Posted in Uncategorized on Jan 22nd, 2010 | Discuss This Post
Sometimes I forget that our fight is not against flesh and blood. Sometimes all I can think about is the life that is right in front of me. But lately, the Lord has been reminding me that that is not where my hope lies. My hope lies in Jesus Christ, and the life that I will have for eternity with him. I need to keep looking to that to give me strength and to encourage others with.
There is always something going on here at NTBI that is difficult for some staff. There are multiple people here that struggle with ongoing health issues (Jason included). There are also ones who have difficulties with unsaved family members, kids who are straying, etc. But this week has seemed to be more difficult than most. Our good friend, Mike Winters, who works as the head of our dining hall/kitchen, had surgery to remove some remnants of kidney cancer. He now has an infection due to the surgery, and they are going to have to do another surgery to repair some damage done. Another co-worker, the most spirited and bubbly woman in the world, Jonell Barth, had surgery a couple of weeks ago and now has to have another surgery to repair damage that was done on her first round. We also have a co-worker, Linda Grant, who can’t even get out of her chair these days due to her hips needing to be replaced. Another needs ankle surgery and can’t get a good answer from her doctors as to how to go about it.
There are other things going on in the lives of all the staff here, but it seems that physical issues have been rampant these days. I know that the Lord is good, and He is our strength and our fortress. So I am praying that He will be that and more for those of my good friends who are hurting right now. And that He would be glorified through this. Every one of these people has given their lives for the sake of the gospel. And it will go forth! Even if it means that we have to endure in this life things that we would not choose or understand. But the Lord is faithful and will continue to be the strength that they need during this time.
Praise Him!
Posted in Uncategorized on Sep 3rd, 2009 | Discuss This Post
Last week we kicked off the fall 2009 semester! With 85 new students our total student count is just a little under 200. I’m teaching one of the first classes the freshmen take; it’s been fun so far. I’ve already had several opportunities outside of the classroom to encourage students with truth from the word. That’s what it’s all about! I also had the chance to preach at our Church here last Sunday. So as long as I’m feeling good, I have plenty of opportunities to impact others for His glory.
The semester start has been more stressful for our family than normal. Usually Stephanie is one of several women trained to work in the education office. But this time because of several staff changes over summer she is the only person who really knows what’s going on in there. This means that besides getting her normal stuff done, she is also responsible for training at least 4 others to do the same things!
All in all things are going well. The kids start school next week; Aleythia for the first time! We will definitely miss them during the day.
I’ll write soon and give an update on my health.
Posted in Uncategorized on Jan 13th, 2009 | Discuss This Post
Hello from Jerusalem! I thought I would pull my head out of Greek for a minute to say hello and give you a quick update. Stephanie and Dorian joined me for almost two weeks and left for the US about 5 days ago. We sure had a fun time together seeing some of this land that most of the Bible happened in.
As far as business goes, I’ve been swimming around in the Greek language for a couple of weeks. I have two main goals, 1) to learn the language well and 2) to learn how I can teach it the same way the teachers here are. Achieving these goals will greatly aid me in effectively teaching Greek to Bible translators in NTM.
Thanks so much for your prayers and financial support to allow me to do all this!
Posted in Uncategorized on Dec 11th, 2008 | Discuss This Post
I recently spent two weeks in the capital city of Senegal, West Africa. NTM regularly gives intensive training seminars for its Bible translators. Since I am moving into a ministry that deals with Bible translation it only makes sense for me to get as much translation trainingas I can. I’ve been gradually taking these training seminars one by one as I am able.
This particular seminar was about the challenges of translating the epistles. Most early translation work is done with narrative portions of Scripture like the stories of Genesis, the life of Christ, and Acts. When a translator begins to translate a book like Romans or Galatians, many new and difficult challenges arise.
I worked with around 10 translators and their language helpers (nationals) that work in the countries of Senegal, Guinea, and Ivory Coast. It’s always a blessing to see people working hard so more people can know about the saving grace of Jesus Christ! Believe me, it’s really hard work to translate the Bible!
