Dear friends,

Well, life sure took a sharp curve all of a sudden and I thought I’d write a quick update while I can!

For the past few days I have been experiencing some very strange medical symptoms—the worst being tremendous vertigo and also numbness in my face and scalp. I’ve also had terrible nausea probably due to the vertigo. I’ve been in bed the past 2 days and just today was able to walk a few steps, with help, over to Laureti’s house to get online. Laureti’s have been taking very good care of me and I don’t know what I would have done without their help, to say the least.

Dear Friends,

Hard to believe that 15 years ago next week, Keri and I moved into our village and joined the Mengen team. The Lord has done so much in the hearts of the people we came to serve!! It is SO amazing to see the changes in people’s lives and to have been a part of it all almost from the very start. 

Dear friends,

Thank you so much for your prayers for me these last couple of weeks. They have been difficult, challenging and emotional for me in so many ways.

Last week I went in with friends to their village to pack up their belongings. Words can’t express how difficult it was for them and also for me to witness. While we know the Lord has a special plan, it is pretty hard to see from this angle and each day was filled to the brim with grief and heartbreak. However, on the last morning we were in this tribe, I was woken by a song being played in a village house next door.

“Be still and know, that I am God. Be still and know that I am God.
Be still and know that I am God. I am the Lord that healeth thee.
I am the Lord that healeth thee. I am the Lord that healeth thee.”

This song was played over and over probably 50 times and it really struck truth into my heart. Although we don’t know what the Lord has planned, we know that we just have to be still and know that He is still God no matter what the circumstances are.

Dear Friends,

Greetings from hot and humid Hoskins.  Life here continues to roll along.  Thanks so much for your faithful prayers for me and for the Mengen church.

This last week the Laureti family went back to our village and are continuing on with discipleship for another few months.  They report that the Mengen church is doing very well.  What a joy to hear that our “children” are walking in the truth of God’s Word.

One special piece of news is very near and dear to my heart.  My close friend Kariang has been my translation helper from day one and we’ve spent 100’s of hours together translating Scripture into the Mengen language.  She’s a mother of 9 children and her kids are like my own family after spending so much time together over the last 15+ years!! 

Dear friends,

Well, greetings from PNG once again!! I’ve been here just over a week and am getting back on my feet after another long trip around the world! Thanks so much for your prayers as I travelled. I’m happy to report that my luggage arrived with me, although I had a few nervous moments. It never ceases to amaze me how my little suitcases can travel all that way and arrive in my tiny airport on our island!

Dear friends,

Greetings from Canada! As you may remember, I returned home a few weeks ago to be with my family as my grandma was critically ill. I thought I’d be coming home for a funeral, but instead, the Lord has seen fit to prolong my grandma’s life. Although she is still very frail, she is out of the hospital and is able to back into her own bed in her nursing home. She has good days and bad days, but she is always cheerful and happy to see us. I am thankful for this time to spend here with family.

Dear Friends,

Thanks so much for your faithful prayers and support. I would like to let you know of a slight detour in my road and ask that you would be in prayer.

For the past week or so, my grandma has been experiencing very poor health. The doctors believe that she will not be here on this earth too much longer. I have decided to go home for a short while to be a support and encouragement to my family during this difficult time. Lord willing, I’ll be leaving this week and will be home perhaps until mid-April. My co-workers are encouraging me in this step and I feel like this will be an opportunity to be a blessing. I would appreciate your prayers as I leave the tropics and travel around the globe to winter in Alberta.

Dear Friends, Another year has rolled by and now we’re fully into 2016! Amazing to think that I’ve been here in the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea for over 16 years now. Looking back I can see the Lord’s gracious hand every step of the way. Our work with the Mengen people started manyContinue reading January 2016

Dear Friends,

Hope you are all doing well and are encouraged these days!! It’s shocking to hear all the tragic news from around the world, but it is exciting to think that very soon now, Jesus will be returning to take His children home!! What a day that will be, when we see Him face to face! I’m looking forward to standing before God in heaven, and to worship around the throne with dozens of Mengen friends! It makes me want to jump for joy to think that the wickedness of this earth will be one day destroyed! Satan and his band of terrorists will not win. Christ has already defeated them. Hallelujah, what a Savior.

