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Bible College
Lisa began pursuing her call formerly with New Tribes Missions Bible School. There she learned linguistics, world view engagement, how to write down a verbal language, and how to avoid syncretism when sharing the Gospel. -
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Bible School
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On Staff with New Tribes Missions
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Trips and Training
During this period, Lisa continued her missions training in a program in Canada, went through the New Tribes Missions language school, and then eventually taught in the NTM school. She also took several short term trips to Haiti during the fall of 1998. -
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Short-Term Missions Trips with New Tribes
Lisa worked as a recruiter and chief administrator of NTM short-term missions innitiatives. "During that time I was crying my eyes out because I so longed to serve in Paupa New Guinea, but the Lord kept saying, I know how to most effectively use you in tribal evangelism." -
Moves to Paupa New Guinea
"I moved to PnG to fill in for someone hosting a college short-term missions program. These were project based, building offices or an airfield." -
Move-in Day at Wabuku
On her birthday, Lisa finally begins her work as a translator with NTM in the village of Wabaku with the Uriay (OW-ee-eye) people. The first order of buisness was to build a small duplex to be shared with another missionary. "It had running water, a solar panel, batteries, and computer. It allows me to spend 10 hours a day in translation as opposed to 5 hours of translation with 5 hours of just trying to live." -
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The Process
The first order of business in a new tribe is to learn the language. New Tribes Missionaries focus on bringing the Word of God to people who speak a language that has never been studied. This involves using a phonetic system to write down the language, giving literacy training to members of the tribe, teaching the bible, and translating the entire New Testament to leave behind. Lisa spent 7 years in Wabuku working on this project. -
Begin Teaching
Teaching is a chronological presentation of the events in the Bible. Since this is a tribe that has existed only on the island, day one begins with maps, giving them a conception of their place in the world and where the events of the Bible took place in relation to them. The Biblical account of creation undoes myths of all kinds. -
Literacy Training
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Sharing the Good News
On May 31, 2010, after 5 days a week for 4 straight months of storytelling, Lisa and her team got to share the Gospel in the Uriay language. Accompanied by a moving passion drama enacted by members of the tribe, They were absolutely overwhelmed at what Christ would endure to pay for their sins, and the entire tribe sat somber after the story. -
Baptism
In the west, baptism happens immediately after conversion. But for the Uriay, much teaching and translating had to be accomplished before they could rightly understand what baptism was. It took over a year of the continued labor of Lisa and her team before members of the tribe were ready. -
Return to the States
In December, after more than 7 years of working with the Uriay people, Lisa returned to where she had started. But now she refers to Wabuku as "home." -
Back to Wabuku?
With 72% of the New Testament still left to translate, Lisa's return to Wabuku is a "when" not an "if." With some members of her team opting not to return, and the possible set back of having to live 2 hours (by canoe) away, she estimates that there could be 4 to 5 years of work in Wabuku yet ahead. If all goes as planned, she would like to return by October this year.