Have We Done Any Good, Here?

 Asking myself a habitual question:

Those of you who know me have heard me ask the question, "Have we done any good here?" I'll often pose the question at the end of a counseling session or a discussion/decision-making meeting. Most of the time I ask it to myself as much or more than to others.

Two things prompt me to ask the question this morning. 

1. Kathy and I are about two weeks away from ending a wonderful and unexpected season of our life. Since January of 2017 it has been our privilege to work with a wonderful group of people at Pacific Islands University. I'll tell you more in a minute, but, for now, know PIU is a Christian Liberal Studies and Bible college, reaching out to the People of Micronesia (little islands).
2. Pacific Islanders, and Pacific Islands people seen as a group, have caught my eye in the news recently.

One of the core values of PIU is transformation. We thoroughly believe in the life-changing force of the Good News of Jesus Christ. We have seen Gospel-motivated love melt hard hearts. In my short time here I have seen the intellectual, spiritual, motivational change take place in some of the young lives it has been my privilege to pour myself into. I come from an individualistic Western Culture. Most of my ancestors, just a few generations back, were hard-working farmers. I spent most of my adult life ministering in a little papermill town in a rural region of Virginia. Almost all of the people in the church where I ministered owned guns, many of them hunt with those guns. I've eaten hundreds of pounds of the venison they killed. Maybe they didn't pull themselves up by their own bootstraps, but their stories are filled with accounts of taking advantage of opportunities--sometimes slim--to improve their lot. Many built, with their own hands and those of family and neighbors, their own houses. They fixed their own cars and trucks. They made do, did without, and almost universally, made a better life for their kids and grandkids.

For the last four years I've worked among people who are much more communally minded. I've gotten upset, even angry, when I've seen young people full of promise held back by family--and it seems everybody is family--because the cultural norm is that one person, especially a young person, shouldn't get too far ahead of anyone else. I've also marveled at the safety net that these carefully respected relationships provide. I haven't lost my respect and admiration for the world I came from, and to which I will soon return, but I have a new and growing respect for the cultures I've been in for this season of life--a way of living that asks more, "What is good/right for us?" over merely, "What is best for me?"

Yesterday, I read a sad news story, that illustrates the challenges facing so many of the people of these tiny islands. Joe Enlet, a graduate of PIU, posted a link to the story of Iremamber Sykap, a young Chuukese man who spent most of his life in Hawaii. It is the same story that is tearing at the fabric of American life in Minneapolis, Chicago, and Kenosha, to name just a few examples. The only difference is instead of a young black man being shot in an encounter with police, it is a young brown man. Then today, I saw a photo-op announcement on the news. Some people, desperately in need of taking the critical thinking class at PIU, blame Asians, as a group, and Pacific Islanders for the COVID-19 pandemic. The irony runs almost as deep as the tragedy. If you look at a list of places in the world that are COVID-free you'll find nations like Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, and the Republic of Marshall Islands on the list. Yet, it is true, that in many places where Micronesians live in diaspora their infection rate is higher, often far higher, than their neighbors. Dig a bit though and you find explanations that bear an uncanny resemblance to the life stories of my Virginia neighbors. These are folk who are trying to make a better life, in particular, a better for their children and grandchildren, in the face of daunting odds. As is the case with my ancestors, sometimes that journey to the next step up ain't pretty. My loyalty to the institution I'm privileged to work with, causes me to see a deeper irony. If that government task force that is being formed, would simply give PIU their coffee and doughnut budget, we'd actually do something. I know that because we are already doing something.

