Hands and Feet

So much to be Thankful for!

2009-11-24T11:46:00.000-06:00

Well we’re back in the States as many of you already know… and we are really enjoying all of the new experiences! All 6 of our flights went smoothly with 22 hours in the air and kids did great! We feel pretty adjusted to the time change now and are all sleeping well and feeling great! I came down with the Shingles right before our trip back but have fully recovered and we’re all healthy and enjoying Fall here in Ohio! When asked what they love most about America, Kadynn responded “seeing my grandmas & grandpas”, Judah responded “all the restaurants”, and Eden responded “playing with new toys”. And when asked what they miss about Tobo, Kadynn said “all the butterflies & animals”, Judah answered “my friends” and Eden answered “my friends”. The kids are really doing great and enjoying all of the “new” that comes with a move across the world.

We came back to a warm welcome from our church, who filled our pantry, made up our beds & put everything we need in our house. We feel so blessed to have such a wonderful house to come back to! I am loving my dishwasher, my washer and dryer which allow me to do laundry at any time of the day rain or shine J, and the convenience of food- frozen food, microwave, fast food, food delivery- it makes my life very easy! And while we’re enjoying getting settled in and pampered by all the conveniences we’re also anxious to get started with school again and begin a schedule which we feel will allow a little normality back into our lives.

Thanks for all you’ve done for us to make our return to the States possible. The Lord has used many of you to provide us with tickets, a house, food, a vehicle, clothing, school supplies and the list goes on! Thank you

We’re looking forward to our first speaking opportunity this Sunday in Eaton Rapids, MI and then celebrating our first Thanksgiving with our families in 4 years. Kadynn will also turn 8 on the 27th so I’m trying to plan a pretty special party for her this year. This will be a Thanksgiving to remember, we have SO much to be thankful for!
Your hands & feet,
Jason & Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

On our way

2009-11-04T08:37:00.002-06:00

We begin our trip back home tomorrow! Please pray for safe travels and lenient customs officers J and for our 3 kids who are used to 1 hour flights in small airplanes! We are all healthy and ready to tackle those long flights after spending a few relaxing days in Australia first J. We will arrive home next week. We have said goodbye to our Tobo friends and anticipate hearing great things about their growth while we are gone. We will try to keep you updated on what is happening in Tobo via our co-workers who will remain there in the tribe.

Thanks for praying for our family! The Lord has provided all we need to get home, live comfortably & travel around. We feel very blessed and are thankful to serve a God who holds the future in His hands and whose finger prints are on the events of our past. Thanks for being there with us and upholding us in prayer. See many of you soon!

Your hands & feet soon to travel the globe,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

Homestretch

2009-10-09T09:43:00.001-05:00

These are the people who make up the Madang region; Other tribal missionaries as well as support workers.

We’ve been out of the tribe for a few weeks attending our annual conference and enjoying a break from ministry in Tobo. It was great to catch up with everyone and be encouraged and we feel ready to tackle our last month here in PNG! We head back into Tobo in the morning. Please pray that we will excel in what the Lord has for us this last month and that we will be sensitive to what he wants us to accomplish and learn. We will look forward to updating you again before we begin our travels home on November 5th! Thanks for your thoughts and prayers. We will see you soon!

Your hands & feet,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

God our Wise Master Carpenter!

2009-09-14T09:53:00.002-05:00

God has been reminding me lately of just how lovingly and patiently He works with His children. I must confess that sometimes I look at this small group of believers here in Tobo and I often ask God, “God when is this just going to explode and we will see everyone here in Tobo hear your Word and believe?” Sometimes I find myself discontent with where the Tobo church is at and so with this kind of outlook I so easily begin to lose sight of the fact that God is lovingly at work in these believers lives. God faithfully encouraged me as I was reading from 1 Corinthians 3. I was really encouraged by the example Paul laid out for us. He says “I (Paul) was like a wise master carpenter.” The truth of this statement didn’t hit me at first but as I took time to meditate on it the Holy Spirit reminded me that God is our ultimate example of a wise and skilled carpenter in how He works in our lives. A skilled carpenter takes pride in his work and pours all of his love and care into that project. When he builds something, he doesn’t just try to get it done as fast as he can, cutting corners and working quickly. He takes his time to make sure every part of his project is done with skill and is done perfect.

Paul also says there in 1 Corinthians that God is the one that gives the increase, or does the growing. How true that is. So many times I have been waiting for a huge breakthrough in the lives of the Tobo believers, for them to stand up to their culture and see many more Tobo people added to our numbers here. But that is not how God is working here in Tobo, God isn’t concerned with our numbers! He is a wise carpenter and therefore is taking his time pouring his loving care and wisdom into this small “band of believes”. Because God has been patiently teaching them, I have been seeing just how solid they are in their knowledge and understanding of the Gospel, their position in Christ and eternal security. As they have really come to grasp these complex concepts they have been becoming more and more bold in what they believe. Just the other day Welsin, my good friend came to my house to help me with some translation. Before we worked I was telling him what God had showed me from 1 Corinthians and how God is our carpenter and is always at work in our lives. He then told me…

“God is at work in my life too, and I want to tell you about a chance that God gave me. Just this morning before I came to see you, I was out in the Jungle with 8 other people cutting wood for a new house. I knew that these people didn’t believe that all we have to do is believe in Jesus and God would be satisfied. So I asked them ‘do you think that you can follow our customs and do good things and that God will see that and be satisfied with you and you will receive eternal life?’ They all just sat there and a few of them said ‘we don’t know’. So I told them that we are all sinners and because of that we have a debt with God. However God knew that we couldn’t do anything to remove that debt on our own, so God saw this and was sorry for us and He freely gave Jesus to us to pay our debt. There isn’t another way to be acceptable in His eyes, it’s only by believing in Jesus that we receive eternal life. After I told them this, they all just sat there and said ‘wow this is a really big true talk’.”

I couldn’t believe it, this man is in Love with his savior Jesus Christ and he allowed God to use him to share with some of his friends what Jesus had done for him. I told Welsin how excited I was to hear this. He could have gotten scared and dismissed the opportunity to witness, but God gave him strength and he trusted in that. We both stopped and praised God and also prayed for those people that Welsin witnessed to that God would redeem them to himself as well. This whole incident brought me back to our great God the Wise Master Carpenter who has been faithfully and lovingly at work in Welsin’s life and in the lives of the other Tobo believers these last couple of years. He hasn’t been cutting corners, but taking his time so that these people here will be strong vessels that will bring glory to His name here in Tobo.

