• The two seminars at the Bible college went very well. I think the students understood my English and learned much. They were very receptive to me during my time, and the Lord helped me to prepare as well as I needed to.
• My visit to the state of Tripura was very interesting. That Sunday we (the director of BI India society, an Indian consultant and I) met with the Ranglong Read-and-Review Committee, after I preached in their church that morning. They dedicated their NT in 2003. They’ve spent the last 8 years trying to establish a new organizational structure. Now they are ready to begin with the OT. They made a contract with BIIS to finish in 7 years. Peter Ranglong, the main translator, has taken a leave from his church to work full-time on the translation. The Ranglong group has only around 12,000 speakers, but they basically have no access to the Word other than through Ranglong. Christianity came to this tribe in 1958 when two college students got saved through the witness of their friends. Mizo missionaries also helped evangelize the tribe, and now most are at least nominally Christian.
• That Monday in Tripura we met with the Darlong Read-and-Review Committee. They dedicated their NT in 1995. They have been working on the OT ever since, facing various challenges throughout the process. The translator has completed the translating work, so the people are expecting the Bible by the end of this year. Some have already paid for their copy. We had to inform the RRC that it wouldn’t be finished until 2014 because of all the quality checks that have to be done. They pled with us to tell the people for us, because they are afraid of the people’s reaction. The Darlong is a small language group (less than 10k), but they are very influential because of the Darlong in Christian leadership positions in the associations. They have the potential of affecting many other language groups. When I preached in a church on Sunday PM, I noticed many worn NTs being used. (in one pic the RRC is looking at various formatting possibilities for their new Bible)
• During my first full week in India, I helped the Darlong translators by checking their work on 2 Chronicles 32-36, the last 5 chapters needing content checking. We were thrilled when we finally finished that work on Friday afternoon.
• Yesterday (Saturday) I got to speak at a local Christian school, where 95% are Muslim or Hindu (not the American version of a Christian school). During the 6 minutes allocated to me, I got to give the gospel to those rural, spiritually needy students.
• Today I preached in the state of Manipuri, in which I couldn’t have entered two years ago. The Lord really helped me as I preached. In the afternoon I preached at a church closely associated with a Christian hospital nearby where I’m staying in the Assam state. The Lord’s blessing was on that time as well.
• Tomorrow I’ll be speaking at another local Christian school for around 10 minutes during their morning “assembly.” Most are also not saved there either among the 800+ students.
• Tomorrow is also the first day of our Asia Consultant Seminar. There will be 6 of us meeting each day of the week for the entire day to address issues of the present and to strategize about the future. The director of BIIS estimates that there are around 300 languages in India with definite need for translation work. Pray for wisdom and grace as we discuss various complicated matters.

Thanks for your prayers! I’m in good health and the Lord has kept me safe over many bumpy Indian roads filled with crazy Indian drivers.

I’m down to the last $100/month to raise for my missionary support. I praise the Lord that I’m at the end of this long deputation trail that began in September of 2007. Waterman Baptist Church, pastored by Bill Lehman, of Kingman, IN, took me on for support last Sunday. That brings me to 98%! It would be wonderful if I could receive news before I leave for Asia that the remaining support has been filled. Then I could celebrate with people here in the USA. But I’ve learned to just trust the Lord’s timing on all this.

I had a blessed time of fellowship and worship with the people of Faith Baptist Church in Danville, IL, last Sunday. Pastor Rudie and his people treated me very graciously. I had been to Danville to play basketball when I was in high school in Schaumburg, so this was my first time to go there on friendly terms! I thank the Lord for keeping me safe as I drove down south on Friday evening and then headed back on Sunday evening. There were times on Friday when I had to slow down to 30 mph, but thankfully, that wasn’t very often. But most of the time I drove under the speed limit by around 10 mph. At one spot in Indiana, I had to pass an overturned camper trailer that was blocking both lanes of traffic. It was a fairly stressful trip, but I’m glad it had a happy ending.

I have only a few more days to prepare for my 6-week trip to India. I’m wrapping up today my second seminar material at the Bible college. Later today I’m going to look over some material for a translation checking workshop that I’ll be conducting. Tomorrow I hope to get some other projects done, since I think I’m going to be very busy once I get overseas.

Please pray for physical and spiritual safety, effective ministry, and opportunities for witness and edification. Pray also for grace as this will be my longest short-term trip overseas. I’ll be headquartered in at least 3 different locations in India, and I’ll be traveling a good bit between stops.

