* Delegation Visit (6)

The time has come and gone for the delegation of Elders Perry Van Egdom and Glenn Kooima to bid us farewell and begin their journey home again.   Here are a few pictures of their last few days here.  First of all, a few random shots.

The men have been fascinated by the jeepneys here - even wondered if it were possible to bring one home to Northwest Iowa.

The amount of traffic on the streets of Manila is always something to behold, and both men decided early on they would be very content to stay away from the driver's seat.

The house lizard is a common sight and a good friend to have in order to keep down the bug and mosquito population.

Not too far from Antipolo we were able to show the men some of the numerous rice fields here.

Now to fill you in a little on this past Sunday - a Sunday I'm sure the men will not soon forget.  We attended the First Reformed Church of Bulacan in the morning, and the Berean Protestant Reformed Church in the afternoon.  The delegation was able to have the unique experience of four worship services in one Lord's day.  They were also able to witness an adult baptism, followed by the baptism of five of that family's children.  It was a full, but  most enjoyable day in the Lord and in the fellowship of His saints here.

The church building of the First Reformed Church of Bulacan.  The church is located about 1.5 hours from home, so we had an early start to the day, leaving home around 6:30 a.m.

Getting ready for the 1st worship service to begin.

At both the FRCB and later the BPRC, the men were given opportunity to give greetings and speak some words of encouragement.  Both of them did so in both churches, with words that were a blessing to us all.  Here Bro. Glenn does so in the FRCB.

A group picture of the First Reformed Church of Bulacan.  The men thoroughly enjoyed meeting and getting to know the members.  They also commented on the hearty singing and on the presence of a good number of children and youth.

A delicious meal was served, after which we soon left for the worship services of the Berean PRC (which began at 1:00 p.m.).

We arrived in the BPRC at 12:45.  Here the congregation begins gathering for their 1st worship service.

Between the two worship services (the 2nd one begins at 3:30 p.m.), the delegates were able to observe the Tagalog catechism class that the elders lead on the Heidelberg Catechism.

Gifts of appreciation were given to the delegates - good momentos of their time in the Philippines.

After Bro. Glenn gave greetings, it was Bro. Perry's turn to do so as well.  What they said once again served to encourage us all in the work and cause of the Lord here.

The Berean Protestant Reformed Church.  The men were again encouraged by the evidence of the Lord's blessing in giving many children and young people to this congregation.

We took Bro's Perry and Glenn to the airport at about 4:45 this morning.  They are due to fly out of Manila at 8:00 a.m. our time.  We hope they have a safe journey home and can soon be with their families again.

We cannot express fully our appreciation for their visit.  We and our families enjoyed having them live with us in our homes, and accompanying us to meet the churches and fellowships we are privileged to work in here.  Their visit will no doubt help them in their understanding of our life and work here, but it also helps us in maintaining good contact and communication with our churches.  We appreciate the men's willingness to come here, and also the sacrifice of their families as they did this work on behalf of the churches.  Once again, a sincere thanks to them and to the whole denomination for this concrete evidence of your support.