PNG Fun Facts

WEEK 6

It has been a long, eventful week. We have spent majority of the week in the Bamu river. It is the poorest area of the Western Province. Every day we stopped in different villages bringing health care and offering dental services. 

A fun time for me was going off the ship to gather dental patients. As I got off, I immediately sunk into the mud and thought I was going to loose my shoes (I have a great picture of this). I went into the village and brought 8 patients back. Throughout the days, I took care of many patients and really tried to just love on every person I encountered.

So some fun facts...

-I was asked by a patient if I was from PNG (this patient was from PNG). He said that I look like someone from Central Province. Well, today we arrived in Central Province and I can see why. My hair is pretty wild over here, I feel like Simba. Plus, I have gotten pretty dark. So, I thought it was cool to go "home" today lol.

-Sea sickness is no joke. Literally I bounce off my bed at night because the waves hit underneath our boat. It reminds me of a massive earthquake every time. The toilet and I have become buddies, unfortunately! (I know Mom, I need to try the oils)

-I have come to love apples, which I never care for back home. 

-I get new dental assistants every day, for the most part. I am extremely grateful for them but I will admit that when they accidentally put the patients saliva all over my leg, it's not too fun. 

-I would say that 95% of PNG people have never been to the Dentist which means I get to do some INSANE cleanings. I have so many fun pictures to show, which may make some of you want to vomit. One of my assistants was looking away, gagging, as I did a cleaning. It was such a bad case that I literally felt like I was opening a Christmas present, it brought me so much joy. I definitely think this is the right field for me.

-During clinic, the alarm went off to evacuate the ship. In this case we are called to go to our meeting spot for evacuation. For a second there I was a little worried. We gathered all our patients and headed over to meet. Come to find out, #1 the alarm didn't go off for too long as it would in an emergency and #2 it was a false alarm.

-There is a huge language barrier, for example, I began cleaning a lady's teeth and all of a sudden my assistant, Jacienta, says very kindly, "um Gabby, I think she is in pain." I responded, "what? That's impossible. where I am cleaning there should not be any pain. Why do you think that?" She responds, "Well, she is squeezing my wrist." I look over and the patient has a death grip on Jacienta's wrist. I stop immediately and call the translator over, who mind you has explained at least 5 times that I would be doing a cleaning. Well come to find out, the patient is thinking that I am pulling her teeth in an area where there is no pain when in reality, I am just cleaning her teeth. It took about 3 more times for him to explain after this so that I could continue.

-I get called Doctor all the time. I just accept it.  

-We can't show our knees because it is culturally inappropriate so it is a struggle trying to get out of these boats when mud is everywhere, trying not to slip and to also make sure your cupris do not ride up.

-I absolutely hate the feeling of mud on my feet. It's absolutely awful. I need some rain boots to wear out here.

-Hair braiding is the fashion here on the ship since all the village people love to put their hands in our hair.

 

Well, these are some fun highlights. Things are going well. I will say that I struggled this week with wanting to come home because I definitely miss all of you tremendously. It makes me sad to know I am missing out on so much back home but I know that this is the season God has in store for me right now. 

With that said, Happy Mother's Day to my beautiful Momma. I love that even though I am almost 25 years old, you check up on my and want to make sure that I am okay. You have been such a huge supporter of me all my life and I know that your prayers for me in this season, are really working. I love you Mom and I miss you!!! Thank you for being such a selfless example to me. 

XOXO

The Last 5 Weeks

Friends and Family! It has been so long. Sorry I have not been able to post earlier, it has been very busy here in PNG plus lack of internet service. This is going to be a pretty long post so that I can update everyone up until this point. From now on I would like to post stories that I come across, so a lot shorter.

WEEK ONE

We landed in PNG and stayed in Port Moresby for one week, unsure of what was going to happen. As you previously know, we were supposed to go to Balimo but with our visas taking so long, we were not able to get a flight. So, for the week in Port Moresby we waited for direction. 

