The Fosters

Imagine your language getting its first dictionary! The Gwere...

Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:58:05 +0300

Imagine your language getting its first dictionary! The Gwere will dedicate theirs on Jan 7

More freshly squeezed Word of God from the Mara Cluster Project...

Mon, 21 Nov 2011 14:18:41 +0300

Luke in Ikizu, Kabwa, Zanaki, and Ikoma

Ruth and Jonah in Zanaki

Ruth in Ikizu

More freshly squeezed Word of God from the Mara Cluster Project in North Western Tanzania.

I never get tired of African traditional music. Here’s a...

Thu, 10 Nov 2011 09:16:43 +0300

I never get tired of African traditional music. Here’s a taste of the Banyole opening the conference sessions today.

"If your call is bigger than your challenge then you will succeed."

Wed, 09 Nov 2011 12:18:25 +0300

“If your call is bigger than your challenge then you will succeed.”

- Canon Isaac Anguyo during the SIL national conference in Uganda

If you had to tell 27 Tanzanian colleagues what they need to...

Fri, 28 Oct 2011 17:19:35 +0300

If you had to tell 27 Tanzanian colleagues what they need to know in order to work better with expatriates from all over the world, what would you tell them? I just finished two weeks of Employee Orientation in the Mbeya-Iringa Cluster Project and it was a blast. This video highlights some of the activities we did in the team-building sessions. I can’t thank the staff there enough for their enthusiastic participation.

"No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet..."

Thu, 06 Oct 2011 07:51:57 +0300

“

No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

”

- Steve Jobs’ 2005 Stanford Commencement Speech

Go Mara Cluster go! Luke has arrived in two more languages:...

Wed, 21 Sep 2011 12:22:15 +0300

Go Mara Cluster go! Luke has arrived in two more languages: Kabwa and Zanaki!

I finally got my hands on a hard copy of Luke in Ikoma - Mara...

Thu, 15 Sep 2011 11:59:42 +0300

I finally got my hands on a hard copy of Luke in Ikoma - Mara Clusters’s second full-book publication!

"‘Cows are born with ears, but horns grow later.’ We’ve had our language, but not..."

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 07:45:52 +0300

““‘Cows are born with ears, but horns grow later.’ We’ve had our language, but not written materials. Now we are getting materials!”

- Timothy Bandirana, Literacy Supervisor for the Bwisi Language, Western Uganda

The printers delivered Genesis in the Rangi language to the...

Tue, 05 Jul 2011 18:07:33 +0300

The printers delivered Genesis in the Rangi language to the office today. Learn more about their story here: http://tinyurl.com/6z8k5g8

Craig Clendinen and I had a unique opportunity to meet with the...

Mon, 04 Jul 2011 22:04:11 +0300

Craig Clendinen and I had a unique opportunity to meet with the former head of the East Africa Union, Juma Mwapachu… brilliant man!

I’m sitting in Karimjee hall listening to the Uwezo.net...

Mon, 04 Jul 2011 11:05:45 +0300

I’m sitting in Karimjee hall listening to the Uwezo.net report entitled “Are Our Children Learning? Literacy and Numeracy across East Africa.” The numbers don’t lie. It’s a dismal situation throughout Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda. I applaud Uwezo for bringing this information to light.

Goodbye Ruth.

Tue, 21 Jun 2011 11:50:33 +0300

Ranette and I are very privileged to serve in the unique ministry of language development and Bible translation. It’s an amazing life and we get to share it with a lot of amazing people. Every day, we are reminded how much we depend on others and that support comes from a very large team of people both here on the field as well as back in Canada and the US. There are 13 churches across Canada as well as friends and family in Canada and the US who back us with prayer, finances, and encouragement.

Today, however, we are saying farewell to one of those great encouragers. On Sunday, I received word that Ruth Verhulst, Missions Coordinator and Chairperson from Church in the Village (located at Shepherd Lodge in Toronto) passed away. Ruth was our liaison with the Church in the Village and she kept us informed about the goings on at the church, and likewise, kept the church informed about us. It’s a tremendous blessing to have someone like Ruth advocating for you.

