Dear friends,
Thanks so much for your faithful prayers for me!! The past few weeks have been busy and stressful and exciting, in more ways than one.
ROMANS: Just a few days after Christmas, our translation consultant Jason and I sat down with 3 Mengen friends, and began the “final check” of the book of Romans. It was SO encouraging and exciting to see God’s Word being communicated clearly. We had hoped to check 4 chapters a day, and in the end, we did 6 chapters the first day, 7 the second day and 3 on the last day, finishing up a day and a half earlier than planned!! Now that the check is over, all that is left to do is to format Romans in preparation for printing. Lord willing in just a few weeks, we’ll be able to see the book of Romans placed into the hands of the Mengen people!! It was a long, hard task, but I am so thankful for the Lord’s sustaining grace which enabled us to see it through to the end.
TRANSITIONS: It has been exciting for us to recognize growth in the Mengen church over the past several months. However, we also see how it would be beneficial for the Bible teachers to have some time “on their own” as they shepherd the Mengen church. So….for the next several months, the Laureti’s and Keri and I will be living at Hoskins and visiting the tribe every so often for a few days. We are trusting the Lord to use this time to strengthen the church further, allowing them to walk on their own—teaching lessons, working through situations without the missionaries’ input and also discipling the believers as they hear new Bible teaching. Lord willing one day soon, several of these families will be taking God’s Word to new villages, and we can see how it will be beneficial to have some time ministering by themselves on their “home turf” before heading out to a new location.
While we are at Hoskins, Keri and I will be finishing Ephesians and the book of Luke. Lord willing, Keri will be having those 2 books “final checked” in May. I will also be translating the last few chapters of 1 Corinthians, getting it into a “first draft” stage which will be used for the Bible teaching. Lord willing while we are at Hoskins, we can be a blessing and encouragement to our fellow co-workers here. Over the past couple of years, we have lost a huge number of fellow-missionaries for various reasons. It has been a discouraging time for many of us, but it has been great to see the Lord faithfully providing for the needs of the work here.
HOME ASSIGNMENT: Then in June, I will be heading home to Canada for another “home assignment”. I am sure looking forward to seeing my family and friends again. It seems strange to be coming home after 2 years instead of 4, but I am definitely ready for a change of pace after another very stressful term in PNG. I am looking forward to doing some travelling and speaking in various locations, so I would appreciate your prayers, that the Lord would work out all the details for my time at home.
Thanks for your prayers:
- Pray for the Mengen church while we are away, that the Lord would use this time to strengthen the believers and also the Mengen Bible teachers.
- Pray for Keri as she finishes up Luke and Ephesians, that everything would go smoothly and that she would be ready for the check in May.
- Pray for Flanagans on home assignment. Pray especially for Annika as she has had terrible morning sickness with this pregnancy. Pray for them as they get ready to move to the UK for several months, that the Lord would provide for all their needs.
- Pray that the Lord would be preparing a place for me to stay while on home assignment in Canada. Thankfully I still have my car from the last time I was home, so mainly I just need a place to ‘hang my hat’ for a few months!!
With praise to the King,
Becky