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Rachel & Native Boy

Papua New Guinea

It was while attending Bible School that Richard Carver first felt the call to missions. Viewing a slide of a New Guinea native, the Lord revealed to him just how lost this people were. Papua New Guinea is a remote island nation with a population of 4 million people. Cannibalism was practised there as recently as 1972, just one year before the Carvers arrived there. To this day tribal fighting with bow, arrow and spear is a common event.

It was to such a place that the Carvers, with their six week old daughter, Rachel, departed for on the 5th of April 1973. They were appointed as pioneer missionaries from the Australian church. This was the first missionary endeavour for the Australian United Pentecostal Church.

Our Village House

The next four and a half years were spent in a remote Highland village among primitive people, where Brother Carver built a bush material house in the native village, learnt the language and gathered a small number of converts.

Isolated from the nearest town by a dangerous and frightening road, the Carvers experienced life in PNG at its most interesting. Rats and fleas on one hand, tribal fighting on the other, it was rough to say the least. After three years of labour, the first person received the Holy Spirit. Slowly more people began to attend, and they built a permanent building which still stands today.

However, his heart's desire was to locate the church in a town and a door was opened in 1976 when they were able to move to the Highland town of Goroka . Here a church was established and a Bible College begun. By 1980 numerous churches were established throughout the Highlands, and 200 people attended the first National Conference in 1982. By 1985 the church had grown rapidly to over 7000. Revival was quickly spreading!

At the request of the Australian church the UPCI of North America assumed responsibility for the work in PNG and the Carvers became UPCI missionaries under this banner. Leaving Papua New Guinea due to unforseen circumstances in 1987, the Carvers then moved to New Zealand to continue on their missionary work. However, the church in PNG continued to grow, to a stated constituency of 55,000.

The Carvers returned to Papua New Guinea in 2001 for a reunion conference, organised by then missionaries Brian & Esther Henry. Many faces from the early 1970s were still there... a visual testimony that our labours are not in vain in the Lord!

A Large Baptismal Service	Early Sunday School classes	One of many trials - a bogged car

- 19 Jan 2012

• Carver Snr's 2011 4th Qtr Newsletter [more]
• Carver Snr's 2011 3rd Qtr Newsletter [more]
• Richard & Andrea's Dec Newsletter [more]
• Andrea's Family News [more]
• Youth Department comes alive! [more]
• Home Missionary goes to Daru [more]
• Bible School Teacher Training [more]
• Mt. Wilhelm Climb and Crusade [more]
• PNG gets new Missionaries! [more]
• Creation of a Print Room! [more]

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Ongoing request - Uphold our National Leaders, missionaries and Aimers

Ongoing request - Pray for churches in outlying islands and areas of the country.

Need 1 - School fees are needed for the two children of our AIMER Richard and Andrea Carver.
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Need 2 - PNG needs your help to continue the Bible School development. Click here to see how you can be a part of this exciting development program.

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