Dear friends,

Thanks so much for your faithful prayers and support. The past few weeks have been busy and full of hard work!! This month, I had some Mengen friends come to Hoskins to help me with Bible translation for 2 weeks. It was a sweet time of fellowship with Edward and Francesca and their kids. It was very fun to catch up on the news from our village and hear about the new babies and marriages etc!! Hard to believe that I’ve been away from “home” for nearly a year!!

While they were here, Francesca and I worked really hard on Bible translation and were able to make terrific progress in Galatians, Philippians, Colossians and 2 Corinthians. Edward was able to check some of our work but the last week he got hit by a flu bug and became very sick for an entire week. Thankfully by the time they left, Edward was much better, but he had me worried for a few days!!

Dear friends,

Thank you so much for your faithful prayers! The last few weeks have been fun, as we celebrated a few birthdays here at Hoskins and also the 40th anniversary of Papua New Guinea’s independence! There were parties happening in the villages around us for the entire week last week! A few of us missionaries went to see some traditional singing and dancing. It’s always a sight to see everyone in their brightly colored costumes and to see their unique routines. It was also fun to see various musical instruments which the singers were using. My favorite was the huge conch shell which was blown intermittently throughout the one group’s performance!

Dear friends,

Greetings from COOL, DRY and WINDY Hoskins. It’s not often you hear those words all in one sentence, but at the moment, we are in the midst of El Nino weather conditions. This means that 24 hours a day we are having extremely high winds along with a severe drought. It doesn’t feel like the tropics at all—instead of a fine layer of mold, everything is covered in a deep layer of dust! It is getting a bit old, being blasted by hurricane-force winds day and night, but it sure keeps the mosquitos away and keeps us nice and cool!! No doubt rainy season will kick in soon, so we’re trying to appreciate the dryness while we can. This has been going on for at least 8 weeks now, so the situation is very grim for the local gardens. So sad to see the folks here struggling again. Just in February of this year, the situation was desperate because of a massive hurricane and flooding which destroyed everything. Now we are having drought.

Dear Friends,

Well, it seems cliché to say it, but WOW, this summer sure flew by in a flash! With 10 weeks away from PNG, I covered coast-to-coast in North America and split my time in 3 different locations. It was such a JOY to see many friends and family members during my brief time at home and I’ve returned refreshed and anxious to continue on with the work of Bible translation here in Papua New Guinea.

Dear Friends,

Greetings from “this side” of the ocean!! I’ve been in the USA for about two weeks now, and what a whirlwind it has been! It was wonderful to spend time with family for the first week. Now I’m enjoying time with Keri and her family and friends in California. We’re having such a GREAT time travelling around and seeing the sites! It will be sad to leave my good friends, but I’m anxious to see the rest of my family again!

Dear friends,

Thanks so much for your faithful prayers and support. I appreciate each one of you so much. These days have been busy and exhausting, but I am thankful for the Lord’s continued grace every day.

A few days ago, I received upsetting news from our village. One of our young Bible teachers and his wife had a fight which resulted in the husband trying to commit suicide 2 times in 2 days. Apparently she threatened to leave him and he was overcome by grief. This whole situation has come as a huge shock to all of us as this young couple has been doing so well. In fact they were just about ready to join our Mengen missionary team and move to our outreach village. Needless to say, the past few days have been emotionally draining as I try to do what I can to help from a distance. I am so thankful for these days of modern technology which allows me to call on my mobile phone and speak directly to friends in our village! So crazy to be calling right into this jungle location, with birds chirping, chickens squawking, babies crying, and people laughing in the background!! Not sure how many hours I’ve spent on the phone this last week, but yesterday I talked for over 3 hours with various ones.

Dear Friends,

Thanks so much for your continued prayers for the Mengen church. The Lord is at work, and it is exciting to hear of what He is doing in the hearts of the people here.

Although I’m no longer living in the tribe, I’m thankful to have occasional contact with some of the Mengen believers, whenever they are able to get a signal on their mobile phones! Yep, it sounds crazy, but even the remotest areas of the world are now coming into the age of modern technology. Just the other day my phone rang and here was Kariang, my translation helper in Lele, calling to chitchat. It was so funny and I was laughing on this end and she and her husband and kids were laughing on that end!! It was the first time we had ever talked by phone, so that was really special.

