Mike McClenahan

The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor... freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to set the oppressed free. Luke 4:18 We drove two hours this morning to a remote village in the jungle to the north of Puerto Princesa and set up a medical mission in partnership with life Church iReach. This area is known for military insurgency and we were assured they were cleared out for our visit. A few marines were on the grounds with semiautomatic guns to protect us.  For the second day, doctors, pharmacists, nurses and a dentist saw hundreds of patients (500?), removed teeth (200?) and taught children to brush their teeth. Amy and I helped repackage vitamins and medications. We realize we have limited skills, but the medical professionals realize they are limited as well. The most long term impact is the tangible love of God demonstrated in the jungle as an extension of the local church. Although this...

And let us consider how we may spur each other on toward love and good deeds... encouraging one another. Hebrews 10:24-25 Saturday morning we wrapped up our conference with the Philippines Compassion staff. Dan ended the conference by asking us all to sit in a large circle and share what this conference meant to the Compassion staff. Overwhelmingly they were touched that we came.  They thanked us for our generosity of time and topics that related so closely to their life situations. Pastor Noel, the national director for Compassion, asked the HIM team to stand in the middle of the room and for the next five minutes we were showered with gratitude, blessings and hugs.  I know God used our words in our workshops and talks, but maybe more importantly, God used us to listen, to pray, to be present with staff who are exhausted from typhoon relief from the outside and a staff reorganization on the inside, not to mention the tremendous work of releasing c...

The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Deuteronomy 31:8 Day 1 we visited a local church Compassion project and that afternoon began a three day conference with 75 Compassion staff who serve in the Manila office or in the field to support 330 projects. Working to release children from poverty is hard work. Those in the office support the mission through administrative roles like translating letters and accounting, and others in the field as project specialists, working with local churches to develop partnerships with Compassion.  The Philippines are made up of 2,000 inhabited islands, so churches are spread out in long distances, which means staff are away from their families for sometimes a week at a time, then return for church on Sunday, where they often have responsibilities in ministry. In addition to the challenges of their daily work, they are engaged with the afte...

I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:3 Of the many motivations for this trip with Compassion international to the Philippines, relationship is high on the list.  WIth Dan in El Salvador 2012 Dan Chun is the Pastor of First Pres Honolulu and we've know each other for 20 years. Dan started in television news, served at Menlo Park and Honolulu Churches. He and his wife Pam founded Hawaiian Island Ministries 30 years ago to support and encourage island churches. Amy and I have attend the 4000 participant HIM Conference almost every spring as attendee or speaker. I appreciate Dan's vision, faith and his commitment to unity among churches in Hawaii. His engagement with Compassion International (comp...