We're making progress!!  This past Thursday and Friday Jilin and I spent four to five hours each day sitting and waiting and processing through the medical examination mandatory to sitting for a visa interview.  She received five immunizations in one day!!  She's shot up: two in each arm and one in a thigh.  I'm concerned because they wouldn't let me ask very many questions,

In the local language praise is 'pegbantug', it carries the connotation of uplifting, honoring, magnifying, appreciation.  So this is what was going through my mind as the following events were taking place.  Does praise in English have a similar connotation?

 

I am finally back into our beloved mountains and with our people after an extended stay in the capital for writing purposes (writing two volumes of Bible studies for our native pastors to use in the local dialect).  I found out that I had grown used to having people around all the time, and got pretty lonely.  But it was wonderfully spiritually rejuvenating to have more time for study

Yesterday, Sabbath after I taught the ladies Sabbath School and after church, a young guy showed up telling us about more people that were sick in an area that Kent and Jilin had hiked to the previous day in order to make sure a landing pad was appropriate for the helicopter to get in.

 

September 20, 2007

How do I remove my name etc. from the subject or title line on my comments.  It just kind of appears - I'm not typing it in....

You could say this hasn't been too good a day.  One of our patients died this morning - a young boy of perhaps 8.  He was home with his mother, but still under our treatment.  Then just as we were getting close to closing time at the clinic, we got word from our student missionary helping four patients we had at the hospital in the lowlands, that the baby we'd sent out earlier that week (and had barely made it!), had in fact just died!  NO Lord!!  Not another one!!  Today was Sunday.  Sabbath we heard about another child that died - one we simply couldn't get to in time.  Another older gentleman who had been under our care for months, finally went home against medical advice and we just heard that he died last week, as did his elder brother.  So within the last week - five deaths.  Pretty sobering.

 This latest letter is entitled A Lesson in Forgiveness, but I think it would more accurately be entitled, " A Lesson in Confession and Repentance".

A lesson in forgiveness…

As time goes on and we hear from more and more people about the story of
what happened to Nurgina, we find more and more lessons to be learned.  The
common theme of them all, however, seems to be forgiveness and deliverance.

Apparently, on Friday night before this all happened Nurgina and her mom
heard there was a wedding at a neighboring village.  They decided to go and
when they arrived they found that it was not really a wedding but a
“siburan.”  A siburan is a ritual that is held in honor of their gods asking
and/or thanking them for a good harvest.  It usually goes on all night long
and there is drum playing as well as a lot of drinking.  At a siburan
EVERYONE is supposed to drink.  They even get babies to drink the fermented
rice wine and many people get very drunk.  Mix that with homage to satan and
you’ve got a deadly combination.

Nurgina, being a Christian, was disappointed when she found out what was
going on and she chose not to drink or participate.  However, she didn’t
leave.  She stayed and was subject to a lot of “bad words, and bad
drinking.”  She realizes now she was in the presence of Satan and wishes so
much that she could go back to that day and do it all over, only this time,
she’d leave right away.

She slept there that night and the next morning she went to church.  After
church was potluck and after potluck she waited while her mom was given a
Bible study.  After that, it’s really best if her mom picks up the story.

According to her mom, they were walking home from church and she stopped to
drink some water, this much you know.  After she drank the water she turned
her head funny and told her mom to pray for her and to pray that satan
leaves.  Her mom noticed that her eyes were completely closed at that time
and after speaking she put her head down and ran like a battering ram, all
the way back home.  How she got there with her eyes closed and her head down
no one is able to explain but I’m convinced that an angel led her there.

Arriving home she got down on all fours and the elders of the village
noticed that something was wrong.  They suggested doing a ritual to the gods
for her to be healed.  She remembers hearing that and telling them that she
ABSOLUTELY did NOT want that and that they shouldn’t forget God, that they
should always remember God.  After that, Nurgina reports not hearing or
seeing anything.

Her mom said that shortly thereafter she quit breathing, almost like she was
holding her breath.  She said that it was probably a half an hour that she
didn’t breathe and they thought for sure she was dead.  Her brother began to
cry but her mom refused to believe it was true.  Her mom insisted that they
needed to pray and so they did.  Her mom (a baby Christian herself) began to
pray for forgiveness for staying at the siburan and pleading with God to
save her daughter.  At that moment sometime during/after her prayer, Nurgina
began to breathe.  You can imagine the rejoicing that took place.  They
moved her into the hut and she slept fine the rest of the night, though
never once opening her eyes.

