A Translation Project Completed – Wana
After well over 20 years of faithful labor, the team who ministers among the Wana people have now officially completed their translation project! That includes the entire New Testament as well as the book of Genesis and all of the other Old Testament portions that are used in our mission’s chronological Bible lessons. It was a real privilege to work with them over the last 14 years whenever they needed to have some translated Scriptures checked. During this last check we worked with five native speakers and evaluated their understanding of the translation of much of Exodus, portions of many other OT books, and then finished with the story of Jonah. There were even a few tears of thankfulness shed as we read those last verses, showing how much the Wana people appreciate having the Scriptures in their own language.
Praise the Lord for the completion of the Wana translation project, and pray for the continued growth of the several churches and outreach areas scattered throughout the land of the Wana people.
A Translation Project Renewed – Saluan
In contrast, the translation project for the Saluan people is still in the early stages. Along with another co-worker, Bob had the chance to teach and review some basic translation principles for the newly formed team that will be translating for the Saluan church. A unique challenge in serving as a consultant for this team is the fact that none of them are native English speakers, and the primary translators don’t speak English at all! On the other hand, there are several Saluan believers that are eager to play significant roles on the translation team, and their expertise as native speakers will help the Scriptures sound very natural for their fellow believers.
In addition to teaching and reviewing translation principles for the team, Bob was able to check their initial translation effort, the short story of Jonah. Since that check went well, the team will now be tackling the translation of the Gospel of Mark. They were all very encouraged to be given approval to translate Scripture which has not yet appeared in their language, and the local elders were excited to know that in the near future they will have “new” material to teach in their church!
Speaking of that, isn’t it amazing how we take for granted having all of God’s Word in our own language? Yet these Saluan believers are hungry for Scriptures to read and teach, and they don’t even have the Gospel of Mark yet!
Please pray for this fledgling team as they endeavor to apply translation principles that will ensure a clear, accurate and natural version of God’s Word in their language.
This Year in Jerusalem!
No, we didn’t do any translation checking in Israel – but we did learn much to help us understand the history, land and culture of the people of Israel. That knowledge will certainly help us understand and translate the Scriptures written there more accurately.
This was a trip that we have been planning to take for several years, and we are so thankful for the opportunity to be part of the Friends of Israel study tour. Our 10 days were jam-packed with visiting a couple dozen Biblical sites such as Capernaum, Joppa, Nazareth, Mount Carmel, and of course Jerusalem. We enjoyed devotions geared to the sites we were visiting, and also learned how archaeology has repeatedly proven the Biblical record of both Testaments to be accurate. Our guides also opened our eyes to many aspects of modern Israeli history and the current challenges facing the nation.
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!
May those who love her prosper!
– Psalm 122:6
Since our tour flew out of Toronto, after returning we also had the chance to visit our Ethnos Canada missionary training center for a couple of days and re-connect with many of our co-workers who formerly served in the Asia-Pacific region with us.
Thanks so much for your investment in our ministry!
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