Category: CPR Missions

This week was full of hands-on work and responsibilities around the mission home. The staff and I have been working hard to make some much-needed improvements— removing old carpet from a room and hallway, repairing rotted flooring beneath a shower, trimming shrubs and caring for the beautiful flower beds, pressure washing concrete walkways and dusty window screens, and many other small but tedious projects. It’s been busy, but good work. We also had three missionaries who have done great things in Papua New Guinea pass through: Mr. Wayne Fair, Mr. Stephen Gregg, and Mr. Hartogh.

Pastor Camullus from Temple Baptist Church asked me to create an English / Pidgin side-by-side gospel tract that Christians could use to help share the gospel. We are currently working on the translations, and going forward he would like to organize soul-winning outreaches. I’m thankful for this open door.

In the evenings, I sometimes go out in front of the mission home to pass out tracts and share the gospel one-on-one. This week, on different occasions, I shared the gospel with a man named Aaron and another named Nathaniel—both trusted Christ and were saved. Nathaniel was visiting Mt. Hagen from Enga Province. He came into the mission home for a meal and rode to church with my family and me before returning to his province this weekend.

On Friday evening, we had contracted workers doing some electrical work at the mission home. I sat down and shared the gospel with three of them. Ezekiel was already saved, and the other two believed the gospel of grace and trusted Christ. The next day, Ezekiel and Collins attended our very first discipleship class, held at the mission home.

A mission house employee, Samson, came with his wife. Collins and Ezekiel were also present, along with Theresa and Destany. We are grateful to see new believers who are eager to learn more from God’s Word, and we are praying that they—and others—will continue to attend.

As the week came to a close, I was reminded of an elderly man who works as a security guard for the house next door. His name is Michael. He is always willing to help guide vehicles in and out, burn trash, or gather hedge trimmings. I visited him during lunch, and he was more than happy to hear the gospel. Michael shared that when he was a small child, a Lutheran priest sprinkled water on his head and declared him saved. That day, he clearly understood his sin, the gospel of grace, and the Holy Spirit worked in his heart. When we parted ways, he was a joyful man. He said, “Mi pilim amamas na mi laik krai,” which means, “My heart feels happy, and I want to cry.”

Theresa and Destany are doing well. We have the peace of God here at the mission home, in Mt. Hagen, and across Papua New Guinea. When you are in the center of God’s will, you’re right at home.

Weekly Update #4

We are adjusting well to life in Papua New Guinea. I’ll be honest—the first few weeks were a bit overwhelming—but with each passing day, things feel more settled and manageable.

I didn’t mention this in last week’s update, but the reality of life in PNG is this: when life is good here, it’s really good—but when it’s bad, it’s bad. At the end of last week, we took a bus ride to Pangia. While en route, a teacher had killed a man in a nearby town. Fighting broke out in the streets, and roads were shut down, making travel difficult. However, buses were still allowed to pass through.

On the other side of town, a man blocked the road and held up our bus with a bush knife, demanding money. At first, we thought it was a robbery, but later learned it was a personal dispute between the man and the driver. The driver agreed to return at a later time to resolve the issue, and we were allowed to continue on our way.

This week I met with the mission home employees to discuss their cost-of-living raises. That good news opened doors for the gospel, and I was able to lead two more employees to the Lord. Please pray for Esther and Delmah as they begin their new lives in Christ. Delmah was so excited to know she was saved that she immediately ran up to our flat to tell Theresa, “Blut bilong Kraist wasim olgeta sin bilong mi,” or, “The blood of Jesus washed away all of my sins.”

Throughout the week, I stayed busy maintaining the mission home, handling bookkeeping, making airport drop-offs and pickups, and still found time to witness to guests in between tasks. Martin, a Catholic from another province, heard the gospel while passing through Mt. Hagen and trusted Christ alone for salvation.

On Thursday at the vehicle registration office, I witnessed to five people in the parking lot. As I spoke with one person, another joined us, then another. Two trusted Christ as Savior. Please pray for a man named Send and a boy named Emmanuel as they begin their new lives in Christ.

