So it has been almost forever since I last posted anything let alone a video. In earlier Sept, Emily and I were in Gandep teaching at the Church of Christ Bible college there. We took a brief video from Gandep with a couple cameo roosters in the background. Enjoy.
Archive for the ‘Newsletters’ Category
Harvest
Posted in Newsletters, tagged harvest, montana on August 13, 2013| 2 Comments »
This week Emily wrote for the branch website, pbtpng.org, about harvest time in north central Montana and the harvest fields in Papua New Guinea. I feel it is appropriate to share with you as well.
By Emily
It doesn’t matter where I am in the world, I always long to be back in the harvest fields in north central Montana during the months of 
July and August. Many people describe Papua New Guinea as paradise. Though it may be tropical paradise it will take my heart a long time to consider it my idea of paradise. Don’t get me wrong I enjoy the lush beautiful scenery of Papua New Guinea and the adventure it brings. My heart still screams for the rolling fields of golden wheat when it’s ready to harvest mixed together with the big blue sky. The opportunity to be “on call” for whatever equipment part that needs to be picked up in town or busy preparing the next meal, at which point getting a call to come move machinery. I had a part to play in the harvest and though it’s been done many times without me, at the time I served a purpose. My brothers would poke fun at mom, my sister and I that they did all the hard work but really at the end of the day it took a level of team work to get it all done. At the end of harvest we could all utter a sigh of relief and be proud of what was accomplished, not to mention have a good steak dinner to celebrate.
Today, I’m in Papua New Guinea because of the deep impact the harvest season had on my life and the reality that Jesus himself said,
“The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” (Luke 10:2)
My heart beats to know that God has a plan for the people of Papua New Guinea to know himself and that He wants to use me to be a part of the harvest. Every day I realize the sheer magnitude of the task and realize the pressure that dad had on his shoulders to do whatever it took to bring in the harvest each year. It takes strategy, sacrifice, and sheer determination to keep on keeping on. Thank you to all who are praying, sending and going, we will one day be in true paradise rejoicing over the harvest and it will be magnificent!
Emily is the Director of Support Services.
Recording Kindergarten Songs in PNG
Posted in Newsletters on August 4, 2013| 3 Comments »
Over the past few weeks I had the opportunity to record both vernacular and Tok Pisin songs of four language groups that were attending the Elementary Prep Teacher Training Course that was being conducted by PBT. Back in January I made the statement that it was a goal of mine this year to do some audio recording. This tickled the ears of the course director and she later asked me if I would be interested in recording finger plays and alphabet songs. I said, lets give it a try as it would be my first time and a great learning experience.
This past month, I was given the opportunity to work four different languages groups. I recorded two alphabet songs, many finger plays, and also other school songs that students recite. It was neat to hear the different sounds of each unique language. Two of the languages have the New Testament in their language, Aruamu and La’o. Two others are working towards the completion of their New Testaments, Mborena Kam and Akukem. The Mborena Kam is hoping to finish and have their New Testament dedication in 2015.
I recorded songs for the schools such as: 5 Green Frogs, 10 Ripe Mangos, 10 Little Fingers, Small Spider, and Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes.
To listen to 5 Green Frogs in Mborena Kam language – Click Here.
While working with these groups, we are encouraging the use of mother tongue language and the use of their language in their schools to keep their rich heritage and culture. These songs will be saved to SD card then played in many forms of audible devices such as boom boxes and mobile phones. Children will repeatedly play these songs until the batteries go dead or until the annoyed parents take away the device.
Bot Tok Pisin and English are growing and becoming more acceptable in every day language while their local mother tongue language is dying. By capturing the language audibly for the next generation of speakers, we hope to re-enforce the use and importance of their heart language.
Below are pictures of the four language groups that attended the course and that I got to work with to record their language.
All Bibles should be….Red?
Posted in Newsletters on July 21, 2013| 1 Comment »
When I was attending Jr. High Sunday School class at First Christian Church in Brazil, IN the teacher had a different title, Jr. High University. We were just not an ordinary Jr. High class but we were students enrolled in University. Our teacher took the serious approach to Sunday School, this was not your social hour but rather University class. The class would start and he would ask how many chapters of the Bible we read last week. Everyone would answer and he would record. You could tell who the Bible Bowl students were from the average student. I knew during the worship service that I needed to read some chapters cause I didn’t want to be embarrassed in University class. I would diligently read during the sermon to up my chapters for class. At least I felt a little better about it than lying to the teacher about how many chapters I read the previous week.
Our teacher also believed in reading the Bible in a language that we could understand. Many of us today have a difficult time reading the King James or even the New International Version. Our teacher would give each student a Contemporary English Version Bible, simply stated, God’s Words in Your Words. It was much easier to understand and follow so this was the version of the Bible that we used in the University.
