Metro Manila, Philippines
JULY 2006
Dear Friends and Family,
Our little bundle of blessing finally arrived! Introducing the newest addition to the Forras clan!
Cassidy Marie Forras
June 20, 2006
8 pounds 1 ounce
22 1/2 inches
We ask ourselves, "How often should we feed her? ... How many diapers a day should she go through? ... When will she sleep through the night? ... Are we too old for this?" It's been almost 13 years since we've had a newborn but it all comes back. Yes! Just like riding a bike. Despite the sleepless nights, the every 2 hour feeding on demand and the ear splitting cries, we have to say that it's all worth it. Cassidy is truly a blessing from our Heavenly Father and another missionary in the making. For pictures of Cassidy, click
here. So, does she look like Pete or what?
April 2006
Cameron's Freshman-Sophomore Banquet
Cameron attended his Freshman-Sophomore Banquet with his friends from school. As Freshman class Vice-President, he was part of the planning committee. The theme was "Luau Night" and was held at "The Big Kahuna" in Eastwood, Quezon City. Cameron is the tall guy with the lei around his neck. We still can't believe how tall he is.
May 2006
Carina's Band Concert
Carina had her year end band concert. She is in Intermediate Band in Middle School and plays the flute.
2004 Church Planter Passed Away
Renato Biso (aka Pastor Kitz) died after a short illness in May. He was only 35 years old and was a pastor who started a church in 2004. He was a disciple of Pastor Roy Villanueva and had been a drug addict before commiting his life to Christ. In March he helped with the Eastside Medical team at Pastor Roy’s church.
Fire In Marikina Community
There was a fire in the community of one of our churches in April. Shortly after the fire, Pastor Jim was in Manila and visited the community. The photos include Pastor Jim Hayford visiting the fire ravaged community that destroyed the homes of 38 families. They live about 10-15 yards from one of our churches in the community. Eastside Foursquare Church made a substantial gift to purchase materials to help rebuild this poor community.
Pete and Pastor Matt Messner later in the week visited the houses that started rebuilding after the fire. It was great to see the entire community working together to provide housing for those who were displaced. A heavy thunder storm the night before had flooded out their temporary housing tents. Eight families had crowded into the church for shelter.
CAB Team
The College and Beyond Team from Eastside Foursquare Church visited Manila once again. This is the group's third year to come to Manila. The team of 19, led by Pastor DJ Vick, were able to do a mini basketball camp and vacation bible school for approximatley 100 children in five church plant communities. The team also held exhibition games against local players in the communities after each camp. There were usually 200-1,000 attending the games. During half time of the game, some members of the team shared their story of how they came to have a relationship with God, followed by a brief message by the church plant pastor. The purpose was for the whole community to get to know our pastors.
Pastor DJ brought a talented and hard working team. Most of the games were easily won by the CAB team but the last game turned into a hard fought victory. Even though the team they were playing against was faster, talented, and almost all of them 6 footers, the CAB team won by one point. It came down to playing defense, taking occasional charges and playing unselfishly. For photos of the CAB Team, click here.
ISI Training
The 3rd Annual In Service Institute Training was held in Tagaytay the third week of May. Pastor Jim Hayford and Pastor Matt Messner were able to speak, train and encourage the existing church planters. For photos of the ISI Training, click here.
The following is a summary of the ISI Training from Pastor Matt Messner's blog:
"These workers are amazing people -- most of them not only work in the slums of Manila, but they live there as well. They are eager to learn especially because of the challenges that their work presents. We have been challenging them to think outside the box and to plan strategically and prayerfully. Traditional church models do not work where they live. They have to be innovative, resourceful, intentional and community focused (of course they most of all need God's grace, wisdom and power).
Pastor Jim left last night following one of the most fun parties I have ever been to. We had a cultural night and the eight divisions of leaders all presented a "talent" or cultural presentation -- they included music, drama, costume, dance -- and a whole lot of laughter and comedy. We had two whole pigs that were served, along with ice cream, traditional foods, fruits, and much more. These people know how to have fun."
Hike at Lake Taal
Pete and Pastor Matt Messner had a 3 1/2 hour free time before the evening session at the ISI Training. They both decided to take a hike at Lake Taal, which is a volcano located in Tagaytay. Click
here for photos. The crater forms a huge lake which has several volcanic islands. The island is in the middle of the crater which contains another smaller lake which shows signs of ongoing thermal activity – hot rocks, smoking vents, and boiling water. They both rented a banca boat and a guide which took them across the lake to the island. The guide assured them that it would take 30 minutes to drive to the dock, 30 minutes to cross the lake and not long to hike to the top of the crater. 2/3 of the way across the lake the boat engine died. The guide and driver had neither cell phones, radios, or signal flares. What they did have were bright orange life vests! The guide suddenly grabbed one and thought he was going to use that as a float and start swimming to shore. Next thing the driver was standing high on top of the boat frantically waving a life vest. Matt hopped on top of the boat and began waving a vest as well. Another banca boat had spotted ours and helped tow our boat finally to the island.
