Chad and Janeene Mankins Serving among the Tobo of Papua New Guinea One Step Closer…
Well, here’s some good news—the visas have now made it to the USA! Now we wait for the good folks of the Papua New Guinea Embassy in Washington, DC to process the visas, put them into the passports, and send the passports back to us.
Once all this happens, we will be free to jet across the big water and resume our ministry in the mountains of the lovely south Pacific and rejoin our new partners the Williamsons in the village just in time for our glorious rainy season. Our monsoons hit Tobo country in mid- to late-June, and it will be really nice to be in the village together during the months of clouds, rain, chill, drizzle, rain, fog, dampness, rain, closed airstrip, wet laundry, and oh, did we mention several meters of rainfall? It’s a little hard to imagine all that, when here in Texas we’ve been hitting low temps in the 70s and even 80 degrees overnight and lots of sunshine and mid-90s!
The people in DC have informed us that it will take them 7 to 10 working days to get the passports back to us. What does this mean? Well, we could get them a bit earlier, but then again we might not get them until early in the second week of June. So we are in the process of deciding on a new departure date, one that will not be necessary to change yet again, but one that is not too far into the future. We will let you know once we have firm dates for our departure, but now you have a reasonable idea of when we might be heading out (that most likely being a little over a week from now).
We are excited, a little saddened as we know our time with family here will be over all too quickly now, and humbled and thankful as we look back at the Lord’s gracious timing in our lives (He always knows best). We believe that he meant for us to have this extra waiting period here in the US and we thank Him for it.
Please take the time to look at the prayer points below and lift these to our Father God. We truly appreciate you and your ministry to us and for His glory!
A grateful Chad, a lovely Janeene, an energetic Elijah & a one-toothed Zeke
Prayer Points:
Praise God, He has been encouraging Williamsons as they labor alone in the village. We believe that God is answering our prayers in this. Also be in prayer as they are in need of a new computer as theirs is on the way out but they are facing tight times financially.
Praise God as the Knapps are able to get some help medically while in the US. Jason will be officiating at his brother’s upcoming wedding, but will be undergoing surgery to correct a heart defect this coming Wednesday. Kellie had some skin cancer which was removed, but the doctors will remove more tissue from her arm the following Wednesday to make sure they get all of it and then will undergo a colonoscopy several days later, so please keep the Knapps and their health in your prayers.
Praise God for the visas’ arrival in Washington, DC! Please pray for us as we set our dates and for the logistics involved in our return to the village (at least 7 flights over several days, with lots of work to get set up for a new little family member in our house as well as tasks like post repairs).
Another Delay
Thanks so much for praying for us and our paperwork delays. Apparently God has decided to answer our prayers with another “not yet”.
Here’s a quick summary of our paperwork process: We have been thankful that He has allowed Zeke’s lightning-fast adoption and all the other stages of our paperwork to be ready for us even ahead of the normal timetables (that is, Zeke’s birth certificate, SSN and passport all came through more quickly than expected). So as soon as we were able to send in for the last paperwork needed (visas to get into PNG) at the beginning of April, we were very optimistic that we would have everything in order in time for our original departure date of May 1st (The timeframe is typically 2-3 weeks). Problem is, this has been nothing close to typical, as we are now over a month longer than expected. To be honest with you, we really thought that we would get the paperwork in time for our first delayed departure date of the 19th.
Our mission’s government reps continue to check daily on the status of our paperwork, but word is that there is a “mountain of paperwork” for the government to sort through and process. So our people in PNG are working hard on our behalf, but they are as powerless and unable to predict the future as we are.
With no way to predict the future, we are trying to walk the tightrope between being wise with our time and money (every change costs more money, yet it would be a shame to delay our departure too much longer than when our paperwork actually comes through). So we are looking at changing our tickets once again. We will likely try to reschedule for another 2- 2 1/2 weeks from the 19th, depending on the lowest fare available in that timeframe so that we will only pay the change fees again rather than tacking on the difference in higher fares.
Of course, for us this is yet another disappointment, as we are ready to return to our village home, to join our newest partners the Williamsons, and to get back into the ministry on-site. However, we firmly believe that God has other plans for us at this time. These include further bonus time with family here, opportunities to help them out with more home projects, more chances to connect with friends from church, and finally, some extra time to work on preliminary stages of more Romans translation which should give us a little head start once we get back and settled again in PNG.
Thanks again for praying with us! Below we have some requests to help you to pray more specifically.
