Paraíso – Babneggi – Paradise

As we pull up to the the dock on Akwadup, one of many islands in the San Blas Island chain off the coast of Panama, someone in our boat says, “Wow! This is beautiful. It’s like paradise.” And from my perspective they could be right.

Akwadup

This island chain is built from coral reefs with amazing sea life, and boasts beautiful sand beaches and lush tropical island vegetation. It seems to contain everything you could need, with an amazing range of beautiful fish, sea urchins, sea cucumbers, conch, lobster, prawns, octopus and just about anything else you can imagine. On the island,  banana and coconut trees are plentiful.

Many would consider this paradise.

But for the San Blas Kuna, these islands represent life – not paradise. It’s the way they live, it’s the way they sustain their families, the source and inspiration for their traditions and lifestyle. But it’s certainly not paradise.

Kuna Dugout

The men of the San Blas Kuna are fishermen primarily, as one would imagine, but it’s the handicraft of the women that is most widely known. Known as Mola, the beautiful tapestries are used as clothing, placemats and other things. The women are also distinguished by their red and yellow-orange scarves, beads adorning their ankles and wrists, and often a gold nose ring. For this culture, it’s the ankles, wrists and nose that show a person’s beauty.

Mola

The Kuna may have a seemingly idyllic lifestyle, but many Kuna live without true peace. For all of their traditions and knowledge, only a few have knowledge of Babneggi or heaven.

The Kuna New Testament is a relatively new thing, but the Kuna already want more! They’re working passionately alongside Wycliffe translators to finish the work of translating the Old Testament. They’ve seen the value of God’s Word in their own lives as they move from fear to peace, from fighting to happiness. And as Claudina, a Kuna woman, put it, “Now I understand so clearly what it will be like to stand before God!”

Kuna Church

The end of the task is near. Let’s finish the task so that more may hear of true paradise – so that more may learn of “Babneggi.”

Top Ten Things Our Moody Radio Friends Never Knew about Wycliffe

For the past few days, we’ve been traveling around Peru with five people from various Moody Radio stations: John Blok, Paul Carter, Derek Cutlip, Brigitte Sylvestre and Angie Walters. Since none of them knew much about Wycliffe before this trip, we decided to check in with them to see what they’ve learned so far. So without further ado…

Top Ten Things Our Moody Radio Friends Never Knew about Wycliffe

1. It takes a really long time to complete a translation, and yet the people are so committed to it!
2. The people doing the work here count their sacrifices as nothing compared to the end result of translated Scripture.
3. The cluster approach is a great way for close dialects to work together on translation.
4. Wycliffe does more than just translate! They work with Scripture use, using things like the Women of the Bible programs, VBS and literacy. Prior to this trip, Wycliffe meant Bible translation, but it is so much more!
5. Wycliffe is partnering with several other ministries for the cause of Christ.
6. The English-speaking translators take pleasure in hearing the Quechua people recount the deeds of the Lord. It never gets old to them.
7. Radio plays such a part in reaching these people in their mother tongues.
8. Within the Americas, Wycliffe is not just working to translate various dialects of Spanish. In fact, they are working with completely unique indigenous languages!
9. Wycliffe’s colleagues have such a deep passion. There have been many teary-eyed and emotional conversations about the translation work here.
10. When a national translator shared about how weary he was, the shocking part was that he had no plans to retire because he wanted to see the translation in his dialect to completion. There is such a high level of dedication to the work.

It’s been exciting to observe our friends as they “get it” for the first time. We’re so thankful for the opportunity to introduce them to this important work!

Rachel Tidwell

Divine Appointments

Divine appointment: a time when God perfectly orchestrates something in ways you could never imagine.

Which pretty much means that divine appointments happen when you least expect them.

Yesterday was our first full day in Lima, Peru, and the plan was to spend the morning relaxing after the long day of travel. However, our in-country host, Ron Ryan, decided it would be a good idea to let us spend the morning visiting with some of the missionaries who work here in Lima.

This ended up being huge for our guests from Moody Radio. They were able to hear about the need for translation, the process behind it, and the work that goes into it. More importantly, though, they witnessed the passion that drives us, straight from the mouths of those God has divinely appointed to do Bible translation. When asked this morning why anyone would leave their comfortable life to enter the often “dangerous” work of translation in remote areas of the world, one missionary friend responded, “I think it would be more dangerous to disobey the call of the Lord, don’t you agree?”

I was so struck by the emotional connection the missionaries feel to their work here. They’re here because they believe God himself appointed them.

After lunch we stopped at CILTA, a linguistics training school for the indigenous peoples of the Americas. We thought our visit would last only 45 minutes, but before we knew it, we’d been there for an hour and a half. Sitting there listening to stories of God’s work in the lives of the peoples of the Americas, we lost track of time. We heard the story of Felix, a man who deciphered God’s divine appointment for him through a dream, leading him to work with a translation team on a dialect of the Quechua languages. We were touched not only by his story, but also by the tears of those who know Felix and have been personally impacted by his dedication to the work of Bible translation. In a world full of schedules, busy calendars and deadlines, it was nice to sit back and forget the clock, recognizing that God had our schedule carefully planned out…and it included an appointment to hear stories of the way Scripture in your heart language can change your life.