You can get all the facts, figures, and results of studies you want and more. This morning I'm just speaking as a guy who unexpectedly found himself in a situation where he had an opportunity to make a difference, and who, by God's grace, has endeavored to do so. I'm also a guy who believes in this institution, PIU, and desires for it to prosper after I leave. I desire that, because I firmly believe that the prosperity of this tiny university, that serves the people of Micronesia is good for the people of Micronesia, the world, and the work of Christ. Specifically, here are some things I'd like to say. Really, what follows are bullet-points for further conversation:

• Micronesia is in great need of a new generation of capable leaders. Historically, geographically, culturally, PIU is in the right place to help fill that gap. Yes, this school has made mistakes in the past (Find me any person or institution who is actually doing something that hasn't made mistakes.). Let's get over it and get past it. Let's work together to solve the problems.
• Micronesia is rapidly changing. Half of Micronesians don't live in Micronesia. Every young person in Micronesia, and many who aren't so young, are connected to the world by cellphone. The world of the West and East with all our issues is at the fingertips of these people who don't have the depth of coping mechanisms we have developled in the First World.  Attempts to preserve a way of life that is no longer viable is futile, and not what needs to happen. There are marvelous aspects of the varied Micronesian cultures that ought to be preserved. But the young people PIU are working with live in and will live in a world vastly different than that of their parents and grandparents. 
  Those who say PIU isn't what it used to be, should thank the Lord. No, we aren't. We are helping young adults in the Twenty-first-Century, learn how to be Godly, productive citizens of this rapidly changing world. We do that by holding to that which is changeless.
  
• Micronesia has been evangelized. Those who think that means that the need for further missionary activity is no more, need to hang out here for a while. The great commission includes more than evangelism, though clearly, that is foundational. 
  Micronesia has a need for a new generation of trained leaders. 
  Opportunities in the Micronesian Diaspora are great.
  Because of their mobility, and other assets, Micronesians could become a force for missionary expansion into unreached and under-reached areas of the world.

As I read the sad story of  Iremamber, I thought of a graduate of ours who lived and worked in Hawaii for a time. She reached out to at-risk youngsters in the Micronesian community, youngsters like Iremamber was, just a few years ago. I thought of another of our graduates who is working with people struggling with drug addiction in an area of the US Mainland where a significant community of Micronesians live. I thought about a couple of other graduates who are involved in crisis counseling with people in the court system, here on Guam. I thought of some of the students I'm privileged to work with every day, students from Chuuk, Yap, Palau, the Marshalls, and various Micronesian communities in diaspora. These young people give me hope. To produce another tragedy like the one that took place in Hawaii is easy. Just do nothing. To make a difference takes a lot of us working together, working hard.

So, have we done any good, here. I believe we have, we are, and by God's grace, PIU will continue to do so. The folk who will remain after I'm gone would love to hear from you. Write me and I'll pass your information along, hmerrell@piu.edu, after 5/5, covbchm@gmail.com.

Shingles, Porch Roofs, etc.

 Some of you are aware that I, Howard, have been diagnosed to have shingles. Shingles is a disease that comes from a "resurfacing' of the varicella-zoster virus (vzv), the virus that causes chickenpox. When one gets over chickenpox the virus doesn't go away. It remains in one's body. In some people, mostly older folk, the virus will cause an episode of shingles. 

Normally a shingles outbreak is extremely painful.

I have been working on a construction project, here at PIU. On May 1, we will dedicate the main building on the PIU campus in honor of my friend and predecessor, Dr. David Owen. You can read/hear more here. We have been working to get as much of the refurbishing of the building done as possible before then. I've been rebuilding five "porch roofs" over the entrances on the front of the building.

I pretty consistently wear safety glasses on such projects, but my adherence to this safety rule is not perfect, and the glasses don't do a complete job of keeping sawdust, etc. out, so when my left eye became irritated I figured it was from some crud in my eye. Further irritation, led me to believe I had an inflamed tear duct or some such. The sores that appeared around the eye concerned me enough that I went to an urgent care. The nurse-practitioner said almost immediately, "I think you have shingles." An ophthalmologist confirmed the diagnosis. He put me on an anti-viral med. 

The good news--I've known enough people who have had shingles that I can say very good news--is that I have been mostly pain-free. When I woke up this morning the lesions were not even particularly tender when I touched them. I'm thankful. I know the course of this disease is not predictable, so I ask for continued prayer.

On a more important note, please pray for our finishing-up. The events of May1, graduation, and the dedication will be my last official presidential duties. We fly back to Virginia on May 5. We want to leave things in as good an order as possible. We want to be a blessing. The "Good Byes" have already begun. Kathy has a long list of things to get done before we leave.

