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Category Archives: Partner Organization

Partner organizations

On Advocates

ad·vo·cate/ˈadvəkit/

Noun: A person who publicly supports or recommends a particular cause or policy.

Who doesn’t like to be supported? And to be supported publicly is even better! I hope I’m the kind of person that supports others. I love the verses from the Bible that remind us that both Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are our Advocates before our Father in heaven. Some people translate that word in the Bible as “Comforter” which is another aspect of the word.

Ken and Anne with Virginia.

We have so many great advocates in our lives. Just recently we met one for the first time. Her name is Virginia. Virginia is on the missions committee at United Armenian Congregational Church in North Hollywood, California. On November 4, we were able to speak and worship at this church which has been supporting us in our work with Wycliffe Bible Translators for many years.What a great time we had sharing with some of the members in the fireside room! Virginia passes our newsletters on to others in the church, prays for us, and makes sure that we’re not forgotten. What a great Advocate she is to us.

About two weeks ago we discovered another Advocate in Scott. We met Scott and his family almost 30 years ago when we were first married and moved to a distant land called Wyoming (WY-O-Ming!). We lived in the same remote town for two years and worshipped together in a small, country church. We then moved to New York to serve for five-year with Children’s Bible Fellowship before joining Wycliffe in 1990. We lost contact with Scott after we left Wyoming but last week, out of the clear blue sky, he contacted us by phone. What a pleasant surprise! Reminiscing about our Wyoming days with Ken he later said, “I’d like to pass your name on to our church here on Long Island to see if they could take you on as one of our missionaries.” Wow, wouldn’t that be a blessing.

Within two days we received another phone call from Scott asking if we could quickly send to his pastor all the information we had about ourselves and Wycliffe. The pastor, as we discovered, was meeting with the missions committee the next day and wanted to evaluate Wycliffe and ourselves. We gathered our ministry material and sent it off – PRONTO.

Two days later I received a phone call from the church’s pastor. “Where can we send our first gift for you and your husband?”  Wow!  With the ailing economy, our funds have been very tight so what an incredible blessing this will be. And, I simply couldn’t believe how fast this happened.

Just like Virginia, Scott was an Advocate for us. He took the time to hunt us down, gave us a call and then followed through by passing our name on to his church. If he had delayed with any of those steps we probably wouldn’t have this new connection. Isn’t that cool?

Jesus is our advocate to the Father. Where would we be without that? Virginia and Scott have been our advocates to the church. Where would Ken and I be in ministry without advocates to the churches like Virginia, Scott, and yourself?

We cannot thank you enough.

 
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Posted by on November 16, 2012 in Family, Wycliffe

 

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Their words, not ours…

It’s nice to be appreciated, don’t you agree? While we all have a work ethic that keeps us serving each day, it’s always wonderful to know that what you are doing is helpful. Ken was copied on an email yesterday. In it, the consultant from his South East Asia trip was thanking Ken (and his colleague Russ) work that was done last month. I thought I would share it with you because your donations and prayers make it possible for us to do this work.

“I want to express our thanks for all the work that was done by Russ and Ken and also for the generosity of WA in picking up the tab for all of those licenses of Windows7!
 
It was no mean feat to setup 11 computers to the specifications we had set, to tweak each one, to lock them all so that translators cannot get themselves into trouble – all that among other things.  And once the workshop started both Russ and Ken gave themselves to  teaching and problem solving until the time they left.  Even after they had arrived at home they continued to give support via the HelpDesk.
 
As a result, we now have 4 translation teams who can use BGAN, can chat via Pigin, can send email and can enter the text of Scripture using the Paratext program.  I’d say that is very impressive!”

So from Asia to wherever you are, THANK YOU!

P. S. Ken departs next week for Nigeria. We’ll keep you updated!

 
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Posted by on October 5, 2012 in BGAN, Ken, Laptops, Wycliffe Associates

 

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Asia Trip Pics

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Someone’s missing…

One of my fondest visions each day is looking across my living room and seeing my husband doing his devotions in his Lazy Boy chair. For almost thirty years now, I’ve watched my disciplined spouse get up almost daily and spend time reading the Bible and praying before the start of each day.

One day some years ago, I took a photo of him sitting in his chair. He was in his warm, striped bathrobe, scruffy morning hair, with hot coffee steaming in his mug to the side of him. As the camera flash shot a stream of light across the room, he looked up and said, “Why are you taking my picture?” I smiled and said, “It’s just for me.” I wanted to always remember this special view.I have photos of Ken working, playing with our children and grandchildren, lined up with his brothers and a few awkward studio photos. But none warms my heart more than the one of him in his routine, getting his life lined up with God’s each morning.

The photo above is what his chair looked like this morning. Empty. But it’s empty for a good reason. Ken is on the other side of the world, contributing in the way that fits him best for this time in his life. Fixing computers, teaching about computers, training in software…I couldn’t do any of it! Where are you sitting today? Wherever it is, it’s probably where God wants you today. Working, taking care of children, serving in your community…Thank you for supporting us as we do our part. You are loved! Update from Ken:

We went to church this morning. Three hours. It was nice to hear them sing again …that Hawaiian-style singing. After the service was over, they auctioned off vegetables to help finish the church building. It was so fun to hear the auctioneer tell jokes and try to get them to up the bidding. It was disheartening though to know how much work went into producing the vegetables and hear them receive 10,000, 20,000 [rupiah] or maybe a little more for an entire bowl of vegetables. That’s a little over $2 for a whole lot of work. We have so much.

