Merry Christmas!

In September, the Northern Philippines was hit by a super typhoon.  While we were not directly impacted, a small island north of us was devastated as the eye of the storm passed over them.  Missionaries were flown to the island only weeks before to begin type setting the fully translated Bible in preparation for printing, which has been an ongoing effort for many years.  The village chief informed us that over one hundred homes had lost their roofs.  Belongings were scattered all over the island. Many fishing boats were destroyed.  The waters were too rough for boats from mainland to bring supplies.  On top of all of this, another typhoon was forecasted to come in the same path.  Hundreds of people would be without any shelter during the next storm.

Our small team flew into action.  With 24 hours before the winds would be too strong to fly, our small team began scouring the city for all the tarps we could find.  The girls spent 7 hours with Abigail shopping all over the city, helping count and carry things, push carts, load boxes and all without a single complaint.  Sydney and Lydia truly embraced this opportunity to help people and serve the Lord together. Fun doing ministry with them!

The next morning, Ryan was able to fly 2 full loads of cargo including 126 tarps, blankets, nails, rope and nonperishable food, all before the next storm came!

In our last update, we shared that Ryan’s mom was recently diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer.  It has been challenging emotionally to be away from family during this time yet we thank God for the Body of Christ that has ministered to them when we could not.  We are pleased to report that she has finished her chemo and last week had a successful tumor removal surgery. Thank you for all the people who prayed for her over the last several months. We are very grateful. 

It’s hard to believe we have already been back in the Philippines a year since our furlough!  Our coworkers retired in February and Ryan is the only pilot of our region for the foreseeable future.  For the second half of 2026, he will be the only pilot in the whole country.  We already feel stretched thin and so 2026 seems daunting but we have seen God faithfully uphold us through busy times in the past and trust that He will continue to do this in the future. We would appreciate prayer for our family during this time.