One Sunday during class our teacher made this statement, “All Bibles should be red” or at least how I understood the statement. My first thought was well yes, Jesus’ words are very important and they are in red. I agreed with the statement and thought, you are right teacher all Bibles should be red. I looked at my Bible and noticed it was blue and my Bible at home was black and brown. I though to myself, something is wrong, my Bible is not red. The conversation went on to explain that all Bibles should be ‘READ’. Ah…that makes perfect sense.
In Papua New Guinea as in any country, not all Bibles are read. Go one step further, not all languages in the world has a Bible to read. It is a huge challenge to translate the Bible or New Testament into the heart languages of the people. However this is just the first step, the next hurdle is to get God’s people to read the Bible. After all, all Bibles should be read.
The picture below is from Gandep Bible College in rural Papua New Guinea. It is a picture of the Tok Pisin Buk Baibel (Bible) along with a student’s notebook. This Bible might not be red, but from the looks it must be read quite often.
Brief vacation to the Highlands
Posted in Newsletters, tagged strawberries, Ukarumpa on July 3, 2013| 2 Comments »
Last weekend, Emily and I along with two other colleagues made the trip to Ukarumpa in the Eastern Highlands of Papua New Guinea. This is a place where the climate is much cooler and comfortable than the heat of Madang. It has rolling hills much like the Smoky Mtns in Tennessee.
It was different to feel cool at night and in the morning. Having a blanket or cover on the bed was odd but welcomed and the feel of socks on your feet was a new experience as well. I can probably count the number of times on one hand that I have worn shoes or socks since returning in January.
It was a pleasant and enjoyable weekend though not long enough as most vacations aren’t. We left Madang Thursday morning and returned Sunday afternoon. The 5.5 hr trip was uneventful despite the 45 km or 1 hr of pothole driving. I only hit one medium size pothole going 115 km, other than that no damage done.
We played games, laughed, and enjoyed great breakfast meals together. Emily bought loads of highland strawberries at the market on Friday morning and froze them to carry back to Madang. The girls enjoyed fruit smoothies during the weekend full of PNG fruit minus the pineapple found in the lowlands.
This picture is taken from Kassam Pass looking back to the Ramu Valley. Ramu Valley is home to sugar and palm oil as well as some cattle. The winding road through the Pass we found a pull out to snap a few pictures of beautiful PNG.
‘The Provider’– a new Toyota Hilux
Posted in Newsletters on June 4, 2013| 1 Comment »
The many names of Jesus…if you recall in the fall of last year we were raising the awareness for a new branch vehicle in Papua New Guinea (PNG). In Oct I posted this article ‘100% ROI’.
The headquarters in Dallas gave us a matching gift which was our aim to meet and surpass. All team members were challenged to reach out to their networks of churches, families, friends, and supporters for the plea of the branch in PNG.
Two weeks ago, a new blue 4 door (double cab) 4WD Toyota Hilux was in our hands. Yeah! Praise God! The Provider has answered our cry and heard our plea. Thank you!
This new truck will enable us to provide secure and safe transport of both missionaries and national colleagues. It will be used to take people and cargo to and from the airport, transport equipment to and from the village, and any other needs that arise for a truck. Though most importantly a reliable vehicle that we can trust and depend on.
Both Emily and I say thank you for praying and giving towards this new vehicle purchase. God is in the business of answering prayers and He is hearing our heart cry here in PNG not only for a truck but for more labours in the fields. God is truly our Provider. All praise and thanksgiving goes to you, the Provider.
We will share a meal as friends
Posted in Newsletters on May 27, 2013| Leave a Comment »
Emily reflects on her recent 10 day trip to Gandep Bible College in rural Papua New Guinea to teach a scripture use course.
At the recent Scripture Use course I taught, the students were asked to pick a verse from whichever book of the Bible that had already been published in their language. In the past the teachers assigned a scripture verse for the sake of making memorization charts lesson easier for the students.
During this course some students only had the book of Mark; others the book of Luke, and a few had a whole New Testament in their language while others had no translated scripture in their language at all. It was unique to see what verses of the Bible they chose. Yes, of course a few students found a really short verse since it was easier to memorize and put on their chart they were preparing to make…the least amount of work possible. But others chose meaningful, lesson teaching opportunities.
I was blessed by our student Peter’s choice. Peter is a Kire speaker and has had the New Testament in his language since 2000. He chose Revelation 3:20. Now my first gut reaction was when he came to me with his selected verse was, oh no what in the world will this memory verse chart say. But when I opened up my Bible to check the context of the verse I was happy to read-
“Nde mbarara, gu thçmkamani thsgap kav, thçma fukfugap ki. Guma the na kamthooý mbararagip, thçma ntararga, guv hen ýgirçp, ana phorgç kçrga. Gu ana phorgç kçv, ana phorgç mbçrga, ana na phorgç mbçrga.” (Kire translation)
Okay, so I really didn’t understand it in Kire so I had to look at it in English,
“Look! Here I stand at the door and knock. If you hear me calling and open the door, I will come in, we will share a meal as friends.”
