Steve's suitcase has been missing ever since he arrived in Papua New Guinea Thursday night*, January 19th. A week later, after multitudes of emails and phone calls, he received word yesterday that his suitcase had been found and finally arrived at the local airport in Lae!
He arrived at the airport and was pointed to the suitcase - but it didn't look anything like ours. It belongs to someone else with the name of Gallagher! "Disappointing" isn't strong enough to describe the situation.
The airline will continue to search for the bag, as we continue to keep in touch with them.
Steve leaves PNG next Wednesday. Who knows - maybe he will find the bag in Singapore on his way back. He arrives home on Friday night, February 3rd.
Frequent communication with the airline, some false reports that it the bag was found and would arrive, along with the inconveniences of his missing items, have put a lot of stress on Steve (and some for me, Carol Jean). Please pray for peace and a restful weekend.
God know where the suitcase is. Pray that God would reveal the bag's location to the airline personnel looking for it and that we would receive it again, on one side of the world or the other.
*All time references are in US time.
Despite the luggage hassle, the consulting work is going well. He is using a borrowed computer which has the most important program, but not all of his exegetical resources. The Musim (MOO-sim) team has been great to work with as they consider Steve's suggestions for improvement. They expect to finish checking the Gospel of Mark on Tuesday.
Pray that the consultant check would result in a translation of Mark that is clear, natural, and accurate, and that it will speak to the hearts of the Musim people. After all, God's word in the hearts and lives of the Musim people is much more important than the contents of a suitcase.
Thank you for your prayers.