Meet Our Bible Students

Conducting Bible Studies is one of the greatest joys in our assignment here in Chuuk. We conduct studies with the young and old alike. This past week one of Kathleen's students was not home. However her young boy wanted to study anyways. Using the new brochure My Bible Lessons in Chuukese she spent a few minutes to teach him about Jehovah. Reviewing the first lesson with him was very amusing. Kathleen asked him where the cat was and he pointed to the doll. Where is the dog and he pointed to the young child on the page. What sound does a dog make and well you get the idea. Needless to say that this brochure will offer him many many months of training. But he does know who Jehovah is and where he lives. Doesn't getting any better than helping a young one get to know Jehovah.

Traveling the Islands of Chuuk

Here in the islands of Chuuk the locals travel the seas by a small skiff. The usual is a 19-23 foot skiff that can carry a number of passengers. Years ago they used to have water taxis, larger boats that carried the islanders to the different islands in the lagoon for a $1.00 each way. Now as seen below they will put as many as they can in one boat. In the first picture we see that they are coming for a circuit assembly to Moen from the island of Tonoas. And then leaving after the assembly. 

NEW MISSIONARIES

It has been sometime now that we were hoping to get new missionaries here in the islands of Chuuk. Well last Sunday we had a new couple arrive from the Philippines. They have graduated from the Bible School for Married Couples and were serving in a very isolated territory in the Philippines. They were special pioneering in the area where there is a big influence from the Muslim population. They are now excited to be here in Chuuk and look forward to learning the new language and applying their training to serve the congregation here. Meet Petronilo and Jonith Gran.

Petronilo & Jonith Gran

Petronilo trying his new presentation.

Meet Some of our Friends

We wanted to start posting some of the pictures of the brothers and sisters in our congregation here in Chuuk. We will try to post some of their pictures throughout the next few weeks or so, this will allow you the chance to know them. Below you will see the pictures of one of our Missionaries with two young sisters, the picture of Cylene David from the Philippines and the picture of young Zia Sturdivant who arrived here with her parents to work where there is a need for more publishers. (Recently they have moved on to the Marshall islands.)

Left to Right: JennyJen Asor,
Natalie Balboa
 (Missionary from Philippines),
& Maraine Nakayama

Cylene David with her son Kirou

Zia Sturdivant

Getting to the Territory

Some days it takes a little longer than usual to get to the territory to preach. On this particular day we took a sailboat to another part of our island. Afterwards we boarded a dingy and traveled through the mangroves to begin our preaching. As seen in the pictures we had a couple of Chuukese boys lead us through the mangroves to find our first house. It is always an adventure, but the rewards are always great. 

RETURNING FROM PREACHING

This is an older photo. The picture was taken while we still had the brothers and sisters from South Africa and Japan here in Chuuk. Since then they have moved on to the Marshall islands, in particular they have settled in Majarou. We had enjoyed a day of preaching on Udot with locals from Tonoas and a visiting brother from the Guam branch office. It was a beautiful ending to a great day of preaching on Udot. We were on a 42 foot catamaran sailboat and had enough room to relax and enjoy the trip home including the amazing sunset.

Another Sunset

This was taken a few months back, but it is worth showing. From time to time we are able to go to the local hotel and enjoy happy hour! In local terms: "Everything is more cheaper." I guess that is correct. And the view is wonderful.

Fun In Dublon

Friends of ours from Pennsylvania sent some supplies for the locals here in Chuuk. After the meeting one day we enjoyed the afternoon of making different hair pieces, wrist bands, and necklaces. It is wonderful to see how simple things can be so much fun. Enjoy the short slide show.

