thought they were going to die and that it was the end of the world.

“Our windows were exploding and crashing,” said Ann, a nurse who said her plan now is to help people stabilize after the storm. “We didn’t expect such sudden flooding. Water was at chest level inside the house, and outside, it was at waist level.”

Nobody in her house died, but her aunt and cousins did not survive because they lived in a village closer to the sea. She also found a dead baby by her house.

“I saw a premature baby flowing in the water,” she said. “I picked it up, thinking it was a toy from the neighbor.”

I then talked to Esmar. I felt as if I were watching a movie as he described images of walls, roofs, and other objects collapsing and flying around everywhere.

“I saw motorcycles flying over power lines and then broke apart,” he said. “It was a nightmare. We’re praying during the strong wind for God to please stop this typhoon and save us from this calamity.”

Through these interviews, two common themes that emerged were a sense of community and gratefulness.

“At 3 a.m., a family of 10 children came to our door to ask for help,” Esmar said.

Their house, like many other sturdier houses, was swarmed with people coming to seek shelter.

Help After the Storm

Roads were blocked by fallen trees and debris, so it was impossible to get anywhere by car in the aftermath of the typhoon. Injured and sick people walked to the hospital. Helicopters dropped relief supplies. Most vegetation and animals died. Water and electricity was out.

In the municipality of Barangay Gacao, the council reported that the biggest problem was a source of food because rice plantations were washed out. After the storm, people asked for food in nearby towns, but those towns couldn’t provide any because they were also damaged.

Unable to find anything to eat, some resorted to robbing others. Before relief arrived, most people picked up fallen coconuts from the ground, which served as both water and food.

In the community of Barangay Guindag-an, a leader named Floro recounted that Samaritan’s Purse staff came to distribute tarps. He also recalled Samaritan’s Purse staff members communicating hope. They said they were there because of Jesus and told the community members to help each other.

Though that first distribution of tarp wasn’t enough for everyone in the village, they cut it up and shared among themselves. When asked about their future plans, Floro said he wants community members to help each other and share food and water.

This village presented me with the coolest community gift, a traditional hat so large that I had to tilt my head to walk through the door. Everyone in the village has the same hat. It was a thank you gift.

At every single distribution site, people wave and shout “thank you” and “salamat” (“thank you” in Tagalog) a thousand times.

“Our roof and walls right now are from Samaritan’s Purse blue tarp,” Esmar said. “Thank you for that, so at least we’re covered. Thanks so much.”

Though most of them are still living in damaged houses without half of the possessions that most of us have, the typhoon survivors have chosen to be thankful and to share what they do have.

Phuket, Thailand

I wrote this after an unexpected trip to Thailand while I was a student. This poem was the winner of the annual CUS creative writing contest at the University of British Columbia and runner-up of the Holland Park Press “What’s your place” poetry contest:

On a cracked toy van we shelter
behind glass thinner than paper.

Conquering onto the roads
in the middle of the night
at the speed of light,
without airbags or seatbelts. Shifting
lanes every second, as if our car is the exclusive
King of the road.

Huge trucks fly by, millimeters from my left arm;
Horrendous sounds of scratches.

Hastening along the highway lane painted with
A big white arrow pointing towards us –
Prepared to be shattered into pieces any moment,
after which nobody would notice where we’ve vanished.

The road remains quiet and empty.
Brusquely we bump into the curb.
The controller lights his cigar, and slowly closes his eyes,
throwing away the ten lives under his hands.

Hours and hours later, just before
our hearts pumped out, the light starts
to slowly shy in, from Phuket,

its soft, smooth and shiny sand
gives our bare feet a warm welcome kiss.
Delicately whispering water caresses the sand, drifting
into blurry ripples; undefined moving circles,
tangling with bright rays.

The soft light blue sky;
a multi-faceted screen,
extends well beyond the
clouds, guiding into heaven;

colours and brightness
ever changing.

Our fragile feet frolic
on the shifting sands
along the meandering shore.

Phuket, Thailand (Poetry)

Image | November 6, 2017November 6, 2017 | wlucia

On a cracked toy van we shelter
behind glass thinner than paper.

Conquering onto the roads
in the middle of the night
at the speed of light,
without airbags or seatbelts. Shifting
lanes every second, as if our car is the exclusive
King of the road.

Huge trucks fly by, millimeters from my left arm;
Horrendous sounds of scratches.

Hastening along the highway lane painted with
A big white arrow pointing towards us –
Prepared to be shattered into pieces any moment,
after which nobody would notice where we’ve vanished.

The road remains quiet and empty.
Brusquely we bump into the curb.
The controller lights his cigar, and slowly closes his eyes,
throwing away the ten lives under his hands.

Hours and hours later, just before
our hearts pumped out, the light starts
to slowly shy in, from Phuket,

The soft light blue sky;
a multi-faceted screen,
extends well beyond the
clouds, guiding into heaven;

colours and brightness
ever changing.

Our fragile feet frolic
on the shifting sands
along the meandering shore.

Medical Mission

I had the privilege to head up the medical team of local doctors and nurses when our medical program manager was sick. I interviewed some beneficiaries and wrote the article below:

https://www.samaritanspurse.org/article/traveling-with-the-samaritans-purse-mobile-clinic/

The Samaritan’s Purse medical team in the Philippines is conducting mobile clinics in remote areas affected by Typhoon Haiyan. Most of these places do not have their own clinics or hospitals, and most people are too poor to afford traveling to town to seek treatment.

I helped when our medical team lead was sick for a few days. On the first day, we traveled to a small village in the municipality of Basey. Upon arrival, we set up our mobile clinic in the small town hall.

Anenacita, pastor of the village’s only church, helped with setup and repeatedly thanked us for being there. She said she hoped the medical clinic would return.

“If people are sick, they have to go to Basey,” she said. “It’s a 30-minute ride and costs 50 pesos each way. Many people do not have money.”

On the second day, the medical team traveled to Eastern Samar to serve in two villages in Hernani.

After one of our nurses shared a Scripture message to start the session, Terasita Harbaga requested a Bible. She said hers, among other things, was washed out by the storm.

“The water came above door level … all our furniture [was] destroyed,” she said. “The only thing left [was] the clothes we’re wearing.”

Then, more people started asking for Bibles. Most of them attend one of the Christian churches in town.

The following day, Pastor Samuel Aberia brought along four other pastors and church leaders from the community to volunteer at the clinic. Pastor Samuel is from World Harvest Fellowship, an Operation Christmas Child partner church. He’s now a recipient of a box of Bibles through our church assistance program.

The next two days, we set up mobile clinics at Church of the Nazarene in the nearby town of Borongan with the help of around 10 volunteers from the church. On the first day, the clinic was open to everyone in the community. On the second day, the clinic conducted check-ups for almost 200 children.

Please pray for the medical team and volunteers as they continue to travel to remote villages to set up mobile clinics and offer physical and spiritual care.