Faithful Partners, Jan. 29, 2016
We hope this letter finds you doing well in 2016. For us, 2016 will mean many changes. It is a furlough year for us again, but it seems like just yesterday we arrived back in Papua New Guinea for the beginning of our fifth field term. This now represents over 25 years with Wycliffe. Where has time gone? Thank you for the years of prayer, encouraging words and emails, and gifts which have allowed us to serve the work of Bible translation in this country. We look forward to many more years of service with Wycliffe Bible Translators.
Come June, our third child, Jesse, will be graduating from high school and moving on into adulthood. At this point, we do not know for sure what Jesse will be doing, but we are committed to bringing him home and helping him transition into life in the United States. From this side of the world it is hard to foresee and plan all the details of our lives moving forward. But from our end, it appears that a change in our location with Wycliffe may be where God is taking us. Therefore, we are writing you this letter to inform you of how we are being led and to seek your council. Proverbs 15:22says, “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” We are asking you, our faithful partners, for wise advice. We are also asking you to commit to praying for us as we move forward.
So where to start? To make this as simple as possible, we will just state a few points of information for you to consider as you think on this and pray with us.
1. As you may know, JAARS is our aviation headquarters in Waxhaw, NC. This is where all our mission aviators are initially evaluated and receive orientation before coming to the field. In the past three years or so, JAARS has begun to send out a desperate plea for field experienced personnel to consider coming back and serving at JAARS Aviation. Already, half of the aviation staff at JAARS are 65 years or older. In five years’ time, that number will have increased to 2/3’s of the staff, and many of those will have retired. This leaves a critical hole in the staff which train and supply our personnel needs on the field. If our home training service collapses, our foreign fields will also face severe cutbacks.
2. Some of you may not know, but Jolene has increasingly struggled with some health issues. For years, she has dealt with headaches as a result of chronic sinusitis and allergies which has resulted in low energy. In order to help with this, she had septoplasty surgery while on furlough to open the nasal passages and correct a deviated septum. She has also had allergy testing to see if there are issues there. So far, none of this has provided much relief or solution. Feeling constantly tired and unwell has made it harder to live and serve here in PNG.
3. Family. For many years we have trusted the words of Matthew 19:29, “And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.” We are simply asking if, at least for a season, God would allow us to be closer to them.
4. This field term has been satisfying and rewarding but also very different than the rest of our time here in PNG. Soon after arriving back in July ’13, Rick chose to set flying aside to fill the need of Director of Aviation. This has been a very challenging role, but it has opened our eyes to needs beyond flying and of other needs and opportunities within Wycliffe.
So, as we conclude this list, we are feeling like a home assignment in the U.S. may be the next step we should take. We are not opposed to returning to serve in PNG again at some point, but are wondering if serving from JAARS might be the best way to continue supporting the work of Bible Translation right now. We would really value your prayers and input in this decision.
We would also like to know, would you continue to support our ministry at JAARS? Please feel free to write to us with your thoughts. You can write us at
r-j.nachtigal@sil.org.pg.
Thank you for your time and input,
Rick and Jolene Nachtigal
We hope this letter finds you doing well in 2016. For us, 2016 will mean many changes. It is a furlough year for us again, but it seems like just yesterday we arrived back in Papua New Guinea for the beginning of our fifth field term. This now represents over 25 years with Wycliffe. Where has time gone? Thank you for the years of prayer, encouraging words and emails, and gifts which have allowed us to serve the work of Bible translation in this country. We look forward to many more years of service with Wycliffe Bible Translators.
Come June, our third child, Jesse, will be graduating from high school and moving on into adulthood. At this point, we do not know for sure what Jesse will be doing, but we are committed to bringing him home and helping him transition into life in the United States. From this side of the world it is hard to foresee and plan all the details of our lives moving forward. But from our end, it appears that a change in our location with Wycliffe may be where God is taking us. Therefore, we are writing you this letter to inform you of how we are being led and to seek your council. Proverbs 15:22says, “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” We are asking you, our faithful partners, for wise advice. We are also asking you to commit to praying for us as we move forward.
So where to start? To make this as simple as possible, we will just state a few points of information for you to consider as you think on this and pray with us.
1. As you may know, JAARS is our aviation headquarters in Waxhaw, NC. This is where all our mission aviators are initially evaluated and receive orientation before coming to the field. In the past three years or so, JAARS has begun to send out a desperate plea for field experienced personnel to consider coming back and serving at JAARS Aviation. Already, half of the aviation staff at JAARS are 65 years or older. In five years’ time, that number will have increased to 2/3’s of the staff, and many of those will have retired. This leaves a critical hole in the staff which train and supply our personnel needs on the field. If our home training service collapses, our foreign fields will also face severe cutbacks.
2. Some of you may not know, but Jolene has increasingly struggled with some health issues. For years, she has dealt with headaches as a result of chronic sinusitis and allergies which has resulted in low energy. In order to help with this, she had septoplasty surgery while on furlough to open the nasal passages and correct a deviated septum. She has also had allergy testing to see if there are issues there. So far, none of this has provided much relief or solution. Feeling constantly tired and unwell has made it harder to live and serve here in PNG.
3. Family. For many years we have trusted the words of Matthew 19:29, “And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.” We are simply asking if, at least for a season, God would allow us to be closer to them.
4. This field term has been satisfying and rewarding but also very different than the rest of our time here in PNG. Soon after arriving back in July ’13, Rick chose to set flying aside to fill the need of Director of Aviation. This has been a very challenging role, but it has opened our eyes to needs beyond flying and of other needs and opportunities within Wycliffe.
So, as we conclude this list, we are feeling like a home assignment in the U.S. may be the next step we should take. We are not opposed to returning to serve in PNG again at some point, but are wondering if serving from JAARS might be the best way to continue supporting the work of Bible Translation right now. We would really value your prayers and input in this decision.
We would also like to know, would you continue to support our ministry at JAARS? Please feel free to write to us with your thoughts. You can write us at
r-j.nachtigal@sil.org.pg.
Thank you for your time and input,
Rick and Jolene Nachtigal