Finding the stories...
From the field notebook… drawing stories and writing down the words allows us to understand how the Pal language fits together.
Stories
We are entering an exciting time in our CLA, on the verge of being able to understand simple stories, we are beginning to hear from our friends about the significant things that have happened in their lives – and thus we are beginning to see deeper into their thinking. This week through stories, we have learned that it is normal to:
· Run away in fear (of ancestor spirits) if a landslide happens to wipe out your garden.
· Leave a hurt younger sibling on the front porch of the house rather than inside (that way if your parents are upset, you can make a quick getaway to the bush – beatings are common here).
· Yell ‘Bila buh’ when falling a tree. Literally this is ‘fear this’.
· And many more…
Elizabeth works to make po mokak, bark string, with some friends
Blisters etc.
So while my hands are a bit raw from using an axe today, Elizabeth has a rather interesting patch of raw skin on her right thigh from making string. We are reminded by our small sores of the incredible way that Jesus Himself experienced life on earth – the joys and discomforts included – so that He might display clearly the character of God as it looks in the life of a man. Would you pray for us this week that our lives would clearly display the character of God to our friends here in Pal. While it may be some time before we are able to clearly communicate with them in their own language, we are trusting that we are daily being used by God to open them to that life-giving message.
Thanks so very much for your care for us. What an encouragement it is to know that we are but a small part of the big picture of what God is doing in and through His church.
Nate for the Cs.
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