Well...the time has come! We are leaving for Papua New Guinea in 5 hours!! Crazy!! I wanted to inform you of what we will be doing in PNG so you can be praying!! First of all, our team consists of eight people: Kirby Myer, Chris Johnson, David Sitton (AKA "Chief"), Rod Connor, Mark Faulkner, Carly Barnes, Kate ???, and Me! Please be praying for our physical endurance as the trek to the unreached is long and strenuous. We will arrive in Wewak, PNG sometime on the 18th (I think...the time changes really throws me off!!). About a day or two later we will take a 6 hour truck ride to a huge lake and then hop in a dugout canoe. This canoe will take us 3 hours away from shore to the shore of Chambri Island. We will then proceed to hike 6 hours to the Chambri village. Chambri village will act as our home base but we will often set out on 2-3 hour hikes to surrounding villages. The names of these villages are: Womboom, Yimbe Yimbe, Changrimen, and other various villages. A church has been established among the Chambri and if you want to hear the story of how God accomplished that then you can go to toeverytribe.com and listen to David Sitton's sermon spoken at Piper's conference. It will bless your socks off. You will also hear the story of a woman named Prisca. Prisca is from the Womboom village. Her village is hostile to the gospel. She is unable to live in her village any more because of the persecution due to her faith in Jesus. She is the only believer from that tribe so they are still unreached. Pray that God would open up doors for His power to be shown as the all powerful God that He is. Pray that God opens their eyes to the lie they believe according to Romans 1 and that God would shine the light of the glorious gospel in their hearts!! Yimbe Yimbe has one believer that I know of named Lawrence. He reads his bible daily...like...all day long...and he never even learned how to read!! God taught him!! He has one amputated leg and he sits in his hut all day long reading his bible and singing the few songs he knows and praying that God would save his people. You can join Lawrence in his prayers for his people's salvation!! The Changrimen are a reached tribe as well, as far as I know. I am not sure how 'reached' though. Well, Lord willing we will return to the states March 10th and I hope to get a newsletter update out to you guys soon after my return. I am sure I will have many stories to tell!! Thank you again for all your prayers and support. Once again, the prayer requests are:
- physical strength to make it to the people we desire to share the gospel with
- unity among the church in Chambri
- Prisca's strength and provision
- Salvation for Womboom
- Strength for Lawrence to press on in prayer for his people's salvation
- The salvation of the Yimbe Yimbe tribe
- Salvation for more people in the Changrimen tribe
- Strengthening for the believers among all these tribes and for a desire to take the gospel to their own village neighbors!!
Keep in mind, as you pray, the beautiful promise of Revelation 7:9-12
"After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from EVERY NATION, FROM ALL TRIBES AND PEOPLES AND LANGUAGES, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!"
You are praying for your brothers and sisters who will one day stand with you before the throne of God and we will sing together to our great God and King who is the Lamb and our salvation! Praise the Father above who has given us His great mercy and grace and provided for us His very self as our reward...He could give us nothing better. Praise Him!!
Philippians 1:27...Cara
