Dear Family and Friends,
Happy “Krismas.” We heard that a lot of you are “enjoying” cooler weather now. I emphasize “enjoying” because our seasons here only change by perhaps a degree. We have a “dry” season – where your pores really are cleansed with persistent sweat and the “wet” season where your pores are still weeping but now you have mud, dampness and more biting bugs. We are in the wet season now with moisture like fog, heat like an oven and the added bonus of volcano ash snowing on us. I hear the large monitor lizard scratching his way up the outside of the wall close to where I am sitting as I write this e-mail. He is back early today with his catch from the ocean. He has a habit of dining among my little flower garden and leaving behind the indigestible parts like little red lobster claws and buttery yellow clam shells. I am not happy with him though because he frequently chews one of the flower’s leaves – I guess to cleanse his pallet. Are you in the island mood now?
This month was busy. It started out with a Market Evangelism outreach in Kokopo town (see picture). The musicians and generator-operated microphones and amps were set up during the busiest market day on Saturday and hundreds of people were told about a personal God who loves them and is reaching out to them. The pastors were stretched because they were preaching to people who they grew up with; nevertheless, the pastors were encouraged by the people’s hunger for the gospel. The following Sunday, the Kokopo Town Church had several new visitors - people who had given their hearts and lives to Jesus at the Market. These new Christians have continued to attend the church and are now a part of local home groups.
The following week we were notified late one night that Pastor Mary Labet, one of the pioneering Foursquare pastors in the region had died. She was considered by many men and women here as their “Momma” in the faith. Her death was quite a shock to all of us. In our first year in PNG, we lived in the same village as Pastor Mary and, in fact, we lived right across the dirt road from her house. She had been a Pastor for 14 years and was the Kokopo District Supervisor. We are close to Pastor Mary’s family and they honored us by taking us by the hand to her house and up the narrow stairs to see her. We had to pass by a pile of flip flops by the door to view her body which had been placed on the bare floor. When we arrived an attendant removed a cloth from her face and then we said goodbye. We cried with the mourners in attendance and family members waved small thin bundles of leaves from a nearby bush to keep the flies away. The lack of air movement in the room was stifling. When the coffin finally arrived after two days, she was placed in a homemade box with relatives taking turns spraying the wood with a strong type of perfume and then she quickly buried in a deep grave after the “closed-coffin” funeral in front of her house. All the Foursquare pastors wore their very best white shirts and ties and the whole village came together to honor her life (see picture). She is with Jesus now.
Yesterday, a large three day overnight camp for 527 youth and children ended. It was located in a more remote bush area here in East New Britain. The road getting to the camp was covered with water and huge pot holes that seemed to swallow vehicles, but God was with us and no one got stuck. The focus of the entire camp was on the Holy Spirit (who He is, how He works, and how to cooperate with Him). On the first day of the camp Victor was a part of the teaching team and spoke on the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. Later that evening, 32 youths went forward to receive Christ for the first time, 23 repented and came back to Christ, and 13 received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. We so need the Holy Spirit in our lives!
Victor was a large part of the many planning meetings for the camp and child safety during camp was particularly emphasized. Camp counselors were assigned - one counselor to every 5 children. A sign-up sheet/and release forms were used for all children 12 and under. These are new and complicated ideas to utilize in this culture, but we are trying to build in safe-guards for everyone involved. It went well and the leadership here would like to incorporate even more child safety precautions in all future events. The people here are often open to new ideas, but are not sure how to implement them.
Alex and I taught a class of 23 kids aged 10-11 during the outreach in the mornings (see picture). In the afternoons Victor and Alex and I held a medical clinic for all the children of the camp and anyone else who needed care (see picture). We saw lines of people until the sun went down and until we couldn’t read the labels on the medication bottles any more. Victor arranged for 3 healthcare workers from the local haus-sik (hospital) to come teach awareness on HIV/AIDS and STD’s (sexually transmitted diseases) during the camp. This was followed by teaching on the biblical view and benefits of obeying God’s Word versus the world’s way of dealing with sexual issues.
Then yesterday there was a “combined” church service which formally closed the youth and children’s camp. People from all over the Kokopo district and the surrounding ones came to worship together. Victor led the communion service (see picture) and the pastors served their congregations as worship music was playing. As each group returned to their seats on the ground, a group of pastors would refill the cups for the next group. The camp was officially declared a success and the new Provincial youth pastors and leaders for 2010 were dedicated and prayed over so that they would continue a strong work with the youth and children and plan for future events. It was really wonderful to laugh with the other teachers and play with the children. They took ownership of us as “our missionaries” and it was a pleasure to be a part of the work God is doing there. Please pray for continued growth and maturity in the lives of the believers here.
- That the volcano would quiet down. I know you have heard this before, but it is a hardship that affects every part of daily living. The airport has only intermittent service now due to the ash and we haven’t received any mail for a long time. The PNG national convention is in February and we can’t even book any tickets as the airlines will not issue any until “further notice.”. We continue to trust God even when we are land-locked.
- As a result of one of our medical and evangelism outreaches, there is a small Foursquare church now in Mioko, one of the eight small islands of the Duke of York chain located between East New Britain and New Ireland. This is where we had a difficult, but productive medical and evangelism outreach last October. Please pray for calm seas so that we can visit and encourage those in Duke of York islands. We also would like smooth sailing for our next community entry travel in preparation for future medical and evangelism outreaches.
- For unity and maturity for the Pastors and leaders here and for their Life Transformation Groups (LTG’s).
- For Godly wisdom and Spirit-led guidance – that we may speak boldly in the confidence of the Holy Spirit.
- For God’s plan for 2010.
- For Protection.
- For our son, Nathaniel who is in the Seattle area.
“Attempt Great Things For God.
Expect Great Things From God.”
William Carey
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