Tag Archives: Wycliffe

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Life On The Field

a life in the field

Leaving home and living abroad.

Not only are there challenges just to get ready to go on an overseas work assignment, but Bible translation workers in all types of roles often face the challenges of adjusting to new assignments, locations and cultures multiple times in their careers. Staying ahead of today’s fast-paced world seems to lead to more changes in a lifetime than ever before. As you pray through this list of common challenges to life on the field for translation workers, try to put yourself in their place and ask the Holy Spirit to bring to mind other challenges for which they might need prayer.

  • Pray for God’s protection over missionaries’ physical and spiritual health and that of their family, friends, and colleagues. Ask God to bring good Christian fellowship and support whenever possible.
  • Pray that they will find appropriate housing at a reasonable cost and God’s provision of vehicles needed for transportation. Thank the Lord for colleagues and others in some locations who can help newcomers get settled.
  • Pray for productive language learning as well as comfort with using the language and relating to the culture in everyday life.
  • Pray for children as they adjust to new school situations and develop relationships.Pray also for the ones who remain in their home countries or attend school away from their parents.

Watch this video to see how Chris and Christie Winkler adjust to life in Nigeria while serving with Wycliffe.

Watch the first video of this series to learn more about the Winklers as they made preparations to leave for the field.

Resource: Wycliffe Pray Today Blog

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Getting There From Where You Are

Elivio, a Bible translator, shared the challenges and blessings he experienced while checking the effectiveness of his Old Testament translation draft with the local communities:

“Some of my travel between villages—by canoe, sometimes with and sometimes without an outboard motor—was very long and dangerous. There were times when we were hungry, cold, and even discouraged until we finally got to the next village.

“While I was away from my family, they worried about me and felt sad. But I knew I was doing the right thing checking the translation we had done with my own people. Little by little, we did it with God’s help.”

Many of the remaining language communities that are without Scripture in the mother tongue live in relatively remote locations. This means that to bring God’s Word to the people of these areas, boat, plane, and even motor vehicle travel requires an extra measure of courage and commitment on the part of personnel. Travel in and out of an area can present risks and delays. Weather is a factor. Appropriate vehicles are needed. Medical emergencies are complicated by distance. Personal morale can be affected by isolation from family and colleagues.

  • Praise God for JAARS, a partner organization that serves Wycliffe Bible Translators and related organizations worldwide by taking translators wherever Bibleless people are located—even to areas that were previously inaccessible! They provide safe, effective, and economical transportation via land, air, or water.
  • Pray for the JAARS aviation team of professional pilots, mechanics, and avionics technicians throughout the world who work to speed Bible translation.
  • Pray for the Land Transportation team that provides training, consultations, and equipment for translators and support personnel who travel by land—often over harsh terrain.
  • Pray for JAARS Maritime Services as they provide training, consultations, and equipment to translators and support personnel who travel by water—often under distressing conditions.

Read more about maritime travel on Wycliffe’s website. And for a closer look at this topic,watch this video.

 

Resource: Wycliffe Pray Today Blog

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Answering The Call

Whatever your vocation, it’s likely that you can be a part of the worldwide Bible translation team. God calls men and women to support Bible translation using the skills they have now. Currently, more than 5,000 people serve with Wycliffe, but hundreds of additional workers are still needed.

Wycliffe is working to grow this missions workforce, matching people to strategic jobs here in the U.S. and abroad. Most of Wycliffe’s personnel are missionaries raising their own financial support, while others are volunteers and paid employees.

  • As technology and social networking open doors for Wycliffe recruiters, pray that they will leverage these resources appropriately and engage even more people.
  • Pray that our recruiters will be spiritually empowered to communicate effectively with both individuals and large groups of people.

So, which avenue of involvement is right for you or someone you know? Check out the possibilities listed below and pray for many people to respond to these opportunities to support the mission and vision of Bible translation through their service.

Wycliffe Careers

There are many ways to join the worldwide Wycliffe team. New members attend training and then raise their own salaries from family, friends, and churches. A career with Wycliffe could lead to an assignment in Africa, Asia, the Americas, the Pacific region, or Europe.

The Global Service Program is a new opportunity for individuals to serve for six months to two years.  This program is ideal for individuals who want to serve for a limited time before making a long term commitment.

