A couple of months ago the Simbari believers decided on their own to rebuild the old church in the village here which had been built about 15 years ago (a long time for a house made of bush materials). Over the summer they gathered new materials from the jungle and for the last month have been working together whenever possible. This new building will be about the same size, just a few feet higher off the ground, making room underneath for people to sit in the shade after church. They are now weaving the cane walls together and should have it all finished in the next few weeks. We praise the Lord for the way they have been a light to the community as they work together cheerfully, doing their work for the Lord. Many in the community were surprised that they were all doing the work voluntarily, without any monetary compensation. Such behavior is not a common practice in this country. This gave them the chance to tell others that they were doing it because of their love for the Lord. It also was a good opportunity to put into practice what they heard recently from Romans 12 about offering themselves as living sacrifices. Both Simbari churches are really soaking up the truths they are learning in Romans. Many of the newer believers have been attending literacy classes so they can read God’s Word for themselves and the classes are almost done now. We are in the last stages of preparing Ephesians Lessons for teaching to the believers as soon as we finish in Romans.
We praise the Lord for helping us continue to make good progress on Bible translation. To date, David has been able to finish the preliminary drafts for 1 Corinthians, 1 Timothy, Titus, and 1 Thessalonians. He is now ready to work on 2 Thessalonians and then Revelation. Of course this is only the first stage of the process but of the many stages it is the most time-consuming for David so it is a big step ahead to get these preliminary drafts completed. After the believers finish rebuilding the church he will resume working with his translation helper on the next stage of the translation process on those books that have already been drafted.
Please Pray:
- For continued good progress in Bible translation.
- Continued spiritual growth in the lives of the believers.
- Wisdom for Shari as she has had an increase in medical work lately and it’s often been hard to diagnose and treat those who are sick.
- For Esther and Simon in college, Rachel at the mission school here in PNG, Jason at home with us in the village. For God’s comfort as we are separated from each other.
- For our power situation in the tribe because our solar battery bank is 7 years old now and is no longer holding a charge very well. The only way to replace these kind of batteries is to have new ones shipped over via container from the states.
- For the upcoming staffing needs at Rachel’s school here in PNG. Currently, we have critical needs for teachers in high school math, science, and band, as well as two of our elementary grades. Our complete needs list is available on our website: http://www.mmol.org/NCA
We really appreciate your prayers for our family and our ministry.
David, Shari, and family