Latest News

My extended visa will expire on Thursday, August 27^th. We plan to apply for another extension. I expect to return to the USA sometime in September though. Please pray for God’s perfect timing.

I learned last week that about 100 Banna New Testaments were sold on the day of the Dedication. Please pray with me that each of these will be read daily and be used by the Holy Spirit to produce lasting fruit in many lives.

Yesterday I had the joy of visiting Kafa Translation Project Manager Matt and his family in their new home. Here are a few pictures from the visit: 2015-08-22 Visit with Matt & family

I was asked to give a brief history of the Banna New Testament Literacy and Translation Project. At first I was overwhelmed with emotion and could not speak, but the Lord helped me. The yellow shirt I am wearing and the orange one Muga is wearing were made in honor of the dedication. They came in sizes XL and XXL.

People singing at the dedication (inside the covered area)

The covered area was not large enough to accommodate all who came to help celebrate the Banna New Testament. This is a view of the crowd from outside.

Banna translator Getu reading from the Banna New Testament

Translator Ayke reading from the Banna New Testament

Praise God for blessing
the dedication of the
Banna New Testament
with His presence
and great joy!
Pictures are said to be
worth a thousand words,
so I’ll add
some pictures here.

Getu asked his wife and Ayke’s wife to join us on the platform. He shared how difficult and tedious the translation work had been for him and said, “Once when I was very discouraged and spoke of quitting, my wife rebuked me and told me that I must finish what I had started.” He gave praise to God for enabling us to complete the task and for blessing him and his family in the process.

Worshiping God at the Dedication

Donna said in the Banna language, “The Banna New Testament has come. Praise God!”

Ayke thanked God for Getu’s father, the first Banna believer, who served as pastor, evangelist, song leader,  and whatever else was required. He used to ask, “Who will carry on the work?” The sons of the first 3 believers have been involved in the translation of the New Testament.

I’ll be heading south with fellow-retirees Sharon Smith and Donna Clawson, plus Donna’s sister and sister-in-law, on Wednesday, August 5th – a 2-day drive to reach Alduba where the Dedication of the Banna New Testament will take place. Please pray for safe travel and good fellowship. A conference is planned for the weekend. Praise God for providing the Banna people with His Word in their heart language. Special thanks to all who have prayed and given to make it happen. Please pray that the Holy Spirit will work in hearts during the conference, motivating church leaders to use and promote the Banna New Testaments and putting a strong desire in the hearts of the Banna believers to read and hear God’s Word in their heart language. Pray that their lives will be changed as a result.

I’ll be without internet access from August 5th to August 12th but hope to post news and photos of the conference and dedication after I get back to Addis Ababa.

Praise God for a 30-day extension to my visa. The extension expires August 27th. We plan to apply for another extension at that time. It looks like I can stay until at least early September. God is faithful!

I arrived safely in Addis Ababa the evening of July 8th. My 30-day visa expires July 25th, so we will be applying for an extension tomorrow. We are trusting God that another 30 days will be granted.

We have completed the consultant check of Kafa Song of Solomon – praise the Lord! We are working on checking Kafa Jeremiah now. Please pray for wisdom, health, and perseverance for the whole team: Matt, Teka, Fekadu, and Carolyn.

I plan to attend the conference and dedication of the Banna New Testaments the weekend of August 7-9. Please pray for God’s blessing and that the Banna believers will be eager to read God’s Word in their heart language.

My access to the Internet is quite limited, so please forgive me if I don’t communicate very much on an individual level.

Thank you for your partnership by prayer. God is faithful!

Because God has exalted His name and His word above all things, He brought the Banna New Testaments safely to Djibouti March 31st. SIM Support Services informed me in April that they were in the process of paying the customs (about $1800 US). Since then, there has been no response to my inquiries. I infer that the New Testaments are still at the dry port inside Ethiopia. We will doubtless be charged for storage. Please pray with me that the process will be completed soon. Pray that the New Testaments will reach the Banna people in excellent condition and be received and read with eagerness. The dedication is still planned for August 8th…read more.

May the LORD give us all discernment so that we spend our time serving Him and His people and not wasting energy on unnecessary busyness.

The Banna New Testaments were shipped on March 20th and were scheduled to arrive in Djibouti on March 31 st . I have not heard whether they arrived in Djibouti. Please continue to pray for their safe arrival, that they will be obtained quickly without extra storage charges and cleared easily with reasonable import charges, and that they will reach the Banna people in excellent condition and be received and read with eagerness. The dedication is scheduled for August 8th…read more.

We finished the consultant check of Genesis in the Kafa language on
Wednesday, April 7th. Praise God! The team did a wonderful job of
translating, so the checking went very well.

I am headed back to Alduba among the Banna people, leaving Friday, April
9th, and arriving in Alduba Saturday afternoon, April 10th, Lord willing.

We also finished recording the script for the Jesus video in the Banna
language mid-March and look forward to receiving the finished product in
about six months.

Next week I am hoping we can continue with the consultant check of Acts in
the Banna language.

Praise God for the encouragement of His Word and the privilege of helping
get it into the heart languages of the peoples of Ethiopia.

On Sunday, September 6th, I visited the church I attended regularly in the late 1970s. At that time Pastor Mattewos was single, and few people attended the church. Mattewos spent many hours in prayer and many hours visiting in homes to build up trust so that he could effectively share the Good News about Jesus. In 1982, he married Etaferahu. Through the years they have remained among my closest friends. This photo was taken of them, their three sons, and me in their home, where I enjoyed a lovely meal and visit after the church service. That church has since added several extensions to the original building and has planted many other churches in Addis Ababa and throughout Ethiopia. Mattewos now administers educational centers in several places where needy youngsters are fed, cared for and educated. May God give each of us perseverance in prayer, relationships, and service so that we may enjoy the fruit He will bring in His time for His glory.

Donna and I are still in Addis Ababa. Two of our Ethiopian colleagues plan to drive up here from Alduba (Banna area) September 15th to renew insurance on a pickup truck. They will take Donna and me, along with as much of our stuff as we can fit in, back to Alduba. It will be much less expensive for them and for us than if we hired a truck to take us down. Meanwhile Kafa translators Mattewos and Gezahegn, who lost their advisor to leukemia last year, have given me their translation of the book of Ruth to look over. I hope to meet with them toward the end of next week to do a consultant check on that book. Please pray for the Lord’s enabling as this will be my first formal work as a consultant. I feel very inadequate. They have given me a back translation (i.e., they have written the Amharic equivalent of each word or phrase under the Kafa word or phrase). This helps me know what they have said, since I don’t know the Kafa language.

God has been so gracious to me. I never would have chosen to stay in Addis Ababa for a whole month, but I see that it was His plan so that I could adjust to the time change and all the changes that have taken place in SIM Ethiopia since I was last here. Please continue to pray for a close walk with the Lord for me, and that I will be an open channel for the expression of His love. Thank youǃ