Monthly Update

 
   Today is an update day. It has been one month since this blog has started, and what a month it has been! I have learned so much about running a blog and about marketing in general. Thank you all very much for reading consistently and praying fervently for the work of Bible translation which has been entrusted to the church.

     I just wanted to give you a bit of an update on what is going on in the world as far as translating the Bible is concerned. Much is happening and much is being accomplished! It is such an exciting time to be a believer in the church. A MAST trip is traveling to Southeast Asia at the end of November in an attempt to draft Open Bible Stories  and certain biblical books.

     In the African country of Cameroon is moving quickly as they overcome physical and spiritual obstacles in press forward in translating their translation of the Word of God.

     At our main offices in Orlando there are constantly week long or two week long workshops diligently taking steps of faith to translate into gateway languages. These, of course, are the languages that make it far easier to move into indigenous languages and dialects around the world. These languages include Mandarin, Portuguese, Spanish, German, Vietnamese, French, Italian, etc.

     I am personally working to get close to the Hmong community living here in the Fox Valley of Wisconsin. In the 1970's Appleton and the surrounding cities became the worlds foremost locale for Hmong immigrants, specifically Hmong people from Thailand and Vietnam. I am attempting to build relationships and trust with the community leaders here with the intention of drawing them close to assist in translating in to Mandarin, Cantonese, Vietnamese, and Thai depending on where the particular Hmong community originates. It is such a wonderful thing to be able to work as a missionary domestically yet, still be involved absolutely in cross-cultural and international ministry.

     Speaking of being a stateside missionary let me give you an update about my support raising goal for the end of the year. It has been an exciting month and the Lord has shown his faithfulness more and more which pushes me towards him in a ferocious way.

     My end of year support goal is $750.00 of MONTHLY financial support. This is such an attainable goal church! It is 75 people at only $10 per month. Only 38 people at $20 per month. 15 people at $50 per month. it's ONLY 7 and a half people at $100 per month. Do you see how attainable this really is? This could happen instantly is the church would ban around the mission of accelerating Bible translation.

     My goal for the end of the year is $750.00 per month and I have received in the last month already $145 in monthly support!  Praise the Lord for who he is and all that he does for his workers! Bride of Christ, you are doing such a wonderful job of partnering in ministry and pressing forward in this work of placing the Bible into the hands of all people of every tongue! Bless you.

     Let us complete this goal friends. We can all spare $10 per month. That's 30 cents a day. It is SO easy to sign up for monthly commitments. Get together with your spouse, your parents, whomever you make financial decisions with and decide of a 12 month period how much you are willing to donate (and get tax receipts for) divide that by 12 and that's your monthly support! EASY!

Click Here to Sign Up!

Or send checks with my ministry account number M10826  ON A SEPARATE PAGE ATTACHED TO THE CHECK payable to: 

Wycliffe Associates 11450 Translation WayP.O.Box 620143Orlando, FL 32862

Thank you  all so very much for your willingness to be a part of this ministry.  It is vital. It is life giving. It is literally life or death for still over 3000 languages around the world. Let us join together to bring Jesus to them all! 

In His name,

Andrew J. Belcher

Christ at the Center

“Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.” And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”

Luke 2:29-32, 34-35

            Jesus was born to a good traditional, orthodox Jewish family. They would have observed the Jewish holidays and feasts. They would have upheld the command of atonement and sacrifice. And they would have obeyed the religious rules concerning the Sabbath each week. Because of this it was expected and very natural for his mother Mary and his father Joseph to take him to the temple to be dedicated and consecrated to the Lord (today both Jews and Gentiles do this). If he were any other infant boy this would have been just any other day for the man named Simeon who was performing the dedication. But this was Jesus. Jesus, being the Son of the Most High God cannot enter into seemingly ordinary situations and not make them remarkably different and divine.

            Simeon had been going about his daily life trusting and living in the promises of the Lord as spoken by the Old Testament prophets, namely that the Messiah would come. On this day, when Mary and Joseph came to the temple with the infant God-child, Simeon's life became be complete. This change was a change so dramatic and so integral to the pieces of Simeon’s soul that he was perfectly peaceful about leaving the earth at that moment. Simeon was a just (righteous) and devout (reverent) man. Similar remarks are made of Zachariah in chapter one of Luke (1:6). Both Zachariah and Simeon were working tirelessly in the temple of God (1:8-9). In many ways Simeon and Zachariah were in the same position and in many ways are parallel. Being an orthodox Jewish culture it makes sense that both Simeon and Zachariah would be priests and they would both dedicate infants in the temple; John the prophet of God and Jesus the Messiah.

