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

Reflections

Well friends, we once again find ourselves becoming surrounded by boxes and packing tape.
Although we will go to Oklahoma in the fall, this will be our last 'move' until we head overseas.

Jocie and one of her favorite friends

So as we prepare to leave this most recent 'home' of ours, it is only natural that we have been reflecting on these 4 years of training/equipping... considering the many things we have learned, and the precious friends we have made along the way. Not just friends for us, but for our children as well. We are also overwhelmed with thankfulness for the many missionaries who are here in the States teaching and training US to be able to go to the unreached! They have shared their lives with us- their experiences, their wisdom, and even their 'failures'.

the girls with a beautiful young lady who has a heart for the Lord :)

We are also thankful for the faithful believers who have come alongside of us, some for the entire 4 years, supporting us financially, prayerfully, and with good friendship.

We have been so completely blessed by the Lord!

Two weeks from today (on the 24th) we will drive out, towing a trailer with our belongings. We should arrive in Seattle on the 28th, and anticipate being greeted by some very excited grandparents. :)

We can't thank you enough for your prayers for us during this most trying semester of our 4 years in training. God has been very good to us, always faithful.

We normally post some extra blog entries during our road trips! So be sure to check back in with us! Did you know you can FOLLOW our blog, either through blogger or through email? The 'follow'/'subscribe' options are on the right side of this page, near the top. Feel free to share our blog with others who you think would be interested!

...almost Seattle-bound! (for the summer, then to Oklahoma for the Linguistics practicum in the fall)

proud to be a 'gymnast'

~the Martinez Family

proud to be cute :)

Many Much Moosen

Grammar. Is. Important.

It matters the way words are constructed. Like the example below:

It also matters the way sentences are put together and what order the words are placed, such as the examples below:

• “Abraham Lincoln wrote the Gettysburg address while traveling from Washington to Gettysburg on the back of an envelope."
• “Two Sisters Reunited After 18 Years in Checkout Counter”

By the time this semester is over, we will have analyzed close to 100 languages (!)- the phonemcs and/or the grammar. Currently our focus is SYNTAX, the order of words in a phrase, a clause, and a sentence. 

I find that the higher up in the hierarchy we go (the farther away from analyzing individual letters/sounds/phones we get, the better I am at the Linguistic process... yikes!). Perhaps they should start introducing phonemics in high school! Haha! Watch out, young people!!

Anyway, by God's grace, I am plugging away at this course and am thankful to be learning all of the principles. I am trusting that they will be an asset to me in language learning, helping to develop literacy materials in a couple/few years, and ultimately in translating His precious Word into a tribal language- for souls who have never heard His Word before!!

Please pray for me that I will finish the semester strong.

In other EXCITING NEWS- you may have heard already about Noe's upcoming trip to Papua New Guinea in July! He is finalizing plans with other men he plans to travel with, and hopes to spend 3-4 weeks in PNG.  When we have additional details, we will share them with you. Would you pray with us that the Lord will guide these men in planning and preparations for this trip? We are also thrilled the He has already provided half of Noe's cost for this trip!! If you are interested in helping him financially with this trip, please let us know soon! Click the link below if you'd like info on how to give:
http://blogs.ntm.org/noe-martinez/give/

In family news- Naya is about to lose about 3 more teeth... so we'll make sure she sings some real special songs this summer... :)

Walking together with you by His grace,

Noe, Lisa, Naya and Jocie

dʒit?

I did, and it was delicious!

Did you understand the question in the subject line?

It is amazing to consider the often 'quirky' spelling and speaking of our language, including our slang terms, such as the way we say: "dʒit" "instead of 'did you eat'.

The Linguistics course consists roughly of 2 main 'elements':

1. Phonemics
2. Grammar

I have just completed the Phonemics portion of the course (not to say that it won't come up again... a lot...probably...), and we are now diving into Grammar.

For a glance into Phonemics, see the previous blog post, entitled, "Linguistics Crash Course". In that entry I gave a description of the Phonemic process. I look forward to telling you more about Grammar and its place in Linguistics.

