5 Things I Won't Enjoy About Living in the Jungle

While I am super excited about getting to live in the Jungle, I also realize I have to be realistic with my expectations. Sure, we get to live in a tropical near-paradise, with scenic views and most importantly a complete lack of snow, but every place has its down sides as well. While I don't foresee any of these things becoming an actual problem, they very well may be annoying. Looking forward from where I am now, these are a few of the things that I'm really not looking forward to about living in the jungle.

1. Lack of Privacy-

While I do love spending time with people as much as the next person, I also know my limitations. I am an introvert. Every once in a while, I just need to pull back away from everyone around me and immerse myself in some alone time, just to keep myself sane. Here in the States that's fairly easily done, but in Papua New Guinea our walls will be thin. Actually, our exterior walls may end up being screens, since we'll be using the cross wind to keep our house cool. That means that I'll be able to hear whenever anyone walks by our house, which is just enough to keep me from feeling all the way alone. Add to that the fact that it's so quiet in the village that people on the other side will probably be able to hear any of our conversations, and you can see how someone could feel a little bit claustrophobic even in the bush.

2. Bugs 

Sure, we have bugs here in the States! And yes, they can be quite a pest. (I'm most definitely not a fan of fire ants) But there are two things that bug me about bugs overseas. Firstly, that they're just so pervasive, and secondly that they can cause a good deal of misery. I don't know if you've ever had malaria, but it is undeniably miserable. Granted, it is also fairly easily curable, even with fairly cheap medicines, but while you are waiting for the medicine to take effect it can still be a trial. Add on to that the large number of flies, spiders, and roaches find out in the bush, and you can see that bugs can be rather more of a problem than they are here in the States. At least for our first term in PNG I know we are planning on bringing our mosquito nets in order to create a little sanctuary from the critters, so at least there's that. 

3. Rain 

You'd think that I would have seen this coming, but it turns out that it rains a whole lot in the Jungle, especially during rainy season! Turns out, I don't like being wet! Still, simply being wet is one of the lesser inconveniences that the rains can bring. Even in the States the rain can cause problems, but in many parts of the world, PNG included, rain can do a real number on the roads. It becomes difficult to travel, and a trip that would only take a few hours in the dry season can become a real hassle. Rain does, of course, have its upsides as well. For one thing it is important for the gardens in PNG, which are how most of the people feed their families. That brings me to the next thing on my list,

4. Dirt

I don't like being dirty.  Not that out of the ordinary, I suppose, but still true. When I talk about the reasons I'm proud to be part of PBT, the fact that we are "down in the dirt" missionaries is one of the first things I'll talk about. I've seen it modeled for me by experienced missionaries, and I'm not afraid to get dirty myself when needed, but it can still be an irritation. Just a little thing, but those little things have a way of adding up, if you're not careful. All that leaves is my last item on my list, and probably one of the things I'm least looking forward to....

5. Chamber Pots

I hate for this post to simply become a poop joke, but really, at the very least for our first term, this is something I'll have to deal with. Until we build a more Americanized house, and a septic tank, chamber pots will just have to be part of our lives. And really, I'm thankful for that option, since being able to answer "nature's call" within the comfort of our own home could be a life saver. They are also the easiest way for us to avoid numbers 1-4, since outhouses would involve leaving our house every time. 

In all seriousness, though, I am extremely excited to get the opportunity to work as a missionary in Papua New Guinea. Yes, there are things that I will have to deal with that I may not like, whether it be sickness, irritations, inconveniences, or any number of other issues. And maybe I'm not going to win any awards for the most "normal" of lives. But I sorta like that. Besides, the opportunities we'll have and the things we'll be a part of will last for eternity, and affect the lives of people far beyond ourselves. So a little rain is worth it. Trust me. 

Read More

My Moto X Mishap

Many of us have been there, I'm sure. That moment when you look down at your phone screen, a screen, mind you, that should be pristine, only to see this. 

I have no idea what happened here.

It's a pretty sad sight, to say the least. I've only had this phone since January of this year, and it has already served me so well. I've used it to take notes in class, to navigate to so very many places, to look up recipes, and to read blogs and books. The phone is a Moto X, and while I don't use it very often for phone calls or texts, I do use it for pretty much everything else under the sun. Which is why I was so disappointed when one day I pulled it out of my pocket to see the corner had somehow been broken. I had not dropped it. I hadn't done anything unusually strenuous. I really have no idea what happened. And yet it was broken. 

