God made Gators too!

It is hard to believe that I am starting my third week of work here at Wycliffe.  So far I have been keeping busy by researching for the 75th anniversary of Wycliffe coming up in 2017. 

I am meeting all kinds of people with various gifts and talents.  It is neat to see how God pulls His children together to work at a greater capacity for His glory.  I have not only been challenged but also encouraged by these new colleagues.  Their genuine interest in my life and the life of the other interns is inspirational.  I hope I can be the same to someone else someday. 

Despite a full schedule, our group of interns were able to travel to Gatorland this past Saturday.  I'd have to say that I was not too thrilled about the idea.  But surprisingly the gators did not seem as scary when a fence separated us :)  - I cannot say the same for the Pythons. 

The best part of the Gatorland experience was the birds.  I love birds and God gave me the chance to get up close and personal with them.   Since I also love photography I was not shocked when I realized I took over 300 pictures that day.  I am including a few in this post so you can experience a part of my day. Enjoy!  

  

Stepping Off- Learning to Walk Strong in Weakness

My first step towards Wycliffe involved stepping onto a train.  God answered my prayers and provided a wonderful Christian lady to be the person I traveled with those 18 long hours.  The train ride not only taught me patience but also gave me an opportunity to see God's creation from a different perspective.  This was my first experience seeing palm trees outside of a picture.  They are a beautiful testament to God's glory and design.

I arrived in Orlando safely and once I settled in God gave me another up close experience with His creation.  The Sandhill Crane is just over 3 ft. tall and has a trumpeting call.  As I was walking down the sidewalk, five of them were walking down the road.  They didn't seem to mind me so I took advantage of the opportunity to get a picture.

During this first week at Wycliffe I participated in their TOTAL it Up course.  I learned the basics of Bible Translation such as: Literacy, grammar, phonetics, phonology, translation and semantics and language learning ( I got to learn Tok Pisin a language from Papua New Guinea)  .  

We were also got to hear about current work being done in ethnomusicology and technological developments that aid in the translation process.  One of the highlights of the week was hearing from Wycliffe missionaries .

I was challenged by two things said by these missionaries.  

First, apart from God only two other things last forever; God's Word and people.  The place where a person spends their eternity is directly related to their knowledge and understanding of God's Word.

Second,  what we may consider a weakness God may consider a strength.  For example, a translator shared how in school he was always slow at reading, trying to gather all the details.  He could never keep up with anyone.  He had seen this as a weakness but God showed him otherwise.  As a translator he has to read slowly and carefully to make sure everything is being translated correctly.   

You may see weak parts of your life and think they keep you from walking well.  However, God is more concerned about the attitude behind your walk.  Will you take a strong step of faith even if you feel it is hopeless?  Will you allow God to work through your weakness to bring glory unto Himself?   

As I learn what this means for my life, I encourage you to consider what it means for your own.  Take that step of faith and learn what it means to live with the knowledge of  2 Corinthians 12:9

^'But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.'