In family news:

Noe is keeping busy with the girls. The girls LOVE having their mornings with daddy, doing their 'school books', helping around the house, etc. Is it a test of patience? ................... ohhhhhh yes! :) But this is a good challenge, of course. :)
Noe has also enjoyed some free time volunteering in the IT department, hand-crafting a recurve bow, among other activities. He is currently teaching through the book of Revelation at our small group Bible study, and asks for your prayers.

Naya has transitioned from ballet classes to taking gymnastics lessons! This wasn't necessarily her wish, but since her participation in the 'spring' (mid-June) recital was not an option time-wise, we felt it best to give her an activity that she can be fully involved in.

Jocellyn continues to be her usual bundle of cuteness. She loves emulating her big sister- dance moves, activities.. oh, and she accidentally went sledding down the hill in front of our house by herself (not into a street, no worries!) yesterday... after Naya sledded down and landed in the firepit. Kids.....

So we're pressing on, with our sights set on heading overseas in just 17 months (Lord-willing!).

Thank you for your continued involvement in our lives,

~the Martinez family

Linguistics Crash Course!

Enjoy a laugh from this short clip from Singin' in the Rain:

Now imagine we have recently moved in among a people group and we are learning language. We have just observed these two ladies saying what seem to be the same words, but using different sounds to say them (they each said their "t" differently, as well as each vowel- "a", "e", "i", "o", and "u"). What do we do with that information?! (or...what is Lisa learning in LINGUISTICS?)

1) We write down each sound as we hear it, and make a list of all the sounds (consonants and vowels) in the language. These sounds and words are our 'data'.
2) We then INTERPRET the data to determine if there are vowel clusters (multiple vowels next to each other) or consonant clusters that are better written as a single sound/segment. Then we change our data accordingly.
3) Next we ANALYZE each sound. Why? Because although the two ladies said "t" two different ways, in their minds they might very well be saying the exact same thing! The first lady's "t" sounded different than the second lady's "t". But do the words they said that start with "t" mean the same thing? OR does saying the "t" differently change the meaning?

• If the meaning is the same even though the sounds are different, we can UNITE the two "t"s in our alphabet/orthography into one sound (phoneme) to represent them both.
• If the meaning changes, we must leave them as separate sounds (phones) and indicate in our analysis how to distinguish between the sounds (when to use [t] and when to use [tʰ], for example).

4) Once we have analyzed all the sounds and compiled them in charts and 'lists', we can create our alphabet (Orthography)...

...from which we will ultimately teach literacy, translate the Bible, and one day share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with them in their own heart language!

I guess a 'walk-away' from our brief glance into LINGUISTICS is this question:

Is it important/worth it to spend the time and effort to learn a person's heart language?

(YES, YES, and YES!!!!)

p.s. - if you're confused after all that, welcome to my world. :)

"Graduators"

According to Naya, mommy and daddy were Graduators last Friday, the 21st!

Candid photo from Graduation!

We had a lovely graduation ceremony at the MTC, and both of us received a Bachelors of Intercultural Ministries! We are SO thankful to each individual and church who has stood beside us and walked with us through love and support (prayer, finances, friendship) during these 3.5 years of training! THANK YOU!

Noe's mom and Lisa's parents all came out to Missouri for our graduation, and we all flew back to Seattle together on the 22nd. We just enjoyed a lovely Christmas celebration with our families, and we look forward to these next 3.5 weeks to rest and be refreshed and spend more time with family, friends, and church family.

Naya singing a Christmas song at church
in Missouri

On Jan. 14th we will return to Missouri one last time for Lisa to take the Linguistics course. She will be in classes from 8 - 2 Monday thru Friday Noe has the -stretching- opportunity to stay home with the girls. He plans to teach them through the chronological Foundational Bible Teaching (FBT), do some casual/informal homeschooling (they will start formal schooling in the fall, most likely homeschooling), and also work on some Partnership Development.

In an upcoming blog entry, we will share about the Linguistics program, and we will continue to update you on our preparations for Papua New Guinea! We have been approved for membership with NTM, which will be effective in February.

In the next 1 - 2 months we will be sending out a newsletter with a few photos, info on PNG, and opportunities for you to get involved! With summer 2014 as our anticipated goal for departure, we can nearly begin a countdown with you- about 18 months! So again, thank you for walking with us, and we hope you will continue along this journey!

Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!

