Merry Christmas 2015, from the McClures,

Well, this year can be summed up in one word, "CHANGE". We left MAF and Indonesia after 3.5 years after we had just planned on one year. We are humbled that we were entrusted to do even a small part in the lives of the people he put in our paths. We greatly miss and pray for our family and friends in Papua and encourage you to continue to pray for the ongoing ministry of the gospel there. "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." 1 Peter 5:8. The new believers, our brothers and sisters continue to need prayer for strength and growth and spiritual protection. Also pray for workers. They are in need of teachers, nurses, pilots, mechanics, IT people, maintenance oriented folks, any gifting that you are being led to share with a very loving and hungry people group. Whether that help comes through MAF or any other means for short or long term. "The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest’. Luke 10:2.

Valentine’s day gathering leaving Papua.

We got back to the states mid Feb. then promptly drove to CA. to see kids and Grandkids, Arizona to visit Dions’ mom and for Miles to have dental work done in Mexico, then back to the PNW by Mid-March. While staying at Miles’s dads place with his brother, we looked for housing and jobs in the Vancouver WA area but only saw jobs available in the Seattle / Tacoma area so we packed up and moved into an apartment in the Tacoma area in May to make job hunting easier. Dion got hired on with Express Personnel at the end of May and was assigned to Food Services of America where she had a 1 ½ - 2 hour commute each way daily. We have had several trips to CA to visit the family and are blessed to be so much closer. In early June our oldest grandchild, Jerrod Wagner graduated from High school and is now a soldier in the army. He is our daughter Jennifer and husband Johns’ son. John started a new business which is doing well. Jennifer is enjoying being a stay at home mom for a change.

Jennifer and Family from right, Johnny, John, Bryce, Jerrod, Jennifer, Gabby, and Dakota.

Trent photobombing when we meet Violet. Lady Vi.

Kristie with Danny and Vi.

In late June our youngest grandchild Violet Kathleen McClure was born to our son Trent and his wife Kristi bringing our total to 8 grandchildren. They moved back to San Diego in the spring after Trent was promoted in the Boy Scouts of America. Kristie has her hands full with an active 3 year old Danny, and sweet lady Vi.   


Miles about to go in for surgery

We visited them in early July. In early October we visited again to celebrate Daniels’ 3rd Birthday. We also slipped over to Mexico and Dion had her turn at some dental work and got in a short visit with her mom again, who turned 80 in October. After we got settled in Tacoma Miles’ DR. determined that he needed to have surgery to take care of the prostate cancer. The surgery was scheduled in early August and we wanted to be settled closer to Dion’s work in a place of our own before he went in. We found a condo in our price range just South of Seattle and moved once again mid-July. Miles’ surgery went well and he has mostly recuperated. He has accepted a part time position with an apprenticeship school beginning in January. He will be teaching the things he did for 36.5 years @ Boeing. In late October Miles went down to Arizona to help Dion’s mom out with several projects around the house so that she can put her house on the market and possibly move back to the PNW. He also stopped and helped Trent with some extensive yard renovating.

                                                                                                   

Josh and his wife Allyl and daughter Ainsley

Josh and Allyl are very busy in San Diego. Josh is a spokesperson for Pregnancy Resources clinics which are opposing new legislation in CA. This is on top of his regular dutes as CEO, husband and father. Allyl is busy as a nurse practitioner, learning french cooking and the french language, We are looking forward to a trip down there in January to celebrate Ainsleys’ 5th Birthday. We immediately got involved with a church up here that is pastored by some missionary friends from Chile’, Vic and Pam Deleon. They have embraced us, and are helping us to adapt to life back here in the states. God is, and has always been in control and we praise Him while we heal and wait for His leading into the next phase of life. This life looks so different from the one we left behind. We are excited for the healing and new direction he is taking us in, and marvel at His care for us in all of our transitions. "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11.

 

More summer 2014

OK, the last post got posted before I was done.  So here is "The Rest of the Story"!

