campbell ramblings

Heaps of friends have questions about what we are doing, and when we take the step on to a plane bound for PNG. So here is a refresher!

What we can tell you …. 

We are ALMOST there!  Our home-based training has been completed in February 2014, our visas and medicals are in process, and we are sorting what remains of our worldly possessions into three piles – give away, ship to PNG, or store for two years.

All that remains is for our Partnership Support to be finalised, and we continue to visit churches, chat over cups of coffee, and generally take every opening to share the opportunity of this ministry. We have partners committing around 51% of our required $3,167 monthly support, with perhaps 3%in additional pledges yet to be confirmed.

If you have been following our journey, and can help us make that final step, we would love to hear from you. Send us an email at keith-elspeth_campbell@wbt.org and we can guide you through the Partnership process. If you prefer an anonymous contribution, simply visit Wycliffe Bible Translators’ donation page at wycliffe.org.au/donate/payments/ and follow the prompts.

We hope to have our Partnership finalised in time to schedule flights for mid-August 2014, to commence Pacific Orientation Camp near Madang – where we will learn (or begin to learn) the Tok Pisin language and some cultural insights needed to build relationships with our local community.

What our job will involve!  The Regional Centre managers directly assist multiple translation and literacy teams, providing administrative support, financial management, arranging supplies, transport or medical aid, and maintaining their lines of communication with the organisation and Partners. The Centre also provides temporary accommodation, and facilities for training and other events.

We will be working with PNG national staff in the Centre, so our ability to communicate and build relationships will be crucial. Making contacts in the community, and getting involved in a church will be high on our agenda in the initial months.

What we can’t tell you, yet ….

Where our eventual assignment will be! Of the seven Regional Centres supporting translation and literacy projects across PNG, five are in need of qualified, permanent managers. We have been advised that
several centres are managed by translation staff diverted from active roles in the field. This really generates a sense of urgency in our hearts – we can free a couple to return to the task they have trained hard for… putting the word of God in the hands of the PNG church.

Thankfully, the decision rests with SIL (Summer Institute of Linguistics) in PNG, and we know the outcome is in the Lord’s hands.

Prayer points

Join us in praying for the remaining funds to come in. That’s a big one!

Thank God for the support we have received from Wycliffe at every stage of this journey. There are many who have gone before, and are prepared to share their experience with us.

Pray for God’s people in PNG. They have showed much patience over the decades taken to provide them with the scriptures in their heart language – and there remains much more to do!

Pray that others will be stirred by God to fill vacancies in the field. Be specific – check out Wycliffe’s vacancies on their website, and pray for workers to join the harvest.

 

 

 

April 5, and one week out, there was more than just our daughter’s wedding day approaching. Cyclone Ita certainly made for an interesting time the following weekend, as guests joined us to celebrate the marriage of Shawn and Elisabeth Auld. It was a joyous time…

Sorry, I have to pause the wedding update.

As I research the Cyclone Ita facts, I am confronted by the tragedy which preceded it in the Solomon Islands. Flooding resulted in the deaths of twenty-three people with more unaccounted for. As the media in Australia focus on the Qld situation, 10,000 have been left homeless in Honiara alone, and over 50,000 people are in need of aid. Pray that the Christian community, and Wycliffe teams particularly, will be able to respond to community needs in ways which display the compassion of Christ.

The rest of April offers a short time to recover, while refocussing on preparing for PNG. During May we have four mission presentations, including a mini-road trip north for two weeks, before returning for a Christian Convention early in June. Partnership building is progressing in earnest, with only four months to go til our intended departure. [Pacific Orientation Course (POC) has been rescheduled to commence August 24, near Madang]

In the midst of this, Keith has picked up some contract work with a past business client, and has aspirations of completing a few much needed renovation projects around the house. Elspeth continues to be the effective hub of all the visa applications, medical forms, arrangement of mission talks, etc., that have been part of our lives since mid-2013.

There is a verse on our living room wall which keeps us grounded…  “Many are the plans in a man’s heart,but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.”  (Proverbs 19:21)

Prayer points

Praise God that He is in control… of cyclones, floods, daily provisions… and achieves His purposes through all things. Pray that we might trust Him always.

Pray for Shawn and Elisabeth, that they may set a godly example in their relationship as they continue to connect with friends and family.

Thank God for Keith’s work, and that it provides time for many other responsibilities.

Pray that we may make the most of opportunities to reconnect with churches visited in 2013.

It was an odd return to life in Townsville. We arrived late morning, March 3, and ended up just sitting on the couch for several hours, adjusting to not being on the road in ‘mission mode’. That afternoon, we participated in a memorial service for one of the dear older women at church, with Elspeth delivering the eulogy.

