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The Kunama people of Eritrea and Ethiopia have been

waiting so long for a complete translation of their Bible.

Thanks to generous friends like you, the Kunama

translation team is now empowered to complete the last

remaining books of the Bible in their language! With your

help, over $210,000 has been raised for the Kunama

translation project through the 2023 year-end campaign.

Despite the fact that the Kunama have been torn apart by

years of civil unrest and many live in refugee camps, they

are hungry for God’s Word in their language. They are

constantly asking the translation team to finish the work

so they can be comforted and encouraged by Scripture

they clearly understand.

The translation team is made up of two groups of dedicated

Kunama refugees — one in the U.S and Canada and the

other in Ethiopia — and they have been working tirelessly to

complete the remaining books. Many members of the team

have full-time jobs and spend their evenings and weekends

working on the translation because they are deeply

passionate about their people experiencing God’s love,

comfort and transformation in the midst of challenges.

The Scripture they have translated so far has made a

deep impact not only for the Kunama people but on the

translators themselves. As translator Johannes Joseph

Matthews said, “When I do the Kunama translation, it is

like a daily devotion to God. It also strengthens my

personal relationship with God. When I do my drafting,

I’m not just translating for someone else — my life is

being renewed, touched and changed day by day. With

work and the life that goes on, without regularly being

exposed to God’s Word, my spiritual growth wouldn’t be

[what it is] right now. My connection with God impacts

the way I father my kids [and] the way I am a husband to

my wife. All of this strengthens my relationship with God

because I am constantly connected to God through

reading His Word and researching His Word.”

Thank you for helping the Kunama translation team move

closer to finishing the job so their community can continue

to be encouraged by and transformed through God’s Word

in a language they clearly understand. We are so grateful

for your partnership.

ABOVE: Bwitengi villagers celebrating

WATCH A VIDEO OF THE KUNAMA TRANSLATION TEAM AT wycliffe.org/frontlines the completed Ikoma New Testament. .

winter

2024

A Beautiful Display of Support

for the Kunama People

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What does it look like for a people group in Tanzania to

dedicate their New Testament after waiting nearly 20 years?

From the first moment, the dedication of the Nyiha New

Testament was loud and joyous. Hundreds of people

arrived in a singing march. At the dedication, choirs took

turns presenting songs — several of the songs were in

Nyiha and newly crafted for the occasion — and the choirs

found themselves surrounded by dozens of people from

the crowd who ran over to dance.

The crowd celebrated the arrival of Wilhelm Mwakavanga

and Kassim Mwashilindi, Nyiha Bible translators, with

cheers and greetings. During one song, the two Nyiha

translators led a dance procession to carry a large gift- wrapped box through the crowd.

Most of those in attendance joined them and they brought

the box that was filled with Nyiha New Testaments to

a table in front of the guests of honor. A group of local

pastors prayed over the books before they were distributed.

Translation work for the Nyiha began in 2007 as part of

the Mbeya Cluster project which covers translation work

for over a dozen language development and translation

teams. There are about 276,000 Nyiha people in Tanzania

alone, with tens of thousands more in Malawi and possibly

hundreds of thousands of Nyiha diaspora elsewhere.

Richard Yalonde, a Nyiha speaker and Mbeya Cluster

project leader, said: “I have seen God working through

the Nyiha translation project as I see the different church

denominations working together. I see church and

government leaders working together. God’s Word teaches

us we should love each other. That’s how this is happening.”

In addition to the New Testament in print and audio

formats, the project team has also published a songbook

and a translated version of the “Jesus Messiah” comic book

for children.

“Before this translation work,” said Wilhelm, “even in Bible

school I thought God only really speaks the ‘big’ languages

like Swahili or English. But now I am happy to know that

God speaks to all people in their own language. He speaks

to all [of] our languages!”

The Nyiha New Testament Was Greeted With Joy

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God’s Word in Chatino

Is Touching Hearts

WordGivers give monthly to partner with local translation teams and help people meet

Jesus through His Word. Join a community of thousands of donors like you who are on

a mission to share God’s love through translated Scripture: wycliffe.org/wordgivers.

God is working in the lives of the Chatino community in

Mexico as they press forward translating Old Testament

books. Jaime’s story is one example of how God is at work.

Jaime is a Chatino pastor and church planter, but until

recently he didn’t use his language much in ministry.

He hadn’t learned to read Chatino well, so he grew

accustomed to using Spanish instead. But things changed

when he acquired an audio device preloaded with Chatino

Scripture.

Hearing the Word in his language was compelling to Jaime,

and he couldn’t get enough. He listened while working in

the fields. He listened every night when he got home. He

listened as he traveled to speak at churches. He even used

the audio device to share the gospel with others.

God’s Word in Chatino touched Jaime in a way that

Spanish could not. He reflected: “I am understanding the

Bible better now with the translation. I am listening and

paying attention to every detail of the narration. Every day

I fall more in love with the One who saved me.” Praise God!

Chatino Christians are eager for God’s Word! They have

been generous and collaborated to support the translation

work. From lending their voices for Scripture recordings to

providing homemade meals, there’s little they won’t do to

aid the translation team.

A project adviser reported: “Every day that passes, we

are more convinced of the work that is being done in

translation because the translated Word really transforms

hearts.” As the project continues, Chatino churches are

thrilled they will eventually be able to use translated

Scripture in their ministries — including worship services

and literacy classes — and eagerly await the day when this

will become reality.

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Leave a Legacy That Shares God’s Word

Do you hope to leave a legacy of faith that influences your family for generations

to come? Wycliffe Foundation can help you create a biblical will and estate plan

that provides for your family, shares God’s Word and invests in ministries you

care about.