Oldest grandson Jerrod Wagner holding youngest grandson Bryce Henry.  Brothers!

After San Francisco I took the kids to a water park.  We got wet, rode the waves in the wave pool, and did amazing slides that freaked grandma out, but I did them anyway! :)

Fun Times!

On the way to the water park I took a wrong turn and look where we turned up!  Who knew we had a lake?! :)

   

 When I left Jenny's I stopped off In the area where we lived the longest time when I was growing up, Roseville, Ca. Just outside of Sacramento. I drove by the old house and was amazed at how small it is now.  The rocks in the front were huge to us and we would sit in them.  The were used as grinding stones by Native Americans.  Many of our fondest memories happened in this house. 
     I looked up my old schools while I was there also.  My old middle school hasn't changed except that it has taken over the grade school.  I asked around as to where the school aged children attend school and I was told that the community didn't have any children.  It is full of retired people.  I began to feel really old as most folks were my age or older.  I guess you can never go back.

I had the opportunity to visit the new home  of long time friends Ron and Donna Stinchcomb in Chico, CA.  I was their first non family visitor. When I headed north again the next day they told me  to be sure to stop and see the "Little Grand Canyon".  Obviously not as grand as  "The" Grand Canyon but impressive nonetheless.  Gods' creation never ceases to amaze me.                                                            It was a long drive with no air-conditioning but well worth the  catching up with family and friends.

 

The last 2 weeks here in Wamena has been filled a lot political unrest.  Killings, people arrested, and threats made if they don't get released.  Natives are afraid and are living in a spirit of fear.  I am so grateful for God's peace amongst all the upheaval.  Isaiah 26:3

You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.

 

There is still more of my summer travels but I am tired today after an evening camp activity after school yesterday.  I am trying to keep shorter accounts.  Bless you all, thank you for your support!

Summer 2014
I spent the summer visiting all up and down the west coast.  Right off the bat the truck got wrecked. I parked it on a hill and the brakes released and it rolled into a light pole.  If it had missed the light pole, it would have ended up at a very busy intersection.  Praise God even in the difficult times.  The door still works so it is still like this.

The first weekend I went to Roseburg Oregon and watched our God son Robert Eggleston perform in a youth orchestra.  He is a gifted musician and I am so proud to call him son.  He is the bigger boy to the left of the conductor.

After Roseburg, I drove back to Portland where I visited with many friends. 

Anne Parker our good friend and greatest supporter

I took Alita Watkins to Omsi to see the dinosaurs.

The truck drove itself into a light pole

                                         

 I was in California by June 9^th spending time in the pool and chilling with grandkids.  Our daughter Jennifer Henry and the youngest grand Bryce were still very much in the post birth sleeping mode.  I was still suffering from jet lag so I slept in most mornings.  One grandson was involved in football practice most mornings so activities happened in the afternoon.  We went to Moaning caves, Angels Camp,  San Francisco, then took a wrong turn on the way to a water park and ended up at McClure lake. It was great to get to know our older grandkids. 



Gabby, Johnny and I at the crookedest street in the world. SF

Dakota, Johnny, Jerrod and I in Moaning Caves

 




Johnny, Gabby, and Jerrod at the Golden Gate Bridge

Johnny, Jerrod, Gabby and I at the Golden Gate Bridge



 

 



 Well,  I now realize how uninformative I have been over the past year.  I have no excuses except being a busy teacher.  I will attempt to catch you up first with our plans for this summer.  Our daughter is having her 5th child so Dion is planning to go and be the "Pembantu" as we say here.  House help in English.  There are too many others taking off for summer furloughs so Miles has to stay here and hold the fort down in the hangar.  Besides, we can't afford to pay for both of us to come home.  Next summer we will be together for our furlough.  We will  be back in time for our oldest grandson's graduation from high school.  Whew!  can we be that old already?  Naw! :)  We just got an early start, as did our daughter. 

Video below shows the inside of our house. 