Yesterday also confirmed another divine appointment I feel privileged to be a part of: the partnership between Wycliffe Bible Translators and Moody Radio. This is a special time in our organization’s history. We have the opportunity to introduce not only the staff of Moody Radio, but also their listeners across the country, to the important work of Bible translation—and show them how to get involved. Today, as I’ve observed five Moody friends learn new things about our ministry, I’ve been keenly aware of God’s hand in this. Moody’s fall campaign will be focusing on Wycliffe’s work, and I believe God is going to do something big through it. I know He has chosen this time for a reason.

I’m thankful that I serve a God who loves to orchestrate the details of our lives—a God of divine appointments.

-Rachel Tidwell-

Translator Tears up Scripture

By Bob Creson

A few days ago, I blogged about a Rangi translator who had to tear up his most recent draft of the Gospel of Mark to distribute the portions to Christians who were hungry for Scripture in their mother tongue.  You can read about it here.  In Tanzania, 112 languages—more than 90 percent of all languages spoken in that country—do not have adequate Scriptures.  This lack of mother-tongue Scriptures is devastating.

Church services are conducted in Swahili, the national language.  As a result, 1.4 million speakers of nine Bantu languages in the Mara Region of Tanzania struggle to understand biblical teachings.

There are many longtime churchgoers who cannot adequately answer the question, “Who is Jesus?” or even explain biblically why He died for us.

I’ve been thinking about the hunger for God’s Word that led this Rangi translator to tear up his Gospel of Mark.  This story makes me appreciate the urgency of our work in that area through a project called Scripture Access for All: Tanzania and Uganda. The project is part of our larger, worldwide Last Languages Campaign to provide for “the least, the last, and the lost” who still hunger for the Scripture in their language.

As you read this post, Wycliffe missionaries are working with national translators and like-minded organizations in remote areas of Tanzania and Uganda to translate God’s Word for nearly 2 million people through Scripture Access for All. This work is vital.

If God so leads you, you can send a gift online today by clicking here.  I almost never use my blog to ask for support, but I am doing it today.  Your contribution will help ensure that churches grow stronger and more people hear the saving message of Christ.  Thank you for your prayers, and if you can click here and help meet this need, I would be grateful.

Feeding the Spiritually Hungry

By Bob Creson

As you know I recently returned from a trip to the African nations of Tanzania and Uganda. While I was there, I heard a story that spoke to the tremendous hunger the people have for God’s Word.

One of the Rangi translators had to literally tear apart the most recent draft of the Gospel of Mark—page by page—to distribute it to his neighbors and family pleading for this portion of Scripture in their language.

This story is recounted in a letter that you may have received a few days ago. If you did not receive this letter, you can read the rest of this amazing story online by clicking here.

This Rangi translation is part of an important Wycliffe project accomplishing great things for the glory of God in Africa. The project is called Scripture Access for All. If you enjoy hearing about God at work through His Word, you’ll be blessed by this story.

Watch as the Mara work to have the Christmas Story in their own language for the first time!

Missionaries embrace social media

By Mary Tindall

Bringing the Word of God to remote locations is a deeply fulfilling calling, but at times it can be a lonely one. Separated from friends and family by thousands of miles, missionaries can sometimes feel disconnected. Yet hundreds of missionaries at Wycliffe and other mission organizations have found a solution: blogging and social media. Using tools such as Facebook, Twitter and Flickr, they are staying in touch with friends, family and financial partners – and having fun at the same time. Here are some of their stories:

Meet Danny and Ranette Foster, Wycliffe Canada missionaries working in Uganda and Tanzania with sons Josiah and Isaac. Danny is Director of Training and Development for the Uganda-Tanzania Branch of SIL International, and Ranette manages training finances and logistics.

For years, Danny Foster managed a Web site about his family’s work, but he grew frustrated when the site received only 25 to 50 visits in a good month. Earlier this year, Foster began searching for a better way to communicate his family’s work.

“I finally realized what the answer was when I found out my niece had a baby — one week after the fact! I was furious with my family, but they said she had communicated to everyone on Facebook AND Twitter! It was like I was behind the times.”

Now, Foster spends about five hours a week using social media, mostly on his iPhone. He uses Tumblr, Twitter, and Facebook. Foster’s blog now gets more than 150 visits a month, and Wycliffe UK has re-blogged one of his posts. On Twitter, he entertains his followers with tweets like this one: “1 motorcycle + 14 hours + 969 Tanzanian klms = a VERY sore backside!”

Find the Fosters at: www.thefosters.ca; www.twitter.com/fosterius; www.facebook.com/danny.foster; www.thefosters.tumblr.com.

