Sower - Autumn 2016

Flickr /Ratclima

God speaks Vietnamese: help her to read his word

AUTUMN 2016

Sower

Cambodia

Mission trip ignites passion

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ourteen-year-old Caitlin has already started saving for her next adventure, after reigniting her passion for God during Bible Society Australia’s mission experience trip to Cambodia in December.

“I told myself I was going to Cambodia to ‘meet God’ and came back with a commitment to be a better person and more open about my faith,” she said.

“It’s really powerful to think that by demonstrating my own faith and passion for people, I could influence someone else’s faith and relationship with God, despite my age.”

Caitlin was one of 11 young

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people, aged from 14 to 23, who joined Bible Society’s Rick George in an action-packed two-week itinerary in Cambodia.

Most days they ran Christmas activities for children and adults at literacy classes run by Bible Society of Cambodia and handed out Christmas books. They also visited the Killing Fields to understand Cambodia’s tragic past, and spent a day at Siem Reap to experience the magnificence of Angkor Wat. All found the heat and humidity challenging but felt enriched by the friendships made and the personal growth they experienced.

“This mission trip has taught me to step out of my comfort zone and

live a life on fire for God,” said Sarah.

“It has also shown me how privileged I am and has taught me to be more grateful for what I do have.”

Sarah said the trip made her realise how desperate Third World countries like Cambodia are for education.

“Most of the villages we visited were looking for an English teacher, and it definitely made me think about a career in that profession.”

Ivonne, 20, said she really felt God’s presence on the trip.

“Being able to spend two weeks solely focused on God, without the worries and problems of work, school, and whatever awaited us back home was amazing,” she said.

“Being able to spread the word

Dear friends, to others, and being able to spend time with the children of Cambodia was really fun and worthwhile.”

Julia called the trip “the most fulfilling thing that I’ve ever been a part of.” She particularly enjoyed having a hands-on role in an orphanage, where the seven girls painted a mural while the boys painted a wall.

“I have become more aware of my personal relationship with God and am now more motivated to work on strengthening that relationship,” she said.

Jamie, who was uncertain about God before the trip, was able to develop his “outlook on Christian faith” by spending concentrated time with Christians.

“It’s an experience to never forget. For someone finding faith, I would say this is one of the last chances you’ll get to find it.”

The Bible books of Ezra and Nehemiah tell us of the Israelites returning from their exile in Babylon to Jerusalem, where they are allowed again to practise their religion. But they have forgotten how to do it. They are breaking marriage laws, the city is a shambles – they just don’t know how to live. And why? They seem to have lost contact with God’s word.

Ezra the Priest is sent to fix this problem, because he knows God’s word well. He is, in fact, ordered by King Artarxerxes, the King of Persia, not only to teach the Israelites their own spiritual law (the law of Moses) but also to act as Governor for the city, to appoint judges, act as head banker and even Minister for the Arts!

Those were the days for Bible teachers! Even the foreign King understood that when the word of the God of Israel was taught, not only would people be transformed, but their families and their city would also rise from the ashes.

When they didn’t have the Bible, when they lost touch with it, things crumbled. But when someone was custodian of the Bible, offering it back to the people as the solution to their problems, things started to turn around.

In Australia, the Bible Society is such a custodian of the Bible, on behalf of all the churches, and on

behalf of the society at large. Through our ministry here, we remind the church and the nation of the value of this book.

We urge it upon people, knowing that it is the Good Book, that it is good for us, and that we will do well to listen to it.

In 2016, we take this role even more seriously than before. Since the merger with Koorong, the Bible comes into Australia primarily through our organisations. You might be receiving a Scripture grant for chaplaincy work in schools or hospitals; or buying pew Bibles for your new church; or purchasing the latest study Bible from our stores.

However you are getting the Bible, it probably has something to do with the Bible Society group.

For this reason, would you please continue to support our work? As custodians of the Bible here and overseas, through the Bible Society movement, we still have an enormous task to complete. Thank you for being part of it.

Dr Greg Clarke, CEO Bible Society Australia

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Vietnam

The hills come A

Flickr_Martha de Jong-Lantink

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t 24 years old, Pastor “Samuel”, pictured right, is the most educated person in his village, and is responsible for several churches in the Ba Be region of northern Vietnam.

And yet this most educated person in his community had schooling only to junior high level.

Conditions in Samuel’s village were poor, and his family needed him.

Education is a luxury.

His ethnic minority village is in Bac Kan, a mountainous region 200km north of Hanoi. The village, perched at the end of a steep 2km mountain track, is accessible only by foot or motorcycle.

In the past, the Bac Kan church of about 80 people could only meet secretly, late at night. Today they have daytime church services but they cannot erect a church building. Where they meet for worship doubles as living quarters and stock house. In the rafters, piles of corn are stored from the harvest.

