VOLUME 8; NO.5 MAY 1985
Dear Brethren;
Greetings in the name of the Lord. May the Lord continue to bless for your material and spiritual help towards us. Only through your fellowship and prayers are we able to accomplish anything for the glory of God.
TAKE MY LIFE AND LET IT BE...
Don't you know how the Lord just shakes His head in regard to how long it takes
us to see what He has been planning for sometime. For many months now Kathy
and I have been wrestling with the many problems that we face in the work here
and some situations which have developed as our children have matured into teenagers.
After much discussion and prayer we decided that we needed to move from Papua
New Guinea. Our main reasons for leaving PNG were:
1) our loss of seeming effectiveness with the local populace, stemming from
our view that they are not maturing or showing any desire to grow (not all just
a lot of them). And the overall decline in receptivity in the last 10 years.
2) schooling here for the kids: high cost, lower quality than we expect.
3) lack of security for our personal being: no freedom to go out, having to
fortify our selves and property everytime we go everywhere.
With this decision came a reluctance on my part to leave PNG because I still feel there is a need for more printed material. But I also realize that my family's sanity and security are important. Also came a feeling of lostness as to what can we do now. "Lord show us!" First thoughts centered around the states, move back there until the kids were out of school, etc. Another suggestion was New Zealand.
?? OPEN DOOR ??
Due to our recent holiday in New Zealand our eyes had already been opened. Kathy
and I decided that such a major move required another trip "to spy out
the land".
During the Easter weekend the New Zealand churches were scheduled to have their Bi-Annual lectureship which is attended by brethren from all over New Zealand. We felt this would afford us an opportunity to sound out a large number of the brethren as to their thoughts on whether we needed to move there or not.
We are excited ! The reaction from the kiwi brethren was overwhelming to say the least.
OCEANIA OUTREACH
For many months to come you will be hearing of this concept of Oceania outreach
which Kathy and I have been discussing for several months. Until recently we
were not aware that other people were involved in similar thinking. (Could it
be that the Lord was bringing the thoughts together for a reason?). In 1978
there were drawn up plans called the "Southeast Asian/South Pacific Plan"
for the evangelism of this part of the world. It was basically an extension
of the 20 year PNG plan. This SASPP called for the cooperation of the entire
area with Bible Training Schools, printing facilities, etc. to support the work.
The initial plan called for PNG to be the base of operation as we have the larger
number of missionary manpower available. New information indicates that New
Zealand is more ideally qualified to be the "hub" of the plan for
the South Pacific area.
I will be the first to admit that the printing work is still a very vital part of the PNG work and thus is something that should not be allowed to cease. Being here and involved with all other aspects of the PNG work has hindered my goals to translate more material into Pidgin English. Including a set of commentaries on NT books. I also feel that we are not utilizing to the fullest the printed page if we limit it to just PNG. As my heart prayed for guidance and my eyes looked I believe the Lord is showing us a new approach. It is true that PNG has not been evangelized yet but the plan can be adapted to a far more reaching effect.
We are looking to a move to TAURANGA, NEW ZEALAND. We feel that a door is being opened thru which we will be able to involve the printing work in all the OCEANIA region for the Gospel of Christ.
TAURANGA, NEW ZEALAND
Many factors are directing us into this area: (1) many of the reasons for the
departure of missionary personnel from PNG are not present in New Zealand, (NZ
has affordable air travel, low crime, good schooling and the cost of living
is reasonable); (2) New Zealand is the hub of air travel which services the
whole Oceania region; (3) an English Bible school currently exists in Tauranga.
They have thought for years of using the school and the printed page as the
means of reaching out into all of Oceania; (4) funds, equipment and personnel
have not been available to initiate this printing work need.; (5) The Tauranga
congregation is the strongest congregation in NZ. They are self-supporting and
have no desire for missionaries to come in and run their congregation.
This would free me from my current situation where I am a spiritual mentor for 25 hours a day. This has resulted in my not having done any additional work on the Pidgin commentaries of NT books.; (6) The NZ Bible school is beginning a new phase in January 1986 with the enrollment of students from Fiji.
The operation and maintenance of the printing work in PNG has always been expensive. This is due to the fact that all materials and parts have to be imported from overseas. A lot of these supplies come from New Zealand. Thus a move to the source would produce a reduction in operating costs. This would then allow us to be able to afford shipment of materials throughout the Oceania region. As there are more Pidgin-English speaking in the region we would be able to provide service to a wider area of people. We would also be able to print more basic English material which could be used throughout the whole region.
My initial thoughts are:
1) The shifting of all printing equipment to New Zealand.
2) Coordination in the Oceania region with all present and intending missionary
personnel.
3) Working with these brethren in the placing of ads in all local newspapers
for BCC lessons available thru Tauranga. (find those who are searching)
4) Follow-up contact with students of the BCC courses.
5) Traveling to areas where receptivity shows promise with a follow-up campaign
and/or Bible Training courses.
6) In time the training of nationals from all the various island nations either
at the Tauranga school or their own islands.
OUR PLANS: Lord willing
* Sometime during the second week of July we return to the states. We will
be sending a sea container and car on to New Zealand to await our arrival in
NZ.
* July 85-January 86 reporting to congregations on our intending move and reasons
of such a move.
* The raising of additional support to assist in the Oceania Outreach program.
* January 1986- returning to Tauranga, New Zealand to enroll the kids in school
and set up house keeping and the printshop.
Until next month,
Your servants for the cross.the Huffs
P.S. Feel free to write and tell us what you think of these developments.