            Like every other person on earth, Simeon's life was blessed with relationships. Jesus enters in and gives purpose to these relationships. It is quite literally all about the person of Jesus Christ. In verses 29 and 30 Simeon makes one of the most profound statements in the entire Bible. He says, "Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation."  The life of Simeon, Mary, Joseph, me, you, and every other person on this planet and every relationship that is participated in become markedly changed when the salvation found in the person of Christ becomes central. It cannot happen any other way. What a spectacular and peaceful statement Simeon makes when he lays his old, faithful eyes on the infant Christ.

            In relationships, which are designed to create growth in each other and to build one another up in some way, we must be careful that the center of these relationships is Jesus totally. By doing this, divinity and purpose will enter into and become the forefront of the relationship. If Simeon can make the statement that he is ready to die because he has seen Jesus how much do you think He would affect a relationship intended for to build each other up. Christ has no other option than to change situation for the better. Let him change yours.

            It is so easy to go about our daily lives and interact in our relationships on a moment by moment basis and simply forget to insert Jesus into the relationship. How easy it is to go about our lives and simply hang out with friends, or sit down to dinner with family and don’t even have a passing thought about the divinity of the Lord. How would Simeon respond to this type of lifestyle based on the statement he makes in the book of Luke? I’m sure he would think it utterly ridiculous to have access to the eternal Savior and just . . . not. Simeon quite literally said that he was ready to go into the everlasting sleep and pass away from the world because he witnessed the infant Jesus, prior to any type of salvific events on the cross, the tomb, resurrection, etc. In essence, Simeon’s theology of salvation was not Pauline from Romans or 1 Corinthians; it was entirely and wholly from Isaiah. We today have access to the entirety of the Scriptures which give witness to the whole events of Christ both in prophecy and in earthly ministry. We have more information about the Lord, do we not? So the question is begged here as we think deeply about our relationships does more information equate to more focus towards?

            The answer is logically and biblically a resounding no! Obviously in the case of Simeon there was not a lack of, but only less information about the Messiah yet there was an undying passion which equated to the willingness to die. This being said and clearly heard what is it that affects relationships with the life changing power of the person of Jesus?

            In Luke We see a few things that can lead us to have a renewed focus on the Lord as Simeon did. Though the text does not say it explicitly it according to Jewish tradition Simeon was functioning in a manner reserved for a priest in the temple. This implies that his life was inundated with the Law of the Lord as a basis for holy living. In addition to this, in verse 25 on Luke two, several characteristic of Simeon are listed. He was righteous, devout, waiting, and Spirit filled. Let’s re state these in a different way to shed light on who Simeon was as an individual. He was in a good relationship with the Lord (righteous), passionate about the things of God (devout), hopeful for the things to come (waiting), and empowered by the Holy Spirit (Spirit filled).

            So, the end of the matter for our lives and our relationships is relatively simply by looking at the life of Simeon in Luke two. We must be entirely inundated by the Scriptures of the Lord, we must be a good relationship with God passionately waiting for the future glory living life with the filled and empowered by the Holy Spirit. It is through these character traits that our lives and our relationships are changed for the better through the divine power of the Lord Jesus. Let us always be seeking for these in our relationships with all people, building one another up and encouraging one another to love and good works.

Jesus alone,

Andrew J. Belcher

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Ark

They shall construct an ark of acacia wood two and a half cubits long, and one and a half cubits wide, and one and a half cubits high. You shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and out you shall overlay it, and you shall make a gold molding around it. You shall cast four gold rings for it and fasten them on its four feet, and two rings shall be on one side of it and two rings on the other side of it. You shall make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. You shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to carry the ark with them. The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark; they shall not be removed from it. You shall put into the ark the testimony which I shall give you

Exodus 25:10-16

     In the English Bible there are two different ways the word “ark” is used. 1) The “ark” of Noah that saved he and his family from the great divine, just deluge that wiped out the disgraceful humanity living in Genesis 6-9; and 2) the “ark” of the covenant which is a very specifically designed and created holding vessel for the laws and commandments of the Lord given to the Israelites at the foot of Mount Sinai in Exodus 25. Ark is a very interesting word to study. Depending on the context it can be translated “box,” “chest,” or even “large boat.”

