Umina, Manale and Kimsi have been enjoying our church services and Bible study classes. These young men are not yet baptized, but the Spirit of God is stirring their hearts. One day they came to me and said, “We want to build a church. Mark where you want the posts, and we will get the materials and build it.” We had been meeting for church in a room under our house, and it was getting too small for our group.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” I said, probing their sincerity. “That would be a lot of work.”
“We don’t know how to build,” they replied, “but Kimsi’s father knows how, and we will get him to show us. You already have some good strong posts lying here ready to be used. We will go to the bush and get the trees for the framing.”
“Okay,” I said. “Come tomorrow, and we will mark where the posts will go for the new church.”
The next day found not just the three but six young men eagerly gathered around me as I strung out the measuring tape. We staked out the corners and checked the diagonals to make sure the building would be square. Then we put in the stakes for the intermediate posts.
“There,” I said. “I’ve marked it for you, but you will have to carry on the work without me. Next week we are flying back to Port Moresby to get more supplies.” Grinning, they all nodded enthusiastically. “We will work on it while you are gone.”
The type of building that Umina, Manale, Kimsi and Kimsi’s father are constructing is what the locals call a “bush church.” It’s not built from milled lumber but from small trees cut from the forest. It will have a thatched roof and floor boards of split black palm supported on posts above the ground. We won’t be building benches or pews (at least at the beginning). People here are accustomed to sitting on the floor, even for church.
When we returned from our trip to Port Moresby we found the posts all set in the ground and some of the floor and wall framing was done. It was exciting to see the building materialize. As a thank-you gift for the workers, we brought back matching polo shirts with the words “SDA Church Builder” neatly embroidered in gold thread.
For the next couple of months during the beginning of the rainy season, the work progressed slowly. One day I spotted Umina and Kimsi down at the riverbank unloading sticks from their canoe. “We’ve got all the sticks cut for the church,” they told me. “They are at the waterfront by the village. We just need to bring them across.” Within a couple of days, our yard was covered with sticks waiting to be nailed together as framing for the church building.
By this time we were making preparations for our upcoming furlough. The church was not yet done, but we wanted to have a dedication service for it before we left. Suddenly the work went into high gear. Roof trusses went up while ladies went to get sago leaves for roofing. Unfortunately, the burst of activity came too late to get the roof completed before we left. But we went ahead with the dedication service anyway. About 300 villagers were present to witness the giving of this land and building to the service of God.
I hope we will not delay our best efforts for Christ’s coming until it is too late. Jesus said, “I must work the works of Him that sent Me, while it is day; for the night cometh, when no man can work” (John 9:4). We won’t have to worry when Jesus will come if we are faithfully doing His work now, while we can.
I’m thankful for the three young men who, despite their limited experience, stepped out in faith and acted on their desire to build a church. Are you willing to step out and take action for God like these brave fellows? Have you wanted to be a missionary but not acted on it? Now is the time. Maybe you have physical limitations and feel there is nothing you can do. Take it to God in prayer, and then obey what He tells you to do. Do it now!