Thanks for praying for the believers here, please continue to pray that they will be a bold witness here in this dark place.

Your Hands & Feet,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

Praise the Lord!

2009-08-28T10:32:00.000-05:00

We have much to be thankful for and just wanted you to rejoice with us for the Lord’s awesome provision over the last week! After sending out our last update we got an amazing response from those of you who had possibilities of vehicles & houses. We were offered 3 houses in the Toledo area and have settled on a house close to our church & parents, with a dishwasher J and fully furnished being given to us rent free! We are so thankful and stand amazed at God’s goodness to us. He truly cares about every detail of our lives! We were also given a van to use while we’re home and are down to only needing approximately $1500 for the remainder of our trip expenses. Don’t we serve an awesome God?! We pray this will be a testimony to those of you who find yourselves in need, that God answers the prayers of His children and cares about even the little things we desire.

Thanks for giving & praying.

Your Hands raised in praise & Feet looking forward to American soil,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

We Need You!

2009-08-18T10:34:00.002-05:00

Our time for home assignment is rapidly approaching, with only a little time left until we begin our journey home for our arrival in the States on November 10th. We still have some urgent needs we’d like to bring to your attention.

Our parents and home church have been looking for a house for us to stay in during our time home (Nov 09- Sep10) in the Toledo, Ohio area where Jason’s parents and our home church are located. However, they have yet to find an affordable place for us since our finances are very limited. We still would like to settle in the Toledo area for our time home, but are open to staying somewhere in the mid-Michigan area as well if something opens up, since we also have family and supporting churches there. What we’re asking from you is that you please join us in praying and searching for a house. If you know of any landlords who would be willing to rent to us, or anyone selling a house who would be willing to temporarily take it off the market to rent to us – please let us know! We are confident that the Lord will provide the perfect house in the perfect location for our family.

We are also still in need of a vehicle (preferably a van) to drive for the 10 months we’ll be home. We will need a good, reliable vehicle for visiting our supporting churches, family and friends. If you know of anything that’s available, please e-mail us.

Finally, we still need approximately $3500 to cover the remainder of our traveling expenses for getting home. If the Lord is leading you to give, there are several ways you can do so:

You can mail a check to New Tribes Mission, 1000 E. First St, Sanford FL 32771, payable to NTM with a note for Jason & Nisae Williamson. Or you can give online at www.ntm.org/give/2023.

Looking at all of these needs can be overwhelming, but we believe in a God who is bigger than money, bigger than cars, bigger than houses, and who delights in using all of His body parts (not just His hands and feet) working together to meet different needs. Thanks for being sensitive to the Lord in how he may use you!

Also, please praise the Lord with us that we have had some sunny days and that our co-workers made it safely back to the tribe! We, along with the Tobo believers are enjoying their fellowship and our kids are enjoying their much missed friends.

Your Hands & Feet working together with the rest of the body,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

Rain Rain Go Away!

2009-08-10T15:44:00.000-05:00

It’s been 3 weeks of steady rain here in Tobo (like 22 inches!), with only a handful of opportunities to see the sun and we’re ready for the rain to go away! Rain like this has an effect on many things here in the tribe. Since we rely on the sun for power through our solar panels, we’ve had minimal power which ups our generator usage and in turn ups the cost of living in here. Rain affects our clothes drying capabilities J. Rain also affects the people here. We just had our first believer’s meeting in 3 weeks on Sunday since the rain and mud has discouraged the believers from meeting. And finally, rain affects our sanity because our kids are stuck here in the house for days on end with no good outlet to their endless supply of energy!

We’re praying and hoping however, that the rain (and clouds) will not affect this weekend when we are supposed to get the Knapps, our co-workers, back from their time of furlough in the States. Please pray that their flights will make it in! We are also prayerfully not allowing the rain to affect our attitudes and resolve to live here in the tribe during these hard times with no power, no outdoor play time, no fellowship, and no evidence of growth in the believers here. We are so thankful that God uses these times to grow us and we know He has us here for a reason although the rain and clouds blur our vision from time to time.

Thanks for your prayers for our family and for the Tobo church, keep them coming!

Your Hands & Feet determined to stay dry and to keep to that plow,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

(Heading back to Ohio for Home Assignment on November 10th -see you in 3 months!)

God's Word Has Come!

2009-07-13T13:53:00.002-05:00

“Thank you God for blessing us with your Word, Thank you God, Thank you God, Thank you!”

This was the response of our “grandma” here in Tobo when she heard the testimony of Welson, who recently attended the translation workshop with us here in PNG. He took some time to share his experiences in the believer’s meeting when we returned. He could have talked about all the good food he ate, the nice bed he slept in and all of the new exciting things he experienced, but he chose instead to talk about the thing that impacted him most: that God’s Word was translated into English & many other languages and is now being translated into the Tobo language. He started off by asking everyone “Do you think God’s Word has come to us through an easy road or a through a hard road?” No one knew. He continued, “ God’s Word has come to us through a hard road and now after hundreds of years God has used these missionaries to bring His message to us into our language so we can understand it.” Welson gave examples using the stories of Martin Luther and William Tyndale and how they were both persecuted for translating God’s Word. He encouraged the other believers not to lose heart in the face of persecution from friends and family, because God has used persecution in the past to further the spread of His Word.

Ambox, the other Tobo believer who attended the workshop came down with Malaria when we returned home from the trip. He has been sick for almost a month despite the treatments we’ve given him. A few weeks ago when we went to visit him & his family, we told him how sorry we were that he got malaria from our trip. He said “We went to do God’s work and it’s okay that I got sick. Even if I die, it would be okay because that’s God’s plan.” Please pray for Ambox that the Lord would restore his strength and that he will be ready soon to continue helping with translation. Jason has been meeting with him regularly to keep him up to date on the teaching, to pray with him and to encourage him through God’s Word. We are praising the Lord for how He has used the workshop to encourage these men who may be leaders in the Tobo church one day.

We have moved our furlough up to November 10th so that we can have an earlier return date next year. Please continue to pray with us for a place to stay, car to drive and the approximate $4500 we’re lacking in travel expenses. See you in 4 months! Thanks for your partnership in getting God’s Word to the Tobo people and seeing His church grow here at the ends of the Earth.