Some jobs (mostly in the U.S.) are paid positions. Wycliffe regularly posts open positions online. To view the list of current openings go to http://www.wycliffe.org/About/Careers.aspx.

A large number of people choose to volunteer their time and their skills in support of Bible translation. Volunteers apply through Wycliffe Associates, and contribute to projects all over the world.

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Supporting Vision 2025 Through Prayer

There is an African proverb that says, “one arm cannot surround a baobab tree.” Just as it takes a number of people to surround one of these gigantic trees, it will take the prayers of many to reach the last languages with the Word of God.


Wycliffe Bible Translators and its partners around the world are committed to Vision 2025—a desire to see a Bible translation program in progress in every language still needing one by the year 2025. Humanly speaking, this vision seems impossible. But the impossibility of it drives us closer to God, seeking His face, and in prayer, lifting up all aspects of this mission.

In 2002, the executive director of Wycliffe Global Alliance underscored the importance of prayer in the Bible translation task when he stated that “prayer is our greatest strategic response and our greatest resource.” In agreement with his declaration, all Wycliffe organizations renewed their resolve to model and prioritize prayer.

  • Ask God to call great numbers of prayer partners to faithfully support the Bible translation movement.
  • Pray for wisdom and creativity for Wycliffe USA’s Prayer Ministries team as they seek to promote and grow prayer programs, all while keeping costs low. Pray for resilience for staff conducting research to glean current information and prayer needs from around the world.

Below is a list of ways that you can join hands with us in prayer.

Bibleless Peoples Prayer Project

Commit to pray for a Bibleless people group. Today there are more than 2,000 languages still waiting for access to God’s Word in their own language. Through Wycliffe USA’s Bibleless Peoples Prayer Project you can sign up to prayerfully lay the foundation for a translation program to begin in one of these specific people groups.

Intercessor

Learn more about and pray for the worldwide work of Bible translation through the Intercessor, a bimonthly prayer letter produced by Wycliffe USA. It features specific prayer requests that will inform and direct your prayers for major strategic needs facing Wycliffe and its partners. Read it online, download the PDF, or sign up to receive it by mail or email; explore the options here.

The Finish Line

The Finish Line, an annual publication (also available online) lists Bible translation projects around the world that are nearing completion—those that are within three years or less of finishing. This is often when translation teams are faced with significant challenges and sometimes setbacks leading up to the completion of a Bible translation. We know that Satan will do everything he can to stop the spread of God’s Word, but we also know that we are called to rally on the battlefield of prayer. Click here to access the 2011 edition of The Finish Line.

Vision 2025 Prayer 24×7

Consider being part of a global community praying around the clock for Bible translation. Can you imagine an unbroken conversation with God about the work He has given us to do, and keeping that conversation going until Vision 2025 is fulfilled? Vision 2025 Prayer 24×7, a program of Wycliffe Global Alliance, invites churches, prayer groups, and individuals to join together and support Bible translation in prayer, every minute of every day. Sign up for a weekly time slot to pray at https://pray24x7.vision2025.net/.

Pray Today

And of course, invite your friends to this blog to read daily, current prayer requests related to the work of Bible translation! Together, with our prayers encircling the ministry of Bible translation, we know that God will do great things!

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On Air, On Camera, and In the Heart

Engaging oral cultures through Scripture media

Today, Bible translators are encouraged to develop a media plan right from the very beginning of a translation project. It’s one way teams are reaching out to oral societies which make up a vast majority of the world’s Bibleless peoples. In many translation programs, Scripture is made accessible to local people in audio and visual forms.

Through SIL International, one of Wycliffe’s primary partners, a variety of ministry personnel can attend vernacular media training and receive certification. “Vernacular” refers to a person’s everyday language—his or her “heart” language. Vernacular media can include stories, song, dance, poetry, chant, or other forms of communication, and use any number of devices for delivery including video, radio, audio players, cell phones, TVs, and the Internet.

  • Pray for insight and wisdom for vernacular media specialists working to accurately analyze the unique characteristics of oral language communities.
  • Pray for direction and discernment as they consider which media options are available and best suited to the community.
  • Pray that these completed media materials will have an impact on the spiritual lives of those who listen and see them.