"Next Year In ___?"

"Don't forget about their parents!", our speaker encouraged everyone last night at our Christmas dinner, "A Tribal Bound Christmas". He continued on, mentioning our parents (and families, friends) will have some lonely times ahead as we experience the separation.

We are sure soaking up moments here with our families, celebrating birthdays and special days (holidays).

Next year, Lord-willing, we will be sending you our Christmas greetings from Papua New Guinea! But where exactly? Hard to say! We have friends that we knew from the training center in Missouri that have learned the national language of PNG and are currently living in a tribe for several weeks to experience 'bush life.' They are celebrating Christmas in a very unique way this year, away from all of their family and friends.

These separations are some of the realities for tribal missionaries. But as our speaker also mentioned last night, we have counted the cost, and continue to count the cost. Being away from loved ones during special times is one of many things we've considered.

-------------

PRAISE Him with us for a wonderful evening at "A Tribal Bound Christmas"! We had close to 200 guests, the evening was lovely, and the Lord has encouraged us by the coming together of the Body of Christ not only to show us love and support, but to be partnering together to bring the Gospel to those who have never had a chance to hear. Thank you to each of you who came last night, and to all who have expressed your desire to partner with us financially, in prayer, and with your friendship!

If you were unable to attend but would like to get involved specifically in getting us out of town, contact us! We have plenty of opportunities for you!

"Ornaments"- each tree was filled with
 opportunities to give toward
our outgoing expenses.

PRAY with us for these next 7 months. That's right.... we're down to 7! We are in the process of filling out paperwork. LOTS of paperwork. We are also getting medical needs addressed. And we are continually working out our packing list. We will be excited to share more specifics with you as the weeks and months fly by!

For now, Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones! Hold them tightly while they are at arms' reach! 

And let us be thankful for Jesus Christ, who has come, who is with us, and who is coming again soon.

~Noe, Lisa, Naya and Jocie

One More Race

Yesterday I (Lisa) ran my third Turkey Trot 5k! It was a blast!

Turkey Trot 2011 (my first)

Turkey Trot 2013

Turkey Trot 2012

This was also my last Turkey Trot for quite some time, since we'll be in PNG next year, Lord-willing. I may have to find a new tradition on Thanksgiving morning... or run in place for 35-ish minutes? Hmmmm.... Noe suggested I do my own Turkey Trot in PNG next year... a Tribal Trot? Haha :)

Looking back at the races I've run, I'm thankful for the time and opportunity I've had to participate in life with family and friends. As we prepare to move overseas in just 8 months, we've been full of thankfulness to Him for the 'race' He has allowed us to run, the people He's brought into our lives, and how He has proved Himself faithful and good through and despite circumstances.

"One More Race" also has significance as we look toward tribal church planting. We're so thrilled to be involved in taking the Gospel to one more language group/'ethnos'/race/tribe that has never had a chance to hear. No Bible, no church, and no clear presentation of the gospel in their language. Thank you for running this race with us in whatever capacity He has put on your heart!

If you haven't heard yet, we are hosting a dinner in Seattle on December 14th- "A Tribal Bound Christmas". The purpose of the dinner, as laid out below, is toward our outgoing expenses, and to share more about tribal church planting. We'd love to have you join us! You, a group of friends, your small group... come and enjoy a Christmas dinner, be inspired, and find out how you can get involved with us! Doing this WITH you, the Body of Christ, is what brings JOY to our lives and to serving Him. (By the way, if you are unable to attend but would still like to get involved, you are welcome to contact us at the email below. Also, we will be hosting one more event in the spring- stay tuned!)

RSVP or Contact us here: noelisa_martinez@ntm.org

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your loved ones! We thank God for each of you,

Noe, Lisa, Naya and Jocellyn

P.S.- Naya wants it known that she attended her first Husky football game today! She also "passed the test" on the bus (grandparents are proud)- when a Cougar fan asked if she was excited for the game, she immediately said "I'm a Husky fan!" :) It was a great game!

Into the West: Arrival Day!

enjoying friends from southern Oregon :)

We arrived in Seattle on Sunday evening, tired, but very thankful and nostalgic... we thought back on our road trips-

We've made 8 cross-country road trips in the last 4 years. That is +/- 16,800 miles! We've had a total of 0 accidents, 0 breakdowns, 1 trip to Les Schwab, 1 trip to Nissan... oh and 1 windshield chip repair (on our previous Nissan).