Under the heading of "Nothing is ever as easy as it should be." our Board has been working hard to have my successor in place. They are working through complications as I write. Please pray for them.

If you scroll down on this blog, you will find Kathy and my latest newsletter. If you would like a copy of the "Tide's Currents," PIU's quarterly newsletter, write me at hmerrell@piu.edu, and I'll send you one. If you want a printed copy, be sure to include your mailing address.

(BTW, after May 5, we'll be using our old email addresses, Howard - covbchm@gmail.com, and Kathy - kmusiq@gmail.com. These addresses work now. Our postal address in Covington is 2106 S Carpenter Drive, Covington VA 24426. We'll let you know our phone number as soon as we get one.)

Thanks for partnering with us in this adventure.

H&K

MARCH 2021 NEWSLETTER

 

Dear Partner,

One way or another, most of you can identify with the question, “What do we do now?”

Career-wise, Kathy and I haven’t had to ask that question as often as most of you. When we married in 1972, the answer was, “We move to Pennsylvania so Howard can finish school.” In the Spring of 1973, we replied, “We’ll take our two chairs (all the furniture we owned) and move to Virginia to pastor the Covington Bible Church.” That wonderful ministry took up most of our lives. We left fulltime pastoral ministry in the Spring of 2015, and were settling into a semi-retirement—social security, short-term missions, and various ministry opportunities—when the question was put to us with more urgency.

It’s been over four years, so I’ll remind you. We already had the tickets for our second four-month ministry in Palau, when former President of PIU, Dave Owen called. He was sick. We found out later it was cancer. Would we come to Guam instead of Palau, and fill-in? Though we have visited the states at least yearly for the past four years, 172 Kinney’s Road, Mangilao, Guam--the PIU campus--has been our home. We have led, fundraised, taught, dealt with thousands of details, and sought to pour our lives into the young lives that make up the student body of PIU. We “pastored” the school through the traumatic first months when we didn’t know whether Dave and Joyce would return, when we watched a beloved teacher die here on Guam, when we dealt with the departure of key staff, and the Administration and Board asked whether PIU could survive. We rolled up our sleeves and led and encouraged the dedicated staff that remained in doing the self-study and other work needed to accomplish the reaffirmation of our accreditation. Tough decisions had to be made and the results dealt with. In partnership with colleagues in Texas we began an online delivery of courses, with the goal of placing teachers with a Biblical worldview in public school classrooms. Further, our hope was/is that this would lead to an education major, that could help transform schools in Micronesia. Like all new ventures, this demanded more than we imagined. Then came the Novel Coronavirus.

Like when this latest phase of our ministry started, we already have our tickets for May 5. Four + years ago, we hit the ground running and haven’t stopped yet.

The paragraph above describes the big things. In addition, Kathy has taught Intro to Music, served as campus hostess, part-time receptionist, mentored women students, counselled and loved on people, kept house, and so much more. In the absence of a full-time maintenance director, I have taken on various projects, repairs, and improvements. I’ve preached on average a couple of times per month. I’ve taught two different Theology classes, New Testament Survey, and Critical Thinking—on average, one class per semester. Kathy has helped with music in our Guam church, and at least one other church. Both of us were privileged to return to Palau on two occasions, and I have been to the Republic of Marshall Islands, two of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia—Pohnpei, and Chuuk. In addition, I visited various places in the USA on behalf of the school, and we were given a brief but wonderful trip to the Philippines.

Our last days on Guam are filled with getting things ready for the next President—still unknown—finishing the classes we are teaching, overseeing (and doing) some major--for us--campus improvements, while continuing to deal with the day-to-day demands of service in a small school. Oh, and we have to pack our suitcases.

So, I come back to that question, “What do we do, now?”

The short answer is--on May 5 we fly back to Virginia. We’ll move back into our home in Covington. The longer answer is--there are some things we know and others that aren’t clear yet. For now, I’ll just say--for the first few months we’ll be spending some significant time decompressing. We’ll get moved back in, get a car, spend time with family, etc. We also hope to see as many of you as possible. We’ll tell you more in the future. We’ll be involved in ministry, just not as intensely as the past few years. We plan to maintain a relationship with Liebenzell Mission USA, though we don’t know exactly what that will look like. I hope to take preaching opportunities that come up. I have no doubt Kathy will occupy herself productively. As I say, we’ll keep you posted.