A wonderful PNG woman who we all called Auntie Michelle, accommodated 8 of us at her home. We got to build relationships with her and her family which was truly a blessing. We had mangos (DELICIOUS) a couple times a day since they had a massive mango tree. We also had many common PNG foods such as fried fish, tuna fried bananas, bread fruit, kau kau, pumpkin, rice, and noodles. It was definitely interesting for me seeing that I am used to always eating the same thing back home. I am LOVING pumpkin which is interesting because I cannot stand it back home! 

We enjoyed a four square gospel church on Palm Sunday and it was very different, lots of jumping up and down plus loud singing! It was definitely a good experience. Throughout the week, we had received possibility of another location that we could go to. As a team, we prayed and decided to spend our next two weeks on the island of Daru.

 

WEEK TWO AND THREE

When we arrived at Daru, we immediately realized how small of an island it is. We could walk from the airport to the church we were staying at (we didn't do this when we arrived but we did when we left). We stayed at a Christian Life Church (CLC), and were immediately welcomed with beautiful handmade flower leis. We got to enjoy a lunch and meet a lot of people in the church. Immediately we felt at home.

We all slept on the stage of the church where we lined up across and set up our mosquito nets every night. We had two outhouse-type bathrooms. It was a toilet with a long drop dug into the ground. As well as a place to take bucket showers. All of these were new living circumstances for me! As far as food, we had a small electric burner. There was electricity at the church and it is a prepaid system. So you put 20K (kina) in through a cell phone and that lasted us about 4 days. 20 kina is equivalent to about $7 US. 

During the week we did many different things. One thing we did  was visit the local hospital. We split up into two teams. My team went into the OBG ward where we helped distribute medicine and pray for the mamas who have just had babies. We also went to three primary schools throughout the week and did many different programs. We would sing songs, teach bible verses, and perform skits such as David and Goliath. The kids always enjoyed our visits and laughed at everything we did. 

One of the greatest highlights in Daru for me was being able to spend 4 nights, doing a program each night, at the boarding high school. There is one high school in the western province and only 20% of kids from primary schools get in since you have to have excellent grades. There were about 300 students and each night we did something different. We told them all about ourselves, did skits, shared the love of Jesus, and really empowered them. I had the privilege to speak on 1 Tim 4:12 which talks about the power of youth and how we are called to live a life that is going to bring life. As I spoke, I really felt as if I had more passion than ever. I was not nervous one bit and I knew that I was called to speak on this topic. The importance of having value and actually doing something with our lives is something that is near to my heart so, it was great being able to share this! We had a great response from the youth these days and even had a guy publicly proclaim that he was going to live his life fully for God (they are all extremely timid in their culture so this was a big deal). 

At the church we stayed at, we ran a missions training week that lasted 4 days. It is like a mini DTS where we taught youth about different topics such as identity, nature and character of God, relationships, the gospel, prayer, hearing Gods voice and a few others. This was a time for us to interact and dig deep with the youth who were at the CLC church. The week went great and each youth at the end felt ready to say "yes" to God and see what he had in store for their lives. One of the girls I prayed for really had it on her heart to study God's word and being truth to people who believe in evolution, which I have never heard a youth express this so it was exciting. I know God did some amazing things during this week. 

We had a pretty busy two weeks in Daru with programs and one thing that I really enjoyed about the stay was being able to build relationships. Many mamas and kids live at the church and/or stayed there while we were there. So we were able to build amazing relationships that I will always hold near to my heart!!

WEEK FOUR

This was an exciting week as the MV YWAM PNG entered into PNG for the very first time. We were able to wave the ship in and get on board! I am staying in a room that has two bunk beds, with 3 awesome room mates. We have hot showers and  a toilet which is soooo nice compared to our last weeks in Daru. 

During this week we had lectures on Missions and studied the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19-20. We also prayed into the direction we see God guiding us in which for me was really exciting! 

During this week, our volunteers arrived which totaled all of us on the boat to 87, from 13 different nations.   There were many Doctors, 2 Dentists, nurses, midwives, paramedics, teachers, deck hands, electricians and general volunteers.  We had orientation and split into teams. Surprise!! I am part of the dental team, lol. There are two dentist, two assistants, a sterilization guy, a dental hygienist (me), clinic leader, and two people who educate patients about oral hygiene. 

