We had a wonderful but quick time in the U.S. this summer and are thankful to the Lord for the special times we had with family and friends as well as taking care of some medical needs which we aren’t able to do over here in Papua New Guinea. Of course we wish we could have seen more of our friends and supporters but there just wasn’t enough time during this short visit. We’re thankful for the opportunities we did have to share with groups and individuals about the exciting things God has been doing in the lives of the Simbari believers here. One of the stories we shared was about a man by the name of Bo’wal who has been coming to church for many years but has not shown much fruit in his life until this past year. He is a very shy man and would not speak up very often in church during testimony time. Even though he has been hearing the teaching for years it’s only been in the last year that he has started to speak up about his faith. The week before we left to go to Simon’s graduation and then on to California, we heard this amazing account of the evidence of God working in and through Bo’wal’s life. 
One of the other believers shared with us that a thief from another tribe had stolen food from Bo’wal’s family garden and his wife was putting pressure on him to bring charges against the thief and try to get some compensation money from him. Bo’wal told her that he didn’t feel it would be pleasing to the Lord and refused to press charges. This caused her to lose her temper and hit her husband very hard across the arm with a big stick. Culturally, the husband would never let his wife get away with such insubordination and disrespect, but would need to hit her back to keep her in line. To the amazement of his family, Bo’wal did not do this, but instead just sat there quietly. He told us later that he was just thinking about how Christ took the beating for him when he died on the cross, and he knew it would be wrong to hit back at his wife. Well it wasn’t long and the whole village was buzzing with talk about Bo’wal not hitting back at his wife. God used this event in the life of his adult son and his son’s wife who put their trust in Christ as their Savior just a few days later! Bo’wal’s son was so overcome by what Christ had done for him that the villagers were talking about how he was going around weeping and confessing his sins to those he had wronged, and on Sunday during church he was not content to sit with the congregation and sing during worship time but went up to join those leading the worship and fervently sang his praise to the Lord with all his heart. What a joy it was to witness one of many evidences of God’s Spirit working in the lives of the Simbari believers and continuing to build His church! We feel so privileged to be His servants here, continuing to translate His Word and the wonderful truths that change lives. Now that we are back home in the tribe, David is finishing the preliminary translation draft of 1 Corinthians, Shari is teaching 4th grade to Jason, Rachel is in tenth grade at the mission school, Simon is just starting college and Esther will be getting back to college next month. Thanks so much for your continued prayers for our ministry. It is a real encouragement! In His love, David, Shari, and family