I also hired a lady to redo the upholstery on the couches in the mission home. While she was here, I shared the gospel with her and two employees. All three had religious backgrounds but had never understood the gospel of grace. Each professed faith in Christ, and two even rode with us to church last Sunday. They are interested in discipleship classes so they can learn how to read the Bible. Brother Chad Wells from the Pangia Ministry Team will be bringing me a box of Pidgin Bibles for the upcoming class, as many here do not have a Bible in their own language.

Theresa is doing well and enjoying life as a homemaker and homeschooler. Please pray for her as she continues learning Pidgin. Having our own flat—with space—is a big deal and a tremendous blessing.

Destany is also doing well, staying consistent with school and piano practice. She continues her weekly piano lessons with her teacher, Mrs. Chris, through Zoom.

As the week came to a close, we took a family walk through the public markets. Until now, we’ve mostly driven to the more American or Australian-style stores with gates and security, so this was a new experience. We walked through throngs of New Guineans, many of whom travel into town by bus from villages across the region. The greetings were warm, and they loved patting Destany on the head. We passed out gospel tracts along the way, and many people approached us asking for one.

I witnessed to a young man outside a shop who was wearing a marijuana hat. When a missionary engages in a serious conversation with a New Guinean, it often draws a crowd. I looked up and realized twenty to thirty people had gathered around us, listening intently. A woman near the front asked me, “Yu i go long wanem lotu?”—“Where do you go to church?”

I replied, “I am a missionary sent by God from America to give New Guineans the good news of Jesus Christ—from the Bible. I believe the Bible. Denominations cannot get us to heaven.”

Many nodded in agreement. I felt the Lord nudge my heart and say, “I brought them to you—preach.” So I lifted my voice and gave them the truth. A few were convicted and walked away, but many stayed and listened carefully. The Spirit of the Lord was present and working through the message. I didn’t have liberty to call for professions, prayers, or raised hands—the Lord simply wanted the truth preached. As many as would believe will be saved.

As a family, we plan to begin daily walks to pass out tracts, preach the gospel, and invite people to our discipleship class held at the Mt. Hagen Missionary Home on Saturday afternoons.

This week I purchased a whiteboard, markers, and pens, and began typing weekly tests for the lessons. I already have a solid discipleship program provided by Brother Chad Wells and the Pangia Ministry Team. The first class will be held on January 17.

All in all, five people professed Christ as Savior this week.

Weekly Update #3

A strange, yet wonderful thing has taken place!

At the beginning of the week, a receptionist named Samson helped me translate sentences and Bible verses that I commonly use while witnessing. I wrote out the script several times and practiced saying it aloud. Using my notes with English and Pidgin side by side, I began sharing the gospel—and I saw people come under conviction and place their trust in Christ as their Savior. I truly sense the Lord opening my understanding to speak Pidgin, while also giving me discernment to recognize common snares as I help people come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

By the end of the week, I was able to share the gospel with Samson and his wife at the mission home without using any notes, though Samson still corrected me when needed. They both acknowledged that they had been trusting in works for salvation and chose instead to believe the gospel of grace. The Spirit of the Lord was present, and their burdens were lifted. Samson then suggested starting a weekly discipleship class at the mission home so people can learn how to read their Bibles. Please be in prayer for this. Discipleship has already been a recent topic of discussion for new believers. When people come to the Lord, there is an instinctive trust, and I feel a deep responsibility to help new converts grow in Christ. What a joy it is to see that the Lord used the very notes Samson helped me with to save his own soul.

This week was also busy with projects to bring the mission home up to par. Still, between family responsibilities, work, and errands, I was able to share the gospel with employees, contracted workers, people passing by on the street, and even a man on the bus. This week, eight people professed Christ as their Savior. Of course, only the Lord truly knows the heart—I can only go by what people say. Three have agreed to ride with us to church this Sunday.

The Wells family invited us to attend their New Year’s Eve celebration at Loma Baptist Church near Pangia. We took a three-hour bus ride, attended the meeting, stayed overnight at the Pangia Ministry Team Mission Station, and returned the next day. It was a blessing to see so many familiar faces and acquaintances again. The warm greetings meant a great deal to us.

We closed out the week with a holiday party for our eight employees and their families. We enjoyed catered food and plenty of gifts. The families received gift bags with toys and useful items, while the employees participated in a white elephant exchange with the nicer gifts. It was a great way to break the ice, and everyone had a wonderful time.

