Trip Report to Bintuni

I flew Susi Air from Sorong on Sunday morning at 8:30 a.m.   It’s an expensive trip to Bintuni at about $240 round trip.  I’ve learned cheaper ways to get there next time.   Or in my case I flew on to Manokwari on Tuesday morning to catch a flight to Jayapura with Express Airs second flight.   But I’m jumping ahead.   So lets go back to the beginning.   When I consider going to a city for evangelism it first starts with many discussions with the district pastor.   I want him to understand that evangelism is not a 1 week event or even a 1 month event.   It’s a life time.  I want there to be a shift in thinking in his churches.   Then if he is seeming to get the idea I schedule an evaluation trip.   For the first time in a number of years a foreigner is coming to Bintuni.  My goal is to get a good feel for the area’s needs both inside and outside the church.

Upon arriving the pastors wife presents me a flower lei to welcome me.  About 15 or 20 church members have made it to the airstrip to greet me.   Photo’s are snapped.  

  After the lei we make our way into the rented car they’ve procured for this purpose and off we go to visit the churches.   They take me to the in town church.   It’s clearly got a problem. . . it leans oddly to one side just slightly but enough to cause me to second guess my eyes.    And there we met with a few church members and took photo’s again.   Then we went across the road to meet with a Mr Yance Titioka.   A number of years ago the Adventist church had a small airstrip in a village in the jungle several hours by car and foot into the jungle.   There was a small group of Adventists who met each Sabbath in this village but then death started happening and the old traditional beliefs outweighed the new belief so they gradually moved away from this area to a new area 1 kilometer away.   They were trying to keep the Evil Spirits from finding them.  This Mr Yance knows their native language and has a burden that the work reenter this area.   His own health is failing but he hopes before he dies that they can re-ignite the work in his village of Horna.   Pictures of this village show an airstrip in need of a few days of a good weed wacker.  Hey I’ve got experience with that.   Read my previous blog from early this year.  http://pastordarronboyd.blogspot.com/2012/04/evangelism-by-weed-wacker.html

From here we went to the second church and prayed and took photos and I asked a lot of questions along the way.   In the car with me was a very outgoing girl 9 year old Jani who grilled me for English vocab and I in turn grilled her for Indonesian words.  Loved the outgoing liveliness.   She has a look alike sister in Christ who they call the “broken Jani” because she is quiet but they look like twins. 

Our Pastor and his wife have been here for almost 2 years. This pastor and his two young daughters and wife live in this remote place with about 50,000 people in the greater area and pastor 2 churches, one branch Sabbath School (start up church) and over sees starting churches in remote places and in the city in his area.   No pressure!   Seriously understaffed and overworked and yet he faces it all with joy.   

Here he pretends to share the message.

Surrounding Bintuni are 4 jungle tribes and 3 sea and bay tribes mixed with more than 25,000 transmigrants in a number of camps with small homes on a good size lots where they farm vegetables for the markets in larger cities to the west.  Read my blog about our visit into one of the camps.

7 tribes making up about 25,000 people and 25,000 transmigrants from further west gives this town an interesting feeling.   There are native Papuan villagers who are Muslims.  It sort of sets my “Normal Papuan” world on end as I’m use to the “Normal Papuan” claiming Christianity as his/her religion of preference but not here.   Indonesians you’d expect to be Muslims are Christians and Papuan you’d expect to be Christians are Muslims.

After lunch they took me to my Hotel to drop my thinks off and to my surprise it was an air conditioned room.   In typical Papuan/Indonesian style they said, “You can take your rest now!”   I wasn’t the least bit tired but used the opportunity to pull my mosquito net out and hang it just incase.   And was I glad I did because mosquitoes seemed to be hatching from somewhere in the building.   The electricity was off because the power company was out of Diesel to run the cities generator.   Bintuni has more time off the grid than on the grid.   For this reason most store owners have their own backup generator.   The motel was running on their own power.   For the next hour I put down a long list of questions for the pastor and me to go over.   It gave us a good direction to go.  When the pastor came back after my “rest” at around 3 I grilled him for the next 1.5 hours as to population, what tribes were in the area, how many, how hard, what were the problems, what were the solutions to those problems, etc, etc.?!?!   Then we were “Interrupted” by this man.   Who just showed up and wanted to talk with me the white missionary.   He was very helpful to me because he knew a lot about the territory and had worked as a  helper to another missionary group.