     What is even more interesting is that the narrative of Moses being placed in a basket on the Nile River during the great Egyptian infanticide also uses a Hebrew word for “ark” when referring to the vessel Moses was placed in. So in this case “ark” is used as a basket made of bulrushes (Exo. 2:3).

The text is very straight forward in that the term “ark” is a box. We typically associate the ark of Noah with some kind of boat-shaped object with curved bow and stern, perfect for navigating the swells of the flood. However, if we take a very literal approach to the text it was not such in the least. The ark of Noah would have looked very similar in geometry to that of the Ark of the Covenant; more or less a very rigid, 90 degree cornered rectangular box.

     What is placed in an ark? Hebrews 9:4 tell us that the ark of the covenant contained “a golden urn holding the manna, and Arron’s staff that budded, and the tablets of the covenant.” Genesis 7:13-14 tell us exactly what entered the ark the Noah built. The eight persons God wanted to save, a pair of every unclean animal and seven of every clean animal. And finally, in the case of the ark of bulrushes Moses himself was placed inside. These are all things that reflect the faithfulness of God to his people. Noah and his family was faithfulness to establish a people on this earth. Moses was an answer to take the Hebrews out of Egypt and into the promise land (although Moses was never told he would enter). The tablets of the law, the urn of manna and the rod of Aaron all refer back to the time in the wilderness as the Israelites were wandering to and fro when Yahweh established and revealed his faithfulness to his people through physical intercession for them.

     In the situations in the Bible, namely the Ark of Noah and the Ark of the Covenant, the Lord is very, explicitly clear about the specific geometry of the arks being created. In other words, there were rules and regulations involved in the construction of these objects. There was formality and specifications to not only its appearance but also its function.

     Let us take now what the text says and apply it to our lives and souls. How can the biblical texts of Noah, Moses, and the Ark of the Covenant constructed by the people of Israel affect our spiritual lives in 2015? One common theme traces through the Bible as any type of ark is spoken of; this theme is the faithfulness of God, His promises and fulfillment of those promises. What an incredible thing it would be for the people of Israel in the mighty United Kingdom under Saul, written about in the books of 1 and 2 Samuel. They would literally be able to remember where the Lord brought them and the obstacles and trials the Lord brought them through by thinking about the Ark of the Covenant and the objects that lie within it.

     Has the Lord answered any of your prayers? Can you look back in your life and see clearly how the God provided for your needs? I believe there are certain things and certain events that forever mark our souls which are never forgotten. Being careful here not to say our minds and souls are like the Ark written about in the biblical text, I do believe our minds and souls function in a similar way.

     The ark Noah built would forever be a reminder of what the Lord brought him and his family through, almost a year of cramped quarters and animal smells would then sit on the summit of Mount Ararat being a visual reminder to all those who saw it that God was faithful in providing protection.

In like manner the Ark of the Covenant containing its contents of historical and spiritual significance would always be a reminder to the Israelites that their God is altogether unique from the gods of their surrounding nations. They can experience things that immediately bring them back to when God was faithful.

     Our minds, hearts, and souls bear witness to the faithful character of the Lord and forever we will be able to proclaim his goodness in our life as we think back on how his faithfulness was shown to us. 

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The Process

    

     I realize up until this point I have left you with no inclination as to how the Wycliffe Associates process of Bible Translation functions or what I do specifically. Let me remedy this.

     The Bible translation process is nine steps long to assure accuracy in the translation. It is not a quick process by any means.  To work through all of the steps could potentially take months or years for each book of the Bible. 

The steps are:

• Create a recourse which is not under copyright so that it can be used without license.

•  Have this edited, re-edited, crowd sourced, and  published (this is at www.door43.org)

•  Provide this to missionaries and Mother Tongue Translators (MTTs) via the website, or mobile application called “Translation Studio” which is available for IOS and Android.

• The missionaries work with the MTTs to draft the books of the Bible (This is where MAST programs fit in).

• These drafts are then edited by local language speakers for readability and being understandable.

•  More missionaries meet with the MTTs and go through “comprehension” questions with them to assure that the new translation contains all necessary information in order to make sure it is an accurate Bible translation and not simply a paraphrase, or commentary on the Bible.

• It is then edited again, and re-tested for readability and making sure it comes across understandably.

• It is then edited once again and formatted for publishing.

•   It is then published.

