Thank you to all of you who continue to pray for Papua New Guinea and for our work and life here. The past couple weeks have probably been the hardest for me (John) since we have been here. Today I am going to bury a friend and coworker, Delbert Yuta. Delbert worked in the CAM department as a Joinery carpenter as long as I have been here, although I think that he started not long before we came. He was 23 years old, and had already shown himself to be a spiritual leader. He led the other Joinery guys in prayer every morning and the joy he had in the Lord beamed through the smile that he always had for whomever he greeted. His smile was contagious. I’m honored that God gave me the opportunity to be his manager for a period and to work alongside him many times. Delbert gave his life to protect his father—his actions saved his father’s life.
Please pray for Delbert’s wife and young daughter. Please pray for his mother and his father, Yuta, who still has serious injuries that are healing but in danger of infection. Please pray for their community in Onamuna where the church is strong and the spiritual warfare is frequent and sometimes fatal.
Please also pray for Lemeck and his wife. He is another close friend and CAM coworker that lives in the Onamuna community. Lemeck and Delbert grew up together and were close friends. Delbert’s death comes on the heels of Lemeck losing his second child in less than 2 years. Please pray that the Lord will comfort them and uphold them in the midst of this agonizing grief.
Please pray for us as we walk through these times with our PNG friends. Death seems to be more frequent here, or at least more present in everyday life; it can really weigh you down at times. Pray for God’s grace and love to guide our way through the brokenness of this world, and that He will give us the right words when we need them or the wisdom to sit silently. Thanks for praying with us through the hard times as well as the joyous times.
We look forward to seeing you in America this Winter!
John, Kristi, Nori, Banner, and Millie
Obert, Delbert, and Brendon at the Joinery together earlier this year.