Dear Friends and Family,

We trust you are well into the New Year and normal schedule after the Holidays.  We are as well, and are in the midst of packing for our trip into the village.  This afternoon we will be starting our trip interior to visit our home and tribe in the Jelai Hulu.  An overnight ferry will transport us and our jeep to another coastal town where we get off and start driving interior.  The Lord gave us a connection through our landlord so that we will be able to use the captains quarters.  We’ll at least have a place to sit or lay down throughout the night. We are trying to be hopeful about the conditions.  The last time we rented someone’s room on a ferry it was full of cockroaches that came out at night.  But this is a newer ferry so we’re hopeful!  We will then begin driving interior, could take all day or longer depending on the road situation.  With it being rainy season it’s sure to be a muddy challenge.   Please pray that the girls would be able to sleep in the jeep and not get too antsy. 

This will be the first time we’ve been interior in almost a year so we’ll all be adjusting back to “tribal life” again.  Rice. rice, rice, chickens and pigs all around the house, bathing in the river, sleeping in mosquito nets… We’re really looking forward to having time to connect with friends in the village and try to explain why we’re not living in there with them at this time.  We know it’s hard for them to understand why we said we wanted to live with them and learn their language in order to teach and translate the Bible but we’re living in town.  Please continue to pray with us for partners so that we can continue our ministry with the Jelai people if that is God’s will.

I’m sure the girls will get all the attention while we’re in there.  Everyone loves to pinch their cheeks and play with them, they usually can’t get over Abby’s blue eyes.  I’m sure we will have lots of stories and pictures to share with you when we get back

We truly enjoyed the time we had to spend with the kids at the orphanage on Christmas Eve.  There were 3 of us families who took cookies and milk and gifts of clothing for each one of the kids, about 32 in all.  We spent time just hanging out with them and playing with those who could.  Several of the kids are severely handicap but thank the Lord they are being taken care of very well, considering.  The Lord loves each one of those precious children and wants them to know He is a Father to the fatherless.  We hope to continue to have contact with these dear children while we are living here in town.

Thanks for praying for our trip and that we would be sensitive to what the Lord would want to teach us along the way.  Pray that the girls would stay healthy and have the ability to adjust to more difficult living arrangements than they have been used to lately.  One last prayer request, on the day after Christmas while visiting friends our house was broken into and both our computers were stolen.  Thankfully not much else was taken and we did have recent backups, but it was pretty disappointing.  We were able to purchase a computer that is working ok for us but it’s not a very good long-term solution considering how frequently and hard we’re running it at this point.  Pray that somehow the computers could be returned or that we would have wisdom in making decisions regarding another/different computer.

Thanks for the Christmas cards and emails many of you have sent!  We appreciate each one of you and the part you are doing in tribal evangelism as you support our family!  

After His Glory,

Tim and Andrea Ullum