When my wife's phone screen shattered, we paid for it to be fixed. It took us awhile to get around to doing so, since the price to replace the screen was daunting to say the least. I definitely didn't want to do that again. And so, with much trepidation, and doubt I called Motorola on the off chance that I was covered by some obscure part of the warranty I wasn't seeing. As I explained my situation to the customer service guy, I knew it was hopeless, and he only confirmed it with his words, "I'm afraid that isn't covered by the warranty." But then hope! "But....." There was a pause. "Listen, let us do you a favor. We're going to go ahead and send you a new phone, and you can send us back the broken one. No charge, or anything, so long as you send yours back."

There was  much rejoicing! 

The story could end there, I suppose. But since I'm a missionary, I think I'll get all parable-y on you. 

I most certainly didn't deserve to get a new phone for free. While my last two phones have both been Motorola, that didn't mean I was one of their top customers, or anything. My new Moto X was a gift. 

In some ways, this is like God giving us our salvation. Sometimes we look at our lives and really truly understand that we are broken. There isn't anything that we, ourselves, can do about that. All we can do is ask God for forgiveness. And really we don't deserve it. Instead, forgiveness only comes from Christ, and it is a gift freely given. All we need to do is ask for it, and we accept it. How cool is that? 

Read More

The World Cup

There is very little in this world as pervasive as soccer. The 2014 World Cup just finished yesterday, making this my third World Cup that I've watched, and the first one that I've watched while in the States. While I am (of course) a little disappointed that the US didn't make it farther than it did, I'm still rather excited to see us as a nation participating in a sport that does so much to help us come together with the international community as a whole. Even just here in the States, Elizabeth and I got into some great conversations with a Columbian, a Brazilian, and a Uruguayan. Turns out, we were all rooting for the States that game. And even though we were all disappointed, we had a great time chatting about each of our different countries. 

Another of the things I like about the World Cup is the commercials! 

I mean, that's just funny. Sure their just trying to boost their sales off of an event that has such a huge following, but I'm ok with that. It simply proves that the World Cup is a big deal. And because it is, we should be doing all we can to use the interest in the World Cup to help teach Literacy. (or other things too, I guess)

One example: The National Literacy Trust in England has a guy who is writing a Childrens Book for use in schools based around the World Cup. For each game he writes another chapter, and, if I'm reading the description right, the events surrounding the Cup effect what is happening in the story. That's just cool!

(you can read his story here)

While I think this is awesome, I really haven't seen much else promoting Literacy using all the interest in soccer. Still, my personal opinion is that motivation is the main key to teaching people to read. I would love to see more soccer based resources since it is such a wide spread phenomenon. 

Read More

Looking Forward to Literacy

I start the final class of my Literacy training this month. 

The last couple of years have been a wonderful experience for me. I've learned a lot about language and how it works, and I've met some wonderful people here in Dallas, including my wife. Even so, I am super excited to start my Literacy Megacourse this semester and complete my training. 

When I first decided to do missions long term, literacy wasn't really where I thought I would be focused. Most missionaries that I've talked to over the years had been Church Planters, and with them as an example, I figured that was where I would end up. Yet it seemed that every area I visited had me focused on some sort of educational topic. I worked with English students in Peru and Bolivia, and helped with some classes on Sanitation and Health while I was in Africa. By the time I joined up with Pioneer Bible Translators, I had decided that missions, for me, was about helping people to have the ability to learn about God on their own, in their own language. At first, that meant giving them the Bible, but somewhere along the line I realized that giving them a book wasn't enough. I had to teach them to read it. That need was one that I felt that I decided to fill.

I don't know what all to expect from my class this Spring. Nor do I know what my job on the field will look like, exactly. What I do know is that in doing literacy I will enable people to access God's Word in a way that they have never been able to before. I will show God's love to people by helping them to access information that can change, and even save their lives, through learning about sanitation, or medicines, or even farming and water purification. 

I don't know every way in which God will use me to help the people of Papua New Guinea. But even so, I'm looking forward to Literacy.

Read More

Nuclear Fusion

When it comes time to send out our newsletter, I remember that yet again I have neglected to write a blog post in the last month. I am not the most prolific of writers, so you would think that there would be plenty of topics for me to write on, and indeed my interests vary so much that there is an endless array of interesting tidbits that I would love to share with the world.

Like, there is this shark that just grabs a single small bite of its prey and then swims away. It doesn't really kill anything, just steals a bit of their flesh, and flees.