 

The native man (red) and the pastor (grey)

That night I preached to a crowded church.   About the 5 keys to successful evangelism, 1) Revival, 2) Training and equipping, 3) community involvement, 4) Harvest, 5) Nurture and follow up.   Then I shared with them FORT a way of witnessing through conversational evangelism.   Moving the conversation from Family to Occupation to Religion and lastly Testimony.   I challenged them to try it with people the next day.   Then I gave them a teaser for the next night where I talked about the incredible growth in Peru where they use small groups to grow with.  They decided to come the next night to the other church so the in town folks rented a bus and came to hear me there.   I gave a review from the first night and then gave them some practical pointers on how to do a small group.

My translator the second night is the English teacher at this vocational High school.   He let me come and meet his students.   I had so much fun with them.   Love it because I can teach them in simple Indonesian and English.   They loved it too.   About 350 students were at this school that teaches mechanics and Accounting as well as other normal high school views.   There was a wide variety of ethnic and religious persuasions at this school.   On the way home from this school we got caught in the rain storm and we were on a motor bike.    Strangely it was dry in town.

That night I preached the small group stuff and then we went to my hotel after about 40-50 photo sessions which is typical after each seminar.    I’ve come to embrace random people coming up to me even on the street and wanting either my photo or my autograph.   Its an Indonesian/Papuan thing.   From our house in Bandung where we felt like Zoo exhibit # 1 until now it’s just a part of life.  

Bintuni needs missionaries to come to the 7 tribes who are mostly unreached in this Kabuputan (county).   They also, could use someone skilled in reaching Muslims and building relationships in the camps. 

An exciting potential is that there is an Adventist man whose family owns the local Voice of Bintuni Radio station.   They have agreed to let us use their radio station for free for 1 hour per day if we can provide the content.    Wow!   what an opportunity.

Bintuni could use $52,000 to build a new church on the old grounds before the old church leans too much further.   Wish they had a 1 day church or two in this area.

A major challenge is lack of a private school for the students to go to.   Public schools go to school 6 days a week in Indonesia which means Adventists have to skip school on Sabbath weekly.   Often they loose heart and go to school anyway.   But when we have our own schools they are able to still worship according to the dictates of their conscience.   Pray that we will be able to build and maintain a school in Bintuni in the near future.

I’ll be back there sometime in February or March for Training seminars.   I hope to bring a team to train the members to be active agents in winning people to Jesus.   Then I’ll be back again sometime latter for a reaping evangelism meeting.   Then I always return for follow-up both of those who were baptized and those who never made a decision last time but were worked with and now are ready.   Pray for our pastor especially.

In the mouth of a Giant Bird comes Divine Providences with a Muslim Mullah.

There is a A whole city right in the back of the mouth of the Bird’s head peninsula on the western part of New Guinea in West Papua Indonesia – Called Bintuni.   It’s a city of transition.   The Indonesian government has fostered transmigration camps from populated areas to the west in Indonesia to this small city less crowded city.    While the city has only about 50,000 in the greater area it gives one the impression of “It’s fixin’ to explode”.   There are 7 indigenous tribes in and surrounding the city plus the numerous non indigenous groups from all over Indonesia.

Through a series of Divine providences the district pastor and I were exploring the transmigration camps and seeing what we could learn.   After 2 visits with Muslim house wives they lead us to their Hanif or Mullah – teacher,  leader of their Mosque.   He gladly invited us into his place in the back of the mosque.   It was sort of spare bedroom slash office.   He gave me the best chair and then sat humbly on the bed.   I asked him a number of questions about his community including about his family (wife died several years ago).   He told us that 95% of those who lived here struggled because they had no ability to get their things to bigger markets.   I shared with us that 1 Adventist man lived in his camp  and that man had left a great impression on him.   From that man he knew that Adventist had the same belief about clean and unclean foods both in the Old and New Testaments.    He knew that we too believe in Allah (God).   We too believe in modesty and moral standards.   As we grew close to the end the woman care taker of the mosque came in with a smile on her face and began serving us water.   Then I asked if Muslims pray for their Christian friends who hold things in common with them?   He smiled, “Yes we do!”   I asked if he would pray for me.   For the next 3-5 minutes he poured his heart out asking God to bless my ministry and family and that he and I could work together.   Clearly this was a man who knew Allah.   As I and the district pastor left the care taker said that the Hanif was well read and knew a lot about Adventists.   I had told him that I read the Al Quran and found many things Muslims and Adventists have in common.   As I left in almost a whisper the care taker said, “He’s read the Bible, too..   He’s been praying to find a Christian who follows it fully.  Perhaps we can work together.” 