~the Martinez Family

INADEQUATE & INSUFFICIENT!!!!

It's count-down time, folks! 4 WEEKS LEFT of classes here at the MTC! (We will graduate, become members of NTM, and Lisa will take Linguistics next semester.)

WHAT OUR TRAINING HAS NOT DONE FOR US:

• It has not given us all the answers.
• It has not given us full Biblical knowledge.
• It has not eliminated our fears and doubts in this life.
• It has not prepared us for every 'what-if'.
• It has not made us 'super-spiritual.'
• It has not qualified us in His sight for ministry.

WHAT OUR TRAINING HAS DONE FOR US:

• It has given us some answers, and increased our reliance on the Lord when we have no answers.
• It has given us better understanding of His Word, and more importantly, His heart & character.
• It has drawn us to the One who conquers our fears and doubts- He has overcome the world!
• It has given us tools to think and reason through 'what-if's', and practical tools for our well-being.
• It has shown us to be inadequate and insufficient, but shown Him to be more than sufficient for us!
• It has better prepared us for ministry, and allows us to be more effective in many ways.

We are SO incredibly thankful for the 3.5 years of training we have been so blessed to receive! We would've hopped on a plane several years ago, but we feel SO much more prepared having had this training- for remote living, for learning language and culture, for teaching the Bible with accuracy and understanding, and for planting/discipling a church!

We had a lovely Thanksgiving break, with some special family who flew out to Missouri from Seattle! This included a scrumptious turkey dinner, seeing the production of "Joseph" in Branson, and processing a deer (congrats, Jason!).

They got to sit in on our current classes as well:

• Evangelism thru Developing Church- this class is an in-depth consideration of presenting the Gospel for the first time and beginning to disciple new believers. We've discussed questions such as:
• In the culture of the tribe you are in, what will a meeting look like? (Men and women together? One teacher in the front?)
• What is the importance/what are the reasons for having separate meetings for the new believers (the church) and those who are still unbelievers?
• Semantics and Translation - this class walks us through every aspect of translating Scripture into another language. It is not enough to know the language- the culture and implications must also be understood. But also the parts of speech, and how the receptor language and culture order and perceive words grammatically and semantically! Often the FORM will be changed, but the MEANING must always be maintained! Our Bible Translation handbook asks:
• What is (the definition of) a "faithful translation of Scripture"? Essentially, it comes down to:
• Accurate/correct exegesis of Scripture, which conveys the original meaning
• Clarity & Naturalness- the receptors/hearers MUST understand it. The original meaning should come across in a way that an ordinary person in their culture can comprehend. (It shouldn't sound like a foreign way of talking!)

Thank you for your continued prayers and support! We hope to greet many of you over our Christmas break in Seattle.

With love,

~The Martinez Family

Connection Lost?

Imagine hanging up the phone like this: “Good bye! I’ll talk to you again in a few months.”  We had a mini 2-week 'taste' of this:  Practical Skills/Simple Living class, during which we cut ourselves off from modern conveniences .

Making flour tortillas with daddy

• We practiced ‘supply buying’- ordering our food for the next 2 weeks via radio, having another team purchase our supplies for us. We likewise shopped for a different team.
• Scratch cooking only- no kitchen appliances (incl. microwave, coffee maker, bread machine, kitchenaid, crock pot…), no prepackaged, instant, or processed foods.
• Internet and phone use: 1 hour per week (and no social networking, shopping, or recreational internet usage).



homemade soft pretzels!!

• Limited electricity: At 8pm each evening we had to turn off every light and rely on candles/flashlights.

The biggest impact this had on us was imagining what it may feel like to be out of touch with family and friends- both from the lack of face-to-face contact, and coming out of a culture so deep into instant social networking. In all honesty, it’s already been difficult over these years of training to be away from ‘home’- it is tempting to feel like we are forgotten about since we’re not there (and we’re still in the States with phones and internet!). We’re increasingly aware of the need to be encouraging each other as the Body of Christ and praying for one another. Challenge: Contact a missionary, or even a long-distance friend/family member! It will encourage them!

ready for our Practical Skills Outing!

