CHRISTmas Story in Hong Kong

It was in 2018 when the idea of our entire family, all ten of us including two seniors, four adults and four kids travelling overseas and spending CHRISTmas in Hong Kong for the first time as a family. First quarter of 2019 all our airfare tickets were purchased, then comes June when Hongkongers demonstrated a peaceful march against plans to allow extradition to mainland China. The protests continued to progress becoming more violent and chaotic affecting the whole nation -- city-wide strikes, university sieges, airport protests, destroying properties, vandalising and mob attacks. Nearly six months of pro-democracy protests have rocked the country, with the police arresting more than 4,000 people.

During this time our family prayed together for the protests to end soon and for Hong Kong to restore its peace and order. My mother considered postponing the trip and ask me to just refund all the airfare tickets as our safety is at risks. I struggled to agree but she is right, our safety is more important than our holiday plans. This entire six months was a great exercise of trust and dependency for our family to pray to God.

Global news continue to headline protests gripping the country with no sign of any agreement from the government and the protesters. But by God's grace, September when the bill was finally withdrawn. November 24, during district council elections, HK voters delivered landslide victory for the pro-democracy movement. One friend together with her family visited HK few weeks before ours, she encouraged us that the situation is not as bad as the news but we still need to stay vigilant and avoid places where protests are happening. So by faith, we flew to Hong Kong in December 21, 2019 not knowing God has a better adventure in store for our family.

So far, everything happened as we had planned if not better. Our hearts overflow with so many things to thank and honour God for:
- travelling mercies - flights and during our entire stay;
- good weather;
- safety as there were no protests we experienced;
- good stamina and health for the whole family especially my Tatay who was diabetic but was able to walk in long durations of our Ngong Ping and Disneyland visits;
- new places the kids get to experience;
- meals we shared;
- God's provision; and
- for our family being together in this special season. 

But God did not allow our vacation to end without experiencing Him personally and as a family. December 24, after we had Christmas dinner from our cousin's place, my brother realised his passport was missing. Being on a foreign country, we are all worried on the gravity of the situation and consequences we have to face. I am mostly organised and on top of everything related to our trip but during that moment I was dead blank and don't know what steps to take next. Then my cousin called to meet us and accompany us to the police station so we can file a report. Before leaving, I requested our family to pray for us as we speak to the authorities. We finished almost midnight and the police gave us a report we can show to the immigration as we flew the next day. This was an answered prayer as the police assured us that most likely my brother will be allowed to exit HK but we have to be  prepared for some immigration interrogation. After reaching our place, we all gather around to process what just happened and did a short devotion, we also shared for one thing that we are thankful for in the trip and a prayer request so we can pray for each other. That moment was magical and unforgettable as we felt God was with us even on times of crisis.

The next day, we checkout from the Airbnb and temporarily stored our luggages in Times Square since our flight was 7pm. That same morning my cousin called Tram's Customer Hotline to check if they have lost and found service hoping to recover my brother's lost passport. And in God's miraculous way, somehow someone surrendered it to the Tram. We were all elated when we got the confirmation that we can claim his passport from them. Claiming the passport from the Tram depot was another hurdle as no one speaks English (Dejavu of our experience in Wan Chai police station). We had to call the customer hotline again and pass the phone to the officer so they can explain the situation in Cantonese. It was one of the longest 20 minutes of waiting that I can remember. Eventually one uncle driver came to us holding a Philippine passport. That moment was emotional, I hugged my cousin for being with us, providing support and help that we badly needed. God indeed sends help to His children whenever they need, wherever they are. We just experienced a modern day miracle - lost passport, found and claimed in less than 24 hours. God is tremendously good! Our family especially the kids experienced a first-hand answered prayer, an experience that demonstrated how sovereign and mighty God is. What an encounter with the precious Lord Jesus!

That afternoon we were in HK International Airport ten of us - all with passports ready to board our plane bringing home fascinating memories of HK. In retrospective, I remember praying - more than seeing all these amazing places and enjoying each other, that our family will experience His presence in a personal way. Oh well, we just did! An adventure more magical than Disneyland.

All praises to God!

Shout out to Ate Irene and Ate Ruth for the care and hospitality they have shown us. May God's abundant blessing be with you.

Happy Feet :)