Could it be that this is a Mosque waiting for the second Advent of Isa?   Will I get crucified for suggesting such a thing?   Did you know that in the Al Quran (Muslims sacred writings), Isa (Jesus) is the way, truth and life, he is slain from the foundation of the world and will come again at the second coming?   Could it be that in these camps God could work on the minds and hearts of young people and old people to move to Salvation in Isa,  the way, truth and life?   So on this peninsula called the Birds’s Head Peninsula of New Guinea right in the “back of the mouth”  a Divine appointment was attended to by heavenly Angels and two pastors and one Mullah in the back of his mosque and we never even once had a Bible study.   We pray that He will shine His truth to this camp in Bintuni.

The Mullah and I.   He places his arm around my shoulder after he prayed for me.   What a kind and Godly man.  And the refrigerated water his helper gave me and the district pastor never gave so much relief on this hot day.   Thanks be to God Allah who guides our foot steps.

Radio Advent Papua (RAP)

No!   I didn’t come up with the name RAP!   That’s what a group of pastors locally is calling our dream.   The dream is to one day have 15 or more radio stations that will cover the whole western half of the Island of New Guinea with the Adventist Message 24 hours per day 7 days per week.

We know the dream is too big for us.    And definitely way to big for Papua mission.   Yet it never hurts to dream.   If God be for us who can be against us.

Here we are in my office. . . a group of mission administrators and district pastors who are wrestling with the idea of Radio.   There are already amazing grants and gifts becoming available as long as we meet certain criteria.   Yet even so we’ll need to raise probably $250,000 dollars or more.    From my best guess only $50,000 of that will be able to be raised from people here in Papua.    Keep in mind that the average Adventist in Papua makes $74 per month.   21,000 members who make $74 per month could not afford much but I believe they will give their widows mite.

We’re working on exact details and costs for an initial proposal that will allow us to get a small studio up and running for recording purposes.   We need at least 1,000 hours of recorded material in the local languages of Papua.  

Some have asked, “Doesn’t Adventist World Radio reach Papua?”   The answer is yes but its in the wrong languages for most to understand here in Papua  and its on Short Wave radio which is not used extensively in Indonesia.   In fact it’s hard to find Short Wave radio’s.   I’ve never seen one here in Papua and I’ve been looking. 

Our Communication Director and myself are working on a written proposal to be ready by December for Radio Advent Papua.    The hope is that at minimum we can have a studio built and recording by early to mid 2013 and on air with our first radio station in early 2014 and rapidly adding more thereafter.    Please consider donating to this cause!!!!

54 Baptized in Biak. 400 came Nightly.

Opening night of our Evangelism meetings in Biak.

There are about 20-25 cities of 50,000 to 600,000 in population within Papua Mission’s territory.   Typically, we try to have a number of small meetings in the surrounding area’s and then I come for a major meeting in the city center.    Biak is a good example of the hard work of some of our finest pastors working together with the Power of the Holy Spirit.

On this Beautiful Island Paradise located above the Neck of the Birds Head Peninsula off New Guinea’s coast these two pastors cover 6 churches and 6 start up churches called branch Sabbath Schools.    They’ve been through very trying times as break-away group who claims they want Revival and reform took the congregations of 3 of their churches.   Despite their lives being threatened and constant heckling the Pastors keep focused on Evangelism.

When we reach beyond ourselves and focus on heaven’s work, not on our own belly buttons, the things of this earth become strangely dim in the light of His Glory and grace.   The members became excited as the week went on.   More and more were making decisions to become baptized.  

