He Reached Down

Our friend Lagan has struggled with mental health; recently she has experienced dramatic improvement! 

He reached down from on high and took hold of me; He drew me out of deep waters

-David

 Mourning and Rejoicing.

Last night, Udivuluk gave me a call. It was the first time I have talked to him in a couple of months. 

"Hey Nate, I wanted to let you know that Lagan (his wife) is better. She is doing really good! Remember that night we prayed?" 

 

It was completely unexpected. Over the last two-and-a-half years we have mourned with him over her descent into a terrible state of fear and isolation. They went from being respected and loved leaders of the Mesi church to destitute and isolated - no longer able to live in the village because of Lagan's struggles. 

It got to the point that, on February 14 of this year, Udivuluk called me from his remote camp in the bush and said, "I just can't take it any more. I am so weary of taking care of her. She fights everyone - including me. I cannot leave her alone - not even with the kids." 

That night we cried together, talked, and prayed on the phone for more than an hour. 

Fast forward to last night when they both were talking and laughing and praising God on the phone with us. Truly, our God rescues out of deep waters. He is our Hope!

During a language check, we asked this missionary to describe a teepee to her language helper. Her helper had to draw what she described. Both did a great job.

Travels and Encouragement

At most of you know, our job here in New Guinea isn't just with the Mesi Church. We have the privilege of working with churches and missionaries representing more than 50 different language groups. Here are a few highlights of the last couple of months:

• Encouraging a local church and the young teachers there. There has been excitement about the gospel and growing in spite of conflict in their area.
• Connecting our Mesi believers with elders from other tribal churches. It was a mutually encouraging time.
• Helping the missionaries to Kuyu (next door to Mesiland) think through how to enter into the work there. And, helping Mesi believers provide crucial perspective and advice for them.
• Growing and caring for the leadership team here in PNG. 
• Providing feedback for several missionary teams that are new to writing Bible lessons. 
• Regular check-ins with bush teams.
• Helping to evaluate and encourage language learners.
• Connecting with and encouraging churches in the USA and other countries as they seek to encourage and support their missionaries better. 

Enjoying an afternoon walk to a local village.

Family Highlights

Elizabeth, along with working alongside me supporting the Mesi church and others, has completed her first term toward her master's degree in curriculum development and is diving headlong into her summer classes. She has enjoyed ladies bible studies here at our mission center and is also serving as our area homeschool coordinator. 

Noah has finished his first year of college and is spending the summer living at his grandparents and working. Did we mention that he is also taking some summer school classes? In spite of all that he is involved in, we get to chat with him fairly regularly as well. 

Tim, recently finished with his junior year of high school, has been continuing to add to his list of technical skills. From his handi-craft profits, he has purchased a welder and is looking forward to the possibilities that working with metal affords. He recently chose to be baptized here as well - something he'd wanted to do for a while but was waiting for the right opportunity.

Elias is our household DJ. He is most often found making or listening to music or playing sports. We love how he connects with others and is actively looking for discipleship. He is making some summer money by drying fruit and indenturing himself to his older brother.

Nate is enjoying growth on the team and the variety of work that each day seems to bring. He travels back and forth between mission centers here (sometimes three times in a day) and has discovered that he can keep more fit by using his bike to do the trip a couple of times a week. 

Prayer

• Praise the Lord for Lagan! Such a blessing to hear that she is whole. Please keep praying with us for stability and for their re-entry into the community.
• Pray for the Mesi church as they care for each other on a daily basis. Also praise the Lord with us for their stability and growth.
• Pray for us as we look ahead at travels and care for the missionary team here in PNG. We are looking at several longer trips over the next couple of months to spend time with teams that are looking for input and direction.
• Pray for the team here - we are short of experienced missionaries that have the bandwidth to care for others. We are also short of teachers and other support staff.

Thanks so much for caring for us!

Nate for us