For most of my ministry, I have served on the sending/supporting side of missions. For the past six

years, Kathy and I have been on the other side of the equation. We have been regularly awed and consistently grateful for your faithfulness and generosity. Our account with LMUSA has remained healthy. Between our Social Security, the support you have given, and the reduced-cost housing we have enjoyed on campus, we have been well cared for. Thank you.

Our mission policy is that retiring missionaries, if their account has the funds (and ours does) continue to receive their “salary” for three months after they return. Since we are not leaving the mission, but plan to undertake some part-time or periodic ministry with LMUSA, we want to keep our fund open. The mission will pay us our full salary May through July. After that our account will fund air fare and other expenses for mission related ministry. We had accumulated enough frequent flyer miles that our tickets on May 5 are free.

Since we will no longer be active missionaries--putting my old, pastoral, missionary-sender hat on for a moment—it wouldn’t be good stewardship for you to continue to support us. Sometime in the near future, you should stop supporting us with your gifts. I won’t presume to tell you what to do, but I will share a suggestion. LMUSA has a fund labeled PIU. Visit https://www.liebenzellmission.org/ for more information. There are also several other PIU personnel who are supported by giving through LMUSA. The website will give you information concerning these opportunities and on how to contact the mission. There is also a capital fundraising project I started, in honor of my friend and predecessor, Dave Owen. See here. If you are interested and need our help, let us know. Kathy and I continue to stand behind the work of PIU and LMUSA. Perhaps the Lord will guide you to pursue one of those options. Whatever choice you make, Kathy and I want to make sure you know how grateful we are for your investment in our lives, the future of Micronesia, and the ministry of Pacific Islands University. Funds that remain in our fund will continue to be there for expenses in regard to any future ministries we would undertake with LMUSA. Exactly what that would be, we don’t know, but we have already begun some discussions.

I know this is long, but I shouldn’t finish without sharing some specific reasons to praise and some requests for prayer.

Praise:

·         One of our projects at PIU has been the promotion of the Dr. Dave Owen Memorial Fund. Dave was my predecessor. He is with the Lord, now. (That’s his wife, Joyce, with Kathy in one of the pictures above.) While COVID put a stop to active fundraising, DDOMF has achieved more than 25% of its goal. We have been able to use those funds to repair and paint the roof, paint the exterior of the building, and engage in other improvements (ongoing). Soon the Pavilion, a student gathering place, will have a new coat of paint. (see https://piuddomf.blogspot.com/)

·         Along the same line, on Graduation Weekend, May 1, we will have a ceremony to name PIU’s main building--the Ezra 7:10 building--in Dave’s honor.

·        

We are thankful that we have been able to spend all this semester in a real classroom. We expect to finish the semester that way.

·         As we look back over this venture we are extremely grateful for the great group of partners who pray for and support us.

·         With the help of family and friends, we were able to purchase a good used truck that is waiting for us in Covington.

·         We have been greatly encouraged and supported by both our Guam church and CBC in Covington.

·         Having recently celebrated HM’s 71^st Birthday we don’t take our good health for granted. Thank you Lord.

Prayer Requests:

·         We want to finish well.

·         We are leaving behind a number of mentoring relationships. We praise the Lord and desire that others will pick up these opportunities.

·         The classes Howard has taught can easily be covered other instructors. Not so, the music class Kathy taught. Pray for wisdom for a replacement.

·         It seems that recently many in our circle of friends and colleagues have been
faced with health issues. Some have
died. Pray for help, healing, and comfort.

·         We will leave PIU with a mix of emotions. We will miss folk here. We
look forward to being nearer family and friends on the mainland.

·         We need wisdom as we move on to what is next.

