Twenty-Four and Many More

As most of you know, Ben and I desire to move overseas in a few years (most likely to Papua New Guinea) to work with a people group who has never heard about Jesus. We are not there yet, but here is what is amazing:

TWENTY FOUR PEOPLE have already had a part in getting the gospel to this people group.

Since June, twenty-three people (or couples in many cases and churches in two cases) have given financially to help us as we prepare and train to work among an unreached people group. So that makes twenty-three people/couples/churches plus us who are already excited and passionate about getting the gospel to these people. And we're not even there yet. Wow! Thank you! We are so grateful and amazed for the way God works in people's hearts to care for his people around the world who still need to hear.

And the exciting thing is that I believe there are more than just twenty-four. I know there are many more of you who have not financially given but are praying for us faithfully, and you are such a vital part in reaching this unreached people group as well. We know that God has heard and answered your prayers as he gives us health, wisdom, finances, energy, and perseverance.

As the end of our first semester of training comes to a close, we want to take time to say THANK YOU for your part in responding to God's command to "make disciples of all nations" (Matt. 28:18-20).

It Runs in the Family...

It runs in the family... 

that is, the third baby being a surprise.

Ben was the third baby in his family. He was a surprise for his parents, and he came just 15 months after his sister, Katie.

Nikki was the third baby in our family. She was born just 13 (!!!!) months after me. She was for sure a surprise to my parents.

And now we have been surprised by this little baby, our third child. If it's a competition to have the closest age gap, we lose, thankfully. Brielle and baby #3 will be about 17 months apart.

First Semester Classes

I haven't posted about the classes that we have been taking here at the MTC because we take A LOT. Some classes are short, some classes are long.

This semester, we will be taking a total of 17 classes:
1. Big Picture
2. Child Protection
3. CLA Intro
4. Communication Skills
5. CP1 Wrap-Up
6. e-linc
7. Form and Meaning
8. Foundation Bible Teaching
9. History of NTM
10. Learning Styles
11. Love and Respect
12. Ministry Partnership 1
13. Ministry Practicum
14. Phonetics
15. Stewarship
16. Teamwork
17. Worldview Analysis

We have taken or are in the middle of taking all but 2 of these courses, so I thought I was at a good point to share about these classes! For those of you who are interested, I have wrote more detailed descriptions of these classes below.

1. Big Picture:
I missed all of this class because of sick kids, but I did listen online. In this class, we looked at the way New Tribes works, from start to finish of a missionary's career. It's easier to show than explain, so I will show you a picture from my friend Lauren's blog:

2. Child Protection:
This is a two-day course, and we started it today. This stuff is HEAVY. We are being taught and discussing the topic of child abuse.

3. CLA Intro:
CLA = Culture Language Acquisition. When we move overseas, we will have to learn to adjust to the language and culture in order to truly minister to the people on all levels. In this class, we touched on the basics of this. One thing we did was consider how even in America we have to understand someone's culture and language when moving to a new place.

4. Communication Skills:
In this class, we considered different facets of communication and how to be good communicators ourselves. We talked about how to ask good questions and how to relate to different types of students. We considered how Jesus communicated with people as well.

6. e-linc:
This is a small group that we were placed in and meet with twice a week. Our leaders are two staff couples, and then there are three other couples and two single guys in our group. We really have enjoyed getting to know our group! I'll have to get a better picture of our group since this is the only one I have :)

7. Form and Meaning:
In this class, we discussed and compared different versions of the Bible (NIV, ESV, NLT, NASB, KJV, etc). If you've grown up in the church, you've probably heard others talk about one version is better than others. This class was really eye-opening because we discovered that ALL versions have some word-for-word translation and some meaning-based translation. There is no pure translation. At the same time, we can trust that God has worked in the translators to give them as much wisdom as humanly possible, and we can trust the version we have. Our teacher (who wrote a book on this topic if you want to learn more) suggested we spend time in different versions, perhaps doing our devotions in a different version each year. And while you're still debating in your head whether one version is best, PRAY FOR US... in the future, we will have the huge task of being a part of translating a Bible into a new language, Lord willing!

