Paul and Andrea Wilson Missionaries to Papua New Guinea Heading Back to Papua New Guinea
In just about a week we will be boarding the first of four planes and heading back to the highlands of Papua New Guinea. Before we head out we wanted to share a few praises and prayer requests:
Praises:
- Several folks have contributed towards the cost of our plane tickets!
- Earlier in April we had a wonderful visit to NTM Aviation’s home office in McNeal, Arizona.
- Paul ended up needing minor knee surgery. We were able to get it taken care of in record time. He is still a bit sore but improving greatly!
- Phoebe is growing right before our eyes and enjoying the world of “solid” foods. To get ready for her new home, we first introduced her to sweet potatoes – a staple food in PNG. She LOVES them. (Phoebe kaikai kaukau).
Prayer Request:
- While Phoebe has flown several times already, these will be her first international flights including a 16+ hour flight across the Pacific.
- Pray for smooth connections and on time arrivals…especially in Port Moresby (the capital and our port of entry into PNG).
- Pray for us as we get settled back into life in PNG and deal with jet lag. (We feel like we just got Phoebe’s days and nights straightened out. Here we go again!)
- Pray for family and friends who we have been/will be saying good-bye to…especially grandparents and aunts.
- After taking some time to help Andrea set up our home, Paul will return to work at the hangar. They are extremely shorthanded right now and it will only get worse as several of the guys will be leaving for home assignment (furlough).
A Look In The Rearview Mirror
Road Trip
- This little piggy went to Bolivar, MO via W. Virginia, Kentucky, Illinois and Indiana. We had a great overnight visit with Paul’s friends from Bible school days. It was great to re-connect as well as meet some new folks starting up a Christian aviation business at the local county airport.
- This little piggy went to Parsons, KS which wasn’t far and that was good for us. We spent a couple days with Paul’s parents visiting, doing laundry and spoiling on Phoebe (grandparenting!).
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Our New Addition!
We have just a few praises and prayer requests that we would like to bring to your attention:
- Praise: On November 3 at 10:06 PM Phoebe Joy Wilson arrived via c-section weighting in at just over 8 lbs.
- Praise: Andrea is recovering well from surgery.
- Praise: God has exceedingly and abundantly met our needs for getting set up during this time of home assignment.
- Prayer Request: With the addition to our family, we have extra expenses. Please join us in praying for God’s provision.
- Prayer Request: More laborers. NTM Aviation – PNG is currently in a critical situation and has had to limit flying. Pray for wisdom as we seek the Lord’s leading during these “lean” times.
- Prayer Request: That we would be godly parents.
Thanks for praying and rejoicing with us!
7Flights & 7 Beds
The months of August and September have flown by in a blur. We are so thankful for your prayers as we packed up our home in Papua New Guinea and prepared to head back to the US for these next months of home assignment.
Because Andrea was 7 months pregnant, we decided to “island hop” on our way home as a way to break up the long flight across the Pacific. With the help of rewards points and discount lodging provided by NTM, we were able to enjoy a few days of relaxing and unwinding before arriving in Maryland.
We want to thank you all for praying. We had a total of 7 flights and not one was cancelled and our luggage made it with us every step of the way! And other than a little bit of swelling and lots of bathroom trips, Andrea & Baby Wilson weathered the trips well. We arrived in Southern Maryland and were spoiled by some friends as we waited for our apartment to be made ready.
August 2011 Praises & Prayer Requests
In one week we will board the first of seven flights as we make our way from Papua New Guinea to the east coast of the US. Many of you are aware that we had to move up our home assignment time as we are expecting in mid November. We have a ton of praises and prayer requests that we wanted to share with you:
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Time of Transition
With Numonohi Christian Academy’s (our NTM school for missionary kids) graduation just a few weeks away, life here at our centre has entered a time of transition. Shortly after graduation, many families choose this time to head back to their home countries….some for a time of home assignment (formally called furlough) and some to change ministries. And like most years, our NTM aviation staff is no exception to this “tradition.”
