Not long after that, my mother advised me to spend time each day in Bible reading and prayer, asking God to guide me in the major choices of life. Because I had seen her doing so, I took her advice. By the time I was fifteen, the Bible had become to me what it claimed to be, the precious Word of God.
When I was 15, the Lord clearly called me into missions with the words of John 21:17. From that day to this I count it the highest honor and the greatest privilege to minister as an undershepherd to the King of Kings and Lord of Lord!
He led me to join SIM (Serving in Mission), an international, interdenominational, evangelical mission. I arrived in Ethiopia on Jan. 4, 1973, to teach math and Bible in our SIM high school for Ethiopian students. From the beginning I had a strong desire to learn the language of the people. Since school had started in September and teachers were already in place, I was granted permission to study Amharic , the national language.
I began teaching part-time in March of that year, and then taught for a full year before God led me into Bible translation.
Ethiopia has at least 86 languages. Even now (2002), only 6 of those have whole Bibles, 12 have New Testaments, and 14 more have translation in progress. That means 54 language groups still have no Scripture at all available to them. I have had the privilege of helping with the translation of 2 out of the 12 New Testaments, one in Gurage (goo rah gay), spoken by over a million people, and one in Aari, spoken by about 160,000 people. Before we could begin translating, we had to find out all the sounds used in the language and decide on a writing system. Then we needed to make primers to teach people to read, and publish other books to encourage them to read. Most can't read yet because they have never had books in their language. Those who have gone to school may read the national language, but they still need help to get started reading their own language.
Now I am helping with the translation of the Old Testament into Aari. South of the Aari people are the Bana people, who (together with their Hamer neighbors) number about 50,000. Their language is somewhat related to Aari, and there is a computer program called CARLA (Computer Assisted Related Language Adaptation) which can be used to get a rough draft of the Bana Scriptures from the Aari Scriptures. I am writing rules into that program for this, so that we can get a Bana New Testament as well.
Because my mother is getting older, I am living with her in Longview so I can help meet her needs while I continue with the language work. I go to Ethiopia about twice a year for about 6 1/2 weeks at a time to consult with the translators and literacy workers.
I have many "life verses". Two passages that are especially meaningful to me are Philippians 3:7-12 and Rev. 7:9-10:
"But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ - the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me." Php 3:7-12
"After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: 'Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.' " Rev 7:9-10
- I want to know Christ.
- By fellowshipping with Him in His suffering, by becoming like Him in His death, by experiencing the power of His resurrection;
- By fellowshipping with His people, knowing them and loving them and letting them know me.
- I want to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
- Complete the Aari Bible;
- Complete a CARLA draft of the Bana Bible;
- Contribute any way I can to making God's Word available to the peoples of Ethiopia in their own languages;
- Minister to Mother's needs as a faithful daughter;
- Encourage others by word and example to seek first the kingdom of God and to keep on keeping on.
I am grateful for the privilege to have a small part in what God is doing to bring His Word to the people groups who have never had it in their heart language.
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