Author: Bill & Donna Davis

The Gospel Goes Viral

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Busier Than Ever

October finds us grateful to be well and safe during the pandemic. We pray you are, too!

COVID-19 has changed many things in our lives recently, but it has not stopped our ministry of reaching the Unreached. In fact, ministry-wise, we are busier than ever.

Here’s a quick update on what is the same for us, what’s different, and what’s better and more exciting that we could have imagined…

The Same

  • HOME. We continue to work from home, connecting online.
  • MAKING MISSIONARIES MORE EFFECTIVE. Bill continues to work with his team developing materials and a mobile app to help missionaries gain fluency faster in order to speed up the spread of the Gospel.

Different

  • NO TRAVEL. No surprise there! We’ve had none of our usual trips to Asia or our training centers to train missionaries and consultants.
  • VIDEO CONFERENCES. 2020 is the year of Zoom, Teams, Skype, and all the other online meeting apps for everyone, and we’re no exception. Bill spends a lot of his time connecting online with his team and with missionaries and consultants in many different countries who need his help.
  • SLOWER INTERNET. Even here in the US, our internet gets bogged down a bit lately because of all the homeschooling, video conferences, and students home from college playing online games!

Better and More Exciting

  • MORE PROGRESS FASTER. Meeting online has proven to be very effective. A two-hour meeting can be followed by a few days of processing and implementation, followed immediately by another meeting. This has actually worked better than less frequent, week-long all-day face to face meetings.
  • MORE AVAILABILITY. Progress has also picked up pace because many of Bill’s teammates, who are scattered all around the globe, actually have more time to give to the CLA (Culture and Language Acquisition) project. Some of their other ministries are on hold due to COVID-19, giving them more time to devote to working with Bill on CLA materials and the CLA app.

But the most exciting thing is SOMETHING TOTALLY NEW:

Bill and his team will have a part in training Gospel workers from all over Asia. This is a huge, new and totally unexpected opportunity in addition to those we’ve already been training! Church planters from many closed and difficult countries (shhhh… we can’t name them here) want to be better trained to reach the Unreached People Groups right there in their own countries. Many of them are in countries where it is dangerous to share the Gospel, or even to be a Christian, and where no training is available for them.

We’re excited because many of these workers need to learn another language. So they will use the culture and language acquisition (CLA) materials Bill and his team have been developing. And they will also be able to use the mobile app that goes with the CLA materials. Some will use a common language for ministry, but they will still need training in cross-cultural communication. Bill and his team will develop modules to help with training all these workers in this difficult-to-reach countries.

The prayer is that over time, this training will spread to other continents, as well. Having so many more trainees in so many different countries will greatly expand the impact of the CLA materials and the app, making the hours spent in development all the more worth the effort!

Not only this, but we’re finding missionaries from other agencies who are very interested in having their people use the CLA materials and the app.

Going Viral

So the Gospel is truly going viral… and will be spread even faster, in part because of the coronavirus! God is taking what looked like delays and frustrations and turning them into opportunities for the Gospel.

If you would like to more about the exciting new training opportunities we mentioned, let us know. We would love to fill you in! We just can’t post details online or in email communication.

A Matter of Life and Death

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The Virus that Shook the World

COVID-19. The whole world is talking about it. Everyone is concerned. Everyone’s routines and lives are being disrupted. People are dying.

We pray that each of you is safe and healthy whether you are sheltering at home, or heading out to work or shop.

The Morning that Changed Everything

But the coronavirus, as bad as it may be, is not the world’s greatest problem. Many will never be infected. Many will survive. But sin affects everyone, and has a 100% death rate.

This weekend, on Easter Sunday Christians will celebrate and remember not just our Lord’s death for us, but his resurrection. When he walked out of that empty tomb, he changed everything forever! And he made salvation and eternal life possible to all who believe. There is no vaccine for sin, but there is a cure, and his name is Jesus.

Missionaries and COVID-19

People have been asking us how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting missionaries. What about those who are scattered across the globe sharing the message of the cure to sin and death?

