Simon & Annika Flanagan Expanding the reach of the gospel with you Merenge a wandering child of God.
This is baby Cletus, Merenges first born child. Just a new believer and Merenge stood against his family for God. He chose to trust in God and not the local shaman. CLICK HERE to listen to his story.
Unfortunately baby Cletus died in the weeks to come. Since the death of his first born son Merenge has drifted from fellowship and has increasingly become distant from us; ended relationships and is now very negative towards the church and ourselves. Please pray that God would work in Merenges life and bring him back into fellowship with himself. Pray that we would know how to relate to Merenge and how to help him. Pray that the love that we would show him would show him His Saviors heart for him. Let’s pray and see what God will do in the months ahead.
Thanks for your prayers,
Simon, Annika, Nya and Noah
Reconciliation
CLICK HERE to hear how the gospel is bringing about peace in our village. The Mengen way is a life for a life; God is making a difference.
Thanks for praying,
Simon, Annika, Nya and Noah
Book of Acts in believers hands
Great news! This week I was able to put printed copies of the book of Acts into our believers hands.
We gave out 60 copies and guess what? People didn’t put it in their bags to read at home; they sat down just where they were at and started to read, some sitting for an hour or more before moving on.
Police, a dead pig and a growing family
Eph 2:19 So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family.
In general PNG culture and particularly the Mengen culture family ties are very important. If you are in a good family, you will gain a good name, you will always receive help in times of trouble; if your gardens fail, if your children need a babysitter, if you get in a fight, if you are making a garden or building a house, if you need to borrow tools, if your are short on money for school fees, your family will help you out, they’ve got your back. Now if you behave badly or step out of line, your family will threaten to remove all of that help and will turn their back on you in order to force you back into line.
These family pressures have been wearing hard on some of our believing families; we believe the story of the, “police, a dead and a growing family” have helped the family of God in our Mengen village to come together like never before.
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short update and prayer points
Hi prayer team,
Thanks for keeping us before the throne. We are having really rainy weather, it’s is black skies, rain and even fog in the house! We are walking through swamp now for the most part and it is hard to get cloths dry just now! Things are ticking on as far as teaching goes, I am now teaching the fulfillment of Gods promise of the world flood and then next week we will be teaching on the tower of Babel. Please pray that people will see clearly again that we are all sinners, because of the sin in Adam and that we are in need of a redeemer. Pray that teaching through the story of Noah will show that we are just like those people who died outside of the boat. Pray that they will see that God keeps his promises and that there is only one door and one way to eternal life and peace with God. Some general prayer point: -
1) Pray for me as I would like to start and teach two new lessons per week in a while and that I and the hearers would be ready for the increase in information. Pray for the trainee teachers as this will increase their workload.
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Gospel teaching sparks interest in other villages
Gospel teaching continues amongst the Mengen people. This is the second round of gospel teaching. Interest in hearing the gospel is coming from other families and groups in other villages as they see the undeniable change in the lives of the believers.
Pray for a door to open for us to go to other villages in the next year.
Click here to hear of one Mengen man’s interest in the gospel.
Tags: New Tribes Mission, NTM
evaluation, gospel teaching this week
Hi Friends,
It has been a big week or two here in our village. I have been able to finish up language and culture study which is a huge weight off my shoulders. The test lasted for three days and covered many subjects; I had to explain how paper is made, how the rain works, from evaporation onwards. So I got a thorough going over in my evaluation which I am happy for. I had my speech recorded and then played back to Mengen speaker checking each section for mistakes etc. Needless to say I am very happy to be done but now a different type of work awaits me. Please continue to pray for Annika as she learns language and culture. She is doing wonderfully well but needs your prayers also. Get you knee pads out as we need your prayers. I will be starting to teach the phase one gospel lessons from tomorrow morning. I am also working on writing 6 course two lessons which I will translate back to English. (Course 2 lessons are used to teach the believers that we are now to meet as Gods family to be taught from his word and praise God) – These lessons will then be used by consultants to check that my lessons are communicating well and that the content is all there; they will check them in the back to English translation but then also come in and check them with native Mengen speakers in person. I am also going to be working on translating the book of Ruth, the first chapter is done, but there is much work to be done. This week’s gospel lesson: The story of Cain killing Abel. The main points we are teaching are below.
1) God is gracious and gives Cain and us opportunities to humble ourselves and trust in the Redeemer.
2) If we do not humble ourselves before God sin will destroy us.
3) God has the right to judge Cain and us all.
4) If we do not humble ourselves and trust in Gods strength alone we are enemies of God now and will spend eternity separated from Him in the place of fire.
Please pray for:
· Mande, the wife of one of our teachers Alex. I will be teaching them a lesson on their own at night because Mande is part of the Kevung cult and gets much pressure from her family to not listen to the gospel teaching.
· Wante, has made a profession of faith, pray we can discern her understanding as we teach and do discipleship with her.
· Lule, that she would grow to understand the main truths of the gospel.
· Trinde and Alphonsia – pray they would continue come to the teaching with their family in the midst of adversity and would trust in the redeemer.
· ME – Simon, that God would help me to be clear as I teach the gospel lessons and that I would have freedom in the Mengen language.
· Pray for our trainee teachers as they take on more responsibility in the Friday lessons.
· Pray for Annika and myself as we do discipleship in the village, that God would water the seed planted.
We need your prayers! Thanks for joining us in the work of the gospel, Much love in Christ,
Simon, Annika, Nya and Noah
Maliaba Spirit
The Maliaba is the name of the Shaman that controls the Mengen people.
He has always had power over the people because he is possessed by a spirit that gives him power.
Click this link to see how he is losing control over the Mengen believers!
Pray that God continues to deliver precious souls from a life of fear.
Tags: New Tribes Mission, NTM
Mengen magic – the cup
The cup
Magic and manipulation of the Spirit world is part and parcel of life amongst the Mengen people.
Click this link to find out about the first ceremony performed on a newborn baby.
Pray the Lord will free more Mengen people from the grip of the evil one.
Tags: New Tribes Mission, NTM
Update on Alex and Mande
Well, you can see from an earlier post that we have been asking for much prayer for this family. Alex is following hard after his Savior and wants to learn all he can, he is also one of our teacher trainees. His wife however has been controlled by her mother and by fear of the spirit world; Mande is still not a believer. We have been asking the Lord to do something to break the control that Mande’s family has over her. Recently up in the village the Kevung cult leaders decided to build a spirit house right next to Alex and Mande’s house. They believe that the spirits of the dead come into this house and they offer food to them inside the house in order to manipulate the spirits to do good to them and not harm them. As you can imagine Alex felt targeted and this was a direct form of persecution against him, as he is the only believer in the little hamlet. Alex family members then put pressure on him to buy nails or get bush rope in order to complete the house. Alex refused and because of that his family have told him to move his house and live far away from them.
Well this was really the out Alex had been looking for, what a joy for him to be able to move his wife and now four kids away from the direct influence of this cult. Quickly we helped Alex to move and what a joy it was to see the believers join together to move his house and help him build a new house in just two days! We believe the Lord has opened this door and Alex now lives closer to us and is surrounded by believing families. Please pray with us that the example of the believers will challenge and convict Alex’s wife Mande and that soon we will be able to write to tell you of her salvation. How wonderful it would be for this couple to be one in Christ and work fully for Him.
Alex has just been out at our translation workshop with us, he is showing great potential as a translation helper and future leader in the church.
Thanks for being part of our team in reaching the Mengen people for Christ,
Simon, Annika, Nya and Noah
Tags: New Tribes Mission, NTM