Dear Friends,

Most people have heard of Paris, Hawaii, New York, Dubai and Alaska. Daily flights scramble passengers to these popular destinations . . . and many others. Pictures are taken, memories are formed . . . and when
the thousands of visitors leave, there are thousands more to fill up the hotel rooms and take the same pictures.

But who has ever heard of Mindanao? What part of the planet are we dealing with here? How many pictures have been taken . . . how many tourists flock to its mountains?

Just last week I was in Mindanao to attend an Adventist-Muslim forum at Mountain View College which is in the heart of Mindanao, a large island in the South Philippines. The particular shot below was taken
several years ago at sunrise from the SULADS High School high in the mountains. So clear, so grand, so majestic, so . . . unknown.

There are many "Mindanao-type" people in our world today. No . . . the tabloid press does not rush to get an interview of a picture on the red carpet. They don't have four million friends on their Facebook account.
If you search for them on google . . . you will find . . . nothing.

But that does not necessarily mean that they are nothing . . . That does not mean they are unworthy of notice . . . That does not mean that spending time to get a snapshot of their lives would not be a great
blessing . . . They are just unknown . . . Like the mountains of Mindanao.

Let us not judge the people we meet today or everyday by the world's fickle standard of popularity. Sometimes the greatest places, and people are hidden . . . only to be discovered by the gentle touch of a
sensitive soul. May the Lord grant us the wisdom to see people as He sees and values them!

Till next time . . .