A match arranged in heaven

By TONY PALME
TEACHER Kenneth Mosek, 29, has been asking God in prayer in the past four years to pick a good wife for him.
Kenneth promised himself that he would marry by the age of 30. But to which girl, he had no clue. He never had any girlfriends although many had approached him.
“I have never wanted to go out looking for a woman. She has to come to my house and both of us have to confirm that it is God’s will. I had to pray and wait for God to bring to me my lost rib. I started praying at the end of 2017 when I was in my third year at the University of Goroka.
“In 2018 when I was in my final year, I also prayed to God to show me which province and school I should go to teach. God told me Jiwaka.”
Two months ago, he met public servant Julie Walep who by chance had been sent on a duty tour by her bosses in Port Moresby to her village in Jiwaka where Kenneth is teaching and staying.
On Saturday, Aug 14, family members, friends and relatives of Kenneth from Enga and Julie witnessed their engagement at Julie’s village of Bunum Wo in the North Waghi district. They had never met before.
Kenneth remembers that in 2019, he stayed at home for seven weeks in Term One waiting for a school to offer him a position. One day, one of his friends texted him the number for Betty Wena, the principal of Waghi Valley Secondary School.
“When I heard the name Waghi Valley, I was excited so I texted Wena right away. She replied immediately, telling me to hand deliver my application the next day.

“ This engagement is an indication of the confidence Kenneth and Julie have towards each other.”

“I was overwhelmed with joy and couldn’t sleep that night. I did not inform my family members or pastor about my move. I have never been to Banz before. I never knew the exact location of Waghi Valley Secondary School.”
The school rented him a home belonging to Julie’s parents. Kenneth never knew it but he was sleeping in Julie’s room.
Julie works with the PNGNID office in Port Moresby but was sent to Jiwaka on a six-month placement at the NID office in Banz.
Julie had never met Kenneth although she heard that a young male teacher was living at her home with her mother and siblings.
They met for the first time recently in town when she was with her siblings. A quick greeting and that was it. Or so everyone thought.
For Kenneth and Julie, things clicked straightaway. They are meant for each other and God wants them to share their lives together. They too agree.
Julie’s family and relatives from Bunum Wo Dalamb clan, members of the Nazarene Church, Kenneth’s family from Wabag and fellow teachers from Waghi Valley witnessed their engagement in church.
Church of the Nazarene Jiwaka North District Superintendent Rev Philip Nolie encouraged them to be faithful to each other.
“This engagement is an indication of the confidence Kenneth and Julie have towards each other.”
Julie had completed her studies at the International Training Institute before joining the PNGNID. She lived in Port Moresby for six years.
Julie, like Kenneth, had been brought up in a disciplined family set-up, with strong connection to the church.
Kenneth is the third eldest in a family of seven from the Kii clan of the Yanarin tribe near Wabag town.
He had completed Elementary to Grade 6 at Sari Primary School. In 2008, when he was in Grade Six, Kenneth gave his life to God and was baptised into the Christian Life Church.
He completed grades 7 and 8 at the Yai Primary School, grades 9 and 10 at Kopen Secondary School, and 11 and12 at the Sir Tei Abal Secondary School, before he was offered a place at the University of Goroka in 2015.
His two elder brothers and a younger brother are working in Port Moresby. The youngest brother is in Grade 12 at Porgera Secondary School. The two sisters are already married.
Julie, 25, plans to ask her bosses in Port Moresby to allow her to work permanently at the PNGNID office in Jiwaka where she can be close to Kenneth.
For Kenneth, God brought Eve to Adam, and Rebecca to Isaac. Likewise, God has also brought Julie to him.
Proverbs 19:14: “A man can inherit a house and money from his parents, but only the Lord can give him a sensible wife.”