Saturday the 14th we will be celebrating John’s birthday but we will also be celebrating our 1 year anniversary for living here in Ukarumpa, PNG! there have been so many ups and downs and God has again and again shown His faithfulness and goodness to us here (more details on that in the June update). PNG is home now, and we look forward to really settling in this next year to come.
One way we are are hoping will help with this settling process is to buy a house here. We have been in constant transition this past year, and we feel that putting down some roots here will be a healthy choice to help our family continue to not just survive but thrive. Good housing options are very limited, but we have recently come across one that may be a good fit for our family. We contacted the seller this week about purchasing it, and now we are waiting to see if we might be blessed with it or not.
Please pray for us as we wait! Pray that if this is God’s will for our family we would get a quick reply… waiting is the pitts :) Please pray that we have wisdom and discernment as we move forward with financial decisions. Pray that we keep our eyes focused on Christ and His work here with the people of Papua New Guinea. Even though this house will cost a mere fraction of a house in America, it still feels excessive at times relative to the community around us. The truth that we've seen though is that life here is hard enough, and that a low maintenance living situation translates into longevity on the mission field. We feel the tension of cultural standards constantly. I hope that we always do, and that the Holy Spirit uses that to keep us in check. Please pray we will be glorifying to Him in our hearts, words, and actions in the community He has chosen to send us to.
In other news, John is starting yet another role this week as Maintenance Section Head within his department as another friend and colleague goes on furlough. This role pretty much entails taking care of everything that's not a building in Ukarumpa and is the largest section within CAM (Construction and Maintenance). On top of that, he just joined the fire response team as well. Please pray for wisdom and perseverance as he learns lots of new things to support Bible translation work here.
Thank you for your focused prayers this month! We will keep you updated as we hear.
Blessings,
John and Kristi Craig
PS please write us back, we love praying for you too!