Let us tell you what some of our missionary friends are experiencing. Then we’ll give you an update on us and our family.

Some missionaries are choosing to stay in their ministry countries. Missionaries that we trained are hunkered down in Peru, Chad, the Middle East, and all over Asia. Many are locked down in different situations. Some are being blamed for bringing the virus and even face threats of violence.

Others have been evacuated by their mission agencies–or forced to leave by local governments. Some had to change tickets and plans multiple times in the course of a few weeks, and barely slipped out of the country before international flights were stopped. They, like all the rest of us, are now under quarantine somewhere, wondering when and how, and if this will all return to normal.

One couple that Bill trained at Radius had just gotten to Asia and had barely started learning language in Asia when they suddenly had to return to the USA. But they are continuing language study as best they can over WhatsApp and Skype!

Bill and Donna Busy Indoors

What about us? Well, we’re hunkered down in our house, thankful for a nice yard to stretch our legs, thankful for phones, email and online church, and thankful for a well-stocked pantry (Bill was even able to buy TP at Costco today!) We’re working from home, which is pretty normal for us. But it’s weird to not be able to go out, and it’s hard to limit time with friends and our grandkids.

Donna’s been sick for about a week. But she tested negative for conoravirus, praise the Lord, and she is on the mend from what turned out to be an “ordinary” upper respiratory infection.

Bill’s ministry is moving ahead and he’s busier than ever!

Managing his team as they work on missionary training materials for language and culture acquisition (CLA) is really picking up pace. The mobile app is being developed and Bill is quite involved in guiding the programmers and testing the app. He’s working hard to stay ahead of them as they are making great progress.

A weekend consultant trip to Bakersfield for Bill to help missionaries learning Punjabi has been switched to a 4-day video conference call… that’s a first!

Bill’s trip to Missouri in May to get a new team member started on the culture/language project will likely switch to online interaction, as well.

Lord willing, an international forum of our missionaries to be held in Thailand in November will not have to be cancelled. Bill is planning a two-day training there for about 60 leaders and CLA consultants, and will demonstrate the new mobile app and CLA program at that time. We’re excited to see it launched!

In the past week, Bill had a one-hour phone call followed by a 90-minute Zoom conference with six Asian American college students in Los Angeles. They all attend one of our supporting churches, and these students are all interested in finding their role in reaching Unreached People Groups! They wanted to pick Bill’s brain, and they filled all those hours with tons of great questions. These conference calls may become a regular thing, at least until we can travel freely and get back to meeting face-to-face.

Our Family… and You

Our daughter Bethy is still working (Habitat for Humanity in Los Angeles). She’s working from home, but that’s not easy with Elias, an active 4-year-old, under foot since his preschool closed. We’ll go back to helping her once in a while once Donna’s fully recovered. Meanwhile, we read stories to Elias in a video chat and had quite the conversation with him this morning.

Elisa is homeschooling her two kiddos, as always, and Chris is able to work from home. We’re thanking that our kids’ jobs are considered “essential” and they are able to keep working during this time of turmoil! But it’s hard to start isolated from each other. We read stories to Max and Myri in video chat on Tuesday, and a week ago, we all had Myri’s 9th birthday party via a Zoom meeting, playing games, watching her open gifts, and watching each other eat cake in our respective homes!

And you… how are you doing through all of this? Let us know how we can pray for you. We’re thankful that God is in control and sovereign over all of this.

And we are especially thankful for each of you as you partner with us to reach the Unreached. We feel very blessed.

We have the cure! Let’s keep sharing it until our savior who walked out of that tomb returns.

Fire & Ice

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Tomorrow, Bill is heading to our training center in Missouri where they teach our missionaries how to learn the language and culture of Unreached People Groups. He will take 3 days to update the staff there on the latest version of the CLA (Culture/Language Acquisition) program his team is developing.

He’ll also be meeting with a missionary who will be joining his CLA Development team full-time. We’re thankful for how this will enhance and speed up the project.

