UPDATE: MARCH 2026
Dear friends,
The Prison Epistles workshop wrapped up early this morning, my time. We looked at their translations of Colossians, chapter 4, and then there was a short closing. As I write, some of the translators are already on the train heading back to their home areas.
Over the course of five weeks we went through Paul’s letters to the Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians and Colossians, covering about 20 verses each day. The teams were pleased that they could complete a translation of those four letters, and also get feedback on some of the more difficult passages. The purpose of the evening sessions for them (they were at 5 AM for me), was to give them an opportunity to ask questions and clear up some of their doubts. So many times when we hear a teacher explain something from the Bible, we think we understand. But when we try to tell someone else what we learned, we realize that we do not understand it as well as we thought we did. That happens with translators all of the time. When we try to say it in another language in a clear and accurate way, we discover all of the details that we truly did not understand. Those evening sessions also gave me an opportunity to see how they did, and to give suggestions how they may be able to improve their translations.
Once the translators reach their home areas, the next phase of the works begins. They will need to test the translation with different people in their communities to make sure that it communicates clearly.
During the workshop I was asked by a translator in one area of the world if I could help his team by checking their translation of Judges. A week before that I was asked if I could return to another part of the world to facilitate a workshop on Galatians. The workshop is planned for the week of May 11. We have not yet determined how long I will stay there, either 3 or 4 weeks. I would use the rest of my time there to check with teams.
Thank you SO MUCH for your prayers these past five weeks. The schedule was grueling and I had butterflies in my stomach each evening before we got started, but I really enjoyed the interaction with the teams. And I could see them become more confident to share suggestions with the other teams when they were stuck.
May the Lord bless you and fill you with His peace!
John
Plans:
– right now: sleep!
– after that: prepare for the Galatians workshop and to check Judges with the OLO team.
– April 20-30: Road trip with Susan to visit her family
– May 11-15: Galatians workshop
Note: If you would like specific details on the upcoming activities, please feel free to ask. Because some of our colleagues are in sensitive areas, we need to be careful what we say publicly. Thank you for your understanding.