Incredible to think that first semester is almost over. Tomorrow begins finals here and my parents arrive tomorrow as well. It seems like just a little while ago that we were dreaming about company and here it comes. Should be a great Christmas time.
We continue to be so thankful for Christ and what He has meant to our lives. We continue to seek Him. May God enrich this season of Christ's birth. May we remember why He came this crazy place called earth.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Monday, December 01, 2008
Joy
Joy! What a joy it was to walk back into our house after a week in Hong Kong and see the posters on the wall, "Welcome Home Dad", "Jalen loves Dad", "Kaya loves Dad", "Mom loves Dad". What a joy it is to have a family that loves and supports that work that we together do.
As Janna and I shared stories of the past week one topic continued to come up and that is the topic of Joy. Listening to the speakers at the conference and realizing that we need that Joy in our lives that comes through Christ and knowing that we are Christians that already have our future mapped out for us. How do we live with the Joy that Paul talks about in 1 Thes?? Rejoice always! you have got to be kidding me. Well that must have been written by a man who did not have any trials in his life. After a quick look through Acts you realize that wait a minute Paul had lots of trials and yet he writes be joyful. As I talked to Janna about this topic she too shared that she had been wrestling with the same thing. Joy is something that should come from inside, it should not be something that we struggle to achieve. If God is the center and is truly in control then we have much to be joyful about. This is something that we are now working through, how do we have joy in the challenging times?
I am now home and working once again. I am extremely glad to be home and glad that our family is "normal" again after 3 weeks. I put the word normal in quotations marks because I do not want to have a "normal" family, I want us to be the most abnormal, loving, on fire for God family that we can be. One of the presenters used the words "misfits for Christ". Well that is where we are at this week, continuing to stuggle, but loving, the biblical truths which we try to make applicable in our lives. Lets show people that Christians are the most joyful people because Christ died for us and the Holy Spirit lives in us!!!
Darren Back Home in Papua OUT
As Janna and I shared stories of the past week one topic continued to come up and that is the topic of Joy. Listening to the speakers at the conference and realizing that we need that Joy in our lives that comes through Christ and knowing that we are Christians that already have our future mapped out for us. How do we live with the Joy that Paul talks about in 1 Thes?? Rejoice always! you have got to be kidding me. Well that must have been written by a man who did not have any trials in his life. After a quick look through Acts you realize that wait a minute Paul had lots of trials and yet he writes be joyful. As I talked to Janna about this topic she too shared that she had been wrestling with the same thing. Joy is something that should come from inside, it should not be something that we struggle to achieve. If God is the center and is truly in control then we have much to be joyful about. This is something that we are now working through, how do we have joy in the challenging times?
I am now home and working once again. I am extremely glad to be home and glad that our family is "normal" again after 3 weeks. I put the word normal in quotations marks because I do not want to have a "normal" family, I want us to be the most abnormal, loving, on fire for God family that we can be. One of the presenters used the words "misfits for Christ". Well that is where we are at this week, continuing to stuggle, but loving, the biblical truths which we try to make applicable in our lives. Lets show people that Christians are the most joyful people because Christ died for us and the Holy Spirit lives in us!!!
Darren Back Home in Papua OUT
Friday, November 28, 2008
From Hong Kong
Darren here in Hong Kong continuing to learn what God is doing in the area of teaching and education. I have been really blessed here listening to speakers like Gary Chapman and Phil Callaway to mention a couple. The speakers are good and just the reminder is good to continue to grow in the knowledge of Christ because this is what will impact the students. I think that so far this is the general message that I have received from this conference, your own personal relationship with Christ will determine how well you are impacting students.
Janna and the kids seem to be doing alright in my absence although it feels alittle long to have been an incomplete family for 3 weeks. I thank God each second for the wonderful family that He has blessed me with. I look forward to getting back there in a couple of days.
Happy thanksgiving to all my American friends out there, i hope that you sat and watched some NFL for me on thanksgiving day. I missed all the games but were following them on Yahoo stattracker.
My God continue to bless you all.
Janna and the kids seem to be doing alright in my absence although it feels alittle long to have been an incomplete family for 3 weeks. I thank God each second for the wonderful family that He has blessed me with. I look forward to getting back there in a couple of days.
Happy thanksgiving to all my American friends out there, i hope that you sat and watched some NFL for me on thanksgiving day. I missed all the games but were following them on Yahoo stattracker.
My God continue to bless you all.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Janna will return Nov 23rd...
Janna will return Nov 23rd in the morning and I will depart Nov 24th. Quite the timing. Janna has had to stay in Singapore for longer than expected which has been a bit stressful on our family. The kids are doing great helping out and adjusting their schedules with all of the changes. Janna is wishing that she could come home sooner but it just has not worked out thus far. Continue to think of her as she tries to find things to do that are not too expensive and that she can really enjoy. I have been praying that this would just be a time of renewal for her as she can rest and think about other things besides always thinking about us.
I must say that for all the single parents out there, you job is enormous. My hat goes off to you. You become vulnerable always asking people to help you out. For example today is a half day for the students but the teachers are in meetings so I have to try to find a place for Jalen to go for the afternoon. All of these things just continue to add up after a while. I am very thankful that Janna is returning next Sunday.
