Satan’s attack on national Bible translators is growing more intense than ever.
I’ve received reports of kidnappings, beatings, death threats . . . even murder.
Recently our team talked with a pastor in the Middle East . . . a pastor who has asked us for help in translating Scripture for his people, no matter the cost. “We live in a land of extremes,” he said. “We have terrible Islamic terrorism happening to our own people in this country.” Pastors are being killed “on a regular basis!”
And this pastor is prepared to die a martyr for the cause of Christ! In fact, he expects it—his only hope is that if he must die, he will die preaching God’s Word to his people.
How could he say something like that? Where does his boldness come from? It’s because this pastor sees firsthand the power of God’s Word at work, changing the hearts of men and women who once hated Christianity, but who are now coming to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ! People like “Abir.”
For security reasons, I can’t share his real name. Abir was a devout Muslim, raised to live his life in obedience to the Koran. But he began to have questions about his faith when he heard the story of Jesus. He reached out to a Christian man and started to ask him questions. This man began to lead him through the Bible, translated into Abir’s language. In the pages of Scripture, Abir saw the truth. He saw God’s grace. He finally found the answers he was looking for, and soon he came to his friend, eyes full of tears, and said, ”I want to be a disciple of Jesus.”
Now he can’t get enough of God’s Word. “I’m so thirsty, I just want to know more,” Abir said.
And when our brothers and sisters are faced with persecution—and even death—because they are proclaiming the truth of God’s Word, do you know what they keep asking for? MORE!
More tools, more technology, and more training for Bible translation so they can help MORE people like Abir hear the gospel and come to faith in these dangerous parts of the world.
Right now, I am overwhelmed with the number of requests I have received for new Bible translation starts—more than 600! So many language groups are desperate to start translating God’s Word into their own heart language—some even waiting generations for this day to come—but they need the resources.
And I am compelled to respond to each one of them with a resounding “YES!”
However, right now we do not have the funds to answer their requests. Today we are calling on supporters like you to help make the difference, empowering and equipping these Bible translators.
The goal is to provide for computer tablets for 200 translators by the end of this year, so that they can begin work in the first 30 days of 2019. What a wonderful way to start the new year!
Each tablet, loaded with translation resources and software to help translators work efficiently and keep their work safe, costs just $300.
I am so excited to share the stories of God’s work through national Bible translators over the next two weeks. And you will see the impact you can have for these brothers and sisters in Christ when you put tablets in their hands!
The technology behind these tablets and our MAST workshops (Mobilized Assistance Supporting Translation) is astounding, and because of the passion and commitment of these fearless men and women, we will see God’s Word translated into more languages in the coming year than in any single year EVER! Your generosity can make this happen . . . will you give today to help them start translating Scripture?