Fire

Taal volcano erupting
Taal Volcano

The Taal volcano in the Philippines is erupting. It is near where we studied Tagalog in Lipa City in 1982, so several of our former teachers live still in the area.

Two Palawano young people, a brother and sister named Risyal (“Resh”) and Melanie, are currently attending a Bible institute just outside the 11 mile “danger zone.” They are close, but safe, although they and their classmates are constantly having to clean up ash and concrete-like wet ash on their campus. Their school is also serving as a relief center, collecting and delivering clothing, water and hygiene kits to those who have been affected by the volcano.

We’re proud of them, and thankful to the Lord that he has them there, and for how he is using them to help others in His Name.

Pray for the safety of Resh, Melanie and their classmates. And pray for the relief efforts of their school.

Ice

Winter Storms

This morning, as the latest winter storm hits the US, American Airlines notified Bill that his flight plans might be “affected” because of ice and wind tomorrow. They are offering free flight rescheduling. That’s nice of them! But changing his arrival date will mess up several of his planned meetings. So we’re going to push ahead and ask the Lord to keep the skies clear in Springfield, MO!

Please pray with us to safe and unhindered travel tomorrow!

Coming Soon!

Be on the lookout for our next update. Bill just received the first trial version of the new CLA App! He’s testing it out and looking forward to giving a report.

Hearts

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Our Heart for Asia

In June, Bill was invited back to Asia and spent a week there, teaching some local missionaries with a local mission agency about how to better learn language and culture. This was a follow-up to our trip last year. This time, Bill was able to provide some training for 10 missionaries, and several mission leaders, including the director of their training program.

This like-minded agency targets Unreached People Groups, and their desire is to have their missionaries reach a higher level of fluency in the heart language of those people groups. And they’ve asked our mission–Bill in particular–to help them do this.

The feedback was that the missionaries found the sessions to be super helpful and they couldn’t wait to get home and put into practice what they had learned. Their leaders asked our mission to give them a list of recommendations they could pass on to their board. They want Bill to come back and do more training. This might lead to walking them through revamping their training course, as well as training their mission’s language consultants.

Bill’s (physical) Heart

A Shock… In March, our doctor discovered that Bill had A-Fib (atrial fibrillation)–that is, an irregular heartbeat. This greatly increases the risk of stroke, so Bill was immediately put on blood thinners.

Another, Better Shock… In July, his cardiologist did a procedure with a mild electric shock, which was successful in resetting Bill’s heart to normal rhythm! And from that day until now, Bill has way more energy! We hadn’t realized how his energy had gradually waned.

The Heart of the Matter

Missionaries need fluency to communicate God’s message; and they need training and coaching in order to reach fluency! So Bill’s project of updating Ethnos360’s how-to manual our training programs and missionaries use to learn language and culture is a vital part of seeing Unreached People Groups reached in their Heart Languages.

Recently, Bill’s project of revising those Culture and language Acquisition (CLA) materials is picking up momentum. The software development team is about to begin working on the beta version of the mobile app and desktop/laptop program that will integrate with the new CLA how-to program. We’re hoping to coordinate the release of the app with the launch of the new CLA materials.

So Bill is rallying his team to pick up the pace in these final stages of development. Communication can be a challenge. A recent conference call, he had to find a time that worked for people in Florida, South Asia and California! He’ll be heading to Florida in early September for some face-to-face meetings with some of his team.

Prayer and Praise

  • Thank the Lord with us for Bill’s back-to-normal heart rhythm!
  • Pray for health and strength, safe travel, and wisdom as Bill oversees his project

note: In accordance with our mission’s guidelines we’re
being intentionally vague as to country names for reasons of
missionary security. Want more details? Please ask!

Here and There

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What’s YOUR favorite color?

Where’s the best place to learn culture and language?

Answer: in a cultural community where that language is spoken. But not all communities (or teachers, or schools…) are equal.

