After the internship, I spent one more week at Wycliffe to attend a week-long linguistics course. TOTAL It Up! stands for Taste Of Translation And Linguistics. We had to learn a foreign language from a native speaker who does not speak English except for the first day. At the end of the week, we had to put up a skit in that language. My group (four of us) learned Thai, and this is the outcome of one-week of language learning:
So, as I was sourcing for stories for my supervisor, I came upon this story.
It was freaky, because I felt like I could almost superimpose myself on the story and make it mine.
I am not sure if I have shared about EnterMission with you all. But anyway, EnterMission is Wycliffe's weekly chapel service. On Wednesday mornings from 9 to 10am in the morning, the entire office shuts down and everyone (or most people) gather together for a time of worship and sharing. Usually Wycliffe missionaries who have served abroad will share their testimonies. Today's EnterMission was run entirely by the Orlando Summer Interns. We did everything from door-greeting to worship-leading to sharing.
Kurt was the one in charge of organizing and putting together everything for this EnterMission. I was a door greeter and a mic runner for the guest introduction time. After worship, they also showed the video that we made, A Day in the Life of An Intern. Then for sharing, we each went up and shared for two minutes about what we've learned from through our OSI experience and also to appreciate those who have helped us along the way.
It was a good time for reflecting on our two and a half months here, and to realise just how many relationships we've built along the way. And also to understand that so many people have worked to make it possible for the 12 of us to be here this summer.
As Karen Snyder, Wycliffe's internship coordinator, closed with a word of prayer, some emotions were stirred up within the room.
Proofreading A Thousand Trails started off as a pretty mundane task. Imagine reading the personal journal of a person whom you don't even know... But as I read along, I was drawn into Uncle Cam's (term of endearment for William Cameron Townsend, founder of Wycliffe) life stories. I was vicariously living his adventures through the book.
His story did not present itself to be very appealing at first. It seemed to be the typical missionary story that involves natives, jungles, and insects. But as he reveals more of his feelings and emotions in his journals and in his letters home, it struck me that this is not just a fictional adventure. It's the experience of one man who strives to live out God's will for his life. And that's not easy.
I wonder how many times I've read stories like Uncle Cam's, seeking to be awed and inspired by someone else's story. Then I close the book and put it down with a feeling of wonder and amazement.
Yet I've never stepped into the story myself. I was contented to be a reader, but not a character. Because it's too risky and uncertain to be a character in a book that's not written by me. But as Uncle Cam's story shows, God's an amazing storyteller. His stories are perfect. It also has a "happily-ever-after ending" (in God's definition, of course). And sometimes, our God also has quite a sense of humour, as shown in the following excerpt from A Thousand Trails:
"I am just the happiest fellow on earth. My love for Elvira grows greater every day, and hers for me. I didn't know I was capable of such great love... With a special romantic flair, William Cameron Townsend proposed to Elvira Malmstrom on Valentine's Day, February 14, 1919. Unknown to Cam at the time, only a few days earlier, Elvira had received a letter of proposal from his good friend Robbie. But three days later Elvira made her choice and wrote Cam's parents."
No worries. Things worked out for Uncle Cam and Elvira, and they were happily married on the following July 9.
I know that I can have a perfect story for my life as well, if only I am willing to be a character in the story that God is writing.
FISH stands for "Florida International Students Hospitality."
As part of the Faith and Culture that I've been leading, all the interns have been attending the weekly FISH events. We went for tennis lesson, pottery painting, movie night, and this past Saturday, we joined them for a game night.
It was a really nice experience talking and interacting with people from different cultures. We had some very good conversations with the people that we meet there, and through our interaction with them, showed them the love of Christ.
This past Saturday was our last FISH event, as most of us will be leaving the following weekend. In the the past month, we have built some relationships with the folks at FISH, and it's hard not knowing when we'll see each other again. It's the first of many more goodbyes to come.
But one thing's for sure: we have definitely sowed a seed in their hearts, and now we're leaving it up to God to nurture and grow that seed.
I have been working on proofreading a book all summer, A Thousand Trails: Personal Journal of William Cameron Townsend.
William Cameron Townsend is the founder of Wycliffe Bible Translators (No, Wycliffe is not founded by John Wycliffe). In this book, he chronicles his journey of serving in Central America with the Cakchiquel Indians, for whom he eventually translated the Bible.
Isn't it nice that my job is just to sit and read? Here's an excerpt from the book:
So, one of my works have been published on Wycliffe's Youth page. It's just a short write-up to inform young people of the various ways to get involved with the work that Wycliffe is doing. It can be found here.
