4/ Papua New Guinea
On 17th January, 1996, I boarded a plane bound for Papua New Guinea. I was to start teaching at the Lae Technical College the following Monday, the 22nd. After a two day stopover in Port Moresby, the trip continued on to Lae. Common sense should have told me that a third world country isn't rich and that I need not have bought new suitcases; they only stood out amongst the tattered ones of the nationals who also left the plane at Nadzab airport. Mareg, the driver and also a lecturer from the college, was already waiting.
The scenery flashed passed the speeding bus. The whole trip resembled an obstacle course, as Mareg tried to avoid the huge potholes. What, with the swerving and the speed, it was not possible to take photos, so I just sat back and enjoyed the scenery.
There were small clusters of grass huts sheltering under tall palm trees. At intervals locals sat by the roadside selling their wares; kaukau, sweet potatoes, bananas, coconuts and yellowish green fruits, the size of a plum. Occasionally a pig could be seen looking for food in the rubbish that was lying around. The dogs looked mangy and very underfed.
Closer to the suburbs the grass huts were replaced by solid cement block dwellings. As in Port Moresby, the doors and windows were covered with heavy iron bars. All the signs pointed to heavy criminal activity, but from the safety of the bus I didn't worry about that. Once in town the place looked like a war zone, very high wire fences topped with razor wire, electric gates, blood hounds and security guards - all for the purpose of keeping out the "rascals" - criminals in Pidgin.
My new home was to be a two storey townhouse, in a complex of four. My neighbours on one side were a national doctor and his wife and their children. On the other side lived an African and his P.N.G wife. The last unit was empty. As it turned out Simon the African, was my boss and would give me a lift to and from work.
From day one, Anastasia, the doctor's wife, and I hit it off. As all nationals, that I worked with, or befriended, she was lovely and couldn't do enough for me. On my first visit to her home I was dismayed to see how sick their child was. On the floor lay a very thin child which appeared to be about 11 to 12 months old; in fact it was 17 months. The, eyes appeared over-large because of the bony face. My heart grieved because it was only too obvious that the child would not live past its 17 months. Although the father was a prominent doctor and the mother a nurse there was nothing they had been able to do. Even visits to Australian doctors in Port Moresby had been of no use. There was nothing that could be done about the hole in the heart, or the complications in the respiratory system.The following week I asked the parents to bring the child to my home, so that we could pray for him. Little Marcus had been baptised into the Catholic church. I now asked the parents to dedicate the child to Almighty God. Then I prayed according to Isaiah 53:5, claiming his healing."But because of our sins he was wounded, beaten because of the evil we did. We are healed by the punishment he suffered, made whole by the blows he received."
Nothing happened! There was no improvement at all in his condition. A week later as I was nursing the child, God spoke to me and told me to rebuke the spirit of infirmity. As I prayed earnestly for a few minutes, Marcus started to cough up mucus. Then he smiled and relaxed. After that prayer, the heartbeat and breathing became normal. The intake of food increased to the point where little rolls of fat were appearing, covering the ribs. Six weeks later for the first time, he started to crawl and two months later he was pulling himself up and walking by holding onto the furniture. Everybody that knew the family was amazed at the mighty miracle God had performed in Marcus.
People will ask how can a tiny baby have a demon in it that nearly caused it to die? The answer is simple. What the parents are involved in! After seeing the miracle in her child and hearing the message about Jesus Christ, Anastasia turned away from the church and instead asked God to forgive her for her sins and made Jesus Christ the Lord of her life. Shortly afterwards she followed Jesus through the waters of baptism. As she started to read the Bible she realised that much of what the Catholic church teaches is not true.
The Devil doesn't like it when you make a stand for Jesus, so one day at 7.30 in the morning, while on the way to work, Simon and I were held up at gun point. Even now I can see the man standing in the middle of the road, the sawn off shot-gun resting on his hip. The instant the car stopped a man with a bush knife pulled open the door, commanding me to get out. The same happened to Simon. The four men, two with guns and two with bush knives, then jumped into the car and sped off. The two of us were left standing on the road with nothing but our clothes. As the policeman later commented, we had been 'lucky' because I hadn't been dragged into the bushes and raped.
