Moving

You know when you get ready to move, how you rally all your closest friends and call in all favors and blackmail whoever you can think of to come help you get all your junk out of one house and move it to the next...then you buy everyone pizza and give them high fives and I.O.Us and they go home and you enjoy living in you knew home?

Yeah, well this is nothing like that.

We have to ask our fellow-missionary-friends to come out of their parts of the jungle or town, fly into our part of the jungle and not only help us move, but actually help us build the house first...then put all our junk into it.

This process takes days-almost two weeks, in fact.

And there is no Pizza Hut.

So how do you show your appreciation and keep nine men energized and motivated to help your family?

You cook. A LOT.

This is my main job during the house building phase. I cook 3 meals a day, and clean up those meals, and I try my best to get their clothes clean everyday, so their wives do not die from the toxic fumes that would radiate from their bags when they got home if I didn't.

It really doesn't seem like enough does it? Thankfully, these guys don't do it for us, but for the Lord and the passion to see His word spread through every corner of this planet. It is a relief to know that He offers the best rewards and nothing I can do can top that!

Anyway, so in order for things to run smoothly I am doing a lot of cooking in advance. I will use my co-workers stove for each meal and she only has that-a stove- as her oven has been broken for years because rats chewed on the wiring when they were on a break. Fun.

So. Even though it is against every fiber of my Southern being, I cannot make any casseroles and have to only do stove top stuff which has forced me to think creatively a little, but it's at least better than having to cook over an open fire (which is exactly what Susan did back in March when the guys moved their house to our current village- she is a hardcore tribal wife). 

 I cook and transfer the meals into a ziploc bag and freeze them flat, so they won't take up to much space in Susan's freezer. I will have to use hers until my fridge and freezer get set up and working. Thankfully, I have some sweet missionary ladies who are helping me cook, since these 4 ziploc bags represent 3 hours and only two... that's right...TWO meals out of 30.

Here is a picture of my fridge and freezer...(ok so it is only one, but they are both exactly the same, you just change the temperature to make it a fridge or a freezer)

Yes, my fridge will be a chest style which is kind of a pain, but it runs on 98 percent less energy than a stand-up, so it is great for my solar/battery situation.
*And I did crop myself out of this photo because it was a very long, hot and sweaty day and my makeup just melted right off my face and my hair was soaked with sweat, so I looked way too much like this guy to post it on the internet for the world to see*

So there you go. A tiny peek into my part of the house building process. I know you are disappointed that I am not running a chainsaw or digging a septic hole, but if you saw me in the kitchen, then you would know it is just as dangerous and exciting!

Please pray that the airstrip we need to land on gets opened and the weather is good for all our flights in with our stuff next week! That's right, in ONE WEEK I will be an official tribal wife! Woo-hoo!

Helping Chad

As many of you read, Chad lost all his gear when the boat sank, including his wallet, computer, cell phone, and clothes. Seriously, he even lost the shorts he was wearing because he used the draw string in them to tie up the float he made for everyone to hang on to!!

Many asked about how they can help replace the things that he lost and the two best ways are listed here:

You can send a check to:

New Tribes Mission
1000 E. First St
Sanford FL 32771

**Make sure to write CHAD EARL in the memo line and it will go directly to him**

Or you can click on this link and give to him online.

I really want you help Chad, and to share this with all your friends and family, but I will resist the urge to tell you that if you don't- you don't love Jesus, missionaries, and your mom...and that you will probably burn in hell or at least get diarrhea.

So, help out, if you want...or don't. But helping would be way cooler than not helping.

He Shouldn't be Alive

No, I am not talking about my husband. I am talking about a friend, and fellow missionary who just had a very harrowing experience. Seriously this should be on TV one day.


 This is Chad. He is our friend and former neighbor. In this picture he is in Hewa (our tribe) helping to move our co-workers' house. (He is a man of many talents)

He is in the country serving as a missionary, doing what we call "People Group Assessment." Basically he goes into the jungle to check out places that are reported to have no Gospel witness. They hike into a village, stay in a tribal house, eat whatever the people give, and sleep wherever the people tell them to sleep. These guys are hard core. They seriously could hang with Bear Grylls on any of his adventures.