     Where do I fit into these steps from my computer desk in Wisconsin? The first two steps! I manage a team of individuals who are working tirelessly to create this resource for the MTTs to use. I go through each book of the Bible and determine what words or phrases need to be defined, and then content is written for those terms. These words and phrases could be anything from “propitiation” as used in 1 John, to “Darius” from the history books of the Old Testament. There are hundreds and hundreds of them.  It is no small task and it is a task which is necessary so that when a translator comes across a word they need to know they have a definition and biblical use of it in order to properly translate it into their own language.

     If you would like to, or feel led by the Spirit to contribute financially to help me be able to maintain constant devotion to this work I have been entrusted, please click here.  Above all, pray.  Prayer changes lives.  Changed lives change the world.

Or send checks with my ministry account number M10826  ON A SEPARATE PAGE ATTACHED TO THE CHECK payable to: 

Wycliffe Associates 

11450 Translation Way

P.O.Box 620143

Orlando, FL 32862

In the name of Him who saves, always,

Andrew J. Belcher 

Click Here to Support NOW

Bible Stories

      What did we do prior to creating the resources for Mother Tongue Translators to translate the Bible? We gave them Open Bible Stories!  These are 50 stories moving through the narrative of the Bible from Genesis 1 about Creation all the way to Revelation 22 with the millennial kingdom! It is not a translation of the Bible but it gives the whole narrative of the Bible fully illustrated and clearly presented.  These stories include 21 narratives from the Old Testament and 29 from the New Testament.

      Why did we start with Open Bible Stories as opposed to just beginning Bible Translations? That’s a great question! We began with the OBS because it is the entire narrative of the Bible presenting everything necessary for salvation in a complete package that can be translated start to finish in only about SIX SHORT WEEKS! This is months if not years faster than a Bible translation.

     The goal, of course is to begin translations of the Bible, but the OBS are the jumping off point for reaching people who have never read the Bible, or even people who have never heard of Jesus! As important as translating the Bible is, what is more important than that is to see people becomes saved through the power of Christ! The Open Bible Stories allow both things to happen faster and with more ease. Not only is this the fastest and most effective way to reach people with the whole story of the Scriptures, each copy of the Open Bible Stories only cost $2.00 to print. That is less change than you can find in your couch if you looked hard enough. $2.00 is less than a Starbucks coffee.  $2.00 is a double cheeseburger at McDonald's. It is literally eight quarters. 20 dimes. 40 nickles. 200 pennies.

    

     Hypothetically let’s think about this. If each printed OBS is used to teach a group of 100 people. (which there is no reason it could not be more, but for the sake of the conversation we will say 100) 10 printed OBS could reach 1000 people. 20 could reach 2000 people. Get the idea? That is 1000 people reached by only $20! 2000 people for only $40! It’s insane!  How many Open Bible Stories could we provide if we gave up 1 $5 coffee per week? That’s $20/month, $240/year.  $240 could provide 120 Open Bible Stories, which hypothetically could reach 12,000 people!!  That is one person giving up one coffee a week for only one year…how silly is it that we are not doing more than this. 

    

      It’s all about perspective. Once more let’s think about if we made coffee at home and never bought another $5 coffee for 1 solid year.  That’s $20/week, $80/month, $960/year. That provides 480 Open Bible Stories to people who have never heard of the Bible. That could, according to our conversation, reach 48,000 people.  Almost 50,000 people could be reached by ONE person not buying coffee.  Imagine what would happen if you convinced your small group of 10 people to do that? Or your church of 500 people. etc.

     We have an incredible opportunity here to literally change the world! What better way to change the world than through the life-giving Word of God? It is such an exciting time in history the be a part of the Bride of Christ. 

     

     Thank you church for mobilizing and assisting the acceleration of Bible Translation. Remember all of this has a purpose :Go Bible Now

In Christ’s saving name,

Andrew J. Belcher 

Click Here to Support Bible Translation

Mobilizing

It's Time to Move Faster! 

    Mobilizing Assistance and Supporting Translation or MAST programs have begun! What is MAST you ask? It is in laymen's terms the single fastest and most inexpensive way to effectively and accurately draft a new translation of biblical books!

     MAST programs consist of a team of missionaries meeting a group of national church leaders and Christians on their turf, in their country, speaking their language.

