So, It's been more than a Year Since I last blogged....

It seems like forever since I tried to keep up with blogging on a regular basis.  Since my last blog, the Denver Broncos and Peyton Manning have earned their Superbowl (Yeah!), the world is reeling from terrorist attacks, refugees are rampant throughout Europe, University Students in Papua New Guinea have called for the resignation of the Prime Minister, tensions are on the rise in the US between the police and certain demographics of the population, Great Britain has decided to part ways with the EU and the two primary political parties in the US have decided on their two standard bearers.  Wow!  What a difference a year makes!

PNG-style firepit (Mumu)

So what now?  As I sit here in the mountains of Papua New Guinea, I must reflect on what the future holds for Denese and me.  What type of America will we find when we return home?  How do we see the state of Missions from our perspective?  The world seems so much different from when I was a small boy playing hide 'n seek with the neighborhood children in Western Maryland in the quaint city of Hagerstown Maryland.  Then, the biggest decision that I had to make was on matters of which games to play or not play.  Today, my days are spent trying to decide how best to stretch our scarce resources to serve the areas here in PNG with the greatest need both spiritually and physically.  

Ah, Papa, God!  I can never appreciate how awesome and unfathomable your wisdom is.  For me, the concerns are a few villages here and there.  For you, it is all of creation.  What a joy, it shall be when I will be able to see you face to face and learn of you--forever!

                                                                     

Fragments from My Mind ...

It has been almost 3 ½ years since we first stepped out in faith to serve, abandoning all that was important to us back home.  And I (James) find myself asking the question, “So, how goes it?”

 

Funny… If someone had asked me 4 years ago in 2011, “What do you think your life will be like in 4 years?”  I probably would not have anticipated that I would be sitting in what has been called by some “the last frontier.”  Papua New Guinea is truly another world.  Sitting here in the midst of a myriad of cultures that still honor simple things such as stopping everything each day at 10am and 3pm for “tea time” or where people whom you know barely will stop and ask you questions about yourself and spend more than 15 minutes to get to know you—on the spur of the moment.

                                                             But, this is Papua New Guinea.

 

Do I miss back home?  Yes.  I miss my children dearly.  I miss our friends and worship at our church.  I miss the little ones in our church Sunday school.  Ah, yes the little ones who know how to remind me of what is important in life.  Perhaps, the most difficult part of this walk of faith has been understanding just that—it is a walk of faith.

  

Perhaps, you are wondering what all of this rambling is about.  I don’t know.  Except to say that we each have a path that the Lord has mapped out for us and unless we walk that path, we will never know why we were placed on earth.  Indeed, without knowing why the Lord formed us into existence, we can never begin to understand the price that Christ paid for us to live forever.

And so we trudge on—for the Kingdom!

Love in Any Language

What does “Love in Any Language” really mean?  I was recently reminded when I attended a dinner for some of the language groups from the Central Province of PNG.  Our friends, Namsoo and Duchshin Kim, hosted a lunch in their new haus win (house that lets wind pass through).  The nationalities present were Korean, Philippine, American, as well as three language groups from Papua New Guinea.  It was fun to listen to the conversations.  We all switched back and forth between at least two languages, with the Kim’s speaking six different languages.  We joked, we laughed, we ate …we laughed more.  And through it all we felt the oneness that comes from being brothers & sisters in Christ.


In the last month or so, God has been showing me more and more that we are not just here to do our official jobs.  Relationships are paramount in this country and that seems much more Biblical than our task oriented society.  Christ said that people would know that we are his disciples by the love that we have for one another.  What a privilege to have the “job” of loving people!  The love just multiplies and we get more and more love in return!  

 

 



One year in PNG

Well, Its been one year since we arrived in Papua New Guinea.  It has been an interesting year; Lots of changes and new experiences.   And the Lord is always faithful.

This time around, we are finding challenges that demand patience and true spiritual endurance.  Its funny, our church NCFC held a weekend conference with a guest speaker from YWAM, who spoke about "Spiritual Endurance."  The Lord truly prepped us for the challenges that we face here in PNG. 

We truly miss all of our family and friends.  Especially our children.  It seems like only yesterday when we were changing diapers and sitting through long sessions at the dinner table.  Now, our boys are so far away.  How we miss them dearly.

If I (James) were to sum up the one thing that I think we have learned this past year in one word, it would be: prayer.

Without prayer, we cease to walk with the Lord.  Rather, we walk away from Him.  As it is impossible to communicate with and know our earthly friends and family members, so it is with our Heavenly Father.  We must pray, if we seek to be with Papa God.

Blessings to all!

 

Missing you this Christmas

As we approach Christmas, we miss you more and more.  We recently had a few Christmas parties for the Wycliffe Associates volunteers and staff.  They were a lot of fun, but they also bring back memories of the Christmas back home.  We thought we would share a few pics of Christmas past and present.

We love you guys!

2011

 

 

2013

 
 

 2014

 

 

Preparing for Life in the Village

So, we have spent the past weekend cooking and eating in our outdoor kitchens (or Haus Kuk) that we have constructed out of tree limbs and bamboo poles.  This is one of the structures that are used in the villages by Papua New Guineans when they cook.  While it may sound like a fun experience of camping, trust me it is not that simple.  The structure is bound by either artificial or natural twine and the cutting of the bamboo and tree limbs is all done by bush knives.

Moreover, you are lighting fire with matches or a lighter.  And you are using chopped wood only.  Well…you could cheat and use paper if you want, but typically in the village, you will not have paper.  So there you have it.  We are preparing for our 4 weeks of living in a remote village in the forest.  Just Denese, me and our Wasfemili (Watch Family).  This will be an interesting experience.  Anyway,  stay tuned…

How Long Before He Returns?

It is 6am along the eastern coastlands of Papua New Guinea and as I take in the peaceful ease of the dawn’s first light, I wonder:  How peaceful it must have been on the first morning when our Father called everything into being.  It is no wonder that He looked and saw that it was “good.”

We have been a week in training in the Madang area of Papua New Guinea and thus far, no worries.

  We have had some rather interesting hikes through the bush and some rather pleasant conversation with our fellow missionaries as we all become acculturated with our new surroundings.  How wonderful it is to know that no matter where we are, our Father’s hands guides and strengthens us. 

                                                                      

How I long for our Father to Return soon.  I long for that moment when I can just hold on to him and not let go and hear Him softly say to me, “It’s ok; it’s over now.  We will be together always.”