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Vanuatu (Torba) Project
 
Update February 25th 2008
 
Winds of Change in Vanuatu
 
 
            "Even the winds...obey Him."           
Matthew 8:27
 
 
Greetings again from Remote Northern Vanuatu!
 
Winds of Change
We live in a rapidly changing world. Things are changing for us too, in Torba Province. The winds of social change are rapidly spreading to every part of planet earth, including its most remote corners. And as the momentum of these winds of change gather, there's only one thing that we are all absolutely certain about-that the future is increasingly uncertain. These changes are changing the way missionaries do their work. Vanuatu's population and economy is growing rapidly. On our remote island of Gaua, Northern Vanuatu, as in many islands of Vanuatu, we have seen some big social changes taking place since our arrival two years ago:
Break up the Fallow Ground
Mostly these changes are not favorable, as you can see. But there seems to be no turning back. We have no choice but to adapt to them and address the reality that we live in a rapidly changing world. However, we can see that these social changes are also allowing the Lord to work.
 
"Break up your fallow ground:
for it is time to seek the LORD, till He come..."
Hosea 10:12
 
We feel certain that God is allowing these winds of social change to bring about changes for the rapid progress of His work on the earth. He plans that the fallow ground of religious, cultural and social orthodoxy shall be broken up, to prepare the way for the last message of warning to go to the world, before Jesus comes. Torba Province, in remote northern Vanuatu, is no exception. The extremely strong customs and practices of the local people are being challenged on almost every side. It seems inevitable that the people will develop a more global perspective and that liberalism and pluralism will come in. We are watching this from the inside. But it is possible and probable that this is the only way that God can give the people a chance to hear His truth and experience the privilege of worshiping Him according to the dictates of conscience.
 
Religious Freedom exists in principle but not in practice in Torba Province, but it seems clear that the Lord is about to change all that.
 
School Launched
Since our last update, the Lord has been at work for the progress of His work in Torba. Its great to be on the winning side! We now have an excellent potential site for an SDA school building for Matavanga, Gaua. The school has already begun-now in its first month of operation, using the old church building which will be adequate for a short time. But we think that a fly and build team from Queensland Australia may assist in the building of a school towards the end of this year or early 2009. If you are interested, please contact us about this. The land needs to be purchased first-another small financial obstacle. But God will provide. Our sabbath school is evidence that the future of our school is very promising. We are now concentrating on leadership training of members and youth to hold responsibilities, as the numbers are destined to grow both in the church and in the new school.
 
Branches Continue to Grow
Amidst the winds of change, God's work is like a plant with many branches, growing slowly but never standing still. Its exciting to see different branches growing separately from each other and yet in unison, in spite of difficulties and trials. Recent victories have been:
  • Graduation of our health educator students, most of whom are going on to become nurses, aidpost workers, teachers or similar
  • Production of an excellent Bislama tract on the Sabbath
  • Financial support for multiple Bible study charts for ministers and pastors in Vanuatu (funding came through the South Queensland Conference of SDAs, Brisbane)
  • DVD library-a great success-our SDA DVDs are falling into the hands of the least expected viewers!
  • Acquisition of a new HIV-AIDS video which will be used to help with AIDS awareness programs
  • Recent arrival of a new ADRA leader in Port Vila, who may be able to help out with a water supply project in Torba at some stage in the future.
Hurricane Funa goes through the Living Room
Since our last update, time has slipped through our fingers. You may have wondered if we fell down a hole and disappeared or something?! But No, we're still here in Vanuatu, and the Lord is still blessing! One of the reasons we have been a bit set back was Cyclone Funa-only a category 1 cyclone, they say, but it did some serious damage to our area. It didnt affect any heavily populated areas like Santo, which is why it received very little publicity. But it hit us pretty hard on the northern edge of Gaua Island, as well as some other areas of Banks Islands. You can read more about that very exciting and demanding experience in Naomi's section below. The cyclone literally went through our home! To my amazement, it didnt thrash our boats on the rocks-to me that was a real miracle. How that happened I cannot explain-I cannot but believe that God sent angels to hold the ropes and anchors. Both boats should have been totally destroyed by such strong winds. I would estimate that thousands of trees were felled by the hurricane, including some really big ones. Many homes were destroyed, and even one cement building collapsed. Gardens everywhere were stripped of foliage leaving fruits and vegetables destroyed. The natangora leaf trees (used for roofing) were largely destroyed. But evidence abounded that God was protecting. Noone was killed, although two cows were killed, and one woman had a very close shave with a tree falling. The tree to which our radio antenna was attached went down, but it didnt break the cable. Our satellite dish went rolling down the hill, but remained relatively unscathed. Because we spent the night of the hurricane packing our possessions in plastic containers, we were surprised to realize afterwards how little damage it had done to most of our personal possessions (including sensitive electronics). The well built SDA church stood its ground well, despite being in one of the worst affected areas. It took days to clear the road again. (Only one road on Gaua!) The cleanup and recovery period lasted about a month, and we were relocating at the same time. Looking back, I would say that it was one of the most physically demanding experiences of my entire life-a blur of activity to get our lives back under control! But at last, things have slowed down, and we almost have time to think again!
 