     For the following week or two weeks after this team lands there is tireless work plowing through as much of the Bible as they possibly can drafting it into their own language.  The team of missionaries is there to assist and support as per the title MAST. They ask questions, such as “why do you use this word as opposed to this word?” and comprehension questions like this to help the translators work more effectively.

     As opposed to the incredibly high cost of translations previously, MAST programs only cost $19,500 to provide an entire New Testament draft to a people group and language who have never before read the words of the Bible.  What an incredible feeling that would be to create an entire New Testament in a language that has never before read the Bible in their own native tongue. 

     What is the most incredible part about this accelerated program? So far in 2015 Wycliffe Associates has had the opportunity and resources to perform several trips around the world! Perhaps not every one of them finished drafting entire books of the Bible, but at least started.  That means more Bibles beginning!   WOW!

     Perhaps you could pray for the MAST programs? Perhaps you could give a $19,500 donation to provide a New Testament draft to a language that needs one? Perhaps you could give a portion of that funding?

     Whatever you have to ability to provide through finances or through prayer, please do it! The time is now, we have no time to waste when it comes to people living without the light of the Word of God!

In the name of He who saves,

Andrew J. Belcher 

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Accelerating Bible Translation

    

      Our goal at Wycliffe Associates is to provide precise, accurate translations of the Bible as quickly and efficiently as possible. One of the ways we are doing this is the institution of what we call BTAKs or Bible Translation Acceleration Kits. These kits include a laptop computer; satellite communication terminal; solar panel; battery; and power supply. This technology can change lives and save souls! Technology is the present and the future of Bible Translation.

     These BTAKs give indigenous people groups the access and ability to communicate and translate faster and faster. What used to take a team of translators weeks, months, or sometimes years now using the BTAKs takes only minutes! This communication ranges from things such as “how should I translate this word?” to “can we move on to checking for accuracy now?” It has sped up the drafting phase of a translation from 2-4 years, to less than half. It is incredible!

     Since its installation in Wycliffe Associates has sent teams to install over 200 BTAKs all around the globe. With the current staff and resources we have the plan and intention to install over 250 more next year. That means in just two short years there could potentially be close to 500 new Bible translations beginning! What an incredible time for the church we live in!

     Almost 500 translations being started is a record for the history of Bible translation. It is more in two years than in the last three decades. What an incredible accomplishment. But the process does not end with the BTAKs, they are only the beginning. Still much more today with over 3000 languages that are still in need. 

     One a draft is completed we then have the arduous task of checking for biblical accuracy, cultural sensitivity, making sure it is understandable, and readable. Then it goes to further editing and finally to completion.  It is a long process that still takes months if not years, But it is exponentially faster than any other time in history!

    What an honor and privilege it is to be a part of this ministry accomplishing great feats for Jesus and for reaching the world for Him!

In His name,

Andrew J. Belcher 

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Or send checks with my ministry account number M10826  ON A SEPARATE PAGE ATTACHED TO THE CHECK payable to: 

Wycliffe Associates 

11450 Translation Way

P.O.Box 620143

Orlando, FL 32862

A Heartfelt Thank You

     

     I just wanted to take the time today to say thank you. Thank you to the Lord for allowing this ministry opportunity to be presented to me all those many months ago; and for the perseverance and diligence to keep going and move forward.  Thank you to the Lord also for allowing His Bible to be going out into all the world making disciples of every nation faster than any other point in history.

     Taking time to thank God is one thing.  It is important don’t misunderstand me, it is most important. Without Him there would be no Wycliffe Associates or Bible translation ministry at all. It is another thing entirely to take the time to thank each and every one of you who are reading this. By reading this you are becoming more educated about the need for Bible translation and more impassioned to participate and do something about it.

     Thank you to all of those who are a part of my financial support team (which anyone can be a part of) it is due to the generous giving that you do which allows me to be a full time participant in creating the resources we use to help translate the Bible. You are invaluable and nothing would be the same without you. The funds that you consistently send each month do not just help me to be able to dedicate my time to this mission, but they transfer directly to verses of the Bible becoming accessible to indigenous people who have never read the Bible before! 

     Thank you to those who are praying. Because of the cross of Jesus, when we pray our words are drenched in the holy, righteous blood of our Savior. They are holy words. They are words which go directly to God and are a pleasing aroma to Him. Lifting up the ministry of Bible Translation and me as a translation missionary is the one thing that causes the most change in the world. Nations are won through the power of prayer. Bibles are translated through the power of prayer. I am empowered and given physical perseverance in this tiresome and tedious mission through the power of prayer.  So, thank you for praying. You are the church of Christ, and His church is a praying church! 

