Fabulous February!

Creature Comforts

            It’s a small thing, but it’s amazing how the little things can make a house a home.  Over the past 6 months or so, our stuff has been slowly making its way out of Mibu.  A couple weeks ago, we hired a truck to go to Madang and bring up the stuff that had been collecting there.  Among the things that came were our couch (oh, so comfy), some book shelves (needed badly to help keep our books from molding further), material for curtains (that actually matches our décor) and more toys for the kids.  To be surrounded by our own things again, after about 3 years, just feels so good!  Not everything has made its way out yet, and we’d ask you to just pray about that.  Some things are still sitting in the trade store in Saidor, and it seems to be left to the whim of the store workers there as to when it gets put on the boat.  It’s starting to feel like it’s been a long time since everything has been together, and I think we’d just like to have it all here.

 

Birthday Girl!

            Jael has just celebrated her 9^th birthday!  It’s crazy how fast time flies with your kids!  It has occurred to us that we are half-way through our time of having Jael in our home.  While it is a sobering thought, we are also so very proud of the young lady she is becoming!  She is one who has shown perseverance over and over again in her schooling.  She demonstrates a deepening compassion for those who are lost and hurting around her, and her desire to help increases with each passing year.  She is such a wonderful gift to our family, and a vital part of our ministry!

 

Training Needs

            It is almost official…Angie is heading to the Philippines for her Discovery training course to be well-equipped to work with Jael’s special learning needs.  It’s almost official since we are still waiting to hear back on her application (but from what we’ve heard, this is totally to be expected).  Airline tickets are booked (though not yet paid for) and accommodations for her are lined up in Manila (at two different mission’s guest houses).  Things seem to be falling into place very nicely.  Except perhaps the finances.   We’d also ask you to pray about those.  We figure the cost of the trip to be about $2500 for everything, and we currently have about $800 saved up to put towards it.  Angie is scheduled to fly May 15, and her classes start on the 17^th.  Pray also as she continues to prepare for this course…that she’d be able to retain all the information she is reading, and be able to apply it appropriately.

 

Mibu Update

            The things that we continue to hear coming out of Mibu are very encouraging.  I’d like to include a story from the Tartaglias about a tragedy that happened to some friends some weeks back that shows just how much our brothers and sisters there are growing.

            “After the church service, when many of the people had dispersed, Parenoowe grabbed my skirt as I walked by pulling me down on the rough bench next to her. Her face was drawn and tight, eyes still shining with tears carefully held in check. She leaned her face very close to mine, and with great emotion asked if we could talk about her daughter. It has been less than three weeks since her 9 year old, Joonoomeng, had run down ahead of her friends to the river, and whose body been found days later washed up on the shore a few miles down the steep river ravine. Parenoowe 's searing pain showed in her eyes, her voice, and the tight grip she held on my hand. Her questions are the same that anyone would wrestle with... "Why did this happen? Did I do something wrong that God allowed this? Where is she now? Will I see her again?"

             “I wish I had something to say to Parenoowe that didn't sound trite. "My friend, God is not angry with you, He is not punishing you. You know this, don't you. He loves you and He loves your children. We all die.

We do not know when—today, tomorrow, when we are young or when we are very old. Only God knows all of this. We cannot know. But we do know that we can trust God with this. We will have to leave it with Him." I paused, thinking.

"What does Weng tell you?" I whispered, her face still very close to mine.

Parenoowe 's oldest, married son, Weng, has carried the family through this time. He has been a Bible teacher and helped teach through the Bible to other villages, and has a very evident love for the Lord and His Word."Yes, this is what Weng tells me," she quietly answered.

               “Even while they were still searching for little Joonoomeng's body, our family had hiked over to their village to see what we could do, and be there with them as they waited for news. In the past, we would have been needed at the forefront, reassuring and reminding everyone of God's love for His children. Instead, when what we found were other brothers and sisters in Christ ministering to the family, and to Joonoomeng's mother in particular.

And when Weng's faith was brought to the test, his little sister missing and feared dead, his faith was steady and shone through brightly.”