Michelle Van Klompenberg and Coralee Garro, along with their husbands, Lyle and Jason, had a short visit last week with the Fore people in Papua New Guinea where their parents, Paul and Roz Wyton, worked for 15 years. Click for Photo Tour>>>
Michelle and Coralee, who hadn’t been to the Fore village for 19 years, had the chance to show their husbands where they spent many formative years; a place they have talked so much about.
To get to the remote location, they traveled by helicopter. As they flew in they were shocked to see the old helicopter pad covered with little houses. The people had dug out a small spot in the side of a hill but it looked to be too dangerous for a landing.
The hunt was on to find a suitable area to land in the mountainous terrain. The pilot found a place on an old road that was just wide enough to set the helicopter down. While the believers were waiting for their visitors at the freshly dug pad on the other side of the ravine, unbelievers from the village next to the old road came to escort the group down the muddy, steep slope, across the ravine and up the other side to where the believers were.
The visitors only had four hours to spend with the people and with the threat of rain the pilot kept his eyes on the clouds. The weather cooperated with the groups’ plans and they were able to stay for their allotted time.
Meeting with the believers in the small church building presented an opportunity for the unbelievers to hear the Gospel. The unbelieving Fores ignored their usual practice of never entering the door of the church so they could be with their visitors.
Michelle and Coralee presented the people with a letter from their father in the Fore language. Kapu, the son of one of the early believers, who now does most of the Bible teaching in the church, read Paul’s letter to the people, stopping periodically to add comments and to take advantage of the opportunity to share the Gospel.
The hunger of the people for more Bible teaching and to have the Word of God in their own language was made clear during the visit. The people pleaded for someone to learn their language and to complete the translation of the Bible in their dialect. They said there are people all over these mountains who don’t know Jesus. "Could you please send someone to help us?" they asked.
While there are believers and a small church among the Fore, circumstances beyond their control, lead both the Wytons and their co-workers, John and Kay Tallman, into other ministries within New Tribes Mission before the Bible translation and teaching were completed. Several Old and New Testament portions and the book of Ephesians were translated into the Fore language along with the chronological Bible lessons and other teaching materials. Today, the believers are also using a Bible written in the trade language of the country, but it is difficult for them to understand clearly and doesn’t speak to them with the same clarity as their mother tongue.
"How I wish our bodies were younger so that we could be the ones to go back in there," wrote Roz. "Pray that God will raise up labors to go in and continue the work that we began back in 1973 with the Fore people."
Kapu, and another believer, Casper, plan to bring a letter to NTM leaders asking for missionaries.
"Seeing these dear people so hungry for God’s word has once again revitalized us and reminded us of our purpose here and the things that matter for eternity," wrote Lyle. "When God began to work in our hearts to leave our home in Michigan, we couldn’t imagine being so content on the other side of the world so far from our family and friends, however God has a way of filling our hearts much fuller than we ever imagined."
"Michelle and I feel so burdened for the Fore people and it is heartbreaking to know there are so many other similar tribes begging for a missionary."
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