"Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”
Surely he will save you
from the fowler’s snare
and from the deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with his feathers
and under his wings you will find refuge...."
This entire chapter is one of the closest to my heart. It is comfort in a time of pestilence, plague, roaring lions, lurking cobras, impending war, looming economic depression. We all know fear. We all know trouble. We all long for the refuge and safety in the middle of it. That refuge is closer than we know.
God is speaking to me recently about shadows. Shadows come in the valley, and the valley? Well, we'd rather be anywhere but there. When the sun is bright on my face and the valleys are in my rear view mirror, I tend to feel safe and secure. But sometimes things are grey and out of focus and I can't see the way ahead so well.
Corrie Ten Boom once said, “When you are covered by His wings, it can get pretty dark.”
Sometimes it is dark because He is so, so close. He is challenging me, calling me closer, and when my eyes squint to see past the grey, He whispers that even the dark is just a testimony of His nearness.
His goodness is better than I thought. It's good when the sun is shining, and it's really good in the shadows.
Dwelling in the shelter of the Almighty means living close-up in the presence of the Holy Spirit, connected to our Father's heart. This is not a place I visit or just read about, It's not a place I frequent with my outside face on; it is my dwelling place. My home. My habitat. My place I run to, stripped down, pulling the door closed, leaning back, and breathing in, because I'm home. That place. Right under His wings.
Our life here in Mindoro is beautiful, and full, and joy-filled. Our children are thriving and flourishing. There is no place I would rather be than here; living this life of worship and obedience. But our life is blended in with the lives and hearts of those we're called to serve. Inextricably entwined and meshed together. It's not "Us" and "Them"... It's "We".
The families that we serve have become our friends... the Mangyans who come to our doorstep also eat at our table and have become our brothers and sisters. Their burdens become ours. We share their heartaches and joys. They've tasted more heartache than I've ever imagined, and as I walk beside them and cry out to Jesus, He is showing me how close He is.
Recently there has been a virus affecting several of the Mangyan villages. We are not sure if it is a Covid variant or something else. Many adults and even more children have been dying.
In the past several weeks, many families have hiked out of their mountainous villages, many hours away, to come find us and get help for their family members.
Several weeks ago, a young couple hiked from their village of Sipit, carrying their 3 year old daughter, Reyna. She was barely conscious... She had diarrhea for two weeks and was close to death. We took her for lab work and started her on IV's and medication. Her Hemoglobin was 2. for reference, a normal hemoglobin is around 13. People with a hemoglobin of 2 are no longer alive.
We prayed over her, and sent her for an emergency blood transfusion. We prayed, and wept, and prayed.
That day we got word that three more little children died suddenly from other villages. Their parents did not bring them for help in time.
But Reyna lived. She is healed, and well, and back in her village, climbing trees and chasing goats. And my heart rejoices for this life that was saved. Thank you to all who prayed for Reyna!
A few months ago, we hiked in the mountain village of Pagturian, about a 45 minute drive from
our home. Our team partnered with a local leader, and went house to house conducting
checkups for the sick. We had planned to go to another village that day and Holy Spirit told us No, we were to go to this village instead. We listened.
We were told about a pregnant woman who was experiencing swelling and difficulty.
Our family and team of midwives descended a muddy, slick trail, and entered a dark, smoky hut.
Sheila was laying on a bamboo platform, largely pregnant with her fourth child. Her other three children
played at her feet, naked, bellies swollen with parasites, feverish eyes.
Sheila’s mother took Francis’ hand and pressed it to her cheek. She began to cry.
In a mixture of Iraya and Tagalog, she said through tears that she remembered us.
She had moved her family of ten from their home deep in the mountain village of Sipit
(about a four hour hike from there) just three days earlier, to find us. They knew that we
would help them. They had no way of contacting us, so God led us straight to them.
Years ago, her husband was carried down from their village by friends of ours. and sent to the provincial
hospital with a foot wound.
For many days, he was not given any medical treatment or care by the staff. By the
time Francis learned of his wound and drove to the hospital to see him, his wound has
worsened. The staff had not cleaned his foot or given him any medicine. Francis
bought supplies and cleaned his wound. The surgeon came to explain that he needed
his leg amputated. By this time, he was septic, they did the operation, and he died.
