Recently I returned from a trip to Asia with David Baker. We spent the Sabbath of June 16 in a remote part of northeastern India that is described in Frommer’s as having an “infrastructure [that] is virtually nonexistent.” The guidebook goes on to say, “Because travel in these areas is considered less than safe, they are not covered here.” It wasn’t quite as presented in the book, but it was remote. At one point we were within 100 miles or so of the borders of Myanmar, Bhutan, China and Bangladesh in the small community of Kolasib in the Indian state of Mizoram.

If you can imagine seeing Asia in 10 days then you will have an idea what our trip was really like. We had three goals for this trip: (1) To visit a group of over 200 people in a remote part of northeastern India who have asked to become part of the United Church of God. The name of the group is Church of God (Israel). (2) To gain an understanding of the needs of the work in Asia so we can more properly assist David Baker in doing his job as the senior pastor. (3) To conduct a leadership conference in the Philippines. In spite of the difficulty of travel (four overnight flights in order to make all our appointments), we had a very successful trip. The group in India looks promising, but only time will tell. The conference in the Philippines was extremely successful.

We currently have over 700 members scattered throughout Asia, with most of them residing in the Philippines. In India we now have between 50 and 60 individuals in seven different locations who attend a service or a Bible study whenever Dave travels through the area, about once every four months. These individuals listen to tapes or view DVDs when Dave is not in the area. The people we visited in the remote state of Mizoram were excited to see us, and we felt very much at home with them. Their doctrinal positions are virtually identical to ours, but in some cases their practices are different. We spent many hours discussing doctrinal concerns, format for Sabbath services and how the Passover and Holy Days are observed in UCG. We will now wait and see how they react to our suggestions. One interesting fact about this group is that it is the first such group that I have visited that actually paid our travel expenses for the visit, with the exception of our airline tickets. I believe this speaks well of their sincerity.

We continue to experience outstanding growth in the Philippines, almost 10 percent per year for the past several years. Last month, the office staff from Davao set up a Good News booth at a local mall, and within a week they already had an increase of almost 10 percent in subscribers! The plans are to take this booth to various malls around the country and set it up for a week at a time.

In reflecting on my trip, the statements made by Christ in John 4 came to mind. In verses 35-36 we read: “Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together.” Christ uttered these words in the context of doing the work. His instruction was to “lift up your eyes and look at the fields.” It is easy to get so focused on issues or concerns that are directly in front of you that you can easily miss the bigger picture. There is incredible potential in Asia, but there are few in the organization today who have the experience to work in such an area.

Having returned home and settled back into the office, it is hard to believe that just a week ago I was in the Philippines and a few days prior to that in India! It was a most inspiring trip!

© 2007 United Church of God, AIA - Pilipinas