June 2007 e-News

June 2007 Newsletter

Welcome to another edition of Glory Reborn e-News! This month we were blessed to have some wonderful visitors: Holly and JoRae. JoRae wrote the following to share with each of you, as sometimes it is difficult for us to convey the reality of life here, since we have grown accustomed to it.

An Outsider’s Perspective

Sometimes, its better not to have any expectations. That way, when something happens, you’re simply there in the moment, neither disappointed nor amazed. At least, thats been my experience during my recent trip to the Philippines. Over there, things don’t happen for any particular reason; they just happen. To abandon expectations does not translate into apathy or irresponsibility; rather it means you learn to handle things as you’re given them, when you’re given them. In the Philippines, hospitals close for no apparent reason, turning away helpless patients; stores and restaurants are often out of stock; children go hungry while their parents gamble what little money they have in a cock flight; children with no hope for tomorrow are taken in by loving orphanages; the rich take advantage of the needy, and in a small clinic a new life enters the world everyday. Expectations are a lost cause in the Philippines because, truly, you never know what is going to happen.

One of the phrases I found myself repeating while I was there was, The Filipinos have shot themselves in the foot yet again! For example, there is an ongoing battle between the mayor and a barangay or neighborhood called Lahug. During the recent local elections, the barangay captain accused the incumbent mayor of inactivity. To prove the contrary, the mayor ceased construction of a new school in that barangay and will not resume construction until the barangay captain apologizes. Sadly, until they swallow their pride, the children are left without a school. Similarly, due to rampant corruption and mismanagement, the public hospital of Cebu has decided to down-size and now only accepts emergency cases. This leaves moms with normal pregnancies to deliver in the local health centers with hilots, or government trained medical specialists. Honestly, I wouldn’t let them change a dressing on me with the medical training they’ve had. And so, the circle of destruction continues. However, in the midst of all this, I found hope. I found hope for the Philippines in one simple truth: we CAN EXPECT God to continue the work he started in the Philippines. Each little life that is born in the clinic is a symbol of hope, innocence and what can be.

The city councilman I had the privilege of spending the day with is genuinely concerned about the people he represents and works for their benefit. His colleagues look for ways to take advantage of those they serve. He was a refreshing reminder of goodness. We met with a doctor whose interest in partnering with Glory Reborn to conduct STI research reminded us of God’s continuing provision. So, what exactly can we expect God to do? As the clinic grows, we expect God will provide a new building. We expect God will continue to provide the financial resources necessary to operate the clinic. We expect God to provide discernment, strength and wisdom to Hilary and David as they look to the future. We expect God to have a plan and a purpose for each mom and baby who come through the clinic. And lastly, we expect God to continue to receive all the glory for everything that has been accomplished. In small ways and in big ones, God reminded me of His complete faithfulness while I was there. In the midst of chaos, in the midst of asking why, God is there. HE is order and reason; HE is good. So, while it is sometimes wise to abandon expectations, especially in the Philippines where anything can happen, we can never forget to expect God. – JoRae Bishop

The Search Continues…

As we mentioned last month, we are eagerly searching for a new building. Our first time out, turned up two houses, that had some potential, but needed a lot of work. David was having scenes flash into his head from the movie The Money Pit. Fortunately, we continued on. The next location was an abandoned mattress factory. It still needed some work, but we would have more than enough space, as a matter of fact, we think it is larger than the City hospital. Okay so maybe you can have too much of a good thing. So we still kept looking. Then we visited an old school building. It has a wonderful layout, has more than enough room, but not too much, and is one of the only lots in the Philippines that is not entirely concrete! There is actually a yard, with grass and trees! The only catch is that it is a bit run-down. David did not have same movie flashbacks, but we are talking with the owners to see if they will renovate it. We want a lot of our concerns to be addressed before we make a move. This location is situated in the community that around half our patients call home, which is ideal. It would also give us room to grow especially with the potential of a laboratory on the horizon. With its divided layout, we would be able to segregate the operations and utilize the yard to be a wonderful waiting area for the patients and their families. Can you tell we have vision for this place? I hope so.

As we mentioned before, we are starting a building fund that would be enough to purchase the property. Thankfully, property is relatively inexpensive here. Owning our own building would reduce our monthly budget by 13%! This would allow us to use these monthly funds on other crucial projects. Our hope is to find something that we can rent first and then purchase later. We hope each of you will be inspired to help Glory Reborn in this new opportunity!

Australian Assistance

Well this month, we would really like to thank Homes of Hope International, one of our Australian Partners, as they made a financial contribution to Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies & Hopeful Hearts! Through their generosity we will be able to continue serving and assisting moms here in Cebu!

Current Prayer Needs

• That Glory Reborn would be able to exceed its 2007 Annual Budget
• That the Dollar Peso exchange rate would stabilize, it has fallen from 53 pesos to $1, to 45 to $1 in just one year
• That the Lord would direct us as we search for a new building, and that it would be fully funded
• That new opportunities with metabolic and HIV screening would happen
• That God would continue to open doors for support in the Philippines and Australia

Did You Know?

That Glory Reborn now employees 23 people! Believe it or not, it take a lot of well-trained staff members to run a 24 hour clinic. All of our staff are committed to our vision of Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies, & Hopeful Hearts!

While the cost of staff can sometimes seem like a large economic burden, we tend to view it as a tool for development. On top of the babies, moms, and families that Glory Reborn directly reaches, we have also created financial stability for 23 families, some of these families for nearly 4 years! These families would all like to say thanks to you this month, and we at Glory Reborn all pray that the same Blessings you have show us, would be shown back to you!

And a Special Thanks to JoRae and Holly!

Hilary & David

Glory Reborn is a registered 501(c)(3) organization, for more information on our status visit: the IRS or Guidestar. All donations made on this site, or to Glory Reborn are tax deductible to the full extent of the law.