Or recently it was discovered that a certain lake on Mars could very well have sustained Earth-like conditions before, you know, it didn't.

Not the most useful things to know, but interesting.

But I never feel like writing about these tidbits, mostly because it doesn't really say anything about what is happening in my life, and the purpose of this blog is supposed to be to keep my friends, family, and supporters informed and involved in my life. But I'm afraid my life isn't extremely interesting at the moment.

I'm finishing up some readings for a class pre-requisite in preparation for my upcoming literacy course, and my wife is sitting on the other side of the room being crafty, because she's good at that. The Christmas tree is set up in our living room and is trimmed in blue and silver, mostly because I like that combination of colors. The bottom branches are starting to look a little bare because my cat enjoys eating pine needles. Since the weather was a bit icy this week, I was only able to go to work for 3 of my 5 shifts this week, and one of those ended early due to lack of guests.

And of course there are the topics I don't want to write about. Elizabeth did a great job at expressing all that happened this past week on her blog. If you want to read that article, it is titled My Miscarriage.

Needless to say, this week has been full of emotion, but we're doing fine.

And really, that's most of what is happening in my life. Our plans are still on track. Classes in the Spring, partnership development full time after that. And Papua New Guinea once we can afford plane tickets.

So I guess now you're caught up and the purpose of this blog has been fulfilled. And you got some bonus fun facts. So, let's call this a wrap and I'll see you next month!

Read More

When This Boy Meets World

By now I'm sure that most of you have heard the wonderful news. My wife is pregnant! And while this is pretty much the most wonderful thing that's ever happened to me, it has also changed my outlook on a few different things.

Recently my wife and I found the complete series of "Boy Meets World" for sale, and decided to pick it up and take a stroll down memory lane. It is a show that everyone from my generation knows and loves, and growing up I identified with each of the different kids in the show at one juncture or another. But with this watch through, something odd is happening. With the knowledge of my impending fatherhood in the back of my mind, I find myself identifying not only with the kids, but also with the parents. As I've never been a parent before, this is coming as a kind of shock for me. It's also opening up a whole new level of understanding regarding what is happening in the show, and making all the more worth seeing.

It seems to me that this is true of many different things in our world, from Calvin and Hobbes, all the way up to the Bible. Only when you have reached a point where you can see a point from the correct reference can you really get at the core message. For this reason Paul said things like,

"I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready," - 1Cor. 3:2 (ESV)

No matter how much I may have thought I understood of this life, my understanding is about to change. But I'm looking forward to that change.

For the first time in my life, I'm going to understand what it is to be a father.

Read More

Motivation and Self Control

Recently, I made a discovery. The discovery is this:

I don't like to work.

This is problematic, as most of my job tends to be, you know, work. Part of the problem is that I just don't feel like working that often. Its just so much easier to sit back and relax. Maybe watch some tv. Something like that. I mean, have you seen some of what they have on tv these days? Its fun stuff! Super heroes, fantasy tales, and pirates.

I love pirates. 

I'm sorta "hooked"

So why do I love pirates and hate work? Well, it's complicated. Work is what makes it possible for me to live in a house, provide food for my family, and generally keep me off the streets. Pirates, on the other hand, have scurvy.

But pirates are so entertaining that, were it an option, I might just sit back and watch pirates do their thing all day. Of course if I did that then I wouldn't be able to do other things, like go to Papua New Guinea and teach people how to read, and help people understand the scriptures, and cool stuff that not even pirates get to do. That stuff is important. Like, really important. So why is it so hard for me to do it?

It seems that it is a matter of motivation. 

Calling a hundred churches in a day just to get 100 voice mails isn't exciting. I want to do the things that make me feel like life is good. I want to travel, and see the sights and have a good time. I don't want to leave my name and number and a short message after the tone a hundred times.

This is where self control comes in. Self control is the ability to get yourself to do something, even when you don't want to do it, simply because it needs to get done. Its what allows me to turn off the TV and write an email, or go call potential supporters because that's the stuff that will get me to the field so I CAN go teach people the Word of God. Its also what allows me to do the dishes, or the laundry, because....well just because it needs to get done.

It's what makes me an adult. 

So why write this? Because it's a good reminder. A reminder that no matter how good that tv show makes the life of a pirate look, there are consequences to forgoing hard work in favor of chasing what makes you feel good. Like scurvy. And never getting overseas. And I desperately want to get overseas.

What things are you avoiding simply because you don't want to do them? Are you being held back by something "pirating" your time away?

Read More