WEEK FIVE

We sailed off to the central province and western province (Daru) to break off into all of our teams and serve the people. We had two different welcomes where they dressed up and did cultural dances. Unfortunately, I get very ill while being on the ship with sea sickness but it just depends on the day. 

While working in the dental clinic, I have had many amazing cases! One case in particular was a guy named Augi. He, like many, had severe beetle nut staining from chewing it. Beetle nut not only stains teeth but is also a carcinogen that can lead to oral cancer. As he sat in my chair, he informed me that he had stopped over a year ago and was not sure if the staining could ever be removed. I cleaned about 5 of his teeth and showed him in the mirror what it looked like and he was shocked! He began to tell me that he is a pastor and has always been very self conscious about his teeth seeing that he wants to be an example to his community. He was so excited to see the final product so that he could finally smile with confidence. When I finished, I showed him and he was ecstatic. He couldn't stop smiling and looking in the mirror. To see how blessed he was, meant so much to me. It reminded me that I got in this profession for moments like this, when I could give back to those who do not have the resources. Many people I treat have never seen a dentist and will probably never see one again.

We also had the privilege of going back to Daru where we stayed at for two weeks. It was great being able to reconnect with people and see their huge smiles. Many of them were able to come back to the ship and get a tour. I also had the privilege of treating the youth from the boarding school which many of them were familiar faces to me. 

So these are highlights from the past weeks. There is so much more but it would take forever to write. That's why I look forward to being able to share with you all in person as well. I wish I could post photos but as of now I can't due to limitations of service. But when I can, there will be many pictures added to the post. Thank you again for all of your support and prayers. 

The Time Has Come!

The time has come, we are officially heading off to Papua New Guinea!!!

As I previously wrote, there were definitely some prayer requests that we had as a team. Our staff have been working very hard to see that our visas are cleared and that we can get good deals on flights.  Well last night, we got news that our visas FINALLY cleared. We have been waiting for about 7 weeks for this to happen.

So here it is, our team leaves this Friday (this is Thursday for everyone in CA). We will be taking a grey hound bus up north to catch a flight into Port Moresby, PNG. Friday night, 17 of us (two teams) will be staying with a host in Port Moresby. The following day, or possibly a few days later, we will head out to Balimo and remain there until April 17th. We will catch a flight back to Port Moresby that weekend and welcome the ship in. Once the ship comes in, we will be staying there!

As I reflect on this past week, I realize that it was definitely trying. Daily we were hoping that today would be the day and when it wasn't, it was disappointing. One thing that our staff shared that really touched me was that as they prayed over our school, they got the verse Philippians 4:4, "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" I realized at this time that all of this was something that God saw coming. I find that a lot of times I try to take situations into my own hands and at this point, things get frustrating.

I am definitely glad that I am called to rejoice in every circumstance because rejoicing is much more fun than being down. I am grateful that we had extra time here in Australia to prepare. We learned skits and went over testimonies so that we can give the people in PNG our best. While praying, it was really put on my heart that it is such a beautiful privilege that God is entrusting the lives of the people in PNG into our hands. With all of this said, I am so excited to go out and build relationships with these people. I do not know what to expect but I know that it is going to be a life changing experience.

No matter what obstacle comes my way, I want to always make it an opportunity. I want to rejoice because I have a reason to! I am blessed to be a blessing. This does not change because things aren't going how I want them to go. His plans are much greater.

As we prepare to leave, please keep us in your prayers. We would love prayer for safety, health, relationships that are to be built there, and that we are in-tune with what God wants to do. Thank you for all of your support! A special thank you to those of you who donated this past week, we are coming close to reaching our funds as a team.

I am grateful for all of you! I do not think that I will have internet for the next month but I will write as soon as I can :)

EXCITING!

Hello!! It has been some time since I have blogged. The last two weeks I have been camping in the good ol’ Australian Bush as well as going to a campus retreat. 