On our trip to Asia in September, we checked out a language school where our people might learn national language and culture. Bill was asked to evaluate the course, and to check out the opportunities in to experience culture–especially deep culture such as local religion–in this ancient city. We spent a few days visiting temples and historical sites, viewing the nightly ceremonies honoring a river goddess, and seeing cremation and idol worship up close.

Yep. This would be quite a place to jump into the deep end of that country’s culture.

Expanding the Reach of the Gospel

Then we spent a few days meeting with learners of a like-minded mission who have over 500 missionaries working among Unreached People Groups in their Asian country. But there are still thousands of unreached groups in that region, waiting for the Gospel.

Bill has been invited to come back in the spring to begin training for their new missionaries in the area of culture and language learning. Bill will also help their language consultants learn to coach their own missionaries to help them reach a higher level of fluency.

We’re amazed and thankful for this huge opportunity!

You must learn a language step by step…

Holy Ground

While in Asia, we were able to worship with some believers in a very anti-Christian country.

I will thank you, Lord, among all the people.
   I will sing your praises among the nations.
Psalm 108:3 (NLT)

Frozen Meetings

A couple weeks ago, Bill spent 5 days at our training center in Missouri (we were trained there in 1978, and taught there in 1979! And that’s where Elisa was born.) In the meetings, Bill and others explored how our missionaries who are trained to do linguistic analysis can help their teammates to learn unknown, unwritten languages.

Why “frozen”? Well… during that week, the temperatures were something like “22 degrees, feels like 17“! Bill had to borrow a “real” jacket from our son-in-law Chris. His San Diego “jacket” (= light hoodie) wasn’t going to be enough. The day after Bill left, it snowed 4″ and got down to minus 1. Yes, that’s right… one degree BELOW ZERO.

When Your World is Shaken

A consultant trip to Asia Pacific had to be postponed because of an earthquake and tsunami that leveled the city where we usually go on our consultant trips. Our hearts were broken for that city, and for our friends and coworkers there as they shifted to disaster relief and had to relocate their own center of operations.

You haven’t heard from us in a while. Our family suffered its own earth-shaking disaster with the tragic death of our other son-in-law Ricky in October. God has been showing his grace, but it’s been hard, both grieving and watching our daughter and grandson grieve even more. We’re doing all we can to provide support to them, and we’re so thankful for the prayers of God’s people.

note: in accordance with our mission’s guidelines we’re being intentionally vague as to country names for reasons of missionary security

Please Pray!

Please pray for Bill as he continues to work on the new language/culture learning program that will be used worldwide. The software team should begin working full time on the accompanying app soon.

Pray for his upcoming trip to Asia to train those language learners and consultants mentioned above.

And continue to pray for our family, for healing, strength, and courage.

Worldview

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What Have Bill and Donna Been Up To?

Here are a few examples of what we’ve been doing recently…

  • Bill has been Skyping and emailing with missionaries in the Middle East, Mexico, Brazil, the USA, and a few countries in Asia, helping them work through their language learning struggles.
  • We spent a week in February and again in May at our mission’s HQ in Florida. Bill and his team made exciting progress in the development of the mobile app which will help missionaries learn language and culture.
  • Bill taught a 20-hour class on language and Bible translation to 37 missionaries at Radius International, and then we attended their graduation in June. Now they are all headed out to take the gospel to Unreached People Groups.
  • Bill attended on 2-week workshop on how to help missionaries better learn the worldview of the people they minister to.

Pray for us as we work to see as many well-trained missionaries as possible get out to the field.

And stay tuned for an update on the mobile app Bill’s team is creating to help missionaries learn both language and worldview!

Because everyone deserves to hear in their Heart Language.

What’s the big deal with worldview? If you want to learn more about that, keep reading…

Worldview

Over 7,000 people groups have never heard of Christ. We need lots of missionaries to go. But how can we train missionaries to be effective at communicating the Gospel and making disciples once they get there? One answer: Worldview.

As you know, a big part of the training Bill is providing for missionaries is “How to learn an unknown language on your own.” We talk about that a lot.

