Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Posts!
God has been so good to us this year! Enjoy our 2022 greetings video where we share about our Wycliffe ministry and family.
If the Lord leads you to partner with our Wycliffe ministry, you can do that online, or see other options here.
Merry Christmas, with love and gratitude.
James, Christina, and family
“For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” ~ Hebrews 4:12 ~
The Bible translation process can be a long and challenging road. Much prayer, hard work, and reliance upon the Lord is required to translate God’s Word. Then there are numerous checks to make sure it communicates accurately to their people. This road is also marked with encouraging milestones and God-moments.
One such moment just recently came for the Onobasulu translation team as they FINISHED the “advisor check” of their New Testament. This means the full New Testament has been translated and reviewed by a qualified advisor. That’s worth celebrating!
While we were in Papua New Guinea (PNG) James worked with a number of the people involved in the Onobasulu translation. Seeing the Onobasulu interacting with God’s Word warms our hearts!
The Word of God is invaluable, powerful, and sharper than any double-edged sword. It cuts us to the heart, speaks life to our weary bones, tells us of the love and compassion that Jesus has for His people, and provides crucial instruction for our lives.
Watch this powerful video of an evangelist who was imprisoned, without access to God’s Word, for years!
What would you do if you did NOT have a copy of God’s Word?
God is good! He has provided additional financial partners, as well as increasing the giving from other financial partners. We are grateful.
While we are still quite far below 100% of our Wycliffe ministry budget, we continue to trust that God will provide. Please continue to pray with us for the financial provision we need.
Thank you for the ways you have partnered and prayed with us to see God’s Word made known throughout the nations.
In Him,
James and Christina
Below are some recent photo highlights from our family. ? Click the collage to see more.
“After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb.”
~ Revelation 7:9a ~
In June, James had the chance to help teach in an online training workshop for Bible translators and others involved in Bible translation. This was a beginner course for people just getting started in using Paratext, which is powerful and essential Bible translation software. People from a number of different countries participated, which is becoming the new norm as he and his team host online training sessions. The training went well and the participants are ready to use their newfound skills to further the work of Bible translation. One participant shared this encouraging note after they took this workshop last November:
Thank you! Obrigada! Gracias! Abea unga mekajaliá! All of you who taught and coordinated and planned this [workshop] have been a blessing to me and to so many, equipping us to do the work Jesus has called us to, with more skills and effectiveness, and with less frustration. :) May the Lord strengthen your hands and hearts and minds for the work He has called each of you to. May He bless you and keep you, and make His face shine upon you, be gracious to you, and give you peace!
James also revised the ~250-page training manual for a 2-week Paratext workshop that was run in Papua New Guinea (PNG) about 2 months ago. Around 15 Papua New Guineans came to learn to use the new and improved version of Paratext.
It’s pretty special to continue to be involved in training Papua New Guineans and Bible translators in other countries for the work of Bible translation, all without always needing to travel around the world!
It’s an honor to be a part of a worldwide movement to bring God’s Word into the heart-language of everybody that needs it! We are encouraged to know that 17 different language groups have received a New Testament in just the first half of this year! That represents over 4.6 MILLION people from Asia, Africa, and South America that now have access to God’s Word in a language that speaks to their hearts.
Please praise God for His work in these language groups and remember them in prayer: Warka, Diama, Bahah, Tennet, Gbaya-Bossangoa, Kaba, Ngbugu, Mountain Choco, Headwater Choco, Dakani, Gubli, Jadasir, Obopar, Obundum, Oraja, Umbangala, Vee.
(*name changed to protect the people group).
Check out this one minute video to learn about the remaining need for God’s Word to go out among the nations.
Since our last newsletter, God has blessed us with two additional financial partners. This brings us closer to our goal of reaching 100% of our Wycliffe ministry budget, but we are still quite a ways off and recent donations have actually been lower than expected. We trust that God will lead and bring the people that He wants to be a part of our team. He has always provided!
