Jer VS Malaria Part 2

Much has happened since the last update, but basically Malaria was kicking my butt. So I kicked back! I went to the hospital for another blood test, because the Malaria was sneak attacking my body from it's headquarters in my liver. And the doctors came up with a plan which involved me getting my first needle in the bum.

I wish I could describe to you how embarrassing it is, me standing in a room full of nurses, ALL WOMEN, and they ask me to please bend over and pull down my pants. I actually argued with them but I realized that arguing with one new guinea woman is hard enough, but with 3 is next to impossible. So I remembered that this was a battle strategy to defeat the alien malaria virus which was taking over my body, so I humbly took the injection, and prayed for the best.

Believe it or not, my number one need here in PNG are T-shirts. For some reason I thought that I would be fine with long sleeved shirts designed for trekking in the bush. But I realized immediately upon arrival that I looked ridiculous, and that everyone in PNG wears T-shirts, so I stick out like a Water Buffalo in a swimming pool full of kids.

It is very exciting to be pioneering the first media in the church of PNG, and there has been so many challenges I have been facing here. The worst and most difficult challenge is the POWER. The power here in Lae, is basically hit or miss, they call it the land of the unexpected, because at any point in time the power will go out, and when it does it may be hours before it comes back on. So when I am in the middle of a lesson, and the boys I am training are finally catching on to some of the things I am trying to teach them BAM, BLACKOUT.

So one of the things we did during the blackout times, is we went to the Animal Habitat at the university here in LAE. And I have never seen anything quite like it. In North America the animals are basically all locked up and there's no way you can get anywhere near them, but here I actually got to touch a Python, and pet him like a dog. I also stuck a large stick inside one of the cages of a giant bird with a massive beak, and he didn't like that. So he fought with me over the stick for about 15 minutes, until finally I let him have it. Man, that bird really has a strong beak, he thrashed that stick real good the moment he got it. I was glad to give the bird some entertainment, because he just sits there all day waiting for someone to interact with him. He also talks, and repeats some crazy words in the native language of the PNG people.

The crocodile they have there is HUGE, and scares me, because I know that these beasts are all over PNG, they have both freshwater and salt water crocodiles, lurking all over PNG. This croc is one that I really don't want to run into. There are also PYTHON'S that stand like trees in the jungles, and they kill people on a regular basis. What they do is, they make themselves stretch vertically like a small tree, and wait for people/animals to walk by. Then they fall on their pray and immediately wrap themselves around you and begin to crush your bones. The lucky natives who have survived one of these attacks have found a way to trick the python. What they do is when the Python begins to wrap itself around them, they gather some sticks really quick if possible, and then when the python begins to squeeze them, they play dead and begin to snap the sticks in their hands. The python sometimes falls for it, thinking that the sound of the twigs snapping are the bones of the man. So after it hears the bones snap, it then goes to get water from a nearby river to replenish itself. This is when the native runs for his life, because a python once it targets its prey will not stop until it has finished the job, so it will literally chase you all over the jungle.

There is also a very dangerous bird in the jungles here of PNG, one of many dangerous birds. If you run into this one in the jungle, and get too close, it has VERY powerful legs, and sharp claws, and is known to kill many people that hunt in the jungles of PNG. When I was taking pictures of it, it immediately ran towards me, and tried to peck me with its massive beak. This bird is very mean, and I really hope that I don't run into one out there while we are travelling around the villages of PNG through the jungles. The eagles here in PNG are also VERY HUGE, the BIGGEST eagles I have ever seen. Many people are afraid of the eagles, because they have been known to swoop down and carry off small children in their claws. I thought the stories were a little bit far fetched, but I actually saw one of these eagles, and I couldn't believe my eyes. This is nothing like a bald eagle, this is MUCH MUCH bigger, and I have no doubt that it could easily carry off a child.

I just finished a radio interview which was broadcast all over PNG, about what I am doing in the country and what kind of impact it will have on the nation. It was a very powerful interview, and I was amazed at how powerful mass-media really is and how quickly it can impact a country. After my interview we had to get on our flight to Australia to pick up some video equipment that we needed. One of the flight attendants recognized my Canadian passport, and asked me if I was the one on the radio. He told me how blessed he was to hear my interview and was very encouraged by what I was doing in the country. The big challenge I have been facing is that we do not have the proper equipment we need to film the crusades and train the boys. I personally brought my own laptop and two hard drives, and everything that we need to do a basic production, and we are really praying that God gives us some financial support so we can purchase the rest of the equipment.

We are in Australia right now picking up our video deck and buying a brand new tripod and microphones for this next crusade we are filming in December. This is very exciting because we are going to take a boat to the island of Finschhafen where we will be holding a crusade for the very first time. This is exciting because it was on this island that the first missionaries came and preached the gospel, and from that one small seed, the gospel of the kingdom has been proclaimed all throughout Papua new guinea and transformed the whole country. So now we are coming back to the very place where Christianity was birthed and completing the cycle of evangelism which has circled the country.

Please continue to pray and support me while I am here in PNG, because this opportunity only comes once in a lifetime. Mass media has an enormous impact, and through radio and television we have a unique opportunity to have the church as the primary provider of media for the country instead of the secular world.

Please keep my health in your prayers, I have lost 20 pounds since my arrival here two months ago, and have been very weak physically. This next crusade we are filming is going to take a lot of energy and I will need all the strength I can get.

Thank you so much for your prayers and support, it is keeping me alive out here.

Jeremy Heemskerk