Life continues to fly by as another birthday season has come and gone. I am the last in our family to have a birthday and it just continues to show me the importance of working for Christ. Because I feel like I just had my birthday, what have I done in the last year that has eternal consequences?? I sure hope something. So often we want to think of ourselves but I think that looking back on life we will regret thinking only of ourselves. So often I feel the best inside while thinking and doing things for others. May we strive to serve so that our lives here on earth have eternal value.
I must say that for all the single parents out there, you job is enormous. My hat goes off to you. You become vulnerable always asking people to help you out. For example today is a half day for the students but the teachers are in meetings so I have to try to find a place for Jalen to go for the afternoon. All of these things just continue to add up after a while. I am very thankful that Janna is returning next Sunday.
Life continues to fly by as another birthday season has come and gone. I am the last in our family to have a birthday and it just continues to show me the importance of working for Christ. Because I feel like I just had my birthday, what have I done in the last year that has eternal consequences?? I sure hope something. So often we want to think of ourselves but I think that looking back on life we will regret thinking only of ourselves. So often I feel the best inside while thinking and doing things for others. May we strive to serve so that our lives here on earth have eternal value.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Janna in Singapore
Janna has now been in Singapore for 1 week and the kids and I are still alive and kicking. We all miss mom very much but we are doing alright.
It sounds as though Janna will be home this week which we are excited about. The friend that she went with came through surgery with no problems and then the next day slipped with her crutch and put all her weight on the foot. Sounds as though things are still progressing just fine. Please continue to pray for this whole situation.
This week I will be getting ready for the substitute teacher while I go to Hong Kong for a teacher conference.
This week I spoke in the high school chapel about living with the end in mind and using our talents and gifts to Glorify God. God has been working in my life with some of these very issues. My heart desires to use the talents for His Glory. Lord show me this week how I can do this.
It sounds as though Janna will be home this week which we are excited about. The friend that she went with came through surgery with no problems and then the next day slipped with her crutch and put all her weight on the foot. Sounds as though things are still progressing just fine. Please continue to pray for this whole situation.
This week I will be getting ready for the substitute teacher while I go to Hong Kong for a teacher conference.
This week I spoke in the high school chapel about living with the end in mind and using our talents and gifts to Glorify God. God has been working in my life with some of these very issues. My heart desires to use the talents for His Glory. Lord show me this week how I can do this.
Sunday, November 09, 2008
Forgot
Oh yah one other thing that I wanted to comment on. Last week was Jalen's and Kaya's spirit week at school. For waky hair day we shaved Jalen's head and gave him a mohawk. It looked great and suited him but on Sunday he asked me if I could please shave the rest off so I did. He won first place in his class for the mohawk. Kaya really wanted us to shave her head too but we told her that her hair was too special. Janna made it so that it stood straight up.
Another day was character day and so Jalen and Kaya dressed up as two characters from Super Mario Galaxy. Jalen was a Luma and Kaya was princess Peach the princess that Mario tries to save. They were super cute. Again Jalen won in his class for his costume (This costume took Janna and I took hours to make the night before)
Other days were PJ day, clown day, and I forget the last one. All in all great time for the kids and crazy amounts of work for the parents. Now I know how you felt MOM.
Another day was character day and so Jalen and Kaya dressed up as two characters from Super Mario Galaxy. Jalen was a Luma and Kaya was princess Peach the princess that Mario tries to save. They were super cute. Again Jalen won in his class for his costume (This costume took Janna and I took hours to make the night before)
Other days were PJ day, clown day, and I forget the last one. All in all great time for the kids and crazy amounts of work for the parents. Now I know how you felt MOM.
Janna to Singapore
Yesterday Janna accompanied one of our friends to Singapore. She took off from Jayapura with boarding passes to Jakarta and then from then onto Singapore. While on the plane to Bali Janna thought "hey Darren always double checks things" so she did and realized that their bags were getting off at Bali. For some unknown reason the person at the Jayapura airport booked them to Jakarta and their bags to Bali. Only in Indonesia! Lucky that Janna caught that because otherwise there is a good chance that they would not have had their bags in Singapore.
But last night I got an email from Janna saying that they are there safely and TODAY is the doctors appointment. Singapore medical moves quick, unlike the western countries. So we are hoping that they will only be gone for one week. Just to make sure that everyone understands, Janna is not going to the doctor but her friend is. Janna is there to support and help out in any way that she can.
This means that the kids and I are on our own. This morning everything went great. We ate got dressed and I scrambled to get their lunches and things together. We have been without Janna now for 24hours and we are still surviving. Thanks for praying. Yesterday the kids and I had a great time relaxing and swimming at the local pool. God Bless!
But last night I got an email from Janna saying that they are there safely and TODAY is the doctors appointment. Singapore medical moves quick, unlike the western countries. So we are hoping that they will only be gone for one week. Just to make sure that everyone understands, Janna is not going to the doctor but her friend is. Janna is there to support and help out in any way that she can.
This means that the kids and I are on our own. This morning everything went great. We ate got dressed and I scrambled to get their lunches and things together. We have been without Janna now for 24hours and we are still surviving. Thanks for praying. Yesterday the kids and I had a great time relaxing and swimming at the local pool. God Bless!
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Blogging from Home
WOW it looks like we now have the ability to not only blog from the school but also from home. This should make blogging a more regular thing for our family. Thank you so much everyone for your prayers and willingness to keep us in your thoughts. Getting your emails means so much to Janna and I thank-you.