There was the pastor who had left the largest Lutheran Church in town two years ago to follow truth but the non-denominational church that he joined and became their pastor wasn’t willing to follow the Bible and Bible only.  Then in August his wife dreamed that a white man would travel from the east and preach on end times.   Imagine to her surprise two weeks latter in early September bill boards went up all over Biak with my picture and I was from east of Biak (America is east and so is Jayapura where I live.)   But to top it all off I was the exact person she saw in her dream.   They came each night and are making plans to join the Adventist movement in December and many of his congregation listening as he preaches the same series I preached.   His 15 year old daughter joined already on September 29.    And he and his wife will join December 1st.

There was the hardened man who never followed his wife to church.   Each time she invited him to church he became angry.   Opening night this wife asked me to pray that her husband would come the next night.   So right there in line we prayed and next night he was sitting on the 4th row back.

There was the extended family of 10 who joined all in one group.   Tears flowed freely as it was this family made their stand for the truth they had learned.

54 of the newly baptized standing with their new Bible Studies, Baptismal Certificates and a new Bible.  In this group stands former prostitutes, former drug addicts, a pastor and his family following more light, families who once worshipped the devil.   Victory in Jesus!!!!!!!

This lady became the 54th Baptism of the day!    She came with sobs of joy as her past was being washed away.   Her past is one that is too great to tell on this blog but praise God He lives within her heart today.

Island Paradise off Biak shores north of New Guinea

I’ve been working on several major writing projects for the past month. . . thus the serious tardiness on keeping up my blog.    About a month ago I was preaching evangelism meetings in Biak an Island off the neck of the Birds Head Peninsula on the north of New Guinea.    The district Pastor arranged for me to go with he and some church members to the Beautiful Island Paradise of Musinda.   Musinda is an small island with 196 residents located 50 miles across the Pacific ocean south of Biak. 

We rode for more than 1 hour on this 30 foot long boat.   It had two 40 hp engines.   The guy in orange at the front was a local guy who knew where the underwater reefs were and where the logs and trash that floats on these parts of the ocean.   Notice he’s indicating with his left hand that we most avoid something on that side of the boat.

Pastor James Hadjo’s oldest daughter was lulled to sleep by the constant bobbing up and down of our “speed boat.”

About 15 miles out I was able to zoom into Musinda Island and get this photo.

As we drew within 2 miles I was able to zoom in and see this beach.

The reef extends for 1 plus mile beyond the shore of this island.   This would be a fabulous divers heaven if the locals would stop dynamite fishing.

We navigate our way through the passage in the reef.

The engines are cut and we coat into shore.    The coral and fish can be seen just below us.   Fabulous!!!!!!!

The local Adventist church is made up of 33 members.   Here they stand with a my poster for my big meetings in the city of Biak.   I’m here to baptize 3 of their youth on this day.

On this location the church has dreamed of building a church.    But they’ve been hoping to build here since the early 1970’s.     This would be a perfect candidate for a One Day Church from maranatha.org.     But how do we get it here and help them raise the money to get one all the way from America to here?

Pastor Zul.   posses with the local members with their catches of the day.

The young boy in the last picture allowed me to paddle his boat around the other side of the island where the village is.

Shells were absolutely everywhere.   I’ve got one in my hand which has now become decoration in our boys bathroom.   This stump was pretty amazing.

This bird has a white cap.   Not suppose to be there.   If you zoom in a bit you notice some violet reflection around that white cap.   This was suppose to be a normally occurring bird but the white cap and violet reflection make it a mystery bird from the Monarch family of birds.    I have several Ornithologist friends who are trying to positively ID.   The latest is that it might become a newly discovered species named Boyd’s Monarch.    Now isn’t that cool?

To the Beach we go

Lest you think that all I do is work. . . we sometimes enjoy the beach.    The closest one would be 15 minutes on Roads back in America.  When you consider that we have to ford creeks, cross World War II Allied force bridges, dodge insane motor cycle drivers and countless other hazards 45 minutes is makin’ great time.   

The beach we enjoy is nothing special but our latest discovery was a spot where a trove of sea glass washes to shore on a regular basis.   We also discovered tons of live reefs starting right on the edge of cliffs.   When snorkeling one can see Clown fish and sea cucumbers, Angels fish and flying fish, coral varieties in all sorts of colors of the rainbow.   I think God created some pretty amazing stuff under the sea.

Photo 1:   The Boyd boys and the Stumph boy’s show off some the variety of coral and shells they found washed up on the shore.

Photo 2: Our friend John Stump fish watching.

