We are back in PNG! We left St Louis International on Saturday the 3rd, then four back to back flights and 36 hours later we arrived here on Monday the 5th. It has taken longer this time to recover from severe jet lag. Must be our age. Praise God that we had no hitches at all anywhere along the way, arriving the 5th in the afternoon with all of our luggage arriving with us. We sailed through immigration and customs in Port Moresby (PNG’s capitol) and just barely made it to the last flight. Many thanks to all of you who prayed for us.
Presently we are staying at the mission center in one of the guest house units catching our breath as it were before we head up to the Dom (three hours from here by vehicle). On Thursday the 15th, Jim drove up to the Dom to check things out and take most of our supplies up and get an empty LP gas bottle and our ice chests. As we have shared before there is a drought here in PNG with the Simbu Province (where the Dom people live) being hit the hardest. This lack of rain is due to El Nino and predictions suggest that it will continue into the next year. So far there has not been enough rain in four months to sustain their gardens. Please pray for us and the people of PNG concerning this situation. We need wisdom and guidance as to how we can help them. We personally have never ever really gone without food so cannot imagine how it is for them. We, the Dom Team, are only four people and there are 10,000 plus Dom people so the challenge is great. We will be searching out what PNG government assistance there is and what our options are. Thank you for praying.
Thankfully, our water tank is only down a little so that is good. Being careful, we can make the 1500 gallons or so of a 2,000 gallon tank last awhile. Looks like we will head up to the Dom on Tuesday, the 20th. That gives us Monday to get fresh vegetables at market. Surprisingly there are still fresh vegetables down here in this area. The cost is a lot more than usual but we are thankful to have fruit and vegetables.
These next weeks will be busy with cleaning our house that has sat closed up for 16 months, unpacking all our things and getting into a routine. Excited to hear what the Dom Christians think of their Dom New Testaments and to begin using them as a group in Sunday services and Bible study! We would like to start a literacy class soon so that more Dom people can read the Word of God in their own language. Please pray that interest among the people for literacy will grow.
An update on our equipment upgrade. The Lord has provided enough money to buy a good used generator in country, solar panels and a lot of the necessary items (inverter, controller, etc.) also in country. Additionally a recent large gift has made it possible to buy a much needed 12 volt fridge and finish buying most of the rest of the items including the new batteries which are yet to come. A fellow missionary here wants to come up to the Dom the end of November and set it all up for us. After all the bills are in, we will keep you posted. Now it is mostly shipping, duty, etc. for the other items when they arrive. Thanks so much to all of you that gave toward this project and yet to give. It will be a huge blessing to have new reliable equipment that doesn’t take a lot of Jim’s time trying to keep going. Not to mention cost efficient.
Thank you for praying for Ilai as he is still in prison. Hard not hearing from him now as we were able to talk weekly on the phone while we were home. Not a lot about Brian. He needs a permanent job that pays enough for him to live. He is tired of struggling to make ends meet. His current temp job is coming to an end. Darren and Katie are very busy between seminary and work. Heather right now is on a trip in Europe that she has longed saved for and looked forward to. Enroute to her moving to Louisville, KY just before leaving for Europe, she had to give up her car as it yet again ended up in the shop. God has provided housing for her for now, pray she can find a job as soon as she is back and that she can find a reliable vehicle.
Thank you one and all for being a part of our ministry here PNG. We enjoyed our Home Assignment and being with family and friends and making new friends. Hard to leave but we look forward to what God has for us in this next four year term.
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