Again, In Him Alone,

Andrew J. Belcher 

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I'm kind of disappointed in the church.

    

     Before you read this please know that in no way is the intent of this blog post to shame anyone. It is not a theological essay on anything. The intent is not to be harmful, accusatory, or anything of the sort. This blog post is intended for one purpose and one purpose alone. To share my experience and honestly a bit of hurt. This is an expression of my heart hopefully speaking directly to yours.

     

     My entire income is achieved through support raising. I can get as many "raises" as I want, I just have to go get it. And don't get me wrong, I love support raising. There are two reasons I love raising my own financial support: 

          1) I love living in total reliance and faith on the Lord. It really makes Matthew 6:25-31 more real and more wonderful than ever before. 

          2) I love seeing the bride of Christ function as she is intended to, taking care of missionaries and support their needs. Philippians 4:18-19 tells us very clearly the Lord uses the local church to support missionaries. 

     These reasons being given, the disappointment I have experienced in not concerning #1. The Lord is always faithful and even through this has He show Himself to be all the more good. My disappointment has come from #2. The Church.. 

     I have spent quite a bit of time in Latin America doing pastoral type ministry and evangelism. Most of this time was spent in Nicaragua. This is a war torn country with political unrest and a communistic underwriting. I believed deeply that the Lord wanted me to move there permanently and live alongside this dear people. I was ready to go! I actually almost left college early to move there and try to finish my degree online.

     As I was considering moving there I spoke with many people about this decision and got a similar response from them. “Why do you want to move there? Why not be a missionary in America we have a great need here too, you know.”

     After much prayer and contemplation and counsel I made the decision to stay here in the US. They were right there is a need for domestic missionaries.  Now comes time for disappointment….

I listened to the advice they gave, and did what they said they wanted from my life of ministry.  Now that I am a domestic missionary trying to raise financial support where are they?

     I keep getting the same response from people when I am support raising, “you live in Wisconsin, why don’t you just go get a job?” Ahem, I have a full time job. I work for the global church whom Paul instructs the church to support in prayer and livelihood. It is a very interesting conversation.

     When I was traveling to Latin America I would have my support raised 100% almost instantly; within weeks. Now that I am doing mission work full time in the US I have been at 30% of my support for nearly a full 12 months! A year! 

     I know people are supporting me and they are more than appreciated for that! I also know people are praying for me which is the best way to support this ministry! This fact is not unseen by both myself and the Father who gives lavish rewards. 

     However, there are more people not supporting, than those who are. For those of you on the fence about whether to support a missionary generously please prayerfully consider it. I am on the war line of domestic and international mission. The work that I am doing help translate the Bible into the heart language of more people on a daily basis goes out and directly affects the souls of indigenous people around the world!

     People are the goal, and people are the means. 

Be the church today!

In Christ,

Andrew J. Belcher 

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Anthropology and Idiom

     What is anthropology? Anthropology is the study of people, of human beings and their culture and relationships. This includes, but is obviously not limited to, languages. But not just the words that are used but also the expressions, figures of speech, etc. We all have them. Idioms run rampant throughout English to the point that we do not even recognize that they are being used the majority of the time.  For example if I said “get your head out of the clouds” I hope we could recognize that as an idiomatic expression. Someone’s head is not actually “in the clouds” it is a figure of speech. But, what if I said “well, the ball’s in your court,” would we immediately recognize that that is also idiomatic? Every language has them and they most often do not translate into other languages with the same meaning. This is a huge part of linguistic anthropology.

     The former way of doing Bible translation which is still being done today and is highly valuable in terms of relationships and accuracy of translation is using a linguistic anthropologist. This scientist would be trained as a missionary, funded, and sent to a remote location. They would then spend years upon years learn the language, culture AND IDIOMS of the language before even beginning to translate the Bible.

     Who knows a language better, a scientist from another country who is trying to learn it, or someone who was born into and grew up speaking and using it? The answer here is obvious. Therefore, who would be better at translating the Bible into that particular language? Again, an obvious answer! This is the new method of Bible translation.

     I, along with many other people, work together to create a non-copyright resource to send to remote areas so that the indigenous (we call them MTTS or Mother Tongue Translators) can translate the Bible into THEIR OWN LANGUAGE!  Their heart language! Two things happen when we use this method, 1) the Bible gets translated much, much faster, and 2) it is much, MUCH more culturally accurate. Therefore quickly created a more usable and readable Bible for those particular people! It’s great!