Chad, Janeene, Elijah & Zeke
Prayer Requests:
Pray for the Tobo church, that the small group will continue to meet faithfully and grow in grace and in their understanding of (and hunger for) God and His Word. Pray for their testimony in the midst of strong opposition from the majority of the community. Pray also for our faithful brothers Welsen, Kips, Zanggo, and Tingon, who are leading the first Tobo outreach in the village and team-teaching a review of the evangelistic Bible lessons (Phase 1) on a weekly basis. Pray for the salvation of those unbelievers who come to hear their teaching.
Pray for our partners the Williamsons as they are facing some unanticipated extra time alone in the village. Pray for strength, peace, and encouragement for them in these days as they press on with language and culture study and building relationships with the people.
Pray for our partners the Knapps as they have recently returned to the US for their home assignment (aka furlough). Pray for a good time of needed rest as well as traveling safety, stamina and good opportunties to fellowship and share with their family, friends, and supporters about the exciting things God has been doing among the Tobo.
Pray for us as we wait on the Lord for the paperwork to go through, that we would continue to make the most of the extra time God has given us here in the US. Pray also for our health, as Chad has been down and out the last several days with allergies piggybacking on a nasty cold, and Janeene continues to suffer a long-lasting cough probably brought on or at least aggravated by allergies. (Praise God, the boys seem to be doing much better and are over their sickness).
Still Stateside
Our paperwork has not yet gone anywhere, and so neither have we. Just the day before we were to depart, we learned that the approval for Janeene’s and Zeke’s visas had still not been processed in PNG. At that time, it was recommended to us that when we change our tickets, we wait at least 2 weeks. So we will now plan on departing the USA on May 19th.
While we are somewhat disappointed by this turn of events, we can see some real benefits. One is that Janeene’s health is now on the mend and it should be much easier for us to travel with her back up to full strength. Another plus is that we will get some extra time here in Dallas with Janeene’s family, who really haven’t had all that much time with us during our stay here in the US.
So we are confident that God has a reason for keeping us here for the extra weeks, and we will rest in Him and enjoy the ride, even if it’s not yet in the air!
Thanks for praying,
Chad, Janeene, Elijah, & Zeke
crossing the Pacific again on Thursday (maybe)
Greetings from Dallas, Texas!
Our minds are sort of reeling as we look back in the not-too-distant past, the quickly-moving present, and the even more quickly-approaching future.
Since we last crossed over the Pacific to the USA back in October, so much has transpired…the loss of Chad’s Grandpa Chuck Mankins and niece Ellie Skees… the birth and adoption of our son Zeke…great times with family and friends..sweet fellowship with many of you friends from the churches who partner with us in the Tobo ministry…concern and then relief as Chad’s Grandpa Jim VanDelinder underwent surgery for colon cancer and then came through with flying colors and a clean bill of health pending regular future checkups…sadness that we missed so many of you in this last half-year…sadness as we depart loved ones…exhaustion as we burn both ends of the candle to wrap up loose ends before leaving…and finally anticipation of our next term in Papua New Guinea, and the feeling of unsettledness that lies over us as we are waiting in these last few days for word on whether or not the paperwork will make it in time for us to leave by Thursday (yes, that’s the day after tomorrow!!) or if we must change our tickets for another day in the near future.
Please pray for us in these next few days. Pray that the entry permits will get into the passports for Janeene and Zeke (they were processed together since Janeene’s had expired after we came back here) and that those important documents will make it here by tomorrow or Thursday so that we can make the evening flight. Pray for improved health, as Janeene has been battling a bug that popped up just over a week ago, and for stamina as we make the final “push”. Pray also for patience and that we would rest in God as we wait and even (might I say especially) in the event that we must change the tickets and re-juggle plans and grapple with more “logistic gymnastics”.
Please pray for our partners the Knapps, who will be leaving for their home assignment and will just miss us by a few days (as it stands currently), and for our partners the Williamsons, who will be awaiting us in the village along with our Tobo friends. Pray too for the Tobo church as they have been and will continue to be taking steps toward maturity. Pray that God will prepare hearts, ours and theirs, as we partner together with the young body of Christ in Toboland toward mutual growth, spiritual maturity, and that many more will come to know our Lord Jesus Christ.
Thanks again for your partnership with us. We thank God for you!
Chad, Janeene, Elijah, & Zeke
Zeke’s Special Day
On Thursday morning, we celebrated the official finalization of Zeke’s adoption, or as we like to call it, Gotcha Day! The Honorable Judge Theotis Bronson resided over the proceedings, and Ezekiel Wayne Mankins is now legally our son! Parents and grandparents on Chad’s side were able to attend and celebrate with us (Janeene’s family live in Dallas). We were able to read a brief statement to the court thanking God for our Christian family and for the opportunity to pass along that heritage to Elijah and now Zeke. Afterward, the judge took pictures with us and actually thanked us for adopting Zeke! Everyone in the courtroom was very happy and we were told again, just as we were told by the court officials at Elijah’s Gotcha Day, that they always enjoy this part of their jobs the best after all of the depressing cases they usually have to deal with.
