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"Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness."

Psalm 37:3

MISSIONARIES TO THE PATPATAR PEOPLE REACH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY

Aaron and Lori, and their partners Butch and Tammy are preparing literacy and Bible lessons for the Patpatar people.

December 17, 2007

by Dena McMaster

The missionary team ministering to the Patpatar people in Papua New Guinea reached a huge landmark last week.

"We're moving on! We can't believe it," wrote missionary Lori Luse. "Culture and language study is officially over. We'll never be completely finished and we'll always be learning along the way as we live among the Patpatar people."

A missionary skilled in language learning visited missionaries Butch and Tammy Kunzer and Aaron and Lori Luse to evaluate their progress and help them reach their goal of teaching God's Word to the Patpatar tribal group.

Aaron and Butch satisfactorily met all the criteria to begin preparing literacy and Bible lessons. Lori is hoping to finish her culture and language study by July of next year. Tammy did very well in the testing and will study until she reaches proficiency.

"What would you say," wrote Lori, "if someone asked you, 'How does your language handle thematic (foreground) vs. non-thematic (background) material in discourse?'"

That was one of many questions that the team was asked during their language testing. Having skillfully and successfully answered those questions, they now face a series of even more difficult questions, such as "How do you best teach a broad range of Patpatar people how to read and write their own language so they can read God's Word for themselves?"

Please pray for the missionary team as they to prepare lessons to teach the Patpatar. Pray that the Bible lessons will be clear and understandable and that they will speak to the hearts of the Patpatar people.