by DaveHave you ever read any children’s books about the Flood? Throughout the last few years we have accumulated quite a few books that recount biblical tales for children, and several about the Flood. Here is one such retelling in a small Dalmatian Press book we have called “Noah’s Ark”: God told Noah to build an ark with one window and one door. Then he told Noah to put two of every kind of animal on the ark. God sent the animals to Noah two by two. There were two elephants and two mice, two toucans and two lions, two…

by Stacey I remember the first time someone I had just met tried to give me a kiss on the cheek here in France. Quite honestly I wanted to run away. Apparently “the kisses” (one small kiss on each cheek) is the French equivalent to the American hug. Each time it happens my former missions professor pops into my head and says, “Remember, it’s not good, it’s not bad, it’s just different.” I have since gotten used to kissing people on the cheeks instead of a hug, but there are still plenty of other things to get used to.  For example, in my…

by Dave For French practice I chose an article in a French Christian magazine to translate and respond to. Below is my translation and some of my thoughts: New Martyr in Kenya  On February 7, 2013 at 10am, Ahmed Abdi Welli, a Somalian Christian living in Kenya, was assassinated in the middle of the street while talking with a pastor in the city of Garissa. We suspect the Al Shebabs to be the origin of the attack. The pastor with whom he was found, Ibrahim Makunyi, was injured and drove to the hospital to undergo an emergency operation.   Abdi…

by Dave Picking up our kids from school is always an adventure. After a brisk bike ride from our campus to theirs we join the French version of the running of the bulls: a vast ocean of the parents and caretakers of 120 three to five year olds flooding through a single pair of double-doors. Being responsible for four of those children, all in separate classes, we cannot merely ride the back of the wave. So we squeeze through, call back “Excusez-moi” and head for two rooms each. Then comes the fumbling French as we try our best to understand…

By Stacey Let me begin with two stories: The missionary nightmare A zealous missionary went out to evangelize Europe. He went our believing with all his heart that God’s grace was sufficient and that God would supply his every need. And what happened?  He reports that he was severely beaten by the nationals. There were many attempts on his life. He was rejected by the people to whom he was ministering and he was even rejected by people from his own country. He was in danger in the city andin remote villages. He was in danger from the so called “Christians.” He had a life of toil…

by Stacey “The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.” Acts 17:24-25    Sickness and Death We have been studying French with a friend here in Albertville who is preparing to go to West Africa to serve as a pilot. He is married with four young children. A couple weeks ago, he found out he had a tumor on a Friday, flew…

by Dave In my daily devotions I have been reading through the Gospels and I was struck by the way Christ responded to what we would call “seekers.” Three people approached Jesus, seeking to follow him, and he responded in a surprising way to all three: Seeker 1: As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”   Seeker 2: To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, let me…

By Stacey We have realized that most of our blog posts are written under the assumption that our readers are believers in Christ. So we thought we would switch things up a bit and write a blog devoted to those who do not know Christ and might be scratching their heads wondering why we live the way we do. This may be you and you may have thought to yourself: “Why would they go to a remote tribe to mess up the people’s way of life? The people in Africa are fine the way they are!” In response to that, we unashamedly admit…

by Dave As mentioned in my last post, I read through Grudem’s essay “Are Only Some of the Words of Scripture Breathed Out by God?” this week. The essay can be found in the book Translating Truth: The Case for Essentially Literal Bible Translation. Thanks to Dr. Jim Hamilton and Crossway for uploading this chapter online. As a budding Bible translator I found his article to be very thought-provoking and helpful. It is also not overly academic and quite understandable. The article is written in defense of Bible translation that focuses on translating “every word” (the essentially literal translation method)…

by Dave Do you know anyone working in the field of international Bible translation? While financial support is always good there are other ways to support Bible translation. Here are 5 *free* ways that you can support Bible translators (like us). Read to the end for some homework! 1. Keep Them Up to Date on Spiritual ResourcesMost languages that do not have the Bible are found in extremely rural parts of the world. This means that the missionaries that you love and wish to support are cut off from the stream of spiritual resources that you are immersed in. Many…