Samuel feels the weight of responsibility for the Christians under his care. Only 30 per cent can read or write in Vietnamese. They rely on him to preach the word so that they might listen.

His church members are just some of those Bible Society is seeking to support through literacy classes this year.

“I am very keen to have a literacy programme for

alive to God

my village,” says Pastor Samuel. “I pray that God will strengthen their faith and that literacy classes will be a new way to encourage spiritual growth as people learn to read God’s word for themselves.”

A senior leader who oversees Bible Society work in Vietnam says: “Despite the challenges they are facing, the church is quite strong. The church in northern Vietnam has only been registered for 20 years and yet it is more dynamic than many more open places in Vietnam.

“But Christians are still very much the minority and they still need to be careful. Therefore the Bible Society is working hard with the registered church so that all Christian communities can be served.”

About 150km south of Ba Be Lake in Thai Nguyen province, at the end of a long, winding and bumpy road, an abrupt, wide concrete driveway leads to a large newly constructed church building. Villagers were able to use money saved for many years, together with funds from the registered church, to replace the thatched shack that was used before.

Pastor Ngo Van Sao is the pastor of this registered church. It has 700 believers, most of whom are literate in their ethnic mother tongue. However, less than 50 per cent can read and write in Vietnamese, the official language.

In order to better relate with authorities and neighbouring villages, people need to be fluent in

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Vietnamese. In addition, most of the trained Bible teachers in the region are Vietnamese, so understanding teaching from outside can be difficult.

“We want to study the Bible but when a Vietnamese pastor comes to teach or train, we don’t understand the full message,” says Pastor Ngo, pictured above.

Bible Society’s new literacy classes in Vietnamese will equip churches with skills that will encourage spiritual growth and facilitate evangelism efforts.

With your help, the first Bible-based literacy classes in Vietnamese will start in 2016.

In the meantime, Bible Society is working to translate the Scriptures into the minority languages of north Vietnam: Tay, Nung and Muong.

The northern Vietnamese church is eager to evangelise tribes in their area, such as the Yao and Tay, which do not have strong Christian populations. We aim to help them by providing the New Testament for Tay and Nung by 2017 and Muong by 2018.

To support Vietnam literacy or translation, call 1300 BIBLES (1300 242 537), use the donation form on the back page or visit biblesociety.org.au/sowervietnam

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$50 will support final checks of the Tay and Nung NT for publication in 2017. $100 will help fund translation of Paul’s letters into Muong. $165 will equip 15 students in a literacy class with a textbook and a NT each.

Devotion

Hard as nails ...

Flickr: Christopher Brown

I have always thought that the Bible doesn’t make enough of Jesus’ crucifixion. In every gospel account, all they say of the gruesome act is that it happened: “they crucified him” (e.g.

Luke 23:33-34). There are no graphic descriptions of the nails tearing through flesh and bone as they pinned Jesus to the cross. No account of his breathlessness as he pushed against the nails to prop himself up. When I was finally forced to watch the crucifixion scene from The Passion of the Christ, I was so appalled I had to leave the room.

It’s the details that both grip and repel me. They focus my attention on the real Jesus rather than the literary Jesus, the physical body, battered and bruised. I’d like to look away, but I cannot. Someone I love – the Lord Jesus – faced that evil head on, and I must also face the reality of it. I want to know the whole story, and that includes those grisly images.

But this is still not the whole story because the crucifixion of Jesus is just another tragic death if it is considered apart from his resurrection. The resurrection proves that Jesus is who he claimed to be: the Son of God (Romans 1:4). It proves that his death was actually effective in securing the forgiveness of sin for those who believe (1 Corinthians 15:16-20).

On Good Friday we remember the victory of the evil powers that crushed our Lord Jesus, but on Resurrection Sunday we celebrate the victory of God over evil and sin and death. And we look to the day when we too will share in the resurrection of Jesus, for “in Christ, all shall be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:22). At Easter, you can’t have one without the other.

Tess Holgate, writer at Bible Society

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Papua New Guinean

Spears turn to sickles by the word 8

Wikimedia: Nomadtales

Huli Wigman from Hela Province of PNG.