And that's it!

We have been so tremendously blessed in this way by the Lord, all by His choice.

the beautiful PNW

THANK YOU, LORD! :)

We are now less than 9 months away from our move to Papua New Guinea.

With the Linguistics write-up completed, we are now FINISHED with our pre-field training and as of today will be officially "Enroute" to PNG!

Things are getting very exciting around here as we begin more practical preparations, and get ready to host a special Christmas event, and as we continue building our support team.

As we thank Him, we are also thanking Him for YOU who have come alongside us in so many ways. It's already been an amazing journey, and we haven't even moved overseas yet! It is a blast to share life together as brothers and sisters in Him, is it not? We're all running in the same direction- toward Christ. Let us encourage one another as we run!

~the Martinez family

A warm welcome home from Grandpa :)

Into the West: Day 2-4: Utah to Oregon

Finally, the amazing sights and smells
of the beautiful PNW!

As we left the (stinky) Salt Lake City area, the sun peeked over the hills (do they call those 'mountains'? Not sure... hehe). After we all recovered from our "great" (?) salt lake-induced nausea (oh my!), we had an uneventful drive across the salt flats, through Nevada, and up into south-central Oregon.







We spent the night in Klamath Falls, and on Thursday morning we drove over to Medford and showed up at Ahuva Bagel Co. (which I HIGHLY recommend...) to surprise visit my dear friend and her husband! We are enjoying most of the weekend with them and their handsome little boys, and will head to Seattle in a few days!

Oregon has it going...  :)

Ahuva Bagel Co. !!!, owned by my dear friend!

the beautiful Rogue Valley

Thank you for your prayers for us! We have continued to have safe travels, and ... relatively cheerful daughters. :)

Into the West: Day 1: Colorado to Utah

On Tuesday we drove up into the beautiful Rocky Mountains! We had a good, full two weeks in Colorado, enjoying relatives, seeing friends and making new friends, and worshiping our Lord with them at their churches.

I also completed my preliminary Cherokee Linguistic write-up. Oh and by preliminary, I mean PREEEEEE-liminary. :) I'm thankful for the opportunity I had to take the Linguistics course and experience the practicum. But boy am I glad it's done! What I enjoyed about it was the experience of learning language with a language helper, writing my own set of data (writing out phonetically each word and phrase she would say), and imagining what this will be like in PNG in the not-too-distant future.

We are now on our way back to the beautiful Pacific Northwest, where we will be until our big move in (Lord-willing) July- only 9 months away!

Pray with us for safety on the road. We're blessed to have a great vehicle- but the real blessing is His hand that has kept us from harm for 4 years of cross-country road trips. Wow! We're very, very thankful!








We will check in again!

~the Martinez family

Rocky Road

If only it was THIS simple!

Here we are now, settling in for 3 weeks at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. It's beautiful and peaceful here, and we're enjoying fellowship with some special Colorado relatives and friends.

Phonemics and Grammar (!!)

We are spending this time here so that I can do my linguistic write-up on the Cherokee language, which I spent the last 7 weeks studying. We arrived here yesterday, and today I spent my first full day of analysis. For details about what I'm doing, I must refer you to some of our previous blog posts (Jan 2013 - present).

Many of you know that linguistics has proved to be a 'rocky road' for me. I anticipated enjoying it and excelling at it, but the difficulty and pace of the course, and simply my own limitations, proved to me otherwise. It's been a bit frustrating. But I'm thankful to have learned many principles of linguistics which should certainly be (some sort of) an asset to our future church planting team. :) It has also been a 'special' season for Noe as well, as he had the ordeal pleasure of watching 8 children every morning for those 7 weeks!

Beautiful girls, and beautiful
oak tree in Nebraska

And finally we've begun experiencing some emotional rockiness as we have begun saying goodbye to family and friends in Missouri and the Midwest. Lots more of that to come in the months ahead. That is the tough part for sure! Please pray for us that He will bring us encouragement and joy in this rocky part of the journey.