In mid-October, we had a Practical Skills Outing (not a Family Fun Center type of “outing”, in case you were getting excited)… a wilderness camping experience. We used a compass and a map to locate our campsite (aka: random spot in the woods), and built a shelter (waterproof, ‘warm’) with tarps. Noe built a fantastic shelter (see photos), and we spent three chilly nights there with some of our classmates, with classes  (i.e. knife sharpening, chainsaws, chicken butchering, etc.), and cooking our meals over a fire. We also experienced some likely on-the-field scenarios, such as no power or no running water for 1-2 days.

working together to build our
shelter

the completed shelter!

Our Teaching Considerations class reminded us that the way and the method we use to teach Biblical truths in our Western culture may not connect at all with a tribal person’s culture and context!

Similarly, the Curriculum Development class emphasizes the fact that learning language is NOT sufficient for translating and teaching God’s Word in a way that the people will understand! A teacher of the Bible MUST understand the culture, beliefs, behaviors and motivations, and influences of the people being spoken to! We risk losing the connection if we do not consider these significant barriers to understanding and meaning!

Exciting news: 

The birthday girl!! (aka "Cinderella")

• 1.5 months left of our training! (Then next semester's Linguistics course for Lisa) 
• 1 year from now, we anticipate having just moved to Seattle to prepare for the field!
• Jocellyn turned 3 on November 2nd!
• We have finished developing new photo cards! Expect newsletters and photo cards in your mailbox (yes, your real mailbox) soon! If you'd like extras to share what we're doing with others, please let us know.
• We will be IN SEATTLE for Christmas break! Would you or your small group be interested in hearing from us/getting involved? We will be in the Northwest from Christmas until mid-January.

New Addition to the Family!!

This is not what you think.
In fact, it's infinitely better!

After years of training and preparation, three families moved to a small island in Papua New Guinea called Biem, and spent the last few years learning their language and culture. About 3 months ago (after many difficulties, including one of the wives going through cancer treatments- the Lord has now restored her health and they are back in the tribe!), the missionaries began teaching through the Bible, beginning with Creation. This is the first time the Biem people have heard the Word of God. TWO DAYS AGO, the Biem people learned of the crucifixion, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ as payment for all sin. This is the first time they have ever heard the story of God's gift on their behalf- and some of them have believed!

It is a joy to share with you that YOU have new brothers and sisters in Christ on this small island in PNG!! There are now representatives from another tribe, tongue, nation that will be around the throne worshiping our God with you and with us!

We are finishing our CLA Practicum- below is a photo of us sitting and learning from our language helper in our 'village'. We have entered this village scenario 2 or 3 times a week.

• The first couple of visits we were simply learning how to function- how to greet, how to ask questions, how to be culturally appropriate. 
• The next few visits we did some language learning through the Total Physical Response (TPR) method- learning names of objects (house items, people, and ultimately some verbs to connect them). 
• Next we have been focusing on learning the culture of this 'village', and learning how to ask questions wisely (not yes/no questions, not motivation questions, etc...). 
• As we finish these last 2 weeks, our focus is diving into pieces of the culture we have been learning and from it, beginning to understand their worldview. 

If we skip learning the culture, how can we possibly present the Word of God to them in a manner they will understand? How could we possibly know how the concepts of God and the need for a Redeemer and the Person of Christ will impact/effect them?! We must learn before we teach. (Or they may simply add Christ to their list of 'things they must do' or 'gods we must appease' to be saved.)

In 2 weeks, we will finish that course and begin our Practical Skills class. This will include scratch cooking, a 'wilderness' camping weekend, navigation/survival skills, knot tying, etc...

In family news:

Church leadership from Seattle visiting the 'village' with us!

We just enjoyed some visitors from Seattle! The pastor and an elder/missions committee member from our sending church flew out to Missouri and spent all day Thursday with us, sitting in on classes, asking questions of staff and students, and having a tour of the campus. We were SO blessed and encouraged to have them come out and see the facility here!

