Reason to Celebrate

The beginnings of Wycliffe started 100 years ago because of a question asked by many others since then. In 1917 Townsend arrived in Guatemala as a Bible salesman. Townsend later recalled that Guatemala’s indigenous inhabitants (in particular the Kaqchikel) kept asking, if not in these exact words, something like: “If your God is so powerful, why doesn’t he speak my language?” Staggered by the implications of this question, Townsend blazed a new path in missions. By 1930 Townsend completed the Kaqchikel New Testament and at the same time began a training school to teach indigenous pastors. In 1934 these beginnings arrived in the United States and were known as the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL). In 2001 Jeff and I attended CanIL, the Canadian SIL training school, and in 2004 boarded a plane to Asia.

SIL is key to the work of Bible Translation. These schools, which exist in several countries around the world, are where translators-in-training go to learn both linguistics and exegetical training. A good Bible translation begins with a good translator. But there’s more to what we celebrate this year besides the beginnings of the training school, we celebrate the purpose of this school and all that followed it.

In the year 2000: there were about 3,000 languages with no portion of the Bible

In the year 2007: there were about 2,250 languages with no portion of the Bible

In the year 2017: there were about 1,636 languages with no portion of the Bible

In the year 2017: at least 3,300 languages representing over 652,000,000 people have the New Testament

This is reason to celebrate - progress is being made. We celebrate not because the goal is to produce a well known book but because the word of God has the power to transform lives and it is reaching more people every year!

Wycliffe Global Alliance, of which Wycliffe Bible Translators Canada is apart, is comprised of about 100 organizations from over 60 countries around the world. As a whole we are involved in more than 2,100 of the current 2,600 languages being worked on today.

And yet, there are still 114 million people with no portion of the Bible; zip, zilch, nada.

Imagine not having:

Your favourite book in the Bible to sit down to read
Your favourite passage to encourage and teach you
Your favourite verse to comfort or guide you
Any portion of scripture to read or listen to.

Further, those who have the Bible, the whole Bible, know that we need all of it. The New Testament is best understood in light of the Old Testament. That 652 million people have the NT is great, but those same 652 million are missing more than half of God’s word. The work is not done.

So let’s celebrate (notice the new logo with fireworks!), but let’s also press on.

Moving Past Past Hurts

Reconciliation began this summer between two men who's relationship was broken several years ago. I was both excited and humbled to be a part of bringing this friendship back together. As I thought about how to tell you about what happened I went looking for some images on google, something that I thought would represent what happened between these two men.

http://curtisamongfriends.yolasite.com/blog/reconciliation-in-wordle

Appropriately enough, the majority of the initial images had something to do with God, a cross, and/or the word 'forgiveness'. In this wordle, there are words such as grace, process, confession, towards, and understanding. This summer I was able to help two men begin the process of coming towards each other again in friendship. Confession, grace, and understanding were all apart of the process. God was, and will continue to be, a big part of these two men reconciling and restoring their friendship. The work of Christ is one of reconciling the world to him and it is something his church needs to be engaged in as well; we are reminded of it and commanded to do it in Matthew 5.
One of the challenges I faced in this process of reconciliation is that the process of confession and reconciliation have many cultural components. These two men are from very different cultures. How one would usually approach reconciliation was not at all like the way the other would anticipate the reconciliation process. Another big challenge was the fact that while I was pretty familiar with the culture of one man, I knew next to nothing of the other. I had my own learning to do before I could begin to help them. Three resources were key: a book called The Peacemaker by Ken Sande, two people (Stephen & Dolly), and prayer.
The Peacemaker is a great book for anyone to read. Whether you are hoping to reconcile a relationship or perhaps a friend has asked you to help, this is worth picking up. Stephen & Dolly are a couple from my church who were able to help me with my cultural ignorance! While not exactly from the same culture of which I was ignorant, they have a similar background. I am so grateful for their help and guidance, answering questions and giving insights.
During our time in Thailand (to attend a conference we have attended for several summers and where I have provided member care for the past 4 or 5 years) I met with each man a few times talking about their own expectations, hopes, wishes as well as the necessity of letting go of having everything their own way. This was not only a time to come together personally but also culturally. Let me tell you, in the best of times meeting-in-the-middle with someone from a different culture is not easy, never mind when there is past hurt. Of course we also met together and during that time grace abounded from each man for the other and from God over the whole thing. To let go of cultural expectations of each other, to strive to understand where each man was coming from, to believe the other desired the best for this relationship going forward was a blessing to watch.
This is one of the highlights of working in member care - coming alongside people as they seek to honour God in their work and in their relationships.
Stay tuned for some exciting developments in MK care as well as some of the letdowns in this work.