Just when I was getting over the armed hold up, the townhouse was broken into one night. My terrified screams brought the neighbours running. The criminals fled before they could be caught. As I couldn't bear to stay in the townhouse once it had been broken into, the college moved me to its motel units. At least I could breathe easily again.
One night my colleague and friend, Mary, together with her fiance John, came to visit me. During the course of the evening John told me how he had been sick for many years, suffering from chest pains, headaches, constipation and other intestinal problems. The doctors couldn't help and finally he had to give up his well paid job as an accountant. Before the pair left, John asked me to pray for him. I said a simple prayer asking God to let his intestines function properly and rebuked the parasites feeding on him. The chest pains and headaches were a result of the abdominal problems, so God caused me to pray for a mighty anointing of peace from the Holy Spirit.
The distance from the motel unit to their house was only a ten minute walk, but by the time they had arrived, John needed to go to the toilet. He hadn't done that for a long time without the aid of medication. The chest pains and headaches also disappeared. Praise God for the mighty work done in John's body.
After being healed and hearing the message about God's salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ, Mary left the Catholic church and John left the Lutheran church. Reading the Bible on a daily basis, both could see that what the two churches were teaching didn't add up. Neither had found peace of mind, joy or healing, in the church they had attended, but they found it, and more, through a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
A few weeks later I made the following diary entry. "Wow, today I had the privilege of baptising Mary and John. What a mighty change God has performed in their lives. They are both beaming."
When the criminals attempted to break into the motel unit on two occasions, I decided to move in with Mary. At last I felt safe.
Before the couple had become Christians, they had ignored the poor and the crippled on the street. Now, they decided to go to the hospital and bring food to the sick children. One day I offered to take John's place. From then on Mary and I made regular visits every Friday afternoon straight after work. First however, we had to rush to the local market, before it closed, to buy the food. Finally, laden with bananas, raw peanuts, sugar fruit, hard boiled eggs and whatever else we could find that was easy to eat, we entered the children's ward.
Jesus said: John 8:31
"If you obey my teaching, you are really my disciples", and Mark 16:1717) "Believers will be given the power to perform miracles; they will drive out demons in my name; they will speak in strange tongues;
18) if they pick up snakes or drink any poison, they will not be harmed; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."
Being a disciple of Jesus Christ, I put Mark 16:17&18 into practice and saw many mighty miracles as I prayed for the children. There were many cases of malaria, both in tiny babies and older children. In one instance we had just entered the ward when we heard a seven or eight year old child sobbing loudly. He was terribly distressed. After Mary had asked permission to pray, I sank to my knees beside his low bed. I placed my hand on his little forehead which was burning up. As I prayed the crying stopped and the child fell asleep. Miraculously within minutes the temperature also returned to normal.
There were also many cases of tuberculosis. After weeks of prayer, the children's health improved dramatically and they were able to leave the hospital. Mary and I were overjoyed to see empty beds the next week, or hear parents tell us how God had performed a miracle in their child. Such was the case of a nine months old baby I had prayed for. The child's head had almost been twice its size, yet the swelling went down completely just after we left. In two other cases children had been in a coma for ten and fourteen days. After prayer both children regained consciousness - praise God.
On day we came to a couple who were holding twins. One was healthy and the other one was sick. The babies were only three weeks old. I said a simple prayer for the sick child and left it at that. The next week the couple were still there. I asked them how the child was and found out that there had been no change. Only when the father accidently moved the blanket did I get a good look at the baby. The eyes were staring wildly and the little face was twisted into ugly grimaces. Instantly I knew that I was dealing with a spirit of infirmity. The Devil is ugly and tries to make God's perfect creation ugly. I prayed very firmly under my breath, commanding the demon to leave the child. Without touching the child in any way it responded by crying. When I had finished I asked Mary to ask the parents if they had any dealings with evil. The answer was, "yes", a witch doctor. So here was the answer why one child was healthy and beautiful and the other one sick and ugly. Praise God, although that demon had to go and did, it took a few weeks for the physical damage to be repaired.
God also performed a mighty miracle in a child whose body was unbelievably swollen. The head looked like a balloon, on top of another balloon, the neck. The stomach of the child looked like she was twelve months pregnant. The mother next week was very happy to see us, and couldn't stop praising God enough for having healed her daughter.
