Sustaining Faith

Missionaries serving with Lutheran Bible Translators (LBT) in West Africa recently wrote about meeting a gentleman I’ll call John. Many years ago, John worked with another missionary to produce Biblical short stories and literacy primers in John’s language. At that point in time, John’s language community “was not yet fully mobilized to seek God through His Word.” John hoped that in the future things would change. He took the books he’d helped produce and sealed them in an oil drum to keep them safe from mice and rain.

Nearly 40 years later, John met with the LBT missionaries who have come to assist with Bible translation and showed them the contents of the oil drum. “These books will help us do a deeper language study analysis as we can observe how the language has changed over time,” the missionaries report. “We praise God for the faith John showed 40 years ago, and that his people are now ready and eager to have the Bible in their language.”

Sometimes the future appears uncertain. John could not know if there would ever be another opportunity to have God’s Word in his language. But he had faith, never losing hope that he would be able to hear and read Scripture in his mother tongue.

Today, the world is experiencing uncertainty. COVID-19 is impacting all our lives and will certainly impact the future. We do not know what tomorrow will bring. But our faith in Christ brings comfort and hope, the promise of life beyond the troubles of today and an eternal dwelling place in heaven.

Like you, LBT staff and missionaries are practicing social distancing. But we’re still working, still translating, still communicating with our partners and donors. Click here to learn more.