Greetings!
Our ship the PNG, is now docked in the Port of
Port Moresby for the week. We have been here a few days and had to say goodbye
on Saturday to the 50 or so volunteers that were with us on the last outreach. We
have spent this week preparing for the next outreach which will start tomorrow
with the arrival of the new volunteers as well as about 15 members of the DTS
class from Townsville!
On Friday we’ll have an orientation all day and on Saturday
we’ll leave for our first stop. Oddly, because it’s Easter this weekend, we will
do the first day of outreach and then probably have Sunday and Monday off,
because it’s Easter. I’m not sure how that will work out, but it should be
interesting!
This week Donna and I have been given time to work on other
projects and for me to spend time just doing work prepping for the DTS at Eagle
Rock that starts in just 47 days!! I’ve been trying to communicate with the
students and think through the plans for the summer. I have been meditating on
a Scripture from Deuteronomy
3:28 where God tells Moses to, “Commission Joshua, and encourage and
strengthen him, for he will lead this people across and will cause them to
inherit the land that you will see." I think it’s an important word, not
only for the young people of PNG, but also for the upcoming DTS, a call not
only to learn for yourself, but to reach out and duplicate what you are
learning in another!!
Having a few days to just do what we want has been really
nice here. We do get called into regular meetings with different leaders and
the ministry leader Ken, but that hasn’t been as constant as I’d imagined, so
I’ve had time to rest and write and such. Everyone else is working to prep for
the next outreach, everything from training for the boat drivers (since we’ll
be landing through surf this time and not on a river bank) to restocking the
kitchen to cleaning all the cabins!!
Speaking of cabins, we moved from ours, because it is
actually the leader Ken’s and really spacious and nice (it’s a true privilege
to live in there at all!!) and we got moved to a room that’s not being used
this time, because everyone arrives on Thursday and Ken won’t leave until
Friday, when we’ll move back into his room!! So, while it’s a little cramped
right now, I look forward to getting back upstairs and we are thankful for the
current accommodations!
I’ve been getting to know some of the people on the ship
crew (the professional sailors who aren’t part of ywam) and the ywam staff too.
They are such quality people and I’m trying to build some relationships that
might reach into the future. So far I haven’t met someone who sees me as an
equal and therefore opens the way to deeper friendship, most people see me as a
leader who treats them as an equal and that blows them away, particularly among
the PNG staff, since their culture is based on a strong hierarchy with age
being a determining factor. I suppose I appreciate the amount to respect
afforded me, whether I deserve it or not!! But I’ll keep sowing into the
relationships and see what happens! I do enjoy the interaction!
We have been meeting regularly this week with the leader of
YWAM PNG. A guy Donna met 2 years ago when she was here with a gal pal on
staff, Ruth, attending a conference. His name is Winterford. We have meals with
him and just listen to his vision for his country. He’s a big guy even for a
PNGer, a very commanding presence. His views are very practical and built on 20
years of leadership here. If we come back, it’s likely we’ll work with closely
with him, so the time is well spent.
We only have about 3 weeks left here in PNG and we are
planning to make the most of every day!! Pray for us, if you will, Donna has
been promoted to help lead the Community Engagement team for this next outreach
and she’s excited about raising up the PNG leaders we have working with that
team. I will be in the villages next week, working with the Optometry team,
helping people see better and taking my now PNG guitar to play in the slums and
villages!
We are excited to get started again!
Here's a couple more pictures from our time on the Bamu River. A healthy baby and mom and two of our smaller boats stored on the ship.
No comments:
Post a Comment