8. Foundational Bible Teaching
NTM has a curriculum that they use to teach overseas. It's called Foundational Bible Teaching (FBT), and in it, we teach from Creation (Genesis 1) to Christ, covering 72 different lessons. In this class, we had the opportunity to teach through a lesson ourselves (with a couple of other people) as well as to listen to our classmates teach other lessons. It was so neat to see the Bible in this way. It really helped me to understand attributes of God and to see his overall purpose in history. There's a book called The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus as well as a similar version that's intended more for our younger post-modern generation called By His Name that take this curriculum and put it into a book version for American readers :)

9. History of NTM:
We looked at the history of NTM, from its start in 1942 until now. It's incredible to learn how God has worked in this mission from the start.

10. Learning Styles
We all learn differently. We all perceive the world differently. This class focused on this and allowed us to identify the way we learn and the way we perceive the world. It was rather fascinating and helpful. If you want to learn more about the Mind Styles, you can look at the chart below!

11. Love and Respect
There's a good chance if you run in Christian circles that you have heard of the book Love and Respect before. Ben and I read this book while we were engaged, but it was good to learn this information again (this time, in video form), five years into marriage. It's easy how quickly we adjust back to being selfish individuals who want the best for me, myself, and I.

13. Ministry Practicum:
As the name suggests, this one isn't a class. Rather, we are encouraged as moms and expected as men to be involved in a ministry during our time here. There are a number of different ones to be involved in, but Ben and I are focusing on ministering at our church, by getting to know the people there and being involved in a small group. It's nice to be able to minister together. Ben is also ministering by helping with sound during chapel and he is planning to help with a small discipleship group of teenage guys.

14. Phonetics:
We are currently in this class. There is something called the Phonetic Alphabet, and we have to learn it. This will help us to transcribe new words we learn overseas. We also have to learn the sounds of each phonetic letter, which is fine when it's a sound we say all of the time in English. It's rather humbling/scary/hard/exciting/funny when it's a sound that does not exist in English, and we have to try to say it! Who knew how hard it could be to make our mouths say a sound that they are unfamiliar with! Just incase you're wondering what the letters in the Phonetic Alphabet look like (and each of these letters has a sound that go with them), here they are:

15. Stewardship:
We look at both how to best use our time and our finances in this class. Certainly important topics for anyone, but especially for missionaries!

16. Teamwork:
When we work with NTM, there's no way to escape working with a team. When we move overseas, we will be working with a team of people in the tribe (around 4 other people, marrieds or singles, American or non). We also will be working with a team of people who help to keep us in the tribe (leadership, supply buyer, pilot, guest house, medical, etc). We better know how to work with other people! This class is here to prepare us. We are sinful people, and we are going to encounter other sinful people, and this working in teams thing will not always be easy. We appreciate your prayers NOW in this area as this will greatly affect our ministry overseas. Pray that God will work in our hearts to be good team players.

17. Worldview Analysis:
I've already talked some about this class in a previous post, but it was fascinating! I was amazed to truly realize how deeply everything we believe, do, and say is impacted by our worldview which is impacted by all of the things around us (family, media, friends, culture, school). Equally important is to realize how deeply the tribal people are affected by their world views. This is why it is so important for us to commit long-term to taking the gospel to these people! We will be penetrating values and beliefs that are DEEPLY saturated in these people. Pray for us!

God is Good (Practical Examples)

We are back from our Webfast. It was a good time- we are thankful for the internet (and other technology), but we were thankful for a break from it for a month.