Photo 3: Floating fish shacks with dug out canoes tied up.   

One of our favorite things is the shade trees that line the whole beach.   And native peoples live and work right on the beach.   

From the cove just beyond this cliff the Allied forces surprised the Japaneese with a mass armada of General McArthurs ships.    They were expected to come about 40 miles east of here in Jayapura (then known as Hollandia) but instead they landed here and built the road that we drive still today into Sentani where they took over the airfield from the Japaneese.  Local people still find bullets and every so often some live rounds catch unsuspecting farmers or fishermen.   We love to snorkel  right below the cliffs where beautiful correl and fish team.

I’ve seen old World War II photo’s with this whole bay filled with ships.  Today it’s just a great get away.   Tis a fantastic stress reliever for the day.

Papua Missions x 2

Description of Picture: The front row in this picture is the SSD and EIUC officers plus Mr Johnny Ibu (Center front row)   Mr Ibu is the speaker of the house for the Papuan Provinces Autonomous Parliament.   The back row is the Papua Mission Officers, directors and staff at my office.   I’m the white guy on the back row.

Since I’ve arrived as a missionary in Papua.    I’ve learned that Papua Mission is dreaming of becoming a mission.   They made formal application to become 2 missions and actually want to become more than that.   On August 27 there was a large delegation from the East Indonesian Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists Churches (EIUC) and the Southern Asia Pacific Division of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists (SSD) to evaluate to see if there was financial as well as leadership ability to divide even more.   The territory of Papua Adventist Mission Indonesia (PAM) is roughly the size of the state of California.   There are about 21,000+ Seventh-day Adventists in this territory but our challenge is great.  

Travel: There are no roads that connect the various cities in Papua or if they do its not usually the best of condition or the tribes that one has to drive through to get from point A to Z want financial “contribution” for using their lands. With 280 some minorities melting into the Papua and West Papua provinces there is vast reasons for making travel challenging.The only practical way to travel with any kind of speed is commercial or charter flights.  Fortunately there are many 737’s traveling to each of the following cities:  Jayapura, Nabire, Biak, Manokwari, Sorong, Fakfak, Kaimana, Tamika, Agats, Merouke, Wamina and perhaps some others I’m not aware of yet.   Many of those cities are located within easy range of the ocean so you can travel by ferry or ship to all but Wamina.   But when it comes to the interior there is simply no easy solution.

Papua x 2: It has been determined that subject to vote at the SSD year end meetings and some relatively minor changes there will be two Papuan Missions come early 2013 and a vote by the constituents of PAM.   The picture at the top was the evaluation team formed to study this option.   There are still a lot of details to work out.   But in 2013 there will likely be constituency meetings called of PAM to basically disband and reform ourselves into two.

My Job:  My job will likely remain the same except I will be assigned to the EIUC to oversee evangelism between the two new missions.  

My Dreams:  It is my hope that we can use Radio and TV to help share the gospel.  Even now plans are being made for this.   Our communication department at the EIUC and at the SSD are excited about this area too.   It is my prayer that leadership all across the board can support getting audio and visual materials in place to help speed along the already small but mighty army of  Pastors and church members who are praying for their neighbors.   We pray that there will be businessmen, churches, the missions, Unions and division of Seventh-day Adventists that can support this both financially and otherwise.

Closely connected is a team of Pastors and church members who have committed to pray for and develop written  and audio material in the heart languages of the people for sharing basic fundamental believes from the Bible.   Many times the full depth of Bible doctrine is not understood because the trade language (Bahasa Indonesian) is written far more formally than the market language.    We need materials that are inherently Papuan.  Papuan pictures, video, graphics, language style and things they can relate to.

Yet another area is leadership development.   There is vast needs to train and hold one another accountable to being better and more effective leaders.   Many of my challenges lie is learning not one but many cultures in this area and then finding the most effective means of helping to shape that culture into God’s culture.   I’m still learning God’s culture myself.   So each day as I worship Him I pray for new and penetrating insights into this culture that is our home away from our heavenly home.   Teach me Lord to know the most effective way to motivate and move people by Your Spirits plan.   Pour out on me Your Spirit, Oh God.

