Streams of Prayer for 17 October 2022

The Streams of Prayer for 17 October 2022, is a circular from Wycliffe Global Alliance. Wycliffe Caribbean makes this available.

Emerging Trends

The current theme for Streams of Prayer is Emerging Trends. Sometimes God uses difficult seasons to help us change faster than we would naturally. Through the last two or three years, we faced a global pandemic, its sorrows, its disruptions, its restrictions, and its uncertainties. Some organizations took the time to reevaluate their priorities and others looked into different ways of continuing to work. We gave space to creativity and ingenuity with good results as God started new things amongst us. Stephen Coertze, Executive Director of the Wycliffe Global Alliance, encourages us to “be on the lookout” or be aware of the emerging trends in the Bible translation movement.

We celebrate and pray for new initiatives, new ways of working, and new priorities that have been borne out of the challenges and restrictions of the last few years.

Supporting, retaining and deploying consultants: Global

Pray for the ongoing work of two subgroups of SIL’s Translation Consultant Think Tank. One subgroup is working on issues surrounding compensation for translation consultants, and the other subgroup is working on a globally accessible platform for the inventory (and management) of translation consultants. These two subgroups are approaching the point of presenting ideas for piloting a combined platform that addresses both issues. Please pray for a breakthrough that results in connections and maintained relationships with translation consultants to be sent where they can best serve the needs of the global Bible translation movement.

Storying Fellowship Groups: Malaysia, Singapore

Tough times like the pandemic call for the encouragement found in God’s Word. Bible storying became a source of inspiration and a reminder of the goodness of God. Praise God for Wycliffe Malaysia and Wycliffe Singapore for co-organizing the online Storying Fellowship Groups (SFG) in July and August this year. Thank God for the more than 50 participants who attended. Pray that what they learned from SFG will be helpful in their ministries and outreach efforts.

Wycliffe helping the Community: Germany

Presented with a unique opportunity, Wycliffe Germany is assisting the community of 600,000 Ukrainian refugees now located in Germany. An emerging need for German language courses and trauma care has brought many people willing to help, despite being scattered all over the country. Wycliffe Germany developed a solution through new ways of working including online training to teach German to refugees or learning to comfort and counsel traumatized refugees.

Praise God for online platforms like Zoom; the 60 lessons developed to help people from other ethnic groups learn German; the booklet “Beyond Disaster” (from the Trauma healing Institute) in Ukrainian, Russian, German, and many other languages; and the 120 people who have taken part in the online training so far, who now feel equipped to help and train others. Ask God for stamina, strength, and wisdom for helpers and hosts. Pray for God’s love and healing to reach traumatised Ukrainians. Pray for more people willing to help refugees and to take part in these short online training sessions and for the trainers who need to say the right things at the right time.

Trauma Healing Workshops: Hungary

In December 2021, Wycliffe Hungary staff participated with other groups in a trauma healing course organized by the American Bible Society and the Trauma Healing Institute. The course was a special blessing for one Wycliffe Hungary staff member because it helped her in processing the death of her father. Meanwhile, one virtual and one on-site healing group formed. The encouragement experienced through this course, the healing groups, and the feedback received will help Wycliffe Hungary staff to organize future trauma healing groups. Pray for those who participated in these groups. Ask God to guide them further on the path of healing.

Roadblocks limit new initiatives: Sudan

Staff of the Episcopal Church of Sudan Translation Department (ECSTD) are facing challenges that limit the organization’s impact and prevent them from developing new initiatives. Join them as they pray:

• For a clear fund transfer channel through which funds can reach Khartoum to facilitate the whole department’s progression.
• For funds to enable workers to care for their families, pay school fees, and access health care, as Sudanese market prices have reached as high as 955% within two years. The prices of some commodities have been multiplied by a factor of 50.
• For peace despite an unstable political and economic context.
• For God’s provision and courage as they face possible famine in the near future.

Funding for Bible translation projects: Paraguay

For more than two decades, LETRA Paraguay has served in the Bible translation movement. The changes resulting from post-COVID-19 funding have necessitated financial restructuring. Under the leadership of Victor and Cristina Gómez, the LETRA Paraguay team is committed to facing these challenges as they respond to the emerging needs of the organization. The administrative, communications, and mobilization areas recently participated in fundraising training. The training emphasized discerning and acting under biblical principles, consistent with best practices required in fundraising by all non-profit organizations. Pray that God will strengthen, unite, and guide this team in establishing a fundraising strategy that will lead to the development of major Bible translation projects.

Deep roots and revised procedures to enable more productive projects: Togo

Wycliffe Togo is in a phase of rooting itself in the language communities. Praise God that, though they have been without language projects for several years, the team is currently managing projects in 13 languages. Pray also that God will give wisdom and decision-making skills to the leaders and all those involved in work among these language communities. Ask God for a spirit of responsibility in the actions to be carried out among the communities. The Wycliffe Togo staff are revising documents, including internal regulations, the administrative procedure manual, and the personnel management regulations. Ask God to give to all those involved in drafting these texts innovative ideas that will enable Wycliffe Togo to impact the life of the churches and communities.

Streams of Prayer is the prayer bulletin of the Wycliffe Global Alliance.

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Valrie McCarthy
Proclaimer Officer
Wycliffe Caribbean
7A South Avenue
Kingston 5
JAMAICA, W. I.
876 754 9334, 908 2970, 582 6592

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