McKnight's Summer Newsletter
|
Please continue to pray and support them as they live as missionaries in Papua New Guinea. Photos sent by the McKnights can be found on the Photo page of the website.
MAC MAIL: “This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” 1 John Greetings from Seems like a lot has happened since we last wrote to you. Some of the most exciting things that have been going on have included the Madak Tribe hearing the culmination of the chronological teaching. Also the Inapang people, who have only been christians for 20 months decided as a village that they wanted to share their excitement about what God has done for them with their larger neighbouring village, 2 hours hike away. They are 10 weeks into their teaching there and have 5 weeks to go. They have just started the New Testament and there was an audible “ahhh” when they heard Jesus was the long promised Deliverer, God and Man in One. Here at Lapilo, we have been kept busy which we enjoy, though as always we are constantly striving to maintain the right balance between work and family. January: We had some new families arrive to live on the base. One in particular is a family from February: Lesley was involved in an intense five day course being trained in crisis debriefing. She really enjoyed the opportunity to get back in the classroom. The kids did really well with all their various babysitters. Thanks for your prayers. March: Paul thought he’d put the crisis training into practice and unfortunately fell off his motorcycle in Goroka (above), while avoiding a large 4WD vehicle that hadn’t seen him. Paul went on into town thinking he just had a few scratches, got all the messages Lesley had asked him to pick up, and only when he returned home realised how sore his shoulder was and was diagnosed with a fractured collar bone. Hence the sling in the photo! After some enforced rest time which coincided with school break and our annual conference, he has healed well, and is starting to get back into some sport again. April: We had a good friend Sandra Albrecht from For several weeks Paul was kept busy with preparations for the school field day, which went off really well on the day, with about 85 events completed. Of course it would be remiss of me not to mention that Paul celebrated his 35th birthday in April, and Lesley her 34th in March. The kids love any opportunity to have a cake and to blow out the candles. May: We started May with Callum catching a nasty vomiting bug followed by all of us suffering from a bad cold which has taken almost two weeks to fully clear. So we are thanking the Lord for our health again, and also for our safety. Eight of the medical clinic staff were attacked at the Goroka market, with two sustaining stab wounds. They are both doing well thankfully, but we would value your prayers for all those involved as they recover emotionally, and for us all as we continue to live in this unstable country. We had one incident of someone trying to break into our house which made for several weeks of disturbed sleep for Lesley and her active imagination. Visitors from home On the 21st May Paul’s parents arrive and will stay with us for 5 weeks. They have not seen their grandchildren for almost a year so it will be fun to do lots of things together, and to have a chance to show them PNG, both the highlands and the coast, which is very tropical. Clinic News In March we had a visiting chiropractor for two weeks. It was really interesting for me (Lesley) to see him at work. He helped me diagnose and treat a couple of cases that I had been unsure of. I miss having other physios here to train and bounce ideas off, so it was a real encouragement to me to have time to discuss and learn some new things. At present I have a physio assistant who has come out to help in the clinic for three months. She will be a big help in carrying on some treatment with patients while I’m away, and also sorting out my stock room and helping me research and order some equipment. These are just some of the jobs I never seem to get to in the few hours I work in the clinic. On the home front I’m hoping to improve my communication skills and write a more regular prayer update. I’ll start by aiming to do that about once a month. Watch this space. School News - (Paul) It has been a very busy time in school since Christmas with new responsibilities and challenges. On top of my normal teaching load I was coaching the girls football team after school everyday throughout the months of January, February and March. I have been learning the responsibilities of being the school Sports Master and the plan is for me to take this position over from next year. This has meant me traveling to meetings around the I am also the new treasurer for the Eastern Highlands Secondary Schools Sports Association which has been a challenge in itself. They have had a problem with corruption in the past so I think they were only too happy to have an ex-pat take over the role. However I am currently trying to open a new bank account for the association which it seems isn’t as easy as back in
Callum and Amy's News Amy will be two on Aug 21st and attempts to do most things her brother does. Chatting on Skype (Callum) I have been chatting to Granny and Grandpa in Northern have been doing and the fun things Amy and I get up to. Sometimes I’m too shy to talk, but other times I chat for ages. Soon I’ll not need to talk to Granny and Grandpa Mac on Skype because they are coming to stay in our house. We are going to take them to swim in the sea and to see fish like Nemo. Mummy says it will be very hot down at the coast, but I find 28 degrees C a bit chilly sometimes so I think I’ll be alright. I might need to switch the fan on for Granny and Grandpa though. Our curly girl (Amy) Daddy says I’m getting to be a very big girl. Callum still thinks I’m a baby but I’m really a toddler and can run very fast. I love chasing Callum and climbing the stairs and onto chairs so I can watch mummy making my food. I get a bit impatient when it takes too long! I love telling stories, but people just don’t understand me yet, but I understand nearly everything they tell me. I’ve even worked out how to communicate very well with sign language and with all sorts of noises. My favourite thing to do is to get my little cups and bowls and give people pretend food. I also love shoes and play with them a lot, I can even put some on and off all by myself. Matching PNG meri blouses (Amy) Mum and I wore our matching meri blouses on sports day as it was a special occasion with all of the older kids doing lots of different sports. When we are bigger we are going to join in too. For now we love to go down to the school and ride our bikes or just dig in the gravel. When daddy plays sport we do that so mum can chat with her friends too. Lots of our friends come down as well and we have great fun. Sometimes we stay at home and play with our toys, or in the hammock, but our favorite activity is to go to the play park. There we can go on the swings or play on the climbing frame which has big slides on it and a bridge. Praise and Prayer We want to praise God for health and for safety. Not only for ourselves but also for our clinic staff who could easily have been seriously injured. Paul too, when he came off his bike, and we value your prayers for ongoing safety for all the missionaries here in this unstable country where, for example when a tree falls down on the road, men come out to clear it, but charge every vehicle trying to squeeze past a fee for their “voluntary services” (photo). Also we praise God for Paul’s mum’s ongoing recovery from her broken leg, and that she is well enough to visit us. For God’s ongoing faithful provision to us. Points for Prayer • The Inapang believers and the Moores as they bring the gospel to the Mbongen village. • The Madak people as they take their first steps as new believers, against local opposition. • For Paul and I to have a good break while school is out, and be refreshed for the next school year. • For a good visit with Paul’s parents and health and safety as we all travel. • For continued wisdom as we strive to be good parents to Callum and Amy • The growing amount of violence and trouble in Goroka our local town. For safety when we visit on shopping trips. Support Details If you would like to be part of our support team please see below: Contact NTM at the address below and ask for a support pack (for anyone wanting to give regularly) Go online to the NTM For gifts/cheques, please make these out to New Tribes DN36 5XU with a note mentioning “for P&L McKnight. NTM can also reclaim tax if you are a payer. All you need to do is sign a Gift Aid form.
|
|
 Printable Version |
