Conference!

Ok, so the blog has been a bit quiet recently. I’ll try to fill in some gaps since I last wrote and update y’all on all our comings and goings. Thanks so much for praying for us as we’ve been traveling!

We left Madang, the town and NTM base where we have been living since we arrived in July, on the 11^th and headed by plane up to Wewak, another town and NTM base along the coast of PNG. This base will be our permanent support base while we are living out in the jungle.

The view from the NTM base in Wewak. So beautiful!

While in Wewak, we had the privilege of attending the conference for the NTM missionaries who serve in the northern part of PNG. It was so exciting hearing how God is working in other tribal locations through our fellow coworkers. We were encouraged by testimonies of faithful veterans, some of whom have been here for over 20 years! And we were blessed by the speakers who daily taught on God’s greatness, strength, and love in the midst of our weakness and inadequacy. Such good stuff!

Conference!

Kyler had tons of fun playing with the other kids on base

Getting to watch the Superbowl with missionary friends. Better late than never, right? :)

We’re so thankful for our missionary family here in PNG! They are so quick to encourage us when we are struggling, and they understand the daily hardships we face as ex-pats in a foreign country. But they also know the joys of living with the people here and seeing them move from darkness and fear to life and maturity in Christ! These guys rock, and we’re thankful to serve alongside them!

Clint playing basketball with some of the guys

Life from Death

I wrote last month about the death of a national man who was brutally murdered on New Year's Day. It (understandably) caused quite the uproar in the community for a time. Lots of unrest and anger directed at the murderers and their families. Lots of hurt and anguish over the sudden loss.

But there has also been healing, and some unexpected blessings in the wake of this tragedy. God definitely has used it for good, just as He promises in Romans.

We've seen quite a bit of growth in the local national church over the past few weeks as more young people have been coming to the Sunday service. I think this man's death shocked and scared them, since he was not much older than many of them. It has caused them, and many others in the community, to evaluate their lives and what they are living for. And, through the faithful instruction of Pastor Jephet, several have trusted in Christ alone for salvation.

Once again, God brings beauty from ashes. Life from death. I'm so thankful to serve a living, active God who is intimately involved with the details of our everyday lives! And I'm thankful that we have the opportunity to be here in PNG to share that truth with those who have never heard it!

Guess the Song!

My last post was about how we've been getting more and more familiar with Pidgin (the trade language here). Ok, well, for those who have been wondering what Pidgin looks like, this post is for you!

The Pidgin song book we use in church

We've been helping lead worship on Sunday mornings at the local national church, so we've learned a lot of songs in Pidgin, which has been really fun! Many of them are translations (or re-writings) of English hymns.

So, anyone (who doesn’t already know Pidgin) want to guess what well-known English hymn this is? I’ve distinguished the verses and choruses for you, if that helps any. :)

Verse 1
O Papa God, taim mi gat planti tinting

Long olgeta samting yu yet wokim

Mi lukim sta, mi harim klaut i pairap

Olgeta samting soim strong b’long yu

Chorus

Mi litimapim biknem bilong yu

Yu yet yu God, yu Bikpela

Yu Nambawan, yu antap olgeta

Yu wanpela, yu Bikpela

Verse 2

Taim mi tingting God i no pasim Jisas,

Em i kamdaun i dai long helpim mi

Long diwai kros blut bilong em i kapsait

Bel bilong mi em i kirap nogut

Verse 3

Taim Kraist i kam na singaut long ol Kristen,

Na kisim mi i go long ples heven

Mi brukim skru na givim biknem long em,

Tokaut long em, O God, yu Nambawan

Foreign to Familiar

It’s a weird feeling when you suddenly realize that speaking in a foreign language feels natural. You listen to the conversations that you have at home and notice that you interchange your mother tongue with phrases that would be unintelligible to your friends back in your home country. It feels really strange… but really normal.

Neither of us have had our final language check to officially approve us as accomplished Pidgin speakers. But speaking and listening to it both feel so normal now. It’s so exciting to see where we were just 6 months ago compared to where we are now.

Yeah, we still make mistakes, leave out a word here or there, or have a mind blank where we can’t remember basic phrases. But we are making progress!

One language (mostly) down, one more (Uriay) to go!

Uriay is a much more complex language than Pidgin, so it will probably take us several years of studying to learn it. But we have an advantage because all the grammar analysis has already been completed on the language and the alphabet has been developed, so we can dive right into study without having to figure out all the tough stuff! Hopefully we can kick off our Uriay language study by the end of 2016!

