30. The church begins to grow in 1962

The year has seen a remarkable increase in the number of our people coming forward to acknowledge Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. This is due largely to the witness and personal evangelism of the converts themselves… sometimes we are perplexed by what may happen if the number increases very much faster. Highlands DistrictContinue reading “30. The church begins to grow in 1962”

29. Moving to Tende and other changes, 1962

Here at Mendi each person is trying to cope with more work than one can possibly do…  This work which God has sent us to do has outgrown us. John Rees, July 1962 The year has seen a remarkable increase in the number of our people coming forward to acknowledge Jesus Christ as their LordContinue reading “29. Moving to Tende and other changes, 1962”

28. Roads and transport in Mendi, 1960

How did the first mission vehicles arrive in the Mendi area?  Staff who arrived later may have complained about the roads, or about the condition of the local vehicles but thought it was normal to see cars or trucks on those roads. In the days when only light aircraft landed at Mendi, it was notContinue reading “28. Roads and transport in Mendi, 1960”

27. First baptisms, 1961

‘This was the day. It was the climax of months of preparation by many people and the fulfillment of years of work by others.’ Joyce Rosser, writing of the first baptisms at the Methodist Church in Tari, 1961. ‘The preaching has led to no hasty decisions of belief in God, but rather to a gradualContinue reading “27. First baptisms, 1961”

26. First signs of Christian conversion, 1960s

1960s ‘Little did we dream what was to happen’. Sister Edith James, Tari  ‘In a service at Tari nineteen people have made a public confession of faith. A medical orderly at Mendi also accepted Christ’. Annual report 1960 There was nothing to warn them that something important was about to happen. In Tari, it wasContinue reading “26. First signs of Christian conversion, 1960s”

24. Practical ministries of education and health, 1960

We did not understand the meaning of school, so many of the boys left and went back to the village, only a few of us continued. That doesn’t mean we knew the meaning of it either, but we wanted to stay with the mission because it was better than living in the village.  Dabuma, 1970Continue reading “24. Practical ministries of education and health, 1960”

23 Hope, disappointment and new hope, 1960

Our missionaries are doing a great job but, if their numbers were doubled, they would only be touching the fringe of this field.  Rev Harry Bartlett, visitor to Highlands on behalf of MOM 1960 The cutting edge of the church’s advance is the witness and work of the island missionaries. Missionary Review March 1958 TheContinue reading “23 Hope, disappointment and new hope, 1960”

22. Slow progress, 1957-1959

1957-1959 District Report 1957. Seven years of work among one of the most isolated and primitive peoples in the world has not yet reached the stage when converts can be listed. In the persons of the missionaries, European and Pacific Island, the church is there. But it is there in order that an indigenous churchContinue reading “22. Slow progress, 1957-1959”

18. Learning to speak the language, 1955

1955, Mendi ‘Beyond linguistics, beyond personality, we are sure that the Holy Spirit shares this task of language analysis, and teaches us. We acknowledge that it is by prayer and faith, our own and that of friends who uphold us, that we shall comprehend the things we seek to know. How else, than by HisContinue reading “18. Learning to speak the language, 1955”

16. Visitors from a wider world, 1955

Workers from New Zealand, Germany and Tonga join the mission team In 1955, the mission team spoke at least six different languages in their homes and tried to learn the languages of the local people as well. They were all a very long way from their homes. For many centuries, perhaps for thousands of years,Continue reading “16. Visitors from a wider world, 1955”