Evidence - by Nancy

I saw the evidence in Papua New Guinea. Evidence of a great deal of work having been done and sacrifices made. Hours and hours of work. Actually years and years of work. By many people... both individuals and families.

Here's some of the evidence.These are New Testaments in Papua New Guinean languages.

The country of Papua New Guinea is a little larger in size than the state of California. PNG has 178,704 square miles compared to California's 163,707 square miles. PNG has just under 6 million people, compared to California's over 36 million. That gives you an idea how rural PNG is. And, the most incredible fact about PNG is there are over 800 languages in that small, rural country!

So, missionaries have come from all over the world to PNG. They come to give the people the Bible in their "Tok Ples" - the "talk of their place". They came, and still come, to places where the people have no alphabet in their language. They spend years learning that language and the culture of those people so they can give them God's word in the language they understand best.

And the evidence is here on these walls... photos of translators and the people who helped them.


Can you imagine not having a way to write your language? There is much that goes into a completed New Testament translation, but having an alphabet for a language is a basic need. And then, after you have an alphabet... how about teaching the people to read their new written word? Then the Literacy work begins.

Here is Sara in the Literacy Office at Ukarumpa. All these books are single copies of alphabet books, primers, and other literacy books, in many different PNG languages.


And there are more!


Here is more evidence of the work being done in PNG. This building is the "Tok Ples Buk Distribution Center".


Inside are boxes containing all kinds of books in many PNG languages... New Testaments, health education books, alphabet books, reading primers, etc.


I was privileged to spend some time in PNG with people who work together to give the Bible to people who previously didn't even have an alphabet... and I know they are "regular, ordinary people" (who with God's help have accomplished what seems to me like an almost impossible task). To me, they are heroes.