 

 Life in Wamena suits us well.  It reminds us very much of summer in Pacific Northwest.  It is warm and lovely during the day, clouds build up, then it rains at night.  Right now we are having an east wind that rivals the Columbia River Gorge winds.  This wind drys things out and we actually haven't had any rain for a week now.  We have friends who are running out of water.  Thankfully we live on the base and are hooked up to a deep well as a back up to our rainwater collection system which supplies most of our needs.

At Lyon park by the bay in Singapore

Dion spent most of December, the Christmas holiday, and into January with an unknown illness.  Several remedies were tried but still the symptoms persisted. After much internet research and checking with the Doc in Sentani, a gall cleanse was decided.  It worked!  She has been doing fine ever since. 

Our visit to Singapore last November for a cancer check up for Miles revealed that he has a very small amount of a very slow growing cancer.  The Doc was surprised we found it.  He said that Miles is a very good candidate for watching and waiting.  We will send a blood sample in every 3 or so months to keep an eye on it.  What a relief!  We were expecting surgery but had a few days of R&R instead! :)  Singapore is a lovely city.  The mass transit system will get  you just about anywhere in the city.  The highlight was a park by the bay that decorated trees with lights.  At night it is a beautiful walk then 2X each evening, they play classical music and the lights dance to the rhythm and mood of the music.  It was spectacular! :)

We did some shopping and picked up a few things that we just can't get here like decent chocolate chips, nuts, jerky, pepperoni, fritos, and pace Picante sauce.  Things we can live without, but when available they are a nice treat! :)

We got work done on our computers, ate a passable Mexican restaurant, did a lot of walking, and generally relaxed.

Miles playing with a sculpture

Miles at the entrance of Lyon park Singapore

Gasco with some neighbor kids

 Gasco, Our friend from Sentani that Miles has been tutoring moved to Wamena in October.  He stayed with us until he found an apartment.  We enjoy having him around.  He says we are like his parents and we feel close to him like a son as well.  All the "Expat" and native kids love him.  (expatriates, people living outside their home country)

  Before that, We were just busy getting settled into our new life here in Wamena!  The cost of living is higher than in Sentani as everything needs to be flown in. For those who haven't heard, Wamena is the largest city in the world accessible only by air.  Dion is learning about Dutch culture as the majority of students at the school here are Dutch. 

I will update again really soon to catch up on our summer furlough highlights. 

At the dedication of our newest Kodiak, pictured behind us

Christmas in the Tropics

        What is it like you ask?  Well it is nothing like the Christmases that I have ever spent!  It is downright hot on most days which makes for a lot of sweat!  Makeup just runs off my face or won’t even go on due to the sweat already there right after a shower.  Rather than give you the wrong impression by talking about all the negatives, I will share what is right about Christmas here.  We share it with some pretty amazing people who love our Lord Jesus with all of their heart.  Hearing our old familiar Christmas songs sung from the heart in the Indonesian language warms my heart beyond compare!  I Know that we worship the same Christ child who put off heaven and came to earth to love us and that makes us brothers and sisters.  Who do we want to spend time with during the holidays but our family?  We are doing that!  Yes, we miss our immediate earthly family but we are getting a foretaste of Glory when we shall all sing God’s praises while in His presence for Eternity!  I understand that more over here.  We are not the same color, and there are many different dialects of Indonesian heard all around us, but we love the same God.  There is much work to do in translating God's Word into those many dialects.  They all need to hear the great news that Jesus Christ is born!  
That is why we are here! J

         All that being said, a huge difference between being here and home (or anywhere else on earth) are the “Pondok Natals” Christmas huts as pictured above.  These are huts that are built for the supreme purpose of blaring Christmas Music to everyone in ear shot for at least a mile around.  They are not just wimpy huts, they are stout buildings.  When you have 3 or 4 of these in your neighborhood, they all go off at different times and frequently together.  They are not coordinated at all so to each of them it might be a “joyful Noise” but to those around it is just “Noise”.  I must admit though that hearing Christmas music is delightful to me.  It is my favorite time of the year!  They decide to play them at 2AM or whenever their blessed little hearts please!  Maybe it is a lash back at the muslim mosques that go off regularly and blare their uncoordinated chants.  We can hear 3 or sometimes 4 mosques at any given time.  The first one goes off @ 4AM.  At least we know that one is coming. The Pondok Natals have no schedule. 

