Thank you so much for your love and prayers and gifts! We are deeply grateful for your part in reaching the Hewa people with the love of Jesus. Thank you!
New Tribes Mission is currently celebrating 75 years of ministry, and has chosen and new name! We are proud of the way our mission has maintained its crystal clear vision of a thriving church for every people group, and are excited about how their fresh name is anchored in a strong heritage while holding tightly to their vision for the future. The new name is Ethnos360. To learn more about the anniversary celebration and name change please go to ethnos360.org.
Susan and I are planning to return to PNG in January. We have been working hard to help our grown daughter, Mikayla, get established here in Waco, TX and feel confident she has reached the place where she will do fine after our return to the tribe. She continues to experience small improvements in stamina and mobility under the care of her doctor and in time we will have a better understanding of whether she will be able to return to school or work. For now we pray she will succeed and thrive in our absence. Please continue to pray the Lord will take away her continual pain and show her how she can best honor Him with her life.
Living in Texas has provided unexpected ministry opportunities. I had the privilege of joining my home church for a week when they drove to Houston to help provide disaster relief after Hurricane Harvey, and was also able to make a relief trip with Mikayla’s new church. These were eye opening experiences as I had not previously witnessed the devastation caused by hurricanes and flooding.
Our coworkers had to leave the tribe because of medical problems. Jessi George has been bravely battling an autoimmune disease for a while now and while living in the tribe has had to be under close supervision of our mission doctor in town. Recently her health deteriorated to the point where she has not been able to keep much food down, and the doctor asked her to move out of the tribe so he can monitor her needs more closely. She recently said, “My enzyme levels are elevated again and I will need to be monitored long-term out here on the mission base. If things don’t improve then we will have to go back to America to be under the supervision of a rheumatologist and gastroenterologist.” Please be in prayer for Jessi’s health, and also pray for John as he is currently on a one-week a trip in Hewa to teach II Thessalonians for the first time.
Thank you for your love and prayers and gifts! We deeply appreciate you!
Jonathan, Susan & Mikenna