Earning Grace

September 27, 2011

A few years ago a friend and I were at a missions conference when we got into a discussion about the “right” way to eat bananas. I laughed at first, but after hearing his arguments, I became convinced that he was on to something. The first thing he shared with me was how bananas grow […]

Iris, Our Strong Little Flower

July 6, 2011

As most of you know, our wonderful daughter Iris (Hebrew, meaning “flower”) has finally made her entrance into the world! Every day we are filled with praise to the Lord for her life and feel incredibly blessed. We wanted to share with you a little more detail about how Iris was born to give more glory to […]

Family, Friends & Goals

May 29, 2011

Wow. We have already been home for a month and a half. For sure, it has flown by! Our last few weeks have been met with an endless supply of encouragement from guests visiting our home, mostly missionaries preparing to leave for the field or fresh off the field on home assignment like Beth & […]

The Gross Stuff

December 1, 2010

Not all that happens in Papua New Guinea looks or feels like living in a tropical paradise. In the over three months we have been living here we have already encountered a host of the “not-so-pleasant” that PNG has to offer. A good handful of you who keep track of us have asked a […]

A Guide to Buai

November 29, 2010

Part of our job living in Papua New Guinea right now is not only learning the trade language, but also learning about PNG culture. We have asked questions like, “What do the people eat?” “Where do they live?” “How do they interact with one another?” We observe the material culture and note their social behaviors, […]

Koraate

October 17, 2010

Living on an NTM center here in the Islands region of Papua New Guinea never has a dull moment. Being at the center is like living at a “hub” of sorts. There are a few guest rooms here for missionaries to stay in when they are traveling through or when they need a small break […]

Commissioned!

August 2, 2010

Yesterday was our official commissioning during the service at our sending church, Grace Point in Adrian, Michigan! Our pastors and elders stood us before the congregation and made it official, Grace Point Church is sending Tom & Beth Carlton to Papua New Guinea. On their behalf, and with their support, we will be messengers of […]

Afraid to Go?

June 10, 2010

Many people have asked us if we are scared to move overseas. I suppose there are a lot of ways we could answer this question. Sure, there are times we get a bit queasy at the thought of all we will face, extreme heat, threat of disease, discouragement and so on. Inevitably though, when we […]

Another Oregon Trail

April 28, 2010

We’ve blazed the Oregon trail yet again! Well, at least our own trial from Michigan to the west. We’ve been able to return to Oregon three times over the last year and a half. This time however will likely be our last before heading overseas, and it is also quite short compared to our last […]

Goodbye, Palm Trees

January 24, 2010

This last week has been a full one! Early in the week we had a meeting with a missions pastor from a church in the area. We sat over chai tea, juice and water and shared him our vision to see the unreached people of Papua New Guinea reached with the gospel. It was a […]