Solomon Islands Ministries
NEWSLETTER December 2017 Volume 1, Issue 1
Arrival After months of anticipation and preparation, Majors Robert and Vanessa Evans from the Australia Southern Territory landed in the Solomon Islands on Wednesday, 13th December to a warm and enthusiastic welcome from CSM Wency Ramo’oroa and members of the Honiara congregation. Along with the Honiara Corps welcome party was Pastor Mary Vasula from the Honiara CRC church to greet the incoming Salvation Army Officers as a demonstration of support from the local churches. The welcome party then moved to a garden rotunda adjacent to the airport car park where Wency spoke some words of
welcome to the Evans’, giving thanks to God for their arrival. A couple of young ladies from the congregation then presented some beautiful floral leis before the congregation sang a moving song of welcome. Robert and Vanessa greeted the congregation, expressing their excitement about being appointed as the Officers in Charge of Solomon Islands and acknowledged God’s hand in the journey so far. Finally, the Home League Secretary Elizabeth Tolilalo offered a prayer of thanksgiving before Robert and Vanessa were driven to their new Quarters.
Inside this issue:
Visit to Port Moresby Within 24 hours of arriving in Honiara, Majors Robert and Vanessa Evans flew out to Port Moresby to meet the Territorial team at The Salvation Army Papua New Guinea THQ. The Territorial Commander Colonel Kelvin Alley introduced the Evans’ to the cabinet and key personnel to orientate them with policies and procedures of the PNG Territory. After their
orientation, Robert and Vanessa joined with the THQ staff for their Christmas lunch where they were formally welcomed to the Territory.
Networking
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Fellowship Tea
2
Facebook Presence
2
Mechanical Repairs
3
Christmas Eve
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A Personal Note
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Special points of interest: Before returning to Solomon Islands, after their three day visit to PNG, the T.C. took Robert and Vanessa to the Bamona War Cemetery to visit the graves where the Australian soldiers killed along the Kakoka Track are buried. This was truly a sacred and moving occasion walking among the plaques honouring the fallen soldiers.
New Officers in Charge arrive in Honiara 22 attend Fellowship Meal to welcome Officers Find us on Facebook! Need for replacement vehicles
Networking One of the priorities for Majors Robert and Vanessa is to build strong networks in Honiara to help support the growing ministry of The Salvation Army and to collaborate with other churches and NGO’s who are well established in the Solomon Islands.
community development work. His working knowledge of The Salvation Army and current role with a major NGO will provide some value connections for the
They were off to a good start this week reconnecting with a former Salvation Army Officer colleague Daryl Crowden, who is now the acting National Director of World Vision in Solomon Islands while they recruit a permanent candidate for this position.
Solomon Islands Ministries to enable The Salvation Army to work alongside key players during times of disaster. Other networking opportunities during the same week included connecting with a local builder and business man who has provided significant support for the Honiara Corps over the past few years. Martin Wynne is a mission-minded Australian expat who has used his skills and staff to serve a number of Christian ministries in the Solomon Islands, including The Salvation Army.
Daryl has extensive experience in international disaster relief and
Fellowship Tea On Wednesday, 20th December some of the Honiara congregation who hadn’t returned to their home villages for Christmas gathered at the Quarters for a fellowship tea. The evening started with enthusiastic worship that lived up to their reputation of beautiful singing. After a time of prayer, Majors Robert and Vanessa shared a bit of their background and journey that brought them to Solomon Islands. Robert then shared a brief word from Scripture, quoting from Paul’s letter to the Philippians, thanking God for their partnership in the gospel.
A meal was then enjoyed by all over a time of getting to know each other. The Honiara Corps had waited a long time for this opportunity to meet their new leaders.
“I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now ” (Philippians 1:4-5)
Facebook Presence In a digital age, effective communication is critical! One successful way to reach a wide and diverse audience is through the use of social media. To this end, two Facebook profiles have been created to get the word out about the Solomon Islands Ministries to two primary audiences. First, a Facebook page called ‘The Salvation Army Solomon Islands Ministries’ has been set up with the
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purpose of reaching supporters with stories, new mission and ministry initiatives, networking and partnerships, along with opportunities to provide prayer and financial support. The second is a Facebook group called ‘Honiara Corps’ (linked to the Solomon Islands Ministries page) that is aimed at communicating with the Honiara congregation relevant and up-to-date
information about Corps programs and activities. You can like and follow the Solomon Islands Ministries Facebook page through the link below...