Though the past few weeks have been loaded down with work, I’m thankful for the daily strength God gives. I posted the hymn “Day by Day” on my bathroom mirror and have relished the words of that beloved song. My favorite words are “He whose heart is kind beyond all measure gives unto each day what He deems best.”

Someone recently asked for the Songhai word for “fight.” I’m not sure what their purpose was in that request, but I passed it along to the missionary coordinator over this project. He replied with the following:

You didn’t know what you were getting yourself into when you asked for “fight” in Songhai! Not sure who wants to fight in Songhai, or why, but there are several words that can fit, depending on the context. I once heard in a linguistic class that you can tell a lot about a culture by the words that have a lot of synonyms! Well, here’s what we have in Songhai – take your pick! (I’ve included a few scripture references for where any words are used in our NT!)

addaawa, alfitina (Act 17:5, 19:40), yenje (Mat 26:5; Luk 12:51) – quarrel or fight, verbal or physical

citi (Mat 7:1-2), kakaw (Mk 8:11; Jn 6:52) – dispute, disagreement, debate (similar to yenje, but not as heated!)

dukur (Mat 18:34; Act 16:22) – being angry

gurje (Gen 32:24,28) – coming to blows with someone or a battle

kalafu – publicly disagree with, oppose, or contradict someone – kind-of in between citi and yenje!

tangam (Mat 12:30; 1Tim 6:12) – generally has the idea of war, to fight against something, to contest for something

tonye (Act 7:27; 15:10) – to blame, accuse, tease, be aggressive

wangu (Gen 39:10; 49:19) – the primary word for a war or battle, but can also mean just to disagree with someone!

Hope you find what you’re looking for! Let me know if you have any other questions!

I haven’t heard back from the inquirer yet, but I’m sure he’s blown away by the complicated response! Anyone want to help us translate the Bible into Songhai??

I leave tonight to head towards Danville, IL, for my Sunday meeting at Faith Baptist Church. The weather is definitely not conducive to driving 5 hours, but I’m hoping and praying things will clear up as the day progresses. I heard that northern IN may get 15 inches today. Yikes! Please pray for traveling safety and effective ministry.

On Thursday I also noticed that another couple added themselves to my support team. That brings me up to 96%! If the church in MN takes me on, I will be very near 100% or even at it. How exciting!

One of my plans after becoming full-time was to spend a little time each day reading up on the various goings-on in translation and linguistics, in order to sharpen my thinking skills, grow my knowledge, stay current on various developments, and find ways in which we can improve our ministry. I began by reading an article in the Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary’s journal on KJV and Fundamentalism. How I hope and pray that good people don’t divide over a translation we produce as has happened in fundamentalism with the KJV!

I also learned that there are some currently produced technical journals on translation–Journal of Translation, Notes on Translation, and Current Trends in Scripture Translation. I hope to peruse those as I have time.

But how the week can so quickly turn into a blur where I have little time to do anything else besides just staying on top of the various ministry responsibilities! Though I felt overwhelmed at times, I also found myself thanking God for having the privilege of doing something I really enjoy and of being able to help people around the world in such an impacting way. May God enable me to have wisdom and grace to keep up with the fastly increasing pace of ministry. I will soon be wondering how in the world I ever had time for deputation!

I leave in two weeks for a 6-week trip to Asia. I have to prepare for a Consultant Seminar in India, two lectures at a Bible college (How we got our Bible, Aspects of Canonization), and numerous speaking opportunities. In addition, there is the constant flow of issues of support for our consultants and translation helps that we continue to produce. Please keep praying!

I was also blessed to see the newly expanded auditorium at Mt. Calvary B/C on Christmas Day. We had a 4pm worship service, the fourth service in the new auditorium. The TV screens (to help us see the choir and the preacher better) and the beauty and comfort of the surroundings really enhanced the worship. Pastor Minnick spoke from Luke 2, declaring Jesus Christ to be the only Savior and Lord. His words were a good reminder to strengthen our convictions and hopefully draw the unsaved to God.

I am still praying for the Lord to provide the remaining 5% of support that I need, and I know you are as well. Maybe some churches will be voting in January and will take me on. I am planning on sending out letters soon to appeal to certain churches (where I’ve presented) to consider supplying my remaining support needs. Please pray for wisdom to know when and what to write. I pray that I won’t have to set up any more meetings in 2012 beyond the 4 that I already have.