This family, like most of the indigenous peoples of this island, are wary, fearful, and
untrusting of the hospitals because they are most often treated unjustly.
Sheila had never had any prenatal care, and looked to be close to term. She had
severe swelling/ pitting edema from her feet to her chest. Her blood pressure was extremely
high. All signs and symptoms pointed to Preeclampsia— a dangerous complication of
pregnancy that could kill both her and her baby.
It was important that they receive medical care in hospital immediately, but even after being
educated about her condition, they refused to go the hospital. We understood why, but explained that she could die. They refused to go/
We chose to give Sheila the best care we could provide, to honor her and do all we could. We
started her on a special protein diet, anti-hypertensive drugs, vitamins. We came to see
her every few hours to monitor her and baby. Within a day, she was in labor. We
drove Sheila and her family to our home.
We pushed meds to bring her blood pressure down, and Sheila birthed a beautiful baby
girl, who had a cord wrapped tightly around her neck three times, as well as meconium
stained amniotic fluid that posed risk for severe infection.
Sheila began to hemorrhage postpartum, which is the result of high blood pressure,
malnutrition, anemia.
She was given four injections to stop her bleeding and we performed multiple
maneuvers to contract her uterus and stop the hemorrhage. Thirty minutes later, she
was smiling, nursing her daughter, stable. Alive.
After checking her blood levels and ascertaining that she was severely anemic, we transferred Sheila to the hospital to receive a blood transfusion— she agreed.
Sheila is now home in her hut in Pagturian, surrounded by her children, regaining her strength. She and her baby girl are survivors.
Had they stayed in their remote village, had they not chosen to come get help, the chances of one or both of them dying in childbirth are high.
We cried together and worshiped at the goodness of God, ecstatic that after thirteen years of building relationship and serving the Mangyans, they are trusting us and coming for help before it's too late.
Daily we walk with these beautiful ones on what feels like a tightrope between life and death. We get to see God miraculously heal and move powerfully, daily. And then sometimes we do not see the healing we prayed for, and the mystery, the shadow of His wings, we breathe Him in and rest in His goodness, holding onto Him in the dark.
I (Leah) have been struggling with autoimmune disease for several years, and just recently have seen a Rheumatologist. The blood work seems to be pointing to Lupus. We believe that God is healing me, and we are worshiping and living in His incredible goodness on all the days, even the ones that are filled with body pain and exhaustion. God is showing me His goodness and kindness, His gentleness, more in my weakness and limits than I have seen or tasted before. I'm thankful.
Can you join us in praying for complete healing?
In super exciting news, our wonderful friends, Scott and Ruth Buchanan, and their kids Izzy and Isaiah, have moved from Australia to Mindoro to partner with us in ministry. They are friends, ministry partners, and family for us, and are such a gift to us and the Filipino people. We are so honored to walk beside and serve with them!
As costs are soaring in America, they are here as well. Our island's power company is rife with corruption. Prices have tripled because of fuel costs, and yet we are without power twice, sometimes three times each day. More and more families are coming to us weekly for food, as they cannot afford their basic needs.
We share what we have so that no one goes hungry; in the kingdom of God, there is always enough. We will continue to give and to pour out.
It may look crazy to be thinking of expanding when everything in the world is so unsure and unsettled. But we know that God's kingdom looks upside down. We are about walking in obedience, and sowing seeds for what is eternal.
We are meeting with a foundation and working towards an agreement to purchase land to build a Wholeness center, Maternity center and clinic.
Please pray with us as we begin to fund-raise for our land!
Would you consider sponsoring a family by providing food this month, providing medicines/ hospital costs for one sick Mangyan patient, or would you consider giving a monthly gift so that we can continue to feed, give medical care, and nurture those that God has brought to us?
We can keep serving the poor and broken, keep showing the love of the Father, because you are holding onto us, praying for us, and giving. We are so grateful for each of you. Thank you for partnering with us.
Blessings, Grace and Peace as you rest in the shadow of His wings.
The Daytecs