Your Hands and Feet,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden Williamson

Thanks!

2009-06-15T13:16:00.005-05:00

Jason took his last language evaluation on May 25th when our language consultants flew into Tobo. He did an excellent job and has been given the official okay to be finished with language and to move onto the next phase of ministry here in Tobo. Praise the Lord with us for this huge accomplishment, as it’s only been by the Lord’s strength that he has been able to press on for the last 18 months to learn it. Jason will now be able to join our co-workers in the huge task of translating the Scriptures, developing teaching lessons, and discipling the believers here in Tobo. I (Nisae) hope to continue with language as I have a little break in school over the next month and then hope to be able to add language back into my daily schedule after that. Pray that I will take it one day at a time and look to the Lord for balance!!

Over the past two weeks our family along with Ambox & Welson (Tobo believers) have been in the islands of PNG attending a translation workshop. It has been a great opportunity for us to learn more about the translation process and meet other families like ourselves in other tribes. It has also been an amazing experience for Ambox and Welson as they have not only received instruction in how to assist in translation, but also have come to understand the big picture of what New Tribes Mission is doing in many tribes all over PNG. They have talked with other national believers like themselves and have been strengthened and encouraged in their faith. It has been a great experience for all of us and great for building relationships with these 2 men!! Thank you for your prayers and financial assistance both making it possible for us to be here and learn more about what the Lord has for us in our ministries in Tobo.

Kadynn has been in the States for a few weeks now visiting my parents in Michigan! She will begin her travels back the second week in July with some friends of ours. She has already had so many awesome experiences and has been having a blast getting spoiled by our families. When I asked her recently on the phone if she missed us she responded, “a little”, so she’s really doing great! What a great opportunity for her to make more connections with her grandparents and other family back home.

Please pray with us for our team in Tobo. In the first week of June, our co-workers Chad & Janeene Mankins had to unexpectedly return to the States for medical reasons. Please pray for Chad that he will get answers to his health concerns and that they would be able to return mid-July. We are also anticipating the return of our other co-workers, Jason & Kellie Knapp, from furlough in the beginning of August. Please pray for them as they spend these last weeks in the States traveling and packing. And finally, our furlough in the States is coming up in 6 months! Please continue to pray for a house to stay in, opportunities to speak & a van to drive. Also pray for God’s provision for the remainder of our travel expenses. Thanks!

Thank you for your part in keeping us serving among the Tobo people!

Your hands & feet,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden Williamson

Give

2009-06-12T11:06:00.004-05:00

Giving Address:
New Tribes Mission
1000 E. First St
Sanford, FL 32771
USA

Checks payable to: New Tribes Mission
and attach a note: "for Jason & Nisae Williamson"

...OR you can...

Give online at NTM.org

Contact Us

2009-06-12T11:00:00.000-05:00

Overseas/Mailing Address:
Jason & Nisae Williamson
NTM – Private Mail Bag
Madang MP 511
Papua New Guinea

God's Provision

2009-05-23T09:06:00.002-05:00

Furlough, which we also refer to as “Home Assignment” is a time for missionaries to reacquaint themselves with their home country, supporting churches & individuals and family. In January we sent out an update asking for prayer for all of the details regarding our year of home assignment coming up this December. We got a great response to that update, with many friends offering their prayers and financial resources. We were even offered assistance with Pizza Hut coupons J. Thank you for the encouragement you gave us, reminding us that the Lord will provide for our every need! We also have several dates to share at churches and a lead on a van to drive while we’re home. What a blessing you all are to us. Please continue to pray for a nice place for our family to stay while home, along with all of the “stuff” it takes to fill a house, and more opportunities to share about our first term here in PNG as missionaries to the Tobo people.

We actually have our return date set for December 17th and have purchased our tickets! We have been able to cover the cost of half of them and are only in need of about $4500 to pay for the remainder of our travel expenses. We are continuing to look to the Lord for His provision, at the same time being wise with what He’s already provided.

I’ve been encouraged recently through a Bible study I’ve been doing in Ezra. God wanted the Israelites to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem and they began doing so. The Lord used a pagan King to provide for the full costs to rebuild the temple; from the bulls, rams & lambs to be sacrificed to the oil used to anoint the priests. It was amazing to me how the Lord chose to work. He had asked the Israelites to do something very important and He obviously had all the resources to give them to make it happen. He didn’t even need rich Israelites to give towards the cause- He stirred in the heart of an unbeliever and He dipped into the treasury and gave them everything! I believe the Lord works in the same way today. When we choose to obey the Lord and do the things He wants us to do, we can count on His provision for what it is He asks us to do!

On another note, we’d like to ask for prayer for several things:
1. Jason has a language evaluation on May 25th and we’re hoping it will be his last one! Please pray that his nerves will settle and that he can speak accurately from what he’s learned of the Tobo language. I know he’ll do great!
2. Also, at the end of May we will be saying goodbye to Kadynn for 5 weeks as she travels back to America to stay with my mom & dad!! Please pray for safe travel for her (she will be traveling with another family there and back) and for a special time seeing family.
3. And lastly, in June we have the opportunity to go to a translation workshop here in PNG. After his formal language learning, Jason will in some capacity be helping to translate the Scriptures into the Tobo language, so we will be attending the workshop to learn more about the process. We will also be taking 2 Tobo believers with us who have already had a hand in helping with the translation. Our prayer for them as they go out of the tribe for the first time, is that they will rub shoulders with other national believers and be encouraged and strengthened in their faith. We also pray that this will be a valuable workshop for them as they understand the importance of translation and can come back with a fresh perspective on how to better assist our team in the process.

Thanks for your partnership through praying & giving! We will keep you updated…

Your Hands & Feet,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

Speaking Out with Boldness!