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rdinarily, Papua New Guinean men won’t lower illiterate, meaning they cannot read their newly themselves to admit they need to be taught to translated Bibles or read the newspaper, or the read, but half of a recent literacy group were former instructions on agricultural supplies. combatants of the Bougainville conflict – probably “This figure does not take into account the concept killers. They were happy to be instructed by Dorothy of functional literacy,” says Milton McMahon, executive Yogai, literacy coordinator for Bible Society of secretary of Bible Society of PNG. “Many Papua New Guinea, so they could set themselves who show as being literate are not really up in business growing cacao. functionally literate. This includes some While a prisoner in a PNG pastor trainees in the Bible Colleges, where jail, Hetty Philip trained to we will be working.” be a literacy teacher under Among the 5000 to 6000 who could be Bible Society of PNG’s reached through this project are many young Prison Literacy Project. to middle-aged women (“mothers”), After her release in 2011, who see learning to read as a way of Hetty went back to her opening the door to a new lifestyle, village and set up her first instead of being trapped by literacy class, graduating their inability to communicate 12 students. She then other than orally. trained volunteer teachers The current three-year and extended the literacy project is a TOT (Training school to two more the Trainer) scheme that villages. This year, a class encompasses churches/ A young woman holds a child at Talai preschool in PNG of 12 women graduated in communities, prisons, Chimbu Province. Her vision is now to build a training Bible colleges and three translation projects nearing centre in her community to teach literacy. completion. A TOT course is being included in the These two women are inspiring illustrations of the curriculum of 12-15 Bible colleges so that pastors will be diverse strands of a national Bible-based Literacy equipped to undertake literacy training.

Project that began in PNG prisons seven years ago.

All 18 jails in the country are being included and a Last year the project was extended to cater not position has been created in the Corrective Services only for released prisoners but also any interested Department to coordinate the expansion. communities. It began in the island province of Will you help us unlock the Bougainville, where an entire generation missed out on door to salvation in Papua New school, but it has now spread to many of the country’s Guinea?

Please call 1300 BIBLES 22 provinces, including communities, prisons and Bible (1300 242 537), use the donation colleges. There are also plans to expand the project to form on the back page or visit other Pacific countries. biblesociety.org.au/sowerpng Half the population of Papua New Guinea are

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Help the little and the Get The Word Out is Bible Society’s year-long opportunity for supporters to rally together and fundraise as a group.

How you can help Get The Word Out :

LEARN

We’ll give you lots that you need to know about South Africa in our GTWO materials. Download them at biblesociety.org.au/gtwo2016

COMMIT

Make a plan with others. And build GTWO events into your calendar. Let us know that you’d like to be involved, too! Email bibles@biblesociety.org.au

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Your church could help this church.

n Johannesburg Correctional Centre, about 40 male inmates of Medium B begin their church service with singing. A gentle rumble of voices deep in praise echoes through the concrete hallways.

Pastor Willy Dengler, from the local Mayfair Baptist Church, has come to teach them from God’s word.

Pastor Dengler and his team run a correspondence discipleship course here and in 200 other prisons.

After the service, Pastor Dengler presents new Bibles to inmates who have just completed the course.

“Everyone’s got a second chance to change his life,” says Janiela. “Now, I’m saved. God has got my plans.”

While we talk, Janiela cradles his Bible. “It’s my first Bible that I have in my hands. It means a lot.”

Hundreds of church services like the one in Medium B are happening inside South Africa’s prisons. In 2016, your church or group could make Bibles available to thousands of inmates finishing the discipleship courses.

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PRAY

You can keep South Africa in your personal prayers and pray together with your group.

SHARE

Tell your friends, family and churches about this project. Through 2016, we’ll be sharing updates about GTWO South Africa on our Facebook page. Like us at facebook.com/biblesocietyaus

FUNDRAISE

Get together with a group and help us raise the necessary funds to send Bibles and resources to South Africa, and help them learn about the living God! In our GTWO Booklet, available at biblesociety.org. au/gtwo2016, we’ve got lots of fundraising ideas and events you can host to get your friends and family involved in helping us Get The Word Out.

lost meet Jesus Your kids could help these kids.

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his is Dudu Makhubo (top right). To visit Dudu, you walk to the heart of the Windmill Park township, east of Johannesburg. The roads here are little more than rubble. Shacks are cobbled together with scrap metals, with large rocks sitting on top of corrugated iron roofs to stop them flying away in the wind.

This is where Dudu started a daycare centre called “Impendulo”, which means “answer” in the Xhosa language. Dudu and her team care for 63 children who would otherwise roam the streets. Impendulo is hope surrounded by hopelessness.

Many schools in South Africa are overflowing with students and even those children who can find a place may not have access to materials.

Poorer schools often don’t provide Grade R (kindergarten) to give the youngest a foundation.

This is where Bible Society’s Get The Word Out programme steps in. Bible Society has created a series of Bible-based literacy booklets to help children prepare for their first grade at school. For thousands of children, just like those at Impendulo, it’s also an opportunity to put the powerful word of God in the hands of children who need it most.

“It’s helping us a lot,” says Dudu. “Now the children know how to pray and who God is.”

