Missions Around the World
|
|
|
Dear Friends, December was a busy month for us; our update is attached because I've included a couple of pictures. We hope you had a good Christmas, celebrating Jesus' birth and are ready to start a new year! Love, Valerie and Nicasio www.cten.org/NicasioMartinez 
Dear friends, It's late here in Colombia and breakfast will be at 6:40 tomorrow morning so we can go on an outing! (A little more about that in our November update, which is attached.) But I want to send this to you now since I probably won't have much time in the next few days to send it. There were some problems in getting us connected to the Zapotec service (at home) via zoom and are very thankful that it got worked out. We enjoyed attending the service via zoom and are so impressed by Fernando's teaching. The assistant pastor did a good job reading the section of Mark in Zapotec and teaching a bit on it. (You can read more about that, too, in the attached update.) We are certainly blessed by the people God has moved to work with us! Thank you for your part in all this! We hope you enjoy reading the update--although Nicasio said it's more like a newsletter! (Lots of pictures this time, too! That's why I'm attaching it as a PDF.) Praying God's blessings on you! Valerie and Nicasio www.cten.org/NicasioMartinez
Dear Friends, We realize that it hasn't been *that* long since we last sent out a newsletter but we want to share what's been happening through Quiatoni Zapotec and a bit of our family updates. So our November 2023 Quiatoni Crier is attached. We hope this newsletter is a blessing to you; you are a blessing to us through your interest and prayers. Thank you! love, Valerie and Nicasio www.cten.org/NicasioMartinez   Update and Prayer Requests: October 2023
Valerie and Nicasio Martinez Translating God's Word with and for the people who speak Quiatoni Zapotec Thank you for praying for the second part of the course on 1 Corinthians that Beto, Fernando and Rebeca attended. I was sad that I wasn’t here to attend the closing program for it but Nicasio asked them to write up for me what they shared during the program. Beto and Fernando were both impressed by learning the background of Paul’s teachings about Communion. Rebeca was most affected by learning about spiritual gifts. She wrote, “Through an activity we did, I realized that I had spiritual gifts or that what I do is because of my spiritual gifts. I used to be envious of people that could pray, that could heal people, who could easily speak to large crowds and I wondered why I couldn’t do any of those things nor did I know how to be able to do them. But now, through studying 1 Corinthians and learning that God gives different gifts to each person so that we can help our brothers and sisters in Christ.” Rebeca realized that her gifts are hospitality, which we have often experienced!, and evangelism, which we are seeing as she distributes materials in Zapotec. She ended her report by saying, “Thank you so much for the opportunity to learn more and understand better what God tells us through His Word.” And we thank YOU for making it possible for them to attend the course! Nicasio has been busy this month with all his regular things: teaching through 1 Peter in the Zapotec church service, checking 1 Peter and the Gospel of Mark (which is what we’re reading through at the beginning of the Zapotec service), leading the youth group, teaching a course in Indigenous Language in the university, and preparing for upcoming events: Nicasio, Beto and Candy will be leading a workshop on Indigenous Leadership during the conference we are attending in Colombia, from Nov. 28 to Dec. 1. Nicasio will be speaking about the challenges that indigenous people face, such as shame and fear, and how Jesus calls them and prepares them for what He wants them to do. Beto and Candy will speak on the practicalities of leadership. Part of the preparation to go to Colombia involved getting Beto’s and Candy’s passports, which involved getting Beto’s birth certificate corrected. Then Nicasio took them to Puebla to actually get their passports, which they had in hand in less than two hours! While Nicasio was waiting for them, a colleague called him and asked if he would do one of the plenary sessions at the conference! (Someone had to cancel his participation in the plenary session.) He has accepted that challenge and asks that you pray a lot for him as he prepares for it. Nov. 2 is the yearly Quiatoni youth conference that Nicasio started some years ago. This year he won’t be involved in any leadership roles but our church’s youth group will be doing some of the music for the day-long event. Just a couple of days ago, the organizers asked Beto and