The last day of school before Christmas break we had a "Read in", where we wore our PJs to school and the kids brought blankets, pillows stuffed animals etc. and we lounged around the room reading.  The neighboring 3rd grade class joined us.  We opened the adjoining door and the children moved freely between the rooms.  My room turned into tent city!  The blankets were draped around my desk, over desks and tables, and we  used binder clips to hold them in place.  We have reading buddies   with the Kindergarten class every Thursday so they joined us for 30 minutes of the day.  They were overjoyed at being able to read in tents! :)

My 3rd grade partner teacher Sarah Sharp and I 

Half of my class,                                                                        the other half left early for Christmas break.

   

Tent City

 Most of the children I work with have never seen snow except in pictures!  When they sing “White Christmas” they only have seen the idea.  I am amused when I see them put on their jackets on a windy day and say they are cold.  I haven’t been cold once here.  I was a little chilled when we visited Wamena in the highlands but not cold!  I actually put on a sweater in June while we were there.  Most Papuans think that Wamena is cold.  They also believe that wind will make you sick.  If Western people turn on a fan in a restaurant, the Indonesians will move away out of the “Wind”.  A bride and groom will sit for hours greeting guests and sweating rather than turning on a fan to cool themselves off.  Some brides get their younger cousins or siblings to fan them with a handheld fan.  Why that is O.K. and an electric is not O.K. is beyond me!

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and pray that you are able to keep “Christ” in Christmas amidst all the noise of the season.

I have much more to share with you that I haven't had time to blog about.  Look for more blog updates between now and Jan 13th.  

Catching up

Wow!  Summer went by quickly and I am feeling badly that I have not kept in touch better.  My last blog update was June 17th, Fathers' Day!  You should have already gotten a newsletter from us telling some of our summer vacation and update on the school year but let me expand on those things here as we cannot begin to share all in our 2 page newsletter.

Summer, Miles spent all of June in Wamena.  I joined him early before family conference so we were able to spend a long weekend together then a week with all of our MAF family from all around Papua.  A team from New Heights church in Vancouver, WA came to support us and put on our conference.  It was a time of growth and refreshment.

The last weekend in July we visited our friends the Paps in Timika.  There is huge copper mine there.  gold is a byproduct of mining.  There is a beautiful town there with a section of "Western" style homes and it has a lovely resort that goes empty during most of the week.  We went to the lovely pool and had it to ourselves all but one day.  We went river rafting but mostly relaxing while the Pap children covered themselves in mud! 

The first of August we moved into our new apartment at the school. It has a great view of the lake and airport!


 

 We are praising God that the new Kodiaks that were delivered in August have finally been cleared.  Bureaucracy is alive and well in Papua! 

School just completed the 7^th week of instruction and Dion is having a great time. 

 

 

We wake up every morning @ 4AM to the Muslim call to worship.  We used to hear a mosque while at the MAF base but here we hear 3 different mosques going off.  We call it the battle of the Emmons since they don’t sing the same prayers.  Dion gets up around 4:30 and Miles gets up around 5AM.  The bats are still out eating their fill of insects before retiring for the day.  We hear revile from the army base at the bottom of our hill around 6am when Dion heads to the school.  She meets with teachers to pray at 7:05 each morning.  School starts @ 7:30 which is also the time Miles starts work @ MAF.  Many mornings we hear Christian music in Indonesian blaring from one of the houses at the base of the hill.  We think it is someone trying to call Christians to worship. 