Your Sunday school, school or small group could help Dudu’s kids and other children around South Africa. Our Get The Word Out 2016 pack has lots of fundraising ideas for kids. They can go on safari, following GTWO characters Leopold the Lion, Ellie the Elephant and Ginger the Giraffe, have fun and pray for God’s word to go out in South Africa.

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India

Bibles for converts from W

hile young Hindu Geetha’s parents were involved in a marital dispute, she got talking to a student training to be a pastor in the Timothy Programme International (TPI).

TPI has trained hundreds of pastors and evangelists in India, who then go on to plant new churches, often attracting converts from other faiths.

The student took Geetha to meet his Pastor, who had been trained in the TPI curriculum, which includes a biblical perspective on marriage.

Orthodox Indian Hindus see marriage as a contract in

Pastor Viji baptises Bakiya Lakshmi.

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which the wife is subordinate to her husband and is obliged to serve him.

The Pastor counselled Geetha’s parents on the Christian view of marriage – as a covenant under God in which the husband is to be a priest to his family – and this helped to resolve their conflict.

Afterwards, the whole family accepted Christ as their personal Saviour. This is where Bible Society of India stepped in, providing Bibles for the new converts.

Geetha is to marry a Christian man in May and they now have a

Bible to read together.

BSI gave TPI 10,000 Bibles for distribution to new believers in India last year. This year it plans to give 10,000 more in five languages.

“BSI teamed up with TPI seeing the wonderful ministry done by its president, Dr Karl Coke, who frequently visits India,” says BSI’s Marketing Director, Dr P.I. Varghese.

“TPI trains leaders from all denominations and they are all actively involved in evangelism and church planting.

India’s Population 1.32 billion (2016)

m other faiths “For example, the youth they trained in 2013 to 2015 have planted three churches in Chhattisgarh and five churches in Tamil Nadu.”

According to TPI research, 40 per cent of Indians are under 25 years old, while 96 per cent of Indians are from other faiths.

As a result of its partnership with BSI, TPI expects to reach a minimum of 2000 young believers and youth from other faiths this year.

Christians number about 24 million of India’s total population of 1.32 billion. While this is still statistically small at 2.3 per cent,

Muslim 14.2% Christian 2.3% Sikh 1.7% Other 2% Hindu 79.8%

Breakdown of India’s faiths

the number of Christian believers and churches is growing rapidly.

This leaves a great need for trained and equipped church leaders who have a strong understanding of the Bible, and how to apply its principles and truths.

Effective discipleship and leaders are needed to support these expanding Christian communities.

There are 632 students currently enrolled on TPI’s 20 campuses across India training to be effective in proclaiming the gospel and planting churches.

To donate, please call 1300 BIBLES (1300 242 537), use the donation form on the back page or visit biblesociety.org. au/sowerindia Brother Namesh, Secretary of the India Bible Translators, receives his Bible (right).

Data: www.worldometers.info and CIA World Factbook www.cia.org

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BSA Update

Kids rally for Asian neighbours

Sam, 13, and Naomi, 9, pictured above, the children of BSA’s state coordinator for Tasmania, Mark Barry, were among 200 people who attended the Stepping Stones Market and afternoon tea at St John’s Anglican Church, Launceston, on 13 September last year. An impressive $2100 was raised. Thanks to the numerous lunches, afternoon teas and markets organised by churches and individuals as part of BSA’s Get The Word Out to South East Asia last year, many children expanded their world view by learning about this region and Christian mission.

Spiritual food for refugees

With 12,000 new refugees from Syria arriving on our shores over the next two years, Bible Society Australia is ready to care for their spiritual welfare by giving away Bibles. Thanks to the generosity of your response to our Syrian Refugee Emergency Appeal last year, we were able to order 2500 Diglot Arabic-English Bibles from Lebanon, which are due to arrive in our warehouse in April. These will be distributed through Christian agencies such as Anglicare, which has developed a Syrian Refugee Programme to help with resettlement.

BSA Diary - AUTUMN 2016 EVENTS

DATE

VENUES

GTWO Tasmanian project launch

5 March/12 March

Ulverstone Gospel Hall/St John’s Anglican, Launceston

Central Australia Pitjantjatjara Old Testament Translation Workshop

24 March- 15 April

APY Lands

Reality Crusade with Will Graham (Billy’s grandson)

20-22 May

Blatherskite Park, Alice Springs

Beta launch of Qbla blogging app (for youth)

early April

Online

Inaugural Motorbike for Literacy Tour

28-29 May

South East Queensland

For details please call Bible Society on 1300 BIBLES (1300 242 537) or visit biblesociety.org.au/events

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Chester’s love language in deeds As the hearse pulled into the busy Sydney street, with the bagpipes playing Amazing Grace, I looked at the crowd of family and friends and, with a lump in my throat, gave thanks for a man whose passion for the word of God and for Aboriginal people influenced so many lives.

