Zambia Slideshow

See more photos from our Easter trip to Zambia in the slideshow, to the right.

The Power of a Word

Translating Luke

The Mbe translation team in Nigeria was translating Luke 2:7: “She [Mary] gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.”

Taking translation to villages

For the word “manger," the translators immediately used the word “ókpáng.” “What’s an ókpáng?” asked their consultant. One of the translators drew a picture of a traditional cradle hung by ropes so that the newborn could be laid in it and swung comfortably. 

The consultant asked the translators to check the commentaries and notice that the word in the original text meant animal trough.

The next weekend they read the story of Jesus’ birth to many church groups and individuals people in Mbe villages. Often the translators had to explain the reason they had chosen to use " ɛ́dzábrí," instead of the familiar word  “ókpáng.” . As the Mbe people listened, they were visibly moved. 

Picturing the newborn Baby lying in the animals’ feeding basket, they recognized in a new way that Jesus was willing to do whatever it took to reach them. No word in Scripture is too unimportant to translate carefully and accurately. Even the word for a baby’s bed—accurately translated—can show people the lengths to which God will go to reach them, to reach us.

Summarized from a letter by Bob Creson, President/CEO Wycliffe USA

Nuru Center

 Nuru means light in Swahili. The Nuru Center supports people with disabilities, helping them learn and market crafts in Dar es Salaam. People with disabilities are often marginalized in Tanzania.

My kids got to visit the center on a field trip. They received a lesson in sign language, then the artisans taught them how to make paper beads and bookmarks made from cut banana leaves. It was a great experience for my kids, to show them that people with disabilities have much to give. They were impressed that people with disabilities should be treated well, as they are God's creation. Hopefully they will remember this day as some of them grow up to be leaders in Tanzania.

One of my students was especially endearing. He has learned English and Swahili in the past two years (after he came from Germany). He dove right into Sign Language, greeting and asking questions of his craft instructor!

Easter Messages Spoken Via the Zambezi Swing

During our Easter Break trip, two of my friends and I experienced 170 feet of gravity in the Zambezi Gorge. It was an exhilarating experience, which God used to remind me of a few things in HIS character. He used Kulu, the man who you will see helping me jump off the cliff in this video clip, to demonstrate these things. I pray I will remember and apply them as I finish my time at HOPAC and move into the next step.

1. Trust the speaker, who has earned the trust by what he has shown. His voice is sure, clear, strong, and under control.
2. Listen. Don’t dwell on it. Just obey. 3-2-1-step… then it’s exhilarating.
3. I think it would be harder to step if you had doubted and faltered the first time.
4. Yet He firmly and kindly assures and guides those who falter… lifts the chin, asks them to look in his eyes, and leads them through, nudges even.
5. He treats each one differently, as they need.
6. The first moments after the step are the scariest, and most exhilarating. Then it is joy. Joy to see the creation around you and to know you stepped.
7. But during those scary moments you can’t go back. You already stepped in faith. It is out of your hands and in the hands of what and who you have trusted. 

Mosi oa Tunya!!

Mosi oa Tunya is the original name for Victoria Falls. I got to take a train/bus trip with four friends to Livingstone, Zambia, right by the falls. God blessed us with so many lovely sights and fun surprises, like this bull elephant emerging from the water right by our vehicle! We got to try fried caterpillar, go on a bike safari, and jump 170 feet off the side of the gorge (on a "swing"). We celebrated Easter with the Word, communion, and singing, even dancing, on the shores of the Zambezi. Glorious. And now for the last term!