After weeks of frantic work and preparation the week of the translation check is here! Our consultant Ginny Sharp (partner Tim Sharp’s mom) is here to take us through this last step in the process of translating Acts.

The check will probably take close to a week (yep, 6 or more 8-hours days!) Acts is 1007 verses long and around 13% of the New Testament. That takes time.

The main prayer requests would be for…

God’s Word in Palawano. It’s happening… a verse, a chapter, a book at a time. Pray with us!

We were blessed today by the power and grace of God.

There is a young couple in our church (~30 years old) whom we have known since they were 5 year old kids. Now they are grown up, active in the Palawano church and have 3 children of their own. The wife is Karing, who was one of Elisa’s playmates in the 80’s. The husband is Rinard, a brother of another of Elisa’s friends; a boy who use to color our Bible story pictures we used in the evangelistic outreaches.

For a number of months, Rinard has had a cough and felt weak. Antibiotics didn’t seem to do the trick and we were afraid his childhood tuberculosis had returned. So we had him taken to town to see the doctor, who had x-rays done. His lungs looked a bit cloudy and the doctor prescribed stronger antibiotics. But the greater concern was a mass in his left lung. The doctor wanted him to come back later when more tests could be done and the other doctor would be there to help make the diagnosis.

Rinard just went out to the doctor when we fly in (read my last two blogs for more on the travel circus to get us home!) That’s the last we knew until today…

…after church Karing came running over to our house, calling to us from outside (the custom here) and crying her eyes out. When we went out to greet her, she said that Rinard had come home and that a second x-ray showed that the mass was gone. That’s right, GONE. She was crying for joy, not sorrow, and kept praising God for how he cares for his children and hears our prayers. Read Donna’s blog for more detail on what Karing was saying.

Praise God with us for his grace and healing of Rinard. Pray, too, that this will touch hearts of believers and unbelievers alike, and bear fruit for the gospel.

Yours for Reaching Palawanos,

-Bill and Donna

Just a quick update here…

We have been working full blast on translating the book of Acts, in order to meet the deadline for our scheduled consultant check in mid-September.

There are good things happening in the church, with a couple of the men (Abil and Susing) taking more and more leadership there. They need lots of wisdom, boldness and encouragement from the Lord. They are facing many difficult issues (as pastoral ministry always involves.)

We’re grateful for the beginning of rainy season, which means that at least some of the time, the weather is a bit more bearable. May-June are the worst months as the peak of hot season meets the humidity of early rainy season (think: outdoor sauna.)

The implementation of new procedures and the incorporation of new helpers brought into the translation process has gone well. We’re hopeful for both the improved quality of the end product, as well as for a more rapid pace as we work toward the goal of completing the entire New Testament.

Thanks for your part in Reaching Palawanos for Christ!

Reaching the unreached of the world is a team effort, with many people using the unique and various gifts God has given them. This is the “body” principle, as described in 1 Corinthians, in action.

We just returned from several weeks in Thailand. While there, Bill fulfilled his responsibilities as the chairman of a conference focused on helping language learners and those who help language learning. He was also able to attend another workshop called the “Language Coach Workshop.”

The trouble is, of course, that learning another language to a high level of fluency is one of the most demanding tasks that can be undertaken. So learner need as much help as possible. This is where “coaches” (language consultants, teachers, tutors, school directors, etc.), along with those giving oversight to new missionaries, come in.

But it’s not easy to “coach” or help others learn a new language, either! So the workshops are to help those who must help others.

Praise the Lord we had a very profitable couple of weeks where language coaches, etc., from a wide range of evangelical organizations, could interact, discuss issues, ask questions, listen to presentations by others with more experience, and look at each other’s materials.

Bill has handed over the chairmanship of the next Asian conference to someone else, so we can continue to focus on the Palawano translation.

It was a good feeling to head home from these workshops knowing that literally hundreds of missionaries will be helped to learn to communicate God’s truth… learning more quickly, and communicating more effectively.

After a nice Christmas visit from Donna’s sister and family, we’re headed back to the tribe.

Bill will dive back into translation, which is now his full-time activity (much to his delight) at last!

He has set up a Translation Committee of about 6 or 7 Palawano men, all believers, most of whom are teachers in the church here. They range in ages from 26 to 45, so bring a variety of perspectives to the translation process.

The youngest man, Arnel, is the “youth pastor” in the church here. He was a member of our “Emmanuel” youth group in the village back in 2000, along with Arlyn, his wife-to-be at the time. He has a keen mind, a love for the Scriptures, and he gives good insight into how certain words and expression might (or might not!) be understood by the younger generation of Palawanos, as the language is changing.

The other men are older and help Bill to access a broad range of vocabulary. Bill is so thrilled to them all helping, quite a change from working with one 22 year-old guy back in the mid 80’s (although that young man, Arturo, is on the committee now, at age 45!) All the guys have a good grasp of what the Scriptures are trying to say and that is a help in discussing how to render that meaning in Palawano.

Many others will be used to check, revise and confirm comprehension of the translation… and they are ready to roll! Right now, Bill is working on Acts, Luke and Ephesians.

Donna will resume her role of helping with some of the translation process, while continuing her language study, which will enable her to have a more extensive role in a wide range of the steps involved in the translation process.

Please pray with us as we labor to see God’s Word translated and published for the Palawanos!

We’re sorry to have to be offline for such a long stretch and unable to post updates due to email problems. But God is good, and he is working. Here’s a brief synopsis of things since late August.

Donna is going full-tilt in her ongoing CLA (“Culture/Language Acquisition”) as she pursues her goal of increased fluency in Palawano. This will give her an expanded role in the translation project, which in turn, will mean a sooner completion of the Palawano New Testament. She’s having fun along the way visiting Palawano women (many of them are young moms who were our daughters’ childhood friends), and working with several language helpers in her office.

Bill is VERY glad to let go of the title “construction supervisor” and go full time with ministry related activity (although the construction work itself allowed many good hours of reconnection, conversation, language re-immersion, and relationship building.) He is adding to what we already know about Palawano by doing further discourse analysis… i.e. figuring out how large sections of the language (longer narratives, rebukes, preaching, etc.) are organized, how themes are stressed, and so on. He’s having fun at this (it’s his thing, for sure!) He is also beginning to work on the book of Acts, which is in the final stages of translation before preliminary printing. Then he will resume translation full-time, most likely starting with Luke.

Bill’s asthma has also taken a rather significant surge for the better!! We are thankful for this… keep praying.

The Palawano church is steady and the men God has raised up are taking the initiative in leadership, teaching and shepherding the flock. Please pray for them. They are under many pressures and face dangers as well as potential of spiritual attacks.