Once there they asked how far it was to the lake to the top of the island. It was 4.5 kilometers, uphill on a dirt trail and about 90 degrees and humid. They began running up the well worn dusty horse trail. Most people opted for horses, but the sickly horses were slow, and they had no time to waste. They made their way through a very poor village – creating a spectacle as they strided towards the top of the mountain peak. Once at the top a breathtaking view greeted them – the rim was high and thin – the water below appeared to be boiling and steam vents were scattered across the landscape. After reaching the top, they exchanged high 5s – took pictures, bought 4 waters for 100 pesos, and began their downhill charge back to the boat. Turns out the boat wasn't fixed so they ended up being towed all the way back across the lake. Even with these delays, they had time to grab fast food for dinner and arrive with plenty of time to prepare for the evening session.
Pete and Pastor Matt Messner's New Balance Run
Many of you know that Pastor Matt Messner is an avid runner. New Balance sponsored a run in Manila the weekend he was in town and talked Pete into running with him. Pastor Matt ran a 25K and Pete ran a 10K. This by far was the hardest run they've ever done due to the very intense heat. Out of 5000 runners, Pastor Matt ended up somewhere in the top 15. As for Pete, he was happy to finish in the top 40% of runners in the10K race.
Summer Break
Cameron and Carina started their summer break at the end of May. They are so excited that they can sleep in the whole summer and not have to get up at 5:30 am to get ready for school. School resumes August 2nd. They plan to go to a Chrisian camp for a week in July.
June 2006
UCPP Preschools
7 new preschools opened this month and we now have 37 preschools with 1,250 children.
Tina Finally Gives Birth
The biggest news in June of course is the birth of our daughter, Cassidy. Tina did an awesome job! Her whole family was able to all be in Manila for the big event. It was a great reunion! Family flew in from Japan, Philadelphia, Hawaii and Guam. Thank you family for all your support! And also thank you to all the teams that blessed us with baby showers and plenty of baby gifts.
Prayers Answered
Prayer Requests
2006 Missions & Outreach Teams to Manila
September 28 - October 6: Music Mission to Manila
This team will conduct concerts, lead worship and do workshops among the UCPP churches. For
more information contact Tim Oas at timo@eastsidechurch.org. Cost : $1400.00
November 5 - 14: Manila Plunge & SMI Study Tour
This is a "hands-on", missions, ministry, and educational encounter. Team members will gain a
first-hand look at the UCPP, cross cultural experience, ministry to the poor, and instruction from those ministering among the poor in Manila.
You do no have to be an SMI student to join. Contact Chuck Shocki at chucks@eastsidechurch.org for more information. Cost: $1650.00
November ( Dates TBD): Manila Construction Team
If you have construction skills and would like to be a part of a team to Manila during 2006, please
contact Matt Messner at mattm@eastsidechurch.org. Cost: $1400.00
December 8 - 16: Bags of Joy Distribution Team
This team will help conduct Christmas parties for the preschoolers of the UCPP and their parents
where 1300 "Bags of Joy" from Eastside Foursquare Church will be distributed. If you are interested in this team, pleae email Shara Evangelista
at sharae@eastsidechurch.org. Cost: $1300.00
Filipino Recipe Corner
Lumpiang Shanghai
(Meat Egg Rolls)
1 lb. lean ground pork
3/4 cup shrimps, finely chopped (optional)
1 cup waterchesnuts, finely chopped
1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
3 stalks green onion, finely sliced
2 eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste
thin egg roll (lumpia) wrappers
vegetable oil for frying
Combine and blend well the top seven ingredients. Season with salt and pepper. Separate egg roll wrappers into single sheets. Spoon a small amount of meat mixture and place diagonally in a thin line on the middle of a wrapper. Wrap into rolls. Wet edge with a touch of water to make it stick. You should get a thin long egg roll. Continue wrapping meat mixture.
In a skillet over medium heat, fry egg rolls when oil is hot enough. Fry both sides until golden brown. Make sure that the meat is cooked thoroughly. Cut crosswise into 3 parts for serving. Serve with sweet and sour sauce on the side. Serves 6-8.
Sweet and Sour Sauce
1/2 cup ketchup
1/3 cup honey
1/8 teaspoon chili pepper (optional)
Mix and simmer in a small saucepan for 2-3 minutes or until well blended. Set aside.
Tip: Make a big batch of wrapped raw lumpia and freeze for future use.