I get so angry when I hear religious people tell me that it is God's will for them to be sick. The God I serve does not take delight in seeing people suffer, only Satan does. Somebody once mentioned to me that Joni, who is a paraplegic, was a blessing to people who had read her book. I must admit I was stumped for a moment and asked the Holy Spirit to give me wisdom. I asked the person, what would they rather be: me, healed from paralysis, or Joni still flat on her back? I also asked what was more glorifying for God, a healthy or a sick person? He couldn't answer me on both accounts.
Through our months of going to the hospital I was very proud of Mary. First she just translated the message of Jesus into Pidgin and watched as I prayed, but gradually I encouraged her, a baby Christian, to also pray. As she prayed, believing, she saw miracles and grew at a rapid rate. If we are to be true disciples of Jesus we can't just soak up a lot of information and never put it into practice.
James 2:14,17,24
14) My brothers, what good is it for someone to say that he has faith if his actions do not prove it? Can that faith save him?
17) So it is with faith: if it is alone and includes no actions, then it is dead.
24) You see, then, that it is by his actions that a person is put right with God and not by his faith alone.
God taught me that lesson, many years earlier, in Australia. It looked as if I had broken my arm, judging by the swelling and pain. I prayed for healing, but the pain still persisted. Two days later it had gotten to the stage where I couldn't even hold a knife and fork. God spoke to me and said, "Do you believe that you are healed?"
"Yes Lord."
"Then act like it."
I picked up the knife and fork and persisted in eating my meal. The longer I used the cutlery, the less the pain!
Let's go back to Papua New Guinea. God is not just into the business of healing the body, but also into restoring the mind. I made the following entry in my diary:
I went to the Hospitality & Tourism Department this morning. One of the teachers commented that George had cheated in the exam, his mark being 100%. My response was, "No, God has performed a miracle".
For four months George had failed every test and assignment I had given him. The marks being in the range of 8, 7, 12 out of a 100. It amazed me how he had ever gotten into the course. A few weeks ago I had said to him that he needed to cry out to God to help him. For not only were his marks poor in my subject, but all the others as well. He did as I suggested.
From then on his marks jumped to the 50s and 60s in my subject and now to top it off he had managed to get 100% in another subject. God had indeed performed a mighty miracle.
Many years before a similar thing had happened in Australia. A lady rang me and asked would I tutor her son. When he had improved dramatically, I was asked to tutor the daughter as well. Melanie was in Year 9 and couldn't cope with English. The homework tasks I set were sometimes done very well, at other times the quality was very poor.
Considering how much the parents were paying me I became annoyed and told my student that she needed to work harder, or I wouldn't be teaching her anymore. At that comment the child became very distressed and cried saying that she did try very hard. I felt terrible. As I sat there God put it on my heart to ask Him to help Melanie. Amazingly for the next four weeks the child's performance was brilliant. The mother thought that I was a great teacher, but I had to set her straight on the fact that God had unravelled her daughter's mind and my teaching had nothing to do with her performance.
Alas, five weeks later Melanie's performance was worse than ever before. I was shocked, what now?? I asked God what had gone wrong. The answer was simple. I had asked on Melanie's behalf - fine, but now Melanie was to ask God herself. At the age of fifteen she was old enough to make a decision. I told her what God had said. She asked Jesus into her heart and for his help in her school work. She did well in her School Certificate, and the subsequent T.A.F.E course. Finally she ended up working for a solicitor. God's miracles are not confined to any particular place on earth, be it Australia or Papua New Guinea, on the coast at Lae, or the Highlands.
During the Easter break I was delighted to receive an invitation from a fellow colleague and friend to go with her to Chimbu for the bride-price ceremony of her sister. Kama and all the other relatives who were going, had hired a 25 seater bus for the trip. The journey started at 6.30 a.m and by 7 a.m the bus was already on the outskirts of Lae.
The first stop was at 40 Mile, one and a half hours later. If the bus seemed overloaded with the thirty-five people who had piled into it earlier; now, with the added bags of beetle nut and coconuts, plus other produce purchased from the roadside market; the little vehicle was bursting at the seams. Just as well Kama had asked the driver to let me have the front seat. The view was better and I could rest my legs on the dashboard, there was nowhere else to put them.