Candy if they will teach the younger children who will be there. They were delighted to say “yes!” Rebeca asked if she could take some USB drives with our Zapotec materials on them and some copies of our Zapotec hymnal in case anyone is interested in buying them. We were delighted to say “yes!” to that request. Rebeca loves to distribute the Zapotec materials and is such a blessing to us in that area. This weekend (Oct. 28 and 29), Nicasio will be distributing more Kulumi audio devices (https://kulumi.org/kulumi-x/) that the Cahaya Foundation has given us (https://www.thecahayafoundation.org/). These have all our Bible materials in Zapotec on them. On Saturday, after church, he will be giving one to each family in our church here in Tlacolula. (You may remember that most of those who attend our church are from the Quiatoni area.) Sunday evening we will be visiting another church here in Tlacolula where several Quiatoni families attend and giving each family a Kulumi. (About five years ago, Nicasio led a Bible study in Zapotec in this church, which included learning to read and write in Zapotec.) We appreciate your prayers that the Kulumis will have a big impact on people understanding the Word of God as they hear it in their own language. Shortly after I sent out our September report, Mike and Tara got the disappointing news that it would be another 4 to 8 weeks for the closing on their house sale. We all agreed that it would be better for me to fly home instead of waiting that length of time to drive down with them, so I flew home on October 13th, after spending five days with Rusty. Even though Rusty was working (I went shopping while he was at work), we decided that after work was vacation and enjoyed going out to eat (fast food places that are not in Mexico) and doing things together. I enjoyed watching him play pickleball; I’ve heard about pickleball but this was the first time to see it! He enjoyed playing in the tournament and even though they came in towards the bottom, it was a good experience and he’s ready to do it again! Mike and Tara are still waiting for the exact date for the closing on their house but understand that it should happen by the end of October. We appreciate your prayers for them as they deal with the uncertainty as well take care of the final details of moving out and driving to Oaxaca. (I won’t be able to go up to drive back with them because of the Colombia trip.) They are so ready to be done with selling the house and are so ready to be living here! I have been humbled and honored by how many people (colleagues and Quiatoni people) have said that they missed me and are glad I’m back! I’ve been busy processing LOTS of donations into the children’s library. We are pleased to have Nicasio’s mom with us for a week. It was a little hard at first for her since she hadn’t been back since Dad passed away in February, but she seems to have adjusted. She loves to listen to her “radio” (Kulumi), especially the songs! Your interest, prayers, and support for our ministry of Bible translation into Quiatoni Zapotec means so much to us and keeps us going! We love to share with you how God is working through His Word. Thank you for making it possible! love, Valerie and Nicasio www.cten.org/NicasioMartinez Update and Prayer Requests: September 2023 Valerie and Nicasio Martinez Translating God's Word with and for the people who speak Quiatoni Zapotec Some major events have happened since we gave you our update in August! Thank you for praying! (I am still in Ohio with Mike, Tara and Royan. More details at the end of this update.) The biggest church in the Quiatoni area had arranged with Nicasio to teach the youth group about apologetics. Because of the time constraints, it was more of an introduction to apologetics but something is better than nothing, right? Everyone enjoyed the class. As is often the case in the Quiatoni churches, other people attend the meetings even if they aren’t in the group that the event is for. The pastor’s father sat in on the apologetics classes and was paying a lot of attention. Nicasio felt that he really learned a lot and when Nicasio chatted with him, he said that it would be good to have classes on marriage, just like the classes on apologetics. It’s so good to see people wanting to learn more about what the Bible teaches! Two days before the big UN event for the International Decade of Indigenous Languages, Nicasio heard that a pastor-friend in Quiatoni’s second largest town had passed away. He and the Zapotec music group went to the wake that night. They played and sang for about an hour and then when they were having some supper, the cooks said that they hadn’t heard the songs and so they sang some more! The family