The next morning Nurgina woke up ranting and chanting, “pray for me, let’s
pray, let’s worship, where’s my mom, where’s my brother, etc.”  Realizing
that the worst was still not over one of her brothers asked the elder of the
village what they should do.  Being a witchdoctor he decided to take care of
it himself.  He took some leaves and some water and put them on Nurgina’s
ears entreating the gods to heal her.   After this, they say, she only got
louder and louder in her cries.  The witchdoctor then conceded to allowing
her to be brought to us for help.

You know the story about her being brought in and the torment of those two
days.  I won’t repeat it but speed things up to that Monday night.  We had
just finished a prayer vigil, as you know and I was outside talking with the
other SMs.  What we didn’t know was that inside the hut where Nurgina’s mom
was by her bedside, Nurgina’s mom was praying.  She had forgotten about her
prayer for forgiveness until that moment and decided to pray it again.   So
again she begged forgiveness for attending the siburan the Friday before and
again she pleaded with God to heal her daughter.  She had no sooner finished
praying when she heard a voice in her ear saying, “Are you afraid for your
daughter?”  Nurgina’s mom responded quickly, “No, I am not afraid, God is my
hope.”  The voice answered, “Get that rice that you are cooking and feed it
to her.”  Right away Nurgina’s mom jumped up and began getting rice for her.
 Meanwhile, Nurgina lay there moaning and seemingly unconscious.

With the spoon of rice held to Nurgina’s lips her mom prayed, “Lord, forgive
us…bless this food, and save Nurgina.”  At that moment, Nurgina took the
food on the spoon, opened her eyes, and the first words from her mouth were,
“Thank you Jesus for this food.”  Then she recognized her mom and began
thanking her mom and she asked where everyone was.  Excitedly her mom called
for us and it was then that I heard Nurgina say, “I heard my mom praying for
me.”

The rest is history.  I’ve already told you how she hugged and thanked
everyone present, and how every word from her mouth was a praise to God for
delivering her.  I can’t tell you how beautiful it was to see her smile and
to see her eyes again at that moment.  Truly, she was dead and had been
raised right before our eyes.  God is still working giant miracles today.

What I thought was interesting was how seemingly harmless it was for her to
be at that party.  She didn’t participate, she didn’t drink, and yet, just
being where she shouldn’t be opened her up for attack.  And it prayers for
forgiveness and entreatments of God’s grace to ward off satan and bring her
back to life.  I tell you what it brought me to my knees and stabbed me
where it hurt.  How often I’ve justified being where I shouldn’t by saying,
“Well, it’s not like I’m gonna drink, It’s not like I’m watching the movie.  
I just wanna be with my friends, what’s so wrong with that?”  I have
absolutely no more to say from here on.  If satan’s there, it’s better that
I’m not.

Also, though just a human I am, my God is bigger, and stronger, and ready
and waiting to forgive me for whatever separates us.  Absolutely nothing is
too hard for him and though I’m too weak, he is not and he knows what
weapons to use.

It is my prayer that we never forget to call sin by it’s right name and to
bring our cares and sins to the feet of Jesus who thought of us by name
while he was on a cross.  Our Father in heaven looked upon our helpless
state even before we were born and proclaimed, “Live, I have found a
ransom.”

On to Nurgina. Like I said, wish I could tell you ALL the details. WOW! what an experience. I will never be the same, (I pray!). And I know many others are being changed as well. The story is still unfolding. Here is the latest: When Nurgina was first "hit" by Satan at the water at Erisurang, she lost her hearing and sight and she doesn't remember anything else 'til Nerehungan. Her mom and Meyli and BingBing who were all with her said she ran home with her eyes closed and her head down! She told them to pray for her and kept saying "Meya'at banar si Seytan" and "Tebangi' ku Empu'" (and all the rest of the round of phrases that she said over and over--that Kiana has probably already told you about)--she said all of this from the time she was "hit" 'til the time she was delivered except when she was sleeping. (and the 3 ladies did pray for her right then when she was first "hit") She doesn't remember anything except starting to regain her hearing a little just for a moment in Nerehungan and she heard them (Mami, I think) say "Megsawag kay ikew" and she said "Mendi' ku ne!!" and Nalib said something like "well, how can we help you then? You (plural) will have to pray to (your) God" (but I'm not sure of those exact words). They respected her wish but at some point she apparently stopped breathing for a long time (they say maybe half an hour--but it's just their guess) and Buba and everyone was crying--they were all very scared. And of course her mom and I don't know who else were praying for her. Then here's another new part. Her mom said at some point she remembered they had gone to the Siburan and so she asked for forgiveness and that's when Nurgina started breathing again!!