Forty minutes outside Goroka we stopped for a meal. Half on hour later the bus stopped again, this time in the middle of nowhere, between the slopes of an embankment. Half the bus immediately scrambled out. Puzzled I looked at Kama. She in return whispered, "the toilet stop". I had also gotten out of the bus and before I knew it Agnus, Kama's sister and her cousin Mai, grabbed me by the hand and pulled me up the slippery clay slope. Once on top, half a dozen men could be seen standing in a row with their backs to the people watering the countryside. With the help of my friends I avoided excrement already there and looked for a place where I could squat in the high grass.
This was a toilet with a view. As you looked at the surrounding mountains and saw the hawks circling overhead, it was easy to take your mind off the business at hand. Just as well I always carry tissues with me, but even if I hadn't, a roll of toilet paper was being handed around.
The next stop was high in the mountains, a police car blocked the road. On this, the second police search, the aim was not to look for criminals, drugs or inspect the road worthiness of the vehicle, but see if alcohol was being smuggled into the Highlands. While the police checked our bags, we had a chance to stretch our legs and admire the view. The scenery was magnificent and could best be compared to the Swiss Alps in summer. Unlike Switzerland though, where solid stone houses form little villages, here small thatched huts and the surrounding vegetable gardens, clung like leeches to the mountainside.
As everybody climbed back into the bus, Kama said,
"Two more kilometres and we'll be home."
When the bus finally stopped we had travelled for six and a half hours. There were only two or three thatched huts beside the road and I questioned Kama whether this was the whole village. She only laughed and waved her hand over the whole hillside. Nestled amongst the avocado trees, sugar cane stalks, tall pine trees and hibiscus bushes, were another 40 to 50 huts. In the distance, a massive mountain served as a backdrop.
Kama explained that there was a track winding over the mountain, into the next valley. The women preferred to grow their yams, taro and kaukau in that valley because they felt that the vegetables tasted sweeter. I couldn't believe Kama. How could anybody climb up and over that mountain and then dig a garden? Kama also pointed out that the women usually carry a small child on their shoulders and hang a bilum on their head, to carry the vegetables as well. I couldn't help but feel we were talking about pack-horses, not women!
People took it in turn to push and pull me up the muddy hillside. Finally halfway up the hill we entered a clearing and were welcomed by piercing war cries. About 25 to 35 natives sat on plastic mats and a railing around the clearing. Without hesitation I walked up to the nearest person shook their hand and greeted them in Pidgin. Immediately three plastic chairs were brought out. One for the oldest women in the village, one for Kama and one for myself. I felt like royalty sitting on that chair. The old lady, 80 years plus - just sat and held my hand. I was the first white woman to have ever visited the village.
Kama's family owned the buildings around the clearing. There was the large hut, called the men's or boy's hut. The round house accommodated the women and the children. The other two huts were the kitchen and slightly behind it, the toilet. The boy's hut was divided into one large room and two smaller rooms. The large room contained a platform on which all the men slept. The idea being that if there was a raid on the village, all the men would be in one place, to fight off the attack.
The two rooms contained a single bed each. One room had been set aside for the bridegroom, the other room for me. While resting that afternoon, on a very comfortable bed, I couldn't help but wonder at the coming together of two cultures. A modern bed, in a hut where the walls, ceiling and floor were made of artistically woven grass. The curtain, a piece of cotton, with a large green, white and purple floral design, not only kept the cold out - to a degree - but also provided privacy.
After an hour's rest I once again mingled with the villagers. I couldn't get over how friendly everybody was. The women and children couldn't stop hugging me and stroking my blonde hair. I returned their affection, much to their delight. As Kama was busy with the preparation of her sister's bride-price ceremony, her relatives took me on a guided tour through the village.
The first point of interest were two pigs which had been slaughtered, to provide a meal for everybody. The carcasses were thrown onto a roaring fire. After a little while they were pulled off again and opened up to make sure that they were not sick, or full of parasites. From there on my new found friends showed me the rest of the village, which meant climbing a fair way up the hillside. Where ever we went people would come out of their huts to see the 'white meri', white woman.