Naya turned 5 years old on September 9th, and enjoyed a ballerina birthday party! The next day she began ballet classes at a studio about 20 minutes from here. She's having a blast! She also plays soccer recreationally every Saturday with some of her friends here.
Jocellyn is working on potty-training (I know, I know... you were dying to know that! But hey, I can't leave her out, right?)... She's just busy being cute (like her Grandpa), what can I say? :)

Too, To, Two, Through, You, Shoe, Blue, Flute, Suit, New, Flu

Learning the principle of Phonemics

Every one of the words in this blog title uses the same "u" sound, just spelled differently! In Phonemics, a class we took during our first week this semester, we learned in the context of other languages which of those words would be spelled with the phonetic "u" since the native speakers pronounce them the same and know their different meanings, and which of those words must be spelled differently.

For example, in English, we could not spell "too", "to", and "two" the same way: "tu", or else there would be too much confusion. However, we COULD spell "through", "blue", and "shoe" each with the "u" ("thru", "blu", "shu"), and no confusion would result.

We just finished our Literacy class last week. Practically, we put together a Literacy Primer, which is the method we will use in the tribe to teach the people to read and write in their own language. How many benefits can you think of for a tribal person learning to read and write in their own language?

Here are just a few:

• The ability to record their own personal and communal history in writing
• The creation of new jobs, both within the village and out in the town (where applicable)
• Can eventually learn to read and write in the national language, for better communication with other tribes and with the country itself
• Ability to record and read medical advice/information
• Ultimately, the ability to read God's Word for themselves in their own language!!

These are just a few of the benefits of Literacy. This often forgotten-about area in Church Planting is so important! Often the missionary women have the opportunity to teach Literacy, at least to other women if not to a mixed group (it is not authoritative spiritual teaching). This is yet another reason why it will be helpful for Lisa to take the Linguistics course in January.

Currently we are beginning our CLA Practicum. This is essentially a 7-week 'simulated real-life' learning experience, during which we have the opportunity/responsibility to apply many of the Culture & Language Acquisition (learning) principles that we have been learning during the last year. We expect it to be both fun and challenging, and humbling as we place ourselves into a vulnerable situation. It is exciting to do this, anticipating what it may very well be like entering a tribe for the first time, not knowing their language and culture.

Fall Kick-off at the MTC

Please join us in praying that we will be GOOD LEARNERS, diligent in our studies, and most importantly, that as we continue preparing for this immense, 'impossible' task that He will draw our hearts individually and collectively into His own heart- that we will be IN HIS WORD!

In family news- Naya will turn 5 on Sunday, September 9th! She is excited for the special opportunity to take some ballet classes this year, which begin on the 10th. Jocellyn is catching up to Naya in height (she has already surpassed her big sister in weight, haha!), and is growing more every day.

Naya and friends, happy to be back together!

Please also be praying for Noe and the rest of the Martinez family in the recent death of his father.

We are THANKFUL to be here, and THANKFUL for all of you who are standing beside us in love and support!

With love,

Noe, Lisa, Naya and Jocellyn

We may very well fly in one of these
planes someday! (Enjoyed our tour
in Idaho on our way back to Missouri)

Half Finish

Four weeks to go! The end of this semester marks the halfway point until the completion of our training with NTM!

We completed our Animism class in mid-March, which included a short module on Folk Religion. A Folk religion is a blending/merging of a high religion (such as Christianity, Islam, or Hinduism), and an indigenous/animistic religion. Refer to our March blog entry ("the D.R.D.O.") for an explanation of the Animism class.

Grammar class was a favorite for Lisa, but not so much for Noe (by his own admission). :) Rather than focusing on the English language, we worked out phrases, clauses, and morphemes for at least two languages (national or tribal languages) each day. The reason this is important is that the syntax, word arrangement, varies from language to language. A classic example is: English - big house, and Spanish- house big (casa grande).

Field Fair

In mid-March, we had a short break from classes for the annual "Field Fair". Representatives from all of the countries where NTM works came in to Missouri for a few days and shared the needs and opportunities in each country. It was encouraging (to see opportunities), sobering (to see how many language groups are still without the gospel), and confusing (so much information, where do we go?)! We are still leaning toward Papua New Guinea, but we are not firmly committed at this point.