It was a blessing to see the Lehmkuhls yesterday evening. They drove down from Iowa to see my family and to enjoy a family vacation in the warmer south. We knew each other during our Schaumburg days in the 1990s, so it was great to see them again. I saw them during my travels through Iowa in the early fall, but the rest of my family hadn’t seen them for almost 2 decades.

I return to the office on January 3. Other than a meeting in IL on Jan. 15, I’ll be quite busy next month preparing for the upcoming activities later in 2012. I’ll focus mostly on my trip to India in late January, but I’ll also be trying to work ahead for the events after that trip. I need to prepare for three seminars in India and one or two translation workshops. I’ll be teaching a linguistics course at Maranatha Baptist Bible College in May, and since I’ve never taught that course, I want to work ahead to be fully ready when it comes.

As we witness the protests and uprisings around the world, we may wonder if we will ever see the peace the angels announced would be ushered in with the coming of Christ (Luk. 2:13). Henry Wadsworth Longfellow expressed similar consternation in his song, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.” He writes, ‘There is no peace on earth,’ I said. ‘For hate is strong and mocks the song Of peace on earth, goodwill to men.’ But with the eyes of faith he rises above the raging of the nations, and writes, Then pealed the bells more loud and deep, ‘God is not dead: nor doth He sleep; The wrong shall fail, the right prevail, With peace on earth, goodwill to men.’ Praise be to the Messiah, especially during this Christmas season, that God’s will shall be done on earth as it is in heaven.

HAITI

I had asked you to pray for a safe and productive trip to Haiti in November as I worked with the translator on the Haitian Creole Old Testament. I hesitatingly asked you to pray that we would be able to finish the Psalms, wondering if that goal was unrealistic. Well, the Lord allowed us to finish all of the Psalms! And we completed our work a day and a half early and in spite of the fact that I contracted a viral infection during the second week of the workshop (I’ve since recovered). PRAISE God for His grace! Next time, though, I’ll ask you to pray for good health as well! PRAY as we strive to print a revised New Testament with Psalms/Proverbs by 2014.

DEPUTATION

The Lord has also answered your prayers in regard to my support. It has increased by 8% since my October letter and now stands at 93%! Tabernacle Baptist Church in Virginia Beach, VA; Worthington Baptist Church in Worthington, PA; and Pasir Panjang Christ Church in Singapore have all joined my support team. I PRAISE the Lord for these new partnerships. Also, Faith Baptist Church in Laval, Quebec, and another supporter increased their current support amount. Please PRAY as churches may be voting on support needs through the end of January. PRAY for my remaining support to come in without my having to add more meetings. I have four meetings in 2012.

COMMISSIONING

On November 30 at Mt. Calvary Baptist Church in Greenville, SC, I was commissioned into the missions ministry of Bible translation. The director of BI, Dr. Hantz Bernard, gave a charge to the church to help them realize their privilege of being involved with me in Bible translation and of their responsibility in supporting me in prayer. His words were encouraging and sobering both for the church and for me, since he explained the spiritual, physical, and intellectual rigors of this ministry.

Pastor Minnick then gave a charge to me. Using 2 Timothy 2:15 as his text, he challenged me to be faithful in life and ministry so that I might be an “approved workman.” He also took advantage of the opportunity to help the church put into perspective all the riches we have in the English language. On this 400^th-year anniversary of the KJV, he encouraged me to consider that maybe translations I help produce will have such lasting value for their language groups. Please PRAY with me that I would be faithful and fruitful as I seek to help millions of people around the world gain access to the Word of God in their own language. The first quarter of 2012 will include a five-week trip to India, southeast Asia, and Singapore in January and February, and meetings in churches in Illinois and Wisconsin in March.

UPCOMING PRODUCTIONS

Speaking of helping people gain access to the Word of God, we are going to just that in 2012 for many different people groups: Kabiyé NT (Togo); Quechua NT (Peru); Bualkhaw, Zotung, and Tedim Chin NT’s (Myanmar); Dagba NT and Rito NT (Chad); Dagaare NT portions (Ghana); Chakma and Inpui Naga NT’s (India);  and Warao OT portions (Venezuela). We are excited about the completion of these projects, but we are pleading with the Lord to provide the funds to print these Scriptures. The printing costs make up a significant portion of the overall expenses of a project. We are thankful for the giving of God’s people, especially recently. PRAY for the remaining thousands to come in. We PRAISE the Lord that we raised $44,000 at our Annual Banquet in October. It was the best-attended banquet yet.