We both work all day and when we get home we hear many insects singing into the evening.  The mosques go off again around 4PM and again around 7PM.  They go off at different times during the day but we are both busy and don’t notice those times as much.  At different times we can hear Indonesian being spoken over a PA coming maybe from the army base or maybe from another public gathering place.  It is difficult to decipher separate words so it is just another noise.  Airplanes taking off and landing all during the day,  helicopters to and from the army base, and cars and motor cycles coming and going to the school  add a human noise that detracts from the natural noises we hear up here.  The Cicadas are the loudest insects I have ever heard!  When I first heard them I thought there was an electric short somewhere and it was “screaming” for attention!  When I was told that it was an insect I was shocked!!!  Add to them the birds that call to one another and sometimes it is a real cacophony.  Most of the time we hear it and think, “What a symphony God has created!” but sometimes we think what noise pollution we live in. 

 Bugs!  Boy do we have bugs!  Every AM there are bugs dying on the walkways at the school!  Big beetles, moths, butterflies, all victims of some predator who lost them in the dark after the initial attack.  We find them everywhere including in our shoes!

  

      Dying Beetle                                          Huge Praying Mantis

Beetle in Miles shoe!  

 

When Miles gets off @ 4:30 and Dion heads home around the same time it is time to fix some dinner.  We eat @ 6PM and have Indonesian class 2 nights a week, Bible Study 1 night and the school serves dinner with a game on Friday night.  That only leaves us with one school night a week to ourselves and we are about to fill that up with rehearsals for a concert in November. 

We reach out to local Indonesians when we go to the market place and I find many people I meet say they “saw” us somewhere.  It brings to life the old old song, “Do you know dear Christian you’re a sermon in shoes?”.  I thank God that He gives us strength to smile and give a kind word to anyone who greets us.  We feel like celebrities wherever we go.  The Indonesian people think western people, “Orang Barat” are beautiful and sometimes they just stare.  Children like to touch us to make sure that we are real.  The really young ones run away and cry as we must be pretty scary to them as white as we are!  Sometimes the mom wants us to stop and reach out to them and even when we are in a hurry we try to spend those minutes that might bring one more into the Kingdom!

We attend a local Indonesian church every other Sunday.  We understand only about half of what is being preached but we have our “Alkitab” (Indonesian Bible) so we can at least understand the direction the pastor is going.  Several people we work with both at the school and the hangar attend there so we are deepening relationships and learning to worship in this new culture. On Saturday night sometimes Miles goes to the Indonesian church to listen to the songs being practiced for Sunday so that he is more familiar with them.  It is funny for us to try to mouth the words to a song quickly while not even knowing the tune.  Our tongues get tied up quite readily even with words we know and understand let alone the strange words they used to make the rhythm work.

We are usually falling exhausted into bed by 9PM and it is unusual for us to be awake much longer!  When we get invited to visit someone and we are out past 9 we really suffer the next day.  I guess we are getting old! Miles is 56 and Dion turns the double nickel this birthday in December!  What shall we do to celebrate it?!  Sounds like a party to which we will invite all of our friends Indonesian and western alike!

                     
Our youngest grandson was born October 2.  His name is Daniel Christian McClure.  He weighed in at 8lbs 1oz.  Trent and Kristie are the proud parents.  They are living in Milwaukie OR.  We sure wish we could be there to help Kristie and of course to hold the baby!

Well, I've gone on long enough.  We miss you all and pray for you on a regular basis! 
Hopefully now that I am in a school routine our posts will be more frequent!  No promises! :)

Prayer Requests:
Funding for the current school year
Health to stay strong and no more malaria or ?
Language skills to increase to help us become bolder in public
Family that just lost their father, husband in a plane crash last week (not MAF)
Time for building / strengthening relationships

 

 

 

 

 

 

Summer Break is here

Dear fellow laborers with Christ,

Your labor in prayer support has been felt!  We have had some interesting times during some “Unrest” here in Papua.  Many people put out an urgent request for prayer so that things would not escalate.  These prayers were answered in a mighty way!  All seems quiet right now and we are grateful! 