would have liked them to stay longer but since the UN event was the next day, they had to leave. We have gotten to know one of the pastor’s sons through the courses for bilingual teachers. He asked if the songs were recorded so Nicasio gave him a USB drive that has all our Zapotec materials. The UN event for the International Decade of Indigenous Languages went very well! Nicasio had a bad cold but managed to do his part as emcee, give his five-minute presentation and then two small group sessions giving more information about his theme of how indigenous people’s identity has been damaged over the years since the Europeans arrived in the Americas. Beto and Candy did small group presentations on the course for speakers of indigenous languages to write stories. Our Zapotec music group played and sang off and on during the whole event. The event coordinator said, “The group added so much fun and love with their songs to the event. We are very glad that they participated!” People enjoyed talking with the Quiatoni lady who attended to show and talked about the traditional Quiatoni embroidery. She had a blouse that was made of fabric woven on a backstrap loom; someone wanted to buy it but since it was very old, she wasn’t willing to sell it but did sell several other blouses. That night Beto and Candy took the bus to Mexico City to participate in another event for church leaders for the International Decade of Indigenous Languages. They spoke about how having the New Testament in Quiatoni Zapotec has affected them and others. They gave their testimonies about how they were raised in Christian homes but didn’t really understand the Gospel until they started attending the Zapotec church service. They enjoyed meeting the SIL Executive Director in person. One of the organizers of that event told me, “It was AMAZING to have them there! You could see how they had prepared. It was personal and also educational. It was very good!” She told me, too, “We also found a note in their room that made me cry. It said, ‘God is good all the time; all the time, God is good’ and 60 pesos! I’m still trying to figure out how to express how thankful we are.” Looking ahead, we’d appreciate your prayers for the second part of the 1 Corinthians course. Beto, Fernando and Rebeca will be attending it from Oct. 2 to the 13th. Please pray for them as they commute each day (20 minutes) as well as for them during this intense course. Nicasio, Beto and Candy will be giving some small group presentations at an event the end of November in Colombia! They have started the process to get Candy’s and Beto’s passports. (I will also be going as a learner.) I hate to buy plane tickets but that’s my role for this trip. J We appreciate your prayers for all that’s involved for this event. Meanwhile, I’m here with Mike, Tara and Royan. There have been some bumps in the road of getting their house sold but now things seem to be working out. An investment company is buying the house; we are waiting for paperwork to be finished and a closing date to be set. Then they will buy and pack a trailer and then we’ll be on the road to Oaxaca! Please pray for all that needs to be done yet and for safe travels for us. I’ll be spending a few days with Rusty after we are out of Mike and Tara’s house! He’s excited about being in a pickleball tournament on October 7th! We are truly thankful for your interest and prayers for our ministry of Bible translation, for those who work with us to share the Gospel in Quiatoni Zapotec, and for us and our family. You are a blessing to us! love, Valerie and Nicasio www.cten.org/NicasioMartinez Photo: Beto, Keila (Candy and Beto’s younger daughter), Dr. Michel Kenmogne (SIL Executive Director), Candy  Dear Friends, We're attaching [click file below] our September Quiatoni Crier. We hope you are encouraged by the way that God is providing for people who speak Quiatoni Zapotec to hear His Word in their own language--and for the interest that they are showing to listen to it! Thank you for your interest, prayers, and encouragement for our ministry of translating God's Word into Quiatoni Zapotec. love, Valerie and Nicasio www/cten.org/NicasioMartinez
Update and Prayer Requests: August 2023