Tomorrow afternoon I start computer training. The first day will be basic computer skills. The second will be how to use the BGAN satellite terminal. The third day will be teaching email and the final day or two will be teaching Paratext.

More tomorrow!

 
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Posted by on September 10, 2012 in BGAN, Family, Wycliffe Associates

 

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A bit of trouble for some

This is why we must continue to pray for our colleagues and co-workers…

An IT team (not Ken’s) was robbed last week while traveling in Nigeria. Thanks be to God that no one was badly hurt and all of the computer equipment was saved. If you click here you can read the whole story or listen to the radio interview of David Reeves, Ken’s boss. Look on the top right side of the page for audio.

Ken attended a local Nigerian church yesterday. He told me that when they took the offering, people stood up and danced down the aisle while putting their money in the basket. How cool is that? I can’t remember ever dancing as I turned in my tithe!

The joy of giving! May we all have that same enthusiasm this week! Giving in funds, giving in our time, giving in our prayers…you can even dance while doing it!

 
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Posted by on July 9, 2012 in Ken, Wycliffe Associates

 

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But What If They Can’t Read?

Have you ever jolted by a simple question? A question that makes you sit up and rethink what you’ve been doing for the last 22 years?

Anne and I have been serving with Wycliffe Bible Translators for 22 years now and are committed to getting God’s Word in the hands of the Bibleless people of the world so they could read it in their mother tongue, the language that speaks to their heart. Changed lives are the result. But, then the question suddenly jolted us …

What if they can’t read?

How does the estimated 20 plus percent of the world’s population learn about Jesus if they cannot read and understand the Bible? Thankfully, Faith Comes By Hearing, another Wycliffe partner organization, is committed to reaching the nations with the Word of God in audio, offering the Bible in a format that will connect with the world’s illiterate population.

What if he couldn't read?

What if he couldn’t read?

Click on the link to read more and understand the potential impact Faith Comes By Hearing can have. And then, similar to someone living in an oral only culture, pass it on to others.

More thought provoking literacy facts:

Read the rest of this entry »

 
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Posted by on May 31, 2012 in SIL, Website

 

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Accelerating Bible translation with BTAKs and solar panels

Wycliffe USA just released an article entitled, “Wycliffe Associates Connects Bible Translators in Isolated, Dangerous Regions with Satellite Communication” describing what the TechAdvance team I serve with does. Take a peek. I think they’ve communicated far better than I ever have regarding of some of the exciting activities our has team has recently been involved in.

My colleague, Phil Harms, recently released a solar panel installation video of the kits our team has created and are deploying in areas lacking sufficient electrical power. The video explains what the kit consists of and how easy it is to install.

Go ahead, take a look. It gives a good idea of how and where our team is accelerating the process of getting God’s Word into the hands of the Bibleless people of the world. It’s not easy and frankly, it’s not always safe. But mother tongue Bible translators, and ultimately the Bibleless people of the world, are waiting.

Are you interested in helping us deploy these BTAKs around the world? If you can’t go yourself, maybe you could join our prayer and/or financial team and keep us keeping on. You can find additional information here.

 
 

Bible Translation Game! Win Prizes!

Do you like games? Would you like to win great prizes while learning more about Bible Translation? Wycliffe is launching an interactive online game called “In Other Words” on May 14, 2012.

Each day over a four-week period , a new Bible knowledge or Bible translation trivia question will be posted and participants will have the opportunity to earn points by answering the question correctly. Players will earn points faster by recruiting others to join their team.

Players with the most points and those who recruit the most players will enjoy a friendly competition for weekly prizes and a grand prize at the conclusion of the game—a trip for four to Orlando to visit the Wycliffe Discovery Center and a selection of Orlando’s finest tourist attractions.

While Wycliffe staff and their immediate family are not eligible to win the grand prize, the top recruiting member or employee will win an iPad. So if you play….we could win too!

Sign up and enjoy the game! Promote it at your church too!

www.wycliffewords.org

 

 
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Posted by on May 9, 2012 in Website, Wycliffe

 

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India slideshow

At 1.1 BILLION people, I found India to be land of contrast. Here is just a small sample of India life and culture.

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Posted by on April 27, 2012 in India, NLCI, Wycliffe Associates

 

Follow the plane!

Bruce makes some purchases for his long trip.

Due to the high cost and scarce availability of Avgas (Aviation Gas) in Cameroon, Africa, some of the airplanes that missionaries use are being upgraded to a jet fuel burning turbine aircraft. This type of gas is more available in this country. Yesterday, JAARS pilots Bruce Powell and Tom Beekman began the 4 day ferry flight of a Cessna 207 across the Atlantic to Cameroon. Bruce is the father of some of Christine’s high school friends and Tom served as a pilot with us in Indonesia for many years.

You can track this flight as it goes across the world!  Will you please pray for these two men and their families? It is a long trip!  You can follow them on their journey by going to www.jaars.org, or to the following link:

http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0Bt7W6rZD2ZYQ00Bvf8IjFjhUzJH2PFZv

 
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Posted by on April 19, 2012 in JAARS, Uncategorized

 

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