(pictured above and below: Bible translation checking sessions with some of our Roma translators in Croatia and Serbia)
Have you ever experienced something that is "more than you can ask or imagine" (Eph. 3:20)? That's what God has done recently. You all have been praying for the last several months about a grant request we submitted for funding for the Roma Bible translation projects. (We have our full monthly financial support for our own missionary salary, but we did not have financial pledges for the massive Bible translation projects into five Roma dialects we had undertaken in faith.)
So, several months ago at a conference, I was talking with a fellow missionary who does Bible translation in another Roma dialect. He asked how we were funding the project, and I said that we raise money from our individual donors, asking for donations for the translation work. He shared with me about a Wycliffe-affliated organization, The Seed Company ( https://theseedcompany.org/), a mission that funds Bible translation work all around the world, and which was funding the Bible translation he was doing in Slovenia. He encouraged me to approach them and ask for support for our projects. Not really knowing whether or not they would be interested, I filled out the paper work and started the application process. The total I requested seemed astronomical, as it was over a hundred thousand dollars, over a three-year period. The Seed Company staff came to Budapest for a site visit and during that visit they informed us that they could probably fund the projects, but that the amount was too little and they could help with even more. Over the coming months we worked on a revised grant request that came in at a third of a million dollars. I remember thinking, Wow! There is no way they will fund that huge amount.
But they continued to ask questions and we continued to discuss the possibilities and kept looking at the details and what it would take to make these translation projects of the highest quality. So, you all continued to pray, and we continued working out the myriads of details with them. The result? We found out last week that they (please sit down if you have not already) have increased and approved the grant offer, a four-year plan of over half a million dollars. Can you believe it! God is so gracious.
These funds will pay for: monthly part-time salaries for the Roma doing the translations; workshops and written materials to train them how to translate; travel, room and board for the Roma, Todd & translation consultants to meet regularly for translation; software; laptops; tablets; Bible reference materials; translation of Bible translation exegetical notes for helping translation; printing; office supplies, etc.
We are so grateful to the Lord, and to the kind Christian businessmen and donors who give to The Seed Company so they can fund Bible translation.
Now to Him who is able to do more than we can ask or imagine! Todd & Pam
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