Thanks Lord for the calm after the storm!
 
Providential Delays
Some are aware of the new aircraft that was recently donated towards our project, and are interested to know what progress is being made for its arrival and use in Vanuatu. Our director, Jeff Reich, and I, (we're always in touch by email via satellite phone) were wondering why the Lord was delaying the arrival of this plane which was initially expected to arrive in Vanuatu about 2 or 3 months ago. But now we know why the plane was not to come before mid January. That hurricane totally devasted the area where we were planning to park the aircraft, while working on a small hangar for protection. The Lord knew we would not have built the hangar in time!
 
Fresh Winds hit Freshwind
A few months ago we decided on a location adjacent to the airstrip in Gaua where we would build a small hangar and homebase. This area is also close to deep water, which would facilitate good transport by boat. Its also central for the population, close to the Matavanga SDA church and school, and a great launching pad to reach other islands in Torba. We have just been given this small piece of land, and decided to call it "Freshwind", a name which I will also use as a radio call-sign when contacting other islands/clinics using our HF radio. After clearing trees there, we met with seemingly unexplainable delays in making progress with our plans. It seemed like everyone and everything who was in any way involved in what we were doing had lead balls attached to their feet! Building plans, budget plans, financial support, and physical preparations were all slowed down to a grinding standstill. We could not understand why our plans to go ahead with things wouldnt materialize-that is, until Cyclone Funa hit us. Hurricanes can approach from any direction, and in this case the wind hit us out of the north-west. Of all places in Torba Province, the northern edge of Gaua, including Freshwind, was most severely hit. Then we realized that the Lord was in the delay. More than 50% of the trees came down at Freshwind. This is a picture of the area adjacent to the land we had cleared:
 
EVIDENCE OF DIVINE PROTECTION & A REASON FOR DIVINE DELAY...
Trees which fell during Cyclone Funa adjacent to where we would have parked the new aircraft!
 
 
The Maule has Landed
Just think about it-imagine how the plane would have looked after Cyclone Funa, before we would have had the time to build a hangar! I believe that God delayed its arrival for very good reasons. Those who have watched the video of how God miraculously protected the Maule from a desert wind-storm in Arizona will be surprised to know that the Lord performed a similar act of divine protection here in Vanuatu. Providential delay protected the Maule from another Satanic attack on its mission. But finally the aircraft has arrived-the Maule has landed on Vanuatu soil. It was a big moment when the ship Southern Pasifika finally arrived in Port Vila, Vanuatu. Along with 117 other containers, the ship delivered the Maule, all the way from California, carefully packed in a 40 foot container with the wings removed. [Incidentally, that ship also narrowly missed Cylone Gene, another hurricane which lingered in the area between Vanuatu and New Zealand only days before the Southern Pasifika passed through!] At the time of writing, I am now in Port Vila making preparations for the arrival of the "Wing Assembly Team"-Jeff Reich, Director of Laymen Ministries, cameraman Glenn Woiler (who will be shooting video) and Maule expert Jeremy Aimsworth, who will, together with myself and some aircraft engineers/mechanics, put the wings back on the plane and adjust the compass for its new location in the southern hemisphere. That should take place later this week, and we are now making good progress with paperwork and registration. (Jeff and Glenn are also en route to visit the Phillipines project!)
 