God bless your Christmas and 2012! Thanks for your prayers!

That All the World May Read the Word,

Troy

My meeting at Calvary Baptist Church went well. Pastor Scott Paisley and his church received me graciously. I had been to Kankakee for basketball games as a high school student, but it was good to return on more favorable terms. I presented in SS and then preached in the AM service.

I returned to Indy just in time for the evening service at Colonial Hills Baptist Church. Pastor Chuck Phelps preached a stirring message on the catastrophes that Samuel endured with the loss of his mentor Eli and the Philistines’ stealing of the ark. Pastor Phelps exhorted us to trust the sovereignty of God, remember the brevity of life, and rest in the certainty of hope. He pointed out that the Lord was preparing Samuel to preach a revival later in Israel. I know he must have encouraged his own soul during his preparations for this message, considering all he’s going through. Maybe the Lord will use him to preach a revival as well. I spoke with him after the service and was thankful to see the grace of God at work in his life. He continues to stand strong in the grace that is in the Lord.

So, what else has this commissioned missionary been doing? Writing many thank-you notes after the commissioning celebration, corresponding extensively with a prospective consultant, supplementing the Consultant Manual, making further preparations for my trip to India in January, setting up a meeting with a supporting church this Sunday evening, etc. It’s a good thing I enjoy quiet days filled with endless hours in front of my computer, because that often describes my life.

As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed…

After drawing a distinction between an ordination service and a commissioning service, Pastor Minnick reviewed the highlights of my 19-year relationship with Mt. Calvary Baptist Church. Though we all wanted to have the service in the newly renovated and expanded auditorium, it wasn’t ready yet so we squeezed into the old auditorium, what we call the “Fellowship Hall.” In a sense I was brought “full circle” since I first visited Mt. Calvary 21 years ago in that old building. I began attending regularly in 1992 and joined in 1996.

After Pastor’s introduction, I was able to give testimony to my call to missions and to BI, and then to review what I’ve been doing since 2007.

Dr. Hantz Bernard challenged the church to consider its stewardship of the Word of God. God has entrusted to the church, the pillar and ground of truth, with the custody of the Word of God (Jude 3). The Church must take its responsibility seriously. And in its partnership with the head of the technical department of the only fundamental Bible society in existence, Mt. Calvary has a great responsibility to uphold me in prayer and in finances. Hantz’s words were both sobering and encouraging. He explained to the church the “behind the scenes”, intellectually and physically demanding ministry I have. At one point, I said to myself, “What are you getting yourself into?!” But then I reminded myself of God’s calling on my life and of the unique privilege I have to help people gain access to God’s Word all around the world!

Pastor Minnick began his charge to me by remarking that it was significant that I would be commissioned into the Bible translation ministry on the 400th anniversary of the King James Version. He magnified the importance of this ministry when he stated that the work of Bible translation actually preceded apostolic ministry. In Ephesians 4 we are told that the Lord gave apostles (and others) to the church, but as they conducted their ministry, they carried with them a translation. The Greek translation of the OT had already been done 150 years earlier and provided them with the Bibles they needed to evangelize the Mediterranean world.

Pastor Minnick tried to get us to realize the significance of what we have in the English language by having us imagine what our culture would be like without the English Bible. He drew a hypothetical picture in which the Chinese have all the resources we have, not us. He had us explore what life would be like in such a situation. Deep darkness!

Pastor challenged me from 2 Timothy 2:15:

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. (2Ti 2:15 KJV)

He encouraged me to be a faithful steward of God’s Word both in life and ministry. He assured me of the church’s prayers for me. The missions committee laid hands on me and prayed for me to close the service. Many came up afterwards to assure me of their prayers and support.

So, just as with Barnabas and Saul, tomorrow I depart. I head back north to stay in Indianapolis for a few days before going to a deputation meeting in Kankakee, IL, and a work meeting in Cleveland and then back to Grand Rapids at the end of next week. Full-time ministry basically begins for me on Monday, as most of my deputation meetings will be behind me. I still have 1 more in January and 3 in March. Otherwise, I’m praying that some of the 170 churches I’ve already presented at will take me on for support to complete the remaining 9%. Please pray!

