Hom Sweet Hom, Full Circle, Anisha's Writing, Adopting Again!

Wamena, Papua, Indonesia Click the images below to view the videos: Join us on an EMS flight to the village of Mobiangama where we bring out a patient to the hospital in town.  After landing initially we had to relocate the helicopter to pick up the patient who was unable to walk up the steep path to the heli pad. Every year the team here does search and rescue training with winching and rappelling.  This year I was able fly for the training mission. Hom Sweet Hom: January 2016 At the beginning of November we passed the one year mark living in our Wamena home on Hom Hom street. It has been so nice to really unpack and finally turn a house into our home! We’ve painted, hand built furniture, sewed curtains, and planted veggies in our garden. We’ve found our routine and after the last three years of constant change and relocation it feels wonderful to settle into even the most mundane days. While Ben is out flying, Isaiah and I home school and look after our two dogs, two cats (+ new kittens!), and 7 chickens. We shop at the market, cook, clean, visit friends, and receive plenty of visitors at home too. On Tuesday mornings I host a Pre-School Story Book Club at our home with 6-8 children and their moms. We read stories, do crafts, and play.  It’s a lot of fun! We finished off 2015 with a Pancakes and Pyjamas Christmas Party. Everyone is looking forward to starting the club back up in the New Year. Full Circle The last time we wrote, Ben was flying with the Chief Pilot for training/familiarisation before starting any solo missions. These days he’s come full circle and is now putting his Flight Instructor Certificate to good use flying those same training/familiarisation flights with our team’s newer pilots. Of many very memorable flights, one highlight was flying the very first Wano missionaries. Here’s the story… With support from the Helimission helicopter, in 2004 missionaries moved into the village of Mokandoma to learn the local language and culture.  Their goal to teach chronologically through the bible and introduce the Wano people to Jesus, their Saviour. After many years of helicopter support, the village eventually completed work on an airstrip and could be served by aeroplanes. The Wano people did receive the gospel and a church was started, but they initially didn’t see the need or feel the desire to share the gospel message with surrounding villages. However, after several years of discipleship the Wano believers caught the vision for missions and with training from missionaries decided to reach out to two villages where the people spoke the same language. As one of the villages could not be reached by plane, Helimission was was called upon to fly in some of the Wano missionaries. What a privilege to be a part of the gospel not only arriving to the Wano, but to now serve the Wano as they reach out to other villages! (Mike from New Tribes Missions introducing the new village to the local Wano Evangelists) Anisha’s Writing The Papuan life stories project continues. Once all the stories are written we plan to publish them here locally and create a website for the English versions. These stories are special because the Indonesian versions are written in everyday language. Most publications here are written in high/proper Indonesian making them difficult to understand as the majority reading comprehension levels rarely exceed third grade level. It was so encouraging to give the stories a test run with a friend and hear him describe them as excellently written, moving, and challenging to his faith. We’re praying that God will use these stories to encourage believers and to reach out to unbelievers, both here in the Baliem valley and the English versions on-line. Although the website is yet to be created, here’s a life story sneak peek: Danika's Story Also, this summer I joined the team of monthly writers for the missions website A Life Overseas. It’s been a wonderful privilege to write for a large community of missionaries and overseas workers. Posts on A Life Overseas: So This Is Christmas The Anchor and The Hurricane If I’m Perfect Posts on Nama Saya Mommy: Love Thy Neighbour (unless they’re obnoxious) Sometimes Ministry Sucks: Theology for Wounded Hearts We’ve Saved the Most Exciting News for Last: We’re Adopting Again! We’ve started the home study process for a second adoption! We had thought adopting while we live in Indonesia would be next to impossible, so were thrilled to find out that there are agencies who work with expats. We also met new friends who live out in a tribe our helicopter supports and are themselves adopting internationally. After watching their adoption process, spending months researching agencies and countries, we’ve made the leap and started the process! We have until the end of the home study process to decide on a country. We’re hoping to bring home a 0-2 year old daughter in 12-14 months. Thank you for your encouragement, prayers, and support. We couldn't do this without you! Sincerely, Ben, Anisha & Isaiah  PRAYER REQUESTS · Continued language acquisition · Visa renewals - This is extremely challenging at the moment, with several families affected - us included. · The adoption process