During my socialising I met Pastor Lucas from the Four Square Church. In the course of conversation I shared with him the many miracles God had allowed me to see, over a period of time. When the man left later that night he asked me to speak at their church service the following Sunday morning.
When Pastor Lucas picked me up on Sunday morning I was ready and waiting, dressed in the traditional clothes Kama's mother had given me, a meri blouse and long wrap around skirt. As we neared his village and the area where the church service was to be held, Pastor Lucas apologised for the fact that the congregation would be sitting on logs, in the open air. Apparently the church had been too poor to afford a building.
Before I knew what had happened, I was telling the man that he didn't have to worry about money, for all that he needed to build a building was right in front of him and free of charge. Pastor Lucas looked surprised. "Why do you want to build a western style church, where you will need a lot of building materials, which are expensive, when you can build a traditional P.N.G. building with the wood and grass right before your very eyes?" I asked. "You're right," he agreed. "Besides the corrugated iron is not only very expensive, but hot."
Poor Pastor Lucas, the religious pictures were the next topic of discussion. On a raised platform, which acted as the pulpit, there was a large picture of a man supposedly representing Jesus. Gently and politely I asked how the people could be sure that Jesus looked like that. Then I pointed out that every supposed picture I had ever seen of Jesus, had been different and looked like some pretty pin-up boy. Pastor Lucas could see my point and admitted to having been prompted by the Holy Spirit to get rid of the pictures. He assured me that he would get rid of them soon. I asked him what was wrong with now! For a moment he hesitated, but then went and tore down all the religious pictures and threw them into the fire.
The singing of the natives was so enjoyable that I cannot find words to express myself. To my way of thinking dark skinned people seem to have much richer voices. Pastor Lucas' friend, Jerry, the secretary to the Chimbu governor, interpreted for me. After the service Pastor Lucas asked people if there was anybody who wanted prayer. As the pastor and I prayed for people, God touched their hearts, spirits and bodies. In one case a woman who couldn't walk, left her crutch lying on the ground. Another woman who was partially blind in both eyes, immediately received perfect sight. God is indeed a miracle worker.
After lunch which consisted of traditional food, such as kaukau, kumu (local spinach), sweet potato, rice, stewed chicken and fresh fruit, I was taken to a hut to pray for a woman who couldn't have children. As the couple sat opposite me, I shocked myself by saying, "There's nothing wrong with her, he's got the problem." The Holy Spirit had revealed to me that there was nothing wrong with the woman, but that the husband was infertile due to the illness he had had as a child. Jerry interpreted what I had said and the man agreed that I had spoken the truth. I went on to say that if God could make Abraham's sperm fertile in his old age, he could also bring to life this man's sperm.
Next I was taken to another village to pray for two women who had been sent home from hospital to die. One had throat cancer and the other breast cancer. Jerry and Pastor Lucas, plus other people from their village had accompanied us. Both women were housed in the same hut. After I had greeted the women and their relatives, I requested that everybody who was not a firm believer, should leave the hut. In the end only Jerry, Pastor Lucas, the two patients and I were left. I asked the Holy Spirit to tell me how to pray and to anoint my hands with Jesus' healing power. The mighty presence of God was felt in that hut as I prayed. In each case I was given a different prayer, based upon the Bible.
God performed a mighty miracle of healing in both women, but now certain principles needed to be followed in the natural. The Bible tells us that, "To have faith is to be sure of things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see." So in my heart I believed that the women were healed, but their wasted bodies indicated otherwise. So God instructed me to say the following to the relatives and friends of the patients, who had once again entered the hut.
Time was needed for the wasted bodies to repair. First of all the smoking fire was to be put out and the cooking was to be done outside the hut. Every morning, or afternoon the women were to be carried out into the sun and fresh air. Although I only have a limited knowledge of nutrition, God gave me some amazing ideas on healthy light meals. The food items were all easily available in, or around the village. After all, when Jesus raised the little girl from the dead, the first thing he did was to tell the parents to feed her.
Pastor Lucas interpreted in Pidgin what I had said. The husband from the woman who had suffered from throat cancer then started a lively discussion. Although I could only speak a few words of Pidgin, God interpreted the conversation for me and I found myself saying, "Stop. How dare you say that your wife cannot eat because her throat has been eaten up by the cancer. God is a mighty God, who can and already has repaired the damage done to your wife's throat." Everybody stared at me in horror because they knew that I did not understand the language and only God could have told me what was going on. My words did much to destroy the man's unbelief.
