Handicapped Access in Palawano Land

This past weekend was the Palawano Bible Conference introducing the Book of Acts. Three days of meetings, teaching Acts chapters one through six. On Sunday we topped the weekend off with communion, a potluck and baptisms. People showed up from far and wide. Sunday morning, a big group from Rora came, and I knew we would run out of seating space. I asked Indak if he could bring over some benches from Bright's house. When he and another guy brought them into the church, everyone was trying to figure out the best way to place them to squeeze them into the already crowded building. I heard one person say, Sebali beyean ni Ula, or 'We need a pathway for Ula.' That really cracked me up. You see, Ula is a crippled woman. A generous church in Temecula, California sent over a wheelchair for her a few years ago. Every Sunday that she is feeling well enough, Ula is rolled across the yard from her house, over the little bridge, and down the center aisle, to her spot right in the front of the church. The guys were thinking handicap access.

My mind flashed to different churches we were associated with back in the U.S. that had to enlarge their bathrooms and change their parking lots for handicapped access. Who would ever think that would be an issue in our jungle church? We don't have roads. No one owns a vehicle of any kind. . . Well, unless you count water buffalos. The church doesn't have a bathroom, nor do any of the people's houses. The only electricity is from solar panels and batteries in a very few of the houses. But our church needs to have a wide pathway from the door to the center aisle and down the center aisle for Ula and her wheelchair!

Ula is a blessing to our church. She is one of those angels God sometimes sends to a body of believers. She stopped growing and developing at a very young age as a result of a sickness. Most of her life she spends laying on the bamboo slat floor of the house she lives in with her elderly mother. For you or me, it would be a hard and boring life. Her mom has to do almost everything for her. But Ula became a Christian years ago. And she really, really loves the Lord. She inspires all of us with her joy and praise. Her two favorite songs are the Palawano versions of "Hearts Courageous," and "Forever Grateful." She always requests one or both of them on the Sundays she can come to church. For the Acts Conference, Bill distributed some verses and portions ahead of time for people who wanted to to memorize. During the conference, different ones would come forward and recite their verses. Ula memorized the most of anybody -- she did four verses from Acts and one other one.

Ula decided she wanted to be baptized at the end of the conference. Three of her brothers and Indak rolled and carried her wheelchair down the trail to the river, and right on into the water. Abil baptized her by pouring handfuls of water over her head. She loved being in the river for the first time in her life, so they let her stay there for awhile with the water flowing over her lap and through her legs. It was a joyful ending to a joyful conference.