And still further is a vast group of Muslims who are my friends.   We’d like to deepen that friendship to help each of them see this Adventist movement as something they want too.   Isa (Jesus) is coming and this Gospel changes hearts and whole Muslim communities by the Authority invested into Isa.  Adventists share distinctive beliefs with millions of Muslims and yet we often fail to capitalize upon the common points of interest.  Many Christians fear Muslims but they forget the last words of this Commission are: “Low I am with you always even to the very end of the earth.  Amen!”   Jesus promises His presence even in groups that are not naturally going to easily change.   It has been said that more than 50% of the Papuan provinces are Muslim now.  This minority is now the majority but non of them are from Papua most are moved to Papua on a government program to work in government lands, jobs, etc.   Coming from crowded urban territories they find this a land of opportunity.   There is never an easier time than when people are in transition to arrest their attention by the power of the Holy Spirit.   The vast majority of these Muslims are young and curious.   The vast majority are away from their original roots and while they may be somewhat involved with their Mosque they are more open than ever.   Now is the opportune time to be friends at minimum.   Strategy must be built to reach these precious souls for Jesus. 

Finally, there are vast unreached territories for this Message that burns within our hearts.   Each time I fly over the wilderness of Papua I fly across hundreds of villages most of which are unseen from above due to the dense jungle over head.   But puffs of smoke here and sudden clearings there remind me there is an Interior to Papua that’s far from fully reached.   The transforming power of the Gospel still has not penetrated tribal wars that rage back and forth for years.   But then again have the sophisticated verbal battles between politicians really been penetrated by the gospel too?

The master prayer dream is for resources for financial, leadership, Audio-Visual and Spiritual development to come into place so that  as Papua Mission becomes 2 missions  they can be set to grow.   Pray for me as I try to work behind the scenes to develop in others a hunger for this Gospel of the Kingdom going to all the world.  

Another Reason for Adventist Aviation Indonesia

Have you ever wished you had your camera at the right moment?   This afternoon was one of those moments.  As many of my regular readers know my office and home are located on the campus of Adventist Aviation Indonesia.   While I am a missionary on assignment to the Papua Mission of Seventh-day Adventists and don’t work for AAI per se they are an Adventist institution too. 

Today was one of those days I wished my camera was working. . .  While in my office the familiar sound of a just landed plan with propeller in full reverse came to my ears.   Wait, I thought, there shouldn’t be any planes landing.  AAI pilots are either not in operation or on vacation in the States.   So I stood up to see out the window and a plane comes rapidly toward the hangar.   I left my office to get a better view and find out the reason.  

“Commercial plane missed his turn at the taxi ramp and managed to get stuck in the mud on the side of the run way in at the main airport,” one of AAI workers said to my quizzical look.  This plane was in danger because he couldn’t land at the commercial airport.

“Oh, that explains it.”   In my excitement to see how many planes would land in the next few minutes I forgot to pull out my camera.   Turns out no others did as the Commercial airport was quickly able to fix the problem.

Adventist Aviation Indonesia, who not only flies for our mission, also regularly allows planes who need to bring patients in to the government hospital just behind our property.   They, also, have been able to allow a number of airplanes to do mandatory maintenance in our old hangar and new hangar.   This creates a lot of good will that is opening doors or opportunity.   One pilot whose son attends school where my oldest two have just begun said to me recently.   “I’m glad I’ve come to actually know some Adventists.   I use to think you guys were weird folks but now I know you’re real Christians who would give the shirts off your back to help us.   You are the true missionaries around here.”   What a nice complement!

Hill Crest International School

Aubrey and Andrew have started school.   For the first time it is outside of the home.   Ruth gets an A+ for sticking with homeschooling our boys since kindergarten until 8th and 7th grade respectively.   The younger two are still homeschooling at home with Ruth.   Every morning Aubrey and Andrew have to scramble out of bed a lot earlier than they use to.   Each morning they have to make sure they have yesterdays left overs in their bag along with last nights homework and anything else their teacher may have required.    It takes a lot to get everyone moved out the door and into our vehicle to make the 20 minute drive to school.   I’ve only been 2 times to pick them up but Ruth does it most days twice a day.   When you arrive on campus of the Hill Crest International School you have a spectacular view of the Sentani town and Lake beyond.  

I love the outdoor hall ways that the tropics allow.   And the large open air gymnasium and tennis courts.

