[sword-devel] Who do you want to help?

[Johnny Stovall PhD]

Who do you want to help most?  God, those who are poor because
there isn't a job for them, those who are poor because they are
lazy, or the Bible translators, societies and publishers?

At 08:56 AM 12/11/1999 -0700, Michael Paul Johnson wrote:
>What better way to establish a good reputation with Bible societies and
>translators (and therefore be of greater influence) than to help them in
>their work?

For years I did this as a guest helper to Wycliffe Bible
Translators and as a Bible translator and assistant to 6 other
Bible Translation and Bible Publishing Companies.  Yes, it is
good "to help them in their work."  But it you want to overcome
the forces of Satan, God will show you a more excellent way.

I have seen as many dusty Bibles in countries where people are
starving spiritually and physically as I have in the USA.  I have
also seen and heard preachers, Bible translators and Bible
publishers who always stay in the best 5 star hotels brag that
the poor people in China, Indonesia and other really poor
countries gave them their last two mites.  Since 1971 I have
often lived so close to the very poor in Indonesia in the USA
that many of them treat me as their equal.  In both places it is
not how much you do for them but how much you can help them do
something for God and themselves which is really important.  I
can tell you more than one horror story where I personally helped
a Bible translation organization obtain thousands of dollars to
do research in to the meaning of the Greek New Testament or to
translate the Bible only to find out later that most of the money
was spent on "administration."

I haven't been on this list long enough to know all of the facts.
But from what I have heard plus the few minutes I have used the
sword, it appears to me that you may already be doing more than
most of the big name Bible translation societies and Bible
publishing companies in order to help people study the Bible.
For those who want to do more, especially for the very poor, I
invite you to consider a business proposition to help the poor
become effective business partners with us and servants of the
Lord.

I find that doing everything God's way is good for everyone
concerned.  Making a profit selling Bibles to the poor isn't
good.  Giving them free Bibles robs them of their dignity and
doesn't encourage them to study.

If you have time or talents which you are willing to which you
are willing to put into long-term investment, I'll help you find
someone who will help you turn your investment into a profit
for you, him and the plan of God.

Most of you can't have any personal benefit from the poor people
of Asia, Africa and the Middle East-the 10/40 window because you
are separated by distance and radical differences in thinking.
Millions of Indonesians would like to have the bidirectional flow
of personal benefits which would result from narrowing those
radical differences in thinking.

During the 70's, I gave approximately 20,000 Indonesians one book
of the New Testament with questions.  Over 2,000 of these
answered the questions over this and then all the rest of the
books of the New Testament.  We have found that people who do
this learn to stay on task and can become more effective business
partners.  However, we had to stop due to the economic crisis
here and a withdrawal of many businesses from Indonesia.  Last I
heard, the majority of Indonesians are unemployed and a majority
of the children are suffering brain damage due to lack of
protein.

If you are in the computer business, I'll search for, test & help
you train people who can be trusted more than when they started.
If you are in another business you might need people for
accounting or scanning and typing Hausa for $1 an hour.  How much
is your time worth and what do you really want to accomplish?
Your time and/or your money can be wisely invested here if you
have the right mediator.  If you are interested, let me know what
you want to do and what you want to invest.

Thanks for reading the misdirected efforts I have seen and my
analysis of how to get on a more personal and more effective
track.  A resent post said, "let's free the Bible."  I have a lot
of experience in freeing it from lack of use in business and
education. IMHO freedom from lack of use is much more important
than freeing it from copyright or other constraints.

suguru@rad.net.id
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