When I got to the site where we were camping, I was a bit overwhelmed. It was incredibly hot so I was dripping sweat and it was in the wild meaning bugs galore. We set our tent up and I sat inside thinking, “what in the world am I doing right now.” I was dripping sweat, dirty, surrounded by bugs. I am not going to lie, I did not want to be there. As the night went on, I felt lifeless as I was just going with the flow. On of my tent mates, Bithja, and I began to pray. We prayed that God would change our mind sets so that we could take in all that camping had in store for us. 

The next day we woke up to the lion king blaring at 6:45 am. Every morning we had two wake up songs. I woke up feeling a lot better seeing that I made a commitment to embrace the beautiful nature and what was in store during these two weeks. The next two nights were a little tough as there were massive rain storms. I was drenched in rain from head to toe as I was determined to not have my tent flood. Unfortunately, a few people’s tents flooded or broke during the storm. Thankfully, nothing was damaged other than the tents that are replaceable. The weather the rest of the trip was absolutely beautiful. During the day it was pretty hot but when you are walking distance to a creek, it’s not too bad. At night, we had camp fires where we would have worship. 

The first week, our teaching was on Relationships. We had a couple who led the week, Matt and Nomes. It was a great week! We went over the power of relationships and how God loves relationships. Not just boyfriend-girlfriend relationships but relationships with friends, family, and a relationship within a marriage. All of the teaching on relationships came back to the importance of an intimate relationship with God. How God desires to know us personally and that this relationship is the most important! We committed to God things in our lives, good or bad, in which we give Him full authority in.

The second week was on Lordship. We learned a lot about how to live in the middle of God’s blessings rather than around the outside. We have to actively resist what the enemy wants to do in our life. What do we lose by resisting? Nothing. What do we gain? Everything. God wants to work miraculously in our lives and sometimes there can be things that are holding us back whether it is prioritizing a job, a relationship, a marriage, etc. So at the end of the week, we had baptisms and we also wrote done everything we could think of to give to God in which we nailed them to the cross, proclaiming that God is in ultimate control! 

During the weeks we had a lot of free time where we were able to enjoy the nature around us as well as get to know each other more. Some pictures:

Some of my sweet room mates 

Playing games at night

Beautiful hike that most of us did up to the cross

We had dinner prep the second week of camping! Yay for cooking, now I know what to make besides scrambled eggs

We would sit in our camping chairs for lecture every day

My view for my quiet time with Jesus every morning!

When we got home we went on a retreat for staff and students (another school just got back from PNG and are leaving home in two weeks so they are currently here with us). We went to our brand new ship, the YWAM PNG, to stay the night. Connected to our ship was our old ship the Pacific Link. We had some guests speakers from YWAM Kona, Hawaii, Brett and Karen. Some of you may or may not know but at YWAM Kona, there is also a medical ship dts where they reach out to the Pacific Islands. At the beginning of this year, there was a massive storm in Hawaii where they ended up losing their ship, as well as the life of a guy named Aaron who many people at my base knew. As Brett told the story, it was heart wrenching. But, there were two purposes for this weekend. One was to commission our ship as it heads up north this Monday to go to dry dock and prepare for PNG in a month. The other was that the our old boat, the Pacific Link, was being gifted to YWAM Kona. We skyped in their staff as well as with all of us and told them! Majority of the staff had no idea and you could see it was a very emotional time for them since it has been a rough start to the year. At night, I got to sleep on the Pacific Link and pray for it as I know it is going to do some mighty things for the Pacific Islands. 

Another very exciting thing that I found out was where I will be going for outreach!! My school will be leaving the weekend of the 20th, next weekend, and flying over to PNG. There we are breaking up into three teams, going to different provinces. I am in a team of 8 people, 2 leaders and 6 students including myself. We will be headed off to Balimo which is in the Western Province. To get there we will fly into Port Moseby ( in PNG), fly to Daru (the capital of the Western Province), then flying into Kawito, and take a dingy up the river to Balimo. There we will be traveling through villages. While there we will be helping them develop their villages, as well as educating them on proper hygiene and oral hygiene. We will also be speaking to them about the love of Jesus and the hope that is found in Him. After a month, we will all meet back up in Port Moseby and welcome the brand new ship, the YWAM PNG, for the first time! There we will load into the ship and be on the ship serving along the coast of PNG until early June. This is a picture of the Balimo team!! 