For more information on these complimentary services available

to Wycliffe donors, please call our team at 877-493-3600.

Brittany Fancher is a nurse and business owner who is

passionate about Jesus and Bible translation. But in 2019,

her life took an unexpected turn: Brittany was diagnosed

with breast cancer and went through two grueling years of

treatments. Thankfully she is in remission today!

Brittany told the Lord: “God, if you’re going to leave me

here, use me.” Soon after, Brittany had the idea to start

a candle company. Brittany began testing candles and,

in November 2021, she opened Golden Belle Candle

Company with a heart to raise awareness about harmful

chemicals found in many home products.

When the company started it was, as Brittany put it, “an

expensive hobby.” Then she dedicated her business to

God, and sales took off. “God is the CEO of my company,”

Brittany shared. “If whatever I do glorifies Him alone, that’s

the best outcome.”

Around this time Brittany learned about Bible translation

at her church. When she heard about it two more times

Shining God’s Light Around the World

in different contexts, she realized God was speaking and

responded, “Okay Lord, I hear You.”

After Brittany conducted research and spoke with her

pastor, she chose to financially partner with Wycliffe.

One of her deciding factors was Wycliffe’s financial

accountability and transparency.

As Brittany sells candles at local markets, she displays

a sign that says 10% of her profits are given to Bible

translation. This provides opportunities to share about

the 1,255 languages that still need Bible translation work

started for the first time, impacting 99.8 million people.

“I’m so thankful for what Wycliffe does. Bible translation

is so important,” Brittany said. “As you give Jesus to

people, it brings even more people into the Kingdom

who want to shine His light. Giving to Wycliffe has been

such a sweet experience.”

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In 1999, Wycliffe USA made a bold decision to adopt a God- sized vision: to have a translation program in progress in

every language still needing one by the year 2025. We knew

this wasn’t possible by human standards. It would require

bold faith, working in partnership and collaboration and an

unwavering trust that God would show up — and He is.

All around the world, countries are achieving Vision 2025.

Kenya is one of them!

To help meet Kenya’s remaining Bible translation needs,

experienced staff are coming alongside 12 people groups

in a new three-year initiative. This cluster project is

called Mkondo wa Mwisho, a Kiswahili phrase meaning

“the final leg.”

“Finally, God has remembered us,” one elder said. “I will not

need to worship in another man’s language.”

As the project gets underway, representatives from 11 of the

people groups will receive training that will equip them to

produce the first Scripture in their languages and prepare

them to carry out future efforts. The remaining group, the

Waata, previously drafted the New Testament. Now they

intend to proofread and publish it. The Waata also plan to

complete portions of the Old Testament.

Whether their translation work is reaching a milestone or

just beginning, all of these people groups are united by their

passion for God’s Word and their deep desire to have it in a

language and format they truly understand.

Pray for unity and perseverance for the Mkondo

wa Mwisho Cluster as they work together to

translate God’s Word.

Vision 2025 Update From Kenya

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How to Pray With the People

Groups Represented in This Issue

PRAYER POINTS

Kunama in Ethiopia

and North America

Praise: For the two

teams the Lord has

brought together to

carry out this project —

the Ethiopian team as

well as the team in the

U.S. and Canada.

Pray: That the Lord will

meet every need for the

translators and their

families. Also pray for wisdom and endurance as they press

on in their work.

Nyiha in Tanzania

Praise: The Nyiha New Testament has been published and

dedicated!

Pray: That God would change lives in the Nyiha

community through His translated Word.

Chatino in Mexico

Praise: The project staff and Chatino community

completed the dubbing of a film based on the Gospel of

John! One team member said: “The local church gave

themselves in the activities, both in participation in the

dubbing as well as in the preparations for the meal. God is

kind to us.”

Pray: That the Lord would provide the team with wisdom,

encouragement and endurance as they translate 1-2

Chronicles.

Mkondo wa Mwisho Cluster in Kenya

Praise: New staff members were recently hired!

Pray: For God to impart His wisdom onto the Mkondo wa

Mwisho team as they select their translators.

WordSearch: Rangi-Burunge Cluster in Tanzania

Praise: The Rangi team has finalized the translation of the

New Testament!

Pray: That the publication process of the Rangi New

Testament will go smoothly with no delays.

Thanks to a long and careful process of translation and checking, the Rangi language

community in central Tanzania will soon have their New Testament! But as

translators approached the end of the project, there were some challenges.

Emilia, a literacy and Scripture engagement worker on the team, was completing

back translation using Paratext, a computer software that enables consistent and

accurate translation of the Bible into any written language. Once the back translation

was completed, final checks could be made so the team could send the text to the

typesetters. But after the final read through of the New Testament, the team found

errors — one of which was significant.

As Emilia was reading through the Rangi translation of the Gospel of John, she

realized that in the phrase “Son of Man,” the spelling of the word for “man” in Rangi

was actually the word for a type of pumpkin! Because the spelling of the words were

very similar, this error had been missed through several careful checks — even by

the translators themselves.

Thanks to Emilia’s work and God’s faithfulness, this very important word is now the

right one in the Rangi translation. Thank you for praying for the team. They have

completed the remaining checks and are now moving forward through the process

of publication, printing and distributing the New Testament to the Rangi people.

Jesus Is the Son of Man, WORD Not the Son of a Pumpkin! SEARCH

Wycliffe Bible Translators

PO Box 628200

ADV6038 Orlando, FL 32862-8200