Im really not sure how Matt Preece (MAF engineer, PNG) gets involved in these sort of events, but Im not surprised either!

Here’s a clip he filmed on a recent “adventure” with a group of guys  - including Dan Perrett (did his wife know?) – digging up an unexploded bomb from World War 2 in Papua New Guinea.  Matt’s blog is always interesting – http://mattinpng.com

During a visit to a village at the peak of Cape Wom. We saw many WW2 artifacts, one including a Japanese bomb being dug up.

What do we think of when hearing the word technology?

I think I heard the term best described as “stuff that has been invented in my lifetime”.  For me I grew up with television, it was no big deal.  But getting a colour TV was massive.  It arrived the week that the Olympic games in Montreal began.  I still remember the opening ceremony.  I remember my last year of high school the school bought a video recorder – a huge device capable of recording things off tv.

For my kids who have grown up with these things…………………….and, internet, mobile phones, mobile internet, digital video, pens that record video etc etc I am interested in the things they will call technology.

Technology is really anything that we use to get something done.  God used the technology of some stone tablets to communicate some laws to man. The apostle Paul used the technology of letters when he wrote to the churches he visited and couldnt return in person to.  Neil Armstrong used the technology of video and long distance comms to transmit tv pictures of man stepping on the moon’s surface for the first time.

A man was carried for three days on the stretcher in the photo below to reach a remote airstrip in Papua New Guinea.  While most likely not the most comfortable three days he’s ever had I guarantee he was thankful for the technology of that stretcher.  Was he aware of the radio technology used to communicate with the MAF aircraft?  How much did he appreciate the technology of the aircraft itself?  The technology used by doctors in treating him?

When I travel to Papua New Guinea areas where malaria is known to be present, I always take up a supply of the right pills so I dont fall victim to malaria.  I just read this blog post from the guys flying around the world in an Australian GA8 Airvan, the same plane used in some of the MAF programs:

“One lady told how she had lost three boys and two daughters to malaria, another man spoke of the three children that he had lost to malaria . . . the stories went on and on.  One chap said that until the missionaries came to Malamaunda, they had no access to any medicine due to their remote location, and the death toll each year was in the thousands.  Even now, the villages “close” to Malamaunda are a number of days walk away, and Bob Kennel told how a man had tried to bring his child sick with malaria to the village where Bob was - a three day walk.  After a day’s hike, the child died in the man’s arms and all he could do was return home to bury his little child.  This is happening right now.  As I write this, people here in PNG are dying from malaria . . . only a very short flight away from Australia.  This should not be happening . . . this must not continue to happen.”

Lets not ask “What would I do?

Ask “What can I do, now?”

Imagining myself as that father carrying his sick child rammed home the impact that malaria has.

Last month I spent two weeks in Papua New Guinea. My time was split with MAF IT tasks, MAF LT tasks and three days as acting Program Manager for MAF.

While in PNG I met with:

• PNG Bible Society
• Leaders from the Baptist Union of PNG
• Staff from the Christian Leaders Training Centre (CLTC)
• Staff from New Tribes Mission
• Staff and management committee of CRMF (Christian Radio Missionary Fellowship)
• MAF Papua New Guinea Board
• John Kupp, Senior Pastor PNG Christian Centres
• Staff from MAF Papua New Guinea

The MAF LT component of my visit was to share with various groups of people the ministry of MAF Learning Technologies.  It is important at this stage of the ministry in Asia Pacific for our staff and those connected closely to us, that it is clear what MAF Learning Technologies ministry looks like so they can communicate to others and potential partners the ministry services and vision.

