Welcome to Wujal Wujal! Through the miracle of the internet (and after nearly a month without it, I am almost convinced it is a miracle) I am finally able to bring you up to speed on what we have been doing here in Australia. For the sake of time, I won’t give a detailed play by play of our time here. Instead, I will begin to answer the big question I have been asked by many of you, “What are you learning?” While much of it I am unable to accurately process into words at the moment, I will do my best.
1. Australia is wild. It is a massive, largely untamed continent full of wilderness, wildlife, and distance. While there are a few big cities, much of it is farmland, desert, rainforest, etc. Yes, it is a westernized country (although some indigenous tribes still live in the traditional way), but it is a fascinating place because it is the kind of place where there is still a respect between humans and nature. Just in North Queensland where we currently are, you can find 3 of the 5 deadliest snakes in the world (not to mention those that fall between 6 and 20…), a few handfuls of seriously potent spiders, giant cockroaches, kangaroos, wild horses, wild pigs, huge fruit bats, and birds on top of birds. And then there’s the water – of course there’s fish, but I have also seen a crocodile, dolphins, a stingray, jellyfish, and at least two kinds of sharks. While this was scary at first, there is a balance to it all that you learn to understand. It is almost primal, but as a man, it is cool to feel a small bit of what it felt like hundreds, thousands of years ago – to really have to fight and hunt and survive. I think you have to have an air of danger to fully realize what it means to be truly alive. You have to feel fear, to learn courage. And I have been afraid on more than a couple occasions.
2. Aboriginal ministry is…different. The Australian indigenous people have a story similar to the Native Americans that involves removal from their native land, “western education”, and repression of their culture which has often resulted in alcohol abuse, domestic abuse/violence, lack of education, and poverty. Despite all of this, the indigenous community here in Wujal Wujal is full of amazingly inviting, generous, friendly people who have welcomed us tremendously and made us feel at home from the minute we arrived. They have showed us so much and have given so generously. Many place an extremely high level of commitment to continuing their traditions and most still speak their native language, although it is not generally taught in schools. Wujal Wujal was established by Lutheran missionaries in the late 1800s in a very legalistic way of “domesticating” the surrounding indigenous tribal groups, and until approximately the 1970 church attendance was mandatory in the community. Because of this unique past, missionaries working with indigenous groups have developed a unique style of ministry that we have been a part of this month. Essentially the ministry is centered around small community meetings or home churches, with the goal being to set an example of fellowship and discipleship while growing up new disciples from within the community. Although it is a long process, we have been encouraged by the progress we have seen here and the amazing growth that is taking place in these homes and communities. There is no doubt in any of us that the Lord is a work in these people and this community and we are so blessed to be a part of that.
3. People are people. While the indigenous people, and the people of Wujal Wujal do have a unique past and story, at the end of the day, they are just people. We all want the same basic things from life and we all have the same basic needs – most paramount is our desire to be loved and accepted. While ministry has taken on a unique face (as it probably will every month), the things we are bringing to these people are not new – the message isn’t changing. I think that so often we try to cater what we say or how we say it to what we think people need to hear or who we think people are (I have definitely been guilty of that this month) and we get in the way of letting God say what he wants to say. I sometimes forget that God can speak for himself. This month he has been reminding me that we are simply invited to lovingly, prayerfully, and responsibly be the mouthpiece for that message.
4. It is ok to not watch the Super Bowl – even when the Colts are in it. Super Bowl Sunday (Super Bowl Monday in Australia) I woke up knowing that I wouldn’t be watching the big game. I wouldn’t get to see the culmination of all the hard work, the blood, sweat, and tears, I had put in all year, weekend after weekend cheering for the blue and white. There was a glimmer of hope when we walked into the small town library and discovered a large TV, but after flipping through all 4 channels of static, that hope was quickly squashed like the hundreds of beetles we swat every night as we eat dinner. I was able to check the score of the game periodically on one of the two computers in the local internet café, but it just wasn’t the same. But then I realized it was ok – honestly, while I would have liked to have watched the game, I didn’t really miss it. And when the game was over, sure I was a bit disappointed, but I was hardly upset. In my journal that day I wrote, “Overall, today was good and I am really excited for this week – I think God is really ready to move here in huge ways.” I guess I am just learning about perspective.
5. Everything will be alright. This month we have been living in a small guest house in the community. It’s nothing special (by American standards), but it’s not a tent, and for us, it is home. I have to admit, my first few days in Wujal, I was not excited about being here. I missed people, I missed cell phone service, I missed internet, and I missed civilization – I missed being comfortable. Since being here, I have learned so much about living simply, slowly, and finding comfort not in things or locations, but by just forcing yourself into God. Some days this year I’m sure it will just stink, and I will be tired and lonely, and hungry and sick of eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch everyday. But out here I basically have two choices – whine about it, or choose to worship my way out of it – and whining about it doesn’t change anything… I’ve tried. We were made to worship – that is our primary function, and we are always doing it. But the real lesson I am learning is that what we choose to worship is what makes all the difference. Worshipping things, people, sports teams, internet, food, etc. has only taken me so far. Worshipping Jesus is taking me much farther.
5. Everything will be alright. This month we have been living in a small guest house in the community. It’s nothing special (by American standards), but it’s not a tent, and for us, it is home. I have to admit, my first few days in Wujal, I was not excited about being here. I missed people, I missed cell phone service, I missed internet, and I missed civilization – I missed being comfortable. Since being here, I have learned so much about living simply, slowly, and finding comfort not in things or locations, but by just forcing yourself into God. Some days this year I’m sure it will just stink, and I will be tired and lonely, and hungry and sick of eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch everyday. But out here I basically have two choices – whine about it, or choose to worship my way out of it – and whining about it doesn’t change anything… I’ve tried. We were made to worship – that is our primary function, and we are always doing it. But the real lesson I am learning is that what we choose to worship is what makes all the difference. Worshipping things, people, sports teams, internet, food, etc. has only taken me so far. Worshipping Jesus is taking me much farther. 
Thank you all again, for all of your prayers and support. Please continue to pray for us. As a team we will be spending tomorrow (Tuesday) fasting and praying. Specifically we will be praying for the ministry we are currently serving and the Wujal Wujal community, our team’s financial situation (4 of us are still in need of financial support), Lindsey’s room still for rent at home (that she is continuing to pay for), YOU – all of our family and friends at home, Adventures in Missions and the rest of the World Race teams throughout the world, and our future ministry in the coming months. Please join us in praying for these things throughout the week. Hopefully I’ll be able to post another blog before we leave Australia, but if not, I’ll talk to you next from the Philippines! 
