May 18 Meeting with Village and Sub-District Heads
On May 18 Josh drove out to Saom Kaning village and met with the head of the village, as well as the head of the sub-district. The village head told Josh he has no problem with our family moving to the village, but first there needs to be a village-wide meeting with us present to allow the members of the village to vote.
The sub-district head said he would approve us only if the district authorities (in particular, the district police) say yes. We’re waiting for him to meet with the district police before we plan a meeting with them.
We thank the Lord that no one has said no yet. Please pray with us as we begin making contact with higher officials to seek their permission: first at the district level, then at the province level. It’s possible that higher officials will say we need official approval from further down first.
In the meantime, we will begin looking for a house to rent in one of the two towns closest to Saom Kaning Village. We will need permission to live in a nearby town, as well, but we expect it will be easier to get permission, because we would be living among Khmer rather than a minority group. Please pray that we can find a home and get permission to move in before the beginning of July, when we vacate our present house.
May 20 Meeting with Jarai Church Leaders
This meeting included about 18 Jarai church leaders, two partners from another mission organization, my team leader, and Josh. Our team leader, JD, facilitated the meeting. The meeting focused on what the churches can do to promote better understanding of the Bible in their churches. The focus then narrowed to the possibility of a Bible translation that reflects the way Jarai in Cambodia speak, and we were encouraged that there was general agreement that the existing translations are hard to understand and that unbelievers in particular don’t understand them. (The existing Jarai Bibles — a New Testament and a complete Bible — are good translations, but they were translated into the variety of Jarai spoken in Vietnam, which is hard for Jarai here to understand.)
Although some concerns were raised about undertaking a new project, we believe that these are issues that can be worked through. We plan to have another meeting in June or July to allow the Jarai make a decision about whether or not to begin a translation project. Please pray that they will have wisdom as they think about and discuss the issue over the next month or two. And please pray that we can find ways to overcome the potential obstacles, as well.
Thank you so much for your prayers. It is very much by your prayers that we are sustained and guided in the work God has called us to.