After a nice brunch with family, the four of us took a drive and were able to celebrate Zeke’s Gotcha Day by seeing the space shuttle Atlantis blast off from Cape Canaveral (we sat on the edge of the bay and watched the launch from across the water). Elijah was sure to tell numerous people that he was going to be an astronaut when he gets bigger and fly to Mars in the space shuttle, and Zeke was just grinning and soaking in all the complements (—he is a good-looking boy and maybe he knows it). To cap off a fun day back home, the 3 of us sang “Happy Gotcha Day” to baby Zekey and Elijah helped his little brother open his present (some new beach clothes).
Looking back on the last few months (which have gone by rather quickly!), we can only shake our heads in amazement and praise God for blessing us so much and for the wonderful way He continues to enrich us as a family. We would appreciate your prayers for us as we desire to raise them up to be godly young men. On another note we, please also pray for that we would be able to get the birth certificate quickly (lately instead of 4-6 weeks, it’s been taking from 6 to 8 weeks). We cannot move on the other paperwork until this comes back to us, and then we will be praying that those papers will get finished in time for us to leave the US again by May 1st.
Thanks for your love and prayers!
Chad, Janeene, Elijah & Zeke
Chad Mankins
567 Woodford Dr
DeBary, FL 32773
407-221-7717
Ellie’s Homegoing
Here’s an update from my sister Sarah about Ellie, who’s now enjoying REAL life in heaven. We do appreciate your many prayers over the past year-plus for John, Sarah, Ethan and the family! Thanks for continuing to pray during this time.
Chad
The Angels are Singing Tonight!
As of 7:45 p.m. Mountain Time, Ellie has been dancing in Heaven! She stayed asleep until 15 minutes before and then it wasn’t exactly peaceful, but true to form, Ellie was fighting to the end. John and I were both with her at the end. I silently begged God to take her, and then said "run to Jesus, Ellie… run!" and it was over. I will have more to write later, but for now, please know that your prayers have been answered – it was unbelievably fast. Thank you all for your love!
Blessed with Two Beautiful Boys
We are sure thrilled to have little Zeke home with us! Though a bit sleep-deprived, we continue to enjoy our two boys—and, of course, spending time with grandparents and great-grandparents here in Florida is icing on the cake! God has answered our prayers in a big way and once again his timing has been even faster than ours!
Our plans for the next few months include a Christmas visit to family in Texas, two more home studies here in FL, and then the finalization of Zeke’s adoption sometime in February. Following that, we will then be able to get the ball rolling on paperwork—social security, passport, entry visa—all of which will take time. Our goal is to return to PNG by the beginning of May.
Lest you think that this first part of 2008 will be a time of sitting around twiddling our thumbs waiting on paperwork (I can hear you fellow missionaries “in the know” laughing with us already!)… we will see the time fly by much too quickly here in the US before we depart once again. Time with family and friends, a few speaking engagements as well as some preparatory work for our next term (in our spare time) should keep us busy and before you know it we will hit the ground running on our next term among the Tobo people, where our partners the Knapps and Williamsons are seeing God continue to work in exciting ways! More on events back in Toboland in our next update!
Chad, Janeene, Elijah, & Zeke
Home:
Chad Mankins
567 Woodford Dr
DeBary, FL 32713
Business:
Chad Mankins
New Tribes Mission
1000 E. 1st St
Sanford, FL 32771
A Special Visit with a Special Niece
Many of you have asked for an update on our niece Ellie. First of all, here is an update from my sister Sarah posted last Tuesday on her blog www.ellieskees.blogspot.com.
Letting Go
My dear sweet family and friends:
I have always been honest with you, and the time has come once again for me to meet you with the truth. I truly believe that we have reached the beginning of the end. Ellie has gotten a fever, but she has no symptoms of a virus. After checking her blood yesterday, the doctor has told us that her counts are dropping. The fever and low counts mean that her bone marrow is "compressing" and losing the ability to do its job. Ellie is dying. Yes, God can still do a miracle. And yes, there is that outside chance that the fever means that the tumors are dying instead of getting worse, but if that were true the blood counts would not be lowering (I think).
I went to bed not knowing what to write to you all, but I awoke with one clear thought in my mind. I need to ask all of you the hardest thing I have ever had to ask of you: to let go. You have prayed and loved and cried with us. You have taken Ellie into your hearts and lives, and now I would ask that you join with us as we open our hands and let go.