We and all the “Expats” here are safe!  I do feel the need to remind, or tell for the first time whichever the case may be, that we and MAF are in a neutral position here!  Any public references to MAF or Hillcrest (HIS) in regards to unrest over here could be misunderstood by any number of people.  We ask for your understanding about why we cannot share more details and foryour caution when sharing the prayer requests of many missionaries serving God around the world.    

The decision has been made that we will indeed stay here for another year!  The needs here are great and we feel a huge burden to carry on what God has put before us!  I am excited for my fall assignment in the fourth grade!  I worked closely with the 3^rd graders this last year in computer, art, and many of them are in the ESL program.  There was a collective sigh of relief by the parents when it was announced that the fourth grade has a teacher for the fall.  Some of you have asked what we might need that will fit in an envelope.  I could use some “Ticky Tack”.  It is the only thing that will hold “stuff” on the cement walls here.  Stickers, Pencils, Small Prizes, Note cards, Name plates for student desks, anything like that would be a help!  Ok maybe a large envelope.  On a personal level I miss some of the teas from home.  Specifically the Ginger Bread Spice, or the Sugar Plum Spice flavors and “Constant Comment” are some of my favorites!  Lose the box and just put someof the bags in an envelope.

Miles is in Wamena.  He is doing inspections on 2 206s there.  He was home for the weekend and we went to a very nice restaurant on Sentani Lake to celebrate Father’s day.  God has blessed our children and me with such a good man!  Many “Expats” have gone home for furlough this summer.  The MAF base is over half empty!  With Miles gone sometimes it is pretty lonely and quiet around here.  Thank God He is my constant companion. 

 

Dion and Lea at Yogwa

(restraunt on the lake)

                           Miles at Yogwa





On Memorial Day we went to a beach very close to  the border of Papua New Guinea.  It is called Base G.  Many areas around here have kept the name given them by the armed forces in WWI & WWII.  Both Japanese and American forces have occupied this island.   It was a very lovely beach.  We didn't have to ride a boat to get to the beach so we just went alone. To get to the other beach we went to, we have to get a crowd to share the cost of the boat.   

     

Our June border Lea has been here for 2 weeks now.  Before she moved in we asked her for a confession of faith.  She is Catholic but when I asked, “ what Is your relationship with Jesus Christ?”  she replied, “He is my Lord and savior, and without Him I cannot do anything”.  We pray that this truth is deep in her heart and that we will have many discussions that will be enlightening to all of us.  She is such a help both in the kitchen and in our using Indonesian in our everyday speaking.  She and I will go to visit Miles in Wamena next weekend the 23^rd.  She has never been outside of the Jayapura / Sentani area.  She is very excited to go and visit another area of her country. 

I finally am over my second bout of malaria.  This one took 3 rounds of medication to eradicate!  I am taking as many precautions as I can to limit the number of mosquito bites I get.   I have always been a target for them.   I am so grateful for my general good health as I dread to think of how I would have fared otherwise.  There are no Malaria mosquitos in Wamena!  In July we will go to an area just outside of Wamena called Pyramid for our MAF family camp.  I am grateful that I won’t have to worry about malaria there,

Our tutor is coming over every morning from 9-12 except Wednesdays when I have a group of ladies over for a Bible Study.  By the end of 3hours I feel like my brain will explode!  After lunch Lea comes home and we go to the local pool to cool off and to participate in Water Aerobics classes.  This summer schedule is working well.  I squeeze in some time at school to do an “end of year” inventory of the ESL room, and to start getting familiar with the 4^th grade curriculum. 

Prayer Requests Corner

For Settling the unrest in Papua

For Lea to see Christ here and to feel His love every day

For Deeper more rich times in God’s word daily

For Boldness to speak in Indonesian when in public like at the market

For Boldness to speak of Christ as our language skills improve

For Continued good health