Some exciting things happening here. For years we’ve been praying that somehow the believers could reach out to a another province which adjoins our’s about 4 hours from here. Recently, Mahan’s in-laws relocated to a Manubu’ village in that province because of threats being made against his father-in-law. (His father-in-law has done nothing wrong.) Mahan’s father-in-law has been sending messages to him to come and teach the Manubu’ there. Could this be it? Could Mahan’s in-laws fleeing to that province be God’s plan to get an outreach started there?
Next month we and Mahan, and his family, and Pulding will travel to that province. They will go to the village to see if the Manubu’ there really do want to be taught. It is said that this is a solid Manubu’ village where even the kids speak Manubu’. We will look over a nearby town which is on the highway to see if there would be any possibility of our living there so Pulding could teach at the Manubu’ village and also serve as our translation helper. The town on the highway is just a small town so we need to see if there is a suitable house to rent and mechanics and carpenters there who could take the load of vehicle and house repair off from Gene.
If isn’t going to work out there then we will survey the housing situation in a larger town in our province near a Manubu’ village that Pulding and Piduy surveyed a few weeks ago and where an outreach could be started.
So, lots of travel and decisions to make in the coming month. Please PRAY for safe travel, vehicle working well, open doors, and wise decisions. To get there we will have to travel 70KM of terrible, muddy, road with our mud truck before we hit pavement.
Another exciting bit of news. We’ve asked you in the past to pray that government school teachers would be willing to use our literacy material and teach Manubu’ kids to read using Manubu’ rather than Filipino and English with Filipino and English following after they have learned to read. The school in our village has been using our material this past year for kindergarten and first grade and have asked for literacy books for 85 students next year! Some school teachers in the lowlands have heard about the success of the program in the school here and are asking if they can use our literacy material to teach Manubu’ kids there. And the department of education is in favor of it. Please PRAY that they will follow through on this so that Manubu’ kids can quickly learn to read in the own language instead of spending years learning to read in languages they don’t understand.
Also, please continue to PRAY for Jujin. Church leadership has asked him to come before the church and ask forgiveness for his worldly behavior which has brought reproach upon the church and to also stop driving his motorcycle illegally without driver license or motorcycle registration before resuming teaching the children’s groups he has been teaching. We’ve heard that he cries because he is not being allowed to continue teaching, but is disinclined to confess before the church. He has stopped attending the Sunday meetings.
Also, please continue to PRAY about our internet connection which hasn’t been working very well for a number of months now and also for the Lord’s provision of a vehicle for us for our time in the States this summer.
Lots to be thankful for, lots to pray for. Keep looking UP! He’s coming soon.