Great to be back
It is great to back up and running with this blog spot. Thanks for your feedback.
Tomorrow is fun festival for Jalen and Kaya at school and so after school they can run around and have a great time. The different classes have each set up a little booth, something like you would see at a carnival, and then the different children get to go around and try each thing out. It is a great time for the kids.
Janna has been teaching some of the local kids English on Wednesdays and yesterday the children stayed for 2 hours just wanting to color and learn english. What a great way for Janna to be involved in the local kids lives. God has been good in giving us opportunity to serve.
Lately Janna and I have been praying that God would give us the courage to use use the opportunities that He already has given us to serve Him, to talk to others about our joy, and to love others. May God bless.
Tomorrow is fun festival for Jalen and Kaya at school and so after school they can run around and have a great time. The different classes have each set up a little booth, something like you would see at a carnival, and then the different children get to go around and try each thing out. It is a great time for the kids.
Janna has been teaching some of the local kids English on Wednesdays and yesterday the children stayed for 2 hours just wanting to color and learn english. What a great way for Janna to be involved in the local kids lives. God has been good in giving us opportunity to serve.
Lately Janna and I have been praying that God would give us the courage to use use the opportunities that He already has given us to serve Him, to talk to others about our joy, and to love others. May God bless.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Wow long time...
Wow has it ever been a long time since Janna or I has written anything on this blogspot. We are happy to say that we now have a way that we are able to access it!! So once again I will try to update it regularly on things that are happening out here. Sorry about the inconvience to everyone.
School is now already 1/4 of the way done for the year and we are continuially amazed at how time is flying by. The school year is going well and the kids are loving school. Jalen is currently in grade 2 and Kaya is in Kindergarten. Kaya absolutely adores her teacher and is learning (at what we think) is an amazing rate. The teacher here has them learn a bible verse for every letter of the alphabet and so the other day Janna and I were quizzing Kaya on her memory verses. Unbelievable, my eyes could not help but water as she wizzed through all the memory verses that she has done from A - J. What a blessing to be able to have this type of education while we are trying to follow God's will in our lives.
This past sunday our pastor spoke on the parable of the talents. What a great reminder to be using what God has given us for him. Last night one of my friends came over and wanted to talk with me. He had a need which he asked me about and then we began talking about what we think our talents are and how we are using them for Him. What an amazing time of sharing and trying to encourage. He is a national guy who will be celebrating his 30 birthday in November. God use us.
School is now already 1/4 of the way done for the year and we are continuially amazed at how time is flying by. The school year is going well and the kids are loving school. Jalen is currently in grade 2 and Kaya is in Kindergarten. Kaya absolutely adores her teacher and is learning (at what we think) is an amazing rate. The teacher here has them learn a bible verse for every letter of the alphabet and so the other day Janna and I were quizzing Kaya on her memory verses. Unbelievable, my eyes could not help but water as she wizzed through all the memory verses that she has done from A - J. What a blessing to be able to have this type of education while we are trying to follow God's will in our lives.
This past sunday our pastor spoke on the parable of the talents. What a great reminder to be using what God has given us for him. Last night one of my friends came over and wanted to talk with me. He had a need which he asked me about and then we began talking about what we think our talents are and how we are using them for Him. What an amazing time of sharing and trying to encourage. He is a national guy who will be celebrating his 30 birthday in November. God use us.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Saskatoon
Quite something to be in Saskatoon again and it has been great seeing everyone. We will leave on Sunday to the Watrous area and then on to Herbert. If you would like to get in touch with us please contact Janna's parents and we would love to hear from you.
God is good and is really blessing us with the relationships that we have. It is great to see people and reconnect. Please continue to pray for our kids as they just are not that settled with all the visiting and moving around that we have done and will be doing. It just is not easy on the children to always be waiting for their parents to be done visiting. They are doing great but just do not quite know where they fit and what they should be doing.
Once again thanks for the support and I really hope that we can connect with as many people as possible on this trip. See you soon.
God is good and is really blessing us with the relationships that we have. It is great to see people and reconnect. Please continue to pray for our kids as they just are not that settled with all the visiting and moving around that we have done and will be doing. It just is not easy on the children to always be waiting for their parents to be done visiting. They are doing great but just do not quite know where they fit and what they should be doing.
Once again thanks for the support and I really hope that we can connect with as many people as possible on this trip. See you soon.
Monday, June 02, 2008
Back in Canada
Wow sorry that this has taken so long to update. I do have a good reason... The computer department in Sentani decided to upgrade the firewall and so all of a sudden my blogger pages were blocked. I will be getting this all fixed when I return after this summer.
Anyway we are back in Canada for the summer and not quite used to the cold. WE arrived in Vancouver on June 1st and are freezing. I think that we are going to need to go shopping right away for warmer clothes. Our trip went well and God answered all prayers in terms of the children and safety. We feel so blessed right now to be in my parents house and seeing some of our family.
School ended well and as always the goodbyes are so hard. It is just that you never know if you are going to be seeing the people again. Especially hard this time was saying good bye to some of my teaching friends. We made good friends from Northern Ireland and the States and none of them are returning to the school next year and so that was difficult. We know that it is just part of the missionary lifestyle to always be saying goodbye it is just that it still is difficult.
We are here in Canada until the end of July so please get in touch with us if you can. Looking forward to seeing all of you.
