February 2023
Dear Praying Friends,
So much time has passed since our last report in December. Now I am sitting down 10 weeks later to give more news of the goodness of the Lord. The first week of January (2023) was our annual Vacation Bible School. Through the course of the five day event, 119 children were registered. The theme was My Sheep Hear My Voice. It would not be hard to guess what the theme verse was: John 10:27, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:”. This is the Theme for the year 2023, teaching them to seek to hear our Saviour speak through His Word, through the preaching, and the wisdom given from the Holy Spirit in our private time of devotion. We pray more people will desire this and be led of the Lord in their daily lives.
The 2nd week of January, our family flew out to Port Moresby in preparation for our international flight to Alaska. By the 14th of January we were settled in at Fairbanks, Alaska…..from the tropical 95 degree weather to the Arctic 0 degree weather! It was for a great purpose, though: to be in attendance and participate in our son, Titus’s, wedding. With only 6 days before the wedding, all our daughters and Christi did much prep work and we spent some really good quality time with Titus, his future wife Abigail (Sjoblom), and her parents and family. We do praise God for these 2 young people’s willingness to please both our Lord and their parents. With much advice and seeking the will of the Saviour, they were married on the 19th of January! So much preparation, planning and prayer went into this wedding from the Sjoblom’s and their extended family.
Our family would like to extend a HUGE thanks to the Open Door Baptist Church in Fairbanks, who made available good accommodations for our family to survive the harsh polar conditions for the 25 days we were in Fairbanks! Our friends at Bible Baptist Church family went way out of their way to minister to us, also. Cash, food, invitations to houses, activities and so much fellowship. The church family also put much into the wedding of Titus and Abigail. This quick trip was a great way to get some much needed Christian fellowship. The Christian wealth that was bestowed upon us was so rich and true. We do pray God will continue to bless them in many ways and encourage them in the midst of their trials.
Back on the ground in Kaintiba, my thoughts return to the promise God gave us about 2 years ago: (Psalm 121:8) “The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.” He did preserve our going out and coming back into Kaintiba….once again. This is the second time we have left the country of PNG and returned back safe since this promise was claimed. We praise the Lord for such small yet profound promises, and how He cares for His children. It is our goal to continue to preach this Gospel. Please pray for the handful of converts we are teaching and as we are reaching out to win more unto Christ.
One other prayer on the physical side of our work here in Kaintiba is cutting the grass on the airstrip. The last 3 years I have maintained it with no help from the PNG government agency who is responsible for it. Besides the actual manual labor, I have had to invest over $5,000 of our own personal monies, all the while the government funds are
Christi’s Corner: What a very busy time it was going right from our VBS to packing and leaving for America! God blessed in the wedding and the time in Alaska. New friendships were made and other friendships renewed and strengthened. If you wish to view the wedding, you can view it at:
https://livestream.com/fairbankscbb/events/9753760/videos/234662755
It was fun to see Tabitha and Caleb in Port Moresby when we arrived in the country! So I got my grandma fix for a little while. Cassia and Cherith are at fun ages. They know who we are and can interact with us. It is so fun!
Now it’s back to the daily grind. Homeschooling, weekly literacy class and monthly ladies’ meetings keep me busy! Tomorrow (the 4th) is my March ladies’ meeting.
For His Glory,
Mark and Christi Helzerman
Hadassah,
Grace, Hope, Serenity, and Glory
E-mail: mhelzerman@gmail.com