You know, one Thanksgiving, some friends joined us in Cannon Beach, Oregon for dinner. One gal brought a bowl of unique rocks. I was working that night, so Noe picked out one for me. It was rough and jagged. But when I turned it over, the other side was completely smooth. This rock comes to mind at the moment, because in the midst of the 'turmoil' we've been experiencing, He has shown Himself faithful AGAIN and AGAIN. The evening before we left Missouri, Noe came home with a card. In the card was a significant gift. Not only is the love of that family overwhelming, but what takes it over the top is that EVERY time we have moved to EVERY next step of this journey, He has provided for us- financially, with friendships, with prayer from His children... It is as though He is saying, "Yes this is difficult, but look! I'm with you! Go!"

Let us enjoy His goodness
(and some coffee and cake)
no matter where we are
in the world! :)

So as long as He continues saying "Go!" (and as long as He is with us, as Moses also pleaded), we will keep running this race with confidence in Him. It is a wonderful thing to be a part of what His heart beats for! Are you involved?

~the Martinez family

We are all spilling the bowl of milk.

...and other such silly sentences that we would (hopefully) never say. :)

But the title of this blog entry is an actual sentence we learned in Cherokee.

Why?! We have spent a good portion of our language sessions learning verbs (yes, action words). We learned the verb "spill". Except there is no way to say "spill", for the word must include WHO is doing the action (...and the tense). So we learned how to say:

"she is spilling it", 

"you (just one person) are spilling it", 

"I am spilling it", 

"you (2 people) are spilling it",

Etc...

AND the different tenses. Oh and it also makes a difference if it is just one object being spilled, or multiple objects. (And it can only happen on weekends...and holidays... And all throughout May... Hehe)

Enjoy some snapshots from the last week here in Cherokee land :) 2.5 weeks to go, then off to Colorado for 3 weeks where I will complete my write-up on the Cherokee language. Would you also join us in praying for our language helper's son? He is in the hospital lately, having difficulty fighting off a serious infection. 

'Where there is no doctor'... (split chin)

Putting those tech skills to work! :)

What do we do with our scorpions? Craft time, of course! Fridge magnets :)

Joy also comes in liquid form... in the midst of stress :)

And He pours out His joy in every season...

Naya chooses to eat with this crowd ;) Should we be concerned? Hehe

"Oh-see-yoh" from Oklahoma!

Now you have learned how to say "hello" in the Cherokee language!

How to write it? Different story. :)

We didn't write as many blogs about our road trip from Seattle to Oklahoma, mostly because we planned to surprise visit some friends in Missouri as a little fun detour before heading down to OK. The surprise was a success and we enjoyed a couple days in MO, arriving at the camp in Oklahoma last Friday.

We are living at a Christian camp for these 7 weeks, and the facilities are comfortable enough as you can see. 

Noe and the girls are soaking up the fellowship with friends! All of the Ling students have 2-hour language sessions each morning. My language partner Katie and I drive about 20 min away to our language helper's house. She is in her 60's, very kind and sweet, and very willing and able to teach us her language. Oh and she is very patient with us as we have her repeat, and repeat, and repeat. :)

(Learning Cherokee words for numbers)

Why are we doing this?!?! Many have asked. Some have also asked in what part of PNG do they speak Cherokee?

There is no Cherokee spoken in PNG. The reason we are here learning Cherokee is not to become speakers of the language. We are learning to write and "say" several hundred words and phrases so we can determine the sounds of the language and analyze which of them are significant to speakers of the language. We also use the phrases and words to learn the grammatical structure.

These are principles we learned and practiced in the classroom last semester in Missouri. This Cherokee practicum gives us real life practice for entering an unfamiliar language and culture, learning the language, developing a written alphabet, and understanding the grammar.

We will be here for 6 more weeks, studying, enjoying the fluffy pets, and seeing friends out here while we can. 

Naya turns 6 on September 9th! Hard to believe!

Thank Him with us for giving us a safe drive from WA once again, including the blessing of seeing some friends in CO.

Pray with us that the practicum will be a fruitful time of learning and that we will enjoy spending quality time with our girls also! :)

Thank you for your continued prayer and support in so many ways!