Love Children? Take a look at this..

MK (missionary kid) care has many facets to it. Over the past year you've learned about MKs and some of their characteristics. Over the many years as you've followed us you've read about our children, their struggles, and the people who have impacted them:

• us (parents)
• grandparents
• surrogate aunts and uncles
• biological aunts and uncles

But there are more:

• visiting teams: small groups who come and offer to teach on a Sunday, run Sunday school, lead worship, hold a VBS (or similar thing) for a week; their presence is not only a break for parents but a delight for the kids
• teachers: we have loved so many of our teachers and they have reached deeply into our children at times and encouraged them
• children's teams: these groups come and run a program for 1-2 weeks, 8 hours a day. If you have followed us for the past many years you know that we loved, loved, the children's team who attended our conferences. 

A children's team can make or break a conference. And we've experienced both (at a different conference). A children's team gets to know those MKs, encourages them, has fun with them, challenges them (especially in the high school group), cries with them (especially those little ones away from their parents). They loved our kids and our kids loved them. A children's team at conference brings the stuff of memories for years to come. Some of our children were baptized by those children's team members. That shows you how important people on a children's team can be in the life of an MK.

We were fortunate to have the same church send a team for every conference we attended with our organization. We loved seeing them year after year. But as you know we frequently attended a second conference. That conference had a different children's team every year. They still brought fun, encouraged our children, and listened to them, and helped them grow in their faith. 

What about you? Do you love children? I learned recently from a colleague about a group called Refuge139. The name is based on Psalm 139:9,10 which says 

“IF I SETTLE ON THE FAR SIDE OF THE SEA, EVEN THERE YOUR HAND WILL GUIDE ME, YOUR RIGHT HAND WILL HOLD ME FAST.”

A children's team member addresses physical, emotional, mental and spiritual needs of the children they've come to serve. They stand as a representative of Christ in the lives of those children. There are long days, long flights, challenging cultural and geographical surroundings, and always, always, unexpected situations. But the reward is great. If you might be interested in this kind of service, please visit the Refuge139 website above and read through
it, considering if MK care is something you could be involved in. 

Suffering, Compassion, & Carrying On

I was reading a post today called Why Missionaries Need a Theology of Suffering Really, everybody needs to think about this for their own life, that suffering isn't meant to be avoided, rather it needs to be accepted and even embraced as a part of life. I know, I don't like that either. However in my work and life overseas I have learned the truth of that statement.

A simple example is making new friends. After about four years of living in Asia I was tired of making new friends. Not just a whiny tired where I thought about not making anymore new friends but tired enough to come to the point of not inviting new people over, not going out of my way to introduce myself, not really being welcoming. Why? Because it hurt to have to say goodbye 2 or 3 years later. If you keep ripping a scab off a wound, it ends up worse than it started; might as well just chop the whole limb off, seriously! But there is more suffering still.

