A Very Special Day

Wow, I just got back from a very special 4 days on the coast. This may be my last chance to get out of the Highlands and see a little bit more of the country, so I jumped at it. We had an opportunity to go to Madang for a long weekend. Our goal was to get out every day and be with the locals whenever possible, but not in the town. We wanted to be out in the villages on the islands. Time to step out of our comfort zones a bit, use our Pigin to communicate with the people, and experience some real cultural differences. One of the Islands is so small it only had 10 people living on it!

Sunday was our most special time. We borrowed some kayaks and paddled out to an island. There was a small beach there and we arrived just in time to help some people unload a boat full of bamboo!

We continued along the coast of that island and heard some singing. We found a little church service going on so we stayed in our kayaks (not wanting to intrude or distract) but listened to the preaching from the water. From there we headed to another Island. There were some ladies fishing along the way, so we stopped to talk to them and ask if it was ok to go hang out on their island.

It turns out the name of this beautiful place is Leper Island. HA! It’s because during WW2 they quarantined anyone with Leprosy on that Island. Charming. We enjoyed the beach and some snorkeling, and then the boys learned how to harpoon fish from some local guys! They all came back to the beach to show me their catches. (It would not have been culturally appropriate for me to go out there with them). There was a little girl with them named Linda, and I sat with her while she cleaned all the fish the men had caught. Then we played & splashed each other in the water while the guys built a fire and cooked the fish for us. It was so cool to just be with the people.

Oh yes... we ate Dori.

This last picture is sweet Linda, fishing again... just throwing out a line with a hook and some bait on the end. What an awesome day!!!

"Let there be kindness in your face, in your eyes, in your smile, in the warmth of your greeting...Don't only give your care, but give your heart as well." ~ Mother Teresa

"The soul, itself invisible, is seen by what it does through the body." ~ Johann Albrecht Bengel

Highlands Conference

We just finished up the big annual Highlands Conference on Monday. ITF hosts the missionaries from all over the Highlands for a time of teaching, fellowship, relaxing, playing, worshiping, getting muddy (we've had a lot of rain), and encouraging each other with what God is doing in the highlands of PNG! It was just awesome. I was blessed to be able to attend a lot of the sessions… hearing lots of testimonies & tribal reports. I love hearing what happens in the villages as the Gospel is presented and they understand Grace for the first time. The joy and then the sadness & urgency these new believers have to tell others. It is an example to all of us.

It was great fun for me to meet & get to know other missionaries. There was a couple here – the Palmers – who have been serving in a tribe in PNG for 55 years! What characters! They were a hoot. From that extreme to the opposite – a young couple who’s only been in their tribe for 6 months and just starting their language study. The conference felt like a big family reunion! We had a skit night, lots of singing, a banquet, games, ice cream (oooh, what a treat!)… lots of lingering over meals with coffee and good conversation.

There was an older couple with some specific needs that needed less primitive accommodations, so I gave them my house and stayed in a cabin with my friend Heather. It was a little bit like camping and we had a great time. I also got to experience the famous ITF tradition – Bucket Showers!

During the last couple of weeks I’ve been battling a stomach virus from Hades. Ugh! I was only able to eat small portions, and mostly just rice and bananas and toast. Thankfully, that seems to finally be over. *Thank you all for your prayers about that!* Last night my PNG Family (Beth, the Germans & I) went to town for dinner at a new restaurant as a special treat, and I ate a whole steak! It was my first steak in 9 months… and while it was a PNG steak (definitely not the same quality as back home) I was grinning the whole time. I’m SO happy to be able to eat real food again, and to have a real steak! Now if I could only have some cheese…

In other news, things are starting to come together for me back home. I was able to find the cheapest plane ticket anybody has seen in 10 years, and God provided the funds for me to book it immediately! I also found out that I have a 1 Bedroom apartment reserved for me in Sanford, so I don’t have to do any house hunting. I am in awe of how all of these details have been worked out, through no effort of mine. It was some much needed affirmation that this is what God wants for me. I’ve been struggling with the idea of leaving PNG. But if I could be obedient enough to come here and leave everything behind, then I can certainly be obedient enough to head back to the States. Who knows where this next step will lead?!

“I want passionate feelings to characterize my relationship with the Lord Jesus. Of course, I want to be perfectly obedient to the Lord, but I want the obedience to spring out of a passionate love for him. I want to obey Jesus not simply out of discipline of duty, or because of some reward or fear of punishment. I want to serve Him simply for the joy of being able to please the one I love so much. If discipline is what ultimately drives us in our pursuit of Jesus, eventually we will give up that pursuit. But a man in love, or a woman in love will never quit.... I want my life to be characterized by an unrestrained affection for the Son of God” ~ Jack Deere