Grateful for the privilege of serving,

Howard & Kathy

News from the Guam Merrells, a new semester

 

It is a big day for the Guam Merrells. Yesterday, Monday, 1/18, was our first day of freedom from quarantine.  When we arrived back on the island, the evening of the fourth, we were taken by bus to the quarantine facility. You would think we were dignitaries. Not only were we on our way to the island’s most expensive hotel, but our little caravan was accompanied by police--sirens, lights, and all. Intersections were blocked. It was a bit of overkill. On the sixth day, we were tested. The result was negative, so we went home, to serve another week of house arrest. It’s not something I want to repeat. It was infinitely more bearable because I was with Kathy. Still, like 2020, I’m glad I’m done with that. Back to today, though. While many folk in other places are still seeing COVID-19 numbers worsen, things are better, here on Guam. Yesterday, we went to PCOR2 (Pandemic Condition of Readiness) 1 is the worst, 4 is best. The Governor also issued an Executive order that in-person instruction could begin yesterday. Most of our classes are either Tues. & Thur. or Wed. & Fri. So for the first time since early March, we’ll be meeting with students in the classroom. For our highly relational Micronesian students and old-school teachers like Kathy and me, that is a welcome relief. The start of a semester in our little school is always a big deal. This one is more than most. While Kathy and I were gone or quarantined, other staff were busy getting ready—temperature-check/sanitation stations, social-distancing markings, training sessions, mitigation plans to be filed, etc. plus all the usual. In spite of the work-load, we are glad for this day to arrive. For Kathy and me, this day has another significance. We face it with a mix of emotions. This is the last semester that we will serve on the ground here at PIU. I usually try to be creative and clever with my newsletter writing. This one is about as plain as it can be. Forgive me, but it is all time will allow. The plainness is in no way an indication of our lack of appreciation for you. It doesn’t seem possible, but, thanks to you, we have been serving at PIU four years now. Thank you! I will brighten up this, otherwise plain piece, with a picture.   It is a reminder of a wonderful time we had over Christmas. Our whole family gathered at our elder son’s house in Rock Hill South Carolina. In the very front is Lucy, the granddog, with our youngest grandchild Ava (Chad’s). Left to right are: Chad & Tanisha, Harrison & Carrington Haley (Chad’s & the first married couple in that generation, they live in Utah) Kendal and Christopher (both Chad’s, Christopher lives in Louisiana) Kira (Chris’s) Me & Kathy, Silas (Chris’s), Madeline (Chad’s, Maddy is newly engaged. She and Sam are students a couple of hours from here, in Greenville SC), and Nancy & Chris (The Chris Merrells live in College Station Texas.) Two hemispheres, four states & a territory. I’m glad to say we are united not only as a family, in the usual sense, but as people who love and serve the Lord. Please join us in prayer and praise. Praise the Lord for this new semester, our last one here. We still have some students who are tuning in via Zoom, etc. Pray for all the machinery to work well. Thank the Lord for those who have spent many hours getting it set up. Switching from all online to mostly in-person is more trouble than one would think. While things are improving on Guam, it looks like it will be a while before we see significant change in most of Micronesia. I read that Palau may be one of the first nations in the world to achieve total vaccination. FSM with its many remote islands presents a greater challenge. The nations of Micronesia have kept COVID out by shutting down their borders. The combination of difficult access to healthcare and the severity of COVID-19, has rightly made the islanders afraid. Pray that they can transition to a post-COVID mode. (We all desire that, don’t we?) Making this transition is very important for PIU’s ongoing operation. On a personal note, I’ve never been to Yap, one of the states of the Federated States of Micronesia. I’d like to go there, to promote PIU before I move back to Virginia. I can’t say “what, why, or who?” but the last three weeks or so were a hard time of wrestling with some administrative difficulties. By God’s grace, I’m (I believe we’re) in a better place. Pray that I will support the fine people that are PIU with good leadership on this last lap of this assignment. Pray for our Board as they continue the search for my replacement. Kathy is teaching Introduction to Music, and I’m teaching Pastoral Leadership this semester. The Dr. David Owen Memorial Fund, a capital fund campaign stalled because of COVID. The fund did have enough success that we are now having much-needed roof repair done. I hope your Christmas was a good one. Ours was wonderful. We spent about three weeks in the mainland. Eight days in the middle of that at our son’s home in South Carolina.  All our family gathered there. It was a great time for the patriarch and his young wife. A new colleague observed that our school is a valuable resource for all of Micronesia. That’s a geographic region the same size as the Continental United States. The fewer than half-a-million who live there are matched by a diaspora that may be as big as the homeland, in terms of population. That is the community we serve. There is only one other accredited Christian College/University in this region, and the other school doesn’t focus on Micronesians. Guam is called, “The end of the spear.” We are the Western-most USA land. Our island has great strategic military importance. Likewise, PIU is in this strategic place as an outpost for training a new generation of leaders. Pray that this new semester will be the beginning of a new, good phase. Thank you, for partnering with us so we could be here. By His Grace, K & H