We have been doing some small group studies from the book of Romans, discussing how we might answer some of those big, but maybe tough questions. Below are a couple of the questions we discussed:

• Can Christians please/displease God if they are already "made righteous/at peace with God/justified"? (Romans 6)
• How might you help someone who struggles with believing that an intangible God really loves them? (Romans 8)
• How might you explain to a new believer: "offer your body as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to Him"? (Romans 12)

We also have completed both the Parenting & Education class (discussing homeschooling and other options on the field), and Biblical Parenting- in which we read and discussed from Shepherding a Child's Heart by Tedd Tripp.

This week we will begin a Biblical Peacemaking class (conflict resolution among other concepts), and also to carry us through to the end of the semester is the CLA Methodology class. (CLA = Culture & Language Acquisition) We will share more about this class in next month's blog.

at the GO! St. Louis Half Marathon

In family news, Naya lost her first tooth on April 30th!
Also, Lisa completed her first half marathon in St. Louis on April 15th!

Next time you hear from us, we will be on our way or in Seattle! THANK YOU for walking this road with us!!

~the Martinez family

The D.R.D.O.

On the field, we will have to fight over the special title/role of "The D.R.D.O." That is, the Designated Refrigerator Door Opener!




That's right! In our Missionary Technology class (which we JUST finished on Feb. 29th), we have learned lots of helpful skills and concepts, of which one of the most important is that of conserving electricity and preserving the life of whatever appliances we have in a remote location. In a tropical climate, it is a much bigger deal to open your fridge or freezer! We will need to organize the contents in containers, keep moisture out, cover ice trays, and open/close it as efficiently as possible. This is something we don't think about too much in the States (other than the sensibility of not leaving it open!).

Looks simple enough, right?.....

We finished the Missionary Technology course with some small group labs- learning about Twin Tub Washers (goodbye giganto-normous 45-minute drop-it-in-and-go clothes washer!), LP Gas and Stoves, Ferro Cement, AC/DC wiring (not related to the band... sorry if you were confused) and Laptop Setup/Grounding (yep- a bit more complicated in the boonies!).

We also recently completed the Field Health course, during which we evaluated potential health scenarios in remote locations, discussed not only physical health but also mental and emotional health, AND we had an exciting practical skills lab! We practiced:

• giving each other a shot
• learned how to check vital signs (with a stethoscope, blood pressure monitor, and a mercury thermometer- remember those? Yeah... bringin' 'em back! Actually, it's because the wonderful, high-speed digital thermometers wear out too quickly, particularly in hot, humid climates.)



Learning how to give shots!

• checked each other's ears- including Naya's (!), with an otoscope, which we will need to add to our comprehensive Field Health kit (not your average, everyday first aid kit that you put in your beach bag- don't you?)!

Checking vita sounds .Naya
was a great patient!

Now we have begun our Animism class. What is Animism? There are many definitions, but here is just one:   “A worldview that understands human existence to be environed by numerous and diverse spirit beings and impersonal forces that affect human experience and well-being. It is held within this system that man can control or significantly influence these capricious entities by proper incantations, rituals, offerings, sacrifices, or magic to bring about desired outcomes. Animistic man’s regular pursuit is to stay in control of all aspects of life, with all things serving his will” (Worldview Resource Group)
It CANNOT be stressed how important it is to learn and understand thoroughly the worldview and belief system of a people group before sharing God's truth with them! This allows two things for the missionary:

1.  Truly understand the people's animistic worldview. In so doing, they learn exactly what and how they should teach God’s Word for optimum understanding.
2.  Share God’s truth in the context of trusted relationships. In the end, the people hear God’s Word from friends, not from strangers.

NOT just "traditional costume"- EVERY mark and EVERY different
piece they wear and have is significant- almost always animistic in
nature- for appeasing or warding off spirits

And have you recalled even from the tribes we have recently shared with you who have just heard the Gospel for the first time-- many, many testimonies from new believers who have realized how secure they are in their salvation by faith in Christ alone, as opposed to their former animistic belief systems? After all, how do we KNOW we are saved? Through Christ's perfect, once-for-all work on the cross! These new believers recognize that before hearing this, they were in fearful bondage, trying to work their way into appeasing the spirits they believed in- and it was never enough. Similarly, our works can never be enough- God required blood (death) as the payment for sin. But what is the difference between God and these 'spirits'? God sent His Son who satisfied our sin-debt completely! No continual appeasement necessary! No life lived in fear!
Likewise, these new tribal believers have been taught the Word from Creation through Christ- they understand that it is not "going to church" that assures them they are saved. It is not their family's belief that assures them they are saved. It is not "a happy feeling" that assures them they are saved, nor it is the desire to "do good". No, the assurance of salvation comes directly from the Word! It is plastered throughout! CHRIST IS ENOUGH!! It is not our works or feelings that convince us that we are saved. It is BELIEF, it is TRUSTING that what He has done was sufficient, and what He has declared in and through that! At the moment of salvation you were bought, you were sealed, you were justified, you were guaranteed eternal life with Him, you were adopted into His family... and more!