A Bush Plane? What's that?!
The arrival of this strange looking orange beast called a "bush plane" has captured the imagination of many in Port Vila. Right now it is still in the container awaiting removal for replacement of the wings, which will happen soon. A "man bush" is a term used here to describe a non-civilized man who lives a very primitive life in a remote place. So when people here hear about this "bush plane" they are amazed and intensely interested in checking it out! The big bush tires (Australian spelling: tyres) and fancy avionics have also caught the attention of the aircraft mechanics and pilots in the area. And those who have seen the "Miracle Maule" and/or heard the testimonies of how God miraculously preserved this aircraft are amazed and awed at what God has done. (Order your free copy of the "Miracle Maule DVD" from lmbookstore@hughes.net). This Maule is certainly the talk of the town, at least in some circles! I have even been approached by the editor of Vanuatu's Daily News and a producer from Vanuatu Television about publicity of the Maule.
 
Angel Prepares the Way
One serious obstacle to operation of an aircraft in a place like Vanuatu (or in fact, anywhere) is overcoming the red tape and officialdom involved. At the beginning, it seemed like a very formidable problem. But we have been very pleasantly surprised how all the paperwork has come together. For example, we were given import tax exemption, saving us about US$22,000! (...which we couldnt have paid because we didnt have it!) Also, when I first researched into the matter, it appeared that establishing a maintenance program for the plane was going to be quite difficult. Engineers are not superabundant in the Pacific islands. Everyone I approached initially seemed too busy, or they had an agenda that was contrary to our needs or an unhelpful attitude. But it seems that all the key people involved in these matters have been somehow changed, and now have a desire to help out. Extraordinarily so! Almost everyone I have approached regarding certification, registration, maintenance, pilots, engineers, government officials and so on, have been positive and helpful-strikingly supportive. It makes me think that in answer to all the prayers we presented about these matters, the Lord has opened a door for us by sending an angel ahead of us to prepare the way.
 
"Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way,
and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared."
Exodus 23:20
 
Maule on a Mission: A Means of Rapid Travel
As we approach the anticipated blessing of being able get around much easier between islands, our mission focus is also adapting to the opening doors all around us. Up to now, we have been operating mostly on Gaua with occasional visits to other islands. But as means of more 'rapid travel' become available, we expect to be able to work in a wider sphere and reach more islands. Our focus is still Torba Province, but now it will include all the islands of Torba; not just Gaua. In particular, we are hoping to spend more time visiting Torres. This is a change we have looked forward to eagerly, and now the time has at last come...
 
"[God] has caused that the means of rapid traveling shall have been invented,
for the great day of His preparation."
Special Testimonies on Education, 1897, Page 7
 
Excellent Time to Launch a small Medical Aviation Project
Our missionary aviation program is very small. Because it is a non-commercial operation using a small, easily maintained aircraft, we expect that our overheads will be a fraction of what most mission aviation programs are. Missionary aviation programs generally involve full time professional/commercial pilots, larger aircraft (a favorite is the 6 seater Cessna 206-a MUCH more expensive machine to operate) and huge operating budget. But though our humble aviation project is small, I believe that it is well timed. Many evidences show that God is working to open up the opportunities for our project to reach the unreached. For example, I was recently approached by a chief from a very remote island who may help us. He came to see me about his grand-daughter who was suffering from a serious illness. While I was treating his grandchild, he became acquainted about the soon-to-arrive aircraft, and he expressed his eager willingness to organize the local people on his island to build a small airstrip in order to open up access for our Maule aircraft and the medical care we would be able to provide. Others have shown similar interest in helping to develop airstrips in remote areas. I have also received personal calls by teleradio from the remote Torres group, saying:
 
"Come over...and help us."
Acts 16:9
...That is a call I cannot ignore while blood still runs through my veins!...
 
Winds of Change in Medical Care
Up to now patients have approached us at any time, any place, looking for help, as you would expect. Recent cases included a coconut falling on a small boy's head, penetrating the skull; a fishhook in someone's finger; a head injury from a falling tree limb, lipoma excisions, granuloma excisions, lacerations of multiple descriptions and the like. One recent fight between two villages resulted in a fractured radius and an unconscious woman. Another case was a stillborn. Lots of teeth-pulling too. That and lots of malaria, the biggest killer on planet earth-which requires administration chloroquine. (How I wish we could get hold of artusenate for all these malaria cases-the world's new malaria wonder-drug, which is derived from the chinese herb Artemesia Annua.) But up to now we have been finding it increasingly difficult to get away from Gaua as the people have become increasingly attached to us and to our medical care. The aircraft will hopefully change the way we provide medical care. Not that we dont want to serve the people of Gaua-of course, we will continue to do so, but we feel that God has also called us to help equally needy areas all over Torba. Transportation has been and still is our biggest obstacle, but we anticipate that the plane will certainly help a lot, especially as we can develope short airstrips in some remote areas. Although we also anticipate more boat travel between islands, the plane will enable us to do some of that travelling between islands, more safely and more comfortably. We will also be less dependent on copra ships for shipment of goods from Santo, which can be very unreliable.  For example, in January we received a drum of fuel which we ordered and paid for in August last year-6 months earlier! We now anticipate being able to transport urgently needed supplies more rapidly and reliably, which will hopefully make our work much more effective and efficient-thats our sincere hope and prayer!
 
