This has been an amazing month, year… nearly 3 years! :-}

The flights to Dallas were pretty uneventful and I arrived to find my new sister in Christ, Joni waiting for me. It was the first time we had seen each other in person. We had talked on the phone (a lot!), through email (a lot!) texted (a bunch) and of course shared things on face book. It felt like we were meeting “old” friends!

The Pioneer Missions Institute (PMI) Discovery course was wonderful! Every evening I went back to my room with my head and my heart packed full, sure that nothing else could fit. But somehow ~ more fit the following day! I learned a LOT about the needs throughout the entire world. Honestly it doesn’t matter what your gift or passion is ~ you can use your talents to help others have the chance to read the Bible in their heart language.

During PMI, we learned about needs all over the world where Pioneer Bible Translators is serving. They touched on many things, like translation, literacy, storying (if you want to know more about anything ask me… it’s all cool!), and many other things. But one of the most important things that I learned is that it takes a team to get the Bible translated.

It’s not just the person putting words on paper and teaching others about God. Of course that’s the goal, but it takes survey people, literacy workers and many support workers.

What touched my heart in a big way is that it takes MANY support workers ~ like the bookkeeping role I will fill! What excites my soul the most about joining the finance team in Papua New Guinea, is that the man and wife who graciously filled this temporary role, due to the passing of the previous bookkeeper, will get to return to where they have lived and worked among the Waran people translating the Bible, which they have done for over 30 years! Once I get to Papua New Guinea, they will be free to continue their hard work and see it to completion!

This is why I am going to Papua New Guinea…

This is what life is all about … being part of a team of people helping other people read the Bible in their own heart language for the first time… ~ ever!

So to sum it up … Pioneer Missions Institute was fantastic!!!

Since I was there for 2 weekends, I went to Oklahoma with Joni and her hubby over one weekend. Jim is a minister so I got to hear him to preach. After church they had a Father’s Day cookout. It was GREAT! Saturday night we watched Duck Dynasty… yah ~ really … Joni bought it for him for his Father’s Day gift. I couldn’t help but watch it :)… um…interesting. Ok, Jen and Robert… I have watched it… :-} …I can sum it up in one word; interesting. :-}

It was a GREAT weekend and I’m thrilled to know Jim and Joni!

Monday – Wednesday of the last week we attended the Partnership Development classes, which provided us with tools to raise monthly partners who want to join financially in what the Lord is doing through Pioneer Bible Translators and those of us who get to serve with PBT.

I am so grateful for the Lord introducing me to Joni in my Johnson U classes. She has been to Cambodia and left part of her heart there too. We are already planning to visit Cambodia someday. Wouldn’t that be cool? We can meet each other’s friends from previous visits.

Some friends have asked me if we are going to translate the NIV version or another version of the Bible. I’ll explain it as well as I can from my extremely limited knowledge. I’ll put things together that I have learned from the Perspectives on the World Christian Movement course, from the classes that PBT has required of me, and other things that I have read. This is what I came up with. I will know when I get there, how close I am to what truly takes place. Here is my version.

We go to a people group and listen to their stories, we find a common ground. God has put something in every single people group that draws them to Him. Where we find common ground, we realize which story in the Bible speaks to that particular subject and start there.

For Don Richardson, the common ground was the giving of an elder’s only son. The book/movie “The Peace Child” (I highly recommend seeing the movie. You can view it here. View their 50 year celebration video here, it’s very cool too!) I got to see the 50 year celebration video when I met Mr. Richardson in Plain City Ohio at a Perspectives course a few months ago.

Until next month…I will leave you with something fun to read from the Papua New Guinea branch website.

http://www.pbtpng.org/fishing-for-donkeys

1 Corinthians 14 v 10-11

“There are many different languages in the world, and every language has meaning. But if I don’t understand a language, I will be a foreigner to someone who speaks it, and the one who speaks it will be a foreigner to me.

Thank you for your love and support! Feel free to leave a comment