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Dear Friends
We are really grateful for all your prayers and good wishes for Sam and Bec's wedding in Northern Ireland. The day went really well and we were aware of God's blessings in so many ways.
Thanks, too, for your prayers for the recent recording of the Jesus Film in the Kouya language of Ivory Coast. We have heard this week that the Kouya recording has passed its quality control check, with the comments that it was very well done and the lip synching was good. There were some suggestions for minor changes and a couple of things to tweak, but the film has been approved for production, so we can look forward to DVDs being available in Ivory Coast very soon!
Now Sue can turn her attention back to the translation work in Madagascar. At the end of February she worked with a team to check the remaining chapters of John's gospel for accuracy, but the team still need to agree on the exact wording of some of the changes. Please pray for good communication between Sue (in the UK), translation advisor, Bev, and the team (in Madagascar) and main translator Benolo (in New York). Meanwhile the team in Madagascar are also revising the draft translation of Mark's gospel.
A few months ago we mentioned that I would be stepping down from my role as Executive Director of Wycliffe Bible Translators this summer; but we didn't say what I would be doing next; but things are now becoming clearer.
After a short sabbatical and a time to re-connect with our supporters (that's you), I will be seconded from Wycliffe to join Global Connections as their director of Strategic Initiatives. For those who don't know GC; it is "a growing network of over 300 UK churches and agencies with a passion for mission. Our members include organisations of all sizes working in countries all over the world. Drawing on this wealth of experience, together we seek to address the key challenges in mission today".
My role will involve:
- Researching key issues facing mission work today
- Influencing UK mission agencies in how they respond to these issues
- Working with UK church leaders in how they think strategically about mission
- Representing the UK mission movement at European and global gatherings
Martin Lee, the director of Global Connections (who will be my boss) wrote this about me joining their team.
I am delighted that Eddie is being seconded to work with Global Connections. As the main UK mission network, which is also linked to similar networks throughout the world, I have had the privilege of working alongside Eddie in various contexts over the past six years. Wycliffe Bible Translators are a key member of the network and I know they are totally committed not just to their own ministry, but also to our vision of seeing “mission at the heart of the church and the church at the heart of mission”. Partnership and working together is in our DNA and Eddie already has excellent contacts with many mission agencies and church leaders. This makes him ideally suitable to encourage people to work together in creative ways in the years ahead. We have a wonderful heritage of cross-cultural mission from the UK but in a changing world it is vitally important that the UK church finds in its new place in world mission today. As a key thinker, educator, writer, speaker and influencer (hope you read his frequent and thought provoking blogs) Eddie is ideally placed for this role. Be it links to the growing number of ethnic minority churches, churches engaging more directly in the world, understanding the huge changes in both our world and the world church, Eddie brings a wealth of experience, knowledge and a clear prophetic voice for the UK church’s commitment to and engagement in mission.
In many ways this is an extension of the role I have been playing with Wycliffe for the past few years; but with a focus on the wider mission movement, rather than just one organisation.
Though this is a new role, both for me and for Global Connections, some things don't change. We will remain members of Wycliffe Bible Translators and Sue will carry on her work with translation teams in Madagascar.
We will also continue to depend on folks like yourself for prayer and financial support; thank you for standing beside us down through the years.
In Christ,
Eddie and Sue
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