Chester Street (pictured below with teacher Tobias Nganbe) and his wife Lyn spent 17 years in the remote Northern Territory community of Port Keats (also known as Wadeye), 400km from Darwin, as missionaries with Wycliffe Bible translators. Chester spent hours each day conversing with the local people in their language of Murrinhpatha, meticulously noting down unfamiliar words and phrases. He and Lyn developed a team of Murrinhpatha translators and they translated significant portions of the Bible, making sure the meaning was clear and accurate.

By the end of Chester’s time at Wadeye, significant portions of the Bible had been translated and published.

From afar he continued in the work in the hope that some day a mini-Bible would be compiled.

The last time I spoke to Chester, he was in a Sydney hospital undergoing treatment for leukaemia and I was in Adelaide working for Bible Society’s Remote & Indigenous Ministry Support portfolio. He spoke briefly about his treatment and then spoke about his Murrinhpatha translation work. He reassured me that he was still working on his laptop in the hope of soon having the mini-Bible ready for publication.

Chester went to be with his Saviour last November, aged 70, and I will always remember his determination to see God’s word bring hope to his dear friends, the Murrinhpatha people. Bible Society is committed to making this a reality.

Louise Sherman Are you 13 – 30? Come on a

trip to see God’s word in action.

Bible Society is taking school groups, youth groups, schoolies and individuals on Mission Experience trips.

Visit vibrant ethnic cultures!

Help make a difference!

So what are you waiting for?

Get in touch for trip dates and details.

1300 BIBLES (1300 242 537) biblesociety.org.au/mission

GODSPEAK advocate

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Peru

Building blocks for Quechua Bible teachers

Flickr: Pedro Szekely

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Men with Quechua Bible, Ayachucho, Peru; participants in the Peruvian Bible Society’s Quechua literacy project.

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fter many years of brutal persecution of Christians in the 1980s, Christianity has flourished among the Quechua speakers of Peru.

In 1988, to guide and support Quechua believers, the Peruvian Bible Society produced the Cusco Quechua Bible for the four million native Quechua speakers.

Fifteen years later, the society updated the text to reflect changes in language usage, and added a brief concordance, a glossary, introduction and references.

Today, the society is seeking your support in the production of a Bible dictionary in the Quechua language, which aims to equip pastors with the tools to teach the Bible faithfully in their own language.

Church leaders are asking for this resource, hoping that it will facilitate their own ministry and also contribute to the continued growth of the church, not

only in numbers but also in mission and maturity.

Pastor Aparicio Valeriano of Ocongate Quechua Church says, “I need a Bible dictionary in my own Quechua language to develop my studies and prepare my lessons and sermons.”

Some Quechua speakers are able to read Spanish – the other official language – but their comprehension is often poor. For the more than 2000 evangelical Quechua-speaking congregations, a Quechua language Bible dictionary will be an invaluable resource.

Bible Society Australia is supporting the Peruvian Bible Society in producing 1000 Bible dictionaries.

To put a Bible dictionary in the hands of a Quechuaspeaking pastor in Peru, call 1300 BIBLES (1300 242 537), use the donation form on the back page, or visit biblesociety.org.au/sowerperu

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Bible Reading Plan MAR 6 – JUNE 11

The light of all people

By Anna Boxwell

Bearing spiritual fruit

Week Three

Week Five

By Mark Leach

By Amy Stopher

Week One

MAR 6 - MAR 12 SUN 6 MON 7 TUE 8 WED 9 THUR 10 FRI 11 SAT 12

John 1:1-2 John 1:3 John 1:4-5 John 1:6-8 John 1:9 John 1:10 John 1:11

Week Two

MAR 13– MAR 19 SUN 13 MON 14 TUE 15 WED 16 THUR 17 FRI 18 SAT 19

John 1:12-13 John 1:14a John 1:14b John 1:15 John 1:16 John 1:17 John 1:18

If there was ever a time to know that darkness has invaded our world, it’s now. Desperate refugees surge across Europe and the Middle East; we dread news of another terror attack and bury our heads in our own version of escapism. John’s opening words to his Gospel offer certainty of God’s true light come into the darkness. Journey with us through this prologue and receive Jesus, God’s light of all people.

