Mogethin!

Mogethin means hello in Yapese :) The island of Yap is absolutely amazing. I got to see the ministries of both Zimmer families, Paul and Sherry and Mark and Diane, and of Bob and Polly Whitmore. They are all absolutely wonderful, and seeing what God is doing on that little island was so amazing :) I can't even believe I got to go on this trip :) A pilot and his family (who attend Harvest) got Kelly (a teacher at Harvest) and I buddy pass tickets to go over Thanksgiving break. Kelly had to be back because of school responsibilities, but I got to stay from Wednesday to Wednesday. Yap makes Guam look like a booming metropolis. The ways of the people are fascinating, and it is just an entirely different way of life from what we Americans are used to. They really do live in huts, one for sleeping, one for cooking, one as maybe a living room; just think of a house with hallways in between the rooms, it's just that these hallways are outside :) The island is breathtaking. So beautiful. There are a couple small stores around, and I'll have to get pictures up of everything. The biggest gas station on the island was picture worthy for sure :) You pull up to a small shack and they fill your car's tank up. I got to go snorkeling, almost with sharks but we didn't see any (I was actually disappointed), and fishing. I caught a white snapper, and a barracuda! and some mackerel :) it was so much fun. Paul and Sherry Zimmer and the Whitmores have a church on one part of the island, while Mark and Diane have another church further away. They hold different Bible studies around the island on Sunday nights, and it is amazing to see people come to Christ that way and then join the churches. This island is about 10 miles I think, and there are 10 Catholic churches on the island. The culture of the people is strongly tied to a caste system, chewing betelnut (has similarities to chewing tobacco, and actually usually is injected with vodka and tobacco for added effects), and alcohol consumption. God's light still shines in this dark place, in the lives of changed believers who are growing and striving to be more like Christ. It is hard for new believers, as the pull to do these things are so ingrained culturally that it is unheard of to not participate. Please pray that the vices in this particular culture would not prevail in the hearts of these islanders, just as the vices in our culture do the same thing for our people. Pray for the Zimmers and the Whitmores, and the locals who are serving alongside them (some of them grads from Harvest Baptist Bible College), that they will continually be encouraged in the work on this island. Pray that believers would change the things in their lives that are not in accordance with God's Word, even if it completely goes against their culture. God really is a God of all nations; King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.
Thanksgiving was so wonderful there, as the missionary families all got together and we had a huge feast :) It was traditional with tons of turkey and everything :) I never thought I would be able to enjoy a full-blown American Thanksgiving mean while on a small island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Amazing. I love the extra blessings God throws into our lives when we're far away from home :)
Please keep praying for me and the other GSA students; we're one week away from home, with tons of schoolwork and studying to be done for finals on the week of our return. Pray God gives us strength when we get back, and that jet lag will not take over our lives :) God has been faithful, and is so good to us. I am so thankful for His work in my heart, and for the amazing work He is doing here on the islands in the middle of the Pacific. Thanks for your prayers!!!!!!!!! :)