Our Prayer for a Cyclone Proof Shelter
Gaua Island, like every island in Vanuatu, is part of the Pacific Rim's Ring of Fire. There is an active volcano in the middle of the island, which has the potential to erupt at any time. We often experience small earthquakes, but who knows when the next big one will come? That makes a tsunami a possibility also! And of course cyclones are born in this kind of tropical environment, which is a massive circulating air mass, so can strike from any direction. So we have to take all this into consideration as we plan for the the future. As explained above, Cyclone Funa levelled many trees on the ground at Freshwind, where we hoped to build a hangar. The Lord overruled so that we were unable to make a beginning on that building project until the hurricane had past. (Thanks Lord for helping to clear the area too!) But we still have a need of a strong hurricane proof hangar or shelter! We are now looking at building a very solid stone wall at Freshwind, especially on the side(s) most exposed to the wind. There are thousands upon thousands of stones there, which will enable us to build a stone wall with relatively little expense or effort. And the result should be good protection, combined with practical access to airstrip and ocean for transportation. (In case you are wondering, hurricanes only hit once in a long while-they are not a frequent occurence-not even an annual occurrence here-at least it would be unusual if it hit the exactly the same part of Vanuatu two years running!) We are praying that God will give us wisdom to deal with this situation. Currently we are temporarily located in a small home close to Freshwind, and the land at Freshwind is still the most suitable land available to us for the hangar. Recently, at our request to the land owner, that land was made available to the SDA Mission, which means that we can now go ahead with establishing, hopefully, a small but disaster proof building or shelter to protect the aircraft that the Lord has graciously provided. The plan at this stage is to involve a stone wall in this project to provide additional protection and strength.
 
Use What You've Got
I never thought I would become a builder-I have never had much interest in it up to now. I always thought that the building projects connected with our work would be handled by someone else. But as they say, necessity is the mother of invention! The urgent need for building skills has been heavily laid on me. And I have had to acknowledge that a missionary needs to use whatever he has at hand:
 
"What is that in thine hand?"
Exodus 4:2
"Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might"
Ecclesiastes 9:10
 
Every effort I have made to get help to design and build recently seemed to be going nowhere-for God's own reasons and timing. The result? God used this trial to get me to make a small beginning in building. Now I am starting to build! My first project was a verandah on the small house we are staying in-urgently required because the rain kept coming in on us due to a faulty design in the building. Using a recently acquired chainsaw mill, I cut the timber from trees that the hurricane felled. Then I looked at other buildings to get an idea as to what needed to be done, and to my surprise, the Lord enabled me to do it! I had some nails and strapping, and purchased some roofing iron. Then I constructed what I would call "a cyclone proof verandah"-I think its pretty strong! That first project has given me courage, and now I am looking forward to milling more timber-next time using some hardwood, and perhaps I will end up building the stone wall at Freshwind, maybe even the hangar or shelter for the aircraft. Who knows? That's the exciting thing about being a missionary. Its a job that demands the developement of every available talent.
 
Call 119 (NOT 911) 3 Times
The last three months have been tough in terms of delay and physical exertion. But that has been edifying to us, and has strengthened us in our mission. Hardships in the work here has taught us many valuable lessons, and now we have identified 3 precious "119" power-quotes, which we now want to leave with you:
    • Steps to Christ Page 119: "Make it a rule never to utter one word of doubt or discouragement."
    • Early Writings Page 119: "If pride and selfishness were laid aside, five minutes would remove most difficulties."
    • Psalm 119:165: "Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them."
Friend, are you struggling along life's pathway? Do you feel the need for something deeper? If so, be sure to call the right numbers... 119, (NOT 911!) and give your life in service for His glory!