Tomorrow evening this path will culminate in my commissioning service at Mt. Calvary Baptist Church in Greenville, SC, at 7:15 pm (all are welcome!). It’s a type of commencement for me, since I’ll be closing (mostly) the deputation chapter in my life and opening the chapter of full-time ministry with Bibles International. I had hoped that my service would take place in the newly renovated and expanded auditorium, but it won’t be ready until Sunday. Just as well! My first service at Mt. Calvary in 1990 was in the old auditorium, the same auditorium where my commissioning service will take place.

As a freshman engineering student sitting in an uncomfortable metal chair at Mt. Calvary, I never imagined that 21 years later I would be commissioned into the Bible translation ministry! I couldn’t have even imagined that as late as January of 2007, as a Bible professor of almost 2 years at BJU. It was that January that Dr. Hantz Bernard called me on the phone and asked me to consider the position of Chief Language Consultant at Bibles International. The next month and a half were spent determining if this was God’s will.

Though I submitted my resignation to BJU at the end of February with some fear and trepidation, not knowing exactly what I was getting myself into, I came to realize that this is the very ministry that the Lord has been preparing me for all along. My love for and interest in languages (Greek, Hebrew, French, and Latin) and my desire to be fully engaged in missions intersect in a unique way in this ministry. In fact, all facets of ministry that I really enjoy converge in this ministry. I can’t imagine doing anything else with my life!

So a commencement begins for me tomorrow. But I have already commenced. As soon as I made that first drive to Grand Rapids in August of 2007, I’ve been engaged in the ministry. I’ve already traveled to 7 of our countries: Haiti (3 times), Chad (2 times), Togo, Myanmar, India, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines. I’ve already helped four projects extensively: Haitian Creole OT (7 workshops), Kabiyé NT (Togo), Day OT (Chad), and Tagalog NT (Philippines). Of course, I’ve had some part in all 40 of BI’s projects as the head consultant, giving support and leadership to our Text Production Department around the world.

Currently I have 91% of my support, which comes from three different countries (USA, Canada, and Singapore). One church is voting on me in December, and others will hopefully vote on me soon. I don’t have many more deputation meetings–just a couple in March. In January, I plan on commencing on full-time work with BI. I won’t stay long at the Grand Rapids office, though, since I have a trip planned for January 23-March 1 to India and SE Asia, passing through Singapore along the way. This next year will also include teaching linguistics at Maranatha as well as the usual two Haitian Creole workshops and probably another trip to Africa.

So, let full-time ministry begin! By God’s grace I look forward to post-commissioning life. I plan on bathing this new step in prayer, and hope you will join with me in your prayers.

BTW, I had a good time at Shenandoah Baptist Church in Rocky Mount, NC, this past Sunday evening. In spite of another sickness I picked up from my family, I was still able to make the 10-hour round trip over the weekend. The people really seemed to catch a burden for my ministry. On Sunday I speak in SS and the AM service at Calvary Baptist Church in Kankakee, IL.

But Haiti is not very conducive to good rest at night, since there are so many night-time sounds. I seemed to be making good progress but then lost ground on Friday night. I was waken up at 1 am with a nearby church blasting their leader’s singing. Plus, there was a huge crowd of people gathered for some games or something. I could hear chanting, singing, and cheering. When I finally figured out how to get back to sleep, I was again waken at 5 am to another church service. So I couldn’t get any more sleep that morning.

I woke up completely drained of energy and having a hard time not falling over because of dizziness. I wondered how in the world I would be able to fly to the USA and then drive to a hotel at 10:30 pm that night. Somehow I made it through the whole day. I got to sleep around midnight and had to get back up around 5:30 am to drive 2.5 hours to a deputation meeting in Nags Head. God gave much grace, and I was able to teach in SS and then present that evening at Still Waters Baptist Church. The whole day was kinda a blur, but I made it through and even had good fellowship.

I decided I should go to an urgent care center on Monday when I saw my hands and feet swelling up and getting a rash all over my body. Thankfully, I was given antibiotics to take, so I’ve been getting better each day since then. I still don’t feel completely back to normal, but that might be another sickness that’s making its way through my family!

I praise the Lord for a restful and refreshing Thanksgiving at my SC church and with my family. I was given a very special reason for thanksgiving on Friday when Pasir Panjang Christ Church notified me that they will begin supporting me in January. That brings me up to 91%! That’s great news, especially since my commissioning service is coming up on Wed. Pray for God to be glorified in that special service.

Tomorrow I drive to Rocky Mount, NC, for a meeting at Shenandoah Baptist Church. I’ll present in the evening service and then drive back to Greenville on Monday.