-the Martinez family

Off to Ooooooooooo...klahoma ~ Day 1

the girls enjoying time with their Tia Celia and cousins

Day 1 is slightly deceiving as we did spend a few days in eastern Washington with Noe's sister and family. We really enjoyed our time there, reconnecting and enjoying the BEAUTIFUL scenery :) The girls had a blast with their cousin as well.

(majesty)

the beautiful 'mountains' of northern Utah

But Day 1 of the 'real' traveling was eastern Washington to Utah. We drove out just after sunrise (which was remarkable, and uncapture-able by the iPhone of course), and had an uneventful but LLLOOONNNGGG trip to Utah. We arrived after 7, had a quick swim in the pool and shared some pizza.

We are all exhausted. Sitting really takes a lot out of you.... ;)

So goodnight moon. We'll check in again soon. :)
Please join us in praying for continued safety. He has been so gracious to us!

~the Martinez family

Back from Papua New Guinea!

Hello everyone!

I'm back from an amazing 25-day trip to PNG!

If I could describe this trip in one word:

Ineffable :   
"Too great or extreme to be expressed or described in words."

But I'll try my best to walk you through my trip!

The guys and I, including Paul- a friend and representative from one of our home churches in Seattle, had the privilege of visiting three out of the four regions of PNG where NTM serves. After arriving in the capital, Port Moresby, our first main stop was a mature tribal work in the highlands region. Mature? A church has been planted and been discipled unto maturity, with elders established. We had the privilege of visiting at the tail end of an outreach - the outreach was some of the tribal believers and the missionaries visiting a neighboring tribe and teaching through the Bible foundationally (Genesis through the ascension of Christ).



*Note- I received word that the result of this
outreach was that a new church was born, with 35 believers!! The believers in the tribe we visited will continue going to this neighboring tribe to disciple the new believers! This coming Thursday (Wednesday in the USA), will be the first return visit for discipleship. Keep the tribal teachers and the missionaries in your prayers!

After our time in the tribe, we visited three of the NTM centers and had the opportunity to ask questions and meet the leadership in those areas. This includes the region we will be living in for our first 6 months to a year, Madang. Madang is a beautiful region, and it was exciting to see firsthand where we will be!

At this point, Paul flew back to the States, and I continued on to visit a new tribal work. New? The missionaries have recently moved in and are currently learning the tribal language and culture. In the next 1-2 years they will hopefully be able to begin teaching through the Bible foundationally in the tribal language! It was at this leg of the trip that the sobering reality struck me like a 2x4 across the face-

These people are living and dying without knowing Christ. No clear presentation of God's redemption plan through Jesus.

Interacting with these tribal people, knowing they are not believers, really enforced a sense of urgency in me for getting to the field, learning the language AND culture, and presenting Christ to them with understanding. Please pray that these missionaries will learn the tribal language and culture quickly! 

It was encouraging to hear a statement said by one of the missionaries- 'We work hard but we also play hard.' Meaning? Knowing that it will take a lot of hours and hard work and energy to reach the finish line. But also knowing that it's ok to... play a game, or have a movie night, or go swim in the river with the crocodiles... etc... Learning the balance. :)

It was an amazing trip, and I'm so encouraged, excited, and ready to bring my family over to PNG and dive in to this task that the Lord has called us all to. (Yes, you too! You are an essential part of our team, whether you give financially, pray, or encourage us. He asked His Church to be involved in His heart mission, not just the ones who literally go.)

Would you be a part of our team? Find out how you can get involved with us by contacting us directly, or visiting www.ntm.org

Thank you for all of your support!

~Noe

Planes, Planes, and.... Planes

ready to fly

I believe the total number of flights Noe will have taken on this trip comes to 16! (Or 18? ... A LOT)

Most recently, he and Jack flew into a tribe that is a "new work" (meaning, the missionaries have just recently moved in and begun learning the culture and language). The tribe they visited a couple weeks ago is a "mature work" (meaning the Word of God has been taught, the Gospel presented, and there is a mature tribal church that is ready to spread the Gospel to neighboring tribes and languages!).

at a conference for tribal believers

The only glitch I am aware of on this journey so far has been some brake failure on their 6-hour drive to Madang last week. But thankfully the brakes 'fixed themselves' (no coincidence?) and they made it to Madang safely. Other than this, it is truly a blessing that they have enjoyed safety and health, and they've been SO encouraged by what they have seen and learned!









