News from the Le Roux’s
“Now all of you together are Christ’s body, and each one of you is a separate and necessary part of it.” 1 Corinthians 12:28
Praise the Lord for His Goodness!
It is truly wonderful to be able to trust in the Lord always and to look to Him for all we need. This April we have been so aware of our dependence on Him and how much we can achieve through Him who makes all things possible. As we continue with language study we experience many highs and lows with each passing week. And each time when we reach the end of ourselves He is faithful to carry us the rest of the way. Tagalog is grammatically a difficult language and requires lot of thought before even a simple sentence can be said. We are progressing well and learning a lot, especially through the funny mistakes that we are inclined to make at this stage!





A shocking experience!
Living in the Philippines continues to be an experience ! We have many opportunities to laugh at the strangeness that is almost becoming the norm. Philip cuts his hair at a ‘dodgy’ barber who has his ‘shop’ in a little side street near to where we live. It is a good opportunity for language exposure because his English is very limited. This week Philip got more than expected! The clipper wire must have had an earth leakage because every time the wire touched Philip it would shock him! At first Philip told him about it, but he just apologised and continued with the haircut so Philip decided to just grin and bare it. A shocking experience indeed! Luckily this time we were prepared for the massage that they give customers after the hair cut. Last time I really battled to keep myself from laughing when the barber began to roughly massage Philips shoulders and back. Priceless!




A taxing ride!
This weekend after grocery shopping we took a taxi with the children and all the groceries back home. On driving off we noticed that the taxi driver was grinding the gears and had a very rough pull away. At first we thought nothing of it because the Filipinos are relatively crazy drivers. But, soon he informed us that not only was it his first day as a taxi driver, but he was learning to drive too! Needless to say that we were very pleased to get home safely. Only in the Philippines! Or should I say in Tagalog—”Pinoy lang!”
South African Embassy Function
We are really missing home, so you can imagine our excitement when we were invited to the Freedom Day Celebration by the SA Embassy here. An opportunity to meet fellow South Africans! The function was held at a very posh hotel called “Shangri La” in Makati City. It was a formal function so we were required to wear formal clothes. Philip wore the traditional “barong tagalong” worn by men in the Philippines (see picture).
We were quite surprised to hear that only 50 South Africans are registered with the embassy in the Philippines! We really are a minority here!! Praise the Lord for once again granting the desires of our hearts. We met a great couple who are also believers and are already planning our first get together. They are unfortunately leaving the Philippines to work in Dubai in August, but at least we will be able to get together until then. They have two boys that are similar ages to our children so it will be fun for the whole family. It was so nice to hear others that have a South African accent and we even met someone who makes his own boerewors!


The children
We continue to praise the Lord for our good health. What a change from England! The children have all been really well despite the extreme heat we are experiencing at the moment. Angelique has a horrible heat rash that is impossible to treat because there is no relief from the heat.
It is an average of between 34 and 36 degrees during the day and no less than 28 at night. This last week we have had temperatures of 38 degrees. There is very little that we can do to ease her discomfort but have just purchased a fan so that she is able to sleep at night. Besides regular cold showers and wearing very little clothing there is not much more we can do. We have however noticed that she is doing better since the fan at night.
Valerie-Anne is counting the days until her school starts on the 9 June. She is doing some work at home in the mean time and is enjoying the challenge.
Boeta is still in super hero stage. He continues to box, punch and kick all his imaginary enemies. His English is improving at a rapid pace especially since playing educational games on the computer. If he doesn’t understand us when we speak to him his favourite phrase is, “I don’t speak Tagalog!” even if we are talking to him in Afrikaans!
Please pray for
· Angelique’s recovery from the heat rash
· That Valerie-Anne will fit into her school and adjust well
· That our visas applications would be sorted out.
· That we will continue to remain motivated for language study.
· That we will find a good church to join
· Continuing good health
Praise For
· Supporters and friends who continue to keep us in their prayers
· Our continued safety on the dangerous roads
· That the Lord continues to supply our needs
· For Valerie-Anne’s School
· Our new South African friends!
· Our 10 year wedding anniversary on the 19th May.
· The opportunity to serve Him in the Philippines
Thank you
We continue to be encouraged by those who chose to be part of our ministry. As a body of Christ we feel so privileged to have others like you who serve with us. Being far from home is not always easy, but we find comfort in knowing that He is in control always. As we seek to glorify Him in our daily lives we are reminded constantly of the huge sacrifice that He made for us. What a privilege to be His servants.
Looking forward to another month in the Philippines. Waiting expectantly to see how he will use us all to glorify him!
Salamat po!
The le Roux’s