Anyway we are back in Canada for the summer and not quite used to the cold. WE arrived in Vancouver on June 1st and are freezing. I think that we are going to need to go shopping right away for warmer clothes. Our trip went well and God answered all prayers in terms of the children and safety. We feel so blessed right now to be in my parents house and seeing some of our family.
School ended well and as always the goodbyes are so hard. It is just that you never know if you are going to be seeing the people again. Especially hard this time was saying good bye to some of my teaching friends. We made good friends from Northern Ireland and the States and none of them are returning to the school next year and so that was difficult. We know that it is just part of the missionary lifestyle to always be saying goodbye it is just that it still is difficult.
We are here in Canada until the end of July so please get in touch with us if you can. Looking forward to seeing all of you.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Janna in Singapore
We are more than half way through Janna, Jalen, and Kaya's trip to Singapore. I am still alive and surviving here at home in Papua. God continues to bless us with answered prayer. Some of the most recent examples are paperwork, tournament, safe travels, and the list could go on. We want to thank all of you for your continued support and prayer.
The Basketball tournament ended up very well, we played a team from Jayapura in the final and were tied with them in the fourth quarter. Then my big man got fouled out and we were in trouble, we kept playing tough and had a great game losing by 8 or something like that. The kids stepped up and played better basketball than they had all year and that was great to see.
Friday morning Janna, Jalen, and Kaya return so please keep praying for their safety as they travel.
The Basketball tournament ended up very well, we played a team from Jayapura in the final and were tied with them in the fourth quarter. Then my big man got fouled out and we were in trouble, we kept playing tough and had a great game losing by 8 or something like that. The kids stepped up and played better basketball than they had all year and that was great to see.
Friday morning Janna, Jalen, and Kaya return so please keep praying for their safety as they travel.
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
First night of tournament
What a night! The first night of the tournament is over and what a night it was. I arived at school at 7:20 am and did not step into the house until 9:45 pm. Now does that sound like fun or what. Looking into the crowd of people though it was worth it. So many people enjoying the game of basketball. Only a couple of twists. One team decided not to show so I had to make a new schedule, not really surprising in Indonesia. One of the games was crazy. One player thrown out of the gym, one coach thrown out of the gym, and probably about 5 other technical fouls. Wild!
The coach wanted to stay in the gym and so I escorted him out and told him that if he was going to act like this then he could no longer be a part of this tournament. We will see how he acts today. If it is like yesterday then I will ask him not to come back on Friday or Saturday.
Anyway glad the first night is over and now only 3 days left.
The coach wanted to stay in the gym and so I escorted him out and told him that if he was going to act like this then he could no longer be a part of this tournament. We will see how he acts today. If it is like yesterday then I will ask him not to come back on Friday or Saturday.
Anyway glad the first night is over and now only 3 days left.
Monday, April 07, 2008
Here We GO....
April 8th and things are about to get crazy.
Quick update, Kaya has her passport in hand and is now getting the appropriate stamps in it to be able to go this Saturday to Singapore.
Tomorrow starts the tournament through saturday. Please pray. Once Saturday is over I will be lessed stressed.
Quick update, Kaya has her passport in hand and is now getting the appropriate stamps in it to be able to go this Saturday to Singapore.
Tomorrow starts the tournament through saturday. Please pray. Once Saturday is over I will be lessed stressed.
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
April...
April is here and with it comes the end of Basketball season. For the past week I have been trying to plan our final tournament of the year which will run on April 9th - April 12th. It is quite something trying to plan things without ever having the certainty that teams or refs will show up. Although I really enjoy basketball season I am looking forward to another break.
Janna continues to work hard running the preschool and Kaya continues to love school. It is fun to watch as Kaya tells me what she all learned in school and of course she really wants to keep up with her big brother.
Jalen is currently writing some standardized tests that Americans write and so he has a full week of really trying to concentrate on his work. He is doing better in school now as he continues to adjust to reading and writing. "Stay in those lines Jalen" Of course when he does homework at home and dad tries to write in the lines dad does not do a good job either. Must be a guy thing.
Basically right now the Berg family is pushing for the middle of April and life should get a little bit less hectic.
Please continue praying for Kaya's passport as Janna has now bought tickets to fly to Singapore with the kids on April 12th and there is some paperwork that needs to get done before this happens. As so many things go on around us we were reminded again this Sunday to love people. Change someones life today by simply loving them. Berg's from PAPUA OUT!
Janna continues to work hard running the preschool and Kaya continues to love school. It is fun to watch as Kaya tells me what she all learned in school and of course she really wants to keep up with her big brother.
Jalen is currently writing some standardized tests that Americans write and so he has a full week of really trying to concentrate on his work. He is doing better in school now as he continues to adjust to reading and writing. "Stay in those lines Jalen" Of course when he does homework at home and dad tries to write in the lines dad does not do a good job either. Must be a guy thing.
Basically right now the Berg family is pushing for the middle of April and life should get a little bit less hectic.
Please continue praying for Kaya's passport as Janna has now bought tickets to fly to Singapore with the kids on April 12th and there is some paperwork that needs to get done before this happens. As so many things go on around us we were reminded again this Sunday to love people. Change someones life today by simply loving them. Berg's from PAPUA OUT!
