By Norm and Jill Weatherhead

“Jesus loves me this I know for the Bible tells me so” is a song I can remember my mother teaching me and in turn I taught it to my children. What confidence I can have in the knowledge of His unfailing love. But not everyone has a Bible or has heard of Jesus love. It is one of the reasons that propel all of us to leave our ‘home’ country and come to Papua New Guinea (PNG).

Sometimes getting the Bible translated involves people stepping into roles and doing tasks that were not the original reasons they came to serve in PNG.  This is in part due to the personnel shortage that exists at the moment within the Branch. Presently three translators find themselves working more in administrative roles of leadership, finance and literacy rather then doing the translation work. When I asked one of these individuals, “Is it hard for you to not be translating for the language you have been working among and instead doing this other task?” The answer came something like this “I love those people. I want them to have the Bible. God loves them more than me. But God doesn’t just love them. He loves everyone.”

It certainly helps put things in perspective for me. It also prompts me to pray as well that more workers will come to Papua New Guinea that will work in these areas of leadership, finance and literacy so that the three, as well as others, can get back to the task of bringing God’s Word to life for the peoples here. The work will get done because Revelation 7:9-10 says:

“…after this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from EVERY nation…tribe…people…language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothes in white robes and held palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne and to the Lamb!”

Norm and Jill are based out of Canada and Norm is a Bible translation consultant.