Dear Readers,
We are currently in the USA on furlough and our student missionaries are  
running the Palawano Project. We just received the following e-mail from
Kiana, one of our SMs.  It is in regards to a young girl of about
14 who was baptized this last December.  Her name is Nurgina and she is one of
our most recent, but staunch and committed church members. She comes from a village
where devil worship is very, very strong and in the past different ones of
her family has   been harassed and possessed by Satan.  Several years ago
her mother was possessed by an evil spirit for 10 days and on another
occasion it was reported that her brother was bitten by a spirit creature
and subsequently died within hours from injuries sustained.  Some of the
strongest and most powerful witch doctors are her uncles and live in her
village.  I believe that Satan is feeling the attacks of the gospel and is
fighting back in any way he can.  The following e-mail will tell you the
situation and we ask that you will pray for Nurgina and her family, the
church in Kamantian and the student missionaries who are in the
midst of this spiritual warfare.

KG/LG

June 11, 2006
Sunday night, Kamantian
> I know this is long, but I beg you to read all of it.  And pray....pray
like
> you've never prayed before...petition the throne of God for my friend.  
> Please, just pray.
>
> Dear Pastor and Minan,
> > I'll never forget it as long as I live.  Nor will I ever be able to get
the sound out of my mind.
>
> I was helping out in the clinic earlier today with the normal flow of
> patients for a Sunday morning, when around 11:30 am we heard someone
coming
> up the trail wailing.  We looked to see Buba carrying his younger sister,
> our friend, 15 year old Nurgina on his back.  She had her eyes closed and
> was screaming at the top of her lungs, "Meningkag siu ne, meningkag siu
> ne..."  (Let's pray, let's pray) over and over again almost as a chant.
>
> We forgot all things we were doing at present and thinking perhaps she had
a
> horrible bout of cerebral malaria, we knew she needed quick action.  We
> rushed to her side and took her temperature and to see what we could do.
>
> Upon questioning Mami (her uncle and one of the most influential witch
> doctors of the mountain) and Buba, Wendy realized that there was more
going
> on than a mere physical problem, she was being attacked by the evil one
> himself.  Barely taking a breath, she said over and over in a voice of
> nothing but shear desperation, "Help me. Where are you all? Where's my
> brother? My sister? My mom? Help me. I'm going to die. I don't want Satan.
> Satan leave! Father God, where are You? Jesus, help me!  Where's my
Bible?  
> Where's everyone at?  Help me, Help me!"  She calls for each of her family
> members, begging for help, begging for prayer, for worship.  She repeats
> herself about 5 or 6 times and then moves on to the next phrase in no
> particular order.  She even proclaims the name of the Lord as stronger
than
> anything.  Even now, I can hear her cries of urgency.
>
> She isn't awake though she's aware of her surroundings it seems, because
she
> sometimes responds to a certain person talking to her by calling out their
> name asking where they are.  She starts out slowly then gets more and more
> desperate in her pleas for help.  She doesn't really move except to tense
> her body and tighten her hands.  Always crying, her eyes are very puffy
and
> red.
>
> Reports say that she began being attacked yesterday afternoon when she was
> leaving church.  They said on the trail headed back she drank some water,
> turned her head kind of funny then started screaming for help and telling
> Satan to leave.  Then she turned and ran the rest of the way home.  She
> collapsed onto all fours when she got home and called out to her family
> saying not to forget God, not to forget to pray, not to lose faith.  They
> said she could walk and was semi-coherent.  After sleeping all through the
> night, she woke up as she is now wailing and crying.  Someone carried her
> all the way from her far jungle home to the clinic.
>
> All my life I've been taught that nothing can harm you if you believe in
> God's holy angels protecting you.  I heard that all you have to do if
you're
> being attacked is call on the name of Jesus and they will leave you.  
Little
> Nurgina has been doing nothing but calling on the name of God since this
> started and we've all been praying constantly on her behalf.  Still she's
> suffering and struggling in this unseen battle.  Perhaps this fight is not
> so wrapped and packaged like I thought.  It requires our participation and
> constant faith.  Nor is it as abstract either, it is right here at this
> moment, all but visible within Nurgina.
>
> I couldn't bare to look as she cries out, "Father God, help me."  And then
> she cries for Sublitu her close family friend, and one of the pastors of
our
> church.  Sublitu's heart was torn.  His Palawan culture tells him not to
> cry, and yet his dear friend is lying in obvious agony calling for him to
> help.  He wasn't sure what to do.  I broke down and cried when I heard him
> answer, "I"m here little sister, I'm here."  She only responded with more
> screams for help.  Her voice never seems to give out, nor does she seem to
> be able to respond to us but I think she knows what's there.  It seems to
be
> rather visual too because her eyes move a bit under her eyelids.  She
> rebukes Satan and tells him to leave in some of her most intense pleas.  
At
> this point we don't know what to do except pray and plead with God on her
> behalf as well.  We're each taking two-hour shifts tonight so that someone
> is with her all through the night praying and so that her mom and two of
her
> brothers are not alone.
>
> Tonight, in a half hour it's my turn to pray.  “Lord, give me strength.  
Keep me
> awake.  Help me to keep the prayers for dear sweet Nurgina.  I just want
to
> see her laugh and be her old self again, so strong, and so faithful.
>
> June 12, 2006
> Monday, Kamantian
> > Before I had fallen asleep (last night) I heard her shrill cries pierce
the night.  Cries for help, cries to her loved ones, cries to God.  All the way from the
> clinic to my house they woke me up and gave me shivers up and down my
spine.
>
> A little after 1am Becky and I were relieved from our shift with prayer
for
> Nurgina.  I hadn't slept at all before then and was in dire need of some
> shut-eye.  Nurgina had slept quietly the whole three-hour shift that we were
> there, but shortly after we left and were settled into our beds, I was
> awakened by her scream.  It seemed even more intense and urgent than it
had all day.
>
> We'd thought perhaps that she was better; she's so peaceful when she
sleeps.
> She had even turned on her side and opened her eyes briefly.  But she was
> not yet out of the torment.  God in His mercy had merely granted her a
> respite.  All night long we prayed, claimed Bible promises, and prayed
some
> more.  I’m not sure how long this will last but she keeps hanging on to
the
> fight, and we will too.
>
> “Lord Jesus, cover us with Your blood, hold us in Your hand and never let
go.
> Do not leave Nurgina nor forsake her, Your daughter.  Keep fighting, we
> give You permission to keep battling the evil one until he has left.
>
> Come quickly Lord Jesus and make this world a dark memory.  Help us, Help
> us, Help us!  May this all work out for Your glory.  Give us weapons to
wage
> war as well.  Give us employment to fight on her behalf.  That Your name
and
> the precious blood of Jesus be exalted above any thing else is our prayer.
>
> As the drizzling rain calms our spirits, may we also dwell in the peace
that
> You have already won.”
>
> "Worthy is the Lamb, Who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom
> and strength and honor and glory and praise!"  Rev. 5:12

