Adventure to a Bush Church

Sunday morning Nathan went with the oldest three kids and several of the other missionaries on station to a bush lotu (church) for the morning service.  It took about 20 minutes of driving and while they could have driven all the way in the Land Rover, the last little bit was harder to drive, so they walked another 20 minutes of so to get there.

The churches like to know ahead of time that missionaries are coming so they can prepare.  There was a flower petal path leading up to the door and everyone sat down on the floor.  The service lasted for about two hours and was packed full.  This coming week they are planning to expand the building to help accommodate everyone who attends.

Flowers usually decorate the front, but extra care is put in when visitors come.  They also gather produce to send home with the missionaries.  Everyone took as much as would fit in backpacks and arms, but because the Land Rover was left behind, they couldn’t take everything.

Nathan had practiced a short testimony in Tok Pisin to tell the congregation why we are in PNG.  After the service they hiked up the road a ways for a picnic lunch.  Many of the kids joined them on the hike as they crossed bridges like this.

On the way back, some of our kids decided just to jump down in the ditch rather than try to cross the tree bridge again.

The scenery was amazing, the people welcoming and a wonderful afternoon was had by all.