Again, I want to thank all of you for your loving support during this time! This has been a journey of a lifetime and it is still in the beginning stages. If you could be praying for all of us! There are many prayer requests:

-cheaper charter flights to these remote areas 

-finances that need to be raised in order for people to go

-strong contacts that need to be made in PNG for accommodations and such

-softening the hearts of those in the villages

-fast processing of our visas

-rejecting passivity

-that we will  be filled with the spirit

-the processing of applications for the nurses here to be able to work in PNG

-weather, there is supposed to be a cyclone coming

-our leaders

-unity within teams

-health

I appreciate all of you! I know that God desires for all of us to leave next weekend and there is a lot that needs to take place for this to happen so PLEASE be praying. If it is on your heart to make a donation, please email me at glemos39@gmail.com. There are still many people in need of finances in which you could bless :)

LOVE AND MISS YOU ALL! 

Mind Blown

This week has been by far my favorite even though I feel like this every week. The theme of this week was, The Nature and Character of God. We had a speaker come in from Perth and let me tell you, he was full of knowledge.

I thought I knew a lot about who God is. Well let me tell you, I am definitely like the Israelites who saw God do miraculous things over and over again yet still doubted Him. I mean come on he sent plagues, parted the Red Sea, made water come out of a rock and so much more. Yet, when things got tough they doubted the existence and character of God. Instead, wanted to turn back to their idols.

I realized that this has been a lot like my life. Time and time again I have seen His glorious ways yet I fall back into living for myself and what I think is best in the season. I have known God with my mind but struggled to know God with my heart. Why?

Well, because I have not always understood or taken the time to understand. Yes I go to church and attend life groups which I now realize have helped me grow tremendously but I haven't spent enough time on my own. There is so much I could go into about this week but it all comes down to who God says He is in Exodus 5:6-7, "And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionateand gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin."


We tend to complicate who God is and what our purpose in life is. God is good, the end. Yes we face overwhelming circumstances but this does not mean that God changes. One of the things that stood out to me this week was this picture...

We tend to wear glasses in life. The glasses represent our circumstances and depending on those at the time, determines how we view God. So if things are great then God is a good God. When things are bad, then God isn't good because why would He let this happen. Now how about we look at this another way. Let's make our glasses represent God and now look at our circumstances. Wow, I got a raise at my job, thank you God. On the other hand, something awful occurs and we seek God for guidance and lean on Him because we know that even though circumstances have changed, He hasn't and never will!

This is just the surface of what I went over this week. I am more motivated than ever to dig into the word and see who God is. It's easy for us to be fed the word but how about we actually take the time to see for ourself. I am in awe of God's goodness time and time again.

I hope that this encourages you to build a stronger relationship with God. This world is ugly and after this week, I have a much more understanding of why. I am not going to go into it but I encourage you to look into God's patience and mercy, this will answer a lot of questions.

For the next two weeks I will be camping with my school in the mountains, about two hours away. So, I will have no wifi or access to electronics. Take care and I can't wait to share all that I have learned when I get back.

Miss you all <3

Week by Week

I feel like time is flying by, yet crawling. I have taken in a lot much information these past 3 weeks with last week's topic of clear conscious. I can say that I am really missing home. The longest that I have ever been gone for is about 2 weeks and now I am headed into week 4. I miss spending time with my family and friends, hugging Christopher, being involved in life groups, seeing youth every Wednesday, cleaning teeth, going to the gym (kind of miss this lol), my cats, and so much more. Sometimes I would like to go home but then I smack myself back into reality.

As every week passes by, I am reminded why I am here. I am taking a step out of my comfort zone and into the unfamiliar. Last week we went over clear conscience and we were called to step out and be vulnerable. So many things tend to bottle up inside of us and if never brought into the light, will stay trapped, hindering us from experiencing freedom. I was able to share some very intimate parts of my life with over 50 people who care about me and want to be apart of my family. It was such a beautiful week!

