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| Carol showing her granddaughter how to make a grass whistle |
How we got here
During our third year at New Brunswick Bible Institute in Canada, Gene told the Lord,
"I said I would go anywhere and do anything for you, but you know and I know that I'm not willing to go to the jungle. Help me to be willing."
Within a short time after subscribing to New Tribes Mission's publication, NTM at Work, his prayer became,
"Lord, please give me the privilege of taking the gospel to some people in the jungle who have never heard."
In 1985, after completing NTM's Specialized Training, we became God's channels to the Manobo people of the Philippines.
Carol's Testimony
As a young girl, I used to steal money from my mother and lie to my sister. God made it very clear to me that I am a sinner, deserving punishment in Hell. During "confirmation" I understood that Jesus had died for my sins. Because the Gospel sounded so wonderful and simple, I assumed everyone who heard it believed. I didn't realize until later in life that many of my family and friends never saw themselves as sinners needing a Savior.
In college I met Gene, who wasn't a believer, and married him. I had never heard that a believer shouldn't marry an unbeliever. I figured that eventually he would listen and believe. - How could anyone not believe the Good News that Jesus paid for his sins? After we were married I attended whatever church, but I still wasn't learning much. We eventually moved to Maine and our two children and I attended a small Bible believing church where the pastor was teaching through Exodus. It was great! Finally, I was getting some good teaching, and I loved it.
For many years I would ask Gene to go to church with the kids and me, but he didn't. At this time we had been married for 13 years.
Gene's Testimony
Although my family did not attend church, I had a consciousness of God. When I was 6 I shot and killed a Chickadee with my BB gun. The rest of that day I lived in fear that God would strike me down. It was while majoring in photography that I met and married Carol. In the 70's I quit professional photography and became part of the "back to the land" movement. At that time Carol and I had two children, Michelle and James. We spent the next few years building and living in log houses in the Maine woods.
During all those years I often questioned people (except Carol) about their religion, but found nothing that interested me. In 1977 Carol's mother died. I was very close to her and missed her greatly. I thought, "Where is she now? Is there life after death?" God was starting to get my attention!
Over the next year it seemed that every time I turned on the radio or read a magazine I came across something about God. And then God caused me to think about His creation - the seeds we planted in our garden that sprouted and grew and themselves had seeds. I became convinced that there is a creator God and decided that it would be prudent to find out what He is all about.
So, 13 years into our marriage, one Sunday when Carol invited me to go to church with her I said, "Yes." What a shock to her! I became convinced that I was a sinner, that Jesus Christ had paid the penalty for all of my sin and that because of Him I was going to heaven. On my knees I kept thanking God over and over for saving me. I told God that I would go anywhere and do anything for Him. That was in January of 1978. I was 34 years old. |
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