After my stay in the Highlands I was invited to go for four days to Madang. Agnus had invited me to visit her mother and stepfather in the settlement. Here again God combined the supernatural with the physical in a mighty way.
Life in the settlement is different to that in the Highlands. Houses are more solid. Michael, Agnus' stepfather, had built himself a house made of wooden planks, set on steel pipes and wooden beams. Steps led up to the verandah and front door. The roof was made of corrugated iron. The outdoor shower was a novelty: the type you see in an army film, four posts and a bit of material for privacy.
Just as in the Highlands, people were very kind to me. My first opportunity to talk about Jesus came when Agnus told me about the sore her stepfather had on his leg (on and off) for the last twenty years. When Michael rolled up his trouser leg I was horrified, the wound, the size of a man's hand had eaten deep into the flesh. After sharing the message of Jesus with Michael and his wife Marie, I offered to pray for him. In my heart I knew that Michael didn't believe God could heal him.
The second day in Madang was very pleasant with sightseeing trips in and around the town. The resort areas, situated on the waterfront were especially attractive. Later that evening I found myself playing nurse to Agnus' ten year old stepbrother, Roy. The boy had a cut deep cut in his foot. First I cleansed the wound with salt water, then I wrapped a bandage around it. Finally I used the clean serviette I had brought home that day from one of the resorts, to cushion the child's walk. Just as I had finished a visitor appeared at the open front door. As I was kneeling my eyes were exactly level with the huge tropical sores that had almost eaten away the woman's leg, especially the shin area. I called out to my hosts that there was somebody at the door.
The woman, a neighbour, had never set foot in the front door in twelve years, yet here she was, 7.30 at night. Nobody could work out why she had come, but from the minute she sat down her leg became the focus of our attention. A year ago she had fallen and the flesh had not healed, instead the infection had spread. The day before she had come home from a two day hospital stay, but they hadn't even cleaned the wound. I was disgusted at what I saw. To simply pray for healing and leave the leg in that filthy, pussy state would have been pointless. I asked Marie for boiled water which I poured into a baby bath. Next I poured salt into the water. I then asked her to put her leg over the baby bath, with the foot resting on the edge.
The first time I poured the salty water into the wound, she screamed from pain. Nonetheless, I sat there and thoroughly cleaned the wound from all dirt, dead skin, pus and even small pieces of gravel. When I had finished, my dilemma was, how to keep the wound clean, considering I had just used the last bit of bandage on Roy's foot. "What now God?" Instantly the thoughts came to me to ask Marie to get me a new shoot from the banana tree. The shoot was still tightly rolled up, therefore sterile. I poured oil over the wound, then used half of the banana leaf as a shield, which I tied on at the knee and ankle. The banana leaf would not stick to the wound, yet it would keep it clean during the night. I suggested that the wound be exposed to the sun during the day, to dry it out.
After all that I prayed for healing. The next morning the neighbour came with her husband to tell me that for the first time in a year she had been able to sleep without pain and that she could walk much better. She not only had told her husband about how I cleaned and prayed for her leg, but the message about Jesus. When I told my two doctor friends, back in Lae, about how I had treated the leg, under God's direction, they were amazed. Neither one would have thought of using a banana leaf to keep the wound clean. God is indeed a miracle working God, who delights in helping his children, if only they would come to Him.
Even as I was standing in line, waiting at the airport, God spoke to me about Michael. God had sent the neighbour to his house as proof that he is a miracle working God and just as He had healed the woman's leg, He could do the same for Michael. When I relayed the message he smiled sheepishly, because his unbelief had been exposed.
On my return to Lae I shared the events of the Highlands and Madang with Mary, John and the T.S.C.F (Tertiary Students Christians Fellowship) group. (Two months after my arrival I was asked to be the spiritual mother of the college.) Everybody was excited to hear about the mighty move of God, for many people accepted Jesus Christ as their Saviour and were baptised. I also told the people how I pointed the new Christians in the direction of a church, which I knew was teaching correct doctrine. In the case of the Highlands, I most certainly felt the presence of God's Holy Spirit in Pastor Lucas and that church. I get annoyed when I hear people talk about "revival", which is to come. I've seen the mighty hand of God working in people's lives now, for the last twenty years. Revival has always been with us. It's just a matter whether God the Holy Spirit is moving in the life of the person who is preaching the Word.