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Easter
Well I am sitting in my classroom on a Thursday night waiting for my bball team to play. After tonights game I will have 4 days off for the Easter break. A much needed time for our family. Janna woke up this morning feeling ill and I really do hope that it is not dengue. What can we do God is in control.
This week I have been reminded by friends and colleagues about how I need to allow things to roll off my back quicker, and not to allow little things to eat me up inside. I have been going through an extremely stressful semester and I think that I am just worn right out. Is too much of how I feel about myself based on others?? Am I living as a free being in Christ? One of my colleagues today asked if God was beside you and had his hand on your shoulder saying "I love you" and someone came up and said something negative would what the person said affect you in the same way. God is here beside us, do I live with this in mind? I most certainly have not been the last couple of months and this time off I hope that I can reconnect with who I am in Christ.
Well I think that the girls game is done, I had better run, I am off to coach.
This week I have been reminded by friends and colleagues about how I need to allow things to roll off my back quicker, and not to allow little things to eat me up inside. I have been going through an extremely stressful semester and I think that I am just worn right out. Is too much of how I feel about myself based on others?? Am I living as a free being in Christ? One of my colleagues today asked if God was beside you and had his hand on your shoulder saying "I love you" and someone came up and said something negative would what the person said affect you in the same way. God is here beside us, do I live with this in mind? I most certainly have not been the last couple of months and this time off I hope that I can reconnect with who I am in Christ.
Well I think that the girls game is done, I had better run, I am off to coach.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Middle of March...
March madness is just around the corner and time is going by so quickly. Update on our family is that we are just getting through with a couple of weeks of sickness. Jalen missed one week of school due to a cough that kept him up most of the night. Kaya is sick right now with fever and a bit of a rash. No it is not Dengue Fever (we hope). Dengue fever has been going around here as well but the clinic that Kaya went to yesterday did not think that it was dengue.
I was playing basketball on Wednesday and got a thumb in the eye. Now usually this is not too bad but this time my vision has stayed just a bit blurry in one spot on that eye. It is now beginning to heal but that was a couple of days ago that it happened. One of my Indonesian buddies just about poked my eye out. He felt absolutely horrid. Then yesterday I was throwing some garbage away (which is right next to the doorway) and a student came rushing in. The door hit me on the head and made my eyes water it hit so hard. Then this morning as I am making coffee I broke the glass sugar container. Man you could not plan the way my week has been going. But today is Friday and by tomorrow everything should be fine.
We now have tentatively booked tickets to be in Saskatoon on June 5th. We are excited about seeing people again. My friends here have already asked if I am returning to Canada this summer. I try to tell them that yes I am leaving but I will return. I have really enjoyed getting to know people here.
I was playing basketball on Wednesday and got a thumb in the eye. Now usually this is not too bad but this time my vision has stayed just a bit blurry in one spot on that eye. It is now beginning to heal but that was a couple of days ago that it happened. One of my Indonesian buddies just about poked my eye out. He felt absolutely horrid. Then yesterday I was throwing some garbage away (which is right next to the doorway) and a student came rushing in. The door hit me on the head and made my eyes water it hit so hard. Then this morning as I am making coffee I broke the glass sugar container. Man you could not plan the way my week has been going. But today is Friday and by tomorrow everything should be fine.
We now have tentatively booked tickets to be in Saskatoon on June 5th. We are excited about seeing people again. My friends here have already asked if I am returning to Canada this summer. I try to tell them that yes I am leaving but I will return. I have really enjoyed getting to know people here.
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
Tournament is over...
Just a quick update here to say that this past week has been absolutely crazy and I thank you for your prayers. This past week both basketball teams that I coach have been in a tournament in Kotaraja, which is about 30 minute drive by motorbike and a 50 min drive by car. Needless to say I have been in Kotaraja everyday this week until late at night and then back to school the next morning. It has been an incredibly draining week on our family. I believe as of right now that both teams will not be playing anymore and so that is a bit of a blessing.
Jalen is also sick right now and just altogether not feeling well. Please pray for him.
Janna and Kaya continue to be the rocks in our family and I thank God again for a wife that is so understanding towards Basketball, if she did not see it in the same light weeks like this would be even more difficult.
Our tickets are now reserved for coming home this summer for a quick furlough. We are going to try to come home for a couple of months every two years and this summer is the one. We will be leaving Indonesia on June 1st and be returning to Indonesia Aug 8.
Jalen is also sick right now and just altogether not feeling well. Please pray for him.
Janna and Kaya continue to be the rocks in our family and I thank God again for a wife that is so understanding towards Basketball, if she did not see it in the same light weeks like this would be even more difficult.
Our tickets are now reserved for coming home this summer for a quick furlough. We are going to try to come home for a couple of months every two years and this summer is the one. We will be leaving Indonesia on June 1st and be returning to Indonesia Aug 8.
Monday, February 25, 2008
February 26...
Feb 26th sees our family thinking about some of our summer plans as we return to Canada this summer. We are really enjoying life here and feel that this is our home now. Our children are doing well and we are once again this year learning how to live and minister in a different country. We are looking forward to connecting with people while we are home this summer, the relationships are things that we miss while we are here, although we are making great connections with people out here. Hopefully in the near future I can post where we will be at what times during the summer so that we can connect with as many of you as possible.
