Many of you have followed the intense journey we have been
on over the last month through email and Facebook, so you know that the last 30
plus days have been a whirlwind of events and emotions that in some ways seem
indescribable. Somehow, I am going to try to describe them here, and share some
news about some big changes happening for our family and the Hewa ministry.
As most of you know, I (Jessi) have been dealing with some
significant health issues over the last few years that have had us traveling back
and forth from PNG, Australia, to the U.S. to try to find answers and relief.
We spent a year in the U.S. in 2018 to try to find solutions to the various
things going on with my health. It was a difficult year for us as most of those
“solutions” could not happen as long as we lived overseas. We had a difficult
decision to make then: do we stay and treat my conditions or do we go back to
PNG until I can no longer function?
After a lot of seeking the Lord’s direction in prayer and
weighing all of our options, we felt like we needed to go back to PNG to try to
finish the task we started with the Hewa ministry. We wanted to see a mature
church planted among the Hewa people, and we were very close to that conclusion
as elders and deacons had just been appointed in the church. We knew, however,
that those elders and deacons needed more teaching, guidance, and discipleship
before they were left on their own. We also knew that nothing I had was life
threatening, and could wait another year or two for treatment.
We spent the year on our mission’s largest center so we
could be close the medical clinic and doctors for when I had flare-ups. John
Michael continued lesson writing and discipleship with the people, and I was
able to teach fourth and fifth grade at the mission school. We spent the entire
year in prayer about our future in PNG, weighing what was going on with my
health with where the Hewa church had needs. We came to the conclusion in March
that our time in PNG would end in June at the close of the school year, and
when John Michael finished writing lessons for the Hewa church on the book of
James. The elders were doing a great job, and our co-workers also decided to
move out of the tribe permanently to let the church stand on its own two feet.
This is the natural progression of a tribal church plant, to work ourselves out
a job, and we knew that we had come to this point in the ministry. We spent early March discussing our
plans and decisions with our leadership teams in PNG and the U.S. and planned
on sending an email to all of our supporters and churches in April to let you
know that we would moving back to the U.S. in June.
However, just like most of you, our lives were turned upside
down by the COVID-19 pandemic. All missionaries on the field with underlying
health issues were asked to leave the field by our leadership team and doctors
because borders were closing, and treating us would become more difficult and
dangerous. Although, we were devastated to have to leave our home and country
of service for the last nine years so soon and so quickly, we agreed with and
respected their decision. We packed up and sold everything as quickly as
possible, said the goodbyes that we could and desperately scrambled to get back
to the U.S. before all the surrounding countries that we would have to pass
through closed their borders. We purchased and then had to cancel a total of 4
different sets of tickets because borders and countries were closing very
rapidly without notice. It was devastating to us that we would not be able to
go back into the tribe to say goodbye to our Hewa brothers and sisters, but we
are praying that the Lord will allow us to go back one day to see them and
properly say goodbye. Our trip home was full of unknowns and rapid changes, and
we even had a very close call in the country of Singapore where we were told
that we would be turned over to immigration if we didn’t get on a flight before
the country closed its borders in the next few hours. We were so thankful to
the Lord for sending an airport employee who worked incredibly hard to make
sure we got on a flight to the U.S. just minutes before the deadline to be out
of the country.
We arrived home exhausted but thankful to be back in America
even though our luggage was still in Singapore with no way of knowing when they
would get it to us with all the cancelled flights and border closings.
However, after only two days of arrival, John Michael began
showing symptoms of COVID-19 shortly followed by myself, his dad, and finally
his mom. Through all the chaos of trying to get home, we had no time to find
another place to quarantine, so we came to John Michael’s parents home where we
got sick, and then infected them as well. Most of us had what are considered
“mild” cases of the virus, but we still felt pretty bad for two weeks. His dad,
however, did have to be hospitalized with pneumonia. Thankfully, he never had
to be put on a ventilator, but stayed in a regular room on oxygen while he
received treatment for a week.
Currently we have recovered from the virus and are
continuing to shelter in place as much as we can just like the rest of the
country and most of the world.
Right now, our plan is to continue to stay on with Ethnos360
(NTM) until the month of July, so that John Michael can finish the James
lessons and email them to our area leadership who can put them into the hands
of the Hewa church elders. We ask and pray that you would continue to support
us as we make this transition so that these lessons can be finished for the
Hewa church. Our family will still depend on your support to get this done. Please
know that we are still passionate about missions, particularly reaching
unreached people groups and Bible translation for those without God’s Word in
their language. We are leaving with heavy hearts, but good standing with the
mission and feel like the Lord will always have us involved in His work even if
it is voluntary. Ethnos360 even offered us options to serve in ministries here
in the U.S. but for now feel like Mississippi is where the Lord wants us. We
have loved our time with Ethnos360 will continue to promote and encourage their
ministries around the world.
While we are continually looking back at all the Lord has
brought us through, and thanking Him for his protection and provision, I have
to admit that we are questioning and wondering why He would bring us to this
place of huge transition out of the life and ministry that we have be involved
in for over a decade at what seems like the worst possible time. To have us
completely start over, career-wise, while the world is shut down and most
people are not hiring is frightening at times. I have frequently asked the
Lord, “WHY?” over and over. But we have seen Him do incredible things in our
lives in what the world would consider impossible situations, so we are
clinging to the truth of His word and His track record of 100% faithfulness.
I apologize for the length of this update, but we wanted you
all to have as much information as possible going forward with us. Again, we ask
and pray that you would continue to support us through Ethnos360 through the
month of July, so that John Michael can finish his work of Bible lesson writing
for the Hewa church. After that time we will seek employment elsewhere,
although right now we have no idea where that will be or what we will do. We
desperately need your prayers for God to provide jobs for us in Mississippi
where we plan to live for the foreseeable future.
There are no words to express how thankful we are as a
family to all of you who have prayed and given financially to us so faithfully
over the last nine years (13 for those of you who have been with us since our
time in East Asia). We most certainly would not have been able to do any of
this without your love, prayer, and support. We are praying for you all
constantly during these turbulent times, trusting that our Creator who holds
all things together (Colossians 1:17) will be faithful to us all through this
current crisis.
With all our love,
The George Family
JM, Jessi, Lucy, Mattie, and Mia