A Prayer
"Father, once again we dedicate this entire Laymen Ministries project in Northern Vanuatu to You.
All that is connected with it, including the aircraft, we completely consecrate to You, for Your glory.
Please sanctify all our hopes and aspirations, that all may bring honor and glory only to You!
We thank You for all the amazing things that You have done and are continuing to do,
to demonstrate Your love, to reveal Your light, and to bless Your children.
As we go forward, in spite of obstacles and delays of many descriptions, but with thanksgiving and in faith,
we plead for practical wisdom, for divine protection, and for the token and evidences of Your Holy Spirit within us!
Please send angels who excel in strength to go before us as we launch into the future,
and as we attempt to carry out the gospel commission in these islands.
Give us a desire, not to uplift self, but to humbly and steadfastly uplift the gracious truth and light that You have revealed to us through Jesus!
Please bless abundantly, not because we are anything special at all,
but because You alone are worthy and because the people we are working for are so much in need of Your blessings!
Above all, please do not allow us to go forward without Your divine protection and presence.
All this and much more we now pray, please,
in the precious name of Jesus, and before every angelic witness of Heaven!
Amen."
 
 
A Pause for THANKSGIVING...
 
Again, we want to give thanks to God for His incredible goodness:
How You Can Help With 'Mission Critical' Needs
Mark Turnbull
Laymen Ministries Volunteer,
Vanuatu Mission of Seventh-day Adventists
 
New Beginnings By Naomi
 
At the close of the year we were asked to do a special program in the church to begin the new year.  It was decided that the program would include testimonies of how the Lord had lead in the lives of individuals during the past year.  We also decided to add a harvest thanksgiving flavour to the program too, as the people here in Gaua had never experienced a thanksgiving before.
 
During the weeks leading up to the program I had lots of thoughts about "new beginnings" and started putting them together in a power-point presentation to share on New Year's Eve. When the day came, all the church members came with their harvest of fruits and vegetables, and we decorated the church. It looked beautiful with all the variety of food, plants, flowers etc. We even had candles lit, and as the sun set on the old year, we began our program to welcome in the new year.  It was a lovely program that everyone enjoyed, including many visitors. The only hitch was when the bulb in our data projector decided it had done enough work, and it died right in the middle of my presentation!  Oh well, these things help to develop our characters I guess, so I just had to go on with only the laptop for them to look at. Fortunately for us, the people here are so eager to see anything visual, that they didn't seem to mind looking at such a tiny screen.
 
The Decision to Move
About the middle of January we were also experiencing some "new beginnings" in our home. The time had come to move out of the old bungalow that has been our home for the past two years.  The Lord providentially led us to a house close to the airstrip with a view out over theocean and the area where we had planned to keep the plane.  The house was about 80 percent complete, but then the owner moved away and didn't have time or money to finish if off. He and his family seemed happy for us to move in and do some finishing touches to make it livable. We had to cut the weeds and remove the thick vines etc that were threatening to cover the house. Keeping the jungle at bay is a full-time job here on Gaua island. The soil is so fertile that bush grows almost while you are watching! 
 
Then we had the dreaded job of moving everything by boat up to the new house.  Seeing this is our rainy season, and it's also cyclone season, and trying to get the timing right with the tides, so that we could still get over the reef, was all quite challenging to say the least. We had to carry the stuff from our house down to the boat, a distance of about 200m. Then put the stuff into the boat without it getting wet, then taking it all out again once we got up to the airport, then carry it all up to the new house, another 300m or so. We were extremely thankful for the children in the area who came to help carry all the bits and pieces, and even some of the heavier stuff. We couldn't have managed without their help, and the use of the 4-wheeler. Mark would go in the boat with a group of children and youth from our church, and Kay and I would go on the 4-wheeler (called a small ' truck' here). Kay has become a very experienced quad operator since our move!  She's had to drive over the very rough 'road' so many times in the past month, and has learned what potholes, stones, trees, etc to avoid.
 
