Training Arrows

In our last newsletter, Benjamin was getting back from the twice annual in-person meetings and looking forward to some online consultant training. This time, we have big news: Benjamin is headed to the other of the twice annual in-person meetings next week and looking forward to some online consultant training in early February.

We write tongue-in-cheek, but it’s been a real blessing to be engaged in a regular routine of work on a daily and weekly basis for the last six months. Benjamin appreciates being able to use his training and skills at his current level to help equip the church for Bible translation, while also being engaged in a program to move him to the next level. Our family is blessed by having some stability in relationships and routine, especially as Shanna started Mira’s first year of homeschool while pregnant. 

Thinking about Our Work

One of the things that motivated me (Benjamin) to pursue the work of Bible translation was a short series of sermons at a church conference on 2 Kings 13:10-25, especially verses 18-19 (enjoy the KJV verbiage with me here):

And he said, “Take the arrows.” And he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel, “Smite upon the ground.” And he smote thrice, and stayed. And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, “Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it: whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice.”

The pastor urged us to be “six arrow men.” There’s a lot more to that story, but recently I’ve found that illustration helpful in another way.

Working through Exodus day-by-day: checking that our translation helps are well written and match the parameters we’ve set, making sure that key terms (think: heart, soul, sacrifice) and translation issues are tagged and linked to appropriate articles, making sure those articles are accurate, and all the associated file management can feel far removed from seeing the impact of God’s Word in someone’s native tongue. It has been helpful to think about the spiritual war that we are in, and to think of each note and each link that will help someone translate the Bible clearly, naturally, and accurately into their own language as an arrow shot into enemy territory.

Maybe that same connection will be helpful for you as a prayer and/or financial partner. Your prayers and gifts are also arrows shot into enemy territory and without your “cover fire” we couldn’t work. Thank you for each of your prayers, gifts, notes, and other encouragements.

Praises:

• The first round of the training sessions with the Translation Consultant Cohort was successful.
• Benjamin’s team published the translation help resource packages for Esther & 1 Timothy last quarter and Ezra today (Jan 20).
• Benjamin is making good progress on the Exodus resources.
• Mira has read out-loud for ten minutes on 14 days this month.
• We enjoyed a safe trip to Texas and time with family in November (including a four generation Thanksgiving).
• We’ve all recovered from various levels of illness in December (especially Shanna who was quite ill for a week).

Prayers:

• Benjamin’s team has in-person meetings twice annually. Benjamin will be in Orlando the last week of January for them. Pray for smooth travels and a profitable time for all. Pray for Shanna who will be home with the kids.
• For completion of the translation of our resource packages: Titus and 3 John in Spanish and two languages in south Asia
• For the Russian team’s on-going training of a Central Asian language team in both how to translate for themselves and how to teach other language teams to translate.
• For our team goals for 2021. They hope to complete the translation help resource packages for Genesis, Exodus, Joshua, 1-2 Samuel, Luke, Acts, 1-2 John, James, & Revelation.
• For Benjamin’s upcoming Translation Consultant training online on Feb 8-19.
• That Wycliffe would be able to find a mentor for Benjamin and give us an idea of where and when (if?) we will be going back overseas. (In the normal course of the program this would happen in the summer or fall of this year. Current health restrictions around the world have complicated this.)
• For a safe conclusion to Shanna’s pregnancy and delivery (late-March or early-April).