Happy New Year from the Husa's in Mibu! We're reflecting on all God has done and continues to do here in the Mibu tribe. Toward the beginning of the year he saw us safely back to Mibu after a year long home assignment. Since coming back we shifted more of our efforts to the development of leaders in the church, spending 6 months meeting weekly with about sixteen leaders in various stages of growth to challenge them about godly and biblical leadership, as well as biblical wisdom regarding the care of the church. We also have been teaching 5 teachers how to properly study the bible in preparation for teaching. And then of course we have continued to make progress, though slower than usual, in the translation project and the development and teaching of expository lessons for each book! Then of course the church in Mibu has been busy as well, continuing with literacy development efforts, the care of God's people, and even starting another exciting outreach in the village of Joso, the very last remaining village in the Mibu language!
Not content just looking back, we're also looking ahead, asking what our next steps ought to be for the health and longevity of the church. We're seeing see more and more clearly that we just may be at another incredible milestone in the Mibu Ministry; that point in time where it is best for the church to continue their Christward trajectory with less full-time presence of us expats. It's one thing we've been working toward all along here in Mibu! What might that look like? Well, we're talking about maybe moving out of Mibu, to a location in town where we can focus more specifically on translation and lesson development, and from where we can make short visits into Mibu to assess with the leaders how the church is faring, and encourage them in their roles. Right now we're talking about the possibility of this move happening in July or August. We hope such a move would accomplish several things; 1) give the church even more space to make decisions and grow on their own, and 2) give the local leaders a chance to step up in new ways, and 3) give us a chance to focus more wholly on the task of translation and a few more lesson sets that need to be developed.
2018 also looks to be coming with an increase in cost of living here. The financially strapped government is increasing taxation significantly on most imported goods, and also services offered in country. We're not sure what kind of increase to expect, but it's clear that we'll need to keep a close eye on our budget and be flexible with what our expectations are with the resources we have each month, especially if we do end up moving to town later in the year. That most certainly comes with unexpected costs and new, hard to anticipate expenses.
One thing for is for sure, as we reflect back, and also look ahead... We're grateful for God's ongoing provision for us! Though we don't know what the future holds, be it good or bad, easy going, or more challenging, we do know for sure that God is who he is and that he is a sustaining, loving Father God to whom we can trust all aspects of our lives. You are a part of that as you pray and give sacrificially for the benefit of his kingdom here in Mibu and beyond! Thank you to all our faithful prayer people and financial supporters!
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