Just wanted to share a little with you all about some of the ways God has blessed us lately... One thing we have been talking about in our Foundational Bible Teaching class is how God is good. We've been forced to look at stories where God's goodness is hard to see and to determine how he is still good in these situations. If we truly believe he is good, then we need to consider these things even when it's hard. I have truly enjoyed this exercise and have learned from it, and I'm challenging myself to do the same in my own life. Sometimes I wonder why God hasn't provided more supporters for us or more money for us (this is not a guilt post in any way so I hope no one will read it that way- just sharing my heart), but then he reminds me of ways that he has provided for us -ways that I would not have imagined. In special ways. And he has provided for every one of our needs and more. We have not had to go without. God is good to us.

1. We have this awesome food pantry here at school that we have gotten so much yummy food on. What a blessing for helping us keep our food bill down! One day, a TON of drinks were dropped off. Drinks are basically Ben's love language- particularly Diet Mountain Dew and Diet Coke- both of which they had! 

2. The food pantry has blessed us in another way too. I was needing baby food for Brielle, but it's so expensive. I prayed about it once, wondering if maybe someone would put some in the food pantry. Well, no one did- instead, some local farms and the local farmers market donated every now and then, and one time we got a bunch of sweet potatoes and squash. I cooked them all up and froze a bunch in ice cube trays, and waa-laa! Free baby food- and healthier than the kind from the store too! (plus, Brielle won't even eat the kind from the store anymore because it's too runny. God is good!)

3. Samaritan Ministries. Yeah, I know, I've mentioned my thankfulness for them before, but this month I'm thankful because they give referral credits... and since we referred two families in the last couple months (thanks Rimesteads and Narwolds!), we didn't have to send any money this month. HUGE. BLESSING!

4. Health. Overall, we have stayed healthy and have been able to be in classes. Let me be specific so you understand. Since we've been here, a number of viruses have gone around: Flu, hand foot and mouth disease, Roseola, strep throat (our neighbors have had several of these too)... and the only thing our family has had is the common cold. That is a praise!

5. Socks (and other goodies)! Sophie's friend Katy Armstrong sold coffee and cinnamon rolls to raise money to send Sophie a care package. SO sweet! Sophie needed socks, so she got some of those in the package- but she also got some yummy candy that she was even more excited about :)

Thank you to those who pray for us!! We know God is answering prayers!

The Web and my Worldview

The most fascinating class we’ve been taking so far here at New Tribe’s MTC is called “Worldview Analysis.” I learned about worldview at Grace College, and I remember appreciating what I learned there, but we went even deeper here. I thought we would just learn about how to decipher the worldview of a tribal person… and while we did do that, that part of the class wasn’t what fascinated me most. What shocked me was learning about my own worldview. God has really opened my eyes to just how deeply the world around me affects my worldview.

One of the big things we talked about is how technology has affected our worldview. Of course, there are good things about technology, but there are many ways that the internet and other social media negatively influences me without me even realizing it. It’s hard for me to realize it’s full impact when I’m stuck inside my own worldview.

I SO wish that I could fill your minds and hearts with all we’ve been learning, but since we’ve had many hours of this class already, that would be impossible. I will suffice it to leave you a favorite quote from the class.

“To be unaware that a technology comes equipped with a program for social change, to maintain that technology is neutral, to make the assumption that technology is always a friend to culture is, at this late hour, stupidity plain and simple” Neil S.

The practical application of this class is that all 45 students in our class along with our class mentors will be taking the next month (Sept 9-Oct 4) away from all social media. We call it a Webfast. This means no texting, facebook, blogging, pinterest, google, television, Netflix…. You know, the things that we don’t even know how to live without anymore. Please pray that we will use this time away from so many things that usually distract us to draw closer to the Lord and build deeper relationships with people. Our teacher reminded us that we are so used to facebook relationships but in a tribe we will be forced to build face-to-face relationships and this will be good practice for us. The level of deepness that facebook requires of us won’t cut it when we’re dealing with the reality of tribal life- poverty, death, and suffering like we’ve never seen before. 

(If you do need us during this time, you can still CALL us or you can email us at ben_miller@ntm.org or alisha_miller@ntm.org.) 