Jalen continues to go to school and is doing much better these past few weeks in listening to his teacher the first time she says something. For a couple of weeks we were struggling with Jalen's behavior in school and just his respect level. It looks as if it is coming around and we know that this is just the beginning as he turns into a boy and then a young man. It is so encouraging seeing him reading books and doing math facts. He is doing great!
Kaya is going to preschool and doing well. She really looks forward to learning her letters. Just yesterday they learned the letter 'P' and so the teacher that day had all types of games and crafts with the letter 'P'. Neat to see her loving to learn.
Jalen and Kaya also have begun piano lessons with Janna and this is really neat to watch them practicing.
Janna is still highly involved with the planning of the preschool. She is also now teaching some piano lessons and trying to keep our house in order. She is also finding places to go for walks and is now helping once and a while with the girls basketball team here.
THis week sees me in the middle of an Indonesian Basketball tournament coaching two teams. The team here at the school and an Indonesian team. The schedule works out great that neither team play at the same time or against each other. Great times. I am also encouraged because the athletic director at our school is returning which means that hopefully I can give this job back to him as he returns here in about one month.
God Bless. That is a short glimpse into our lives this Feb 26
Jalen continues to go to school and is doing much better these past few weeks in listening to his teacher the first time she says something. For a couple of weeks we were struggling with Jalen's behavior in school and just his respect level. It looks as if it is coming around and we know that this is just the beginning as he turns into a boy and then a young man. It is so encouraging seeing him reading books and doing math facts. He is doing great!
Kaya is going to preschool and doing well. She really looks forward to learning her letters. Just yesterday they learned the letter 'P' and so the teacher that day had all types of games and crafts with the letter 'P'. Neat to see her loving to learn.
Jalen and Kaya also have begun piano lessons with Janna and this is really neat to watch them practicing.
Janna is still highly involved with the planning of the preschool. She is also now teaching some piano lessons and trying to keep our house in order. She is also finding places to go for walks and is now helping once and a while with the girls basketball team here.
THis week sees me in the middle of an Indonesian Basketball tournament coaching two teams. The team here at the school and an Indonesian team. The schedule works out great that neither team play at the same time or against each other. Great times. I am also encouraged because the athletic director at our school is returning which means that hopefully I can give this job back to him as he returns here in about one month.
God Bless. That is a short glimpse into our lives this Feb 26
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Another Week
Another week has gone by and we are beginning to settle into a routine again after the OE experience. This past week my body just let down and I have been sick for a little while as I try to recover from running on Adrenaline for 2 weeks. Please continue to pray for health of the family. Thanks
Last night we had one last Team Awesome party (that was the name of our OE group), so 9 students came to our house for supper and a time of games. The kids (Jalen Kaya) love when this type of stuff happens, and they get WAAAYYYY over tired until they are weeping messes. Our group really did bond out in the jungle and so it was neat for Janna to see the people that I had spent two weeks with. We had a good time sharing stories, sharing life issues, jumping on the tramp, and then of course playing games. I was blessed with a really neat group this year.
We are beginning to think about and try to plan for our summer furlough this summer. As the weeks fly by it draws closer and closer and I think that this weekend we just realized that it is coming up and we had better get a more concrete idea about what we are doing this summer. God has blessed us again and right now we have appointments for the kids in Singapore to see the same eye specialist that we saw this past year. So we will be heading through Singapore on the way home. I am also trying to get an appointment in Singapore for my knee that continues to cause me some pain. I think that is all for now. GOD BLESS
Last night we had one last Team Awesome party (that was the name of our OE group), so 9 students came to our house for supper and a time of games. The kids (Jalen Kaya) love when this type of stuff happens, and they get WAAAYYYY over tired until they are weeping messes. Our group really did bond out in the jungle and so it was neat for Janna to see the people that I had spent two weeks with. We had a good time sharing stories, sharing life issues, jumping on the tramp, and then of course playing games. I was blessed with a really neat group this year.
We are beginning to think about and try to plan for our summer furlough this summer. As the weeks fly by it draws closer and closer and I think that this weekend we just realized that it is coming up and we had better get a more concrete idea about what we are doing this summer. God has blessed us again and right now we have appointments for the kids in Singapore to see the same eye specialist that we saw this past year. So we will be heading through Singapore on the way home. I am also trying to get an appointment in Singapore for my knee that continues to cause me some pain. I think that is all for now. GOD BLESS
Monday, February 11, 2008
OE done, Family back together...
OE is done and I am home, PTL. Even though it has taken some adjustment, I am home and we are back together as a family once again. Janna and the kids seem to do well while I was away.
Eipomek is a village in the mountains of central Papua. This year it was the home of Outdoor Education which saw 82 people fly into the village and work on different projects, do kids clubs, and try to serve the local missionaries in any way that we could. We were there for 2 weeks living in rooms and going to the bathroom in the jungle. Our shower was the river and our food was made up of things that we had brought in and local foods. The local food included sweet potatos, white potatos, different types of vegetables, and of course pig meat. The first day there we bought a pig and butchered it for meat with our meals. Some of our students killed the pig and ground up the meat. So needless to say, this is what I would call "roughing it".