Chad with the green hat, and Tony, the head of the PGA department out on a survey. (Tony has many great qualifications for this difficult job, but my favorite one that people comment on is his iron stomach. He can eat anything that the people hand him without blinking an eye. That is a much needed talent for this type of work.)

Anyway, Chad recently went to the Islands region of PNG to assess some people groups, and find out if they need missionaries. As you can imagine with the name "Islands region" this requires a lot of travel by boat. I am not talking nice big yacht or speed boat. I am talking dingy...possibly something like this...

Ok, so he is on this small boat with at least 9 other people traveling from one island to the next when a big storm comes out of no where...fast. One big wave swept over the boat instantly sinking it. There was another boat traveling with them that circled when they went down, but did not grab any passengers fearing they would go down as well. When this second boat landed on the nearest island, they shared the fate of the the other boat, and the news eventually reached the missionaries on the island who then told our leadership...who then contacted Chad's family.

This is part of Chad's family...

The pretty blond is Holly, Chad's sister and they just happen to be our neighbors right now in Wewak, although, you may remember them from our time in Bush Orientation. They are the family that helped us learn what it would take to live in the jungle and plant a church there.

His mom and dad are also missionaries here in PNG. They work in Goroka at the mission headquarters.

He also has brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews back in the States who were rocked over the news.

So, at first, all this precious family knows is that Chad's boat sank. They have no idea where he is or what happened to him after that.

A few very long hours later, two men from the sunken boat drifted/swam ashore to the island where they were supposed to land. These men told the islanders and missionaries there that Chad stayed behind to help the other passengers who could not swim. He used his belt and shoelaces to tie some pieces of wood to the gas tank from the boat, so they could all stay together as they floated in the ocean. The family clung to this glimmer of hope that Chad was alive. They stayed up all night waiting and praying, knowing that they wouldn't know anything else until morning. But they weren't alone in this. Almost all the missionaries in PNG who knew about it were up all night praying as well. Along with many people in the States who received the news via the internet.


Meanwhile, the missionary on the island who received the news was this guy...

 

His name is Ryan. They were our neighbors for a while as well before they moved into this island tribe where Chad was headed. As soon as he heard that Chad and the others were floating in the ocean...and would be there all night, he spent all night going from village to village finding boats and people to leave at the first light of day to search for the drifters. At the break of dawn Ryan and the Patpatar people left the island, praying that they would not be too late. After two hours of searching, Ryan and the villagers found and rescued Chad and the other passengers.

They were all Alive.

They were all uninjured.

After FIFTEEN total hours drifting in open ocean. 

Chad lost all his gear. Including his clothes and computer, but God spared his life and the lives of the PNG citizens who were traveling with him.

Sometimes being a missionary is very difficult, and very scary. But nothing compares to seeing God's glory in the miracles He bestows on His people.

So today, we are praising a merciful God who rescued a prophet from the belly of a fish, a disciple from sinking in the waves that he once walked on, and a humble servant on a small boat in the Pacific Ocean, who was searching for lost the lost sheep that the Shepard wants for His own. 

Thank you Jesus for the life and service of Chad Earl. And thank you Jesus for allowing him to continue to serve you another day.

Dog Bling

I recently read an article in People magazine that said dressing your dogs in bling collars and outfits is totally out. Collared shirts and preppy looks are now in.

I am so glad I saw that, and can let all the dogs of Papua New Guinea know. 

I mean how embarrassing would it be to show up for a pig hunt with a bling collar when all your friends are wearing preppy shirts? I mean, they would probably die of embarrassment and their owners would then die of starvation.

I know I speak for all tribal dogs everywhere, when I say, "thanks for caring about canine fashion, People Magazine". It is truly making a difference in the world.