During January we’re focusing on remembering God’s provision. Please click the Prayer tab above to read our strategic prayer request for this month.

By Brian Paris

Our family is now in Australia. We have “popped” down to have our second child. We should be here for about three months as we wait for the baby and then organize all the paperwork that will get our baby a US passport and a visa to enter PNG with us when we return. The medical system here is on par with what is in the US, so we decided to come here rather than go home for this baby. One of the downsides of that decision is coming to place where we have no support system.

In this city there is a missionary retreat center that we could stay at for relatively cheap compared to other accommodation in the area. Despite the low cost, we were still not sure how we were going to afford such a long stay there. We were talking with some friends in another mission organization in PNG about our plans and they put us in touch with a family here. After emailing with them, Steve and Gay offered to let us stay with them rent free for the entirety of our visit. They have an in-law suite that comes complete with a separate entry, bathroom, and kitchen. It was such a blessing to arrange this even before we arrived.

Gay picked us up at the airport and brought us to our new home. We were overwhelmed with it all. They have a pool, in which Ray has now learned to swim, two cars that they let us borrow whenever we have a need, and they live right next to train tracks. These tracks aren’t for the usual fast moving, heavy laden transport trains. No, these tracks are for the Kuranda trains which are loaded with waving tourists headed up to the Tablelands. They run four times a day at reasonable times and Ray is now in love with trains. We go out and stand at the tracks most days to wave back.

We originally saw coming to a new area where we have no support network as a downside of coming to Australia to have our baby. Now we know that it was only one more reason to come because it put us in the position where we had to rely on God to take care of us and He has poured out more blessings than we could ask for.

Brian serves as an assistant to administration and in language survey.