SOVEREIGN GRACE BAPTIST MISSION
International – Papua New Guinea / Malawi Africa
P.O. Box 60150 Ndirande Bt. 6 Blantyre Malawi /
P.O. Box 233 – Mt Hagen (WHP) Papua New Guinea
Tanggi Mission Station – North Koroba, Hela Province, PNG
Missionary / Evangelist: Peter A. Halliman
Email: panagioite04@gmail.com / Website: sgbm-malawi-africa.com
Date: 26 May 2020
Dear Pastor, Church, Supporters;
2 Corinthians 10:16 — To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you, and not to boast in another man’s line of things made ready to our hand.
Part Two — SGBM Mission Report for April 2020 (special series)
The hike from the Tanggi mission station to Ekanda Bap Church was seven hours and one of the hardest I have made in the past years. I am not as old as some of you reading, but older than some, and at the end of the day I am not nineteen any longer and my recovery time is longer.
Even the mind becomes fatigued here in the hiking. It is a continuous strain on the entire body; the mind must stay focused and eye, hand, leg coordination is vital. Any small mistake could cost you much bodily harm, and even death.
That night I had taken my bucket bath. The water was not as clean as I would have wished, but cleaner than I was — so choose between the lesser of the two evils.
Day No. 2 — 17 April 2020
The morning started early. There is no TV, no radios, no movies, no town square, no places of amusement, no outside distractions. The men sit in the men’s house and talk until they fall asleep; the women do likewise. For me, after enough talk has been given, I call it a day, go to my tent, and spend the night in quietness.
0600 hrs — coffee time. One thing PNG can boast about is the quality of their coffee: dark, robust, rich, and smooth. Breakfast most often is restricted to sweet potatoes cooked in the ashes of the fires. I also carry non-perishable items: rice, tin fish, nuts, peanut butter, crackers, salt, coffee, tea. Most of the diet I rely on local cuisine. One can become filled and satisfied even with the basics of life.
The morning was under way. I had my bush-bath and prepared for church. The schedule included preaching, and then the church wanted me to assist them in a business meeting to vote for a pastor. A group of over one hundred people gathered — not all members, but some who came in my party (58), others from nearby Bap churches, and some members of Ekanda Bap church.
The message was preached and then business conducted. They had already one man they wanted to nominate — a man who has been more of a missionary. I assisted the church, and they asked this man (Anago) if he would accept the position as pastor. He did accept, and by unanimous vote was appointed pastor.
The church service lasted just over two hours. The afternoon was still early enough for us to pack up and hike up the next mountain to where we would overnight and have church services with the Hengenapu Bap church. This church was organised back in the early 1980s and has mostly through the years struggled to keep a pastor, simply because of the isolation deep within the Duna area. The man responsible for the long-term pastorship died back in the mid-80s when I was here before. The church being a strong church, mostly the women folk have looked to it and kept it going.
We broke camp, packed, and departed Ekanda around 1500 hrs (3 pm). It would take us nearly three hours to reach point B.
To be continued…
Missionary Peter A. Halliman