In honor of the New Year, I have decided to start keeping a list of the things that I have learned while living in the Philippines. I did this in college. My college list is a random assortment of useful knowledge from my classes, useless facts that I wanted to remember, quotes that impacted my life, funny situations that taught me something, ways God worked on my heart, and ideas that I thought might be more useful if I remembered them later. After I graduated, I was glad that I had kept this list. Some of it has been very helpful and the rest of it is at least entertaining. Anyway, here is the beginning of my new list: Things that I have learned in the Philippines

1. Ants will go out of their way to avoid walking over a line of chalk. (I have now circled my house with chalk)
2. No matter how prepared you think you are, there is no way to completely avoid culture shock.
3. I must acknowledge my weakness and ask God for strength daily. I have no strength on my own. My weakness alone leads to failure, but my weakness filled with God’s strength leads to ability.
4. Truth is more important than my comfort.
5. There are at least 20 fruits and vegetables that do not exist in America.
6. The dictionary is not always right.
7. It is possible to completely butcher three languages in one sentence.
8. The easiest way is not always the best way. Sometimes the harder way is better just for the lessons it can teach.
9. Lizards do not make good pets.
10.  Missions workshops and classes make a lot more sense when you listen to them again after you have spent a few months on the field. The speakers are much smarter than they first appeared!