A Day in the Life [of an MTC Student]...

Here at the Missionary Training Center, our family is beginning to feel more settled and get into a routine. Here is a little post to give you a general idea of what our days look like:

8am - Ben heads to class (he often wakes up to run or sometimes to pray with others before this). I listen online to this class while getting the girls ready.

8:40am- I head to class with the girls. Usually I take them in the double stroller, but we're going to start trying the wagon, and usually I take them all the way on my own, but this day Ben was able to help me some.

We drop the girls off in their childcare classes. Sophie goes to toddlers, where she's the oldest in the classroom (and there are only 4-5 other kids, so it's small), and Brielle goes to the nursery where there are 9-10 other babies, and most of them were born around the same time as her (so by the end of the semester, there are going to be lots of moving babies)!! Both girls have adjusted well, and Sophie is usually excited about "going to her class."

8:55am- Our classes start and go until 12am. So far the classes we have taken are Learning Styles, Worldview Analysis, CLA (Culture Language Acquisition) Intro, and NTM History. We also have something each day called HTR (Hold the Ropes) where we get to pray for missionaries all around the world. We have 45 students in our class, and we are called CP1 (Church Planting 1).

From 12pm-5pm, we do a lot of things. Ben has to do 8 hours of work detail each week (he is working on plumbing with another guy in a new building here on campus) and also 8 hours of ministry. So he will do this during some of this time. One afternoon we also meet with our elinc group (small group) that we were placed in with two staff couples and some other students in our class. Mostly, I stay home with the girls while they take naps, and I do mom and wife duties. I do have to help cut cleaning rags for my work detail and do some ministry hours as well but as a mom, my hours are much less.

5:30pm- We eat dinner! We've been having lots of people over, and we've also been invited over to others' houses, so dinner time has been fun!

6pm-8pm- This is our fun hang-out time! We usually hang out with friends or go to the park (as Sophie insists we do), and occasionally we go to the lake since we can walk to it. Sometimes we just take walks. We love that we can walk so many places!

8pm- Brielle goes to bed, and Sophie follows shortly after. Then Ben and I do homework, enjoy some kid-free quietness, and sometimes hang out with friends.

We are praising God as he continues to be good to us!

The P Update

This is an update all about the "Ps" in our lives that you may be curious about: Prayer, Praises, (Financial) Partners, and Pictures.

Prayer: 

*That we would learn a healthy balance between classes, ministry, work detail, family, and friendships.

*For God to continue burdening people's hearts for the unreached in whatever role he might have them play in that

*Childcare Need --> They struggle to have enough workers to help with childcare, so Moms have to help. This semester, there are so many kids and so few workers that Moms have to miss class once a week to help in the childcare. While being with the kids is fun, it's difficult to miss one day of classes every week and stay on top of classes. Please pray that I won't be overwhelmed by missing class, but I would also love prayer that they would be able to find more childcare workers/volunteers!

Praises:

*We arrived here safely and are unpacked

*The girls love it here, are back in their routine, and are doing well in childcare! 

*We love being around our friends from the Bible school again!

*Financially, God has been so good to us, and we're so thankful for all who have given financially to help us!

(Financial) Partners:

We are so thankful for the way God has provided for us so that we can be here! Thank you to those who have given to us financially! It was difficult, especially for Ben, to step away from a secure job and trust in God. It is so very exciting, however, to have to trust God in this new way and to see the amazing ways in which he provides.

We've had 15 individuals/couples and 2 churches give to us, either one-time gifts or monthly gifts. These gifts total $10,499, and if you remember from my Money Matters post, we estimate our semester needs to be around $11,500 for each semester. This means we already have 91% of our support for this semester. 

Pictures:

Sophie's in love with the lake...

When one sister looks...

 ...the other doesn't.

 This is how I get the girls to class in the morning! (Ben's already at class, so I have to do it by myself)