Besides teaching Technical Communications during the day, I taught the T.S.C.F group (and a constant stream of visitors), about prayer every Wednesday night. On Sunday night, Jesus would help me give a Bible message relevant to their life, e.g relationships, cutting the cords with the past, Heavy Metal music and its influence etc. Because many turned to Jesus, Thursday night became the night to teach baby Christians the basics. Tuesday nights I led the prayer group. During one of these meetings, God showed me a vision.
My diary entry for the 25th April, 1996 reads:
The seven of us had an absolutely wonderful prayer meeting. God put it on my heart to pray for the college first. Then Victor (President of the T.S.C.F group) prayed for the student's forum. Instead of me continuing to pray for other matters, God caused me to pray for the six people at the prayer meeting. As I started to pray, this is what I saw:
A vessel, or container, that had a rather fat belly, but narrowed to a neck. The top of the neck curved slightly outwards. The handle, curved up and over the curved part of the neck, being attached to both sides. As I saw the vessel the words from Jeremiah 15:20 came to me.
"I will make you like a solid bronze wall as far as they are concerned. They will fight against you, but they will not defeat you. I will be with you to protect you and keep you safe."
Obviously the vessel was made out of bronze. A hand was polishing a part of the belly section and it was shining. The rest of the vessel was dull and oxidised.
Then I saw glowing coals being put into the vessel. The meaning being that God would purify us like pure gold from the inside. Then the verse from Revelation 5:8 came to me:
"...Each had a harp and gold bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of God's people."
As we were in the middle of a prayer meeting that Bible verse indicated to me that our prayers were being heard. What's more, they were like sweet incense to God. Ephesians 5:10 says:
Try to learn what pleases the Lord."
God had spoken through my daughter Sonja, in 1985 (when she was 18) through a Word of Knowledge, that it pleased Him when we pray for others.
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Mark my words a time shall come to pass like no other time has been before. People will search for Me, but will not find me, as I have waited for them so long to turn to me, but they were too busy living their own selfish lives. I love my people who serve and obey me. Peace be with my people. Remember to read my Word daily and pray to me for I shall answer you, as a father would answer his son. I want to be your friend, not your enemy.
Those who sincerely seek me will find me. The Holy Spirit is only too willing to help his people in need, or just to comfort them. I know the desires of your hearts, the good ones and the bad.
It pleases me when you pray and cry out for each other. Seek me, I want to save everyone, not just some of the people I have created. Look to me when you have a problem, not to others or horoscopes. They tell lies. I am one of truth. Follow me and I will give you rest. So many search, but never find me because there is no-one praying for them to be saved. It is only through Me life is gained and truth is found. Remember this my people, pray for others.
Although the above had happened in 1985, now twelve years later in P.N.G, God was once again letting me, and the others know how much it pleased Him when we pray for others. In fact our prayers were incense to Him; a sweet smelling aroma.
I believe it was the continued prayer efforts that brought about a breakthrough in the spiritual. New people came on a regular basis on the Wednesday and Sunday night meetings. The Holy Spirit touched hearts as they sat in their seats. I suppose I can relate this experience to something God showed me while I was walking through the village at Chimbu. Each hut had a beautiful garden around it and the children and adults who were accompanying me had picked a bunch of flowers. There was a dahlia which had been beautiful, but a worm had half eaten it, thus making it ugly. So it was with the people who came to the meetings, God had created them beautiful, but the devil and every-day living had nibbled at God's perfect creation. To me all black people are beautiful, but after the Holy Spirit had touched their hearts, they seemed even more beautiful.
I thank God for helping me with the sermons on Sunday night. There was a particular move of the Holy Spirit after the topic of Heavy Metal music. My diary entry for 30th April shows:
Praise God for his mighty working power. Today, after class, six students came after 3 o'clock and wanted to know why they shouldn't be involved in Heavy Metal music. As Heavy Metal music is of the Devil (and I explained to them why) they needed to make a choice between Jesus Christ and the Devil. At 4.30 p.m a student asked to speak to me privately. She wanted to ask Jesus into her heart.