News from the Guam Merrells, Thanksgiving Eve

 

Dear Partner,

This morning (Tuesday 11/24) I felt my chair sway back and forth and watched the computer monitor

sway like I was riding in a car. The 5.3 quake was a reminder that nothing in this world is really solid.

That is especially true with us mortals. In just over a month, we will have been serving at PIU for four years. Last March I informed my colleagues that we would be leaving Guam after the Spring Semester 2021. It was our hope that a new President would be chosen by then. The Board of Trustees has extended an offer to two fine candidates. Both have concluded, after prayer and consulting with loved ones that PIU was not the place for them to serve, at this time. Nevertheless, over the course of this tumultuous year, we have grown more sure that it is time for us to step out of this “temporary” role.

Right now our plans are to make a visit to Virginia and South Carolina over Christmas. Our plans could change, but we plan to fly home December 11, spend Christmas with all our family at Chad & Tanisha’s house, and return to Guam on January 4. We’ll quarantine in a hotel, then in our apartment. We’ll move back into 2106 S Carpenter in May. Already, our hearts feel like the shifting earth I felt this morning.

People ask us, “What’s next?” We don’t really know. We know we’ll need to do some decompressing. I have a project planned, then we hope to travel out West and see some sights we’ve never seen and some people we haven’t seen for a while. We desire to remain useful in the Lord’s work.

We greatly and humbly appreciate the support that you have shown us. We never planned to be here in this role, yet the Lord led us a step at a time. We’ll ask the mission to send you the standard communication they send to supporters of “retiring” missionaries. I guess we are re-retirees! We have some ideas about ways you can continue to invest in the work of PIU. If you ask, we’ll share.

Please join us in praise and prayer:

·         We can’t say much, but I was recently privileged to lead one of our students to the Lord. Kathy has regular opportunities for mentoring the young women here. The wife of a newly married staff couple (a PIU grad) and Kathy are good friends. We praise the Lord for opportunities to share what we have with them.  We will both be teaching a class in the Spring Semester.

·         Our little campus community has, thus far, been spared from Covid-19.

·         I hurt my finger while taking the top off of a septic tank. It looked ugly at first, but it is healing nicely.

·         Pray for the Board as they search for the next President.

·         Since it looks like we’ll finish the academic year without a new President the need for making decisions, some hard, has intensified.

·         Some of our students have been “stuck” on Guam since March. Most of that group haven’t been home this year. Mostly our students stay on our little 3.5-acre campus. Pray that good things will happen here, as well as in the lives of those whom we only see online.

·         Pray that we will finish well and that we’ll start well on whatever is next.

We thank the Lord for you.

H&K

***********************

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” (James 1:17, ESV)

What's Going on at PIU:

About once every three months we are supposed to publish a newsletter. We call it the Tide's Currents. Covid and other assorted clogs in the plumbing--some really do have to do with plumbing--have made us way late with this one. For the same reasons it is a "mini" version. Still it gives an idea what's going on here, and with the Guam Merrells. Enjoy. Oh, hey, there is a picture in the TC of some students playing volleyball in the rain. Here is a bigger version of the photo. Click HERE to read the latest Tide's Currents.

Click HERE to read this mini Tide's Currents. > to read the September Tide's Currents (mini edition).

A Celebration, PCOR 1, Praises and Prayer Requests from the Guam Merrells, 8/15/2020

 I know that PCOR is a strange term to most of you. It is a very important term to residents of Guam. Let me explain.

COR stands for condition of readiness.