Currently I am working on a project that promotes Wycliffe's ministry at a church event. It's a themed activity, where people arrive at a training camp to be 'trained' to serve on the field. There are different stations with various assignments for them to complete. I am in charge of writing all the printed pieces for the event.
It's a pretty fun project and I am enjoying working on it. I have met with Dustin Moody, the person in charge of the project for a few times, and the pieces are all almost ready to go through the editing process.
Just a little update about what I'm doing at work.
Besides the little write-ups and edits, I've also written some bigger pieces, like the Solomon Islands Second Wave project report and the Table 71 article for the Last Languages Campaign newsletter. They have not been published yet, because the graphic designers are still working on the newsletter.
Over the last month, I was also helping to find and re-write the anecdotes that will be used in Wycliffe's calendar for next year. While those little stories that accompany every month of the year may seem very short, you will be surprised how much work actually goes into putting them together. Having worked on the calendar project, I will never take for granted of any piece of text, however small they may be.
One project that is almost finalised is the blog article about Katie Zartman's mission trip to Senegal. Katie is the senior designer in my department. She went to Senegal in may to conduct a design workshop for the Saafi people, so that they can publish their own literacy materials. The final version of the text has been internally approved, and now it's waiting on field approval.
It's surprising how tedious the editing process is. When I've written a piece of work, I submit it to my supervisor for edit. After getting her feedback, I submit it to the senior editor for his edits. Sometimes, the final product becomes so radically different from the original work.
It's amazing how much work goes into the publication of one article. Everyone in the department seems to have a hand in it.
That was the question that missionaries, Peter and Sue Westrum, gave us after they'd shared their story with us last Tuesday during Close Call.
They served with Wycliffe in Indonesia for 26 years, translating the New Testament into the Berik language.
During the period of time that they were away from home and from all that they were familiar with, they'd missed out on a lot of precious moments with their family. There was no family member to celebrate the birth of their first son with them. No first-birthday party. They could not even make it home for Peter's father's funeral.
Was it all worth it?
To them, it was.
As Sue said, the good life is when you are in the centre of God's will for your life. In the eyes of the world, it may not be the kind of life that one would aspire to. But the most important thing is that, it's the kind of life that God aspires you to.
The result of giving up their lives to God?
A Berik translation of the New Testament, and an entire people group who can now read the Word of God in their own language.
The impact of Bible translation has never been as real and personal to me as when Jamie quoted Matthew 24:14-
It has been a rather eventful, which explains the lack of activity on my blog.
On Monday, we went to work as usual, and then we stayed back after work to help with hosting the 190 students from Campus Outreach who came to visit the Discovery Center and to be exposed to the work of Bible translation. It was really nice to be with a group of young people who are so full of energy, and to see their reactions as they were alerted to the need for Bible translation work. I bet I was just like that during my first week here at Wycliffe. Anyway, it was an energetic night as their enthusiasm rubbed off on us.
We got home at about 11.30pm on Monday night. Needless to say, we spent the rest of the week recuperating from our fatigue.
Yesterday, I attended Wycliffe's Ladies Lunch. It was a needed break from the routine that I was falling into. Appropriately, the theme of the luncheon was REST. It was really encouraging and refreshing to hear the speaker, Wendy (she works in my department), share about our need for rest. It hit me right on the head when she said that we don't always have to do everything, and we don't always have to do everything right now. It's so easy for me to be a workaholic and to force myself to being the best in everything.
I really appreciate hearing from Wendy who works in my department. She is such a humble person. Yesterday, she led our department's devotion as well, and one thing that she shared is something that I needed to hear: "We never arrive spiritually because faith is a journey."
So often, I feel that I have become so focused on the final destination that I have let the rest of the journey pass me by, without taking any notice of anything. Yet, the learning experience is just as important as the destination, if not more. And that I something that I desperately need to learn. This whole experience at Wycliffe has been a learning experience, the journey. I have not arrived at the destination yet, and I may never. But the most important thing right now is my learning process.
What do I need for my journey? Humility.
The road ahead may be rough and bumpy. I may find myself traversing on muddy terrain. I may even be tired out by the journey. But every stretch of the road counts, and every inch of the journey offers a lesson that I can learn.
That was the theme of today's sharing during Entermission (Wycliffe's weekly Wednesday morning chapel). The speaker was sharing about how he was reminded that we see, not only with our eyes, but with our ears, nose, and skin. And sometimes, we also need to look beyond what our physical eyes see. When I do not understand the things that I see, maybe I need to look beyond the immediate present to see the bigger picture that God is painting.
This past weekend was the July 4 weekend. We went to Lake Eola on Sunday and stayed all evening to watch fireworks at night. It was a really long day, and I am glad that we got Monday off. We went grocery shopping on Monday, and just spent the rest of the day chilling out at home and watched a movie.
