Culture SHOCK is the WORST.

Culture shock. Ever been through it before? It really is the worst. One minute I could be happy and the next minute something triggers the Nile River to flow from my eye balls. 

I know that eventually I will adjust. But when will the 'eventually' happen? After 6 months? After a year? After 2 years?  Maybe I am the only one who can determine that. I am the only one who can give it all up and surrender to God, to allow him to aid me through this time. It is a daily struggle to give up all that I have known and completely surrender. 

I have been reading the book of Matthew over the last few weeks. I think how hard it must have been for the disciples to leave everything and follow Christ.  

The disciples, not just the 12, literally dropped everything to follow Jesus. They left their homes, their families, their comfort. They left it all for the sake of following Christ. 

I wonder if they went through culture shock. Did different smells bother them? How about the different food? Did they allow the little things in life to bother them? Or were they so focused on Jesus that those little details weren't a bother? 

I am encouraged by the disciples. Even in their weakest God used them. I can only pray that God will use me in my weakest also.

I know that this time will pass. Daily I make the decision to stay on this journey with God. Daily I trust in him. Daily I fail. And daily I live in his unfailing grace.

Please pray for me. That the Spirit will guide me and give me strength. 

Love and Peace.

-Caidy  

PS. Ronald is doing great! He is a wonderful, patient man. I am blessed to have such a great supporter. I love him. 

Small Stuff

Its the little things that help with the transition.

Like making really delicious homemade pizza! 

Seriously the highlight of my eating week! 

Finally found the PERFECT juice to take my vitamins with everyday!
I take a lot of vitamins on a daily basis, and finding the right orange juice has been a bit of a challenge.
Today we found Orange/Mango juice! It is yummy. 

Besides the small stuff... God is doing BIG stuff!!

Ronald and I just found out what we are going to be teaching in June! Ronald is going to be teaching 5 courses at CBC! WOW!!! He is already busy preparing and excited about the new challenge. I am possibly going to be co-teaching a children's ministry type of class, also at CBC. I'm excited about this opportunity, especially because the person that I would be teaching with has so much more experience teaching children's ministry than I do ... so I can learn a ton from her!

Besides working with CBC, I have something else in the works ... I am really excited about this new program that I might be starting and ask you all to pray with me as I do something I never imagined I would be doing; Although, I never thought that I would move to the other side of the world and I did ....  I ask that you pray that God would give me the wisdom and strength to make the right decisions through this process.

New Experiences for Caidy

Ronald and I have lived in Cebu for 5 weeks! CRAZY! 

I have had some new experiences that I would like to share with you via pictures and descriptions. 

Washing my own laundry is no fun. I am impressed with the people who do this weekly. 

Mango Smoothies are the best! Mangos in the States have nothing on the mangos here!

Pig head. Gross. 

CBC also has a little "Bieber Fever"

Meeting my mother-in-law for the first time was fun!

Also, meeting Ronald's grandmother was fun! She's a hot ticket! 

 

Fruit straight from the tree is yummy!!! This is star fruit. Kinda sticky, but so tasty! 

  

 This particular day, we were in Ronald's hometown and he was showing me all the places he and his cousins would hang out at.  It was a great experience to be apart of! I loved seeing Ronald's old stomping grounds.

Getting stuck at the port overnight was frustrating at first, but then it turned into a fun adventure!  

Although we got stuck at the port, the morning was beautiful! Thank you, God.

Ducks at the zoo! 

I have seen poverty on a whole new level here in Cebu. These precious little children literally live at a dump. 

  This lizard was hanging out with my while I was doing the dishes. "Thanks little lizard for keeping me company" :) 

I hope that was a good little overview of my new experiences. Obviously, these are not super detailed...but I'm sure you get the picture. 

Love and Peace. 

-Caidy

Visiting Titay

How long have you gone without seeing your mother? Probably only a few months, maybe a year, right?  And imagine what a sweet reunion it must be when you are once again together.

About two weeks ago I had the fantastic honor to witness my wonderful, hard working, amazing husband be reunited with his mom after eight long years of being separated by half a world.  Sure they talked on skype occasionally and texted  back and fourth; but nothing  could beat being in the same room with the people you love.  

We traveled to Zamboanga via boat from Cebu. It was a long 10 hour boat ride with a 4 hour “layover”. I think that I was more nervous to meet my mother-in- law for the first time than Ronald was to see her after 8 years.

We arrived at the port in the Zamboanga peninsula and Ronald immediately picked his mom out of a sea of people (hahahah …. get my pun? ).  He was so happy and giddy. I have really never seen my husband that happy before. His joy was incredibly contagious. I, however, showed my happy emotions in tears. It was just such an incredible moment in time. We got off the boat, after pushing our way through the porters, and made our way to the family. Not only was Momma Q. there but she had also brought, cousins, uncles and friends! It was so great! It was such a sweet reunion. I am thankful that God had given me the opportunity to be a part of that.

We stayed in Titay (Ronald’s hometown, about a 4 hour drive from the port) for a week.  During that week, Ronald gave a 2-day seminar on “Participating in God’s  Story” for all the area wide elders, preachers, deacons, etc.  It went really well! The message of the weekend was very well received and I believe they are probably still discussing some of the topics Ronald brought up. The church there has such servant hearts and it was evident in the way we saw them all weekend. Everyday the ladies served us lunch and snacks and on Sunday they had a big “Thanksgiving and Welcome” feast/party for Ronald and me. We were thankful for their encouragement and kind words and, quite honestly, we’re blown away by the amount of honor we received; it was humbling.

