Global missions includes local missions, wherever “local” may be…

 “And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All power has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and, lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.”  -Matthew 28:18-20 NKJV

We have been blessed to speak at several churches in New England this summer, and want to thank those of you who have come out to hear us share about our ministries in PNG. One theme we have reiterated frequently is the call for all Christians to be missionaries in their spheres of influence. When most people think of missionaries, they think of overseas Christian workers who translate the Bible, plant churches, feed the hungry, educate children and treat illness. While accurate, this is an incomplete idea of missions. Those of us who go overseas to promote the cause of the Gospel are indeed missionaries, but the reality is ALL Christians are called to be missionaries in the communities in which God has placed them. The Great Commission (above) is one of many scriptures where God tells us to go into the world and make disciples. Some other references include: Genesis 12:1-3, Psalm 67, Psalm 96, Matthew 16:14-18, Luke 24: 44-49, John 20: 19-23 and Acts 1: 4-8. This list is not exhaustive, but it does illustrate a point: these “commissions” are not just for pastors and overseas workers. Missions is not an optional exercise of the Christian church; it is the core work of the church wherever the church exists. 

We support the work of Bible translation through education and risk management, but we also serve as missionaries here when we encourage other believers and point those who don’t yet know and trust Jesus to Him. As a believer, this is true of you as well. When you pray for others, tithe, serve in your church, talk to people about God’s Word, show compassion, mentor young people and support local and global ministries, you also serve as missionaries. We want to thank you all for your prayers and financial partnership with our ministry. We’d also like to know how we can be praying for you, so please send us an email and let us know your prayer needs.

The blessing of seeing family…

One of most challenging aspects of living overseas is the infrequent visits we have with our families, who we have not seen since 2019. It was a special blessing to get to see Kathy’s mom in July for a week, which was sooner than expected. Every visit is a gift and one we do not take for granted. None of us know how long we will be alive or how many opportunities we will have to spend time with those we love. May we love our families well (both bloodrelated and our brothers and sisters in Christ) and may we share God’s love and the joy of knowing Jesus with everyone He places in our spheres of influence.

Prayer Points:

• Papua New Guinea (PNG): Praise for recent peace treaties signed between villages in the Aiyura valley.

• Bible translation: Praise for the positive responses among the Arop-Lokep people to the Culture Meets Scripture workshop held on Long Island.

• Our roles in PNG: Pray for the teachers and students at UIS who are already half way through Term 1. Pray for the security team in Ukarumpa.

• PNG missionaries: Pray for wisdom and strength for the 6 new families starting their PNG Orientation Course.

• God’s provision: We are so very thankful for your faithful partnership, and for the blessing of getting to see so many of you already while we’ve been in the northeast. We will begin to travel south starting in October; please contact us if you would like a visit!

Home assignment travels...

“We always thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers.”

1 Thessalonians 1:2 NIV

Now that we are back in the USA for our 6 month home assignment, it has been such a blessing to meet with family, friends and partners in the New England area this month. We will be visiting with people in the northeast until the end of September and then plan to travel south to see as many of you as we can before our planned return to Papua New Guinea on December 28th. We would love to connect with you and would encourage you to reach out to us via our emails (see bottom) so that we can schedule a visit, if you are available. Your faithful prayers and partnership have sustained us through this last three year term and we have seen God working in amazing ways, as more language communities have received the Bible in their heart languages and been transformed through the Good News of salvation through Jesus Christ. You are an integral part of our ministries in Ukarumpa because you enable us to continue to serve obediently and we appreciate you so much.  Thank you for blessing us so we can bless others!

Want to learn more? Join us at:

• Dover Baptist Church, Dover NH - Sunday, August 13 at 9:30am

• The Church at Spruce Creek in Kittery, Maine - Sunday, August 20 at 9:30am

Contact emails:

kathy_watson@wycliffe.org

scott_watson@wycliffe.org

Camp missionaries ...

We were grateful for the opportunity to teach over 100 middle school kids about missions at Camp Good News in Maine.  It was a rewarding experience, with the highlight being us meeting two Papua New Guinean sisters, who will be traveling to PNG for the first time with their family this summer. They soaked in our videos showing the beauty of PNG, and asked lots of questions around the campfire. God is the great orchestrator, and His timing is always perfect; we were just thankful for the chance to be there at just the right time to share about our love of PNG with those girls.

Prayer Points

 • Papua New Guinea (PNG): Pray for peaceful resolution to conflicts in the Enga language group. 

 • Bible translation: Pray for the planning for the Enga New Testament dedication.

 • Our roles in PNG: Pray for the new school year and all the teachers who have recently returned to PNG.

 • PNG missionaries: Pray for wisdom and discernment for missionaries working in areas with ongoing conflicts. 

 • God’s provision: We are so thankful for God’s grace and mercy in bringing us safely back to the USA. Thank you for your faithful partnership with our Wycliffe ministry and we hope to see you while we are on home assignment! 

Wrapping up a field term...

                                                       Photo credit: Amy Evers

“To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy - to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.” - Jude 1:24-25 (NIV)

On September 16th, 2020, we were among the first group of people to return to our mission in Papua New Guinea during the pandemic. Travel had been difficult, but after 6 failed attempts, and with lots of prayer, we finally made it back to Ukarumpa. Each of our field terms has been filled with unique challenges and this one was no exception. The pandemic, staffing shortages, medevacs, criminal activity, warfare among local villages, an election cycle, civil unrest in various parts of the country and a 7.6M earthquake made this term even more interesting than most. We’ll be honest: we are tired. Yet, throughout all of this, God has blessed, strengthened and encouraged us in a variety of ways, including being able to host our first visitors from the USA last July. We are now winding down this term and preparing to return to NH for a Home Assignment from late June through December. Our goal is to spend the first three months in New England before heading south to Florida to see family and friends down the East Coast. We are so thankful for all of your prayers and partnership and we look forward to seeing you while we are back in the States. Thank God with us for all He has done!