Posted in Uncategorized on Nov 12th, 2008 | Discuss This Post
On Saturday, November 15th, Jason will head to Senegal, West Africa, for 2 weeks for a translation workshop.
The NTM translators and their helpers from the West Africa region will gather for 2 weeks to practice and refine their Bible translations. Jason is going to participate in this workshop to get a good feel for how they are translating the epistles, and to answer any exegetical questions the translators might have.
We are so excited about the ministry that the Lord is moving us into, to assist translators with making their translations more accurate.
Many of these African people will not have any other Bible other than what these translators give them. What an incredible privilege it is to be a part of giving the Word of God to His children in Africa!
Posted in Uncategorized on Oct 13th, 2008 | Discuss This Post
In the last few months we have begun working through the details what our new ministry with Bible translators will look like. In some ways, this will be a new ministry for NTM, so a current ‘job description’ doesn’t exist for what we want to do. This means that we are trying to determine certain particulars, not only of what we will do, but even of issues like where we will live!
Here are some of the things we are currently doing to begin to assist Bible translators. We have scheduled our first ever Greek seminar for translators! It is set for the summer of 2010. In the more immediate future, I’ll be traveling to both Senegal, West Africa and Israel. I’ll post updates on those trips as they come closer. I’m currently reviewing a tribal translation of Romans for a translator in Papua New Guinea. I will probably start doing the same thing for many other translators as well.
For now, I continue to carry my teaching load here at NTBI. But as things progress, I will begin to teach less and less. It will be kind of hard to back off of teaching but there are others who are just as capable who can pick up what I put down.
Posted in Uncategorized on Nov 12th, 2007 | Discuss This Post
Please pray for Jason. He is having a skin biopsy done on Wednesday. We are hoping that this biopsy will give us some answers to his mysterious medical condition. We probably won’t get any answers for a while; usually these types of tests take a while to get the results. Please pray that we will trust the Lord no matter the results.
Posted in Uncategorized on Oct 13th, 2007 | Discuss This Post
Well, It has been a year since Jason started feeling badly, and we are no closer to a diagnosis than we were then. We are however, still doing many tests. Right now we are testing him for metal poisoning. In November he will also do a skin biopsy. We are praying that these tests might reveal something of what is wrong.
The Lord has been so good to us throughout this whole time. He has shown himself sufficient, although it has been a difficult year. We are thankful that Jason is still able to perform his ministry duties, although doing much more is very taxing at best.
Jason has been teaching his full load of classes along with taking one class at Trinity.
This semester we are graduating about 25 students. They have grown tremendously. It is amazing to see what the Lord can do with teachable hearts.
Thank you all for praying!
Posted in Uncategorized on May 21st, 2007 | Discuss This Post
On Wednesday, May 16th, after Jason spent the morning at his own doctor, he got to spend the afternoon with Anastasia at her doctor getting her arm put in a cast. Earlier that morning, Anastasia fell off a small wall and broke both bones in her forearm. She was a trooper, and no one realized that something was seriously wrong until after lunch!
So now Anastasia looks as cute as can be with a tiny purple cast on her right arm. By the time she is out of it, she’ll be ambidextrous!
Posted in Uncategorized on May 7th, 2007 | Discuss This Post
The Lord has been teaching us so much lately about dependence on Him. We are nothing in and of ourselves; only with Him are we anything. This semester has been full of challenges that have driven us to the cross. He is so faithful, and we are so unworthy. Please continue to pray with us as we seek answers about Jason’s condition. We are waiting for muscle biopsy results that hopefully will tell us what Jason has. Also, our van is in need of some repairs–we are trying to decide when is the best time to buy something else. There have been so many things lately that have come up unexpectedly that we know that the Lord is teaching us that he is faithful to his children. Thanks so much for praying!
Jason and Stephanie Weaver Your missionaries at New Tribes Bible Institute