One Bullet for Porras, Part 2

by ANTONIO SENDING, JR.

Porras watched his dreams for the future crumble as his father accepted a proposal for him to marry a girl from a neighboring village. The marriage would ease tensions between the villages and prevent future bloodshed, but Porras wanted to study and become a teacher. To disobey his father could well mean his death, but to obey meant the death of his dream. Frustrated and confused, Porras asked his student-missionary teachers what to do. They could only pray for him and urge him to pray for God's will to be done.

God answered Porras's prayers, and no wedding was held. A gift of another horse averted the possibility of war between the villages.

When it was time for us to return to Mountain View College to give our monthly report, we asked the chief to allow Porras to go with us. We planned to spend several days working on the new Adventist high school for Manobo youth. To everyone's surprise the chief agreed to let Porras go. "I want Porras out from this village," he said. "If anyone else asks him to marry, surely there will be bloodshed."

But Porras's mother could not be convinced to allow her son to leave. "No!" she wailed. "I will die if my boy goes! I will never see him again."

"If you did not want him to go to the new high school, you should have given him in marriage!" the chief roared.

Finally Porras was allowed to go. The villagers gathered for a last farewell. Porras comforted his crying mother as his father spoke. Holding his rifle, he announced, "Today marks the day when my boy will leave this village for the first time. He is the first one to go from this village to attend the Adventist high school. When he finishes there, he will go to Mountain View College to study. And, if it is God's will, he will return to us and be our teacher. I will miss my boy. I don't want him to come home until he is done with school, because if he does, someone will trap him into marriage. Now, I will shoot one bullet for Porras, to drive away any evil spirits that would keep him from following his dreams."

BANG!

Everyone hugged Porras goodbye. His mother cried as we walked down the path toward his future. Through tear-filled eyes his father watched us go. They wait eagerly for the day when he will return, educated and able to lead his people out of spiritual darkness into God's light.

One Bullet for Porras, Part 1

by ANTONIO SENDING, JR.

Fourteen-year-old Porras was a bright student and a born leader. His father, Chief Tranning of the Manobo people of Mindanao in the Philippines, was proud of him. One day Porras would be a warrior, so his father took him along on headhunting expeditions.
Porro's village often received threats of tribal war, so they were constantly alert for signs of danger. His father had rifles and taught his son to use one. But Porras did not share his father's dream for him. He wanted to lead his people in a different way; he wanted to study at Mountain View College, where his teachers studied; and one day, he hoped, he would return to the mountains of southern Philippines and teach his people to read and to write and introduce them to Jesus.
One day, a chief from another Manobo village came to visit Porras's father. He brought a horse, a gift from a family in the chief's village. The chief had come to ask Porras' father for permission for Porras to marry a girl from his village. Porras knew that in the past there had been problems between these two villages. A marriage would resolve those problems and prevent further bloodshed. Porras wanted nothing to do with this marriage. But to Porras' horror, his father agreed to the marriage.
Porras was in serious trouble. To refuse the marriage surely would mean bloodshed between the two tribes, and Porras's own life was at risk. But if Porras accepted the offer of marriage, his dreams for the future would vanish with the smoke from the morning fires.
Confused and frightened, he went to talk to his teachers, student missionaries from Mountain View College. The missionary teachers, however, did not dare advise Porras what to do. That would be to interfere with the village's customs. They could only advise Porras to pray that God would reveal His will for this young man.
Porras went home and prayed. "Dear Lord, I want to be a teacher! Please help my father understand that I want to attend the Adventist high school and then study at Mountain View College. If I marry, that will be impossible."
Porras' father and mother argued about what to do. His father wanted Porras to marry the young woman from the nearby village, but his mother refused to allow her beloved son to live in another village. "He is still a boy!" she sobbed to her husband. "I don't want to give him away!"

(to be continued)

Wall of fire!

There was some protesting and blocking of roads by what it seems the entire town where I live, angry residents rampaged because of the killing of one of their beloved gangsters. Funny, how people rally together to do wrong now - it seems like demons are in their midst just boosting them up to do wrong. They burned down a court house, torched vehicles, and even shot and killed the care taker of the court house, I think he was around 70 yrs old or so. In the night when everybody was trying to get home or already home in fear of attacks my grandmother called me to pick her up from nightly service at the church. I was driving really fast to get her and get back home before anything new happens. As I was speeding on the road to get her I ran into a wall of fire - the road was blocked entirely by debrees burning at nearly 10 ft. high. I saw a taxi try to manuveur around it but was quickly accosted by three men. Then and there I knew I had to turn back, I did and had to take a long route around the main roads to reach the church for my grandmother. I wasn't afraid - although it was just me and my car on the road at the time, from what I have been reading in the Bible I expect to see increase in violence, crime, wars, etc. I believe the Bible and the increase of these things are predicted in it, especially in Mattew 24. The most I can do is try and keep a firm footing in what I believe and most importantly in the promises of Jesus Christ. The increase in natural disasters and crime and violence is everywhere. If it's not one it's the other, by God's grace I will not live in fear but in watchfulness of His second return because I know He cares.