New Year's Motivation

I never thought we’d start 2016 like this. In some ways, it’s a good start, because it makes the reason why we’re here so much more vivid and real. Yet it’s also a really, really hard start.

One of our national friends died early on New Year’s Day. It was very unexpected. And very much not an accident. The senselessness of it all is overwhelming. Yet through it all, I cling to the fact that God is good.

We sat with the family and friends as they grieved. I wish I could describe to you their grief. The wailing. The sobbing. Grown men walking down the road crying like babies. We cried with them. We hurt with them.

Death is real and raw here.

We certainly didn’t expect to start our year like this with hearts heavy and hurting for our friends. But I’m so glad that this family has hope. So many people all across PNG are facing death daily, and their grief is unending because they do not know Christ.

Last week, a very sick man from a nearby tribe was flown out to town, and we drove him to the hospital. He died there a few days later. In that crowded, dirty place. And he died without hope, without hearing the Gospel. The missionaries in his tribe hadn’t had a chance to do any Bible teaching. They had hoped he would survive, but he didn’t. His eternal destiny is sealed, and it’s so, so sad.

We didn’t hear the death wails for this man, but I can only imagine. The intense grief and hopelessness.

Like I said, death is real and raw here.

I’m thankful that we’re here. In this place. At this time. So many people don’t know, and we have the hope they need. As we go forward in 2016, may that hope be the thing that motivates us every day, wherever we are.

The Hidden Missionaries

The last few weeks have been crazy and hectic. We’re just now starting to slow down and catch our breaths as we settle back into life on the NTM base in Madang. We spent two weeks at the main headquarters base near Goroka in the mountains, and we had an awesome time getting to know a lot of the people who live there and do the behind-the-scenes jobs that keep us on the field. We get to have a little taste of what they do every day as we help out on the Madang base for the next few months. Here are just a few of those jobs:

• The Business Office: They take care of all kinds of business/administrative tasks on the field.
•  The ICT department: They take care of all kinds of technology for NTM missionaries in PNG (computers, internet, phones, etc).
• The Finance Office: They look after all our finances. NTM is virtually cash-less, so they handle any transfers of funds that need to be made on the field. AND they do our PNG taxes!
• The Medical Clinic: There are several doctors and nurses that staff the clinic full time. They have a lot of modern technology, including an x-ray and an ultrasound machine! They even have their own pharmacy, so we can order medicines and supplies straight from them.

Practicing our shot giving abilities

• Tribal Supply: The people in this department fill supply orders from missionaries in the tribes. They buy all their groceries and supplies in town and send out to the jungle locations.
• The Tribal Resource Center: They print, laminate, and bind all kinds of literacy materials, books, and Bibles for missionaries in tribal locations. They can print in English, the trade language Pidgin, or in a tribal language.

Getting a tour of the Tribal Resource Center

• New Tribes Mission Aviation (NTMA): NTM has several pilots who work hard to fly our missionaries around PNG by plane and helicopter. They also do medical evacuations when necessary. Because it’s so rugged here, many towns and villages are not accessible by road, so NTMA is a vital part of our mission. There are also guys who run the business side of NTMA and organize all the flights into a schedule.
•   Schooling for Missionary Kids (MKs): There is a school for MKs (it’s only a boarding school for high school students), and they have several hundred students. There are lots of people needed to teach, be dorm parents, and help run the school. There is also a department that works with missionary families that homeschool in tribal locations. They provide resources for homeschoolers and answer all kinds of questions. They are also in charge of required annual testing for homeschooling families. 

Clint got to enjoy a few games of basketball with fellow missionaries in the school's gym

There are so many little details that our mission has thought of. They take such good care of us! These people who do support roles are not the ones that get their names in print. Their work is often hidden from the sight of those back in North America. They don’t get all the “glamour” and “glory” so to speak. But their roles are so vital for us to thrive in our tribal ministry, and we’re grateful for their faithful work!

A Breath of Fresh Air

Some days here in Papua New Guinea are amazing. We wake up so thankful that we are here and don’t want to be anywhere else. 

And then there are days when you dread getting out of bed because you are exhausted… mentally, physically, and emotionally. Life here takes so much more time and energy than in the States.

The past few weeks have been difficult. We’ve been really busy with responsibilities on the base where we are living. We’re battling another wave of homesickness with the holidays approaching. And it’s hot and humid.