Dear friends,

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow. Because He lives, all fear is gone.
Because I know he holds the future, and life is worth the living, just because He lives.

Thank you so very much for your faithful prayers and financial support for me over this past year! I have appreciated you all so much and thank the Lord for your integral part in reaching the Mengen for Christ. This year has been full of change, but I am thankful to the Lord for bringing me through each and every challenge.

This coming year is going to be another busy one, as I press on with the work here in Papua New Guinea.

Dear Friends,

Thanks so much for your faithful prayers and support. I appreciate each and every one of you. These have been interesting days for me, on many levels and I’m so encouraged to know that you are standing behind me in prayer!

HEALTH: Over the past several months, I have struggled with an old back injury and then continuing bouts of numbness and tingling in my limbs and spine. After corresponding with both a chiropractor at home and also our doctor here in PNG, they both agree that I have a herniated or at least bulging disk in my neck. My back is also very tender, so I’m not sure what’s going on there. Hopefully this will clear up on its own over the next few months, but for now, it is pretty annoying. Thankfully it’s not painful, but just gives me little “electric shocks” whenever I bend my neck. Makes it difficult to work on a computer or even go downstairs without looking!

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine,
according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory …. forever and ever! Amen.
(Eph. 3:20-21)

Thank you so much for your faithful prayer for me, throughout my past 16 years (almost), in Papua New Guinea. It has been such a crazy adventure every step of the way, and this past month has been no exception. I’m so thankful that our Heavenly Father is with me always and guides me continually by His gracious hand.

Dear Friends,

I trust this update finds you well after a round of celebrations for Canada Day and American Independence Day this last week! We celebrated a bit in here as well, just getting together as a team for special food and fellowship.

Life continues to roll along at an amazing speed and it’s hard to keep up sometimes.

Dear Friends,

Thank you so much for your faithful prayers for me. The past couple of months have been interesting, and I’m thankful for our Heavenly Father who gives grace and strength each day. Although I’ve only been back in PNG about 10 weeks, I’ve managed to be sick for about 5 weeks in total! Not exactly a great way to start out my fifth term. Thankfully I have a nice house, soft bed, lots of food and medicine, and everything I need for comfort, unlike my poor Mengen friends, many of whom have also picked up some of the same nasty bugs as I have!! Thankfully I’m mostly on the mend now, although I continue to experience some pain in my lower back, but at least I can move around albeit stiffly!

Dear Friends,

Thanks so much for your faithful prayers. The past couple of months have flown by and I have been busy, busy, busy since my return to PNG in April. Things here are going very well, and we’re back into a routine once again.

It has been exciting to see to see growth and change in the lives of the Mengen believers. So many incredible stories to tell, but one special one has to do with my dear friend and translation helper Kariang. She and her husband Teli and 8 kids live in a small hamlet up the mountain from us and near a big village that has opposed the Bible teaching. For many years, Kariang has been the only believer in that area and has suffered a lot of persecution because of her stand for Christ.

Dear Friends,

Thank you so much for your faithful prayers. I know this update is long overdue, but it has taken me awhile to get settled back into a routine again! I’ve been back in our village for just over 2 weeks now, and it has been a bit of a blur, with getting unpacked and set up. My office was full of frogs for some reason, so we’ve chased out about 7 of them in the past couple of weeks! (Thankfully we haven’t come across anything too scary, other than the frogs!) Keri had done a huge amount of work before I arrived, and thankfully most things were clean and set up when I arrived! I just had my own stuff to deal with, which is plenty of work!

Dear Friends,

Thanks so much for your prayers for me as I traveled the world this week. Right from the get-go, we could see the Lord at work, as a very helpful airline employee overlooked my overweight charges in Edmonton. He also went above and beyond the call of duty to make sure I had the window seat which I really needed for the long 15 hour leg of my journey, and he moved me to the front of the plane, so I could get off quicker etc. Amazing.

Dear friends,

I’m so sorry that I haven’t written in ages!! These days have been busy ones for me, as it seems like all my speaking engagements this furlough have come up all in the past couple of months! Last month I was able to go back to the town where I grew up, so that was a lot of fun. We moved from there when I was 13, so there was a great sense of dé jà vu wherever I went and it was fun to catch up with a lot of friends whom I haven’t seen in many years.