Glimpse Into a Day Part II - VI

Part II - We head out

Part IIIa - Changing Facilities

Part IIIb - The Meeting Begins

Part IV - Field Ministry

Part V - Preaching

Part VI - Return to Moen

Glimpse Into a Day

We were thinking that we would bring you along for one of days working with the congregations here in Chuuk. Hope you enjoy being with us for the day...... Part 1 of 6

NEW ARRIVALS

As we posted a few months ago we were assigned to care for the maintenance and preparing some meals for the local translation team on a part time basis. We enjoyed the change in our assignment, but all good things come to an end. A week ago from Friday we had the arrival of the new Maintenance couple, Dave and Valerie Daniels. For the past few years they have been with the construction team in Micronesia before they were sent to help out the Hong Kong Branch with their construction work. However since it was decided to scale down the branch in Hong Kong, no longer necessary to continue with the construction, they were reassigned here in Micronesia after 9 months there. They are originally from California, but moved to Hawaii where they raised their two daughters and son. Their two daughters serve as Special Pioneers in Guam. We are so glad to have them here in Chuuk. Back in 2010 they were here to help with the remolding of the RTO and did all the tile work. Now they are back for at least 16 months. 

Dave & Valerie Daniels

LITTLE REMINDERS

Even though we are very busy here in Chuuk we have to stop and remember and take in the sights from time to time! Last week we were in service going from door to door in the downtown area of Moen and realized how beautiful the day was. Sometimes you can be so busy that we don't stop and take a look. So I wanted to post just a couple of pictures from our view in service last weekend. Enjoy the view.

SIGHTS OF MOEN

Clothes Line?

The ministry here in Moen, or Wene for the locals, is always interesting. At almost every door we meet people who love the Bible and invite us in to study the Bible. However the challenges we face are getting interested ones to the meetings. This is because of family opposition and pressure. One of our Bible studies said that his Uncle called Jehovah's Witnesses "Satan Worshipers." This is not uncommon here in Chuuk. Most people either honor the dead or fear them. When one dies the rituals for the burial are very detailed such as the size of the grave, when and where to bury. They spend weeks in honoring the one who has died. Each year following, they will have an Achechchem or a memorial for the deceased. This will go on for many years depending on the individual and their status in the clan. Yet after a while it seems that they find other uses for the burial sites as you see here in this picture.

Dublon aka Tonoas

We traveled to Tonoas last Thursday for the meeting despite the change in weather. We are now getting winds from the south which causes more severe storms and which results in rougher seas. We experienced waves between 3 to 5 feet. You can imagine the toll that takes on the body in a small 19' skiff. In most other countries it would call for a small craft advisory and one would probably be discouraged to be out in conditions like that. Yet we arrived safely and the brothers and sisters were very happy we made it for the meeting. Most months we travel to this island at least 4 times and sometimes up to 7 times. Yet we always enjoy the meeting there. 

In the months of November and December the other missionary couple will be heading out for vacation, thus leaving the two of us to go over each of the weeks by ourselves. 

MINA

Kathleen has started studying with a women, Mina, who has made some progress in learning the truth. She had studied with a brother who was serving here from South Africa and has realized that Jehovah is the true God and it is important to make changes in her life. 

She has made some changes, such as not celebrating Christmas and not attending her former Church among other things. However she is facing opposition from her family who do not like Jehovah's Witnesses. Her brother is prominent among her clan and wants to be in politics and realizes that if she becomes a Jehovah's witness it could hinder his aspirations. Kathleen recently viewed the Faith in Action Part I video in hopes of helping her to make the stand for Jehovah.

TIME TO RELAX

Last week we were without power for several hours on a couple of days. We thought it would be nice to try and work on a puzzle by candle light. It was a big challenge, but three days later this is what we created.......

Public Safety Officer

His name is Mickey Shirai and is from the island of Tonoas. He has been very supportive of our study with Joe Kachuo. He is anxious to receive his magazine each month and speaks positive of Jehovah's Witnesses. At times Kathleen and I have been able to witnesses to him extensively. We hope with the changes Joe has made that he will accept the truth one day.

RTO WORK

As of June we were asked to help out at the Remote Translation Office (RTO) here in Chuuk. Two to three times a week we support the work of the translators by being commuter bethelites. Kathleen is assigned to the kitchen and prepares lunch and cleans the common areas. We also care for the maintenance of the building such as lawn care, cleaning, and taking care of necessary repairs such as leaks and other problems that may arise. Below you will see a picture of my very first tile job. There was a leak in one of the showers and thus we had to remove some tile to reach and repair the leak. You may notice the color of some of the tiles is a little off due to them being wet from the leak, hopefully they dry back to match the other white tiles. 