Yesterday (Thanksgiving Day for us), God gave us a special gift. We flew on a small mission plane up to another New Tribes Mission base near Goroka for the final two weeks of our orientation program. We’ll be spending time learning about the various support programs that NTM has to help us as we serve on the field, including the medical clinic, school, and business offices. Being here on this base has already been like a breath of fresh air for us. The weather is cooler since we’re at 5,000 foot elevation, we don’t have a lot of responsibilities, and we were able to celebrate Thanksgiving with an awesome group of fellow American missionaries. We’re grateful for the chance to relax a bit before heading back to Madang in early December.

Even though it’s hard sometimes, we have so much to be thankful for here in PNG this Thanksgiving season.

We’re thankful for the amazing things that God has done to get us here.

We’re thankful for all of you who faithfully support and pray for us.  

We’re thankful for our families and that they are so supportive and loving as we’re here.

We’re thankful for our fellow missionaries who encourage us as we walk this journey together.

We’re thankful for God’s provision of awesome coworkers.

We’re thankful for the everyday blessings that we so often take for granted… like fans and automatic washing machines.

We’re thankful for the time of refreshment that we can have in Goroka.

Most importantly, we’re thankful for the reason that we’re here… Jesus!

Crazy, Beautiful Life

I haven’t written here in a while. Not because I don’t have things to say, but because I don’t have the words to describe them.

I wish you could taste the strange collision of life here. How it is the best job we’ve ever had, and yet how it is also the hardest. How it is so fulfilling, and yet so devastatingly difficult at times.

This past month has been a beautiful one. A combination of all kinds of things that have caused us to throw ourselves on God. The result? Abundant grace and strength for each day.

We have been taking over many of the responsibilities for running the NTM base where we’ve been living for the past few months. It’s an overwhelming job at times, but we’re slowly learning the ropes.

And we just found out on Sunday that we’ve made a lot of progress in the trade language! Clint is at Capable Mid (level 8 out of 9) and I’m at Progressing High (level 6 out of 9). We still have room for improvement, but at least we are making progress and learning so much! Getting near the end!

I’m so glad God is in control and is faithful to complete what He started. He’s so good! I’m thankful for that… otherwise what we’re doing wouldn’t matter at all!

We’re grateful too for your prayers for us! I wish you could know how much it encourages us to know that people are back home praying for us. It helps us get through the stressful days. THANK YOU!!!!

Annnd.... a picture of Kyler just for fun. :) Love this little guy and the joy he brings!

Introducing... (Part 2)

Meet Malai, Kati, and Brigita. These 3 adult siblings live just outside of the New Tribes base fence with their families. They are from the area, so they have been very involved with helping the missionaries here for years. Clint got to know them well when he was here in 2011. We have enjoyed some sweet times of fellowship with them, whether it’s been cooking a meal together or just telling stories. All three are believers with strong testimonies of trusting Christ alone for salvation.

Kati with some of her kids and Kyler

But even though they are saved, they are VERY immature in their faith, and they are literally begging us for more teaching and discipleship! They own a Bible in the trade language that they read, but they don’t understand a lot of it. They keep asking for missionaries to teach them. Unfortunately, there aren’t enough missionaries to send!

Please pray for these three families that we would be able to encourage them as they help us learn the trade language and that someone would be able to help disciple them further in their walk with Christ.

Introducing... (Part 1)

New type of blog post for a bit! Maybe it’s hard to visualize our language helpers… who they are, what they are like, how they are helping us. We want to introduce them to you, so you can know them and be praying for them!

So today, we’re introducing our friends Oscar and Grace. 

Oscar and Grace are a young couple from the Sepik (the northern province of Papua New Guinea). They have one 7-month-old daughter, Nevia. They are really good helpers and enjoy teaching us new information. We can ask them any questions, and they will gladly explain. They love having fun, telling a good joke or story, and taking us to do things with them.

Please be praying for us as we interact with them! As far as we can tell, they don’t truly understand the Gospel. They live in a lot of fear. Oscar has told us numerous stories of things they have to do or not do to please the spirits. He is very afraid of sorcery being worked against him by others to cause him to become sick and die. Grace attends the local church, but we aren’t sure if she’s saved or not. Just like America, many people that live in town here attend church because it is a “good thing” rather than to know God better.

You can be praying that their hearts would be softened towards the Gospel, and that we would be able to be a witness as we spend time with them.