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Easter: the making of the people of God

MAR 20– MAR 26

SUN 20 MON 21 TUE 22 WED 23 THUR 24 FRI 25 SAT 26

Exod 12:12-13 Exod 19:3-6 Exod 32: 7-8 Judg 21:23-25 2 Sam 7:22-24 Isa 1:2-3 Isa 53:4-5

Week Four MAR 27 – APR 2

SUN 27 MON 28 TUE 29 WED 30 THUR 31 FRI 1 SAT 2

John 1:29-30 Mark 14:22-24 Matt 27:35-36 Luke 24:1-8 Eph 2:4-7 1 Pet 2:9-10 Rev 7:13-17

Holy week, culminating in Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday, is the high point of the Christian year. What an opportunity to particularly remember and celebrate God’s longterm plan to establish a people for himself, through the atoning death of his son.

APR 3 - APR 9

SUN 3 MON 4 TUE 5 WED 6 THUR 7 FRI 8 SAT 9

1 Pet 2:1-3 Matt 7:12-20 John 15:4-5 Rom 8:5-14 Gal 5:22-25 1 Cor 13:1-13 Isa 54:1-8, 1 Th 1:4-10

Week Six

APR 10 – APR 16 SUN 10 MON 11 TUE 12 WED 13 THUR 14 FRI 15 SAT 16

John 14:25-27 James 5:7-11 Jer 9:23-24 Ps 37:1-6 Prov 3:1-6 Matt 11:28-30 2 Pet 1:5-11

God’s plan is that, as we follow Jesus, we become increasingly like him in all areas of our lives. In this series we will examine this way of spiritual growth through the lens of the “fruit of the Spirit”.

Colossians: The Empire or Kingdom of God?

Infertility: Where’s God when there’s no baby?

By Karina Kreminski

By Anna Boxwell

Week Seven

Week Nine

APR 17 – APR 23

SUN 17 MON 18 TUE 19 WED 20 THUR 21 FRI 22 SAT 23

Col 1:9-10 Col 2:4 Col 2:8 Col 2:16-19 Col 2:20-23 Col 1:15-18 Col 1:19-20

Week Eight APR 24 – APR 30

SUN 24 MON 25 TUE 26 WED 27 THUR 28 FRI 29 SAT 30

Col 1:21-23 Col 2:9-12 Col 3:1-2 Col 3:3-4 Col 3:5 Col 3:12-14 Col 3:17

What does it look like to be a Christian in our world? Paul’s letter to the Colossians addresses people ensconced in the ethics of the Roman Empire.

Jesus challenged Christians to follow a new set of values. Will we follow the “Empire” that surrounds us or will we embody the counter-cultural values of the reign of God?

MAY 1 – MAY 7

SUN 1 MON 2 TUE 3 WED 4 THUR 5 FRI 6 SAT 7

Prov 30:15-16 Gen 1:27-28 Gen 3:16 Luke 1:5-7 Gen 16:1-2 1 Sam 1:10-11 Rom 4:18-21

Week Ten

MAY 8 – MAY 14 SUN 8 MON 9 TUE 10 WED 11 THUR 12 FRI 13 SAT 14

Ps 42:1-5 Ex 23:25-26 Col 3:1-4 Prov 16:9 Jas 1:5 2 Cor 12:7b-10 Matt 12:46-50

With one in six families experiencing infertility, we will all know people who have struggled or will struggle to have children. When life hasn’t turned out as we thought it would, is there any comfort to be found from God?

Lessons in 1 John

By Mark Leach

Practising the presence of God in your neighbourhood

By Karina Kreminski

Week Eleven MAY 15 – MAY 21

SUN 15 MON 16 TUE 17 WED 18 THUR 19 FRI 20 SAT 21

1 John 1:1-4 1 John 1:5-2:2 1 John 2:3-11 1 John 2:12-14 1 John 2:15-17 1 John 2:28-3:10 1 John 3:11-18

Week Twelve MAY 22 – MAY 28

SUN 22 MON 23 TUE 24 WED 25 THUR 26 FRI 27 SAT 28

1 John 3:19-24 1 John 4:1-6 1 John 4:7-12 1 John 4:13-21 1 John 5:1-12 1 John 5:13-17 1 John 5:17-21

1 John was written to followers of Jesus “so that you may know that you have eternal life.” As we study this short letter, we will discover profound yet highly practical teaching on the nature and person of Jesus and how we should respond to him in faith, obedience and love.

Week Thirteen MAY 29 – JUN 4

SUN 29 MON 30 TUE 31 WED 1 THUR 2 FRI 3 SAT 4

John 1:14 Matt 22:37-40 Mark 1:33-35 Luke 11:2-4 Luke 10:1-2 Matt 9:10-13 John 20: 21-23

Week Fourteen JUN 5 – JUN 11

SUN 5 MON 6 TUE 7 WED 8 THUR 9 FRI 10 SAT 11

Acts 2:43-47 Rom 8:26-27 2 Cor 12:8-10 Phil 2:4-5 Col 3:1-3 1 Th 1:9-10 1 John 3:18

God calls us into relationship with himself and with others. Yet often our spirituality fleshes out as inward oriented and withdrawing from the world. This study will help us to practise the “spirituality of Jesus”, lived for the sake of others so that they might know his love and live in the kingdom of God.

