I (Jon) had the opportunity to visit some of translation
project leaders in the Saidor region this past week.
It was a blessing for me to be able to see firsthand
what God is doing in the Bible translation projects here in Papua New
Guinea.
It was a blessing for the
project leaders also to see Wycliffe members make the trip out to where they
live and encourage them and pray with them.
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The road to Madang |
The Saidor region is about 4 hrs by boat east of the city of
Madang on the north coast of mainland PNG.
To get there I took a PMV from Ukarumpa to Madang, joined up with
another man, and then we took a boat from Madang to Saidor. What would have been a half hour flight took
the better part of 2 days travelling by road and sea. Once we landed in Savoy (a small settlement
close to Saidor) we hiked up to Umbaldi in the Gwahatika language area. This would be our home for 2 days and it is
also where we asked the various translation teams to meet us.
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PMV (Public Motor Vehicle) loading area in Madang |
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Aluminum boats that took us to Saidor |
There are six Papua New Guinean men that are working in
Bible translation in the Saidor region.
Four of them lead projects and the other two men work to promote
literacy in the region. The language groups that they work with are the Madi,
Muratayek, Domung, Assaro and the Gwahatika.
|
Jim and I meeting with the translation teams |
One thing I noticed was the great sacrifice that these
God-honoring men are offering in the service of Bible translation. They are all Christian men that are taking
time out of their days to work on translating the Word of God into these other
language groups. The time they spend in
working on the translation is taken out of their ability to work their gardens,
work on their houses or work on cash-crops to pay for other family
expenses. Throughout my time in Saidor I
became increasingly aware of the sacrifice they are each making in their lives. This awareness grew a desire in my heart to
encourage them and pray for their work.
|
Church in Umbaldi |
In many ways, these translation projects may be the way of
the future.
Papua New Guinean people
taking the initiative and leading Bible translation projects brings us closer
to realizing the success of
Vision 2025.
Candace and I are humbled by the opportunity
to serve in this type of a facilitator role for these projects.
It would mean quarterly visits to the region
as well as a weekly radio schedule with the teams.
We would also manage the Wycliffe monies for
the projects and write reports for the various teams for Wycliffe. Please join
us in praying for God’s leading as we decide whether to take this role on or
not.
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Typical PNG house |
|
On the road to Madang |
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Settlement on the road to Madang |
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Pigs are very valuable possessions in PNG |
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The hike to Umbaldi |
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Common Tern |
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View of the Muratayek and Assaro language group areas |
|
Bridge over the Nankina River |
"Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need. I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your soil, and your vine in the field shall not fail to bear, says the Lord of hosts. Then all nations will call you blessed, for you will be a land of delight, says the Lord of hosts."
Malachi 3:10-12
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