Me, Robyn, and our kids will be meeting these ladies, their children, and many more tomorrow.  I have to sit and tell myself that this is really happening.  We have been soooo busy the last month and a half while our guys have been gone most of that time so it hasn't left much time to be able to stop and think about how close we were to moving in with the Amdu people.  The day has come!  We  ladies and kids head out in the morning and will get off that plane in Amdu and shake many, many hands!  Our guys have told us how excited the ladies are to have us come in.  We are excited too! 

 

 I haven't had much time to even cry, but the tears sure have been coming at random times the last two days!  I think of family back home and times like these make me miss them even more.  Change always has this affect on me as I am sure it does with a lot of people. I have been thinking about how signficant this change is in our lives and in the lives of the Amdu.  The reason behind what we are doing makes me very excited.  Many more moments of adjustments and needing to be flexible await us, but I am so thankful that we get to do this!  Can't WAIT until we learn their language well enough to be able to start teaching them God's story!  Thank you for being a part of this very significant thing!  Please keep praying for us:

 

*For safety and good weather as we fly tomorrow morning (your evening)

 

*That we will 'shine as lights' from the time we get off that plane onward

 

*For us as we adjust to some still rough living as our house is at a very simple stage still and the plumbing/water might not be quite up and running when we get in there

 

*For a good rain once the last piece of tin on roof, water bladder, and gutters are finished

 

*For our kids and the adjustments they will face (they are pretty excited though!)

 

*For the Allen's as they are awaiting paperwork for their newborn baby in Australia before being able to come back and join us

 

We are soooo thankful to Roger Deed, Layne Campbell, Bill Morlang, Chad Earl, and the Amdu people for helping us build our house and get plumbing, electrical, etc., set up!!  Very thankful for Tim Shontere who has been running around like crazy here in Wewak while our guys are gone, to make sure all our loads for flights are organized and happening...he has been working so hard for us!  Many, many more people have been a part in helping us here in PNG.  So thankful for you too, who are praying for us, keeping in touch, and giving financially so this can happen.  We love you and miss you!

 

It might take us a bit of time to get our e-mail up and running.  It can be done through the shortwave radio, but we have purchased a used BGAN, which uses satelite to transmit e-mails (I guess we pay per megabyte and it can also be used as a Satelite phone when needed.)  Next time you hear from us, it will be from AMDU! :)

 

 

 

 

 



Here is an e-mail we just received from Wayne and Gail Chen...missionaries to the Biem people....Can't say much else.....so thankful for God's grace and love...and the privilege to take the Gospel where it has never been before.  Thanks Biem missionaries...thank you prayer warriors and financial supporters of the work there!

"Enough, enough.  Stop!  Don't hit him like that!"  A Biem lady shouted out loud from the back as the Roman soldiers (Brandon) put a beating on Jesus (Thomas).  On the last day of the teaching, we acted out Jesus dying on the cross, the burial and the resurrection.  People looked on intently, trying to understand what it all means.  After the drama, we taught...

Jesus is our sin substitute.  The penalty of sin is death.  But God always provided, just like the Old Testament.  We brought them back to Noah, God provided a boat (with one door).  Abraham and Isaac, how God would not let Abraham kill his son but provided a substitute.  In the Passover, the blood on the doorpost was the only way to avoid death.  People have been thinking hard about these OT stories for weeks and now they are all making sense. 

Jesus defeated death.  Jesus rose again and death no longer has power over Jesus and those who trust in Him.  Death is feared no matter where you live but in a tribal culture like Biem, it is openly, regularly exhibited.  The endless wailing at funerals, the finality of death and the pure dread of dying...death is a big deal to our guys here. 

When we believe in Jesus and what He has done on the cross, our spirits become alive again in God's eyes.  We used a permanent black marker on a white board and wrote some names on it and said, "whoever believes in God's talk, God will put his name in the book of life and it will never be removed." 

We concluded with the Great Commission and Jesus' ascension.  We told them it is because of this "talk" that we all left our families in Taiwan, Germany and US and came here. 

Guys, there is so much more I can type here but let me just get to some of the responses after the lesson yesterday.

"Mali?  Mali?  Mali Muel?"  (Really?  Really?  REALLY?)  The top fisherman on the island just kept on asking this question, in total astonishment in what Jesus did on the cross for him.  He just kept on looking at everybody around him and popped the question, "Really? really?" 

"This is God's talk.  I've heard it.  See, it's just one story, from the Old Testament to Jesus.  There is no other road but Jesus.  God meant it this way from the beginning."

"I am so free (the Biem expression is I am no longer carrying a heavy load on my shoulder)!  I used to think all the good things I do would get me to heaven.  But every night when I go to sleep, I knew I had not the slightest clue where I'd go if I die.  So I'd get up the next morning, trying to do more 'works' so I can go to heaven.  Now I know that Jesus paid for my sin debt and He said it is 'finished.  I am so free." 

A young guy sat next to me, with a biggest smile on his face.  He didn't say anything so I asked him, "what's on your mind?"  He said, "Wayne, I had a big question yesterday.  Why didn't God the Father help Jesus on the cross?  I thought about it all night and I didn't know.  But after today's lesson, I don't have any more questions.  I got it.  I understand it.  I am just going to sit here and be happy."  He smiled on...

And one young Biem man has a message for YOU.  Yes, YOU.  He said, "I know I should thank God for you guys but I want to thank all three of your families for bring God's talk here."  Then we told him that, no, it's not just the three families.  There are literally thousands of people praying for you guys to understand God's talk all over the world.  He then said, "Ok, then you go and tell them, ALL OF THEM, THANK YOU.  God's talk has come to our island.  THANK THEM for praying and sending you guys here."  This young man, along with a few others, began to discuss how they need to take this talk to other islands and even different language groups in Papua New Guinea.  I shook my head and just marveled at the Holy Spirit.  He is at work already!  It took me how many years after salvation to even wrap my head around the need for "missions" but but these guys are talking about it minutes after they trusted in Jesus!  At that moment, I was no longer "the missionary" but a fellow brother in Christ, learning from our Biem brothers in Christ.

Guys, again, this is just the beginning and there is much growing ahead for our Biem believers.  Persecutions will come (and have come already).  Many people are still against this talk.  But as John 1:5 says, "The light shines in the darkness and darkness can never extinguish it."  The light broke through and it is here to stay.

More to come but want to get this out to you guys first...

Because of the Road Man,

Wayne, Gail, Abby & Kala

Prayer Needed!

Dave Parry, Bart Allen, & Benjamin

 

 

The guys left this morning to head out to the tribe where we will be living in just a few short months!  They will be gone for the next ten days or so.  We gave some of the details in our most recent update, but just wanted to ask you to please pray for some specific things:

 

* For safety as they fly in and out of there (a mountainous area)

 

*  For them to meet up with just the right people there today, who can lead them on their hikes to the different villages

 

*  For our Guys' legs and backs to stay strong as they do a lot of hiking in these mountains

 

*  For good health

 

*  For good opportunities for the men with the people, explaining again why we want to live with them and what our goals are for being there

 

* For good insight and wisdom as possibly house building locations will be discussed and planned

 

* For us ladies and kids who are staying behind....strength and patience for the moms and sensitive, obedient, and helpful hearts for the kids!

 

 

We know that God will go before us and lead these men and provide for them.  Thank you for praying for us!

 

~Missy and the kids