In Nairobi, Kenya, Jeff and Heather Pubols have used social media to chronicle their move from Florida to Africa. Sent by Wycliffe USA, Jeff is an IT support specialist, and Heather is a communications officer.  The two maintain a blog, Pubols Postscript, and about 50 people follow their updates on Twitter. Jeff and Heather use Twitter to share tidbits about life in Africa, such as “Just heard church bells from the church up the street. Now, we’re hearing the call to prayer from the Mosque down the road.” As Jeff and Heather have found, Twitter is a more instant, interactive way to communicate than the old-fashioned snail-mail letter.

Find the Pubols at: www.thepubols.com; http://pubols-postscript.blogspot.com; www.twitter.com/pubolspost.

For the photographically inclined, Flickr provides a great place to share images from the field. Just ask Hannes Wiesman, of Wycliffe International’s Board of Directors, who has posted dozens of pictures from a New Testament translation dedication in Papua New Guinea. With hundreds of views, this album has given folks around the world a window on Wycliffe’s work in an extremely complex language environment.

Meanwhile, back in Orlando, Florida, Wycliffe USA President Bob Creson logs onto Facebook from his iPhone. Creson started using Facebook to keep in touch with one of his adult children. From there, “it went from 0 to 60,” he says.

Soon, Creson , whose job is a supported staff position, was using Facebook to stay in touch with a wider audience. Then, he got hooked on Twitter. “What I started enjoying about Twitter is you get these little bursts of news,” he says.

“It comes back to strong personal relationships, so this is one of the tools we can use to maintain the support we need: financial support, prayer support. I’m always out looking for things that either promote our work or promote partners’ work, or create connections between our work and others’ work,” Creson says.

Creson used his iPhone to update the Wycliffe USA blog from India and Bangladesh recently.  It’s one more example of the global reach of social media.

Find Bob at: www.bobcreson.com; www.twitter.com/cbobcreson; www.facebook.com/bob.creson

How can you use social media to stay in touch with your family, friends and ministry supporters? Start by experimenting to see what tools work for you. Danny Foster, the Wycliffe Canada missionary profiled in this article, says, “Social media is free, so there’s no risk involved.” But be careful: If you bombard your followers with “rubbish,” you’ll lose your following, he says. “My rule of thumb is, “if it’s interesting, funny or important, post it.”

For video tutorials on various social media tools, click on: http://www.capturetheconversation.com/tutorials/.

Have you already started connecting with social media? Leave a comment about your experience.

An Orphan’s Tale

more about “An Orphan’s Tale“, posted with vodpod

What are you doing October 9th?

done

Pangsu Thanksgiving Service

It is just the start of monsoon season here, which means the temperatures are finally beginning to drop (97 instead of 110) and the dust is being settled.  We’ve had rains each day, with subsequent run-off, mud and puddling.  Since we were transported everywhere by car we didn’t feel any adverse effects of the weather.

Enough of the weather…India.  Great time so far, especially the last three days in Northern India getting to see the conclusion of a workshop/training program involving the Pangsu language cluster.  These languages represent 65 million people.  Our Indian partners (NIEA…see previous post) who are working here are exceptional people, committed and called to this very dense part of India.

Those organizing the event termed it a ‘celebration’ and time of thanksgiving, it really was: praise, prayer, singing, demonstrations, granting of certificates, excitement, eating…just a fantastic time.

The term ‘storying phase’ is relevant because Dr. Alex Philip and the New India Evangelistic Association, who partnered and sponsored this event, has a big vision for Bible translation in India that includes holistic ministry (evangelism, discipleship, church planting, medical/health and education—including mother tongue education).

Elizabeth Wilson is pretty modest about her contribution but she has done a great job of delivering the completion of this phase.

Besides those already mentioned, included in the ceremony was Dr. Pravin Moudgill of Wycliffe India along with over 100 pastors some of whom traveled over 30 yours to participate.  One of the pastors in attendance told Dr. Alex that for the first time last month he did an evangelistic campaign in his mother tongue…before he’d always used Hindi.  For the first time everyone listened, and he didn’t have to stop to ask people to be quiet and listen…they were riveted on the language of their heart.  After seeing the storying demonstration during the closing celebration he said, “This just makes sense.”

They included us on a food distribution visit at one of the villages most severely impacted by massive flooding last December.  To get a glimpse of this scene, imagine tiny Indian mothers and grandmothers, not even five feet tall or 95 pounds, dressed in their gorgeous saris, hoisting the fifty pound sacks of rice on their heads, while carrying a baby or clutching a toddler’s hand, then gliding off down a trail to their homes.  Feeding the body has to come before feeding the soul.

Following this we went to a mobile medical clinic.  The two doctors (both retired, both Hindus, volunteering their time each month) saw nearly 400 patients.  Later that night The Jesus Film was shown to well over 1,000 people with 400 responding.

The follow-up plans and strategies are already being implemented.  Three of these languages have already transitioned to the Luke Partnership, a partnership between the Jesus Film, Wycliffe and the Seed Company to produce the Gospel of Luke and the Jesus Film.