Program areas at Serve the Global Church
Bible translation training and technical support to start new translations for 306 New or Old Testament projects in 13 countries: Bhutan, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. The long-term objective is that these churches can translate, steward, and proclaim both the Old and New Testaments in their own language. During this year, 97 completed translating their entire New Testaments and 23 completed translating their entire Old Testaments.
International church priorities. As we are advancing Bible translation, we are committed to listening, and responding, to the local ministry priorities of our international church partners. Life in these countries is physically, socially, and spiritually difficult as our partners face simultaneous threats in each area. Our Bible translation partner in Uganda established a revolving fund to assist pastors with launching self-sustaining businesses to increase their ability to self-fund. Our Bible translation partner in South Sudan installed solar panels in remote locations to give Bible translation teams access to reliable electricity and also created a recording studio for oral translations. In addition, multiple locations were given revolving funds to use for printing the finished translations so they can benefit the local people. As they sell the printed product, they will use the collected funds for further printing. Our objective in these responses is to strengthen the churches' reputation in the local community and demonstrate Christian love and care in practical ways that serve individuals and families.
Emergency assistance for Bible translation teams. Our partners both in Uganda and Tanzania, experienced violence and the need to quickly move to safer locations. Our objective is to stand with Bible translation teams during emergencies so that they can be a blessing to people facing dire circumstances, recover quickly, and remain productive in advancing Bible translation.
Program allocation of office expenses.