Part 2 of 2 from Lembena Team in Papua New Guinea

Micah and Laura Myers minister among the Lembena people of Papua New Guinea. “Shortly after Piwa's court, we got to experience the Lembena court/justice system firsthand when a villager brought an accusation against us.

“Early one morning, we were told that our dog had killed another villager’s cassowary bird. [The Lembena] raise cassowaries in large cages and use them for bride prices or sell them for large amounts of money. I went to see, and sure enough, the giant bird was dead, and its head had been eaten completely by a dog. When I got there, they were demanding that we pay hundreds of kina to compensate them for their loss. Thankfully, a friend of mine in the village showed up and pulled me aside. He told me that nobody saw it happen and [that] they were only accusing us as the missionaries because we have money. I went back to the house and checked our security camera and saw that our dog had slept all night on our porch and hadn't left. Even with this evidence and the fact that no one saw it happen, the family still wanted us to pay. We met with the village leaders under our house (picture above) to decide what to do. We told them that, if we are in the wrong, we want to make it right, but we also don't want to end up paying for every pig, chicken or animal that is killed in the village by a dog. This is when Piwa stepped in and came to the rescue. He said that because he helps take care of my dog and hunts with it, he would take responsibility for it and [that] if they demand payment for what happened, he would pay it. I tried to argue and say that we wanted to help, but he refused. He said that if he took responsibility, then they would drop the case because they know they have no right to accuse and only are accusing us because we are the missionaries. It was humbling to have him take on this hardship for our sake, and he was correct that the case was dropped as soon as he stepped in. Though not the justice we are used to, it was amazing to learn areas of their culture that can be used as a bridge for the truth of the gospel. The story we will one day share tells of a man who took on injustice for the sake of peace. Even though He was innocent, He was accused so that others could be free. Be praying for Piwa and his family, that they will listen to our message when it comes time to share it and that he will believe.”