Stories That I Can't Explain: Mt. Apo

During my time in Davao City, Philippines, there was one thing I really wanted to do...

Climb Mt. Apo!

Not only was it the tallest mountain in the country, but it required a 3-day trek through jungle and volcanic terrain.  It was my kind of adventure.  But there was one problem.  My contacts were hesitant about taking me on the journey (both me and my friend, Dan).

 This is him

You see, not only did the trek come with the risks you might expect, but there were also radical Muslims in the mountains and they were known to kidnap foreigners.  But I didn't care!  If anything, I was only more interested now.

What fun is it living in fear of everything??

So after many failed attempts with my Filipino friends, it became clear we weren't going to climb Mt. Apo.  And now it was too late to schedule a guide to take us.  I was bummed out.  But hey, complaining wasn't going to get me anywhere, was it?

And little did I know that something incredible was in the works...

Mt. Apo

One morning, I was on my way to catch a ferry in to Davao from Samal Island, a small island we spent 2-weeks on.  And as I approached the boat, it departed right in front of me!  I was literally less than a minute late and that meant I needed to wait another thirty minutes for another boat to arrive.

But in that moment, I remember making a conscious decision to not be frustrated about it.  Instead, I looked for the good in the situation.

I intentionally opened myself up to the realm of possibilities and what ifs.  And as I did this, I noticed a complete shift in my attitude.  Instead of being frustrated, I was happy.  And instead of being irritable, I became hopeful.  But really, there was no apparent reason for my sudden change in attitude.  I had just missed my boat on a hot, hot day.  I was tired and most-likely hungry.

And that's when I saw them!

The next ferry had arrived and as the passengers began to unload, I realized that I recognized two of them!  It was Ken and Carol, a young, married couple from the university I taught at!  I couldn't believe it!  I had no idea they were in the Philippines and, while we didn't know each other too well at the time, I had always wanted to get to know them better.  And now here they were!

But it gets better...

We only had a minute to talk because I didn't want to miss another ferry.  But what came out of their mouth next astounded me.  They had just arrived in Davao for the sole purpose of climbing Mt. Apo!  And the trek was in a couple days.  This was something they had researched, planned for, and scheduled well in advance and now I had an opportunity to go with them!

How incredible is that??

So think about this.

I really wanted to climb this mountain in Davao but my contacts wouldn't take me.  And then, out of the blue, I bump in to some friends who teach at the same university in China and happen to be doing the very thing I so desperately wanted to do... two days later!  And now I was able to join the adventure!

   

And know this: not only did I not know they'd be in the Philippines, but the Philippines is a country made up of 7,107 islands & close to 100 million people.

So how did all this so beautifully come together?
And as you can see, we went on to have an absolute wonderful time!

This is some amazing stuff, friend.  Seriously.  Has anything like this ever happened to you?  This is the kind of stuff that makes you want to wake up in the morning... the kind of stuff that makes life seem rather interesting, don't you think?

  

And Remember!

When one door seems to be closing, don't let it ruin your day (or week or month or year)!  Maybe something better is coming.  Keep your eyes open and be intentional.  Live in state of expectancy and don't be a drag.

We really don't know what may be around the next corner!

<Story #3  
   Story #5>

Fun Fact: During the same trip, I ran in to another couple from my university and the guy was a writer.  A new friendship emerged.  We played lots of ping-pong together and talked about creative writing.  And it was because of him that I began writing short stories, plugging away at some books, and honing in on my writing skills.  

And that one man has encouraged my writing more than any other person I know.  His name is Mike and he's a great guy!

If you'd like to read one of his (hilarious) stories, click here!

This is us in Cebu

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Stories That I Can't Explain: Warrior Princess

On April 10, 2016, my parents experienced one of the greatest scares of their lives.  But what happened next was truly amazing!

Warrior Princess

While answering a question, my sister, Chloe, began to confuse her words.  And before they knew it, her entire body had seized and her face began to contort.  My father took her into his arms and rushed outside to the nearest vehicle.  But then blood began to pour from her mouth.  It was devastating.  They thought this was it... that Chloe was dying.

They thought these were their last moments with their daughter.

Unsure of what to do, they laid her body on the ground and called 9-1-1.  But waiting around for an ambulance to arrive didn't seem right so they loaded her into our SUV and began to drive.  On the way in to town, Chloe became somewhat coherent again and spoke to them.

There was hope!

Once in the Emergency Room, they found out that she had suffered a seizure.  Regretfully, the doctor informed my parents that it may happen again... that Chloe may have epilepsy and would need to take medicine for the rest of her life.  He told them to keep a close watch on her for the next 6-months.

   

The news wasn't great, but at least for now, Chloe was herself again.  And thankfully, the blood was from Chloe biting her tongue and not something worse.  Everyone could now sit back and take a deep breath.

After Bomi and I heard she was in the ER, we Skyped with them and listened to the story.  We talked, we laughed, and we loved on each other for a bit.  We really just wanted to spend some time encouraging Chloe.

And that was when something really cool happened!

Skype call from another night

At one point, I remember Bomi saying to Chloe, "Chloe, I keep seeing the words, Warrior Princess, Warrior Princess, Warrior Princess."  And while I don't remember what she said next, I do remember my families reaction!