At 5.45 p.m Donna and Michelle came back and I had the privilege to lead them to Jesus Christ. Even as I was leading those two through prayer George arrived and also wanted to ask Jesus into his heart. Praise you precious Father, praise you Lord Jesus, praise you Holy Spirit.
Thursday 2nd May
People started to arrive for the baby Christian class just after 3 o'clock when the Technical Communications classes finished. I finally finished at 5 p.m. Eight students in all had attended. The discussion had been on, Cutting the Cords. Two people needed the cords of martial arts cut. The rest are coming at appointed times to be prayed for.
I thank my God that I have the privilege of working for Him.
The baby Christians were growing at such a rapid rate that by the 1st of June during a baptism in the river, I felt God telling me to give Hacca the opportunity to baptise. The idea being to have her become a disciple of Jesus Christ. For we only become disciples if we follow Jesus' commandments and actually put our faith into action.
The entry for June 18th, is bitter sweet. It indicates the closing chapter of my stay in P.N.G as well as showing evidence of God's mighty works.
Today I had a farewell afternoon tea for some of my friends. Anastasia came with the children and it was a real blessing to see Marcus walking, by holding on to the furniture.
About four or five weeks ago I had prayed for Grace. She was suffering greatly from arthritis all down the left side of her body. At times the pain was so great that she couldn't even hold a pen. Praise God for healing her, for she has had no more pain.
The above entry reminds me of an incident at the Principal's house. My Muslim friends had been nursing me at their home, when I was sick with malaria. After criminals broke in I couldn't bear to stay there any longer and accepted the Principal's offer to stay at his home, till I was better. On the second night, I asked him how work had been. He complained about the pain in his hands, due to arthritis.
Later that night, as I was too sick to sleep, God put it on my heart to pray for the Principal. I was to ask God to fill the man's hands with His healing power and rebuke the arthritis, commanding it to leave. The next evening I again asked the Principal how his day had been, especially where his hands were concerned. The answer was, "good" to both issues. I told him that I had prayed about his hands and God had healed them. To that statement he just laughed, being a total unbeliever. The response made me angry and although I was a guest in his house I shocked myself and him, with my prayer before eating. (Of course I had asked if I could say a prayer for my food.) As he patiently waited to start eating I prayed the following:
"Oh Lord my God I thank you from the bottom of my heart for healing Richard's hands, even if he doesn't appreciates it, or believes in you."
Maybe my illness had made me unusually bold, I don't know, but I just had the urge to thank God. As the man sat stunned (with the food he had cooked, almost becoming cold), I told him about some of the mighty miracles God had performed. Four weeks later I asked him how his hands were. He replied, "Your magic is still working."
To that I replied, "God is a miracle working God isn't He?" He just smiled.
At the end of May I gave four weeks notice to my employers. The constant
attacks on my life, plus the near fatal bout of malaria was just too much.
I know God sent me to that country and I loved being there. The students,
all adults, some even in their late forties and fifties were a pleasure
to teach. I made a lot of friends, both amongst the nationals and the expatriots.
Some found the weather too hot, but working in air conditioning was pleasant
and the swims after work were very enjoyable. I would have loved to have
stayed ten years, most certainly I would have fulfilled my three year contract,
as it was I stayed only five and a half months. In that time I saw more
miracles than some people see in five and a half years, or maybe all their
life!
1/ Fiji
2/ Egypt
3/ Israel
4/ Papua New Guinea
5/ Forgive or I cannot forgive you
6/ Jesus still heals today
7/ Suicide
8/ Long Bay Gaol
9/ Attempted murder
10/ Bathurst Gaol
11/ Angels
12/ How to pray
13/ Cords
14/ Counting the cost
15/ The heart condition
16/ Lorraine
17/ Dracula - fact or fiction
18/ If you love me
19/ Being gay
20/ Faith
21/ Roots
22/ Malaysia
23/ Fiji revisited - 1997
24/ What Jesus means to me
25/ My diary entries
26/ Conclusion