Sarah, a Wycliffe translator in Southeast Asia, sat with a group of women checking a translation of John’s Gospel to make sure it communicated God’s message clearly, accurately and naturally.

The eight women read chapter 5 with Sarah and patiently answered question after question, helping her fine-tune the translation. With the last verse of the chapter checked, Sarah suggested they quit for the day.But the women weren’t ready to quit. They begged her to stay and check chapter 6. Sarah gladly agreed, and together they read that Jesus transformed five loaves and two fish into a meal for a huge crowd. Then Jesus told the people gathered, “I am the food that gives life. Anyone who comes to me will not be hungry or thirsty again.”

After three hours of painstaking checking, Sarah thought that surely the women must be ready for a break. “Aren’t you hungry?” she asked.

One woman looked at her and said, “Why do you say that? This is the food we need! We are satisfied. Thank you for doing this!”

Sarah, her husband, and a team of talented mother tongue translators have worked for years to provide these women and their whole people group with God’s Word. Now Jesus is speaking their language and their spiritual hunger is being satisfied.

As partners in Bible translation, you and I are a part of the story, too. Along with the translators, God has given us a role much like the disciples of Jesus had on the day he fed the crowd. Jesus is the Bread of Life. He does the miracles, and then he gives us the tremendous privilege of distributing the Good News about him to many thousands of people all over the world. Thank you for the role you play! For more information about how to be involved, contact Wycliffe.