A Mouk Missionary to the Lusi People
“I’m thankful you have come so that we can share this and talk about the work that the Lord is doing of reaching out to other language groups.”
Patrick, a Mouk missionary, said this at the close of our interview with him. My co-worker Alan McDole and I recently travelled to Papua New Guinea to bring back the story of God’s work among the Mouk people to reach the nearby Lusi, Anem and Kove peoples.
Patrick Asks Us to Pray
We asked Patrick if we could also bring back prayer requests on behalf of the Mouk churches to share with you, our readers.
Patrick’s list of prayer requests are varied. Many are similar to what you might expect from a missionary from your own church. Other requests are more distinct to Mouk culture.
Similar but Different Prayer Requests
For example, Patrick asks that we would “pray that the mature churches in neighbouring language groups would come alongside the Mouk to help reach out to the people groups around them.”
In the Mouk context, churches support missionaries primarily by meeting their physical needs and sometimes financially. This includes housebuilding, which happens frequently since they build from the perishable natural materials around them, and helping with their gardens. Thus, proximity is a factor in being able to support their missionaries well.
In other words, the Mouk can effectively support their own missionaries reaching the Lusi, Anem and Kove peoples because they are relatively nearby, only a day or three’s hike away. But there are other people groups farther away who need to hear the Good News. And the Mouk ask that we pray for nearby believers to reach them.
In other words, the Mouk are pushing out their edges of the church. But they have a burden for other people groups who are beyond that edge. And they ask us to beseech the Lord that other believers who are closer would respond to that challenge.
All of this week’s prayer requests are directly from Patrick on behalf of the Mouk Church. Would you set aside some time throughout this week and bring these prayer requests before God’s throne?