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Prayer points Mar 2016 – May 2016 1-5 March Australia – Children, Youth and Education: Please pray for children who hear the message of hope during Bible Society Easter seminars in public schools. Pray that they begin to discover who God is.

Egypt: Thank God for the crowds at the Bible Society booth at the Cairo International Bookfair, especially for the many who bought the specially discounted New Testament for an Egyptian pound (about 20c).

6-12 March Philippines: Please pray that translation of John’s Gospel in Standard (Western) Waray and of Luke into Northern and Eastern Waray will be ready to be launched during Bible Society’s annual meeting in April.

Australia – Publishing & Digital: Pray for God’s guidance as the team uses a generous grant from the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation to expand Eternity News online platform, digital projects and products.

13-19 March South Sudan: Ethnic violence is making life in Yambio extremely dangerous for the Zande community.

Please pray for the Zande translation team and their families as team leader Paul considers fleeing to a refugee camp. Please pray for peace.

Cambodia: Praise God that the Bunong people of Cambodia and Vietnam will finally receive the first New Testament in their language this May. 20-26 March Australia – Get The Word Out (GTWO): Praise God for more than 150 churches and groups, plus

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many individuals, who participated in the 2015 GTWO South East Asia project. Pray that churches will quickly get on board with our 2016 GTWO project, providing Scriptures to prisons and children in South Africa.

Vietnam: Please pray for the literacy programme which plans to offer 150 literacy classes for 1000 students through church networks this year. Please pray that the programme will enable people to gain the skills to read the Bible in Vietnamese.

27 March-2 April Pakistan: Praise God that Bible Society Australia donations allowed 6993 women to graduate from adult literacy classes last year, each expected to influence at least six other people. Please pray as we seek to reach another 7000 women in 350 new classes this year.

West Indies: As the Bible Society of the West Indies forms a new board of directors, please pray that the Lord will lead them to the right people to serve and help with overall strategy.

3-9 April Zambia: Please pray for the success of Bible Society’s campaign to tackle illiteracy and superstitious customs, which began last year. The goal is to equip 25,000 illiterates with literacy skills over a five-year period.

Myanmar: Praise God for the recent approval of legal ownership of Bible Society land and building in Myanmar.

Please also pray for the peaceful transition of power in the transition from military to civilian rule.

10-16 April Australia – Distribution: Praise God for generous response to our appeal for Bibles for new arrivals from Syria. Please pray that God will speak to the refugees through the Arabic/English Bibles.

Britain: Thank God that Mary Jones World in Balla, Wales, won an award from Visit Wales for the Best Told

Story. Please pray the award will make more people aware of Mary Jones World and encourage them to visit.

17-23 April El Salvador: Please pray for safety for the staff of Bible Society, who face extreme dangers. Government data shows 6657 people were murdered in the small country last year, a 70 per cent increase from 2014.

Germany: Thank God for the impact of Bibliorama, the new Bible museum in Stuttgart, which takes visitors on a journey through the Bible led by 14 biblical characters.

Numerous visitors have responded with an immediate desire to sit and read the Bible.

24-30 April Australia – Remote & Indigenous Ministry Support: Please pray for the Outback Mission Partners Scripture Grants Programme, which is being significantly expanded this year. Last year more than $12,000 worth of resources were distributed to hundreds of people in remote communities.

Central African Republic: Please pray for healing for Sylvain Ndjendolé, Executive Secretary of the Bible Society in the Central African Republic, who is being treated in Paris for myeloma, a form of cancer.

1-7 May Nicaragua: Please pray that the national presidential elections taking place this year will be conducted transparently and in an environment of peace.

Rwanda: Please give thanks for the generosity of Australian donors, which has allowed more than 1431 adult literacy classes to be created with 1809 trained teachers reaching more than 27,843 people in Rwanda.

8-14 May China: Please pray for fundraising efforts to support the provision of suitable Scripture resources for Sunday

Schools and training materials to equip youths to be the next generation of leaders in the church.

Chad: Give thanks for the launch of the Old Testament in Kim, a language spoken by 25,000 people in Chad.

Please pray that having a full Bible in their language will unite the Kim people and edify all who read or hear it.

15-21 May Laos: Praise God for the 5000 copies of all kinds of Bibles that have been distributed in remote areas of Laos. Please pray for government approval to officially set up Bible Society in Laos.

Australia – Campaigns & Programmes: Planning of Masterclasses to help teenagers gain confidence in the Scriptures is under way for 2016. Pray that plans to hold classes in more states and larger venues are successful.

