Hmm, that's a good question!

Hey friends, We have a lot to share with you in this update about what’s been happening these past 4 months, and how God is leading us. 

In this update, we figured we'd try to answer some of the most common questions we've been getting asked. 

So, let’s jump right in!

 

"How is the search for new teammates going?" 

As you know from our last update, our former teammates made the difficult decision to step off the team and not return to PNG. We immediately began praying for God’s leading, and since we still have a desire to return to PNG and reach the Pano people, we have been asking God to make His will clear and provide new teammates if He wants us to go back to PNG.

It will take time to find new teammates, and then more time for them to be trained, raise support, and be ready to move to PNG. To be transparent, it’s really difficult to face taking steps backward after being so close to moving into Pano. However, we’re encouraged that so many of you have let us know that you are faithfully praying with us for new teammates.

 We have started talking to some potential teammates, but we certainly don’t expect any quick decisions on their part, as they pray, get input, and seek God’s will about whether He is calling them to PNG.

"When are you going back to PNG?"

One thing has become very clear to us in the past several months – we NEED to go back to PNG and talk with the Pano people in person. Right now, we’re planning to return to PNG in October or November of this year. We’ll let them know about the changes that have taken place - that we don’t have a team anymore - and explain that we still strongly desire to come live with them and share “God’s talk” with them, but don’t know when that can happen.

While we’re in PNG, we also need to deal with all of the supplies we shipped there to build and outfit our jungle home. When you think of all of the supplies needed to build a house (lumber, solar system with electrical supplies, plumbing, roofing copper, etc) and then consider all of the supplies to outfit a home (furniture, curtains, beds, shower, sinks, toilets, pots and pans, desks, etc), you get a picture of how much stuff we currently have sitting in PNG on our mission base.  So for now, we will be working to sort, package/store, and in other cases liquidate supplies (since many of the supplies wouldn’t last well in a humid tropical climate just sitting unused).

We expect this trip to last 2-6 months. That might seem like a wide range, but things in PNG tend to take longer than expected. (There is a reason it’s called the land of unexpected).

 

"After you return from PNG, what then?" 

Once we return from PNG next Spring/Summer, we’ll continue to have conversations with potential teammates and see what doors God opens; and while we wait, we’ll strive to be faithful, serve in our local church, and seek out opportunities to be further trained and strengthened in preparation for one day returning to PNG.

If that sounds ambiguous to you, let me assure you that it feels even more ambiguous to us. There is so much we don’t know right now, so being led step by step has taken on a new depth of meaning for us.

We would also strongly consider moving to be closer to potential teammates once discussions with them reach a point where it seems like that could be helpful. 

There is a good chance that we'll end up asking those of you who support us financially to pause support for a period of time until we're close to being ready to go back to PNG. (For now though, we continue to appreciate and value your support as we make this pivotal trip back to PNG to meet with Pano. We'll keep you updated though about that. 

“So, what are you doing right now?”

Here is run down on what we’ve been doing since you last heard from us in March.

• We have multiple meetings (with church leadership, mentors, mission organization leadership, etc) each week as we talk through plans and make decisions about the future.
• We have completed and submitted the paperwork to renew our PNG work visa and we're preparing the paperwork for our entry permits (those are both required for us to return to PNG). Right now, it's mostly a waiting game, as the PNG election season has slowed down the process of getting paperwork approved.
• We have been working to touch base and re-connect with supporters and answer their questions. We love when this can happen in person, although sometimes, a phone call is the best we can do.
• Josh has had the opportunity to preach and teach several times at our home church.
• Autumn has enjoyed opportunities to play piano again at church after two years without a piano in PNG
• We both just returned from a 16 day ministry trip serving with NET (the National Evangelism Team). Josh was one of the leaders and trainer on the team this year, and the 13 team members sang, evangelized, and served at several different churches.

• We’ve been seeking opportunities to regularly meet with and disciple young people at our church.
• From June 15-21, we attended our church's national conference where we presented a new plan for what we're hoping to accomplish over the next 2 years, Lord willing. We also spoke during one of the conference mission services, and had a chance to talk in person with a number of supporters we hadn't seen since returning from PNG. 

•  Josh has been spending a significant amount of time over the past two months communicating with other missionaries in PNG to start the process of sharing information about the housebuilding supplies that we are looking to liquidate. There is another church planting team who are just starting housebuilding and were excited to find out about some of the supplies they could get from us, and several other support missionaries who are interested as well. Although it feels gut-wrenching at times to be getting rid of the supplies we worked so hard to get to PNG, we're thankful to get to recoup some of the money, so that Lord willing, we can use it to repurchase supplies when we go back to PNG one day. 

"How are you guys doing?"

This might be the question we get asked the most. Honestly, it's a complex one to answer.. 

There's a whole gamut of emotions we are regularly experiencing. Hopefulness, sadness, discouragement, tiredness, excitement. We want to be faithful to respond in godly ways as we continue to wait and learn to trust God through the changes and ambiguity we're facing. 

When we were preparing to leave for the PNG, we were essentially wrapping up our lives here - handing ministries off to others, stepping out of roles we had filled, getting rid of lots of our "stuff" (since there is only so much you can store), and coming to terms with the reality that years overseas will affect and change our relationships here in the US. 

Now that we are back here for an indefinite amount of time as we look for teammates, it can feel strange and difficult trying to figure out how to essentially "restart" a life that we had wrapped up and said goodbye to. 

At the same time, we can't (and don't want to) get too invested in making a new life here, when our desire and plan isn't to be here permanently. In many ways, we have two earthly homes now - the US and PNG - and we are re-building a life in one while waiting and longing to return to the other. 

We really appreciate your prayers for us in this process, as we seek God's leading for where and how we're supposed to step in, fit in, and serve for however long He directs us to be in the US. 

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