The Hurricane Hits-Day 1 of the Cyclone
Part-way through moving we had a cyclone which came unexpectedly. We kept on checking the weather reports from Vila, but it just said strong winds and a tropical disturbance.  There was no cyclone warning at all from Vila, so Mark eventually checked the weather reports from Hawaii, and found out that this was really a cyclone, and we were in the middle of it!  We had gone back to the old house for the night, but couldn't sleep due to the strong winds. We all got up and started packing up the rest of our belongings into plastic drums and plastic containers. We knew we could be in for a very wet night. As the night wore on the winds got stronger and the rain was blowing right through the walls and roof of the thatched house. This type of island house has open windows with over-hanging roof. In most weather conditions that is ok, but with cyclonic winds the rain just gets blown right across the room. We also lost the capping off part of the roof, so rain began to pour in through the roof.  Fortunately by then we had managed to finish our packing and had stacked up everything in one dry corner. We put a big tarpaulin over the top of everything, and made a little place for us to lay down under it too. We tried to get a little sleep just before daylight, but it's hard to relax when you hear trees crashing down and you are wondering how long it will be before the entire roof blows away!
 
Day 2 of the Cyclone
At daylight the wind died down for a little while. Mark put on his motorbike helmet and raingear and went outside to investigate the damage, and most of all to check on the boats. When we realised that we were already in the middle of a cyclone, it was too late to move the boats to a safer anchorage.  All we could do was pray, and that we did every 15 mintues or so during the night in between our packing.  When he got down to the shore he just didn't know what to expect, but there were the two boats just sitting peacefully in the same place we had anchored them the night before!  Thank the Lord for His mighty angels that held onto those boats during the fierce winds that could have dashed them to pieces on the rocks.  We just heard that some people on another island nearby took their fiberglass boat up out of the water before the cyclone came, but they didn't expect a tidal surge, and the boat was hit with a big rock and is now unusable.
 
That morning during one of the breaks in the weather I went down to the clinic to see what damage had been done there. There was no major damage done, but all the bottles of pills, creams and other stuff that was out on the bench was splattered green.  The strong winds had stripped off all the green leaves from the trees and hurled them with great force against the wire mesh in the clinic windows. That worked like a juice extractor and the result was green liquid all over the bench and everything on it.
 
Later in the afternoon we decided we had better get the two boats to a better anchorage, in case the cyclone hadn't finished yet. So we loaded up the fiberglass boat again with the stuff we had packed into the drums. They we towed the catamaran up to a big bay near the airport. It was quite boisterous on the water as we were going up, but as soon as we got inside the bay everything seemed very calm.  After anchoring the boats and getting a few items out of the boat we tried to make our way to the house. The whole landscape looked so different. Coconut trees and breadfruit trees, mangoes, bananas, all down across the road. Also houses and outdoor kitchens blown down and debris everywhere. Fortunately no-one was killed, but there were a couple of cows that got pinned under falling trees. One lady got out of her bed and went to another house just before a large tree fell onto her house and across the bed she had just been lying on.
 
When we got to our new house we were not prepared for what we found next.  The door had been blown in and broken, and all the screen had been blown out. Our clothing, books, plates, mats and everything that was not in plastic, was wet.  Some of the church members had come to check on things for us, as they knew we were not here, and they said that they found stuff that had blown out through the windows into the yard. It was quite a job to sweep out all the water, leaves, sand etc. Then came the task of washing things out and trying to dry out the books and other stuff that had gotten wet.  There was nowhere dry to sleep in the house, so we put down a dry tarpaulin and made up our bed on that. Fortunately we had some dry linen and bedrolls that we could use. Every article of clothing, except one change each for Mark & I, and a few changes for Kay, were wet.  Every time we had to go outside again to do something, we would put on wet clothes, then change back into dry ones again when we came in, as we didn't know when we would get a break in the weather to dry things out. We were so thankful to have a full day of sun on Friday to get things dried out after 3 nights and 2 days of cyclonic weather.
 
After the Cyclone
Mark had to get out the chainsaw to cut all the trees that had fallen across the road between the airport and our former home. It took a full day of cutting, and as he went along the road the children came to see what he was doing. Soon they were all helping to clear the logs and branches off the road all the way down to Keriliu - a distance of about 7km. After clearing the road, we could then drive the 4-wheeler down to the boat to unload it and carry the stuff up to our house.
 
[A special THANKYOU to the kind donors of the chainsaw we are using; it is turning out to be such an essential tool for here!]
 
So, the idea of "new beginnings" had a sudden twist to it that we hadn't planned on. Then began the task of cleaning up and for those whose gardens were destroyed, starting over again. For the next few weeks we ate fruits that had blown down from the trees, until they were not good to eat any more. I discovered that fried green pawpaw (papaya) can taste really good, especially when there's not much else to choose from. Some of the locals told us that we shouldn't eat the fruits that have been blown down because the hurricane put gas inside them!!
 
