Prayer Letter Archive

July 31, 2006

Lots has happened since I last wrote. We’re thankful the phones have stayed on for most the time although much of the time it’s hard to get a connection speed above 4.8kb. Not sure if this message will go out with the pictures. May have to wait for the perfect moment when the connection is 16.2kb!

A while back I made a supply run with fuels and food but also had a load of people as I was carrying a dead body. We anticipated bad roads so were Thankful our new winch had arrived. But, we didn’t need it that time. Sure lets you drive with confidence knowing you can winch your way out of a mud bog.

We had a rush of crimes in March. There were 5 armed holdups with criminals using home-made guns. Seemed daily we heard gun shots as the two police in town were next to useless sharing one pistol as they chased the bad guys on foot. Finally, 20 police were sent to our area to apprehend the bad guys. Then, for a first time ever, we had a Judge come and a court was held right here in our little town. The Judge was greeted with great fan fair. It was interesting to sit in court and hear the sentence of 10 years hard labor for the part 2 guys played in the robberies. One rascal is still at large but the local people are hiding him and afraid to aid the police in his arrest in fear of repercussion.

The conversion on the boat is finished and we’re pretty happy with the results. Yesterday we made a 72nm trip to deliver fuels and even pull a boat behind to be delivered. The swells were 6 feet high but we went slow and all went well but the boat is a bit underpowered now so hopefully if I can sell the old engine, we can upgrade to a larger motor. I wanted to let you know ahead of time about this run so you could be praying but I couldn’t get this message out because of bad phone connections.

In a couple weeks Jared and I will be heading up the coast to help get a couple new guys started in their building as they locate in a new area called the ”Akolet.” We’ll be living on the boat for 10 days. Jared has been so willing and helpful in every project we do he has a hard time getting his schooling done. Pray for Joan and the girls during this time as they’ll be home alone to fix things that seem to break when we’re gone.

We’ve been repairing our wharf and also we will be building one similar for the Akolet team so the boat can pull up and unload supplies. We cement posts into 55 gallon drums then stand them up in the water. It’s not as easy as it may sound as the posts are heavy even for 5 guys to carry in the water. All the timber is cut by chain saw and the guy doing the cutting has been able to keep them straight even for a 30 foot long bearer! Mariko enjoys getting in on the action. She even helped weld a hole in the cement mixer!

Our Micah back in Hawaii continues to hold his 4.0gpa in electronics. He sells fridges at Sears and also buys and sells motorcycles. He’s even getting to be an avid E-bayer. For fun he’s into “Stunting.”

Remember Mieko’s little kitty that died? Well recently she got a new friend so she’s really happy. To be different she named her, “Cheese Ball.” Not that she’s orange or anything but Mieko does like cheese balls.

Joan continues to guide the kids in homeschooling and keep us all fed and in clean house and clothes. She’s actually starting to settle in and like it here…after 20 years.

Well, this gives you an update of our latest. We ask that continue to pray for our ministry here in Papua New Guinea. Pray for safety as we’re on the road or the seas delivering supplies to our tribal missionary families. Pray for them too as living in the middle of the jungle or on an island isn’t that exciting at times. Pray for our relationships with those the Lord brings our way. Thank you for the interest and love you’ve shown to us.

Because He said, “GO,”

Mark and Joan Reichman