Three weeks ago I was fortunate enough to be in the Toronto area for a meeting with Ruth and Pastor Winston Osmond. I arrived at ‘the Village’ but quickly found myself lost trying to find the church office! Ruth saw me wandering around and came over to rescue me. Even though I hadn’t seen her in over a year, she greeted me like we had just had coffee the day before. That was Ruth. She was so used to the comings and goings of people and she just took it all in stride. She took me over to the church office where we began our meeting to talk about our long term plans. Within just a few moments, our meeting lost its formality and it turned into an hour-long visit with friends! Ruth has become so passionate about Bible translation work over the years and she has spread that passion to the church. She takes missions work very seriously but what I appreciate deeply about her is how seriously she takes the missions worker. She always ‘grilled’ me about how Ranette, Josiah, and Isaac were doing! I know that this concern was borne out of her own experience as a missionary in Africa. I left our ‘meeting’ feeling encouraged, blessed, and empowered. What I didn’t know when I left is that it would be the last time to see Ruth. Looking back, I am so grateful for that hour and I will cherish it for as long as I can.

Ruth was more than just a church liaison; she was a fellow missionary, a co-labourer, and a friend. We will miss her dearly. Our prayers are with her husband Carl and daughters Joy and Cindy as well as with all of those whose lives were touched by her. Sorry we cannot attend the funeral today but we will be there in spirit. We rejoice in the fact that she has gone home to be with her Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ whom she served so faithfully with her whole life.

ChristianWeek | Wycliffe Canada chooses emerging leader as new president

Fri, 27 May 2011 16:52:02 +0300

ChristianWeek | Wycliffe Canada chooses emerging leader as new president

Sangu Scripture dedication… This is powerful when you...

Tue, 24 May 2011 15:26:17 +0300

Sangu Scripture dedication… This is powerful when you think about Isaiah 55:11.

We never danced like this in church! The Sangu celebrate getting...

Tue, 10 May 2011 22:05:22 +0300

[Flash 10 is required to watch video.]

We never danced like this in church! The Sangu celebrate getting Ruth, Jonah, Mark, Timothy 1&2, Titus, and Philemon in their language… for the first time ever!!!

A trip like no other.

Tue, 10 May 2011 22:00:17 +0300

I’ve made the trip from Mbeya to Dar es Salaam too many times to count but last Thursday it was like I did it for the first time ever. This time I did it on my motorcycle! What an incredible experience. The purpose of the trip was even more exciting though… to attend the dedication of Jonah, Ruth, Mark, 1&2 Timothy, Titus, and Philemon for the Sangu language community.

The Sangu have a special place in my heart for a few reasons; first it was the language project out of which the Mbeya-Iringa Cluster Project was born; second, my friend Mwasembe who accompanied me to Canada for three months in 2009 is from the Sangu tribe; and third, the Sangu have had a long struggle to get to this point - perhaps more so than others.

The celebration on Saturday in Utengule village on the edge of the Sangu plains was truly a party - and it was a party well deserved. It was attended by just about everyone from villagers to church leaders to government officials. It was a day that will only be overshadowed when the entire New Testament is dedicated!

Over the past week we’ve been involved in a somewhat...

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 10:52:56 +0300

Over the past week we’ve been involved in a somewhat intensive evaluation of our work here in language development and Bible translation. Phillip Cox from http://plannet.ca is here as an external evaluator and he’s been helping us to gain a great deal of insight into our work. I’m excited about some of the areas we’ve identified to work on.

Why meetings are more fun in Tanzania! This little guy was...

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 17:41:53 +0300

Why meetings are more fun in Tanzania! This little guy was checking out our presentation and thought he was going to get something to eat!

"One of the greatest ironies of history, is that many Protestant Christian churches today embrace the..."

Sat, 26 Feb 2011 22:19:30 +0300

“One of the greatest ironies of history, is that many Protestant Christian churches today embrace the King James Bible exclusively as the “only” legitimate English language translation… yet it is not even a Protestant translation! It was printed to compete with the Protestant Geneva Bible, by authorities who throughout most of history were hostile to Protestants… and killed them.”

- http://www.greatsite.com/timeline-english-bible-history/