Our pastor spoke from Psalm 23, on the comfort that comes from knowing the Good Shepherd in the face of troubling times, and even in death. It was good to dwell on the relationship God has with His people, His ability to provide for every need and in every situation, and His desire to sustain us to the end.

It seemed easier to keep our focus on God while travelling and either speaking about PNG, or training to get there. Back home, we have so many other things vying for attention – work, bills, housework, home maintenance, and organising a wedding – that it is a trap to see these things happening outside of God’s purposes for us.

While in Toowoomba, we picked up a study on Matthew by Phil Moore, planning to use it for regular reading together. On returning to Willows church, we found the current preaching series working through Matthew chapters 3 to 7. God is less than subtle at times!

From Phil Moore’s introduction;

“(Matthew) uses the Greek word basileia, or kingdom, fifty-six times in his twenty-eight chapters, stressing the revolutionary call of Jesus the King and of his Kingdom. He divides (the book) into Jesus’ words and Jesus’ deeds, so that we will not mistake Jesus for a mere lecturer in religious philosophy, but grasp that he is the-King-on-a-Mission and that he wants to enlist us as his willing followers.”

Christians aren’t just biding their time till heaven, but are part of Jesus’ Kingdom now. During our time of ‘waiting’ for PNG, perhaps we need to see all that our lives entail at the moment as part of God preparing us for Kingdom service. Certainly in our work, our finances, and the wedding preparations, there is the clear choice to do things in a way which honours Him.

Pray that we make the best choices!

Prayer points

Praise God that His word is sufficient to teach, rebuke, correct and train us for His work. (2 Tim 3:16-17)

Uphold Shawn and Elisabeth as the wedding day approaches (April 12). Pray that the event itself and their life together, will honour God.

Thank God for our church family (Willows Presbyterian), for their continued encouragement and support of us, and that the preaching continues to hold us accountable!

 

We find ourselves immersed in language continuously, and have discovered that Summer School tends to get into your brain, changing your thinking on many issues.

But it’s not all serious…

It had been a rough day, and as I arrived at the party I was chalant, despite my efforts to appear gruntled and consolate. I furled my wieldy umbrella, then saw her, a descript individual, in a state of total array. Her hair was kempt, her clothing shevelled, and she moved in a gainly way.    (adapted from Jack Winter, The New Yorker, July 25, 1994)

Just one of the examples of how we all understand and follow language rules daily, yet the majority of us haven’t studied intently. Language is learned rather than studied.

For our Language Learning subject, we are experiencing a crash course in Indonesian (Jakarta) over fourteen one-hour sessions with a local native speaker. Pak Agus is a gracious Christian man, and very patient with us as we butcher his language repeatedly!

Our core language development will come later in PNG as we work, worship and relate to the community in the Tok Pisin language. The main point of our time in EQUIP is to develop skills which will prepare us to learn effectively – to reprogram our brains to become language learners.

As we study Language Awareness (grammar), we have worked through homework examples from Vietnamese, Bisa (Ghana), Arabic (Iraq), Farsi (Iran), Swahili (Kenya), Icelandic, and many others. (Don’t expect us to understand anything more complex than “The boy climbed a tree”).  Each language has its own rules and distinctive style – it is no surprise that scripture is often ‘lost in translation’. Before Des Oatridge translated the gospel into Binumarian, he asked a village leader what he knew about the crucifixion.

‘Oh, when Jesus came to earth he handed out money, watches, clothing, cars, aircraft, knowledge – all the riches you white men have. Then the white men crucified him on a cross to prevent him giving the same things to the black man. White men don’t want black men to have these things.’

Hopefully, what we truly want to give to a needy world is that which they need most…. “Then you will know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.” (John 8:32)

Prayer points

. Pray that we may fully trust all things to our great God “who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine”. (Ephesians 3:20)  We still have a way to travel before we get to PNG.

. Give thanks for general safety during a period of high bushfire risk. We evacuated at one point, and the fire fighters (CFA) based their operations at the end of our street!

. Thank God for providing a wonderful church to attend – Reservoir Presbyterian. (Photo above)

.  Pray for the students to be clear on God’s promises, as we confront many issues related to cultural exposure and other religious worldviews.

We found the two to three weeks holiday to be a much needed break, even though we managed to add a few thousand kilometres onto the ute. 

We farewelled Elspeth’s family in Toowoomba, and on the Sunday, worshipped with Keith’s parents in Maclean, and shared our PNG plans. We had some great conversations afterward and were assured of everyone’s prayers. Christmas with the Campbell’s provided the anticipated food, stories and laughter, with everyone together for lunch. A dash to Brisbane meant Hannah could join us, and then we delivered her back in time for work on Boxing Day. The trip south provided the opportunity to visit family and friends on the way, before basing ourselves outside of Wangaratta for a week. In a comparably small region, there was such a diversity of scenery – from dry bush, through lush forest, to chilly alpine country. God is an awesome Creator.