Noe will have the privilege to share more photos, and stories/details about his trip after he returns! :) Join in my in praying for safety and health for the remaining flights and travels. And also for my girls (and Jack's family)... my girls often randomly say "I miss daddy..." They are VERY ready for his return! :)

~Lisa (for the family)

Apinun!

"Apinun!" is a common greeting in Tok Pisin, the national language of Papua New Guinea.

I got my own greeting tonight just as we set dinner on the table! Noe was calling from PNG, having just landed from their flight out of the tribe!

Noe, soon after arriving in PNG :)

Noe said they had a very good experience in the tribe, and he is SO very encouraged about this immense task of church planting that lies before us, and that so many of our co-laborers are currently involved in! It is a TON of work, but well worth it. He has been able to get a first-hand glimpse into this now. He will have SO much to share when he returns!

They will be doing quite a bit more traveling in the days ahead, so please continue to uphold them in prayer. We are SO thankful that everything has gone so smoothly!

--------------

As for the girls and I... we are enjoying some good R&R, including some time on the Oregon Coast with relatives and friends. Naya is looking forward to a Pacific Northwest Ballet (PNB) dance workshop next week, and both Naya and Jocie are doing well with homeschooling -  and taking it plenty seriously. :) Naya is especially enjoying (with pride) learning the proper way to write letters. Jocie's activities are rapidly improving her motor skills and thinking skills. I am a proud mama. :)  Oh- and hopefully I'm learning to be more patient and understanding with my girls too. :) Do they respond me to differently with daddy out of town? Oh yes. Ohhhhhhhh yes. But there are many ways that the Lord can remind a person how desperately they need Him- every hour. So, whether we are in the USA or in PNG or (___), we take a step back and .... breathe ...

~Lisa, for the family


*I hope you are blessed, and challenged, by the words to this song below, as I continually am.


Answers from previous blog:

1. PNG is approximately the size of what state?
2. Approximately how many distinct language groups are there in PNG?
3. How long does it take the average missionary to learn the national language of PNG?
4. What is the time difference between PNG and the Pacific NW/Seattle?

1. California

2. 800

3. 6 months

4. 17 hours! (PNG is 17 hours ahead)

Time to Teach and Learn

In just 9 days, Noe will travel to Papua New Guinea!

He is very excited, and it has also been an intense couple of weeks as the in-country details get made and changed (repeatedly). Please keep Noe and the other men in prayer as they seek to finalize their plans to best utilize the 25 days of the trip. As you might guess, they will  be doing a lot of LEARNING on this trip- about travel, about some basics of missionary life in PNG, about leadership we may be in contact with, and more!

NOTE: There is still time to give if you feel inclined to do so! His trip is funded up to 85%! (In our last update, he was at 65%. THANK YOU for praying and for all those who have so generously given financially!) Here is a link for how to give, or you can also contact us directly. http://usa.ntm.org/missionaries/noe-and-lisa-martinez

I'll be able to pass on updates periodically while he is overseas, and after his return, we will have much more to share about his travels.
The girls and I will be remaining in the NW enjoying time with family, friends, and churches.

Naya (brown dress) and Jocie (blue dress) enjoying time
with friends in the Northwest :)

On the TEACHING end, the girls will be starting homeschool next week! Naya will be in Kindergarten, and Jocie will do a 'light' preschool curriculum. I expect the Lord to be teaching me how to be a teacher, and how to be their mom at the same time (hehe), how to have more patience... and let's pray that they will both LEARN to be good learners and good listeners, and MOST importantly that they will see more and more of who the Lord is, who they are in light of Him, and at the right time that they will understand their need for Him and His provision for their need through Christ Jesus!

And now, what I KNOW you've been waiting for... a little PNG 'trivia'!

1. PNG is approximately the size of what state?
2. Approximately how many distinct language groups are there in PNG?
3. How long does it take the average missionary to learn the national language of PNG?
4. What is the time difference between PNG and the Pacific NW/Seattle?

ANSWERS:

Stay tuned- our next blog entry will contain the answers! :) 

With love,
~the Martinez family