Aubrey and Andrew both are enjoying their friends and school work.   They are up early each day.   I think Aubrey especially enjoys it.

I was especially impressed to hear that Aubrey and another friend who attends the school were instrumental in asking their teacher to change a text book that in their minds wasn’t morally correct.  Way to be a Daniel!

Hillside International School has about 6-10 Adventist kids in it.   Most of the other 150+ kids that go to school here at Missionary kids from a variety of Christian backgrounds.  There are probably 18-20 countries where they hail from.   A small minority are from wealthier Papuan or Indonesian families that send their children to a top quality school.   Fortunately, a number of Adventists through the years have paved the road for us and Hillside all ready knows that our boys are Vegetarian and don’t participate with sports and other functions during the Sabbath hours.

Each day we pray that our boys can be a shining example and that they will put people up to the cross.

Unexpected Blessings in Japan

We are on the way to Papua from Annual Leave (AL), a.k.a. Vacation,  in the states.   For anyone who has never experienced this kind of travel to  the other side of the world it’s grueling to say the least.   First leg, Nashville-Minneapolis went off without a hitch.   We scarfed down our last subway sandwiches in the Minneapolis airport  before running to our gate thinking we’d have 10-15 minutes before boarding our the Minneapolis- Tokyo ironman-of-jet-setting leg of the trip.   We plugged the families gadgetry into all the 110 outlets we could find.  That’s an awesome experience to witness the lights dimming from the pull down of power caused when you plug in  all the gadgetry of the Boyd family into the wall (of course that’s an exaggeration but not by far) 

Soon the loud speaker stated something about an emergency Medical stop for the incoming flight from Tokyo to Minneapolis thus an expected delay for our outgoing flight.   The story slowly unfolded over the course of the next few hours.   A passenger from Toykyo had severe hemorrhaging out all orifices on the head and bowels.   Fortunately, there was a doctor on board who was able to administrate IV fluid to the passenger.   Delta and the Doc said they must land ASAP which happened to be Anchorage, Alaska.  By the time Tokyo-MN came to pick up this family all gadgetry was completely topped off with battery life and then some.  Then came the cleansing process of our plane.  Sure hope the passenger was either right with God or is still living and praising God for sparing his/her life.   Pray for this unknown person.

Ruth with an added blessing of phone calls to family

Jacob and Andrew with the added blessing of getting their batteries topped off before the long flight from Minneapolis to Tokyo

As we passed through Business Elite class secton of our Boeing 777 plane, 4 hours after our scheduled departure, it became apparent that the cleaning chemicals for bio-hazard clean up are not manufactured by Pinesol.   Normally I’m green with jealousy of the cool space capsule-like recliners turned at modern angle’s where no person has to climb awkwardly over their seat mates sleeping body on the way to the laboratory, a.k.a. toilet with some serious suction.   This time my state of green is not generated from jealousy but from bio-hazard stain removers.   The dude who patentwd that stuff must not have had a nose – that was some powerful odor.  It made sitting in the unwashed masses section seem like olfactory delight.

Laura Story writes the moving song, Blessings.   And we learned this un-wanted delay was our blessing in disguise.  Narita-International Airport in Tokyo has a curfew at 11:00 p.m. which meant that our next flight scheduled to ferry us to Singapore from Tokyo would not happen.   So here is the blessing. . . Delta gave us vouchers for future use and put us up in 3 Hotels units with free WiFi.  They paid for dinner which we declined due to exhaustion.  They paid for Breakfast which we gladly ate and transportation to and from the Airport to the Hotel.   Wow these Medical Emergencies cost Delta a pretty penny.  Breakfast was absolutely wonderful.   Wish the airlines could put in an omelet bar with granola, pastries, fruit, hot cereal, yogurt, pancakes, waffles, rice, stir-fry.   These Japanese know how to seriously cater to International taste buds.

The next blessing was our baggage was able to be routed all the way to Papua because Delta and Garuda Indonesia Air lines are soon to become Skyteam partners.   Yeah, I’ll get miles for all the local stuff I fly with Garuda come next year.  Until then I’m appreciating their closer diplomatic ties.

The third blessing was 14 hours in a big Hotel verses the 5 hours we’d have gotten in a Stay-tel inside of Singapore's airport.   Don’t get me wrong the Stay-tels in Singapore are seriously nice but 6 of us in a much smaller space is not easy.

