NTM - New Tribes Mission | Planting Tribal Churches

One of the things I enjoy about hiking is being amazed again and again at the things God has done.  Returning to our home village after furlough brought a few surprises.  They had moved the trails.  I had gotten so used to the old trails that I could  hike along without paying close attention to where I was going and just enjoy the view.  The new trails forced me to take my eyes off the view and keep them on the trail.  Especially the parts that were along a cliff face.  On one of these new trails, I was walking along keeping my eyes to the trail when I came across these colorful blossoms which had fallen across the path.  They were so beautiful that I had to stop, thank the Lord for creating such a thing for me to enjoy, and take a picture to share with you. 

Although we plan to live in Manila for the next few years, we still have a lot of business in Northern Luzon. Besides translation checking, we have a new team of missionaries ready to reach a new area with the Gospel. Moving into a remote area requires a lot of ground work. In February, Jonathan went with Erik Peterson to help him see if a supply route into his planned ministry location could be established from the north. If you are interested in seeing a few pictures about our trip, you can see them on my blog at www.jonathanheidibamford.blogspot.com

Now that we have our house set up, be are able to have visitors again. Pictured with Carrie and Thomas are Emma and Levi, two of our friends from Northern Luzon. Their parents came to town to buy supplies so we had a chance to take the kids to the pool up at the school.

As many of you know, we have transferred to Manila so that Jonathan can concentrate on Bible translation and so that the children can attend a school for children of missionaries. We have been blessed to find a house near the school. Jonathan will be making trips into the village to check his translation work.

Bamford Prayer Requests
September 17th 2008

 Suzanne, Daniel, and family are in the process of flying home. Should arrive tomorrow morning in Portland. The funeral for their son, Andrew, is planned for next Tuesday. We plan to attend.
 Last week there were rumors flying in the village against one of the Bible teachers. We are unsure of how much truth was in these rumors, and will probably never know. But, we do know that Satan uses lies to control people. We pray that if there is sin in the life of one of the teachers, it will be confessed. If ungodly people are trying to destroy the believer’s meeting, we pray that they would be silenced. The good news is that the situation seems to have cooled down and the Bible teaching is going ahead.
 Please pray for Robbie and Vicky as it seems that some of these rumors have been tailored to distress and discourage them personally even though not directly aimed at them.
 Pray that Charles and James will find employment that meets their needs.
 Pray that Charles will have direction as to what he should do between January 09 and the start of the next school year in Sept. 09.
 Pray for safety for our family as we travel to meetings and train our oldest sons to drive.
 Praise God for meeting our financial needs. This week a funds were given for computer and projector.
 Praise the Lord for the many people who prayed for Andrew. We feel blessed to have so many caring friends.
 Charles, Jonathan, and Heidi are taking college classes this fall.

You might think that on home assignment you would stay home, but that hasn’t been the case.  The first week of August, I was invited to be the missionary speaker for Olympic Bible Camp. So, we left our  home and went camping. We had a great time illustrating Bible truths using stories from the mission field.  American Missionary Fellowship staff did a great job with the camp and the kids had a lot of fun and had plenty of opportunity for spiritual growth.

Our first child graduated from highschool. Charles was four years old when we first arrived in the Philippines to work with New Tribes Mission. Now, fourteen years later he is 18 and ready to head back to the US and see where the Lord leads him. He wants to spend his first year at home working before he decides what kind of career path he wants to take.
God has blessed us with a beautiful house to stay in for the six months we are on furlough.

Last rainy season it got pretty cold in our village. The temperature fell to around 60 degrees and we thought we were going to freeze to death. In order to teach tribal missionaries they are not freezing to death at 60 degrees, the mission sends them home to catch up with family and friends every few years. Our first stop was Alaska to visit Heidi’s sister and her family. Wow, it really can get colder than 60! We had a great time and are looking forward to seeing our family and friends in what Alaskans call the “Lower 48.”

Copies of Acts lessons, copies of Ephesians lessons, copies of First Corinthians lessons, song books, and copies of the newly translated Genesis portions are stacked on the counter. What an privilege to see four years of work printed and ready for use by Isnag Bible teachers. Within days of this picture, these materials were flown into our village and distributed to Isnag believers. Please pray the Isnag will be diligent to study God’s word while we are on furlough in the United States.

If you want to know more about a milestone our family just passed you can check: www.ntm.org/jonathan-heidi-bamford/9018

Or visit our blog: www.jonathanheidibamford@blogspot.com
I decided to try keeping a blog to record family happenings which aren’t necessarily NTM related.

Lukio was up pruning trees in his field. Climbing down trees holding a machete is cumbersome, so he dropped his machete on the ground before climbing down. Unfortunately, he stepped on it when he got to the ground.

Getting cut by a machete is a fairly common occurrence here and in years past the wounds would be stuffed with grass or even hair to help the blood clot. Of course infection always sent in and it took a long time before the farmer was able to get back to work.

Customs have changed. Like Lukio, more people are coming in right away to get their wound cleaned and stitched. They get some antibiotics going right away and are back to their work in no time at all. We really praise the Lord for his provision of the clinic, medical workers, and medicine.

Carrie assists in the treatment by keep the flashlight focused on the wound.