But now we are here, at Kangaroo Ground! Our group of fourteen students are diving into Language Learning, Language Awareness, Phonetics, and Anthropology. The learning curve is fairly steep at times, but there is a great amount of support and encouragement from everyone on site. It is a change to be learning from lecturers and texts with a clear mission focus. One reading included a moving passage from Lynette Oates’ Hidden People, an account of Des Oatridge’s translation work among the Binumarian tribe in PNG. After helping in checking John 6:58, a national translator working with Des confronts him;

“Why didn’t you tell my father? You have known all this time that all anyone has to do to have eternal life is to have faith in Jesus. And you let my father die without telling him. Why?”

“But Su’uwa, in those days I didn’t know how to say it to your father. I couldn’t find the words. Only now have you given me words to say it to you.”

We must do all we can to help find the words.

Prayer points

Ask God to continue “to send out workers into His harvest field.”  (Matthew 9:38)

Alan and Faye Canavan (Wycliffe missionaries) begin their journey home to Townsville this week, after a year on furlough. Pray that they will be able to rest and relax along the way, and for safe travel.

Praise God for the time with Keith’s family, particularly that Hannah was able to enjoy it with us.

Pray for all of the Summer School students, that we would develop skills to be useful in service to God. Some are also still determining what form that service may take in the near future.

 

With Christmas around the corner, our church crawl ended with a rush – four churches in three days!

It was great to reconnect with Bill and Jenny Lutton [Bill was the first minister called to our home church in Townsville back in 1996] at Kingaroy. Bill served as APWM Director for a number of years, and was able to share some valuable insights on mission. We travelled to Bell Presbyterian with Bill for a Friday evening meeting following a congregational dinner. We met parents of a Wycliffe translator serving in PNG, and had many encouraging conversations.

Saturday saw a breakfast gathering in Kingaroy, and again, we met a couple planning to serve in China. After the event, we joined the regular ESL (English as a Second Language) class led by the Lutton’s. It was interesting to hear the students share their experiences of Christmas in their home countries.

Sunday in Toowoomba involved worship services with St David’s in the morning followed by lunch and St John’s at night. We were made to feel very welcome, and it was an enjoyable end to over five weeks on the road. For those into stats, we travelled 4,009 kilometres, visited thirteen congregations, and met folk at thirty-two functions, including worship services, home studies, luncheons, aged care homes, morning teas and a mothers’ group. Add to this the numerous unofficial meetings over meals or a coffee, and the times when people opened their homes to us.

All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as they had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people.  Acts 2:44-47

Thanks to all our loyal blog followers for their prayers. Our next posting will be from Kangaroo Ground in mid-January, a week into Equip Summer School. Till then, please keep praying…

Prayer points

Pray that the churches we’ve visited [Mackay, Rockhampton, Yeppoon, Biloela, Roma, Miles, Chinchilla, Bell, Kingaroy & Toowoomba] would continue in their zeal for mission to their communities and beyond.

Praise God for the time staying with Elspeth’s parents in Toowoomba.

Pray for a restful break as we prepare for Summer School commencing January 7.

For this stage we made our base camp in Chinchilla, hosted by David and Di Knott. However, our first official duties were at Miles Presbyterian, with an interview during the service leading to some great conversations over morning tea. Once again, we keep meeting folk with a real heart for this ministry. There is a long history of sending and supporting missions from the Darling Downs churches.

The drive from Miles to Chinchilla is nothing like I remember from years past. Industry has come to the region in the form of gas suppliers and power stations, with trucks dominating the highway traffic. The towns are changing too, and spending time with the locals confirms that the impact is seen in many ways. There are new estates, and ‘work camps’ outside town; FIFO (fly in fly out) workers fill the pubs every night; and Chinchilla now has a McDonalds!

The Sunday evening service in Chinchilla was given to the Campbells, for a message from 1 Kings 17 and a presentation which included some interactive cultural challenges. We enjoyed the format, and it provided a foundation for building relationships further over lunches and coffees in the following days.

Overall, the week was a slower pace for us, but spiritually refreshing. We found some real gems in God’s kingdom! [and we got to see the only Australian memorial building named in honour of an insect!]  God is good at providing what we need at just the right time.

God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.   2 Corinthians 9:8

Prayer points

– Pray for the believers doing their utmost to serve in the region, that they would find strength and encouragement daily.

– Pray that churches may be able to respond to the change in the community, both in caring for existing members and reaching out to the newcomers. Miles PC has been able to establish a bible study in the nearby ‘work camp’.

– Remember our older saints, as illness and frailty take their toll. May they know grace and hope in their later years.

Next week … Bell, Kingaroy and Toowoomba