Before I arrived here in Mongolia, it was my prayer to be placed in an assignment where local Christian church is accessible. I admit that my 16 months stay in a totally different place and culture will be at times frustrating or depressing and that it is a wise decision to only rely on the True Rock. Being a volunteer here in Mongolia had been one of my countless answered prayers and that blessing me with a brother in faith, Kuya Ronnie, again I could attest that our Lord fulfill all of our heart’s yearning for His kingdom.
Together with Kuya Ronnie, we attended the 11 am Mongolian service in a local church that is located in Bayanzurkh district. Because I am still adjusting to the extreme cold weather here in UB, Kuya Ronnie thought that it would be better to attend the morning service in Mongolian instead of the English service at 4 pm to avoid the sudden drops of temperature in the night (and since Ate Yvonne already warned us that the coldest temperature that day would be – 34 degrees).
I was praying for a miracle to somehow grasp an abstract of the preaching of the Mongolian pastor. At the service, I met Ate Rose ( a Filipino missionary who have been in Mongolia for six years) and she translated the Mongolian preaching to Tagalog. The preaching of the pastor was about the nature of Jesus Christ.
"The Bread of Life"
"The Light of the Word"
"The Good Shepherd"
"The Gate for the sheep"
"The Way, the Truth and the Life"
"The Resurrection and the Life"
"The Real Vine"
The service was attended by approximately 20-25 locals and 5-10 expats. All of the worship songs were in the Mongolian language but then I realized that in worshiping God there isn't any language boundaries as long as you are praising Him with all your heart and soul. The service ended at 1:30 pm and I was briefly introduced to some of the churchgoers and the pastor.
After the service, we went back to Ate Yvonne's place and had a late lunch. They prepared bulalo and it was really surprising that I had never seen a bone that big. "Buto-buto" in the Philipiines is just 1/3 of that what they have here. So imagine, how everybody feasted on the bone marrow.
We left the place at 430 pm and went to a shoe store in the 3rd district to find a replacement for my slippery rubber shoes. I did find a pair of cheap leather boots at 23,000 tug. After which, we dropped off some of our things in the guesthouse. Kuya Max and I went to the State Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet to watch The Swan Lake recital. Our co-volunteers: Merryn, Jo, Andrew, Debra, Alylose, Dorieke, Tom, Ehab and Evelien were already at the theatre. Back home, I had never watched a ballet recital and I was pretty satisfied with the 2 hour live orchestra and ballet dance at 8,000 tugrugs ( around 300 Php).
I didn't come with the group for their dinner since I was a little uncomfortable with something that was stinging on my left butt. And when I checked it in front of the mirror, there it was: a NASTY BOIL.
Day 4: Wrapped up!
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| The Sukhbaatar Square at night. |
I didn't come with the group for their dinner since I was a little uncomfortable with something that was stinging on my left butt. And when I checked it in front of the mirror, there it was: a NASTY BOIL.
Day 4: Wrapped up!