I am being stretched beyond what I could have ever imagined but I know that what I am learning is going to be foundational to the rest of my life. I look forward to heading off to PNG and reaching people not only in their healthcare needs but also spiritual. I have seen the hurt that has resonated within us as a team and I could only imagine the pain that others experience when not knowing the freedom of Jesus. 

Please continue to pray for my team and I as we are physically, emotional, mentally, and spiritually stretched. 

Here are some fun things that took place last week...

A possum decided to join some of my classmates for homework. Fun fact: our "possums" in the states are actually called opossums and are no where near this cute. 

Some of my closest friends at our Valentine's Brunch. The guys in our group surprised all of us with a lovely breakfast where they served us, it was a treat!

Hiked up Castle Hill where I had some quiet time with Jesus. Even though the hike was intense, it was well worth it. 

During the week we are assigned a work duty and mine is working with youth (writing grants and being a leader at youth group) and cleaning bathrooms :) Why not have fun while doing it?

I hope all is well back home!

<3

Settling In

Hello!

Sorry it has been a while since I have blogged. It has definitely been busy over here. We have completed two weeks of lectures, one on Hearing God's voice and on Identity. The weather here is extremely hot and humid. I am pretty sure that I have lost some water weight!

In the first week, it was really great putting aside any distractions from life and listening to what God is saying. It is difficult to explain but I really valued this teaching. I know that I want to live every aspect of my life directed by God and since there are so many possibilities, it can be hard to know which direction to go.

Last week, we went through Identity week. This week was very powerful. We learned who our Identity is in Christ and how we are all beautifully, and uniquely handcrafted. A powerful time this week was that we made two lists, one with lies that we've been told throughout our life and one with truths that corresponds with these. With out truth list, we proclaimed them in a group of about 10 people. And when I say proclaim, I mean it. If you didn't sound like you meant it, you would not be able to move onto the next!

Through these last two weeks, our schools have become very close, we are like a family here. There are people from all over the world and it's awesome to be able to compare how we say particular words and such. I hope I come back with some type of accent lol. I never knew that Canadians get offended when mistaken for an American same with Australians and New Zealanders (they call them Kiwis). I love the environment here, definitely called out of my comfort zone in a safe place.

Here is a short story that I to wrote for an assignment about one of my experiences here:

Can you hear me God?

As I stand in worship, it hits me, “Am I really here? Did I leave everything that I know to be comfortable for the unknown?” “I sure am!” I am in Australia to be radically transformed. As I pray, it sounds something like this, “God, show me what you want of me. I want to be bold and courageous. I am tired of living a mundane life. Please God, speak to me.” As I wait, I get an image of someone in a sunflower shirt. I open my eyes, and right past me walks the exact image. “Okay God, what does this mean?” I get this sense to pray for her, with her! I was thinking, “I do not know her. That would be weird. What do I even say.” I got this peace that it was going to be okay. I wrestled with God at this time. I came to the conclusion, “maybe next time God.”

Well, God has a sense of humor. As I am worshipping, I get a tap on my shoulder. I open my eyes to a sunflower. What do you know? She has come to pray for me. At this time, I have a grin and while she is praying, I am thinking, “Oh God. I see what you did here.” God knows my heart, my capability and is partnering along side of me. When I am weak, He is made strong. I finished the night praying with her and taking one step forward in having my life transformed. 

Miss you all very much!!

Here are a few pics of things I have been doing:

Hiked up Castle Hill. Awesome view up top. It's pretty intense of a work out.

I am working with the youth here. During the week, I have been learning how to write grants. On the weekend, I volunteer with Youth Street where the kids come to have a good time and hear about Jesus. We did some dart art that was awesome, and much harder than it looks!

I got to hang out with some Kangaroos. Some even had joeys! 

Watched the Super Bowl much later than everyone else and without the commercials since they do not air them in Australia. BOO!

One of my closest friends here! Here name is Bithja (Bit-e-ya). She is from Germany and she is awesome. This night we went to a local church called Calvary Christian Church.

At the beach. You have to swim in an enclosed area because it is jelly fish season. The jelly fish are deadly. So there are nets. 

The people that I will be doing life with until June! They are an amazing group!!