Please pray for John Dickson and the other speakers.

22-28 May Israel: Please pray that interest in the Bible Exhibition and Media Centre being run by Bible Society of Israel will increase this year. Pray for more opportunities to share the origins of the Bible, especially with the school children who visit the exhibition.

Australia: Please pray for preparations for strategic activities highlighting the bicentenary of Bible Society Australia in 2017. Pray that Bible Society makes the most of opportunities to promote the Bible and Bible Society.

29 May- 4 June Kyrgyzstan: Please give thanks for the Russian Orthodox Church’s positive reaction to the recent publication of the Kyrgyz liturgical translation of six Psalms and plans to translate more psalms.

Cuba: Thank God for the distribution last year of 337,500 Bibles to churches, youth, ministers and prisoners in Cuba, where it is estimated that 40 per cent of believers do not have Bibles and 35 per cent have one in disrepair.

21

Easter for the kids The Arch Book series tells popular Bible stories through fun-to-read rhymes and bright illustrations, capturing the attention of children, and telling the Bible stories in an enjoyable and memorable way. These four Easter titles tell the all-important story of Jesus’ death and resurrection in a way children can understand and celebrate this Easter.

TheWord of

Promise

The Word of Promise Easter Story is a 2-CD set that allows the listener to experience the sacrifice and triumph of our Saviour. It includes a harmonised portrayal of the Gospel story with inspiring music.

NKJV The Word of Promise CD 229780718024420 $15.00

$3.50

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Easter Surprise The Day Jesus Died He’s Risen! He’s Alive My Happy Easter Book

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shop.biblesociety.org.au 1300 139 179

Bible Societies around the world

Wikimedia:Adam Jones

Pray for South Sudan Life in South Sudan continues to worsen with many people killed and women raped in the fighting between rebel and government forces. Paul Kumbonyeki, leader of the translation team based in Yambio, above, says food is “as scarce as uranium”. He and his family are sleeping in the bush for fear of bombs from warplanes.

The hopelessness of people has brought many to Bible House to buy Bibles, says Edward Kajivora, executive secretary, Bible Society in South Sudan. He says the society distributed more Bibles last year than in any year since foundation.

Come together United Bible Societies is holding its World Assembly from 12-18 May in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a city founded as a holy experiment by the Quakers. The World Assembly is a crucial time for national Bible societies to come together in fellowship, discipleship and celebration of God’s word. Please pray that all 146 national Bible Societies working in more than 200 countries can be represented at this gathering, so that a common vision and mission can be developed to shape the strategic direction and shared priorities of the UBS Fellowship.

Hope for the Maasai Maasai student Esther Teekah, above, is now able to write her name, do sums and help her children with their homework, while Simon Olekaru can use his mobile phone to do business and speak to his family and friends. Esther and Simon are just two Maasai people who have seen their lives transformed through Bible Society of Kenya’s literacy programme. They are not only equipped with skills for daily life but they can also read the Bible. So far more than 200 people have attended literacy classes, including people from marginalised communities such as the Maasai.

GPO BOX 9874 In Your Capital City P: 1300 BIBLES (1300 242 537) ISSN 1839-7425 W: biblesociety.org.au E: sower@biblesociety.org.au ACN 148 058 306 Bible Society Australia is a not-for-profit interdenominational organisation. It’s a member of the United Bible Societies, a fellowship of 146 organisations working in more than 200 countries. Our mission is to achieve the widest possible, effective and meaningful distribution of the Bible; also, to help people interact with it, and to have their hearts 23 lightened by the Bible’s message of unconditional love in Jesus Christ.

YES! I want the Bible to be available For those who do not like to cut up their Sower we have provided a copy of this form with your address slip for mailed copies. ...........................................................

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o Vietnam Literacy o Where needed most I would like to donate: o $50 o Vietnam Translations o $150 o PNG Literacy o $300 o India Distribution My choice $ o Peru Publishing I enclose my o Cheque (payable to Bible Society) o Money Order (payable to Bible Society) OR Please debit my o Visa Card o Mastercard Card Number oooo oooo oooo oooo Expiry Date oo/oo Name on Card My gift for:

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Receipts

o Please send a receipt o Please send a tax-deductible receipt* o Please send me information about including the Bible Society in my Will

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Email Address Please return to Bible Society, PO Box 375, North Ryde, NSW 1670 You can also donate online at biblesociety.org.au or by phone on 1300 BIBLES or (1300 242 537) If these programmes are over subscribed, the money will go to another Bible Society project. *Receipts for tax-deductible donations of $2 or more will be issued by the trustee for Bible Society Foundation. ABN 41 725 839 724