What about:

• ever prevalent poverty, hopelessness
• abuse of children
• a family disowning a son because he decided to follow Christ
• the lack of regard for a person because he's not important enough, because she's a woman, because those children are just orphans, because they are elderly...
• the husband whose wife is lying in bed knowing the doctors have done their all so now it's wait and see
• natural and man-made disasters
• the knowledge that a friend has deceived you and took advantage of you and your family

It is so easy to close ourselves off to the suffering around us because it is hard, sometimes it is too much. But to do that is to close off our flow of love and compassion to the world around us. Jesus was sent because of God's love for us and showed compassion in so many of his actions towards the people around him. In our suffering we can open ourselves to receive the love and compassion of our Father and this is the source of our compassion to those around us (2 Corinthians 1:3-5).

One of the things I do in member care is help people step back and see what situations/events they have gone through and how it has impacted them. How did they walk through it and how are they on the other side? A bit stronger, a deeper sense of God's peace in times of trouble, a shadow that now sits over them, a weariness in their soul, are they still in it, maybe they don't care about anything anymore... I am humbled to sit with the people I oversee. To allow space for questions about suffering and God's goodness, God's love for us and the world, expectations versus hopes versus reality, and to give opportunity to recall God's character and his faithfulness in the past. To pray for them. It is an honour. 

Several years ago, you may recall, I wanted nothing to do with going back to Asia. I wouldn't even talk about it. I felt beyond weary. It took just over a year and the help of some caring and wise people before I was ready and able to return overseas. The suffering experienced and compassion shown, shaped me tremendously. 

I pray, and want you to pray with me, that I can continue to do that for others. 

After a lot of Prayer and Conversation...

For the past year and a half or so we have been up front about our state of finances. I can promise you our financial income is not something we enjoy talking about, especially when they are low. Prior to returning to Canada the amount of financial support we have received from you our supporters has always been sufficient. Even when $1 Cdn went from buying 8 of the local currency in Asia to only buying 6 of it, and even though we started out with one child when we first left and had three children by the time we returned home. Barring exception circumstances our income was sufficient.

We faced challenges though upon returning to Canada. Namely Canada is more expensive than Asia. Also Oshawa is more expensive than Windsor. To stay involved with Wycliffe Bible Translators Canada, which we felt was the right decision upon returning to Canada, we knew we needed to be in the GTA. We have been unable to make up our shortfall in financial support. As we began to realize that our income would not be sufficient we knew we could not continue on as we were, something had to change.

If you have followed us for the past few years you know that one of the greatest needs our family was looking for in returning to Canada was stability. A post I wrote a few months back was entitled "I think we've turned the corner". That had to do with finding our feet, fitting in, feeling stable. I promise you, more change was not high on my list nor was it at the bottom 😔 It wasn't on any list I may have had. But change has come anyway.

Essentially we found we had two options before us: I could return to the health care field or find a way into the counselling field though I am not licensed, or Jeff find a job. The member care adviser role is typically done by someone who raises their own support and I really enjoy what I do. Jeff's education, training, and work experience is in Bible translation, which he also loves. How do we fit into the Canadian workplace?

Now, over and over again we have seen God work in weird ways. Way back in 2007, in Asia, we were given a choice to move to one of two cities. Our personal choice was neither. In the back of our minds we had a plan that seemed to fit our skills, gifts, and the purpose of our being in China. Our leadership stuck with their original options. That is how we ended up in the city we spent most of our time in. What you may not know is that only a few months after we moved to that city, the town we had wanted to move saw all it's foreigners given 24-48 hours to pack up and leave. There were escalating tensions, unrest, self-immolations and the like. It was years before they were allowed back to gather any left over belongings. Various circumstances came together to direct out path different from what we envisioned.

We seem to have walked through a similar situation. Reasons to return to Canada, reasons to move to the GTA, insufficient financial support. A different path than what we envisioned. After much prayer and conversation with family, friends, and supervisors, Jeff has resigned his position with Wycliffe Bible Translators and accepted a job with the Canadian Bible Society (CBS).

In his job he will continue in Bible translation the difference is that he will be focusing on languages in Canada (and also Alaska). Members of our First Nations, Inuit...are approaching both CBS and Wycliffe for help with translating the Bible into their own languages.

