November 2006 Update

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. – 2 Corinthians 4:18 (NIV)

Dear Loved Ones,

Thank you for praying for us as we were in Colombia visiting my (Johanna’s) friends and family. Thanks also for praying for our financial support. We have seen God’s hand in a very tangible way during this last month. We also would like to know how we can pray for you as well.

OUR TRIP TO COLOMBIA

We had a wonderful time during our trip. We were able to visit my home church in Bogota during their Missions month and were able to share about our ministry on several occasions. We spoke in the two morning services one Sunday; and during the week we spoke to the College group, the Young Adults, the Men’s Group, and the Missions Group. We were also invited to speak one Sunday at my home church’s sister church in Bogota. My father also organized three different home groups at his house. Praise God for all the opportunities He gave us to share about our ministry!

My family was thrilled to have Kassia with them. God opened the door for us to be able to visit my oldest sister Patricia in Ibague, my sister Olga in Bogota, and my sister Adriana in Medellin. Kassia had great fun with her two great grandmothers, her grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins. It was also a special time to pray with my family and to say goodbye to them as we will not be seeing them for the next three years while we are in Papua New Guinea (PNG) for our first term.

(Pictures from left to right: Kassia with her grandma Fanny; Kassia with her cousins Juan Pablo and Valeria; Kassia playing)

WHEN DO WE GO TO PAPUA NEW GUINEA (PNG)?

We have been cleared by our Wycliffe personnel administrator to buy our tickets to PNG. Once again, praise God for His answer of prayer and His confirmation that it is time for us to go to the mission field. We are in the process of buying our tickets right now. We want to leave in late December or early January since the Pacific Orientation Course (POC) starts in January of 2007.

POC is a course that will be fourteen weeks long. During the first nine weeks we will be living in Madang, which is located on the North coast of PNG. In those first nine weeks we will be learning the trade language (Tok Pisin) and learning about the culture. During the last five weeks we will be sent to a village where our family will be the only family that speaks English. There we will have to put into practice what we learned during the first nine weeks of POC. In April 2007, after POC is over, we will be heading up to Ukarumpa where Wycliffe has its main center in PNG. That is where we will be living and where Kurt will be serving in the Communication and Technical Services Department.

ABOUT OUR SUPPORT

We have been blessed to see how God works in miraculous ways with the gifts that are given to Him, no matter what size those gifts may be. We thank Him for allowing us to be a part of His awesome miracles! We would like to thank the many of you who have so faithfully given to us either by supporting us monthly or by your special gifts that will allow us to travel to PNG. Right now we can say with great joy that we have received pledges for 90% of the monthly support quota that Wycliffe requires for us to receive while we live and serve in PNG. We are only lacking about $310/month in pledges! Praise God for His faithfulness and everlasting provision!

PLEASE PRAY

Pray for us as we continue our partnership development, speaking at churches and sharing about our ministry with individuals. Pray that through these speaking engagements God will raise up more people that will pray for us and that will support us financially. Please pray that we will reach 100% of our quota so that we can leave for PNG in late December or early January!

Furthermore, pray that God will prepare us for the training we will be receiving in January. Pray that we will be able to pack everything we need before we leave and that we will also have time to spend with friends and family here in Dallas as we say goodbye to them.

In His hands,

Johanna (for Kurt and Kassia too!)

(Pictures from left to right: Kassia with her aunt Adriana and cousin Valeria; Kassia getting ready to got to bed in Bogota)

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October 2006 Update

Hello Everyone!

Click HERE for our latest newsletter. Let us know how things are going and how God is working in your lives.

The letter is in .pdf format, which is readable with the free software program "Adobe Acrobat Reader." If you cannot open the attached letter, the reader program is available for download at the following website: www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html

Also, please do let us know if you have any problems opening the file.

Blessings,

Kurt (for Johanna and Kassia too!)

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Update on my Mom

Dear Loved Ones,

Thank you so much for your prayers and words of encouragement. The last 11 days have been very emotional, but we as a family have been blessed to have been able to spend some quality time praying, crying, and at times even laughing with mom. Lois Jean Metzger, my mom, my friend, and one of my biggest supporters throughout my life passed away last night and is now in the loving arms of her Savior, Jesus Christ. We thank God for the life she devoted to his service and our care, and we rejoice that she is in his presence now.

For those of you who would like to attend, a memorial service will be held at 10AM on Friday September 22 at:

Prestonwood Baptist Church 6801 W. Park Blvd. Plano, TX 75903 972-820-5000 Google Maps Link: Prestonwood Baptist Church

In his hands, Kurt (for Johanna and Kassia too!)

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September 2006 Update

Dear Loved Ones,

In April of this year we wrote letting you know that Kurt’s mom had been diagnosed with lung cancer. Since then, she has gone through chemotherapy and radiation treatments for this cancer. Just last week, we found out that the cancer has metastasized and is very aggressive.