     Please pray for these MTTs around the world currently working on their Bibles and pray that the Lord will bless their efforts and assist them as they move forward!

     Pray also for me as I am creating tools and resources for these MTTs that I would be able to provide everything necessary and provide it effectively.

In Christ, and Christ alone,

Andrew J. Belcher 

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Heart Language

     

     A heart language is an interesting thing. Have you ever realized that everyone has one language, typically your first language that they understand more of, they understand the idioms and figures of speech, and it is a language that to them is like home. These heart languages serve as a reminder of who they are and what it means to be unique from the rest of the world.

     People sin consistently, fact. We can be honest here and admit openly that if we stub our toe on the coffee table we may sin. It may not be verbal, perhaps only in your mind.  A thought may run through our mind that is not the most holy of words. What language is that in? If you live in the backwoods of West Virginia is that sinful word or thought going to be in Mandarin or Afrikaans? Of course not, it will be in English and to be more specific, the particular dialect and regional style of English. This is the language we sin in, our heart language.

     Everyone around the world has a language that they sin in. This is their heart language. Here is the difference. In the backwoods of West Virginia you have the access and opportunity to read the Holy Bible, the book given by God to help us to not sin any longer, in the very same language you sin in!

There are thousands upon thousands of people around the globe that do not have this privilege. Wouldn’t it be great if everyone on Earth could learn to be holy in the same tongue that they commit sinfulness in? This is the essence of heart language Bible translation.

     Wouldn't it make the Lord sing if whenever his people throughout the world called upon his name for answers about how to live the life he has given them they could receive an answer from God in their own language? The Bible is the primary way the Lord speaks to his bride. God's word is the tool he uses to answer the questions of aching people. 

Hit your knees (physically or spiritually) and pray for the Bible to be translated into more heart languages than ever before!

In his name always,

Andrew J. Belcher

@gobiblenow

The King's Decree

 “Then the king's scribes were summoned on the thirteenth day of the first month, and an edict, according to all that Haman commanded, was written to the king's satraps and to the governors over all the provinces and to the officials of all the peoples, to every province in its own script and every people in its own language. It was written in the name of King Ahasuerus and sealed with the king's signet ring.” --Esther 3:12

     In the book of Esther King Ahasuerus has a decree created.  It was a kingly ordinance that was intended for all of the people under his rule and command.  Because the king’s reign was so vast it encompassed multiple cultures, multiple people, and multiple languages that needed to hear about the decree Ahasuerus knew that just because he spoke a certain language and knew a certain culture of his own that does not mean that everyone under his rule would respond to the same thing.  For this reason, as the passage said, King Ahasuerus had the statute translated into the writing and language of every province and every language. 

     The Lord is Lord over all. All people, all nations, all languages are under his control and command. His statutes and decree is the Bible. If King Ahasuerus knew that his decree was important enough for all people in every language, how much more do you think the Lord knows his is?

Do you think that the king translated his decree himself, or did he have help doing that? Of course he had help. The verse says that “it was written in the name of King Ahasuerus.” This means that he didn’t do it himself, but it was given to people on behalf of him. In the same way, there are individuals who are actively, tirelessly, and urgently working to translate the Bible into every language known.  These are the Lord’s scribes. 

     We must work harder, stronger, and faster to translate the Bible into all of the remaining languages that need it!  There is no question about whether or not a language needs a Bible.  If they do not have it, they need it. God’s word is far more integral and needed than King Ahasuerus’ decree ever could be, so we must consider it to be such an urgent subject to get into the hands of all people that we devote ourselves to this work.

     My involvement in this process is to be a full-time missionary working on creating tools and resources for the translating to be as simple, and easy as possible. Perhaps your involvement is not to devote your working hours to a translation organization, but to devote yourself to praying for the Word to reach more people. Perhaps your involvement would be to financially support missionaries like myself to accelerate Bible translation.  Whatever capacity we are involved, involvement is essential! 

Jesus saves, Amen,

Andrew J. Belcher
@gobiblenow

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Or send checks with my ministry account number M10826  ON A SEPARATE PAGE ATTACHED TO THE CHECK payable to: 

Wycliffe Associates 

11450 Translation Way

P.O.Box 620143

Orlando, FL 32862