NEWSLETTER

APRIL 26, 2007

NEWS FROM MISSIONARY DALE MUELLER

International Christian Mission             Faith, Hope and Love Christian Church

P.O. Box 1328                                       Raja Tupas St., Daanghari

Havre, MT 59501                                  Navotas, MM  1485

U.S.A                                                    Philippines

406-265-7337                                      011-63-2-283-8079

April 28, 2007

Navotas, Metro Manila, Philippines

Dear Friends in Christ,

     Christian Greetings from Navotas, Metro Manila.  This is our school vacation time here. This is also the very hot and dry season of the year.   We just finished our  Vacation Bible School in Navotas with 210 attending.  This far exceeded the capacity of our building, but we praise God for the strength to endure the heat and crowded conditions to have a very successful outreach to our community in this way.   We are now in the process of sending MISSION OUTREACH TEAMS FROM NAVOTAS AND MALABON to our churches in the provinces and surrounding areas.  Our team from Malabon is already in Ragay.  Our Navotas VBS team is already in GOA. Our current visitors from Moses Lake Christian Church, Pastor John Roberts and his son Jonathan, two more from our Navotas church, and I will depart on Sunday night.  Another group of four will depart on May 1.  All the teams will merge near Goa on May 2 – 3 for a YOUTH CAMP for all the Bicol churches.  After that, some will return to Manila on May 4, but I will proceed to Caramoan with John, Jonathan and five from our Navotas church.  John, Jonathan and I will return on May 4.  The rest of the team will return on May 9.  Please pray for all our travel and ministry.

      After all these mission trips we will be getting ready for the coming MONSOON season with a project on our roof in Navotas.  Soon after that, it will be time for all the kids to go back to school.  The school year resumes here early in June.  As you may remember me sharing in the past, the high school drop out rate in our communities  is very high, mainly because of family financial problems.   Over the years we have helped a number of students stay in school, but our hearts’ desire is to help many more escape the downward cycle of poverty.  Many of you, especially those that have been on teams that visited here in the past few years, have expressed an interest in helping with this.  It is not expensive, costing only about $150 per year to keep the average kid in high school. 

     To expand our STUDENT SUPPORT PROGRAM, many of you envision a program where individual donors could be identified with a particular student that they support with regular personal communication and documentation.  I would like that also, but as we’ve prayed and studied options, we’ve concluded that it is not wise for us to do it exactly this way within the context of our current church program. Let me explain.  Up to now we have supported a few students where it was very easy to set them apart as deserving support, because of their involvement in the ministry, some family tragedy or exceptional academic ability.  If we expand to more students, the number of students who are equally qualified is large.  At least 50 students in the Navotas church alone.  If we have money only for a few, we run the risk of causing a division between families who receive and those who do not, since the decision process belongs to the church.  In a culture of poverty, such as we have here, this is really a sensitive issue.  The best solution in the future probably lies in separating the decision process from the church by setting up an independent foundation.  Right now we do not have the resources to set up a foundation. 

     For now our plan is to follow our current church-based program until the point we can see sufficient interest and commitment to organize it as and independent foundation.    If you wish to participate in our current STUDENT ASSISTANCE program, you may for any amount.  Just designate it as such and it will surely go for that purpose.  Full support for a student averages  $150 per year, but any designated amount will be added to our General Student Assistance Fund.  If you have questions, feel free to email me at icm@pldtdsl.net

     As always, I appreciate the enthusiasm that all of you express for every part of our ministry.  To me you prayers, encouragement, financial support, or involvement in any way to bless the people we minister to are all equally uplifting.  I am sustained in all ways by our partnership in Christ.  God bless you all.

In Christ,

Dale

Donations for the ministry can be sent to:

INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN MISSION

P.O. BOX 1328

HAVRE, MT  59501

Checks payable to International Christian Mission are tax-deductible.