What about me? I will continue as a member care adviser for Wycliffe Bible Translators Canada. I will still need your financial support so that our missionaries can remain on the field. The income I receive from you, our supporters, combined with Jeff's income at CBS will take us back to a sufficient level of income. Thank you for supporting me in this way, you are making a difference.

We are thankful for the 15+ years Jeff has been able to give to Wycliffe, and we are also excited for what the future brings with CBS. If you have known us since we've been married you know that shortly after being married we lived in Attawapiskat, a Cree-speaking First Nations reservation in northern Ontario. At the time we inquired about Bible Translation projects up there but we were told there was no need: they had Bible portions they were happy with. We are not entirely surprised to feel like we have come full circle in this, with Jeff being involved with indigenous Canadians again.

Again, we want to express our  thankfulness for your prayers and financial support. If you have any questions, please do get in touch with either of us.
brandie.green@wycliffe.ca
jeffgreen76@gmail.com

Sign Language Translations: What I didn't know

(originally posted on May 24, 2017)
As a member care adviser, one of my newest members is working with multiple sign language translations in Asia. I have to admit that my ignorance of the need for a Bible in Signed Languages was high, as in I really knew nothing. Here's a 6 minute video on why the signed languages of the world need their own Bible translations; and it's why I'm delighted to add this new member to the group of those I supervise.

Altar-ed meaning

(originally posted on 2017-02-14)

I (Jeff) was in Asia consulting for two translation teams last week, and supervising a translation consultant-in-training. We were checking Genesis 10-23 in one language, and 11-17 in a related language.

In Genesis 12:7 we came across the word for 'altar', and one of the things translation consultants check is how teams handle words for items in the Bible that modern cultures don't have. The two people groups we were checking the translations for are Buddhist, and they do have altars. A related-language translation that both teams used as a resource already had a word for altar, and that term seemed to work for one of the two teams we were working with.

The consultant-in-training happened to know that the related-language translation team was reconsidering its word for altar. The word seems to mean a small altar: these altars can go in houses or in temples, and they're used for offering various food offerings or incense to their gods. The altars in the Old Testament, however, were used for offering entire animals on, and there's no way a sheep or an ox could fit on one of the altars this word describes.

As we talked about it with the team that was using that word, they agreed that that kind of altar was small, and typically located inside a room, so it was not an appropriate word to describe the Old Testament altars. They laughed at the idea of putting an animal on that kind of altar. They also have larger, outdoor altars, and they were happy to switch to using the word for those.

Problem solved. Or so we thought, until a couple days later when we brought in someone else from the community to test how well the translation communicated. She suggested another spelling for the term we’d settled on, and as we talked about the term, we realized that it really meant a place where incense or fragrant branches are burned as an offering. It’s big enough to fit an animal on, but this people group doesn’t sacrifice animals; would this word work well enough anyway? She didn't think so.

Sometimes you have to pick a word that doesn’t quite work, and hope the rest of the translation helps readers make sense of it. A few chapters later when Abraham puts Isaac on an altar, and then sacrifices a ram on it, does this word still work? This team doesn't have that chapter ready yet, so we couldn't test it. The team will have to do more testing with people in the community to see if they can use this word, or if they’ll have to coin a new phrase, like “thing for doing sacrifices on”. (Incidentally, that's how the other team we were working with handled 'altar'.)

I wouldn't have checked the word for altar so carefully myself. As far as I knew, the related-language translation team, whose work has been carefully checked and approved by a number of consultants over the years, had settled on a good word, and it was no problem for other translations to use the same word. But when we got the right people together and asked the right questions, we were able to identify this translation problem. If only the solution were as easy to find as the problem was!

This team thanked us at the end of the week with these words: “We had a good time and learned a lot. Our translation has become more idiomatic and accurate because of your help. Your sacrifice and hard work are greatly appreciated.”