Her left lung collapsed and some cancerous fluid accumulated and was pressing on her heart, which made her struggle to breathe. Last Wednesday, she had surgery to drain the fluid in her lung and around her heart in order to relieve her breathing. The doctors have suggested that no further radical treatment for the cancer take place as it may even shorten her life. However, they said that they would like to lessen mom’s potential discomfort that can come along the way.

Please pray for Kurt’s mom to have comfort, both spiritual and physical, and for her peace. Pray for Kurt’s dad to have strength and grace. Also, pray for comfort for Kurt, his two brothers - Eric and Peter, and for his sister - Miriam.

Before this most recent turn of events Kurt and I had been packing our belongings to take to Papua New Guinea (PNG). A ship will be leaving at the end of September or beginning of October. It will take approximately four to six months for our things to get to PNG. If God allows, we be in PNG in December. A JAARS truck comes in to Dallas this coming Wednesday and will take our boxes to North Carolina where they will be put in a shipping container. Most of the things we will be taking have been packed, although we still have some last minute items that need to be purchased, organized, and boxed. Please pray for us as we try to finish up this task in the midst of what Kurt’s mom is going through.

We truly appreciate your support during this difficult time. Thank you so much for praying!

In His hands,

Johanna (for Kurt and Kassia)

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Pictures of Kassia

From top left: Kassia coloring; getting on her stool to color; playing with her toys; and having fun with "Ma Ma"

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July 2006 Update

Dear Friends and Family,

Thank you so much for your prayers, the cards, words of encouragement and meals that you gave us last month when we lost our little one. How comforting it is to know that we are part of the family of Christ and that we are surrounded by His love during happiness and during sorrow!

Thank you also to those of you have now been supporting our ministry for many months and for those new individuals that have recently began to support us. We could not be a part of this ministry without your generous gifts.

Please let us know specifically how we can pray for you and your families!

God Provides

We had asked you to pray for us as we needed a place to live in after the month of July, and the Lord answered your prayers. Last month, a gracious lady from our church called and let us know that we could use her house while she would be gone on an extended trip to Peru. We have been here for about four weeks and have enjoyed getting settled in and having our own little place.

We are also grateful to God for his answer of prayer concerning our support level. This month we learned that a church that we visited during our partnership development trip in April will be supporting us financially. Also, in the past couple of months several individuals have come along side us in our ministry. This brings our support up to 68% of the approximately $2,900/month quota required to live and serve in Papua New Guinea (PNG).

Frequently Asked Questions

When do you go to the field?

Many of you have asked us when we are planning to go to PNG. Our current departure date is set December of this year (2006). Our passports have already been stamped with our visas, so as far as the paper work is concerned we are ready to go! However, we have to reach 100% of our support quota before we will be released to leave for the field. We have been in contact with the Wycliffe personnel administration in PNG and they have let us know that we can come as soon as we reach 100%. We will not have to wait until December to leave if we reach our quota earlier. The remaining 32% of our quota represents about 1 to 2 more supporting churches and 12 to 15 more individuals or families that will partner with us in this life-changing ministry.

Will you pray about partnering with us so that together we can support the work of translating God’s precious Word into the heart language of the Bibleless people groups of Papua New Guinea? If you would like more information about our ministry or know someone who would, please download this response form and email it back to us.

(A presentation, earlier this year, of the 159 New Testaments completed in PNG during the last 50 years)

 

How can we pray for you?

You can pray for us as we have five (or less) busy months ahead of us before we go to PNG. Please pray for us as we continue our partnership development, speaking at churches and sharing about our ministry with individuals. Pray also as we begin to sort and pack the things we are going to take. We will be shipping some of our belongings to PNG before we leave and we will also take some things with us in our suitcases.

Kassia’s Korner

Kassia is eighteen months old now! Time goes by quickly. She runs around the house talking and playing all the time. She loves to swim in her kiddy pool and enjoys going to water parks during this hot Texas summer.

She has been speaking much more lately and we enjoy seeing her improvements. She can sing the ABC song and loves singing Jesus Loves Me in Spanish. She speaks quite a bit of English now and some words in Spanish. Kurt talks to her in English most of the time and I speak to her in Spanish. We want her to be at least bilingual as she grows up – she will probably learn Tok Pisin (Melanesian Pidgin) in PNG also!

 

Praise and Prayer

• Praise God for the comfort and encouragement He has provided through many of you as we mourn the loss of our baby.
• Praise God for providing a house for us to stay until we depart to go to the field.
• Praise Him for providing a new church and new individuals to support us. Praise Him that we have reached 68% of our support quota to go to PNG!
• Pray for us as we share in churches and with individuals about our ministry.
• Pray that God will provide the 32% that we are lacking of our support quota.
• Pray for us as we begin sorting and packing for our trip.

In His hands,

Johanna (for Kurt and Kassia too!)

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