It was amazing to watch the quick regrowth of the plants here. Some of the bananas that were damaged got cut back and within a week they had grown new shoots about a meter in length. Now is the waiting period for the fruits to develop again. We have had lots of root vegetables and the island cabbage grew back really quickly, but its the fruits we are all waiting for now.
 
Jenny's Fruits of Kindness
One of my friends, Jenny, who is in her late 60's or early 70's, is always bringing us food from her garden. Every week she walks to our house and carries a basket of food for us.  After the cyclone she brought me some fruits, and I was very surprised to see that she still had fruit when everyone else had lost theirs. She said the Lord had protected her garden, and I added that it was because she is always sharing her food with others. She also told me yesterday that because the cyclone 'pruned' the mango trees, they are starting to produce a lot of flowers. She thinks that the next mango season will be a very abundant one, and that is wonderful news to my ears!
 
Many times the Bible mentions that Christians are to be like fruit trees, bringing forth good fruits - love, joy, peace, longsuffering, goodness, gentleness, meekness, faith, temperance, and still bearing even in old age (see Ps.1 and Ps.92:14) But sometimes the tree needs to be pruned before it can really produce a good harvest.  Are you willing to let the Lord do some pruning and help you to experience new growth in your spiritual life?  Why not let Him lead you into a "new beginning" today?
 
Naomi Turnbull
Volunteer
Vanuatu
Kay Helps to Pioneer a School
 
The Need for a School
During our stay here in Gaua we have seen that teaching adults and youth is good but often they are not as faithful as they could be with the knowledge that they receive. We are realizing more and more that the best way to reach the people of Torba is to teach their children. This year I have been involved with teaching children in various ways like Sabbath school, Adventures, school etc. It is so rewarding to see the children learning so much, so fast! In the Primary Sabbath school class I have been trying to get the kids involved as much as possible like saying the prayers, collecting the offering, leading the song service, telling the mission news, and telling a nature object lesson. At first they found it quite a challenge, but now they really seem to be enjoying themselves and are doing so well. I am trying to encourage them to speak clearly and loudly so that everyone can hear what they are saying. They are still learning a lot but it is so amazing to see them growing spiritually and mentally. Last Sabbath the church asked the Primary Sabbath school to do a branch Sabbath school in a near-by village. We didn't have much time to prepare with the kids, so we just decided to run it the same way as we would have done if we were at church. We also didn't have time to advertise in the village what we were doing. On Sabbath morning we all walked together (about 20 of us) to the village, sat down on the grass, and the children started singing. A few Mothers and children came and joined us. I am sure that if we had told the people in advance, more people would have come. It rained on us so we moved to a kitchen and continued our program. Even though the circumstances weren't perfect the children still did very well and I am sure that the mothers were very surprised at how well the kids did.
 
A Small Beginning
Two weeks ago the church here in Gaua started a school for kindergarten and grade one. One other girl and I have been taking most of the responsibility of teaching. We now have one other lady helping to teach too. It is quite a challenge as I am not an experienced teacher, but neither are the other teachers. It is only a small school, but we are praying that it will become stable and will help to build up the church as it grows. So far we have around ten students in each class. I have been teaching the kindy and I am really enjoying it. In my class there are two deaf and dumb girls. They are a challenge to teach, but it is very rewarding to see them learning. The children really enjoy the sticker books and the toy animals that have been donated. They are using the excerise books and pencils that have been sent. Last week Mum did a music class with kids and they loved using the instruments. We sang some songs with them and they played their different instruments and made quite an orchastra! I just want to say a very big thank you to those who have donated school supplies and stationary things. If we didn't have what has been donated we would have been having a hard time teaching.
 
Please keep our school in your prayers, and if you would like to help support it in any way, we would be very glad to hear from you!

Kay Turnbull
Volunteer
Vanuatu
 
 
 
Would you like to help...?
 
   God has entrusted to us so many advantages and opportunities! We feel the time has come to use all of them to push His work forward!  
If, after prayerful consideration, you also feel impressed to help out in some way with this project,
then for your own benefit, we encourage you to decide now to run the risk of being richly blessed!
We have found that the spirit of generosity brings about a 'reflex blessing' on the giver,
and we want you to experience this, just as we have-so we can all become part of the channel of God's grace & blessing together!
Why not claim Luke 6:38, take the risk, and see what might happen to you?
 
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