On July 11, I (Adam) received a message from John Johnson, our former senior pastor in America, saying, “This is what it feels like to hold a miracle in your hands!” With the message was a picture of him holding the Enga New Testament. I can think of no better way to summarize the completion and dedication of the Enga New Testament.
It was Pastor John who had encouraged Martha and me to stay the course when Martha suffered a completely unexpected heart attack just months after we made the decision to join Wycliffe Bible Translators. And just six months later, the miracle began as Martha’s heart improved dramatically.
The miracle continued as we settled in the village of Imi among the Dyuapini tribe, notorious for their history of tribal fighting. Other Engans were afraid to go to Imi, and many Engans advised us not to live among the Dyuapini, but as long as we have lived in Imi, the Dyuapini people have lived in peace, even while so much of Enga is at war.
The Enga translators themselves have faced enormous challenges. Frank’s village was attacked, and many of the houses were burned to the ground as Frank and his family fled to the hills. William has been confined to his home for many months because hired hitmen from the enemy tribe are roaming around Wabag town. Martin lost most of his eyesight three years ago but still faithfully plugs away at the translation work each day with the help of his daughter. Reuben’s home was burned to the ground by an enemy tribe, while Maniosa has dealt with persecution from church leaders for seeking needed reforms in his denomination. But in God’s grace, each of them has persevered.
The miracle of the Enga New Testament is now in the hands of thousands of Enga people despite the best efforts of the enemy to stop us every step of the way. We can now attest through experience that “Greater is he who is in us than he who is in the world.”
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| Enga people holding the miracle of the Enga New Testament in their hands |
The first dedication event took place in Wabag town on July 2 and was attended by more than four hundred people. We had been hoping for a larger turnout, but ongoing fights in three areas may have hindered people from coming. Furthermore, organizing nearly a dozen denominations to come together for a dedication turned out to be a bit like herding cats. But one prominent visitor, who we were not expecting, did come—the governor of Enga Province. He gave a great speech, encouraging the people of Enga to read the newly translated Enga New Testament. We also had fifty visitors from Ukarumpa and two visitors from overseas, who were all a great help and blessing to us. One of the overseas visitors was David Addington, the founder and director of Unabridged Truth. He came with a traditional Hebrew scroll, which he displayed at the various dedication events as he talked about the reliability of Scripture. We also had a number of people who wore traditional Enga dress in celebration of the momentous occasion.
After the main dedication in Wabag, we had a number of other mini dedication and distribution events throughout Enga Province, both in churches and in public market areas. We also showed the Enga Luke Film in the public market area of Imi village on the nights of July 7 and July 9 to a crowd of about seventy-five people.
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| Receiving the Enga New Testament with joy |
Everywhere we went, I shared my testimony in Enga, demonstrating what it looks like to repent of your sins, ask God for forgiveness, and put your faith in Christ. The sheer joy in people’s faces when they heard a foreigner like me speak their language was sufficient evidence in and of itself that it is worthwhile to translate the Bible into Enga. At an Assemblies of God ministers’ gathering in Wabag town, I read a couple of passages from the Enga New Testament, and the pastors began cheering and applauding as I read.
At each stop we gave people a chance to purchase the Enga New Testament at a much reduced price. The most popular format was the solar-powered audio player followed by the Enga-English New Testament. But we sold a number of Enga-only New Testaments and Enga Bible memory cards as well.
It impossible to do justice to our time in Enga in a short newsletter, so I invite you to watch this slideshow of pictures from the various events. In the coming weeks we will also release a full video. Stay tuned!
The Ukarumpa International School (UIS) that Bella and Asher attend has a critical need for teachers during the 2025-2026 school year and beyond. The high school needs teachers for English, Social Studies, Math, Religion, Art, Science, and Spanish as well as for electives like Photography. UIS has small class sizes, and the students are well behaved and do their homework. It is an extremely different experience than teaching in the United States. Living in Ukarumpa is like living in a small town or village. There are about 200 other expats here. It is a great place for a teacher who is retired or who no longer wants to teach in the US school system but would still love to teach and make a difference. There is still so much work to be done, and the school is an integral part of making sure that work continues. Please pray for this need and share this information with anyone you know who might be interested in teaching for a year or two to support Bible translation in the beautiful country of Papua New Guinea. Feel free to ask us any questions, and be sure to check out the following links for more information. (Please note that Ukarumpa International School is affiliated with TeachBeyond.)
How TeachBeyond Supports Bible translation in Papua New Guinea
Ukarumpa International School videos
Learn More at TeachBeyond
