What Does a Security Manager Do in the Mission Field?
In some ways, being a Security Manager here in PNG is similar to my previous experiences working in the corporate and consulting worlds. I manage relationships with contract security personnel, law enforcement and other missions organizations. I also manage budgets, develop policy & procedures, monitor news, deal with emergencies and provide organizational and personal advice on a wide array of issues. In other ways, serving in PNG is quite different. In the U.S. relationships were considered valuable but, in practice, they were often of secondary immediate importance to time, information and resources. Here, there are fewer resources to apply to the various tasks at hand, time is not as highly regarded as relationships are, and information is discovered by “storying” with one another. Beyond differences between U.S. and PNG culture, Ukarumpa is different still, as many of the fellow missionaries I interact with are from Europe, Asia, or South America. As a result, it is not only important to understand and build relationships with our Papua New Guinean neighbors and coworkers, but also with our fellow missionaries from many cultures and world views. As I go about adapting to these new cultures, I take great comfort in the fact that, as Christians, we hold the truly important things in common.
How Does a Science Teacher Help With Bible Translation?
Flexibility is a useful characteristic for any teacher, but it is certainly even more so in the mission field! Upon arriving in Ukarumpa, I uttered the dangerous phrase “What can I do to help?” and the next thing I knew, I was teaching an Advanced Chemistry class. While this is not my primary area of expertise and definitely a stretch for me, it illustrated exactly why I am here. By taking over this class, a Bible translator (filling in for another missionary on furlough) was able to go back to work with his team. So I was blessed not only to, in a small way, help further Bible translation, but I also had the privilege of working with some extraordinary students. Many were seniors, now graduating and moving on to higher education opportunities in their home countries; please pray for them. I am now preparing to teach full-time Biology, Anatomy & Physiology and middle school science classes starting in late July, and am excited to meet more students from many countries. Pray that God would be glorified in my classroom and in these students’ lives.
