Outreach team, healing and spiritual warfare
Time flies and we are already in March. The last few months have really flown by as I have had my hands full with various tasks 24/7. Among other things, I have managed to turn 25 years ols and led an outreach team from New Zealand. On January 11th I picked up 12 DTS students and a leader from the airport here in Port Vila, and I spent the next seven weeks with them. It has been full on with many different activities, lots of joy and fun. We have all grown in flexibility as things have often not gone according to plan, but together we have seen God work powerfully in the lives of different people.
YWAM Outreach team
The team that came from New Zealand was the stream: "medical compassion". In short, they all had an interest in medicine and wanted to show God's love to people by taking care of those in physical need. The students on the team were to carry out their "outreach", a mission trip that focuses on the learning strategy: "learning by doing". They had just completed three months in a classroom in New Zealand where they got to know God better and gained basic skills in simple medical missions before taking a flight to Vanuatu to make God known to the people here.
My role as leader has included arranging opportunities so that the students could have the best possible experience. Taking them to different villages, being a translator, driving them around to different ministry locations and taking them to the beach to swim. In addition to this, I have been allowed to walk closely with the students, especially since ten of them were girls. I have had several one on one conversations with them and encouraged them as they step out of their comfort zone to make Jesus known. I was allowed to take care of them when they got sick, and together we spent countless hours in prayer and worship. The students have gained a realistic picture of what life on the mission field can look like, we have all been trained in teamwork and developed cross-cultural understanding and skills.
The Village of Ekipe and Healing
One of the first villages we went to as a team was Ekipe. Ekipe is located on the other side of the island and took just over an hour to drive to. We drove past white beaches, crystal blue sea and palm trees as far as the eye could see before we were greeted with open arms, great joy and gratitude by the mothers of the village. If there is one thing I do not take for granted, it is the hospitality and love that Ni-Vanautu has for guests. There was a welcoming ceremony for us consisting of local food, speeches, singing and the distribution of calico (local fabric / textile that we can use to sew a shirt or dress with). After this we were allowed to help them in their village with everyday tasks such as cleaning the church, laying the foundation for a toilet, cooking local food, sharing testimonies and life stories and providing wound care for everyone.
In Vanuatu, there is a great need to cover wounds and clean them properly. You see many open and infected wounds that flies flock to and eat from. I have personally witnessed several children taking a dirty stick full of soil and scraping the infected wound with it, which does not make it better. My team was allowed to teach the village how to treat wounds and together we distributed "sustainable wound care kits" with instructions on how to treat wounds and showed them how to care for their wounds with items they already have in their households. We were able to pray with various people in the village before we went back home.
A week later, Esther, one of the local girls I work with, went back to Ekipe to visit. Here she was told that all the wounds we had treated and bandaged had dried up and become completely healed in record time. Even large, infected wounds that definitely needed more than a wound cleanser and bandage had dried up and become completely fine again. They wondered what medicine we had put on their wounds, but she told that it was only a miracle of Jesus Christ that made it possible. Our efforts probably had little to do with it. But what a testimony! Jesus still heals today, and we were able to witness it.
Sharing the Love of Jesus
We visited several villages during the seven weeks the YWAM team was here. We crossed fast-flowing rivers, braved rain and muddy paths to get there. Yet it was always worth it. We were allowed to share the gospel, pray with people and share the love of Jesus by tending to their wounds, playing with the children and seeing those who are neglected in society. Seeing the joy in the children's eyes when we spend time with them and tell them how much they are loved by their heavenly Father is priceless. In addition to this, we taught about dental hygiene and the importance of washing hands, shared Bible stories and played even more. One of my students also got to see healing up close. She prayed over a woman who had several pains throughout her body. After she said amen, they chatted for a while before the woman suddenly said: "By the way, all my pain is gone now. Thank you so much".
Spiritual warfare
Another experience worth sharing is the times we went down to the closed part of the city to pray with the guards. When the earthquake hit us on December 17, 2024, it was the center of the city here in Port Vila that was hit the hardest. Buildings collapsed and several people died. After this, large parts of the "downtown" have been closed. The government put more guards on duty, especially after several episodes with different groups trying to rob shops that were now open and abandoned. The guards have also made sure that people stayed away from the dangerous buildings that were damaged during the earthquake, but did not collapse.
