email <dthuff@joplin.com>

Isaiah said, "And all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God." (52:10b) It stirs our souls deeply to realize after two thousand years there are still people and places where Christ has not been taught. THIS SHOULD NOT BE! The witness of the apostles is to be "unto the uttermost parts of the earth." We want to continue to do something for our Lord in the most remote parts of the earth. We want to return and work where no one else has gone and where the Word of God has not been proclaimed. We want to train and ground our brethren scattered throughout Oceania. This can be done through schools and printed literature. Throughout the Oceania region of the South Pacific there are isolated pockets of Christians who were baptized as a result of studies through Bible Correspondence programs. At present there are no full-time missionaries living and working on many of Oceania's numerous islands. These brethren also need our help.

September 2011

INTRODUCING THE HUFF FAMILY Family Picture

The immediate Huff family consists of Tobey (63), Kathy (62), Terasa (41) and Jason (39). Both Terasa and Jason are married and live in the United States. Picture Terasa (Davis) and her husband Chris have six children ranging from 14 to 2 years old, Regan, Harrison, Jackson, Taylor, Truman and McKinley. They live in Coker Alabama. Terasa has her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology and is the Director of a Section in a local state hospital. Chris is a "stay at home Dad". Picture Jason and his wife Melinda both graduated from Harding University and now live in Joplin MO. They worked in Superior Wisconsin to help establish a new congregation there before moving to Joplin. They have two children, Jonah (8 yrs) and Morgan (6). Melinda teaches at NEO in Miami, Oklahoma and Jason works at Leggett & Platt as Senior Network Analyst - Information Technology.

Tobey dropped out of college in 1966 to join the Air Force and saw action in Vietnam and duty in Okinawa. While on Okinawa Tobey obeyed the gospel (May 1970). After his discharge from the USAF Tobey attended Sunset School of Preaching and both he and Kathy attended Sunset School of Missions graduating in 1974. Kathy obeyed the gospel in her youth in Joplin Mo. where her father later served as an elder until his death in 1992. Both Terasa and Jason obeyed the gospel while they were living in Papua New Guinea.

The Huffs arrived in Papua New Guinea in 1975 and worked there until July 1985 except for brief furloughs. During the early years in PNG the Huffs were heavily involved with the establishment of new congregations in hitherto unevangelized areas of PNG. In 1979 Tobey began to involve himself more in the printed page. This included the writing of commentaries, a Topical Index and the translating of tracts and booklets in Pidgin English (the trade language of 90% of PNG). When John Wallace left Papua New Guinea in 1982 Tobey accepted the responsibility of the printing presses. By July 1985 over 5 million pieces of literature had been printed for the PNG work. This was represented by: 42 different books, 6 BCC courses, 45 tracts and 400 different Bible lessons.

After 10.5 years in Papua New Guinea the Huffs made the decision to leave due to various factors. After much prayer an open door was seen in New Zealand. This move allowed the continuance of the printing work for PNG as well as an expansion of the printed page throughout the South Pacific.

Due to the fall off of personal support when the Huffs moved to New Zealand Tobey established a commercial printshop which helped supply personal support.

While in New Zealand Tobey printed a lot of the materials used by the WBS and the WWBS correspondence programs in Fiji, New Zealand, PNG, Cook Islands, Vanuatu, Tonga and Australia. Over 6 million pieces of literature were printed. The Huffs were not only involved with the World Bible School Program but helped with follow-up of WBS in the islands and help coordinate and conduct Leadership Training Schools throughout the Oceania region.

After Terasa and Jason graduated from High school left New Zealand for higher education and returned to the States, Tobey and Kathy sought for some time to return to a more active role in the Oceania work. After many months of prayer, in 1994 the Huffs were able to sell the commercial printshop they owned in New Zealand. The personal support that the business was providing was given up, but they knew that GOD IS ABLE and He would provide.

In January 1995 Tobey & Kathy loaded all that was left and moved back to Papua New Guinea. The Huffs were able to keep some of the printing equipment and were using it as the need arose. The move back to PNG was as a result of discussions with the Highland St church of Christ (Memphis TN) missions ministry who support the Melanesian Bible College in Lae. There was a need that Tobey and Kathy felt they could help meet of upgarding the curriculum. Before settling into the PNG work Tobey & Kathy spent 6 weeks in Vanuatu working with the brethren there on the island of Efate. The Huffs first started working in Vanuatu in 1990 and made trips periodically to assist the brethren in their spiritual growth. They were also instrumental in finding personnel in Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea who have trained in New Zealand at the South Pacific Bible College.

More leadership training was and is critical at this time because of the diminishing number of full-time missionary families as well as less of a need for full-time missionary families living within cultures of the South Pacific. It is good to see the receptivity of the Island people and the development and maturity of leadership in some of the island churches.

The Huffs were instrumental in the scheduling of schools in Vanuatu, Solomon Islands and other Oceania Islands as requested. The Huffs are planning ways whereby PNG, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and Fiji can coordinate their various works for better coordination of training and grounding. This will include sending Melanesian Bible College (PNG) students for their practical year as well as graduates to assist needing congregations.

From 1995-1998 Tobey was involved in helping MBC (PNG) establish a more extensive Pidgin English side of Bible training as well as teach some night courses in English.

In 1997 Tobey completed the requirements and was awarded School of Ministry - Masters in Missions and his Doctorate of Religious Education from The Theological University of America. Hopefully this will open doors to be able to teach in the University of Papua New Guinea and/or the University of South Pacific in Vanuatu and Fiji.

