Rain, Measles, & Bible Translation

Love that Rain

Rainy season for us is generally the end of June through August. This year it started in early June, and it still hasn’t ended. Moving our supplies, medicines, and personnel by air has been a challenge. Many bush flights have been cancelled or postponed, most of them after sitting all day in the rain waiting for the clouds to lift. Still, the days aren’t always wasted, because we take along our Kamea videos from the “Jesus Film” and show them to anyone who comes by.

Showing the Kamea Jesus videos in the rain

Next time I hear someone complain about flight delays while sitting in a climate-controlled airport with a Starbucks and a McD’s, I’m going to say, “bless your heart.” 🙂

Loving Others

The measles outbreak that began in June seems to be letting up here at the beginning of November. Some lives were lost due to being unable to get to treatment, but praise the Lord, many others were helped by the care they received from our Kunai Health Centre staff.

A happy patient!

It has been cold and wet, yet those who have come have not only received medicine; they have received hope. Many have heard the Gospel clearly, some for the first time. Just last Sunday we had several visitors who came to church because of the clinic ministry.

Loving the Word

In addition to the Life of Christ series, Ben and I have finished translating up through Luke 12. We have checked up through Luke 8 with our church people and other villagers, and it was understandable for them. Our people are grasping much more of the Word as we work through the passages in their heart language. They are learning Jewish culture, biblical backgrounds, and best of all, the Spirit is opening their eyes to spiritual meanings.

Showing how to use the Kamea Jesus videos

One thing that our people had a hard time grasping: a kiss. To our people, “kiss” is a noise you make with your lips. When they (among the older people) greet each other fondly, they stroke each other under the chin from neck to chin—we call it, “chin-chucking.” They don’t understand why the father of the prodigal would make a noise when the prodigal came home, rather than “chin-chucking” him. I guess Song of Solomon is going to be a challenge to translate…

Kamea Jesus video recording session

Ben is attending a school right now to improve his English skills and to learn how to use a computer. He was able to get a partial scholarship, and the rest we are funding from our support. He and I are scheduled to meet with a translation consultant in a couple of weeks to get an idea of how we can improve our methods, as well as to see how we are doing with the translation.

Serving Him in the Field,

Bro. John & Lena Allen
Galatians 6:9

Recording Videos

Kamea videos produced on installed on smart phones!

Since our last update, Ben Samauyo and I finished recording the last of the Kamea videos. We have them formatted for smart phones, which many of our people in the jungle have—imagine that! Last week we were talking with a group, and when talking about Luke 2, they quoted a scene from the life of Christ from the videos. Wow! Our hope is that the Lord will continue to use this to create a great thirst for His Word.

In our translation of Luke, we plan to have our first consultant review by the end of the year. Right now, Ben has done a first draft through Luke chapter 10. Keep praying with us and for us in this important ministry endeavor!

Resident Visa

After less than seven years in PNG, Lena and I obtained our Permanent Residence visas. Amen! Shorter lines in transit and no renewals are necessary—at least that’s what we’ve heard. Praise the Lord for this blessing!

Reaching All Ages

Starting the new church building

Since Kotidanga Baptist built its church building in late 2008, it has been full most Sundays. So full, in fact, that they had to begin a break-out Children’s Church ministry to fit everyone in. At the end of July, Kotidanga Baptist began construction of their fourth church building—paid for with indigenous funds, built by indigenous men.

Resounding Miracle

In one of our greatest trials here to date, national pastor James Naudi’s daughter became ill with meningitis. For many days our nursing staff and Sarah Glover (our literacy teacher) took turns doing “life breaths” for 16 year old Jemila. She would seize, stop breathing, and convulse; and some of these were lengthy seizures—one lasted over two hours.

Sarah was reading the word to Jemila one evening, and suddenly, Jemila was healed! It was amazing in how it came in response to Jemila’s hearing God’s Word spoken to her. God has used this resounding miracle to speak to many people here. There was a huge struggle among our people to take Jemila to the witch doctor, but Pastor James stood firm. In the midst of a fiery trial and great affliction, God got great glory. (Read the full story.)

View from the clinic porch

At present, our clinic is dealing with our portion of the nation-wide measles outbreak here in PNG. Children have died because of this, and it has been an acute caseload for Lena and the staff here at Kunai Health Centre. We covet your prayers for this ministry! And praise the Lord, in the midst of all the recent trials, just two weeks ago a woman trusted Christ in the clinic. To God be the glory!

Thanks for holding the rope with us. Jesus is coming soon—may we be found faithful telling others about Him when He comes!

Serving Him in the Field,
Bro. John & Lena Allen
Galatians 6:9

Transitions

Lena once wrote that the sorrows, pains, and transitions of this life are like our landslides here in PNG. Though they change the scenery dramatically, sometimes the end result (over time) is a new place for things to grow.

2014 continues to be a year of transitions for our TTMK team. Our last newsletter mentioned some transitions, and we have had more since then. Andrew & Rachel Schellenberger returned Stateside after a marvelous four-year ministry here. How we miss them! John & Marciana Gillispie (and children Nehemiah, Elijah, and Hadassah) arrived in May to begin their ministry here. Recent RN graduate Ashley Norcross has joined us to work in the clinic for the next few months. With the new people arriving this year, we look forward to what the Lord is going to do with them!

Trials

In our last letter we mentioned Jeff, who had been very ill with TB meningitis. Thank you for praying–he has recovered and is living the normal life of a young boy!

There have been more cases of TB meningitis, two of them being Pastor James’ adopted daughter Jemila and her friend Esila. Through this horrible illness, the Lord has done a mighty work in the sight of our people. (See the story at our blog.)

Training

Translation

“Where is your belly button?” was a message I preached in Kotidanga recently; and it’s not what you might think. When Kamea babies are born, their mothers save their, um, umbilical cords—their belly buttons. They keep them in a special place, and that helps to remind the child where he was born. In expounding on Ephesians 2:6 about Heaven being the believer’s home, I shared with the people that if we are born again, in a spiritual sense, we have a “belly button” in Heaven—which means that is our true home. They got the application quickly, and I might admit, with a smile. (And no, they didn’t syncretize it into a weird, new doctrine of heavenly belly buttons.)

Ben Samauyo and I are continuing to translate the Gospel of Luke. To complete the life of Christ, we  translated almost 350 verses into the Kamea language. Then Ben did a great job narrating the videos, and our people love them! Now they have been converted to a format that will play in readily available video phones, and distribution has begun. Pray that we can send the Word throughout the Kamea people via this great tool! Watch an interview with Ben and me, or go here and here to see some of the videos for yourself–and to brush up on your Kamea.

In May, we also had the privilege of having Jon & Julie Limmer visit to see how we produce the videos. Julie is on the JAARS development team for the Jesus video, and she was glad to watch us use the program on the field. It was a further blessing to have Suzanne Olson spend the summer with us to learn first-hand about bible translation and to help Sarah Glover with her literacy program.

With all that is happening in all the ministries of our team, we know that a large part of the team is not out here in the bush—that means you. You are the ones who enable us to labor here, through your praying and your sacrificial giving. It will take eternity to reveal what has happened because you stood with us. May God bless you as you have blessed us!

God bless you as you also strive to know Jesus and to make Him known!

Serving Him in the Field,
John & Selina Allen
Galatians 6:9

Blog       https://johnallen.ttmk.org