2009-04-25T14:54:00.003-05:00

We give thanks to God always for all of you, making mention of you in our prayers… for our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction… so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith toward God has gone forth, so that we have no need to say anything. 1 Thess 1:2-8

I’ve been reading in 1 Thessalonians lately and it has really been a great tool that God has used to help me pray for my Tobo brothers and sisters. In chapter one Paul praises the Thessalonians for their faith in God and that their faith has gone out before them and been a witness to all the people around them. So much that Paul didn’t have to say anything on their behalf! Our prayer for the Tobo people is that as they come to understand more of God’s grace and begin to separate themselves from their old way of thinking and culture that others would begin to take notice. We serve a big God who loves to do the impossible. As I look at the many Tobo villages around here like Siu, Awengu, Masanu, Dabilu, and Tepmaron it seems like such a huge task and sometimes the believers here don’t seem to be growing as fast as we think they should. I’m reminded that when Paul was with the Thessalonians it wasn’t what he did that caused their faith to grow and be a testimony to the surrounding areas. It was God working in their lives in His timing that caused the growth. It was also the Word that Paul preached which “effectively worked in those who believed.” (1Thes 2:13) So as I reread 1 Thessalonians 1:8 I like to substitute the surrounding village names & read it like this to pray for the Tobo church; “for from you may the Word of the Lord sound forth not only in Masanu and Dabilu but also in Awengu, siu & qozalong and in every Tobo village may your faith toward God go out so that we will not need to say anything”. Would you continue to pray with me that the believer’s lives would be a testimony to all the surrounding villages here in Tobo that would one day open up doors for outreaches?

We do praise the Lord that some encouraging things that have been happening around here lately with the Tobo church. Just wanted to take a minute a give you just a glimpse of some of the things that God has been doing here in the hearts and minds of His children here in Tobo. Many of you know that we have been going through the book of Romans with the believers here. For the first time they are seeing from God’s Word some amazing truths. One truth that the believers here have really seemed to grasp is the truth that our righteousness is based on Jesus alone and not by anything that we can do and that we are not able to keep the law and save ourselves. Just the other day I met with one of my language helpers who is a believer and has been faithfully coming to the Romans teaching. He was sharing some of the things that had been on his heart, he told me;

“We are not able to follow the law; there was only one person who was clean and able to keep the law that was Jesus Christ. There is a big example in God’s talk about how when Adam and Eve sinned they tried to cover themselves with fig leaves but that was not good enough so God killed a ram and he himself covered them. That’s just like what people try to do today. They try to do good things and keep the law in hopes that the good things they do will make them clean in God’s eyes. But Jesus was clean for us; he was able to keep the law so when God looks at those who believe in His Son he sees Jesus’ cleanliness and He is satisfied”.

It hasn’t been just this one man either. It seems like after each lesson the people are sharing their thoughts, discussing new things they’ve heard, and really beginning to see how different they are from the rest of the unsaved villages. The Tobo people don’t normally publicly share their thoughts, so hearing people week after week, or even when I see them during the week sharing these thoughts that can cause waves with the unbelieving community; you can imagine how encouraged we have been. This is real evidence that the Holy Spirit is faithfully growing the believers in boldness and understanding. As we continue to look through Romans their faith is just going to continue to grow, and their desire to share these things with their families and villages around them will continue to grow as well.

I also wanted to thank you all for the role you each play, whether prayerfully or financially, in allowing us to continue to serve here and be a part of what God is doing in His church in Tobo. It is such a privilege. It sometimes may seem redundant reading the words “thank you” in yet another one of our updates. Or maybe it’s just us feeling redundant about saying thank you. How we wish there were more than one way to say it! But we know that God has used you to keep us here and we are indeed thankful for your sacrifices & love for us and for the Tobo people. We praise God for you.

Jason

Coming home this year!

2009-01-11T09:30:00.000-06:00

We had a wonderful Christmas and we hope all of you had a great one as well! We celebrated Christmas morning with the Tobo church and had our own little family Christmas the following day. We also celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary on the 30th! Our co-workers took the kids for the evening and provided us with a yummy steak dinner. It was nice to have some time alone! We also rang in the New Year with a late night of fun and games with our co-workers. Now that the celebrating is over for a little while and the New Year is in swing… we can’t help but be excited that this is the year we get to come home on furlough! Okay, I guess we still have to wait until next December J, but still- this year we’ll be home for Christmas!

We know December 2009 is still a little far off, but we have to start thinking and planning about some things now. Things such as – or more like questions at this point – like; Where will we live? (Besides the general vicinity of Toledo, Oh) What will we drive? Which restaurant will we eat at first? What churches will we speak at? How will we afford to get home? Will my house have a dish washer? What will we wear when we arrive in Ohio in the dead of winter? Will our kids freak out when and if they go to a real school? Many of these questions have been turned into prayers already, and getting the answers to some of those questions are a little more important than getting the answers to others of them… however… will you begin praying with us that the Lord will provide some answers for us this year? Will you pray that the details begin to fall in place even as early as the next 6 months? And will you pray that we will depend on the Lord and look to Him when we begin to have more questions or even doubts?

Maybe the Lord will use you this year to answer some of our questions. Maybe you know of a decent car or van somewhere that we could borrow for the year we’ll be home. Maybe your church would be willing to let us come and share what the Lord has been doing in the Tobo church & in our family over the past several years (our calendar is clear from Feb, 2010- Nov, 2010!). Maybe you have an extra $10,000 sitting around and would like to buy our tickets home! Or at least a dish washer you could lend out for a year & some coupons to Pizza Hut that don’t expire until 2011. Okay, so some of those maybe’s are more probable than others…

But seriously, we’d really appreciate your thoughts and prayers this year as we all see the Lord provide together, just like He has in the past. Thanks for all you’ve done for us last year- every prayer, e-mail, gift & package you’ve given to us. We thank God for you!

Your hands & feet beginning to inch their way back home…
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

A Fresh Perspective

2008-12-21T14:40:00.002-06:00

Unex, my language helper & friend

“I’ve never heard the Bible like that before,” Unex told me after one of the believer’s meetings. For the past 3 months the believers here in Tobo have been taught a review from specific Old Testament and New Testament stories. Unex has heard these stories before but never from God’s true perspective. To the Tobo people, God is only a vengeful God that is there ready to pounce on them if they think or do bad things, so they must continually work at appeasing him just like they do with the sprit world. If they can continue on doing good deeds and thinking good thoughts then their good will outweigh their bad and then when they die their spirit will go to heaven - but even then there is no assurance of salvation. So for the Tobo people to accept that they can do nothing to pay their sin debt – except believe- and that they can be confident knowing that their sin is paid for once and for all is a real stumbling block for them . For example a few weeks back I helped my co-worker, Chad, act out an example from Numbers 21 to help the believers really cement these truths in their minds. God told Moses to tell the snake bitten Israelites to look at the serpent and be healed. Chad explained that if the Israelites had tried to help one another and fix it on their own they would have died. But if they believed God and just chose to look at the snake, then God would heal them. Nothing they could do on their own would help them. For Unex, hearing stories from the Word that show God’s love and His plan of redemption through simple belief in the promised redeemer has really shed new light on God and who He is. He and his family have faithfully been coming to hear the teaching week after week. At this point Unex has not yet given us a testimony of salvation, but it’s exciting for us to watch as the Holy Spirit works in his life showing him inconsistencies in his belief system. Thank you for responding to our last update about Unex and for praying for him! Please continue to pray for him and his family as I spend time with them, that the Lord would continue to challenge Unex’s beliefs and reveal the Truth to him and to his family.

