Beautiful

Forgive me for getting a bit emotional; I just couldn’t believe that your colleagues would spend many years working on a Nastaliq-style Arabic digital font with the hope that Scripture might be translated into this language one day...Thank you!

So said a potential new funding partner in the middle of a meeting in Asia last year. The font she was talking about is called Awami Nastaliq, and it was developed by the Writing Systems Technology team of Wycliffe’s strategic partner, SIL.

Awami Nastaliq is an Arabic-script font specifically intended for a wide variety of languages of Southwest Asia. Its sloping beauty means that it is a much more complex font to render on computers. Many Arabic characters usually need around four shapes to enable it to be typed, but a Nastaliq character typically has more than 20 shapes as it is so fluid and complex. Font designers and computer programmers from Scotland, the USA and Asia worked together to produce the correct shaping.

The Writing Systems Technology team gives away the fonts they develop in order to provide a service to the wider community. One of the designers noted, “People download an unbelievable number of our fonts – hundreds of thousands of times. So as well as Bible translation, our fonts are being used for tens of millions of webpages around the world to enable communication that otherwise couldn’t happen in that language.”

Read more of Alfred Thompson’s story at wycliffe.org.uk/stories/what-your-team-has-done-for-our-father-and-his-kingdom/

Over the years, I have regularly asked for prayer for those who come through Equip orientation. One past “Equipper” is Becca (wycliffe.org/partner/spalinger), who has been a font/type designer now for ten years. Your prayers and gifts for my Wycliffe ministry have been a part of her journey as she continues to help create fonts and impact language groups just like these. Thank you!

Personal Update

We are thankful for all your prayers and for all the medical care Mom has received, between her primary care, her heart valve replacement, her pacemaker, and even the balancing of the meds that are so important to her daily life. We are confident that “...all the days of my life were written in your book before any of them came to be.” (Psalm 139:16, NLV) ...and know that God is present with us through each day, now and in the future.

Thank you for your faithful prayers and encouragements!

Connections Coming!

We thank God for you and your prayers for Mom. Yesterday was her one-month post-surgery follow up and everything looked great. We praise the Lord for her cardiology team. They have now recommended a pacemaker. That procedure should be scheduled soon. (The Lord's hand has been clearly visible as all the arrangements are coming into place!) As Mom is still recovering, my supervisor is working to shift my responsibilities so I may continue to serve Wycliffe remotely for this season.

Please pray for the team in Orlando. For the first time since February 2020, they will host two Connection programs (July 19-23 and July 26-30) for colleagues who have served overseas. There is a team member who became seriously ill this past week, so pray for the "crew" that remains to be very resourceful and healthy and covered by God's grace. Pray that those who come will feel cared for, celebrated well and encouraged as they fulfill their roles around the world in Bible translation.

Your partnership through your prayers and gifts for my Wycliffe ministry is a gracious gift of God. Thank you so much. Please let me know how I might pray with you. Together, we will see the Lord at work.

Equip #51

Thank you for your prayers for Mom. She had the procedure on June 15 and it was successful! She had a couple of "bonus" days in the hospital this past week, but now that her meds are balanced differently, she's beginning to see some good recovery.

The Equip #51 crew and participants are also grateful for your prayers. We had generally stable internet and some amazing relational connections that only the Lord could have arranged in a virtual setting. A number of these new colleagues are headed to challenging parts of the world to be involved in linguistics and translation. God has used your prayers and gifts for my Wycliffe ministry to help them get a good start on their journey. Thank you!

Equip #51 Participants - Map by Marty Pelton​

Plans are in full swing for the first Orlando programs for our team since February 2020. Please pray for wisdom to know how to adjust as needed. We so look forward to being face-to-face with these colleagues who usually live overseas! Pray that they would feel cared for and celebrated in their time with us.

God is faithful to answer our prayers. I am eager to know how to pray on your behalf!

Equip is coming!

Thank you for your prayers and encouragements for Mom. Once again, as people prayed, she did better in the past week. The appointment with the cardiologist gave us good information. We are now waiting for June 14, when she will have a half day of testing to confirm that she is eligible for the TAVR heart procedure. Some days for her are better than others, but the Lord has obviously been with us, each step of the way.

I'm so grateful for the opportunity to work remotely in this season. Preparations continue for virtual Equip orientation (June 12-24). As you pray for these 30 new Wycliffe missionaries and 17 new MKs (missionary kids), would you ask God to give them strong bonds with each other, though we won't be face-to-face? I'm still in contact with some of the people who went through Equip when I did, 11 years ago. There is something about starting the journey together that the Lord uses to provide special motivation and encouragement.

Please let me know how I might be praying with you so that together, we might see God answer prayer.

Update from Indy 🏁

(Yes, had to include a flag. If you are from Indy, you know!)

Thank you for your prayers for safe travels. I had intended to drive on May 14-15, but Mom was admitted for a two-night hospital stay on May 11. I drove north on May 12. She's at home now and we are waiting for a June 1 consult about a possible heart procedure. Would you pray that she and the doctors have great clarity as they explore possibilities? We are so grateful for how the Lord and the prayers of his people have sustained her over these years.

Thankfully, I have all the materials/equipment I need to continue to work from here for a period of time. We're making final preparations now for the next virtual Equip orientation (June 12-24), where we'll have 30 new colleagues and 17 new MKs (missionary kids)! Thanks for your prayers as we and they prepare for our time together.

It's been a joy to connect with some of you face-to-face at Faith and Solid Word. Please let me know how I might be praying with you. God answers prayer!