So what about you? In what are you determining if you are saved or not? Do you believe that His work was enough for you?
(Quite a challenging thought to end this blog entry!)

We're SO thankful to be here, and so excited for all that we are learning. We are continuing to converse with the field of Papua New Guinea. We'd ask for your prayers in that process!

~Noe, Lisa, Naya and Jocie

"I Want to Go to a Trumpet Call! Not a Siren!"

Our friend couldn't have said it better, as we all huddled in their back room. It was after 11pm, and Noe and I were watching a movie in the living room. The girls and one of their friends were asleep upstairs (for a sleepover), when suddenly the tornado siren blared. This was the first time we'd heard it here in Missouri! 
Our friends' apartment building (whose daughter we had at our house for the sleepover) was built into a hillside, so we grabbed the girls and ran to their apartment, watching forks of lightning strike the surrounding hillsides, and feeling the drizzle of rain and the warm air. As our next-door neighbors followed us, a staff member opened his door and shouted, "3 minutes! It's 3 minutes away!!" So they darted across, and about 4 families were gathered together where we waited, prayed, and watched the weather radar online.
As you know (since we had no important news to send your way), there was no tornado. But we are thankful for the technology to track storms, and to warn us of potential danger! We were talking with our friends about having peace in the midst of such events, and I (Lisa) said, "I just would rather not go THAT way (through a natural disaster)." And our friend commented, as the subject says, "Yeah, I want to go to a trumpet call! Not a siren!"

All of this just is a reminder and a challenge-- am I keeping my eyes fixed heavenward? On Christ? Or am I looking at the waves around me and saying, "It's ok, come on over here and drown me!" Circumstances and pain are real, but so is Christ!!

Friends and loved ones- that is a lot of what we are studying this semester. Preparation and equipping for some of the "what-ifs". For example, we will be starting a course on Field Health in a couple weeks. Do you suppose that it is pleasant for us to think intently about malaria and dengue fever and snake bites as we prepare to take our family into a remote location? (No way!) But like the theme of this blog- these things are real, and it is wise to be prepared for them... but who is in control? Amen, it is Christ! We are thankful for our studies at New Tribes Bible Institute, and for the missionary teaching staff there who longed for us to understand these very concepts- that God is indeed sufficient in everything.

The first step for every believer in becoming prepared for life's trials? Spiritual prepartion. Know the character of your God! And the second step is physical preparation, which we are doing now.

Missionary Technology Lab

The classes we are taking right now:

Soldering Lab- yep, the moms need to learn too!

Student Teaching  course

• Missionary Technology - the "what"s and "how"s and "why"s of living in a remote location. How to design a solar electric system, water filtration, batteries (what kind to buy and how to charge them...), refrigerators and freezers, and the list goes on... we could devote a whole blog just to this class! Hmm, maybe we will! :)
• New Testament Church Principles - what does a mature church (a mature body of believers) look like? What elements of church life are important to you? And considering those- which of those are Biblical principles, and which are cultural? These are questions and thought processes we have been working through in this important course. In the not-so-distant future, when we look into teaming up with other families/individuals, these are conversations that will need to take place so that we are all on the same page. And MORE importantly, when a new church is born, what happens next? So it is important to examine what the Bible says, what was modeled, what was cultural, etc.
• Student Teaching - both men and women share testimonies, and also share from the Word. The women will likely have opportunities to speak to women in the near future, so practice speaking in front of others is important!

Has this blog resonated with you? We would LOVE to hear what He is doing in your life. How has the Lord been showing you that He is greater than your circumstances?

Trusting in Him,

Noe, Lisa, Naya and Jocellyn