Chad and I acting out Numbers 21

This last week Unex also helped as I was given my second language evaluation. Thank you so much for your prayers for me as I have been really pushing myself with language learning these last couple of months. The consultants flew in here for a day and were able to do a full evaluation of where I am at in the Tobo language. They were also able to give me advice that Lord willing, will help push me to the next level. The Language consultants said that I am making great progress, and it could be as soon as next summer that I could be finished. Needless to say I was really encouraged! It’s hard to see progress when I’m in here day after day, but having consultants come in every 6 months really helps me to see how much I’m actually learning. What does this mean for me now? As for the next 6 months or so, please pray that I would continue to be disciplined and diligent to put in the time necessary to finish language study. I am just one step closer to being able to assist the team here in teaching, discipling and translating!

We appreciate you all and the part that you play to keep us here among the Tobo people!
Jason

What are brothers for?

2008-12-08T06:30:00.001-06:00

After a few recent close calls with the kiddos, we think we finally know the answer to the question “what are brothers for?”

Answer: For assisting their sisters in the tooth losing process, of course!!

Last month our daughter Eden (3) fell on some steps and cut up her mouth really bad. Her top gums were ripped up all the way to the bottom of her nose. After healing completely, Judah and Eden were being silly and wrestling around last night when we heard an enormous amount of screaming coming from the living room. Jason rushed in to find blood pouring out of Eden’s mouth and Judah rolling on the floor holding his head. Eden had evidently hit Judah’s head with her mouth, and there must’ve been some other sharp object involved. The blow to Eden’s mouth left her front top tooth out of place and her gums & lip all cut up! Oh how we wished we could have hopped in the car and driven to the dentist or doctor! Instead we had to send off an email to our mission’s doctor and dentist and wait until this morning to talk to them on the radio. We spent last night wondering & praying about what the weekend would hold. Would I need to fly her out to town to see a doctor? Would we have to change next week’s plans so I could come back in? Is Eden’s tooth going to fall out? Thankfully after speaking with both the doctor and the dentist on our radio (with a relay of course, because the reception can never be clear when we really need it to be J), they decided that Eden’s mouth & teeth would heal themselves and there’s nothing they could do about it. Even if her front tooth falls out, there would still be nothing they could do about it. This was good news. Of course it’s not the news any parent wants to hear- that their little girl may have to go toothless for 4 more years- but good news nonetheless. We won’t have to spend $1200+ to fly out to town and get medical help! Please pray for Eden, that she will not have any more mishaps with her front teeth and that she would be able to keep them both until she’s ready to lose them naturally!

Our oldest daughter Kadynn (who is actually at the age to naturally lose her teeth J) has been in the tooth loosing business for a few months now, again thanks to her brother! She lost her first tooth by coming down on Judah’s head during a wrestling match and actually swallowed it! Wednesday she was playing around again with Judah and out came her 2nd bottom tooth! Needless to say we’ve had to lay down some rules about wrestling in the house J, and I think we’re ready to be done with this tooth fairy business after giving out cash for lost teeth & candy for out of place teeth J. Thankfully Judah has a hard head and has not incurred any injuries. And his sisters still love him!!

Please continue to pray for us and our crazy kids. We know we can’t prevent injuries, but we can ask for wisdom in how to avoid them & treat them as they come.

Please also pray for Jason and I next week as we will both be having our language evaluations. Pray that we will be able to accurately speak from the knowledge we have of the Tobo language.

Your accident prone little hands & feet,
Kadynn, Judah & Eden
+ mom & dad

The Culture Gap

2008-11-13T16:40:00.002-06:00

It’s been 1 year since we’ve moved into the Tobo tribe and 2 ½ years since our family came to PNG and we’re slowly getting used to the culture here. The following are situations & thoughts that show the major gap between our culture and theirs…

Situation: We are hanging around outside and it’s market day. A tribal kid offers some of her half eaten corn on the cob to my 3 year old daughter and she takes it and begins to finish the corn, thankful that her friend has shared.

My thoughts- “I better run inside and make sure I have the right antibiotics for every possible sickness and that she is up to date on immunizations!”

The friendly tribal kid’s thoughts- “I like you and you’re my friend, so I will give you the rest of my corn”

My 3 year old daughter’s thoughts- “Yippee, corn on the cob! My favorite! Do you have any more?”

Situation: I went up to visit an old lady (believer) whose family insisted that she fly out of the tribe to seek medical help for her legs, she could no longer walk. I would probably never see her again this side of eternity. I arrived and she began crying and saying over and over in her heart language “I want to lick your poop!”

My thoughts- “wow, while she’s in town she should seek physciatric help as well! Maybe I better turn around and leave…”

Her thoughts- “I am incredibly happy you came. I love you so much that I would actually lick the foulest thing that comes from your body!”

Situation: When we came to visit the Tobo people prior to moving in, we sat outside one of the religious churches here and listened as they finished one of their services with a well known hymn.

Our thoughts- “Wow, they know that song? They must have an understanding of the gospel, why should we come here?”

Their thoughts- “We sing this song every Sunday because it’s what we’ve always done, and what our ancestors have always done. If we stop singing it, it will make our ancestors upset and something bad will happen”

Situation: Our Tobo neighbors help us in killing a pig for a party we are throwing. After the pig is cooked along with greens & sweet potatoes we are handed our plates with strange looking meat parts.

Our thoughts- “Oh great, they gave us the nasty parts because they know we don’t really need any more fattening up! When they’re not looking we’ll give it to our dog.”

