Sept 2019 newsletter (pg 1)

Fonts in Unusual Places

Did you know that every September 30 is Bible Translation Day? During the first celebration in 1966, Wycliffe’s founder, Cameron Townsend, stated, “We are making history. By God’s grace and with his help, we are taking part in a tremendous enterprise. The enterprise is Bible translation; the goal is hearts changed by God ... But before any translation can be done, before any change comes in a heart, we must overcome physical and language barriers.” (See bit.ly/BT-Day for more details.)

Computers can help overcome some of those barriers because software has been created to help translators with several key tasks. Of course, fonts (computer alphabets) are needed to display the text of the translated Scripture, but there’s often an unexpected role for fonts in these key tasks too. Below are some of those tasks and the role fonts play:

Learning the words of a language, analyzing it, and developing an alphabet. Fonts provide a special alphabet that can represent all the sounds from any spoken language — the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA).

Understanding Scripture in the original language. Fonts provide the Biblical Greek and Hebrew alphabets.

Teaching people to read and write in their own spoken language. Fonts provide letter forms that are easier for new readers to distinguish (more like handwriting) and provide support for less than ideal printing conditions.

Publishing translated Scripture in various forms: print, web, phones, audio, and video (dubbing). Fonts support high quality typesetting in a culture’s preferred style and support audio scripts (for dialog and narration) written in the local language.

So, even the scripts that actors read to produce audio sometimes need special fonts! Alan’s team has been creating fonts for decades for languages used around the world, and he’s been blessed to be a part of it. The particular font development team he’s part of is working on an update to the Roman fonts, which include support for IPA and New Testament Greek. Please pray they can make good progress over the next six months to finish up the work.

Personal News
We are planning a trip to Georgia October 27 to November 10 to visit with our ministry partners and others. Thankfully, giving to our ministry over the last twelve months has met our budget! However, regular committed giving is about $650/month short and about a third of that giving comes from partners in our parents’ generation. So, we are seeking more partners and would love to share our work with individuals, small groups, or churches. We are so grateful to all those who do support this ministry through prayer, giving, and friendship -- “Thank you!”

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Sept 2019 newsletter (pg 2)

Scripture Dedications
Please join us in praising God for these Scripture dedications that took place in July and August! Pray that the Scriptures will be used and will result in transformed lives and communities.

Renner* New Testament on July 9, 2019
Location: West Africa (Population: 6,000)

Santa Rosa Mixtec* New Testament on July 20, 2019
Location: Mexico (26,000)

Migabac New Testament on July 26, 2019 (see below for details)
Location: Papua New Guinea (2,900)

Borôro Audio New Testament on August 9-11, 2019
Location: Brazil (1,390)

Ellomwe Bible on August 10, 2019
Location: Malawi (1,000,000)

Huaylas Ancash Quechua Bible on August 10, 2019
Location: Peru (336,000)

Mato New Testament on August 14, 2019
Location: Papua New Guinea (1,250)

Margos-Yarowilca-Lauricocha Quechua Bible
on August 18, 2019
Location: Peru (114,000)

There will be a Scripture celebration in Orlando, which will include the installation of Wycliffe’s new president, on October 10 at 2 p.m EDT. It can be viewed live over the Internet. For more info, see www.wycliffe.org/celebrate.

Migabac New Testament Dedication †
After days of rain, the sun broke out, and a rainbow of promise appeared on the afternoon before the Migabac people dedicated to God their freshly printed New Testament (NT). Hundreds joined together to rejoice in having the NT in their heart language. Many purchased their own copy and were encouraged to apply it to their lives. Steve and Debbie McEvoy have worked with the Migabac people for 22 years to reach this point of giving them the NT. The McEvoys are now on home leave for a year, but the Migabac can grow in their faith — they have Scripture in their language to read and study.

You too have had a part in the completion of this NT! How? It was printed using the Charis font — one of the fonts Alan and his team produce, specially created for Scripture publishing. You were also involved because the McEvoy kids attended one of our schools and Debbie taught preschool there. Lynée’s department supports families and educators through training, monthly emails, and a website of resources.

* Name changed.
† The Migabac dedication involved translators supported by our church in Dallas.

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Discipling the Next Generation

Dear Friends and Family,

Donna Smith smiled as she thought about working for the last 16 years at Ukarumpa International School in Papua New Guinea. “It has small class sizes, teachers who are in it for the love of discipleship and Bible translation, and a high quality of kids. … It’s just very fun,” she said. “The kids are cared for and come to school ready to learn. It’s a teacher’s dream!”

But discipleship is at the core of Donna’s work every day. “Because of their multicultural experience, life experience, and education, [these students] are going to be leaders who are bridging different culture groups,” Donna noted. “They are always going to see things monocultural people don't see. Many come out of their childhood with a robust faith and a commitment to ministry. The kids that I teach will not just blend in and not make waves. They will be influential. It's a big legacy.”

Earlier this year, Donna had the privilege of walking with her 11th grade class through a stressful time. Instead of giving them AP homework during the crisis, she focused on helping them process anxiety, stress, mental health and identity. “I wanted them to know that their worth isn’t in working hard and getting good grades, but their identity and worth come from God,” she explained. “At a Christian school like ours, I can stop the lesson, I can tell them my story and give them [the] tools and time to pray and deal with issues.”

God is moving through Ukarumpa International School, not just in the work of Bible translation, but also through hundreds of missionary kids who are growing and thriving.

Excerpted from: Discipling the Next Generation at Ukarumpa school

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Personal News
The three weeks we spent helping Lynee’s parents in Nashville went well. Even though Lynee’s mom was not feeling well during the time we were there, she and Lynee still sorted through a lot of papers and items. We also had some good talks with them about the future. While there, we enjoyed celebrating Lynee’s parents’ anniversary and her brother’s birthday. I was able to work fairly effectively using a desk in Lynee’s brother’s home, though some tasks were easier to do remotely than others. I’m thankful to be back in my cubicle in Dallas now.

Lynee’s team is making progress transferring material from their old website to the new one, but it is coming along slowly. It was a good project to work on while she was in Nashville. Now that she’s back in Dallas, other tasks at work are taking more of her time.

Upcoming Trip
We are planning our yearly visit to Georgia from October 27 to November 10 (including three Sundays) to visit our ministry partners and others. Please pray for our preparations, such as creating presentations, writing a newsletter, and finishing some projects before leaving. Since we are in need of more financial partners for our ministry, we would appreciate opportunities to share our work with individuals, small groups, or churches. We are very grateful to God and to all those who support this work through prayer, giving, and friendship -- “Thank You!”

In the Love and Grace of Jesus