NTM

last 6 weeks!!!  We are amazed at what the Lord did through all the help of two painters, three house helpers, and several missionaries who live on the same island and dropped in to help for a short time!!! 

17 rooms where repainted, 19 windows screened, two screened doors and a bathroom door made and installed plus one cabinet made, our personal bathroom remodeled, furniture moved upstairs, furniture reorganized in 6 rooms with three other families with our mission able to use extra furniture from the mission home (:D  New curtains are hanging in the two living rooms, four guest rooms two kitchens, office and dinning rooms.  Some living room and dinning room chairs were upholstered. A new big oven and refrigerator are in use now making the cooks more efficient and able to provide excellent meals for hunger guests!!!!

Please pray for us as we head up the mission home ministry providing clean rooms, nutritious meals and cool rooms on hot days and hearty fellowship goes alone for free!!   Other projects are needed like a sink with a cabinet and a island cabinet for the kitchen and hot water heater added in the kitchen and for several of the guest rooms. 

Why the fuss at the mission home?  Many new families and single missionaries are moving in the area to begin starting works in unreached tribes in the near future!!  God is on the move here!!! 

“Dear ones who REJOICE in the Lord ,

But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; Let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them; Let those also who love Your name Be joyful in You. For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous; With favor You will surround him as with a shield. Psalm 5:11,12

We all have many things to rejoice about and even in hard times we can rejoice in the LORD , who He is and what He has and is doing in and through us. We rejoice in a wonderful Christmas season we experienced here with other missionaries and Indonesian Christians and hearing of the enjoyable times our daughters and family and friends like you experienced as well!!! For many, Christmas brings both sad and happy memories with family and friends for many reasons. We were separated from our girls and good Christian friends back home but rejoice that they are doing well and trusting in the LORD.

REJOICING IN:

1. Our LORD’s first coming and soon second coming!!!!
2. Seeing much progress in our language and culture study and adjusting to living here once again after 7 years of being away!!!!!
3. God’s provision as we start the new year and plan to move to Sulawesi , an island of Central Indonesia.!!
4. Safety for our family here and in the States during the holidays.
5. A great Visit with old friends from AUSTRALIA , the Hastings.
6. Moving on to Unit 9 and Final class before we move into our future ministry later in March of this year.

LEARNING another language requires lots of time and willingness to be a learner for a long time to become effective in speaking and responding in a way accepted by the navtive speaker!! Praise the Lord for His help in every way , our consultants with our mission and our Indonesian teachers and friends who have helped in many many ways . We have much to still learn but can speak well enough to feel comfortable in most situations. We are still needing to learn to speak more naturally as an Indonesian would and learn more Spiritual terms and phrases. We have about one month of formal classes left!!!!!

GOD”S wonderful provision is going to provide needed things like furniture, remodeling and travel and specific ministry items we will need in the coming years in Sulawesi. Our future ministry involves encouraging fellow missionaries and Indonesian Christians in the Word, being involved in community outreach and providing comfortable accommodations when our co-workers come to do government work or have medical appointments or other business in town away from their place of ministry.

Preparing to move to Sulawesi. We are making plans to move to Sulawesi some time in March not sure of a date yet. After finishing language study we will be purchasing things needed in our future ministry, packing and selling things not needed there, and saying good-bye to many friends here both ex-patriate and Indonesians.

Many Adjustments are coming soon for us and WE need YOUR PRAYERS. These things are not our favorite things to face but inevitable. Our adjustments involve:
Focusing on our last days of language, decisions about things to buy, things to sell, packing our stuff, traveling long distances, unpacking and setting up house again, working with new house workers, learning a new town and leaving behind many good friends we have made this past year!!

REJOICE in the LORD and then again I say REJOICE!!!

Thank you for you prayers and support in many ways,

Love in the LORD,

John and Karen Callahan
Indonesia

john-karen_callahan@ntm.org

Daniel said to king Nebuchadnezzar before he was cast into the fiery furnace, "…let it be known to you, O King, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image you have set up."

RAMADAN — The fasting month for people of the dominate faith Here in Indonesia several things happen in these communities.