Late Sunday night, San Francisco, CA
Dear Kiana,
Although we arrived back at 11 pm I felt impressed to check e-mail. We read
your message with intense sadness and heartache for Nurgina’s turmoil.  Oh, how
we wish we could be there!  We can certainly empathize with how you are all
feeling, as this sounds very similar to what happened many years ago with
Nurgina’s mother (Bill, refer to article about Bibi being demon possessed
and living on our porch for about ten days; possibly 1997 or 1998).  We can
do nothing with this situation, we can only implore God to take control. You
are doing that and we are imploring God right alongside of you.  
Secondly, sing.  Sing in gratitude to God in faith for already giving
Nurgina the victory over Satan.  Satan cannot stand singing.   He cannot
stand praises to God for victory over him. And sometime when her eyes are
open and you who are strong in the Lord, look into Nurgina's eyes as you
speak words of hope to her.  We are all praying and fasting with you.  Satan
is desperate; he would not reveal himself in such a way if he were not.  He
is
revealing who he is and what he wants.  May the Palawanos realize that Satan
is not to be tolerated.

Be assured you are all being prayed for and your e-mail is going out to
others.  God will be victorious.

God is using all of you.   Remain strong in Him,
KG

Later Sunday night/ early Monday morning, San Francisco, CA
Dear Kiana,
You will get tired, you will get worn out, but always keep in mind that
Jesus always wins.  He is in control.  Relax in Him and no matter what your
feelings tell you just be assured that Jesus will bring it to the proper
conclusion in the end.  It will work out, although at times you will find it
very hard to believe that to be true.  Constantly place this whole burden
back on the shoulders of Jesus. Relax in Him, thank Him and as much as you
are capable, Rejoice in His victory!
With Nurgina's mother, it seemed that her situation did not begin to improve
until we had given up totally upon ourselves solving the problem or even
being used to solve the problem.  Once we had reached that point, then she
began to improve.  It wasn’t that we weren’t to play any part in her healing
and deliverance, but that the responsibility for that was wholly and
completely on Jesus Christ.  There was to be no doubt in anybody’s mind that
we were not the ones who healed her.
Before that point of recovery, we would find ourselves thinking at times
those silly thoughts that if we did things “right” then we could cast out the
demons.  But we could never cast them out.  Only Jesus could do that.
So continue to seek Him with all your hearts. You are in our prayers.  Keep
us posted on progress.
Relax in Him,
KG