Yesterday night was Close Call (dinner and worship). It was also our last activity with the OSI staff around, because from today onwards, the interns will be taking over the leadership entirely. Each of us is assigned to a particular leadership role within the group and we will be running the show from now on.
I have been assigned to take over the Faith and Culture class, which I am very excited about. I have thoroughly enjoyed the class and have also enjoyed doing the fieldwork. I can also relate better to the material used in the class as I have had intercultural experience. I have always been somewhat apprehensive about sharing my faith. Not that I am ashame of it, but I do not really know how to start the conversation without being too pushy. But in this class, I have learned to play a more passive role by asking questions that stir people's thoughts, and let God do the work of convincing them.
I am excited to see all that God will do as we begin the second half of our internship here.
Remember how I said that my job is to read and write stories about all the amazing things that God is doing all over the world? Well, yeah, that's true, but that's not just it. The other part of my job is also to write and edit pieces that are less interesting, like someone else's speeches and sign-up forms.
But, regardless of whether I am writing the next bestseller or a one-line caption for a picture, there is still something to be learned in every project that is assigned to me. So, I am thankful for the learning opportunities that have been thrown my way. From the most mundane piece of writing to the most amazing story, I have learned so much that needs to be learned about the editorial world.
As I have not done any formal editing work before, everything seemed so foreign to me the first week I started work. I am not used to changing things that others have written, and I am not used to having my things altered by someone else either. I am also training to have an eye for detail: to take note of the littlest punctuation, to think and rethink the meaning of every word that's used.
Sometimes, I do need to get out of my comfort zone to get the work done, especially when I cannot write with my own style and my own voice. I have to learn to write in the voice of Wycliffe. Then, I have to submit my work to be critiqued and edited a thousand and one times.
This is really a humbling experience, but it has also reminded me that this is not just about me. Instead, it is about the bigger picture that God is painting. I have been here for almost a month now, and everyday I feel like God is putting me in His training camp for humility.
I can't wait to see the end product of this training. But before I get there, I know that I have to be malleable, so that I can be shaped by the potter into whatever shape He has in mind for me.
It is no coincidence that I am where I am today. I know that God has brought me here for a reason. I have travelled half the world to attend college in Virginia, and all the way down the east coast to spend a summer with Wycliffe. I may not know exactly where the Lord is leading me, but I know for sure that He is preparing me for something bigger than myself--something beyond my wildest imaginations.
Wycliffe hosted a week-long event, Wycliffe Connection, here last week. The purpose of this event is to assist Wycliffe staff who have served abroad to transition back into life here in the States. I had the wonderful opportunity to meet a family who served for many years in Malaysia. They initially served in Sabah, and later moved to Penang.
As I was chatting with them over lunch, I found out so much about the need in Malaysia that I had never known before. The need for translated Scripture in East Malaysia and the need among the Orang Asli (indigenous people groups) are just so overwhelming. I also found out from the Ethnologue that there are 137 living languages in Malaysia.
At this moment, I paused, and thought to myself, 137 languages? I thought there are only 5. Suddenly, the place that I grew up in and that which I call home suddenly seems so foreign to me. Living in the comfort of my bubble in KL has rendered me oblivious to the needs of those around me. And I am sure that I am not alone in this.
I know God has brought me here for a reason, and He is equipping me for something bigger than myself. But it's indeed baffling to realise that the Lord has to take me all the way here to realise the need at home.
To all of you who have made it possible for me to serve with Wycliffe this summer, either through prayers or financial support, the president of Wycliffe USA, Bob Creson, would like to say a big "Thank You!"
We went to Bob's house for dinner on Wednesday, and he has expressed his gratefulness for the support that you have given to the work that Wycliffe is doing to fulfill the Great Commission. Thank you for your partnership with Wycliffe and your willingness to be used by the Lord. I could have spent my summer in a thousand and one other places, but instead, I am here in Orlando, serving with Wycliffe. I know that the Lord, by his sovereign power, has ordained it. But He has also made it possible through your prayers and your financial support.
So, once again, thank you!
In the midst of all the hustle and bustle, I thought I'd take some time to enjoy some treats here in Orlando.
1. The beautiful sunset that takes my breath away.
2. A family of sand hill crane (papa, mama, and baby sand hill crane) that is often seen wandering around Wycliffe's campus.
3. Floridian thunder storms.
4. Vultures that come frequently to knock on our windows.
5. The brightly shining imperfect full moon.
Wish I have pictures for you all, but unfortunately, I am not much of a picture taker. So, feel free to paint these pictures for yourselves using your imagination.
