Friday, May 15, 2015

The Bible is my Life

Photo: Adam Jeske | Words: Marc Ewell
“The Bible is my life,” says Dereje Tilahun of Wycliffe Africa as he lifts his Bible in his language, Amharic, and presses it against his chest. “I cannot live without it.” Dereje feels strongly about bringing the Bible to all 80 plus languages of his home country of Ethiopia. He believes that his own life was “built by the word of God,” and now he wants the same for others. Read more about Dereje.

We are finishing up a second week of connecting with colleagues who have amazing stories of what God has been accomplishing around the world through the translated Word. Some of our new friends have faced very challenging situations with health or with family concerns, but all have persevered because of God's call to work just like Dereje. They desire to see the Bible translated into the heart languages of the 180 million people around the world who still do not have access. Thank you for your prayers - God was with us as we celebrated His goodness and sought His face for the difficult situations. Your partnership now extends to the ministries they have around the world!

This next week, the Orientation and Training Services (OATS) team will be doing our own "Connection" - remote staff will fly in to join the Orlando folks for a biannual gathering for team & relationship building, vision casting, and long-range planning. Please pray for safety as we travel to a center about 90 minutes north of the campus and for our team to maximize our time together. When we finish on May 22, I will begin the drive north with a goal of arriving in Indiana early afternoon on Saturday, May 23. Thanks in advance for your prayers for that trip, too. I look forward to seeing many of you at Faith Church on May 24 or May 31.

Friday, May 1, 2015

This breaks my heart...

During her final presentation at Equip, N* allowed the pages of the tumbler to fall to the floor as she read to us some of the names of the nearly 1900 people groups that are still without a single verse of Scripture in the language they best understand. “This breaks my heart,” she said. She was unable to continue for a moment as the reality of her words struck her deeply.

I was once again reminded why I am here - why God has called me to be a part of Wycliffe Bible Translators. There are people dying every day without access to God’s Word in the language they first learned to speak as a child… the one in which they think and dream and pray. You are an essential part of God’s solution to the injustice of Bible poverty. Your prayers and your gifts toward my Wycliffe ministry make it possible for me to also be a part of the solution. Thank you!

*Story used with permission; withholding her name

Here’s look at my calendar for the next few weeks:

May 4-8 -- The Wycliffe Connection (for those who have served overseas)
May 11-15 -- Wycliffe Stateside Connection (for those who serve stateside)
May 19-22 -- Orientation and Training Services (OATS) Connection (team meeting for one of the departments in which I serve)
May 22-23 -- Drive to Indiana
May 23 -- Meharry/Deplanty family gathering
May 29 -- My niece graduates from high school
June 1-2 -- Drive to Florida