Ellie is still alive, and so our time to mourn has not yet come, but our time to release her has. Ellie is not now, nor has she ever been – ours. God brought that tiny little bundle of joy into our lives nine years ago, and by His grace we have done our best to protect and care for her. I can honestly come before you now and say that we have not done a perfect job – we have made our fair share of mistakes along the way. But we have given it all that we have, and we have no regrets. I told you some time ago that making the "right" decision does not always mean that it has the outcome that we want. At this very moment, I have a clean conscience before God that we have done right by Ellie. We have honored her wishes while fighting for her life with all that we had. We will not look back. We have trusted God to lead us and guide us, and we believe that His guidance was true.
So how are we really? We are neither brave nor strong. Frankly, most of the time we are a mess. We are sad and overwhelmed and scared. But I have to say that as of yesterday, my heart feels such peace. That doesn’t lift the sadness, but the peace is strong and steadfast. John, right now, would rather go sky-diving without a parachute. We have taken turns crying. I found him the other day working on the house and fell apart in his arms, and yesterday he called me from work crying. This morning he called from work and said that he’s ok as long as he doesn’t try to think about life without Ellie. Yesterday Ethan was a love. He has been happy and sweet, as long as I am close by. He takes every opportunity to snuggle with me and kiss me. And Ellie is the most amazing of all! She can feel quite a bit of pain at times, but Motrin takes most of it away. She is not wanting to eat very much, but has to get some down so the drugs aren’t hard on her stomach. That has been a very tricky dance. Ellie has been unbelievably sweet. Smiling and hugging us constantly. Last night she drew the most beautiful pictures for us, and she signed and dated them. She appears to be completely unaware of what is really happening. What is in her heart of hearts, I don’t know, but as always, I follow her lead and answer the questions she wants to know. For now she does not ask if she is "going away". She has actually been making plans for the future – things to do and people to see. I have thought about how wonderful it would be for Ellie to plan on having a fun day the next day, and then wake up in Heaven. I don’t know if that’s how it will play out. If she senses what is coming, I will certainly talk with her and cry with her, but I am trusting God for Ellie’s death to be perfect… for her. I do pray that God will allow Ellie to have her wish to die in her sleep. Somehow I think that He will, but I trust Him to know best.
I will leave you to soak all of this in for now. I am sorry. Thank you for choosing to be on this journey with us. Your love and support have made all of the difference.
“The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh. Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
The day after this was posted, I (Chad) was able to visit her in Montana and had several wonderful days seeing her again. After several years and thousands of miles of separation, it was special to see her again. She is now 9 years old and is full of life and love. Ellie greeted me with a long hug, told me she loved me in KOREAN (those of you who know me well know how fun that was for me!) and had a beautiful welcome banner she colored for me.
During our days together, we had a good time chatting, playing computer games and Uno together, and having her give me a tour of where she lives (including giving her a “horse” ride outdoors all bundled up in a large wheelbarrow cart) and some of her favorite toys. Our last evening together with the rest of the gang there was capped off by a rousing game of Cranium—a favorite of hers. My visit was capped off by one more long hug to tell her goodnight (I left early the following morning). It was so good to see her again.
I am thankful for the opportunity I got to see Ellie, as our reunion was likely the last one this side of heaven. As beautiful as her home in the Big Sky country of Montana is, her (and our) real home is going to be fantastic. That said, the pain is real and so is the grief we suffer here in the “Shadowlands”. Please keep her and her family in your prayers!
Chad, Janeene, Elijah, & Zeke
a…….
……..baby BOY!!!!
This is Ezekiel Wayne Mankins!
Our son Zeke was born on Tuesday night (11:58 PM) November 6th, in Orlando, FL, weighing in at a hefty 8 lbs. 5 oz. and measuring 20 ¼ inches.
After a few days of anxious waiting, we proud parents got our first look at him yesterday (Thursday) afternoon. To our surprise, Zeke was discharged early, and we were able to take him home from the hospital last night. Big brother Elijah has been very excited and wanting to help us as much as possible. He loves holding him, helping feed him with the bottle, running and getting diapers and pacifier, etc. Last week, while shopping for baby items with Elijah, I told him we were going to Walmart to shop for the baby. Of course, it was only logical for him to ask me, “Is the baby at Walmart?” Last night he got his first look at Zeke at the nursery and said, “I found the baby!”
As for Zeke, well…let’s just say he likes to grunt, and is a very good eater (we are so in trouble when these 2 get older!) He also seems to be very alert already and is following his dad’s voice around the room. We are thrilled that he has joined our family!
Thanks for praying with us, and sharing our joy!
Chad, Janeene, Elijah & Ezekiel