Their thoughts- “We gave them the snout, because it’s the best part of the pig! We can’t wait to see them try it. It is SO good!”

Situation: A lady shows up with her sick baby, hoping I have some medicine for her.

My thoughts- “I’m glad she came because it gives me an opportunity to show that I care in this way, but can’t she just wash her baby’s hands with soap and keep her from touching the pigs & dogs? She would not be sick half as often!”

Her thoughts- “This time of year everyone gets sick! But maybe someone has put a curse or worked a spell on her…”

Situation: It’s 9 o’clock in the morning and I’ve been waiting an hour and a half for my language helpers.

My thoughts: “There goes half my morning, why are they so late all the time!”

Their thoughts: “She told us 7:30 AM, so we have a while. We’ll get up, eat & when we’re ready we’ll get going- no hurry, we have plenty of time. It’s not like they’re going to go anywhere.”

Situation- After my language session it begins raining and turns cold. I give my language helpers a bowl of cold soup to take home, heat up and eat.

My thoughts: “It will be so nice for them to have a hot bowl of soup when they get home”

Their thoughts: “What are we supposed to do with this? Well, we will just sit here and drink it from the bowl cold so we can give her bowl back to her”

These have been just some of the gaps between our Western thinking, and the thinking of our Tobo friends. The list could go on and on! There continues to be many situations in the culture here that leave us shaking our heads. It just shows us how important it is that we live here in the middle of them and strive to understand their language and their thinking, so we can present the truth in a culturally appropriate way. A way which the Lord can use to break through the cultural barriers and go straight to their hearts. Please continue to pray for us and for the Tobo people who have yet to understand the Truth. Also pray for the Tobo church that they will be a huge means to reach the rest of their community, as undoubtedly they understand their thinking more than we!

Your hands & feet pressing on to understanding,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

Time with Family

2008-10-16T16:28:00.003-05:00

Jason’s parents Jay and Jill, and brother Jordan arrived here in Madang on Sunday, September 28th . We’ve had a great time with them and have built many memories together. Just a few days after they arrived we all flew into Tobo. It was wonderful to show them our home and introduce them to many of our tribal friends and the Tobo believers. It is something I know neither of us will ever forget. We went on hikes, ate in people’s houses, fellowshipped with the believers and enjoyed a lot of family time together (what else is there to do in the tribe?!) Grandpa built a playhouse for the kids up in our loft and Jason’s mom & I spent a lot of our time in the kitchen as I put her to work helping me cook…boy was it nice to share the load! After 13 days in Tobo we are now back out in Madang enjoying the sights & attractions here. The kids are thrilled to have their grandparents & Uncle Jordan right at their fingertips… and we are too! Jason & I just returned from a night out by ourselves…You got to love visits from grandma & grandpa!

Jason’s family will head back to Ohio on Saturday and we will return to the tribe next week after all the excitement is over. Please pray that Jason’s family will have a safe trip home. Also pray that when we get back to Tobo we will be able to change gears and focus once again on learning language and building relationships with the Tobo people. Thanks for your partnership with us!!

Your hands & feet,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

A time of change

2008-08-31T11:47:00.000-05:00

For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men?
If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ. Gal 1:10

Change in anyone’s life can be difficult, but change can also be God’s vehicle to strengthen and establish His Church. As servants of Christ we are called to make difficult changes in our lives that sometimes go against our family and culture. The Tobo church is no exception. The last few weeks the believers have been going through a great time of change. We (us, our partners and the Tobo teachers) just moved our meeting time from Saturday mornings to Sunday mornings. This seems like a small thing and in many cases it would be, but not here in Tobo. There is another mission here in Tobo (that meets on Sundays) who do not teach salvation by grace alone. This mission has been around for a long time and has become, in many ways ingrained into the Tobo culture. At first we wanted to reach out to those people and still make it possible for them to come, so we had our meetings on Saturdays. That was fine at first and some were beginning to come to our meetings as well as their own on Sundays. This sounds good, but in reality the people who where coming were bringing their false understanding of God’s Word into our believers meetings and coming for all the wrong reasons. Despite all the Truth they were hearing, many of them have been so ingrained with false teaching that it was just going in one ear and out the other. A big concern of ours was that the believers would lose their identity as the body of Christ because of this “mixed meeting”. We believe people needed to decide between our teaching and the other, instead of going to both. We realized that this decision was going to be a hard one. Many people, including some of the believers, had still been faithfully attending this other mission’s meetings and by leaving it they were in effect leaving part of their culture and community. Many were afraid of the backlash that this decision would bring. One husband told his wife (a believer) that if she left this mission to meet with us on Sundays then he would cut her throat. Nisae & Janeene (our partner) have been trying to find ways to encourage her. This decision has and still is testing everyone’s faith. We have been meeting on Sunday now for three weeks and it has been a very special time. The Lord is faithfully growing his body here in Tobo as they strive to follow after God and take a stand against their culture. Please continue praying for the Tobo believers, that God would mold & strengthen them.

What is up with us? We are plugging along in language still… we’re both progressing, but some days are more encouraging than others! Nisae meets with ladies every week to learn language. She is also home schooling Kadynn who just started first grade. I have several language sessions throughout the week and am putting in about 40 hours/ week in language. Chad (my co-worker) and I meet on Tuesdays with the men who are teaching to encourage them and go over the following week’s lesson. It has been a real sweet time of one on one discipleship with the teachers. The Lord is really using this time to encourage the teachers to be faithful and to always be in His Word. We’re looking forward to heading out to town at the end of September for our annual conference and for a little break. My parents & brother will be traveling during that time to come see us. We are excited to give them a tour of Madang & Tobo for a good 3 week visit!

Thanks for your faithfulness in praying for the Tobo church and for our family. We will not understand all the power unleashed through your prayers until eternity, but we can see the Lord working here in different ways and we continuously thank God for you.

Your hands & feet,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

A Little Break...

2008-07-05T09:27:00.000-05:00

Even a small fireworks show to celebrate the 4th- the first fireworks we’ve seen since leaving the States in 2006. It was really special! America we haven’t forgotten you!

Last Tuesday, the kids & I (Nisae) came out to our highlands headquarters for a little break. Jason remained in Tobo to continue on with language, but the rest of us couldn’t resist an opportunity to get to town, be with friends & “dry out” from all the rain and mud in Tobo.

