Paul's PNG Mission Trip - Ep 02

[pandrews]

(August 1st, 2009)

Well, another month come and gone, but this time with big news in my
world... LCMS (Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod) in St. Louis got a
hold of the PNG (Papua New Guinea) Consulate in Washington DC on
Wednesday and they said that they are still waiting for the approval
from PNG for my work vista so I can spend a year building an airstrip
there... yeah... that's big news in my world lately. Well, it's news
anyway. So, I'm still in my holding pattern.

Lately I've been working on finishing some of the books in my list,
but
I haven't been making very good progress until I started house sitting
for some friends of mine on Thursday. Why would this make such a big
difference? Well, let's just say that the two dogs are pretty well
mannered and since I have to check on them every so often, I don't end
up going back into town to try to find something to do and I'm at
their
cabin with my books, and a decent amount of time. I just finished
"Mission Possible" Marilyn Laszlo which was on the Wycliffe Bible
Translators in PNG. I'm not sure what's next on my list, but I'm sure
it will give me more insights into the people I'll be seeing over the
next year.

The Open Arms daycare after school kids took a trip to see some
airplanes yesterday, and I have to say that it's sparked my interest
to
learn more about flying. I've got a couple pilot friends who keep
trying to get me to go flying with them and it's looking more and more
appealing. One of them (Dan) spent his first few years in LAMP
(Lutheran
Association of Missionaries and Pilots) in PNG and has been
extraordinarily helpful in helping get my first taste of PNG through
old
films and books that he's had collecting dust at his house in
Fairbanks.
Interestingly enough he most recently flew a Navajo for LAMP here and
that was exactly the type of planes that the kids saw on Friday.

I've been trying to keep busy while I wait, so I've been doing a few
side projects. No matter if it's been brush removal and erosion
correction for Dave, parking lot restoration/expansion for Seamas, or
yard work for Erin, they all have given me the opportunity to flex my
muscles in preparation for the physical work sure to come in the next
year.

Possibly the most exciting development recently was my introduction to
Sarah, who just returned from Vanuatu and knows the Pidgin language
quite well and has offered to tutor me in it. The connections that
God
has laid out before me in Fairbanks have been quite amazing to say the
least.

Please keep me in your prayers as I continue to prepare... God has his
reasons for keeping me here a little longer... please pray that He
allows all of us to be used to His glory wherever we may be.

Your Brother in Christ,
Paul

http://zloof.blogspot.com/
http://www.lcms.org/?14786