We were somewhere up there on the 14th floor of this high rise hotel.

We could watch close up’s of the incoming air traffic

Forth Blessing. . . at 3:30 a.m. Tokyo time I awakened to the side-effects of Jet lag but that’s not the blessing really.   Had a wonderful devotion time after I finally got tired of fighting no sleepiness between 4:30 and 5:30.  Then decided to chance calling Ruth who was staying with our youngest next door since there had to be someone 12 or older in each room.  I asked if she wanted to meet me in the hallway and talk since my charge (Jacob) and her charge (Nathaniel) were both still sleeping.   She said, “No, I rather get things situated for the rest of our journey.”   So then came my forth blessing, a spontaneous 30 minutes bird watching blitz outside the hotel in Tokyo.   Those of you who know me well know I love Bird watching.   I was able to positively ID 4 birds in Japan, 3 of which were Lifers.   So was that blessing four (a good devotion) and five  (more birds on my world list)?

Blessing of adding a Large-billed or Japanese Crow along with 3 others birds to my list.  See him on the light pole for the hotels outdoor Foots-all complex.

We did miss our planned shopping expedition in Jakarta due to the re-routing of our trip but that’s no big loss as we’ve just restocked for the year.

Aubrey and Nathaniel trying to find a way to make a too short  and narrow row of chairs work for a nap in Jakarta’s Airport.  The blank spot above Nathaniels head was where I was sitting when I decided to snap this photo.

Andrew with a serious case of “red eye” or “tooth picks in the eye”, tries to hold his eyes open in Jakarta.

Nathaniel in serious thought about the Your Story Hour story he’s listening to on his MP3 player

 

We made it home and the first bags and boxes off the plane were ours.   What a blessing to be home.  All bags and gear made it and now to shake Jet-lag.   It’s 3:30 a.m. and the roosters crow.

Extreme Mission, Extreme Airstrip, Extreme Moni Tribe Part 2

So after the Chief of the Moni Tribe gave a 30 minute dissertation threatening to close their market if they didn’t start helping build the airstrip  (The airstrip is his personal land) They came in force.   First the children came.  Then, At one time, there were close to 100 people.

The most memorable parts of the this experience was the chants that the kids did and then the inspired Adults who could not be out done.  When I get back to faster email in the states I’ll down load a few video’s that will really inspire you.   I’ve never worked in time with everyone.   They are truly a people who work together.

When the wheel barrows ran out they stuck poles through rice sacks and made their own way to carry rocks.   They actually did better with the rice sacks because the wheel barrows wanted to roll down the hill faster than one could walk and kept tipping over.

The original level of dirt was about 2 meters taller than the heads of the people on top in the picture.   The whole hill from where the pig is in the foreground will still have to go down 2 or 3 meters below it’s current level.  

The kids pause long enough for me to take a photo.  But quickly go back to work.

Opin the son of Yacobous who served as the Indonesian to Moni Translator.   He is staying on to work on the project this summer until school starts again.   In the evening he is also working on translating Bible Studies into the Moni Language.   To my knowledge there are no written Bible Studies.   Once we get them written then we will record them into the Moni language since more than half the polulation don’t read.   Speaking of reading. . . Pastor Alphian – the previous pastor started a school Grades K-6.   This year was the first graduate.

Here is her baptism picture.   She is also working on the airstrip digging project as one of the project cooks. 

We now have 8 working wheel barrows and 7 that need work (bought before our time).  We have 20 picks.  20 working crow bars.   17 shovels,   30 rice bag haulers.   And an assortment of other tools.   Probably enough tools for a while.

The need now is for food to help subsidize the villagers who give up hunting and gathering in order to help build their airstrip.   Also, axe heads, kettles, sharp kitchen knives, etc are a form of currency here.   If they can get those items they will work hard.  We have a few young people that we are paying to work on the strip in the form of paying large portions of their tuition when school starts.

So far $2,225 and change has come in to the project but it will probably take another $3,000+.

Thank you to each person who has contributed to the project via Battlefield Community Church of Seventh-day Adventists PO Box 5306 Ft Oglethorpe, GA 30742 or www.battlefieldadventist.org click on “online giving”

Part 3 is still yet to come.   Think Clinic, School and Baptisms for the next blog.