Tom Lin

On Sept. 3-8th, I had the privilege of joining a delegation of ambassadors from the Wycliffe Board and other North American church leaders to visit the ministry in Peru. I learned much from both the foreign and Peruvian staff, who often work in very difficult circumstances. Here’s a brief summary of my visit and things I take back with me:

1. Vision in the SIL-Peru Office. SIL, a partner organization of Wycliffe, focuses on linguistics/translation work and works closely with the Peruvian government. We heard the amazing history of their work in Peru, including the multitude of Bibles translated, dictionaries, and literacy materials produced. We met with the SIL Country Director (an American), who shared with us the driving force of their work these days – a vision to close the SIL-Peru office by 2010. By 2010, they will fully hand over the work to Peruvian nationals and national organizations. And with every story the Americans shared, tears were shed. I was struck by their soft hearts and how much these Bible translators love the Peruvian people. Finally, we ended the day with a stop at a “media lab” that is headed by a Jaime, a Peruvian national trained by Wycliffe folks. Our American guide shared, “He is leading non-print translation ministry (Jesus Film, Luke and Genesis videos, media resourcing for Quechua churches, etc) BETTER than any American ever could.”

Key Takeway: The vision to see indigenous leaders take ownership of local work is necessary in the North American Church’s approach to mission and will bring about greater success.

2. God’s Word in the Quechua Highlands. After flying from Lima to Cusco, our delegation embarked on a 3.5 hour van ride up through the highlands (over 14,000 feet), navigating around steep cliffs on rocky dirt roads that didn’t have railings. We had several close calls, esp. during our return trip at night when there were no lights on the road! But it was well worth the trip. We spent hours with the native people in a small Quechua village. We gathered in a Quechua church where a literacy program was in progress, a program which taught the people how to read and write in Quechua (they only knew the oral language). A Quechua participant who never went to school stood up and shared why she wanted to learn to read: “I wanted to read the Word of God. That is why I came. [After I learned] It was like I had eyes, but was blind. But now I can see!”

Then she went on to read a few verses from Psalm 23 in the Quechua Bible, and it brought our delegation to tears. That moment made our travels from the North American cities to this remote Quechua village worth it. We were witnessing the fruit of decades of Wycliffe’s work – Quechuas having Bibles that speak to them in their own heart language and valuing them as their village’s most precious commodities.

*Key Takeway: The Word of God is a treasured commodity (in most parts of the word) and has the power to not only transform individuals but entire communities. And the intentionality and effort to translate a Bible for a people group brings honor to that people group; it raises their self-esteem and helps them understand their God’s love for them.

3. A Weak Body and A Strong Incan Empire. Our trip concluded with a visit to ATEK, a locally led ministry that has taken over SIL’s work to the Quechuas, and visits to local museums and historical Incan sites, and of course, Machu Picchu. But this was not before I strained my (other) achilles tendon, suffered travel sickness on our many bus rides, and had a bout with food poisoning that made me bedridden and breathing through an oxygen tank! There’s much more to share, but let me point you to my photos from this trip: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomandnancylin/sets/72157602009226492/ .

Humbled in More Ways than One,
Tom