Lori Morley Working with the Simbari people of Papua New Guinea 
Visitors from my church, Rick and Janice Ribble.
I just wanted to write to give you an update on how God answered prayer this past week. My missions’ pastor and his wife, Rick and Janice Ribble, arrived here safely last Saturday, June 28th (Answered prayer #1). I met up with them in town and we had a nice lunch and they told me about some of their experiences in PNG up until that point. Then I took them to the mission center where I am now living and showed them my small apartment and the center property. I introduced them to several of the missionaries here, some were new missionaries on the field and some have been here since before I was born so they got some different perspectives on missionary life.
On Sunday after gathering for church with other NTM missionaries, we went on a short hike to a nearby village. I hadn’t been out walking around here much so it was good for me, too, to interact more with the people in this area.
But Monday was the day that I had really been looking forward to. This was my day to introduce friends from my home church to “my people”. The Lord provided a beautiful, sunny morning (answered prayer #2) and we were able to be in Simbari for 2 ½ hours. I gave them a quick tour of my house and then we went on a walk to the end of the airstrip where we could view some other villages in the distance. One of the believers in our village, Raymond, knew enough English to be able to talk to Rick and Janice directly and they enjoyed the interaction. They got to see some of the houses in our village, the building where we hold our meetings, and meet some of the believers. By then, the clouds were starting to roll in so the pilot felt that it was time to go. It wasn’t nearly enough time to show them all that I would have liked but at least they got to see a little bit and get more of a picture of what life is like for us as missionaries here and for the Simbari people.
Out and About
On Tuesday we went to town and although there is not much to see there by western standards, I took them places where I hoped they would learn more about the people of Papua New Guinea. Although the markets here can be intimidating with the crowds and the danger of having your pockets picked, I felt that good or bad, it was something that they should experience so we went to both the artifact market and the food market. They’re still alive to tell about it and they bought a few souvenirs so I must not have been too bad. (Safety in town – answered prayer #3).
Coffee growing and harvesting is an important part of the PNG economy so in spite of the unfortunate fact that Rick and Janice don’t drink coffee, I took them to the Arabicas Coffee Factory. I told them that PNG coffee is some of the best in the world being grown in the mountains and all but that didn’t seem to leave much of an impression. They said they had heard that about coffees from other countries. Oh, well, what can you expect from non-coffee drinkers? I wasn’t put off though and I dragged them to the coffee factory anyway. We saw how they sort the coffee into various grades, husk it, roast it (the best part!), and package it. At the end of the tour we were offered a pot of coffee and Rick and Janice actually drank some! I have the photo to prove it. Even more remarkable was the fact that they bought some coffee beans!!! They said it was to give away and have on hand for visitors but you know, I think they may become coffee drinkers after all. (Answered prayer #4 – Well, okay, maybe not.)
Look What God is Doing
On each of my trips to Simbari I have been encouraged about what God is doing there. The believers are continuing to meet together every week, there’s witnessing and discipling going on, and it seems like each time I go, they tell me of someone else who has accepted Christ as their Savior. We only had 2 ½ hours on the ground there but it was enough time for me to be introduced to another brother in Christ. Amdolakwol is an old man but because the gospel message has been communicated to him in his heart language, he has been able to understand it and put his trust in Jesus as the only One who can save him from his sins. It’s wonderful to see these things happening even though we missionaries are not there. It gives me great hope that God’s work there will continue long after we are gone. I guess you could call that answered prayer #4!
Prayer Requests
- My next Simbari trip is day after tomorrow! (July 9-15). My head is spinning as I get the cargo weighed up and distributed between 2 flights.
- I mentioned that I will be teaching classes at a place/program called Interface on July 24-26. Due to tribal fighting in the area, the students and staff have all had to relocate to our mission center just 15 minutes down the road from me. I’ll still be teaching the classes. I just might not be teaching them at the place I was expecting. Rule #1 of missionary life: BE FLEXIBLE.
Rejoicing in answered prayer,
Lori