We’ve had a FULL week so far including Vacation Bible School for the kids, doctor visits, my first haircut in 2 years (by someone besides me J) trips to town & pizza delivery. Yes, pizza delivery!! It has been the highlight of my week so far, besides being able to use a cell phone to call my family & clothes shopping online J. Here’s some pictures of our adventures…

Kadynn (our social butterfly) at the end of the line in a VBS water game!

Judah’s meeting our mission’s doctor for the first time. The kids all had great check ups & the doctor discovered Eden had 2 ear infections which we were able to treat right away. One of the blessings of being in town!!

Eden’s enjoying VBS from the sidelines, please notice all her accessories which are a must when we get out of the tribe!

All decked out in red, white & Blue…

In addition to all the excitement, we’ve been able to meet many of the people who support us in the tribe, including our pilot’s family, doctors, our supply buyer, business office workers, and many others who make our ministry in the tribe possible. It’s been such a blessing to be here & the kids have made many new friends and have had a great time. I’ve just gotten one email from Jason because he’s been having horrible radio reception, but he’s doing fine and has been able to get some great language time in. We’ll be flying back in on Tuesday, so pray for sunny skies that morning!

Your partial hands & feet,
Nisae & kids

Tradition or Truth?

2008-06-18T09:33:00.001-05:00

Unex, my new language helper

The mountain clouds began to roll in as Unex and I hiked to his pig house, just a short jungle walk from his house. Unex, a new language helper of mine (remember I was having trouble keeping language helpers?) has really turned out to be a great source for learning the Tobo language. As we got to his pig house we sat for a bit and chatted before we went to repair the pig fence that separates his pigs from his sweet potato & cabbage gardens. While we were working I was able to use some language as well as elicit new things that I hadn’t learned yet. It turned out to be a profitable time for both of us. After a couple of hours it was time to head back. As we walked back to my house I asked Unex if he followed the beliefs of some of the other religious organizations that work here. (The other religious organizations here in Tobo do not preach the true Gospel of grace but instead they teach works as a means of righteousness.) He said; “my father was really involved in one of the other organizations here but now he’s dead. I’m really not involved in that organization but I feel if I go to another place to hear the teaching then I would be disrespecting him and my family and I can’t do that.” I thought about that then asked him; “do you think it’s better to follow after man and tradition or to seek the truth of God’s word and follow that?” He didn’t say much. After I got home I thought about what he had said and even though the truth of God’s Word is so close to these people- I mean all they need to do is simply come and hear it- It is a choice that they need to make. Satan still holds on to these people with everything he’s got, deceiving them into following after silly traditions, loyalties, and the works of man as a means of righteousness. It’s such a sad thing to trade eternal separation from God for the respect of your family, however we know that we serve a God who does incredible things in the lives of His people. And we know the Lord is not finished with His work in the lives of the Tobo people- people like Unex who are still in need of the grace of Jesus Christ. Would you please begin to pray for Unex and his family that the Lord would allow me to continue to develop a good relationship with them that will ultimately lead to their salvation? Your prayers continue to play a vital part in what God is doing here in Tobo.

Your hands & feet,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

Answered Prayer

2008-06-11T09:37:00.002-05:00

Jason with his language helper, Siwala & language consultant Andrew Murray

We’ve seen the Lord at work since we sent out our last update encouraging us by answering our prayers. Many of you have also been an encouragement to us by writing to assure us of your prayers & support. Thanks for reaching out to us!! Thanks for understanding our hardships and being there for us, standing with us to witness the power & sufficiency of God.

The same day we sent out our last update, we got an update from the Mankins, our partners who are waiting to return to the tribe. They finally got word on their paperwork and will be leaving the States Monday night (your time)!! Praise the Lord we won’t be alone for too much longer over here. Thanks for praying!! Please keep them in your prayers as they’ll be traveling with a 3 year old & 7 month old across the globe.

Jason & I survived our language evaluations, and we were very encouraged with the outcome. There are 3 stages in learning language and Jason is right in the middle of the 2nd stage. I think that’s pretty impressive only having studied the language for 4 months!! I’m pretty far behind him, but I was able to get some great advice & encouragement to keep going despite homeschooling & other responsibilities. Thanks for thinking & praying for us!

We also thank the Lord that our other partners (the Knapps) are doing ok despite many health concerns. Jason (Knapp) had surgery done on his heart last week and it was a success. This week Kellie will need to go in and get some skin cancer removed off of her arm. Please continue to pray for their family.

We are also seeing the Lord provide for our computer! What great proof that we serve an all-knowing, caring God. Thanks for sticking with us, you’re a great team that the Lord is using to root us on & keep us over here among the Tobo people!

Your revived hands & feet,
Jason & Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

Learning Contentment

2008-06-02T09:46:00.000-05:00

“I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. “ Philippians 4 12-13

Unlike the Apostle Paul, we have not mastered the state of being content. We are however in the process of learning to be content in our circumstances!! It has not been an easy month for us as a family here in Tobo. We have had one set of partners go home for furlough May 1st (The Knapps) and we have not yet had our other partners (The Mankins) return from furlough because of paperwork. We never planned on having to be alone here in the tribe, but it’s the circumstance that we find ourselves in now which the Lord has allowed- obviously to draw us closer to Himself and to teach us a few things about being content! The weather has not been the best lately. We are coming up on rainy season and we are beginning to experience those colder temperatures & rainier days and nights that our partners have warned us about. We’ve gotten some good use out of our wood stove lately and we’ve had to pull out some of those rainy day surprises for the kids as well! In addition to these things we’ve all been sick. Jason came down with Malaria again and we’ve all had the flu on and off. I think we’re all back on our feet now, but it was not fun. Our financial support has also been down quite a bit for the last few months which affects our food supply & flight frequency, and then Jason’s computer went kaput! Please believe me when I say that I could go on and on about all of the negative things that come to my mind right now about our circumstances. It’s not easy to live here in the bush at times like these! When we are so isolated and the only white people around for hundreds & hundreds of miles only accessible by aircraft, we begin to see that we are NOT in control!! HOWEVER, what an invaluable lesson in God’s sovereignty and available strength that we are learning!!