In June 1998 with the Melanesian Bible School established in the hands of a national board and national teachers, Tobey & Kathy moved to Vanuatu. They settled in the capital city of Port Vila.

"We came to Vanuatu on the invitation of the local brethren with the following job description": (the bottom line is to help the brethren grow in the knowledge and love of the Lord)

(1) To conduct Leadership Training Courses in the local language of Bislama in Port Vila and several of the other islands where small bands of Christians exist .

(2) To conduct Specialty Bible Courses throughout Vanuatu and the South Pacific region as required and requested.

(3) To continue writing Bible teaching materials in the local language (Bislama) for the training of Bible school teachers in the local congregations.

(4) The continuation of the compilation of hymn books with notes in Pidgin/English, Bislama/English and Fijian/English.

(5) The writing and printing of additional tracts and Bible material for Vanuatu, Fiji and Papua New Guinea.

(6) To continue to write and print materials in Basic English in order to start a Bible Training Program by correspondence ("Christian Institute of Biblical Studies" for those Christians in isolated areas who wish to further their Bible knowledge but have no means or opportunity to do so in a formal Bible School setting.

(7) To be available to the Fiji brethren as they begin planning to establish their own local Bible Training School in the near future. To help in the teaching of such a school as requested.

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The more time I spend in mission work the more I realize it is a maintenance type work which takes 24 hours a day and not a bi-yearly birthing process. I feel sorry for people who do not live with the people they are baptising. They do not share the problems and stuggles and see what these brethren go through in their daily lives to just sometimes survive. It is easy to come teach and immerse - far harder to convert!

Kathy and I continue to see this work in the South Pacific as a long term maintenance work which has been hurt to a big degree by the baptising of scores of people who were never intergreted into the fellowship of the body of believers here. Evangelism needs to be tempered with 24 hour fellowship."

From August 1999-May 2000 Tobey served as "Visiting Professor of Missions" at Harding University. This gave time to share the needs and challanges of the Oceania region of the world with brethren.

The Huffs arrived back in Vanuatu June 2000 but left and returned to the USA in September 2001 due in part to the fact that the Port Vila brethren were ready to stand on their own, the Fiji school was not ready to start up and the Huffs were in need of medical attention. Upon their return to the USA Tobey started a custom cabinet business with a family brother, Kathy was a bank teller and their health improved.

Tobey and Kathy felt that the time was ready for the proposed "The Christian Institute of Biblical Studies" and made a trip to Fiji in 2005 to ascertain this. They also were invited to Vanuatu to share some Biblical studies with the brethren there as well as Tobey being invited to the Melanesian Bible School in Lae, Papua New Guinea to address the students and facility where he previously taught.

The Mt Hope church of Christ in Joplin Mo was the Huff's home congregation since their return in 2001 and Tobey was very active in the teaching of adult classes. Mt Hope agreed to serve as sponsors of their work.

"The Christian Institute of Biblical Studies" as proposed is to be located near Lautoka, Fiji and we are seeking to secure funds which would enable us to take a more active role in the mission work there.

The Huffs arrived back in Fiji on June 1st 2007 and settled in the town of Lautoka. They have an initial three year visa from the government. The first few months was a time of settling in and ascertaining the immediate needs in regard to the establishment of "The Christian Institute of Biblical Studies".

March 2010 the Huffs were given a renewal of three years on their visas. In the past three years an extension program of studies for "The Christian Institute of Biblical Studies" had been put into place and support is still needed to establish a located campus for CIBS to help train workers from the Oceania region of the South Pacific. The extention program has over 80 students, mostly non-Christian, taking a variety of courses.

In August 2011 Tobey & Kathy moved back to Vanuatu at the invitation of the local brethren. In March when we visited Vanuatu on a teaching trip (they had asked me to come teach a special topic) we were told that they would be willing to donate land for the establishment of a Bible School if we wanted to build it there. Stephen Felix has donated 26 acres of land to the Bible School out by Eton village, they say they will support the school (have expressed the idea that they will help plant gardens and even donate garden stuff to the school as needed until we can get crops growing - even fresh fish), there is a strong possibility that I can start a government backed counseling centre in conjunction with the municipal courts (Brother Steve Felix is chief magistrate and he has heard 149 cases of domestic abuse this year and there is no counseling program available to stop the cycle of abuse), there is a possibility of free radio time for a weekly call back for counseling, the great need for technical training: carpentry, small engine repair, sewing, agriculture, etc to help train local unemployed youth in the village. So we are thinking of Bible classes in the mornings with tech classes in the afternoons.

In 2000 we had evaluated the pluses and minuses of Fiji vs Vanuatu and decided that Fiji was more centrally located, we had established congregations there with many men who had trained in New Zealand at SPBC, the cost of living was cheaper, etc. It is now 2011 and some of these factors still remain but as we did not receive much support from the local brethren in Fiji in the achievement of a located school nor did they availed themselves to specialized classes that to me they need very much. Just because it is cheaper to live there does not mean it is the best place to be. My way of teaching is not to force myself and tell them what I know they need but to try to get them to see what they need and then to have them ask if we can help with our teaching toward that need. We told them what we have to offer - showed them we were here to help - they have not asked - we do not push! After all, ultimately it is their country and their work!

We want to be somewhere we can help a local work but not to have the brethren depend on me to be the only teacher and only worker. But we also want to be available to other brethren to help them in their kingdom growth whether it be in that country or other island nations. With this in mind we have located back to Vanuatu. 

Dr Tobey Huff

1975-2011