NTM

Pray as there will be many changes in the next weeks and months to go along with the sadness of saying goodbye and the excitement of going. 

Pray for the Lord to continue to provide.

Pray that I will continue to trust Him and grow in my relationship with Him. 

Start your timers people, it is 12 days and counting until my scheduled departure for Indonesia.  I have my visa, and tickets have been purchased leaving out of Phoenix AZ on the 16^th of April.  I’ll be joined at the LA airport by fellow missionaries, Jonathan and Janalyn Carlson and Naomi Christenson to make the trip around the world.  Oh yeah, have I mentioned yet that plans are subject to change without notice?  So on that note, please keep praying and Lord willing, I’ll soon be in Indonesia!  

On Monday I returned from my last trip to Wisconsin and Michigan.  I was able to visit my sister and family for a few days and spend time with friends.  Praise the Lord also for opportunities to share my ministry at Racine Bible Church and at my home church in Michigan.  After having to say goodbye to so many people the reality of it all began to sink in.  So, I would appreciate your prayers as I deal with the sadness of leaving, the excitement of going, and all the other crazy things I’ll be dealing with during the next weeks and months.  

It has been amazing to see how the Lord has provided during this last month; many thanks to all who have helped.  It seems the Lord likes to work in the impossible, sound familiar anybody?  Remember, He is the God who calls things that are not as though they were.  Please continue to pray as there are still some needs yet to be met.  

Pray:
-Partnership Development trips in Jan and Feb.  That many would be challenged into missions and to a closer walk with the Lord
-Indonesia Visa process and approval.
-My continued walk and growth in the Lord. 
-Lets not forget all those who are hearing the Gospel for the first time!

Thats right peoples. . . Lord willing and you all praying I am shooting for April, and it is, at the most four months away now! 
So much to do before then. . . so little time. 
Lets see, I have at least four places I need to go before then to share the ministry the Lord has given me.   I have to pack and prepare a crate to ship with all my tools and a few other things.  Then there is all the little stuff that just keeps piling up.  Writing letters, emails, visa stuff, preparing new material for my trips, and all those other things that need to fall into place between now and then.  OK, that doesn’t sound unbearable but its enough. 
So, keep on praying for all this, but especially that I continue to grow in my relationship with the Lord.  After all, He is what all this is about. 

Welcome to the USA!
That is what lots of people have been telling me lately. I always inform them that I have been here for eight years. What they really mean to say is, “congratulations on getting your citizenship.” On the 18th of September my US citizenship did finally came through. Thank you all for your prayers and patience during this time.

Moving Forward!
Lord willing I will be moving to Indonesia in April. I would love to go sooner but there are several obstacles in the way. First of all, I need to get a visa to go to Indonesia and that takes time to get. Second, I need to spend some more time in partnership development before leaving. So if you are interested in having me come and share missions in your church, small group, or bible study, please let me know. I am available!

What’s with the hard hat?
We are in the middle of constructing an extension on our hangar here at NTMA so that we can get the new Kodiak in and out when we get it.

This is what I have been doing the last couple of months. We spent over a month just pouring the concrete slab to put the building on. The last couple weeks we have been able to put up most of the steel. PTL!

Helicopter?
NTMA has purchased a helicopter that they hope to send to Indonesia after a period of testing here in AZ. They will need a couple guys in Indonesia qualified to fly it so they have made that opportunity available to me. However, at this time I am not planning on taking this training due to the cost involved and the possibility of further delay in getting to the mission field.

Pray
For opportunities to share missions and my ministry in the coming months.
For my Indonesia visa to come through in a timely manner.
That I will continue to grow, seeking God’s will not my own.

Thank you for being a part of what God is doing!

In Christ, Paul

Praise the Lord my citizenship came through on the 18th.

What could have 278 people from 39 countries all swearing at the same time?
Simple!  A swearing in ceremony for US citizenship!  On September 18th I was joined by 277 other people in a ceremony that brought to an end the long process of getting my citizenship. 
Thank you all for praying during these last six months. Praise the Lord all went well.

Can you tell me. . .

What is missionary aviation all about? Why do you do what you do? These are some of the questions asked by people at EAA Air Venture in Oshkosh a couple weeks ago. I had a great week up there helping represent NTMA and spending time with missionary pilots from a number of different organizations. I know the gospel was shared and beyond that only the Lord knows.

Gone are the days. . .

Gone are the days of the little blue Cavalier I have been driving for the last six years. The demand for repairs exceeded the worth of the car (which wasn’t much) so it became the down payment on a replacement. After spending an entire day being harassed by used car salesmen I finally settled on a 97 Nissan Pathfinder. Hey, that’s three years newer than the Cavalier!

Who else likes warm weather?

Lately I have been getting my fair share of the wonderful, warm Arizona summer. I have been outside helping to lay the foundation for a new hanger extension that is going up here at NTMA. This hanger will allow us to have the new Kodiak inside when we start using them in the near future.

Plans:

August 28th, interview with immigration on which everything else hinges.

Sept 3 – 11th, a trip to Wisconsin and Michigan (Lookout Moline Baptist, here I come)

After that? Still up in the air pending citizenship etc.

Prayer:

Pray for the interview with immigration

Continue to pray for me that I would not become discouraged but continue to trust the Lord.

Partnership Development (Deputation): There is still much that needs to be done here too so keep praying.

Please continue to pray that my US citizenship will come through in a timely manner. 

What do you get out of a pile of aluminum and several pounds of rivets? Two wings of course! This has been my project since I moved back to Arizona earlier this year. We are finally ‘almost’ done completely rebuilding a set of wings to send to the Philippines later this year. It is good to know that even though I can’t be overseas yet I can still have a real part in the work of NTM.

Speaking of not being able to go to Indo yet. . . I have received my fingerprinting notice for the citizenship process. This is a good thing since it means that my application is actually moving forward. Thank you for your prayers, please don’t stop yet as there is still much waiting left.

Here is a news clipping from Indonesia:

Indonesia (April 19th): Over the past few years, the Central Indonesia NTM missionary team has prayed, “Please Lord, provide us with some kind of mission aviation service.” Doug Berglund wrote, “We believe that an aircraft, more than any other piece of equipment the Lord might provide, would significantly help us accomplish our church planting goals in this region. Please join us in praying for this need.”
When I hear things like this I wish so much to be over there doing what I can to help. The Lord knows this too, yet He has me here in the USA until His time is right for me to move forward. His plans are perfect, mine just change a lot.
Thank your for your prayers and support, they help keep me focused on Him one day at a time.