In Training: February 2012

On November 10, 2009, my wife and I accepted God’s call to go to the Ama people of Papua New Guinea with the message of His love. But with over $40,000 of business debt and a home in a depressed rural area that had attracted almost no attention during a year on the real estate market, our dreams of mission service seemed very distant. But we believed God’s promise, “Faithful is He that calleth you who also will do it” (1 Thess. 5:24). And so we set out to prove it true.
What followed was not an instant answer but rather the sustained providence of God that has brought us to the verge of launching. Slowly, steadily, one by one, God has removed the obstacles from our path. First, He miraculously sold our home to a couple seeking a quiet country getaway. Then, after a year of raising support, He completed our $90,319 launching goal. Next, He erased what remained of our $40,000 business debt. And now, after a second year of fundraising, He has completely funded our $7,148 monthly budget!
During the next three years we will face even greater challenges. But as we travel to one of the remotest places on earth, learn two new languages, build a home in the jungle, make sense of the mysterious ways of the Ama and design a method of evangelism that ministers to their unique needs, we know one thing: “We have nothing to fear for the future, except as we shall forget the way the Lord has led us, and his teaching in our past history.”
As He so often does, God has used many people to work out His will for our lives. To each one of you we say thank you ever so much for answering God’s call to assist us. Your continued prayers and support are a great source of encouragement. —John Lello