They were all smiling and were telling Chloe to turn around.  She did.  And that was when we saw the back of her sweater...

Now how cool is that?  And how, exactly, did it happen?  How did my wife "see" those words without having seen the back of Chloe's sweater?  It's AMAZING if you ask me!  Either I'm a liar and convinced my entire family to go along with this silly story or Bomi had seen the shirt before and fooled us all.  Or, perhaps, something significant had taken place.

Something... otherworldly.

I believe that my sister's identity was released that day.  That, in the midst great difficulty, she was given the tools she needs to make it through.  That no battle will ever be too great for her and no fear too strong.  She is a warrior and she is a princess.  Chloe Salisbury is a Warrior Princess and, as such, she will persevere until the end, fighting whatever battle is set before her.

And No Weapon Formed Against Her Will Prosper!

Now how did it happen?  I'll let you be the judge of that. (But I know my family and we aren't liars.)  I'll tell you what, though.  One thing's becoming crystal clear through these stories and it's this: our lives are full of purpose!  They are absolutely significant and overflowing with meaning!

So, my friend, let me ask you a question... 

What's stopping you from "seeing"?

If you'd like to get to know Chloe a bit more, click here!

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Stories That I Can't Explain: An E-mail to Remember

Soon after I met an amazing girl in Hong Kong, an unbelievable chain of events began to unfold... bringing the two of us together!

This is the beginning of our love story.

An E-mail to Remember

Do you remember my friend, Jessica, from the first story?  Well, our friendship would prove to be filled with an awesome purpose... one greater than I could've ever imagined.  You see, Jessica played a vital role in me meeting some wonderful people in China - some of my best friends to this day.  And without them, I probably wouldn't have stayed in China as long as I have.

      

One of those friends is named Bella.  And before I was living in China, Bella had met a girl named Bomi at my university.  During that time, the two of them really hit it off and became friends.  And now we need to fast forward three years.  I had moved to China and a small group of us were traveling throughout Vietnam.  At the end of that trip, we stopped by Hong Kong for a few days.  Bella was a part of that group and wanted to see her friend, Bomi, who was living there at the time.

This is a picture of us... myself, Bella, Bomi, and Tammy

We were fortunate that she had time to meet with us as she traveled from Hong Kong to Korea every Monday morning for work.  Nevertheless, it worked out and we had a lovely time together, eating Mexican, drinking coffee, and playing NINJA in a really cool park.

But more than all that, this was the day I started to like this cute, little, Korean beauty!

After a few hours of fun, we said good-bye and went on our way.  A couple days later, we traveled back into mainland China and began settling in for the next term.  But I couldn't stop thinking about her.  And the more I thought about her, the more I liked her.  A week later, I reached out and made contact, which is a whole other story in itself!  But our initial "talks" didn't go so well.

After a couple weeks of these "talks," I received an e-mail from John Mark McMillan, a wonderful singer/songwriter with a huge heart.  I had seen him in the Viper Room in Los Angeles and subscribed to his e-mail list... I was hooked.

Here's the e-mail.

 Please notice the date

And at the end of his e-mail, he mentioned that his band was going to be in Hong Kong.  I thought that if all went well with Bomi, it'd be fun to take her to a show!

"... and Hong Kong!"

I immediately clicked on the link.  I noticed that his Hong Kong show was on April 30th, which meant I didn't have long to get to know Bomi before bringing it up.  But then I noticed the venue and realized that something crazy was in the works.  McMillan's concert was being held at her church!  He was a guest singer for a conference they were hosting.  And I had even been there once before!

So now I'm excited!  I couldn't wait to tell her about the show.  A movie-like vision suddenly began to play in my mind, showing me how our weekend together might go... and Bomi and I were the stars! (It was beautiful, let me tell you.)  But regardless of my creative daydreaming, I was amazed that McMillan's e-mail had somehow led me to the church of a girl I had just met and happened to be interested in.  What were the odds?  But that wasn't all...

The truly amazing part of this story was still to come!

A couple days later, I revisited the website for the conference and realized that there was a recap video from the year before.  I clicked on it, began to watch, and couldn't believe what I saw.  It was her!  Bomi was in the video!  There was a close-up of her singing and she was the only one in the shot.  I couldn't believe it! (And this was no small church.)

The whole world seemed to be saying,

"Get To Know This Girl!"

So track with me here.

I met a girl named Bomi in Hong Kong.  I liked her (a lot).  Three weeks later, I received an e-mail from a band in America who happened to be singing in Hong Kong the following month.  That show happened to be at the aforementioned girl's church.  And not only that, but then I found that same girl in a video for a conference from the year before... on an entirely different website from my e-mail account, John Mark McMillan, or the girl's church.

And that was the beginning of our love story.  

And the rest is history.

Fun Fact: A couple days before we had met up with Bomi in Hong Kong, Bella considered NOT going through with seeing her.  I challenged this and was so glad I did.  Little did any of us know that just 8-months later, Bomi and I would be married!

Another Fun Fact: Before I came to China, my (now) wife had visited the university I teach at.  She hung out with many of my friends before I ever knew them, including Jessica from the first story.

What is the likelihood of all this?

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