While we do have one family returning in July, we will be saying good-bye to several more. This once again will mean some lean months ahead, staff-wise, and more opportunities to trust the Lord. How do you cover the work of two pilots, two mechanics and one admin person? Please join us in praying for wisdom and endurance during this time. We count it a tremendous blessing to be able to offer aviation support to our bush missionaries and hope that these shortages don’t mean we have to limit our services to them. Also, please pray for more laborers. The fields of PNG are ripe and ready for harvest.
It is also a time of transition for Aviation leadership in McNeal, Arizona. Please pray for the team there as they work through some necessary changes.
God is doing amazing things!
As missionaries living at our NTM’s PNG headquarters, we often have opportunities to visit with bush missionaries who are out for medical needs, meetings, schooling, and breaks.
Recently we were able to catch up with Jason and Nisae Williamson. They work among the Tobo people.
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Refreshment & Praise
Taking A Break
We want to start by saying thank you to all those who have been praying for us. As most of you know it was an intense and stressful summer with 
the minimal staffing. We both held much responsibility within our departments at the hangar. This was a huge learning curve for both of us and we are grateful for the current opportunity to take a week long break (15-19 Nov).
You might recall that for 4 months our helicopter was down having the engine repaired. Last month we re-installed the helicopter’s engine and fuel cells. We were able to return it to service just prior to our International Chief Pilot’s arrival to do check & training with our veteran helicopter pilot Ray Finsaas and our new pilot Mike McGregor. Ray needs to be trained to be an instructor for Mike. Having a second helicopter pilot family on the field is a huge blessing. This will prevent the helicopter from just sitting during home assignment times.
Additionally we had an inspection on our King Air C-90.
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A.O.G.
For those of you who don’t know aircraft lingo, AOG stands for Aircraft On Ground. And that is what we are dealing with at our NTM Aviation hangar here in PNG.
Paul & Marc removing the engine in preparation for transport to Australia.
Back in July Paul and the maintenance team were doing some routine inspections on our helicopter when they noticed signs of a problem. “Can we fix it here? Do we have the parts/equipment/ability to fix it?” After further investigation and consultations, it was determined that the engine needed to be shipped to an overhaul facility and fixed. Closest facility = Sydney, Australia!
Wish that we could report that it only took a call to FedEX to get our 200 lb “package” shipped. A special shipping crate was first sent to us. In the mean time the engine needed to be removed and prepared. And due to the size of this crate, we actually had to fly the engine down to Port Morseby ourselves in our C-90.
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Seasons in Papua New Guinea
Construction Season
Since our return in October of 2009 there has been non-stop construction on our corner of the center. This is a necessary step towards making room for m
ore laborers and is usually considered a good thing. However, when you live at ground zero for an extended time it tends to wear on ones sanity.
From the siding of the new duplex behind us to the remodeling of our neighboring duplex unit, to the landscaping of the grounds around us for better rain run-off we have had our fill of construction noise and activity. Before you get too judgmental of my negative tone I would ask: Have you ever heard the noise produced by a saw cutting aluminum siding? Have you ever had your pictures and décor removed by the vibrations of a floor sander? Have you ever been feet away from a landscaping crew who are digging ditches in your yard with shovels and a Bobcat tractor while you are working at your office desk? Have you ever enjoyed a headache from a varnish fume high and not reaped the refinished floors that go with it?
We completely understand that the construction crew has to complete these projects and are grateful for the necessary expansion of housing. However, we share all this to ask that you pray for us in this nerve racking trial….especially for Andrea as she spends Tuesdays and Thursdays at home taking care of our needs here.
When we as believers commit to serving the Lord we are promised trials and persecution. Thankfully we have not heard the sounds of conflict or tasted persecution as yet. Please DO NOT forget to pray for our fellow brothers and sisters around the world who are enduring such things for the name of Christ.
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