CALLED to Papua New Guinea

Dear Friends & Family, Thank you again for your AMAZING support during the year we served as missionaries in PNG! As expected, God worked in and through us, and we have not been the same since. Rachel and I reminisce often about Kudjip; our missionary family, the wonderful locals we worked with, the amazing things we experienced, and of course – the blissful climate! :-) Life is different here in Virginia – the bustle of driving in traffic, fitting into new jobs, wrangling long To Do lists, a cacophony of choices in every store, and many joyful reunions with friends and family – not unwelcome, but different from the relative peace and simplicity of remote Highland life, and more tiring.  God continues to call Rachel and me to serve where we are, which in this season includes leading a small group for young married couples, Rachel serving on the worship team, reconnecting with our Young Adult ministry, and helping coordinate areas of the marriage ministry of our church. Rach...

Dear Supporters, This magnificent season of service at Kudjip Nazarene Hospital has come to a close. I have experienced a tremendous mix of feelings these past couple of weeks; a looming urgency tugging me to make every moment and word count, an orderly mind making lists for our return to the States, an excitement to see family again, and a growing sadness to leave our PNG family behind. As with most departing missionaries, Kudjip Station has a few traditions to see them off – the last few meals supplied by invitation to dine with other missionaries, a “circle time” of farewell prayer on the morning of departure, and a final lift to the Mt Hagen airport. We had all this and much, much more. The week before leaving, our Station mentors, Susan and Jeff Meyers, hosted a goodbye party for us. We played volleyball, roasted hot dogs, and our Missions family gathered around us in prayer of thanksgiving, and for our future safety, blessing, and direction. Our final meeting with...

These last few weeks in PNG have been such a blessing!  I have had the honor and privilege of lecturing at the Melanesia Nazarene Teacher’s College (MNTC), which is located 20 minutes away from Kudjip, towards Mt. Hagen.  Those of you who know me well understand how passionate I am about Special Needs kiddos.  It was a real joy to be able to talk to the future teachers of PNG all about Inclusive Education, more specifically, Learning Disabilities. On my first visit to MNTC, I met with Miss Alice Yenas, the Inclusive Education Instructor.  We spent some time going over her syllabus and determining which classes I could assist with.  I was able to observe Alice teaching a large class of second-year students and was impressed with her knowledge and similar passion for Inclusive Education.  Discussing the syllabus with Alice God works in wonderful ways… His timing was perfectly arranged in my visits to MNTC.  Alice was called away to Port Moresb...

Praise GOD! ...and here's why: Many years ago after finishing my first year of medical school, Rachel and I became friends with a very special young lady named Maggie Landgrebe - also a medical student, also serving the Lord through medical missions. We have remained in touch with Maggie over the years, and like many of you, Dr. Maggie Landgrebe joined us this year in Papua New Guinea by helping us raise financial support to come and serve. In addition, she also purchased some medical equipment which was (literally) shipped here via Dr. Todd Winters' ministry, the Nazarene Hospital Foundation (sends shipping containers to Kudjip full of donated US medical supplies.) Dr. Maggie has faithfully followed our Blog through the year, and as we are getting ready to return home, she has generously sent a final monetary gift, which will be distributed among the following Kudjip ministries which she has read/heard about... ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ I have had the pleasure of spending m...