Please be in prayer for the upcoming discipleship class. It is very manageable, but it carries a high level of responsibility.

Weekly Update #2

As we come to the end of our second week living as missionaries in Papua New Guinea, we are still very much on “high alert.” I’m learning to juggle leadership responsibilities at the Mount Hagen Missionary Home while making sure my family’s needs are met, caring for employees, and driving in a foreign country where the laws and customs are very different. All things considered, we are adjusting well.

If you’ve noticed less activity on the CPR Missions Facebook, YouTube, or TikTok, that is because we’re intentionally trying to “take it easy” so we don’t make unnecessary mistakes or experience burnout. PNG is often referred to as the mission field where missionaries “go to die”—not in a physical sense, but because the phrase “what can go wrong, will go wrong” has proven true for many. The constant pressure and stress have caused some missionaries to leave the field. We’re aware of that reality, but we’re trusting the Lord and taking things one step at a time.

This week, I spent time getting to know the eight employees at the Mt. Hagen Mission Station: Ipson, Tama, Raphael, Samson, Delma, Loame, and Esther. We have been planning the upcoming Holiday Party, which will be a great icebreaker and an opportunity to meet everyone’s families. I also spent time explaining some business matters, such as their regular, overtime, and double-time pay rates, and showed them how to calculate their own wages. I told them it was important for them to know this—not only to protect themselves from mistakes, but also to ensure nobody would ever cheat them. Most of them didn’t fully understand the concept, but the gesture was well received and helped to build trust. They appreciated having open communication and knowing that I was “for” them.

Missionary Chad Wells from the Pangia Ministry Team has invited me to teach evangelism classes at his Bible college, about three hours away. These classes will begin in June and will require a weekly commute by bus and an overnight stay at the Pangia Mission Station. I’m very thankful for the opportunity to invest in pastors and preachers in PNG who want to learn how to effectively lead people to the Lord.

As a family, we’ve started attending Temple Baptist Church in Mt. Hagen. I strongly believe in the local church and that ministry should flow from it—even though our sending church is 8,000 miles away. I asked Pastor Camulus if he would shepherd my family and me and look after our souls while we’re here. He was happy to do so, and the church members have been very welcoming. We’ll be praying about how I might be able to help at the church and/or Bible college.

Toward the end of the week, I asked a fifteen-year-old national to sit with me on the front stoop of the missionary home so I could practice speaking Pidgin. His mother soon approached us—she turned out to be one of the housekeepers at the mission home. Her name is Loame.

I shared the gospel with her son, mostly in Pidgin while reading from my notes. When we came to the “good news,” Loame looked surprised. She had never understood grace. She believed Jesus taught us how to become good enough to go to heaven, but she had never understood the atonement—until that moment. I quickly ran to my flat, grabbed my English/Pidgin side-by-side Bible, and read through the key passages explaining why Jesus shed His blood, that the payment for sin had already been made, and that salvation is a free gift by the grace of God through faith in the finished work of the Savior. There was a sweet spirit present as she trusted Christ as her Savior from the heart.

Then another miracle happened. A lady approached us from off the streets with tears in her eyes. She saw a white man holding a Bible and sharing the Word of God and felt compelled to come closer. Her name is Nancy. She said she had been living on the streets for the past two weeks and had been staying at the hospital (haus sik) across the street. She also believed she needed to “change her ways” and “be a good person,” but she saw in the Bible that the victory was won at Calvary.

I invited her to sit with us on the stoop. Without any prompting, she bowed her head and prayed—along with Loame and her son. Afterward, Nancy said, “I can’t describe it, but I feel so free and relieved.” She agreed to come to the mission home Sunday morning and ride with us to church.

Loame confessed Christ as her Savior and was overjoyed that God sends missionaries to preach the gospel. She was especially thankful that God had lifted her burden. Seeing the care-worn heaviness leave her face and be replaced with pure joy made every challenge we had faced so far worth it. Loame was just as excited to see the Spirit of God draw Nancy over so she, too, could partake of the water of the river of life—freely!

The next day, Loame was willing to do a testimony video, where she expressed her gratitude for salvation and for God sending missionaries to the people of Papua New Guinea. It will be published on the CPR Missions social media platforms very soon. Be on the lookout!