December'98-February 1999

Dear Brethren and Friends;

Greetings and Peace in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

A couple of you noticed that the inside of the last newsletter was upside down. The rest of you thought that was intentional. Not really, just me putting the plate on the printing press backwards.

TRIP TO NEW ZEALAND & FIJI

As we closed the last newsletter we were headed to New Zealand and Fiji. We were in New Zealand for 10 days. I was able to get some much needed supplies and parts for the truck and the printing presses. We were there at Otumoetai during the graduation of South Pacific Bible College. It was an opportunity to visit with a lot of the friends we knew from living there before. Even though it was officially summer, it was still cool. From Auckland NZ we flew to Nadi Fiji on Dec 9th. I had air freighted a number of boxes of Bible material and song books before we left Port Vila to Fiji. It took me a couple of hours to clear the boxes from customs. I had to wait for Customs to come back from lunch first then I shuffled between 8 different offices before they finally released the boxes. (And after I paid the $150 storage fee.) The youth camp we were scheduled to teach at was in Lautoka but as you get on the road out of the airport there was a new building called "CostULess". You guessed it. An American came over and started this bulk store. Kathy and I made the mistake of going in. (Space does not exist to tell of all the items he had which we drooled over.) We talked with the manager about the possibility of getting some of it send over to Port Vila. He was supposed to come over for "a spy of the land" in January. (He hasn't come yet.)

YOUTH CAMP AT LAUTOKA FIJI

We finally made it on down the road to Lautoka and the youth camp for the weekend of Dec 11-13. The day prior to the camp Josua and I put together the Fiji/English Song books I had photocopied and send over. Josua & his wife Anna work with the youth at Lautoka. There were 93 of us present from all over Fiji. A group came from SavuSavu on the other island. Eli Fong and Jerry Soko came from Suva with herds of youths. Kathy taught the girls class and I taught the boys classes, the Sunday Bible class and preached. Eli, Josua and Jerry also spoke at the camp. On Saturday afternoon all of us went to the beach for a picnic lunch and swim. After Sunday services and lunch the Suva groups and the SavuSavu group boarded their bus back home. On Monday, Kathy and I drove to Suva and spoke at the Nasari group on Weds night and Sunday morning. Sunday evening I spoke at Raiwaqa. I was able to visit with the South Pacific Bible Society who had printed the Bislama Bible for Vanuatu. We were scheduled to return to Vanuatu Dec 23rd but one of the planes that Air Vanuatu flies was broken down again and we were delayed and did not arrive back home in Port Vila until 4 am Christmas Morning. (The last two days of our trip were at Air Vanuatu expense.)

VANUATU FAMILY LEFT FOR BIBLE TRAINING

IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA

January saw the departure of the first overseas family to attend Melanesian Bible College in Lae, PNG. Shem, Rose and Jona Gabriel left Vanuatu to attend classes for the next two years at MBC. They will be missed by the brethren here because Shem was one of the leaders and preachers here in the Port Vila church. But prayerfully this training will give them the teaching to be the strong leaders the church here will need in the future. Up to this point in time students have only had the option of going to New Zealand for training. Many of the brethren here are not capable of such advanced studies with English as the medium so it is good that the Pidgin school is available in PNG. While we were in Fiji, discussions were advanced for a simple English school of Biblical Studies in Fiji at a future date.

STORMY WEATHER IN PARADISE

January and February have been very stormy months for us here. The 19th of January we had a severe earthquake which rattled everything. Then a day later Cyclone Dani roared thru the Northern islands of Vanuatu and west of the island of Efate where we live. We experienced 90 knot gusts with sustained winds of 65-75 knots for three days. We received over 22 inches of rain. There was major damaged to the papaya trees and banana trees throughout the islands. Two bridges were washed out on our island isolating the town of Port Vila. The day after Dani blew thru the government declared a "clean-up" holiday.

In February we had cyclone Ellah slide by with very little damage but our weather has been squally and unsettled. So far in February we have received over 646 mm (26") of rain.

TRIP TO ESPIRITU SANTO ISLAND

Late last year we received a letter asking if it would be possible for us to make a trip to one of the other islands here in Vanuatu to check up on some people who had been baptized in 1997 by a group of visiting American workers. I made a trip to the island of Espiritu Santo went with Sombo Dowara (PNG evangelist), Morris Felix (Ni-Vanuatu brother from Eton village) and Chuck Lock (visiting Canadian student). The week on Santo was very rewarding. We were able to meet and talk with some of the Christians, they are very spiritually malnourished. Others have moved back to their villages on other islands, some have fallen away. There are some church groups in Luganville who are in the midst of a restoration movement. We have been asked by members of several of these groups to come and help them in their movement back to Bible principles. I don't know when but am looking at a week in May. One of the brothers, Tom Simeon Smith, just started a new vocational school and has asked for me to consider coming there when we return in 2000 to serve as the Religious Instruction Coordinator. He wants daily religious courses taught. Major problem: it is in the bush and they have no power or running water not to mention no housing at the present time for staff. (He assured me those are minor problems which time will correct.) We were delayed getting back to Port Vila for 24 hours due to winds from cyclone Ellah.

CLASSES AND TEACHING

I have been teaching the brethren 'Denominational Doctrines" on Weds nights and in February I started a bi-monthly newspaper column which warns people about the various cults which operate here (JW, Mormon, 7-Day, etc). We received excellent response from the first article on "What Cults Are" and I had to hurry to finish up the tracts we advertised for people to write in for. Then two weeks later the article was titled: "Mormons: An UnChristian Cult". The editor initially did not want to print it because he was afraid of being sued by the Mormons (who have just come in here big time). I had to first show him all the quotes of theirs I was using and that Biblically they were wrong. I also had to provide a letter releasing him from any liability. (Jail ministry in my future????)

Kathy and I go out to Eton village on Tuesdays where she teaches the Ladies' Class and I talk with the men. My Sunday night class just finished "OT Survey" and we are starting on "The Plan of God". All of these classes are taught in Bislama and I am having to translate all my former class notes into Bislama. I have been able to complete the Bislama/English w/notes songbook and we are really getting into the groove of singing the songs in Bislama now.

We wish to thank all of you for your prayers and financial support which allows us to work here in the Lord's vineyard. We are busy grounding the brethren and planting the seed with anticipation of a future harvest for the kingdom of God. May God continue to richly bless all you do for His work.

In Christian service.

Tobey & Kathy Huff