Life in the Papua New Guinea Highlands – as with many other mission fields – is all about flexibility. Plans are by definition tentative. It’s not a culture where advance planning is a fundamental aspect of things, and ideas about what to do and when to do it can erupt rather spontaneously. So it was… Continue reading September 5 – Celebrations
Category: Culture
A Day in Lae
Lae (pronounced lay) is a major shipping port for Papua New Guinea (PNG) on the northern coast. We came here for several reasons, mostly exploratory in nature. There are two major Lutheran church bodies in PNG – Gutnius Lutheran Church (GLC) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of PNG (ELC-PNG). The LCMS founded the GLC, while… Continue reading A Day in Lae
Worship and Nature
Today we were blessed to worship at Concordia Lutheran Church in Port Moresby. They were celebrating a grant of several musical instruments by the government to their ministry in addition to curiosity and excitement about our presence. The above is an example of Pidgin, a trade language that is maddeningly close to English at times,… Continue reading Worship and Nature
Port Moresby
Port Moresby is the administrative capital and largest city (population estimated to be nearly 400,000) of Papua New Guinea. As such, it attracts a general attention and acts as a magnet for those all over the country looking to improve their life. As a port city it has attracted both positive (commercial) attention as well… Continue reading Port Moresby
Balut
I nearly encountered it earlier this year in March. But an unexpectedly early departure saved me at the last minute. But this time, as giggles of delight erupted around me, I knew there would be no such rescue. This time, it was going to happen. I was going to encounter the soul of the Filipino,… Continue reading Balut
Field Trip
After a very brief time with family back in the US, I am back in Baguio, Philippines, to help teach at the start of a new academic year for Lutheran Theological Seminary. My two-week time in Baguio was only somewhat marred by last minute changes to the academic schedule, meaning classes started a week later… Continue reading Field Trip
Supporting Staff
A large chunk of my responsibilities as an Area Facilitator (AF) is to be the main connection between our deployed staff in the Region and Regional leadership as well as leadership back in St. Louis. In that capacity I’ve been involved with assisting Rev. Dr. Walter Steele and his wife Robyn, who decided to transition… Continue reading Supporting Staff
Adventures
When we were recruited to join OIM back in 2021 and discussions of where we might be placed in Asia were underway, very early on Medan, Indonesia was a front runner. My boss had lived and worked there for four years. There was another LCMS family already stationed there. We’d have some support locally. And… Continue reading Adventures
Three Keystones
Organizations rely on a variety of tools to help maintain focus. Truth be told, I can’t remember any of the vision or mission statements created by the various companies and organizations I’ve worked for over the years. Most likely a failure on my part, given the substantial resources poured into the creation and selection of… Continue reading Three Keystones
The Good News in Schools
I wonder what type of student Jesus was. Knowing practically nothing of his youth (because first century concepts of biography differed considerably from our 20th and 21st century psychology-dominated concepts of biography), we have to guess at what that education consisted of. Training in the Scriptures leading to his welcoming into the Jewish community at… Continue reading The Good News in Schools
The Nelson Family Indonesia 