No doubt the Lord has allowed these hardships to cause us to put our focus on Him. We can relate more now than ever to some of the hardships that Paul faced on some of his missionary journeys. He went through more than we ever hope to go through, but these circumstances caused Him to focus on the Lord and the strength that is available through Him to not only face these conditions but triumph over them. Through our present circumstances we are privileged to see the Lord’s strength seeing us through and bringing us joy in spite of everything. It’s a daily- ok, minute by minute- choice of having to train our minds to think on the things that are true, lovely & praiseworthy (Phil 4:8) - things that are positive, rather than everything that is negative. We have had to choose to pray with thanksgiving, rather than to worry about our present circumstances (Phil 4:6). And doing these things has brought us God’s promise of experiencing His peace which has guarded our hearts and minds in Christ (instead of on our circumstances!). (Phil 4:7) We praise the Lord for His Word and the promises throughout!

Please be in prayer with us over the following things:
•That the Mankins would receive quickly their long awaited paperwork from the PNG government and be on their way here soon!
•For the Knapps as they have received some discouraging health news since returning to the States
•That the Lord would burden more people’s hearts to get involved financially in our ministry and through that see our needs met for a new computer.
•For good health and endurance to continue on in language study
•For a strong mental focus on the Lord through whatever circumstances we find ourselves in

This Tuesday we have our first language evaluation to help us see where we’re at in the language and to help with problems we’ve been facing. Please pray for a smooth time throughout the evaluation, and that we would be encouraged when it’s over.

Thanks for standing with us through it all and encouraging us along the way!
Your sometimes weary but being strengthened hands & feet,
Jason & Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden

Living Love

2008-05-22T11:31:00.001-05:00

Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove,
rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. 2 Timothy 4:2

“I was in my house trying to sleep but the two old ladies next door just wouldn’t stop talking, they where talking about night and day and how we just go to sleep and wake up and never really think about it. Who or what causes the sun to rise in the morning and go down in the evening? I saw this as an opportunity from the Lord to talk to the women about some of the things that I have been teaching in the village. So I got out from my warm bed got my flashlight and headed out the door. I went and saw the ladies and asked them, pointing to my flashlight, ‘whose flashlight is this?’ They laughed and said ‘well of course it’s yours’. Then I told them that because it’s mine I have the power to turn it on and off as I wish. That’s just like our creator God. He made the world and so everything in it;, the sun, moon and stars are His. He controls everything just like I turn this flashlight on and off.” – Kips

Kips, Welsen and Tingon, for the last three weeks have been teaching about who God is, who Satan is, and where sin came from. They are teaching chronologically through the Bible just like they heard it for the first time over a year and a half ago. The believers are excited to hear these truths again and to really cement them into their thinking. Now that they are believers some of these truths take on a whole new meaning. This has also been a time of outreach for them as we are having the meetings up in the village of Denginu. There have been some new men & women who curiously come in to the meeting house and sit down, but not many. Please pray for the Holy Spirit to begin a work in the thinking of the Tobo people here. The believers really have a heart to reach their own people but struggle to know how to do it. I told them that it’s so much more than just teaching God’s word -we have to live it before the unbelievers. Kips shared a verse with me from 1 Corinthians 13:13 “But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love”. “We need to show these people we care and that we will make time for them just like Jesus,” he stated. I showed them from Philippians 2:3 that we need to look after the interests of others and not just ourselves, this will show people we love them. It has been a real encouraging time with these guys as they in turn have been teaching me things about the power of God and loving others just as Christ loves us. Please pray for these three Tobo teachers, Kips, Welsen and Tingon for boldness and direction as they look to reach out into their own community.

Your hands and feet,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah and Eden

Where have all the language helpers gone?

2008-05-12T19:51:00.001-05:00

Me with my most faithful language helper, Welson.

It’s been roughly three months since I have started learning the Tobo language…and I can honestly say things have been going good. I’m so thankful for the Tobo guys that have been helping me out, and I’ve started building some great relationships with believers and unbelievers alike. But trust me it hasn’t been without its frustrations!

When we left for PNG we made sure to let everyone know so we could say our goodbyes. We spent several weeks seeing everyone one last time before we left. The culture in PNG is so different! One thing I’ve learned here in Tobo is that when someone wants to leave, they don’t worry much about goodbyes. I’ve recently had quite the experience with language helpers just leaving without telling me! Just this morning I got up to go meet my language helper. We had planned to go on a hike to the river and camp out over night. I got up really early, got my backpack all loaded (about 23 lbs) and walked the 25min hike (up a mountain) to meet him at his village. When I arrived, I was quickly informed that the previous day he had gone off to Lae (a larger city 2 day’s walk from here). Of course he didn’t let me know ahead of time, so I could plan something else for that day! Besides that, we had begun to build a great friendship and I would consider him one of my closest friends here in Tobo. I’m not sure when he will be back, often people leave and can be gone 6 months to a year or more.

The thing is that this is not the first time that this has happened. This is the third helper who has done this to me! I had another man come to me and ask me if he could help me with language, so we agreed and decided on a day to meet. When that day came he never showed up. He too had left without telling me! Man alive, what’s wrong with me? Do I smell or something? Do they think I’m a waste of their time? I’ve really been struggling with having consistent people here to help me with language. It’s especially hard when I spend time building relationships and begin to see them as good friends and not just “helpers”. I get excited about how the Lord may use this time as not only a language time but also a time for discipleship. So when they get up and leave it’s temping to get frustrated with them and give them the cold shoulder when they come back. I know that I’m probably looking at this through my culture and to them this is what they do and it’s not a big deal. If they have a chance to go they drop everything and just go, and most of the time their friends and family understand. Pray for me to learn to be flexible and sensitive to the Lord’s direction in finding dependable language helpers. . The Lord uses these things to remind me that He alone will give the grace and wisdom to learn the Tobo language in His way and in His timing.

One of my language helpers is actually on the verge of death. He has been with me for almost 4 years and has been at my side assisting me in almost every thing I do that is language related. Before you get worried and saddened, I will reveal that he is none other than my post-trustworthy Dell laptop. It is almost more unfortunate than the experiences I’ve written about above as I use my laptop for thorough language review, filing and more. We do not have an immediate replacement and are trusting the Lord for his direction and provision in purchasing a replacement, which we unfortunately cannot find in the closest village as with our other language helpers!

We praise the Lord for using you in our ministry whether you give, pray or encourage us. Thanks for all you do to keep us pressing on in language among the Tobo people!

Your hands & feet,
Jason, Nisae, Kadynn, Judah & Eden