One of the few days we did not have a specific plan for what we were going to do, we started as usual in prayer and worship. Afterwards, we asked God what He wanted us to do that day. The original plan we had was canceled at short notice, so we waited in anticipation to see what God would show us. Eventually one of our students told us how she had heard that the guards who guarded "downtown" live in great fear, and had an idea that we could visit them and pray God's peace upon them. The rest of us felt peace over the decision and I started a little "investigation" into what rumors / stories were going around about these guards. I spoke to several locals who confirmed what one student had heard.
A haunted city
It turned out that after the earthquake and all the people left the city center, the "downtown" has been haunted by various spirits. The guards described incidents where they heard voices talking to them, even when no one else was there. Voices from the deceased people who were lying in the ruins of the collapsed buildings. One guard told me: "I heard several voices shouting: Help me, help me. It's completely different to work here now". They all described a great fear, and disgusting sounds that came out of nowhere. Right after the earthquake, it was the worst, where several men ran home from their guard post at night because they couldn't stay. They weren't proud to admit it to me, but the fear became too great for them. These are strong men who are not easily frightened.
After my mini investigation was done, we prayed again to God to assure ourselves that this was something we should actually embark on. We all felt a great peace and prepared for the evening before we went down together to pray with them. If there is one thing we know, it is that prayer is a powerful weapon and that the peace of God surpasses all understanding. We thought it was too sad that these guards should live in fear without knowing about the protection they can receive in the name of Jesus.
Jesus is winning!
On February 17th, we went down to pray and worship the name of Jesus with the guards. The students heard some of the experiences the guards had, and we shared God's word with them. We proclaimed the name of Jesus over the city and specifically prayed for protection and the full armor of God over the guards (Ephesians 6:13-18). I even felt a chill run down my spine before we started praying and singing praises. I heard strange sounds that made me super uncomfortable. Sounds that I have never heard before or since. Yet we did not let this scare us. Because as Christians we know that spirits exist, but that Jesus has all power over them.
Jesus himself says about the Evil One: "The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy. I have come that you may have life and have it abundantly." (John 10:10). By Jesus' victory on the cross, he proved himself stronger than sin, death, and the devil. We have nothing to fear, and have the strongest on our side.
As we concluded our visit, the guards were clearly moved that we had come. They said that no one had come to them to pray with them since the earthquake. They felt seen by God and we pray to this day that the peace of God reigns in their hearts. Jesus is the victor and we are on His winning team!
What about Keep Safe?
These are just a few of the experiences I have had over the past seven weeks, but I hope that it gives a little insight into what I have been able to do. Some of you may have asked the question: Marte, leading an outreach team? That wasn't the plan when you came to Vanuatu, was it? To those wondering, I would say: That is absolutely true, but like many things down here, you have to learn to be flexible. All the schools have been closed for the whole of January and much of February due to summer vacation and the devastation after the earthquake. The base where I did my DTS in New Zealand needed a female team leader, and asked if I could help. I prayed about it and felt a peace about it. It has truly been a learning process, and I have grown a lot in leadership and learned more about the culture and people I live among.
It should be said that I have taken the time to work on budgets, sponsors for Keep Safe, hiring local volunteers and other preparations when I have had a little time in between. Another "Paise report" is that Esther, the Keep Safe colleague that I hired in January, has a father who works in the education sector of the government in this country. He has already offered us help, and assured us that we will not have much trouble getting into schools in Vanuatu with our program. I feel so grateful to be able to go into ready-made path. God is good!
Thank you
Thank you to all of you who faithfully keep me in your prayers! I get strength for the day and hope for tomorrow. Things can quickly seem overwhelming, but then God gives me his truths and his reality. Please continue to pray for wisdom in choices and especially that God must send a God-fearing local man that we can hire in our Keep Safe program. So far we are only women.
Thank you so much to all of you who support me financially! You make all of this possible. People get healing, fear is being replaced with God's peace and the gospel of Jesus is being spread to more people day after day. Thank you so much for what you are doing.