One other thing we were able to do was to hike into different surrounding villages for 4 days and 3 nights. This was a very interesting experience. Each leader was in charge of 9 students and so 9 students and I hiked for a while through the mountains to get to the village of Sarabom. There we stayed in a traditional hut with the people for 3 nights. I am sure that you can not even imagine what this is like. The huts are round with a fire in the middle and a penned up pig in the hut as well. Our 6 girls slept in this area with around 9 other women and the pig with the fire in the middle. The hut is no bigger than about 15 feet in diameter, so you can imagine how the girls slept. Women and men rarely sleep in the same place and it just so happened that our house had a mans area attached to the round hut. It was a rectangle that 5 men slept "comfortably" if by comfortably you think of basically sleeping touching each other the entire night. What a time of group bonding! Also on the mens side there was no fire place and at the altitude that we were at it gets cold during the night. After the 3 nights of bonding we returned to Eipomek to our regular rooms.
The last chapel that we had students shared about the things that they had learned and it was interesting to listen to the stories of how God was working in their lives.
Experience of a lifetime and I am happy to be home. Thank you God for answering prayers.
Eipomek is a village in the mountains of central Papua. This year it was the home of Outdoor Education which saw 82 people fly into the village and work on different projects, do kids clubs, and try to serve the local missionaries in any way that we could. We were there for 2 weeks living in rooms and going to the bathroom in the jungle. Our shower was the river and our food was made up of things that we had brought in and local foods. The local food included sweet potatos, white potatos, different types of vegetables, and of course pig meat. The first day there we bought a pig and butchered it for meat with our meals. Some of our students killed the pig and ground up the meat. So needless to say, this is what I would call "roughing it".
One other thing we were able to do was to hike into different surrounding villages for 4 days and 3 nights. This was a very interesting experience. Each leader was in charge of 9 students and so 9 students and I hiked for a while through the mountains to get to the village of Sarabom. There we stayed in a traditional hut with the people for 3 nights. I am sure that you can not even imagine what this is like. The huts are round with a fire in the middle and a penned up pig in the hut as well. Our 6 girls slept in this area with around 9 other women and the pig with the fire in the middle. The hut is no bigger than about 15 feet in diameter, so you can imagine how the girls slept. Women and men rarely sleep in the same place and it just so happened that our house had a mans area attached to the round hut. It was a rectangle that 5 men slept "comfortably" if by comfortably you think of basically sleeping touching each other the entire night. What a time of group bonding! Also on the mens side there was no fire place and at the altitude that we were at it gets cold during the night. After the 3 nights of bonding we returned to Eipomek to our regular rooms.
The last chapel that we had students shared about the things that they had learned and it was interesting to listen to the stories of how God was working in their lives.
Experience of a lifetime and I am happy to be home. Thank you God for answering prayers.
Monday, January 21, 2008
Outdoor Education coming...
Outdoor Education is fast approaching which means that I will be flying into the interior of Papua with the entire high school and Janna and the kids will be at home. Please pray for me during this time. It is not an easy thing on our family and on the stress levels here at the school.
Janna started preschool yesterday with 12 students now attending and it went well. Kaya really loves been in school. Jalen also started school again and now is in school the entire day. One of the mothers volunteered to take the afternoons so now 1st grade is going all day. We are glad for this as Jalen now has more time in school. Kaya however misses her big brother around the house to play with. The kids always wake up and play with their "pals" together before they come bounding into our room. Kaya the morning that Jalen went to school really missed that.
The high school is headed into Eipomek this year for outdoor education which is in the highlands. I will be leaving Sunday on a Cessena Caravan and Heading to a village called Bimay for the night with 16 students. Then early the next morning a plane called the Pilatus will take us into Eipomek where we need to kill and butcher our own pigs for food. We will then stay in Eipomek doing work projects for the first 5 or 6 days after which time we will be hiking into a village. There are 8 groups hiking into 8 different villages. We are hiking in the mountains where the trails are a bit crazy. Me and 9 students will then be staying in huts for 3 nights with the people and then hiking back out to Eipomek. We will then stay there for a couple of nights and then catch flights back out to Sentani. We try to serve the people and the missionaries in this area. We hope that we can bring the love of God to the people of Eipomek.
Talk to you again when I get home. Darren From Papua OUT!
Janna started preschool yesterday with 12 students now attending and it went well. Kaya really loves been in school. Jalen also started school again and now is in school the entire day. One of the mothers volunteered to take the afternoons so now 1st grade is going all day. We are glad for this as Jalen now has more time in school. Kaya however misses her big brother around the house to play with. The kids always wake up and play with their "pals" together before they come bounding into our room. Kaya the morning that Jalen went to school really missed that.
The high school is headed into Eipomek this year for outdoor education which is in the highlands. I will be leaving Sunday on a Cessena Caravan and Heading to a village called Bimay for the night with 16 students. Then early the next morning a plane called the Pilatus will take us into Eipomek where we need to kill and butcher our own pigs for food. We will then stay in Eipomek doing work projects for the first 5 or 6 days after which time we will be hiking into a village. There are 8 groups hiking into 8 different villages. We are hiking in the mountains where the trails are a bit crazy. Me and 9 students will then be staying in huts for 3 nights with the people and then hiking back out to Eipomek. We will then stay there for a couple of nights and then catch flights back out to Sentani. We try to serve the people and the missionaries in this area. We hope that we can bring the love of God to the people of Eipomek.
Talk to you again when I get home. Darren From Papua OUT!
Monday, January 14, 2008
Janna feeling better...
Janna is feeling better from her case of dengue fever. Praise the Lord!
