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 

Click Here to Support

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 

Support NOW

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 

Support NOW

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 

Support NOW

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 

Support NOW

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

DONATE!

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