1. Only two meals a day are eaten-one at dusk and one at around 4 am before sunrise.
2. Fasting during the day for children starting at 12 years and adults( except for pregnant mothers, the sick, and the elderly).
3. More time for praying and teaching of the principles of their faith.
4. Fire works at night with a loud parade in downtown the last night of the fast.
5. Idul Fitri- two days of visiting family asking forgiveness and eating more than you can think about. The purpose is to cleanse the body and soul of sins and building up points with Allah as it is a holy month to counter all the bad things you do so hopefully you will go to heaven one day.

They also practice many good works during the year to keep the balance of good up, including praying five times a day, giving to the poor, making a trip to Mecca if you can afford it and many of them pray to ancestors and fear other gods.

LANGUAGE and CULTURE STUDY

We are into Unit 5 now making good progress in language and culture. John gave his testimony in Indonesian in front of several classes. We continue to visit with Indonesian friends talking and building relationships as part of our language learning process.

We are not allowed to witness to those with a dominate religion unless they ask questions.

UPDATE ON WANA TRIBE

Our fellow missionaries Ed Casteel and Steve Rosengren are helping to reach the Wana tribe in the jungles of Indonesia. Recently they brought in another supply of Bibles translated into the Wana peoples language.

The Gospel continues to be spread by these Wana believers to their own people and the additional Bibles will be the real "God’s Talk" to them as they study to "show their selves approved unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed" 2 Timothy 2:15

PRAYER MAKES A DIFFERENCE PRAYER and PRAISES

1. Praise the Lord for our progress in language study!!
2. Praise for the additional Bibles sent to the WANA believers!!!
3. Praise for God provision for our needs!!
4. Pray for steady progress and motivation to study language!!
5. Pray for JOANNA, sister of Ruth Kane, missionary here in Indonesia, had a brain tumor removed which was malignant. Pray for her , her husband children and family.
6. Pray for RUSS KOWAL who flew to Singapore for medical help after suffering a stroke in Indonesia where he and his family serve with NTM.
7. Pray for a good solution for Karen and her sisters in a problem concerning a lawsuit.

WE APPRECIATE YOUR PRAYERS AND CONCERN TO REACH THE UNREACHED PEOPLE OF INDONESIA

Indonesia Update July, 2008

Dear friends,

CULTURE TIPS
There are twelve ways to say no in Indonesian. Just a few of them are “Belum” –not yet or nothing done, “tidak”–no , and ” tidak boleh”–not allowed.

ANTS, ANTS, ANTS!! We constantly deal with ants in the house and spray them about once a week. Some are 1/2″ in size and they go down to the size the point on your pencil.

New from the Moi Tribe on the island of Papua:

It all began when a teenage boy who trusted in Christ was bitten by a poisonous snake. Usually they cut many times around the bite but he only let them cut once believing God would take him or heal him. So in a few days he was better!! His friends were amazed saying his God healed him. Later he was faced with a threat of a curse from a witch doctor and he told them,”Go ahead do your best”, but he was trusting in his God!! They were surprised and did nothing. Now real interest began in the “big talk”.

A month ago, a group of Mois said, “Food is small talk, God’s talk is Big” They were talking about the teaching from the missionaries, Steve Crocket and the Browns. The people came and sat listened to the teaching about God. Some said that they were like Cain doing their own thing ignoring God. Later when the missionaries taught about Noah others said they where like the people that had no care for God and lived in sin. The last day of the teaching about Jesus death and resurrection people began testifing that they were sinners and Jesus died for them giving them joy and peace!!! There were about 50 new BELIEVERS!!!!!! They went about shouting with joy about their new God and Savior!!!!!

Pray for these Moi who are new believers in the Lord!!!!! Pray for the teaching and translation work by the Crockets and Browns

PRAISES AND PRAYER

1. Praise for a motorcycle to get around town on!!!
2. Our daughter, Heidi, a car was provided for her as she goes to work and back to Liberty to begin a new semester in August.
3. We are finishing up Unit 4 in language study and making great progress!!!
4. Four new missionary families have just arrived here!!!! They need pray in adjusting to new life here. Tags, Andersons, Pries and Abbotts.
5. Fora good witness to our neighbors and opportunity to share our faith with them.
6. 50 New Believers in Moi Tribe!!!!

Because of the Grace of God,

John and Karen Callahan
Indonesia
john-karen_callahan@ntm.org