Saturday in Suva, Fiji

Hi everyone,
I just updated the blog with one story from the outreach to the remote island of Matuku. The picture of Jeannie on the path through the jungle with the cow in the background just emphasized to me how remote these places we go are.

We do have a satellite phone onboard the ship we can use if we need to but it is very expensive to use, so we limit it. We can use the satellite system to send email, however, it is very slow and also expensive, so we don't use it too much. So we rely on the few days between outreaches to check email, find out what's been going on in the world, catch up with friends and family...and mail, bills etc., etc.

It is a joy to be doing what we are doing. It has it's moments of justing wanting to get away, but overall it is very rewarding to see people come to know Jesus Christ and to allow us to help them in their walk with Christ as well.

Hebrews 6.10 speaks of the believer and the 'things which accompany salvation.' Specifically the writer is talking about the 'works' God calls us to. See Ephesians 2.8-11 also...good works which accompany salvation, or as a result of our salvation God involves us in his purposes in the earth...."Good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

I'll put a few pictures up here before I log off and head back to the ship for the evening.

I just heard about more about the Myanmar typhoon and the Earthquake in China. We miss so much while we are out on outreach...amazing.

I'll upload more pics to our web-album. See the link on the sidebar.

Mike

Outreach to Matuku Island Fiji

Tuesday’s gathering with the pastors went extremely well. All but one of the pastors from Matuku and many of their wives and lay pastors came.

We had morning tea and then did a welcome and presentation about YWAM and Marine Reach.

Mike shared from I Timothy 5.17 “The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honour, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching…” He spoke of how this meeting was not meant to try and turn people from their denominations, to praise one denomination over the other, but we had called them here to honour them for their hard work and toil in the ministry.

I remember a Fijian friend tell me that as a people Fijian’s typically look at white skinned people (Pahlungi) as being superior to them.

We, from New Zealand, have greater access to resources and the funds from which to draw to purchase those resources than do the Fijian people. We reemphasized that we are all one in Christ where there is no male nor female, black nor white, slave nor free. We come to encourage and build up our Fijian brethren, not to lord it over them or assume (Pahlungi) white skin is somehow holier. We always endeavour to respect and honour the people groups and culture of the islands. We come to resource them as we can to help their churches and communities.