“We’re refurbishing the church and fixing it up and putting lots of time and effort and money into it because we believe that God will supply the souls. That God will bring people and He will open up doors and the time will come that we will have a fellowship here. We will have a church family.”

The work needs to be done patiently and prayers for opportunities are made every day. Although God is guiding the Sherman’s mission work, the cold weather, difficult circumstances, and distance from loved ones are discouraging.

“Sometimes my wife and I are discouraged when we’re here alone. We sometimes feel that we are out here by ourselves. We are tempted to feel like we are not making the impact and no one is really with us and no one is really supporting us. There’s been times we felt like it would be nice to move and join a different type of mission field where there are people who are working together more as a team.”

“I kind of seeing what my weaknesses are. That helps me know that God will help me to work with it. I’m very impatient. I want things to happen when I want it to happen. Living out here I learned that things don’t happen when you want them to happen.”

“One thing that has always given us hope is knowing that we’re doing what God has asked us to do and we’ve had comfort in that.”

“To be a missionary is leaving what you have behind and go somewhere different and getting out of your comfort zone.”

“The coldness of the water, the coldness of the icebergs reminds me of the coldness that can come in the heart when you feel lonely, separated from God. Yet the warmth of God’s love and his people can bring into your life a wonderful connection that will help you not to feel alone.”

“The things that inspire Irene and I are a few different things. God will often provide opportunities, He will open doors, He will actually cause things to happen that give us glimpses of what He’s doing. We’ll start a new study or someone will say something to us that gives us encouragement. We’ll see some fruit with relationships we’re building with kids as well as with people in the community. God will do something to help us see that His work is being accomplished through us and that our faithfulness is pleasing to him.”

The courage and faithfulness Tony and Irene have is contagious. Their determination to fulfill the mission is inspiring. God and His angels comfort them and motivate them to move ahead despite challenges. The faces, the sounds, the people, the landscapes. Besides being so small and completely isolated, Shungnak is still a huge priority for Christ. The Sherman’s example is a beautiful testimony of selflessness to revive the mission. They might be alone but they are never by themselves.]

“Jesus is everything. Jesus is the reason why I’m here. If it wasn’t for him I wouldn’t be able to live here for four years.”

“Jesus for me? He is everything. He’s my friend, He’s my encouragement, He’s my strength, He’s the one I go to when I’m hurt, when I maybe can’t even talk to my own family. He’s the one I can speak to about every problem I have. He’s the one who’s changing me from the inside out.”