Building capacity,,,

 “Unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain.” Psalm 127:1 (NIV)

As we support the work of Bible Translation in Papua New Guinea, one of our tasks is to, with God’s help and guidance, build the capacity of our Papua New Guinean staff. While capacity building has always been an important part of our ministry here, personnel shortages have greatly accelerated the process. The fact is that fewer expatriates are coming to the field and those that do come are staying for shorter periods of time. Since our return to PNG in September of 2020, Scott has hired and trained a new Field Security Officer (FSO) and a new Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO), and he is overseeing organizational changes which have allowed other qualified PNG citizen staff to assume greater levels of responsibility. Scott is now beginning a new role as Security Consultant, where he will support our staff and leadership by providing security advice and training, as well as administrative and project support. Scott will continue to serve on the Crisis Management Team and support the HR department on certain projects as requested. Kathy continues to teach science and serve as the head of department and has recently been involved in a project to make the chemical storage room more earthquake-resistant. Building capacity and continuing to make incremental improvements in each of our departments is just one more way we can honor God with our skills and talents. We are also beginning to prepare to go on a six month Home Assignment in June and we look forward to seeingmany of you while we are back in the States.

Above: Scott with the new CHRO, Nellie Tabie

Photo credit: Helen Krause

Going bananas...

Part of each Term 4 at Ukarumpa International School is a presentation on and discussion about transitions. For Third Culture Kids (TCKs), this involves those who are leaving, those who are arriving, and those who are staying here in Ukarumpa, and all of the emotions and challenges that go along with each type of transition. As much as our students have heard it all before, they are often in a different place in the cycle each time, so the message resonates differently. As teachers, we also need to hear this message, as we experience similar challenges. “Transition brain” often makes us feel like we are going bananas, as we struggle to think and plan ahead for where we are going, while still being fully present where we are. It reminds us that ultimately, Heaven is our home and we are just passing through here, so we can trust God’s presence with us wherever we are. Ironically, the fresh bananas are one of those things we’ll really miss when we aren’t here!

Prayer Points:

• Papua New Guinea (PNG):Pray for wisdom and integrity for those in leadership positions.

• Bible translation: Pray for the upcoming final checking of the Meramera New Testament before it is printed and dedicated.

• Our roles in PNG: Pray for Scott as he completes on-boarding the new CHRO and transitions to his role as Security Consultant. Pray for Kathy and all of the students at Ukarumpa International School to have a healthy and productive Term 4 and finish the year well.

• PNG missionaries: Pray for the new expatriate families in the PNG Orientation Course to stay healthyand be successful while living with local PNG families in the villages.

• God’s provision: Thank you for your prayers, and for your faithful partnership with our Wycliffe ministry in PNG. We are very grateful and we could not continue to serve here without you. We look forward to reconnecting with you while we are in the USA!