Would you pray about whether God is calling you to partner with us to help share His Word with the nations? If you feel the Lord is leading you, we would love to talk more about this opportunity with you!
If you feel God leading you to partner with us in our Wycliffe ministry, there are a few options:
Sign up online: www.wycliffe.org/partner/ThePosts
Call Wycliffe: 800-992-5433 (our ministry number is 240439)
Mail a check with a separate note saying, “Preference for the Wycliffe ministry of James and Christina Post (240439)” to:
Wycliffe Bible Translators
c/o Receipts Dept
PO Box 628200
Orlando, Florida 32862
Please also contact us so we can thank you (and update our records)!!
Thank you for praying for and supporting the work of Bible translation throughout the world.
In Him,
James and Christina
Click the collage to see recent family photo highlights.
“For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son”
~ Col 1:13 ~
Below is a picture of our dear friends Jerry and Sue Pfaff. While we were in Papua New Guinea, “Grandpa” Jerry and “Grandma” Sue were close like family. We played frisbee golf, enjoyed meals together, and over the years, James helped them many times with their Bible translation work in the Nali language. James also got to travel out to Manus island, home of the Nali people, to help Jerry and multiple translation teams transition to a new version of Paratext (the Bible translation software James supports). It’s exciting to know that Jerry and Sue recently dedicated 1/2 of the New Testament in the Nali language!
For over 30 years, Jerry worked as the main translation coordinator for the Nali translation, but recently he went to be with Jesus… Tears well up in my (James’) eyes as I write this. He was such a dear friend who set an example of what it meant to love and serve Jesus.
With Jerry’s passing, Sue has taken up the role of helping manage the translation team. Because Sue knew James was involved in Paratext support, she reached out to him for help in setting up her new computer. Through a remote consulting session, he was able to help get her up and running on the new computer! Then she said:
“I was thinking I might have to fly to Washington for you to do my computer switch, but you did this really well for me [remotely].”
Through various remote training/support opportunities, James has been able to serve Bible translators, like Sue, from many countries around the world. Here’s just some of the countries that have been impacted recently by our Wycliffe ministry:
It’s very encouraging to be able to help these translators in their work!
The work is not always easy, and our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against a very real spiritual enemy. He’s constantly prowling like a lion, looking for someone to devour. He accuses the saints day and night, whispering lies that can keep us from intimacy with Jesus, trying to hide the light that Jesus has placed inside of us, and working to prevent lives from being transformed by God and His Word.
BUT we “[conquer] him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of [our] testimony” (Rev 12:11), and God’s Word shows us the way!
This video shows a powerful demonstration of how a community can be transformed from serving darkness to serving light, from being enemies of God to being redeemed and friends of the King!
This is why having God’s Word in your own language, the language you live in, pray in, and love in is so important!
Through it, God brings truth, freedom, and transformation to people’s lives and even entire communities.
God has always provided, so faithfully, for our family and Wycliffe ministry. Many of you have been faithful financial or prayer partners for many years! Thank you!!
Recently, our Wycliffe ministry budget has increased, and some financial partners are no longer able to give. Would you please join us in praying that God would provide the additional financial partnership that we need, so we can continue the work He has given to us?
If you feel God leading you to partner with us in our Wycliffe ministry, there are a few options:
Sign up online: www.wycliffe.org/partner/ThePosts
Call Wycliffe: 800-992-5433 (our ministry number is 240439)
Mail a check with a separate note saying, “Preference for the Wycliffe ministry of James and Christina Post (240439)” to:
Wycliffe Bible Translators
c/o Receipts Dept
PO Box 628200
Orlando, Florida 32862
Please also contact us so we can thank you (and update our records)!!
Your prayers and support help God’s Word reach communities worldwide, transforming them into the image of Christ. Wow!
And THANK you!
In Him,
James and Christina
We live in the beautiful Pacific Northwest and really enjoy spending time outdoors with our family. Uncle Evan even got to visit for a while!