It is a verse from the “message from the one who is the Amen-the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation.” The verse reminded me of the gift of community so many Papua New Guineans have taught me. It also brought out the image of Christ that someone else would see and humbly reminded me of how precious it is to be a part of the family of God. It also deepens my desire which burns inside of me to share a meal as friends with Christ and many, many Papua New Guinean brothers and sisters in heaven.
First Ocean Crossing
Posted in General, Newsletters on May 12, 2013| 2 Comments »
Before I left PNG in Mar 2012 I agreed to purchase a boat. This boat belonged to the person that Emily and I agreed to take over rent payments for his house after he left. Once we returned, it was priority to get the boat back in the water and running again. While we were away, the boat was in dry dock at the local marina. Before the boat could go back into the water, I had to get the hull painted to help fight against barnacles and other salt water creatures. Another thing was to get the motor in tune after sitting for the previous 18 months out of water.
Long story short, three weeks ago I was asked to charter some nationals to Saidor for a cocoa expo of sorts. Being my first big ocean journey I had plenty to think about and lots of questions. How much fuel do I need? What is the water like? Waves? Wind? What to do in an emergency? What is my back up plan? Etc.
I plotted the course on a direct heading and figured it was about 50-55 miles. My boat is 21’ aluminum hull with 140 HP outboard. However it has a small 25 ltr or 6 gallon gas tank. The type you hand carry to/from your boat. It was suggested to bring 120 ltrs of fuel for the trip. I bought 30 ltrs extra for 150 ltrs in total.
I learned a lot about my boat during this trip. I burned about 1 tank of gas (20-25 ltrs) per 20 miles or per hour at 4000 RPM. We would stop and fill up as the ocean swells bobbed us around then keep pushing on. I continued to follow the GPS heading and we finally arrived about 3.5 hrs. later.
After their meeting and selling of supplies to the locals, we boarded the boat to return back to home. I was a bit upset and concern since we were leaving so late. We left the beach at 2:45 pm. One thing I knew was I did not want to come back at dark. I heard rumors that this trip could take 6-8 hrs. depending on the weather/waves. Plus in the afternoon as the wind blows out of the north, the waves pick up causing more issues. Nonetheless, I was eager to get going. If all was well we would arrive just before dark cutting it way too close for me.
The first three hours back were perfect, flat, calm waters then the last 30 minutes or 12 miles out the waves picked up. Sure enough the afternoon winds were hitting us directly. The splash and overspray were getting us all wet as I continued to push through as the boat slapped the water. We were so close and I did not want to back off the throttle. We arrived back in port just before 6:00 pm. Glad to be back.
The fuel estimate was right and we used 120 ltrs of gas. Everything went without problem and I enjoyed a great day on the open water. Though the next 12 hrs. I felt dizzy from the constant motion of the boat. I came home with a huge sun tan even though I was under shade all day. The water has a funny way of reflecting sun rays.
My first major ocean adventure is finished. 110 miles round trip and lots of 20 ltr empty gas cans to prove it.
Symbolism of a FROG
Posted in General, Newsletters on April 28, 2013| 4 Comments »
This past week has been a challenging week filled with constant prayer. My heart broke and my thoughts were directed elsewhere. However on Friday, God again reminded me about a frog.
One of the workman was cutting grass at a PBT property and I was there to pick him up after a days work. While I was checking his work and walking about the perimeter of the house, my eyes were drawn to a frog. Most frogs I see come out at night when it is cool and moist. This was a different frog, is was bathing in the heat of the sun.
What does a frog have to do with anything? Frog is an acronym for Fully Rely on God. Throughout the week I was troubled, I was down but not crushed yet God turned my eyes to a frog.
Over the recent weeks I have been reading through Isaiah. This past week while being troubled with a heavy heart, the prophet Isaiah had many comforting words. The theme was do not fear, do not be afraid, I am with you, I will rescue you.
Lord, be kind to us! We depend on you. Isa 33:2
Cheer up! Don’t be afraid. Isa 35:4
Don’t be afraid. I am with you. Don’t tremble with fear. I am your God. Isa 41:10
Do not fear, I have rescued you. I have called you by name, now you belong to me. Isa 43:1
In the middle of those chapters, chapter 40, we read the Lord gives strength for the weary. God never gets weary and He doesn’t get weary of those coming to Him in times of weakness. God understands our little strength and when we call on Him, He quickly runs to help or rescue when our lamp of faith burns low.
The Lord gives strength to those who are weary. But those who trust the Lord will find new strength. They will be strong like eagles soaring upward on wings; they will walk and run without getting tired. Isa 40:29,31
When the Israelites walked across the bottom of the Red Sea between walls of water that may have crashed on them at any moment…did they fear? What about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace…did they fear? What about Daniel in a pit of hungry lions…did he fear? What about Jonah in the belly of a fish for three dark days…did he fear?
It is comforting to know when I lay down at night that God gives strength, though I must first FROG (Fully Rely On God) because Immanuel, God is with me.
Pray for God’s perfect peace, deliverance, and for His protection during times of trouble.
Tyler and Emily in PNG 