But another important part is “How to learn an Unreached People Group’s Worldview.” Bill just spent 2 weeks at a workshop about how to help missionaries learn the worldview of the Unreached People Groups they ministry to.

What’s Worldview?

A culture’s worldview is, well, how they view the world. It’s their assumptions about reality—what they believe is true about the universe; what they believe about themselves and about God (or the gods)… about morality… about the origin of everything… and about their final destiny.

God’s worldview—his version of reality as revealed in his Word—is the only one that is 100% true. Every human worldview is flawed; some are overflowing with error: evolution, no God, 3 million gods, ancestor worship, reincarnation, animism… these are parts of various major worldviews, but these strongly-held beliefs are not true!

Why is Worldview Important?

If human worldviews are full of wrong beliefs, why bother with them? When we bring God’s message—his truth—to an Unreached People Group, why do we need to learn their misguided worldview first? Why don’t we just give them the simple message of God’s truth?

BECAUSE EVERYTHING THEY HEAR WILL BE INTERPRETED IN LIGHT OF THEIR WORLDVIEW.

It’s like they are wearing glasses that have the wrong prescription, blurring everything they see. If we don’t understand their worldview, we will be unaware of all the ways they will misunderstand our message. We won’t anticipate all the ways they might blend God’s truth with their own beliefs (syncretism). They might reject the Gospel for the wrong reason, simply because they don’t clearly understand it. Or we’ll never know why they might seem to accept it when they really haven’t!

“The Bible tells us that God’s son died for our sins, and if we believe in him, we will go to heaven.”

Okay, if we were to give that version of the “simple Gospel” word-for-word to Palawanos, here are some of the many communication problems that would arise:

  • Bible: The Palawanos know the “truth” based on their ancestor’s stories, and what the spirits tell the shaman; Palawanos cite their ancestors’ legacy and say that those teachings are for them, but they believe that the Bible is the Americans’ ancestors’ stories, and is only for Americans.
  • God: Palawanos believe in many “gods” (rice god, river god…) The supreme creator God is thought to be uninvolved with the world, he’s not really loving, he isn’t the one who provides crops and blessings, he doesn’t really care about sin, and he has nothing to do with death or afterlife.
  • Death: Palawanos don’t believe that death is because of sin or because of a judgement by God. People get sick—and sometimes die—because spirits were offended; not by sin, but by trespassing, cutting down trees, etc. So the idea of a substitutionary death as payment for sin is confusing at best.
  • Sin: Almost everything Palawanos consider to be “sin” they see as offenses against people, not against God. Such “sins” are dealt with by simply avoiding the offended person until emotions calm down in order to avoid shame. Many Biblical sins are not considered by Palawanos to be sin. On the other hand, to become a Christian and therefore to stop offering to your ancestors would make you a bad (sinful) person.
  • Believe: It would be rude to tell you they reject your message, so to be polite, Palawanos will pretend to believe for the sake of their relationship with you.
  • Judgement: Most spirits can be manipulated by rituals and amulets, so Palawanos believe that they could manipulate God and avoid judgement.
  • Destiny: Palawanos’ main concern is health and having enough food in this life; everyone dies, but it’s not because of sin; after death, everyone goes to a backwards-but-nice place called Kelebegang.

Do you see any potential problems if the missionary did not take the time to understand the Palawano worldview?

Why is Worldview Difficult to Discover?

Much of a culture’s worldview is implicitly understood. The missionary cannot simply ask, “What are all your beliefs?” and expect to get a coherent summary. Only after very intentional investigation, and much prayerful reflection, can the missionary understand the worldview and its implications for clear Gospel communication.

It’s worth every effort. People cannot be saved unless the first understand the message.

But missionaries need to be trained to do this, and that’s where we come in. It’s not enough to simply know God’s message. Missionaries need to learn another language to the point of being able to communicate the message at all. And they also need to learn the worldview of their audience in order to communicate effectively.

 

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