Ronald wasn’t the only one who got to put their Lipscomb degree to good use …. I taught the kids for bible class. It was my very first time teaching children that don’t speak fluent English. The night before I had some help drawing pictures for each part of my lesson, and I was able to teach using lots of pictures (thanks, Brenda for the great idea).  After we had the bible lesson I taught them how to make crosses using coconut leaves. It was so much fun! I haven’t truly enjoyed teaching like that in months.

The trip as a whole was a good one. Terrorist did not kidnap me and I was able to communicate with Ronald’s family beautifully! I thank my Quilaton/Dar family for teaching me a few things during our visit:

•        Anything with more than two legs are still considered friends. These may include but are not limited to: spiders, mice, and roaches.
•        Bathing with a bucket instead of a showerhead with continuous flowing water is not really all the bad.
•        Rubber grows on trees.
•        My family is not the only one that is loud and opinionated. 

Leaving to go back to Cebu. This was at the port as the sun was rising. 

I have so much more to blog about, but I will have to save that for another night. Maybe tomorrow. But for a preview here are some pictures from the last weeks. 

First meal in our new home! 3 weeks after we moved in.

Stove and Fridge!

Trying new fruits. 

Watching Gods beautiful children.

Visiting the Cebu zoo.

Poverty

Poverty. 

pov.er.ty

noun

the state of being extremely poor. 

Growing up in the United States and living there all my life, I have never been exposed to much poverty. I have seen briefly what penury looks like in Mexico. I have seen what poverty looks like in Nashville, Atlanta, and Rhode Island; But never have I seen this ... 

-- Families living in a shack on the side of a busy road. The children not attending school because parents simply         can’t afford it, so the kids are left to play on the side of that busy road.

-- Frail old men and women begging for people to buy their stuff ... candy,fruit, cigarets.  

-- A CHILD sleeping on the steps of an overpass. A CHILD! 

 Homelessness in the USA don’t compare to the amount of impoverishment I have seen here in Cebu. 

For the last week Ronald and I walk to the Country Mall and get some bread to eat for breakfast, and everyday we see the same two children sleeping on the steps of that overpass. Hundreds of people must walk past these kids and yet NO ONE stops to give them even 1 peso (equivalent to 10 cents in the states). They say I will become numb to  seeing this, that I just simply have to turn away from it. But will I become numb? Will I be able to turn my head from this? Im not sure I have that capability. 

I have seen so much poverty. I am not used to this. 

However, the people here are STILL happy. They know nothing else. In whatever circumstance they find themselves, they are still genuine happy people. I have a lot to learn from them. 

Peace and Love. 

--Caidy  

Quick update

We arrived safely in Cebu, Philippines on Tuesday night at approximately 11:40 pm ... which in the States was Tuesday morning at about 10:40 am (EST). Our travel was uneventful, just how we like it! However, I did get a pretty intense case of motion-sickness, which didn’t subside until almost a full 36 hours after the fact!! Lesson learned, take a Dramamine before boarding the plane for the long 13 hour ride. 

The first few days have been a learning process, as I imagine most of the next few months will be. I have had a journal with me to take notes, here are a few ... 

• Beeping horns is a way of life around here. I am used to people beeping because they are upset, here its totally different ball game. Beeping could mean, “get out of my way, I’m coming through” or  “Hey, you want a ride?” . Its not a bad thing to beep. Everyone does it. 
• Music is so random here. We could hear Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift, Michael Buble, Usher and Casting Crowns all in the same place within 30 minutes of one another. 
• Look up when showering ... you may fall victim to a HUGE spider falling on your head. 
• Realizing that I am living here, that this isn’t just a short term mission trip, has been hard to swallow. Learning a new culture, a new way of life ... its going to be a challenge. 
• God has brought us this far, He will not abandon us.  

Marvin and Josie Whitt drove us all over Cebu looking at homes, apartments and townhouses. The last one we looked at was the winner!!! We saw the townhouse on Thursday and moved in on Saturday. We were surely blessed to get it so fast and at a good price. God has awesome plans for us and this apartment! We are excited to see what He is going to do here. 

Over the next few months we will be getting settled into the new culture, our house, and preparing for work at CBC. We will update as much as we can, but we don't have regular internet yet ... so the post may be few and far between for a little while. 

 Thank you all for your prayers and support. Please continue to pray for us as we transition into life on the other side of the world. 

Love and peace.

--Caidy 

At the Chicago airport -- before getting on the plane headed for Korea 

Literally carrying our bed to the house ... the only piece of "furniture" we have so far. 

Our house number in Banilad Greens

After a long hot day we headed to Yellow Cab pizza and shared an AWESOME pizza and ice cream 

About to wash laundry by hand for the first time. 

Ronald was showing me the ropes. He is a pro at washing by hand. 

Success! -- It only took us a little over an hour to wash almost 2 weeks worth of clothing. 

Jesus Calling

Come to be for rest and refreshment. The journey has been too much for you, and you are bone-weary. Do not be ashamed of your exhaustion. Instead, see it as an opportunity for Me to take charge of your life.

Remember that I can fit everything into a pattern for good, including the things you wish were different. Start with where you are at this point in time and space, accepting that this is where I intend you to be. You will get through today one step, one moment at a time. Your main responsibility is to remain attentive to Me, letting Me guide you through the many choices along your pathway.

This sounds like an east assignment, but it is not. Your desire to live in My Presence goes against the grain of “the world, the flesh, and the devil.” Much of your weariness results from your constant battle against these opponents. However, you are on the path of My choosing, so do not give up! Hope in Me, for you will again praise Me for the help of My Presence. 

[Jesus Calling -- Feb 7 -- Romans 8:28, Psalm 42:11] 

I read this a few hours before boarding the plane to Seoul. I have read it every day since. Thank you, Debbie Oldach, for getting this book for us.