https://www.facebook.com/ TSASolomonIslandsMinistries/
Solomon Islands Ministries
Mechanical Repairs The Salvation Army Solomon Islands Ministries is blessed to own two vehicles that are essential to its ministry in Honiara. Unfortunately, these vehicles are aging and showing some serious signs of wear and tear due to the harsh road conditions in Honiara. Majors Robert and Vanessa were confronted with these conditions on their first night being driven through a gauntlet of crater sized potholes when they were picked up from the airport after a night of heavy rain. Not only have two tyres on the Nissan mini bus and the spare tyre on the Toyota Prado had to be replaced this
month, but a number of other mechanical concerns are currently being investigated for both vehicles. Plans need to be made now for replacement, as ongoing repair costs on old vehicles is very expensive and is becoming a drain on the budget!
Please feel free to share among your networks to see what offers of assistance may emerge. Thank you
This is where this newsletter becomes much more than an avenue for just sharing stories. It also becomes a way of reaching out among supporters and external networks for the possibility of finding funding or a generous donation to support this need.
Christmas Eve A larger than expected crowd (given the holiday period) turned out on Christmas Eve to welcome and greet Majors Robert & Vanessa Evans at their first Sunday service in Honiara. It was a lively time of worship and celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Once again, the beautiful singing of the local congregation demonstrated a passionate heart for worship! Major Robert Evans shared a Bible message from John 1:14 highlighting the significance of the Incarnation at Christmas. He emphasized that the implications of “The Word became flesh
Volume 1, Issue 1
and made His dwelling among us” for today means that God is with us, God identifies with us, and God interacts with us. He concluded with the challenge, “Those of us who bear the name of Christ have given flesh to His Word once again so it continues
sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God…no longer conforming to the standard of this world, but being transformed by the renewing of our minds”” (Rom 1:1-2). The service was then followed by a
“The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.” (John 1:14)
to dwell among us in the way Christians live their lives giving witness to Jesus Christ!! Christmas is truly celebrated when God’s people “offer themselves as a living
fellowship Christmas lunch, which demonstrated the generous hospitality of the congregation members as each brought an abundance of food to share.
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Solomon Islands Ministries PO Box 323 Honiara Solomon Islands Phone: (677) 30344 Fax: (677) 30344
Officially launched on the 4th November 2011, The Salvation Army Solomon Islands Ministries is a mission outreach of the Papua New Guinea Territory. With an established presence in the capital Honiara on Gaudalcanal and an emerging presence in North Malaita, the Holy Spirit is opening up new ministry opportunities for The Salvation Army throughout the Solomon Islands. Building upon the vision of the pioneering Officers and subsequent leaders, we intend to fully explore these new opportunities and will raise up indigenous leaders to advance the kingdom of God in the Solomon Islands.
Mobile: (677) 749 4524 Email: sarmy.solomons@gmail.com Website: www.png.salvationarmy.org
A Personal Note... As Vanessa and I take up our new appointment as the Officers in charge of the Solomon Islands, we want to begin by acknowledging the exceptional leadership of our predecessors Majors Malcolm & Laurel Herring and interim leader CSM Wency Ramo’oroa. New Zealand Officers Malcolm and Laurel served the Honiara congregation faithfully from August 2015 to December 2016, with Malcolm returning in April 2017 for a further three months. They led many to Christ, enrolled soldiers and appointed leaders to carry the mission of The Salvation Army in Solomon Islands. At the end of Malcolm’s second stint, 15 soldiers were enrolled in North Malaita, a neighbouring island, expanding The Salvation Army presence beyond Honiara with the commencement a new Salvation Army fellowship in this province.
Corps Sergeant Major Wency Ramo’oroa picked up the mantle of leadership as interim leader while they awaited our arrival. For six months Wency carried out the responsibilities of an Officer with distinction and demonstrated the strong will of the Honiara Corps to see the mission and ministry of The Salvation Army succeed and continue to grow throughout the Solomon Islands.
alignment of vision for The Salvation Army Solomon Islands Ministries.
In the first few weeks of this appointment, we have clearly seen the evidence of God at work and can’t help but get excited about the possibilities ahead of us. We have begun networking with community leaders to identify opportunities for future ministries. We have also met with a number of Local Officers in the Honiara Corps to listen to their heart and discern where God might be leading next. Already, some common themes is making that pathway self-evident as we sense an
Yours in Christ,
We can’t wait for the rest of the Corps to return from holidays and launch right into all that next year has to offer. Please continue to pray for us and share this newsletter to others to build a strong supporter base for the Solomon Islands Ministries.
Major Robert Evans