The RTO consists of two teams of three and the RTO overseer, Lito DelaCruz. (Pictured below.) They have been able to produce a number of books and our Watchtower each month. We are grateful for their work in supporting our ministry here in Chuuk. I forgot to mention that our assignment is only temporary and hope to receive some help soon. The branch office said that it may be a few months to a year. We will just wait and see.

Our Beautiful Chef

Lito DelaCruz - RTO Overseer

CO Visits Groups

This past week, a week after our Regional Convention, our Circuit Overseer and his wife arrived to our islands. Chad and his wife Leah Barrett are coming through on their first visit to our congregation. The first week of their visit they visit with the isolated group on Tonoas and the isolated Publishers in Tol. This past week we have been to both locations. Saturday was a highlight with our visit to the island of Udot where we had a Public Talk, abbreviated Watchtower Study and his closing Service Talk. Kathleen had the privilege of interpreting his closing talk and did wonderful. We had a some 22 individuals attend, including the isolated publishers from Tol. Afterwards we spent time to witness to some of the ones who attended and had questions about our event. We also enjoyed time to eat and relax. Onto next week and his visit to our congregation.

Looking Back to Meon

Meeting with Kathleen interpreting Chad's Talk

Our Lunch

Lunch time view......

REGIONAL CONVENTION

Our regional convention was a true blessing from Jehovah. We had a peak attendance of 97 with 4 individuals symbolizing their dedication by water baptism. Even though we are on a distant land we still enjoyed the media productions provided by the Governing Body. All in attendance were thrilled to see the videos and dramas. It is the first year since our being here in Chuuk to have such a wonderful provision. Even though it was a small convention it didn't lose any of its intensity or urgency of the program. We are truly thankful to Jehovah for a wonderful convention.

Before Baptism

Jenny being baptized 

Our 4 New Sisters

Watching the Drama on Large Screen

UDOT

This past Tuesday we set sail for a island in the lagoon about 12 miles from Moen. Leaving at 7:30 a.m. with a group of 8 publishers we were going to continue to follow up on the interest that has been shown from our previous trips to this island. The group of need greaters have been working this island for the past several months an have a a few interested individuals that are progressing very well. One man in particular, Danny, has just recently retired as headmaster to the local school on this island. He and his brother began studying the Bible many years ago with a missionary who served on these islands for some 30 years. Now after some 10 years has taken a serious interest in furthering his knowledge of the God's word. At the beginning of his study this week he mentioned that he was confused and needed to talk about something after the prayer. He started with the words: "I am confused." Come to find out he wasn't confused at all. It is his neighbors and relatives that are confused. He said that most people believe in a spirit that leaves the body after one dies, but through his personal study of that scripture said that it was the source of life that leaves the body. You can imagine that his Bible teacher was very happy to hear that he was confused and offered him encouragement to continue and tell others about what he learned. At the conclusion of the study he mentioned that he often thinks of preaching with us in the ministry. We hope he will join us soon.

Danny's Home

Seichero and his wife

View from Udot

CONCERT IN CHUUK

This past Friday we enjoyed something very rare in Chuuk. We attended an actual live concert! Granted it wasn't your normal venue. We attended at the parking lot of the Chuuk International Airport. Sierra Hull and her Bluegrass band performed for the locals. Very entertaining and enjoyable. It was unique in the fact that during part of their performance they invited locals from the area to sing or perform with them. We were pleasantly surprised to enjoy this rare experience here in Chuuk. Or maybe our standards have just lowered a bit. But hey it was free and the music was great. 

Sierra Hull

After the concert

Return from Bali

We had  great time in Bali. It was a beautiful country. Staying in Kuta, Ubud and Candidasa gave us a nice idea of how much you can enjoy this captivating part of the world. Hiking, biking and shopping were on our things to do. We enjoyed all of them and much more. Exploring this country we saw monkeys, rice fields and some amazing sites from long ago. We highly recommend a visit here for anyone who is looking for a change of pace. The sights from the beaches to the mountains were astonishing. We can't forget to mention the food and plenty of opportunities for a great massage. Also the locals were very helpful and friendly. We hope to go back soon.