Merienda

Merienda is the term for "snack" here in the Philippines and I would wager that I hear this word more often than any other word. The day here in the Philippines is structured something like this: Breakfast between 5 and 6 AM, morning merienda 9 AM, coffee break 10:45 AM, Lunch 12 Noon, afternoon merienda 2:30 PM, coffee break 3:45 PM, Supper between 6 and 7 PM, late merienda if up past 9 PM. If anything gets done inbetween these times it is only because the Filipino or Filipina was able to ignore the excruciating hunger pains they were experiencing. And you think I'm joking, and I sort of am joking, but not nearly as much as you think I am. Everytime I settle into something important like writing a sermon, devotion, or lesson I inevitably hear "Merienda!" followed by a sound similar to a herd of buffalo at full speed approximately 5 minutes after I get into a good train of thought. It has become another of our office jokes here, with me always asking "What's that?" whenever I hear the word merienda.

In the "I can't believe that is the case" department is the fact that I've been here more than 2 months now. Also belonging to this department is that midterms will be in a mere 3 weeks.

This week it has been my responsibility to give the messages at our morning (6:45 AM!) devotions. I've been "devoting" out of Luke 12 and I think that it is going pretty well. I began my first devotion Tuesday morning by asking the question, are you a fool? (Luke 12:13-21). This morning I "devoted" the next section vv. 22-34 under the heading, "Don't be a fool." Tomorrow I'll finish by "devoting" the following section vv. 35-48 under the heading "Why you shouldn't be a fool." I've noticed that the word fool seems to catch people's attention pretty well. Use that to your own advantage.

You will be pleased to know that the "very joke" seems to have legs. Many of the students here have picked up on it, and I still find it funny; which means it has some true potential. The best examples from earlier today were that after "devoting" for 20 minutes this morning and then teaching for an hour I was "very thirst." And to paraphrase the end of Romans 5:20, "where sin increased, grace very increased." The jokes that arise from Filipino English are literally endless, like the student who wanted me to cross the street when I went with a group of students to the market: "Here way Sir! Here way!" I try not to laugh at them too much when things like this happen because I don't want to discourage them from their English; but there are times when it's a laugh a minute.

The next time you are feeling uber-spiritual, try to read through Romans and determine which law Paul is talking about everytime he mentions the word "law" without consulting a commentary. I'm using commentaries and it's confusing to me, or as my friends here would say, it is "nosebleed."

Things are going pretty well, please continue to pray for me, and for the students here. Thank you for your time and your concern.

Nick