Well today was the first day back at school for the teachers. Wow that is a wake up call! I am currently at the school trying to figure everything out for the upcoming semester. Here is how it is shaping up. Joan (the english teacher) and I are trying to plan the 2 week OutDoor Education trip that the high school is doing. I am currently coaching 2 different Basketball teams, one in Indonesian and one in English. I am also still acting as the athletic director and trying to arrange all the games and tournaments. Okay all that to say it is going to be one hectic semester. Please pray that Janna and the kids have patience with the schedule that we are keeping.
Janna is going to continue to teach the preschool which has now ballooned to 12 students. Also working hard at home and helping out with some school things when she can.
Jalen is going to be attending school all day everyday this semester as the school has found another person to look after the 1st graders in the afternoons.
Lord give us energy to not miss the opportunities presented to us even though we are busy in life.
Well today was the first day back at school for the teachers. Wow that is a wake up call! I am currently at the school trying to figure everything out for the upcoming semester. Here is how it is shaping up. Joan (the english teacher) and I are trying to plan the 2 week OutDoor Education trip that the high school is doing. I am currently coaching 2 different Basketball teams, one in Indonesian and one in English. I am also still acting as the athletic director and trying to arrange all the games and tournaments. Okay all that to say it is going to be one hectic semester. Please pray that Janna and the kids have patience with the schedule that we are keeping.
Janna is going to continue to teach the preschool which has now ballooned to 12 students. Also working hard at home and helping out with some school things when she can.
Jalen is going to be attending school all day everyday this semester as the school has found another person to look after the 1st graders in the afternoons.
Lord give us energy to not miss the opportunities presented to us even though we are busy in life.
Sunday, January 06, 2008
2008...
2008 has come in like a bang! Bball, school, kids, beach, good times.
I must start off this blog by talking about the sermon that we heard yesterday. It is so interesting that he spoke on something that I have been thinking about lately, and actually talked to my parents on the phone about the other day. The whole concept that God is in control of everything and everything belongs to Him. The pastor talked about how this year we need to continue to go further in FAITH. Whatever happens this year God knows. He talked about giving over everything to Him again. Who do we want standing beside us? Someone who hesitates in battle or someone willing to fight the battle. We all want someone who is willing to die beside us in battle and we must battle against sin and evil like that. Would you rather die sitting around waiting to die or fighting for Christ?
Powerful stuff. The pastor told a story about how his eyesite is failing because of 20 years of malaria medicine. Basically his eyes have been damaged by the medicine. He got it checked and the doctors were amazed that he was still able to see. The specialist told him that he should lose both his eyes completly in the next little while. The pastor said he just sat there saying okay. The specialist repeated himself, you will lose your eyesite! Okay the pastor replied. Until the specialist was mad because of his reaction. The pastor then calmly explained how his body, his possesions, everything belonged to Christ and if Christ wanted to use him without his eyesite so be it. Powerful! He said if he could gauge out one eye to save Papua wouldn't that be a cheap price.
Thinking differently than the "world" thinks, what a concept. Why do we as Christians need constant reminding of this. If all of us were willing to die for Christ and lived each day of our lives with that mindset. All fear would be gone. Fear of meeting someone new, fear of speaking a different language, fear of evangelism, ... (My list goes on for a while). I know that when I step past that fear out here in Papua amazing things happen. Lord take the doubt away.
Wow that was a bit more of an intro than I expected to write in this blog. Christmas was great, we had a bunch of our Indonesian friends over and had a blast. Eating, jumping, playing games,... We continue to look for opportunities that God gives us to serve.
2008 how are we going live???
I must start off this blog by talking about the sermon that we heard yesterday. It is so interesting that he spoke on something that I have been thinking about lately, and actually talked to my parents on the phone about the other day. The whole concept that God is in control of everything and everything belongs to Him. The pastor talked about how this year we need to continue to go further in FAITH. Whatever happens this year God knows. He talked about giving over everything to Him again. Who do we want standing beside us? Someone who hesitates in battle or someone willing to fight the battle. We all want someone who is willing to die beside us in battle and we must battle against sin and evil like that. Would you rather die sitting around waiting to die or fighting for Christ?
Powerful stuff. The pastor told a story about how his eyesite is failing because of 20 years of malaria medicine. Basically his eyes have been damaged by the medicine. He got it checked and the doctors were amazed that he was still able to see. The specialist told him that he should lose both his eyes completly in the next little while. The pastor said he just sat there saying okay. The specialist repeated himself, you will lose your eyesite! Okay the pastor replied. Until the specialist was mad because of his reaction. The pastor then calmly explained how his body, his possesions, everything belonged to Christ and if Christ wanted to use him without his eyesite so be it. Powerful! He said if he could gauge out one eye to save Papua wouldn't that be a cheap price.
Thinking differently than the "world" thinks, what a concept. Why do we as Christians need constant reminding of this. If all of us were willing to die for Christ and lived each day of our lives with that mindset. All fear would be gone. Fear of meeting someone new, fear of speaking a different language, fear of evangelism, ... (My list goes on for a while). I know that when I step past that fear out here in Papua amazing things happen. Lord take the doubt away.
Wow that was a bit more of an intro than I expected to write in this blog. Christmas was great, we had a bunch of our Indonesian friends over and had a blast. Eating, jumping, playing games,... We continue to look for opportunities that God gives us to serve.
2008 how are we going live???
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