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Salem Church of Waldheim, Saskatchewan (salemchurch.ca) invites you to the 2017 FEBC Convention July 12–15.
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You are invited!
As you read this, please feel personally invited to join us for this summer’s FEBC Convention in Waldheim, Sask. We are excited to have Phil Callaway as our convention speaker. We’re confident you will be encouraged and refreshed as you meet some of the most hospitable people on earth. If you have the time, you will also discover that Saskatchewan is diverse in its beauty and opportunity. With roughly 100,000 lakes, the province is much more than wide open prairie. Golfers, take note that new grass greens have been installed in our local golf course just for you. If you are travelling from the south, you may want to check out the Sand Dunes or Cypress Hills. There will be many learning opportunities. You will enjoy a hearty laugh as you are encouraged during the evening sessions, and we will gain a sense of what God is accomplishing within the FEBC family. And yes, there will be some free time to enjoy. You will have the opportunity to tour Canadian Light Source on the University of Saskatchewan campus which is home to the synchrotron. It is one of the largest science projects in Canadian history and the only one of its kind in Canada. They have hosted thousands of researchers and scientists from over 20 countries who use the particle beams to do research. If your interest is more in the history of our area, a short drive will take you to Fort Carlton which was used during the fur trade. We invite you to join us in Waldheim, not because we have new grass greens on our golf course, but because without you at convention, we will all be missing out. |
Meet the Speaker!Phil Callaway is an award-winning author and speaker, known worldwide for his humorous yet perceptive look at life. He is the best-selling author of 25 books including Laughing Matters, I Used to Have Answers … Now I Have Kids, Making Life Rich Without Any Money, and Family Squeeze. His daily radio program Laugh Again is broadcast across North America, the UK, and English-speaking Africa.
Phil’s list of accomplishments also includes shutting off the TV to listen to his children’s questions (twice), taking out the garbage without being told (once), and convincing his high school sweetheart to marry him (once). He is based in Canada where he lives with Ramona and a dog named Mojo. Their three adult children are scattered around the globe, but come home for meals as often as they can. Apart from hanging out with his family, one of Phil’s greatest passions is telling stories that help people laugh and learn about the things that matter most. |
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Convention Project: A Bible for the Yola
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Yola Language and Culture
Approximately 1.5 million Yola (pseudonym) speakers live in Asia. For centuries, the Yola have farmed remote mountain fields where the land is fertile and the climate is mild. Each family plants rice and vegetables to feed themselves for the year, and they raise corn to feed their animals. Other cash crops include sugar cane, tung oil, and bananas. Most Yola villages consist of about 100 homes clustered on the slopes of lush river valleys. In recent decades, growing numbers of Yola have travelled to the big cities to do unskilled labor in order to provide their families a higher standard of living. Usually they leave their children to be raised by grandparents in the village. In almost all rural areas, Yola children grow up speaking Yola as their mother tongue, so the language and culture continue to thrive. Over the centuries, the Yola have developed a rich oral folk tradition which includes fables, folk songs, proverbs, riddles, and antiphonal singing. Yola Religion The Yola believe that the inanimate natural world is inhabited and influenced by spirits, so every year, with each different season, they do various kinds of ceremonies and sacrifices, appeasing the spirits in order to avoid calamity. The Yola also worship their ancestors. Each family has a place in the main room of their house that is set up for ancestor worship. There they burn incense, offer food sacrifices and pray to their ancestors for blessing and protection. The Need for the New Testament in Yola A significant portion of the Yola people have little-to-no proficiency in the national language. They do not understand the national language well enough to understand the gospel. For this reason, they need to have access to the Bible in their own language. Barb, a new believer, is hungry to hear God’s Word in Yola. Not long after Barb came to Christ, Julia, one of the Yola translators, invited Barb to help check the translation for clarity and naturalness. Barb listened carefully as Julia read the book of Hebrews to her, and asked Julia many questions about how to apply it. When Julia finished, she asked Barb what stood out to her. Barb’s mind went immediately to Hebrews 4:12: “The Word of God is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword ….” As the Word of God goes out in Yola, it penetrates the hearts of those who hear. |
After years of work, the translation of the Yola New Testament is in the final stages of preparation for printing. In the coming year, the translation team plans to make the Scriptures accessible to the Yola in the following ways:
The Value of the New Testament in Yola Why is it so important for the Yola to be able to hear and read God’s Word in their own language? All over the world, among every people group, the churches that last are those that have God’s Word and preach according to it. National pastors and foreign workers may be able to preach the gospel for a time, but their presence is temporary. As the apostle Paul said to the Ephesian elders the last time he saw them, “Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified” (Acts 20:32 NIV). The only way the Yola church can withstand Satan’s opposition is to have its foundation firmly established on the Word of God. Will you help give the Bible to the Yola people? The estimated cost of this project is $20,516 USD. You can give a tax-deductible gift through your church or give a tax-deductible gift directly to the Fellowship. FEBC Canada PO Box 115 Langham, SK S0K 2L0 FEBC USA 11605 W DODGE RD STE 3 OMAHA, NE 68154-2566 |