The most common need described to me was for resources. Learning materials (printed or digital), Bible studies, courses. When I talked about audio resources such as sermons, books, Bibles there was a great amount of interest. The barrier here appears to be access. For example, many of the MAF national staff can afford an MP3 player, but cant access audio Bibles or teachings – and want to! Internet accessible resources are not an option to them – dial-up is slow and unreliable, broadband is new and very expensive, VSAT remains the best option for the near future although Telikom now provides a 3G/CDMA USB modem wireless service which is providing good speeds, but still an expensive option for people in PNG, internet cafes where the public can get online are as rare as a coconut in Antarctica. Christian bookshops have music CDs but not teaching. Digital audio players called the ‘Proclaimer’ are being distributed by the PNG Bible Society (on behalf of Faith Comes by Hearing), but no-one I talked to had heard of them or seen any such device around Goroka or Mt Hagen. Feeding resources for ministry is certainly a service being sought by the Church there.

Philip Bungo, CLTC TEE coordinator, was very interested in DEScribe/DEViewer to put some of his TEE material into a digital format. He gave me some of his learning material so that it could be put into DEViewer as a demonstration of concept – this may become a project for the CRMF Learning technologies position holder. CLTC have over 1000 students doing their TEE courses (each under K40 in cost) and believe they would have many more if others in remote, poor communities could afford the fees.

I gave Richard Wali from Papua New Guinea Bible Society a GoBible (audio NIV NT in English, with scripture, stories, key verses available from the menu) which I bought while in the USA. I was prompted by their desire to reach out to the youth of PNG with audio New Testaments, and to develop audio NT in Tok Ples (mother tongue languages) for people in remote areas.

Richard Wali with GoBible

The church leaders I met host conferences annually for their pastors and typically cannot have all pastors come into the conference – both groups of church leaders I met with showed interest in the concept of recording conference speakers and distributing via MP3 or CD. Again their need was for resources – audio or written. John Kupp is running a Bible College in Mt Hagen for a small number of students, but the college lacks formal structure, course curriculum planning and material, and is probably typical of many small Bible Colleges being run by churches in PNG.

Nikolai Ballin (wife of MAF pilot Brad) attended an STS Workshop in 2009 in the USA and has since run a brief introduction to orality teaching technique with her home group. She is very keen to co-ordinate an STS Workshop in Mt Hagen once suitable dates for the program are advised by program management. Other MAF staff were also interested in learning oral teaching strategies.

MAF learning technologies can certainly meet some of the needs in Papua New Guinea. Whether by equipping the isolated church or equipping our staff in order that they may provide spiritual leadership within their communities. CRMF have budgetted for a Learning Technologies position on their staff and I believe this person will assume responsibility for co-ordinating MAF Learning Technologies ministry projects within PNG.

Please give thanks and pray with me:

• For continued contact with people we can serve and minister to in Papua New Guinea
• For the future MAF LT country co-ordinator for Papua New Guinea
• For the enthusiasm and excitement showed by many who heard of the various MAF LT ministry services
• That we can connect people in PNG to other ministries willing to serve the people in PNG

Since 2008, the Bible Society of Papua New Guinea has distributed over 800 “Proclaimers” featuring audio versions of the New Testament in both English and Tok Pisin.

In this joint project with the Faith Comes By Hearing ministry, staff from the PNG Bible Society distribute the Proclaimers to isolated churches through the four ministers fraternals operating in Papua New Guinea.

What is a Proclaimer?
The Proclaimer is a digital player dedicated to playing God’s Word in the local heart language.

• An installed microchip contains Scriptures in the heart language; the chip will not erase or wear out from frequent playing.
• The battery will play for 15 hours and can be recharged enough times to play the entire New Testament more than 1,000 times.
• The Proclaimer has a built-in generator and solar panel to charge the battery.
• The solar panel, in addition to charging the battery, will run the Proclaimer even without battery power as long as there is sunlight.
• The sound is digital quality and loud enough to be heard clearly by groups as large as 300.

The Proclaimer was developed primarily as a playback device for poor and illiterate people who may not have any other source to hear God’s Word.

PNG Bible Society Vision

The PNG Bible Society has a vision and a passion to see more young people involved in reading and hearing the Scriptures – especially in their own language or ‘Tok Ples”.  They have plans to build a studio in their existing warehouse in order to make audio recordings of the New Testament.  There are over 800 different languages in Papua New Guinea and they have determined that the best place to start is with the Enga region tok ples, which amazingly is spoken by the one people group.