Valerie and Nicasio Martinez Translating God's Word with and for the people who speak Quiatoni Zapotec You may remember that Beto was the head of the Quiatoni Zapotec team who attended a three-week workshop on translating 1 Corinthians. The three new folks were surprised by how many “gringos” (foreigners in general) have left their homes to come to Mexico to translate God’s Word for people like themselves. Rebeca said, “I see these people like Paul, traveling all over to share God’s Word with people.” All three new ones commented on how they would spend an hour or more understanding one verse and then each would work on how they thought it should be translated. Then they would come together and share their ideas. Eloisa said, “Now I realize that God’s Word in Zapotec is important, that we understand it better in Zapotec than in Spanish.” Fernando said, “So many things we think we understand (in Spanish) and sometimes we want the Bible to say what we want it to say!” Nicasio is impressed with Fernando’s abilities and hopes that he will be able to work with Beto to continue revising 1 Corinthians, when Beto finishes teaching in the Native Authors Workshop and when Fernando can take time off his job. August 5th was our last meeting with the Quiatoni pastors where they learned to read and write in Zapotec, sing Zapotec songs, and how to evangelize others in Zapotec. We are very glad for all the pastors and others who arrived. We are also very thankful for The Cahaya Foundation (www.thecahayafoundation.org) who gave us 200 small Kulumi audio devices, already filled with our Zapotec materials! The pastors and assistant pastors were delighted to get their own devices and then additional devices to share with church members who would be interested in listening to them. We haven’t heard much from the pastors yet but Josefina, who has been using “big books” in Zapotec to teach Sunday School, said that she would like 10 more to share in her church! Those in our church (in Tlacolula) have really been enjoying listening to them and that they are so portable. God and The Cahaya Foundation are blessing us with another 500 devices in a few months! Please pray for wisdom for Nicasio as he decides what is the best method to distribute them. Last Friday (Aug. 25), was the first day of classes for the Master’s Degree program of translation and interpretation that Nicasio will be teaching at “his” university. Then on Saturday, he went to Quiatoni with Beto and the youth music group to give an introduction to apologetics to the youth in Quiatoni’s largest church. Beto was invited to preach at the evening service. We are thankful for all the ways God is providing to encourage people to use Zapotec in church and to provide them with the tools to do that. We would appreciate your prayers for Nicasio as he participates in the UN International Decade of Indigenous Languages event that will be held in Mitla on Sept. 19. He has been part of the organizing committee and will be one of the emcees for the event. He will also give a talk on how indigenous people’s identity has been damaged over the years since the Europeans arrived in the Americas. He has also invited Candy and Beto to give a talk about the “big books” they make and use with children. He is also arranging for a lady from Quiatoni to have a table where she will be embroidering a traditional Quiatoni blouse. People will have the opportunity to buy something and ask her questions. Our Zapotec music group will also be participating with some songs in Quiatoni Zapotec. Then on Sept. 20, there is a similar event in Mexico City. Beto and Candy will be participating there, sharing about the effects and impact of having God’s Word in their own language. This is a major event, and something new for Candy and Beto, so we appreciate your prayers for them, too. Please pray, too, for our relationship, especially Nicasio’s, with our local church. It has been a little rocky. A week ago (Aug. 22), at Mike and Tara’s request, I flew up to help them with Royan (now 2.5 years old!) so they can finish up stuff to sell their house in preparation of moving to Oaxaca. Royan and I have been getting to know each other and I’m learning his language. (You might remember that his speech has been delayed. His speech is improving a lot and he uses a lot of methods to communicate.) On September 9th, Rusty will celebrate another year of being cancer free and will celebrate his 29th birthday! We appreciate your interest, prayers and support for our ministry of Bible translation. We are blessed to see God working in so many ways right now among those who speak Quiatoni Zapotec. Thank you for your part in making it possible! love, Valerie and Nicasio www.cten.org/NicasioMartinez Dear Friends, I'm attaching our monthly report as a PDF [below]. We thank you for your interest and prayers for our ministry of Bible translation in Quiatoni Zapotec. love, Valerie and Nicasio www.cten.org/NicasioMartinez
Update and Prayer Requests: June 2023
Valerie and Nicasio Martinez Translating God's Word with and for the people who speak Quiatoni Zapotec Nicasio was invited to give a presentation on June 14 to a group of Bible translators (foreigners, Mexicans and speakers of indigenous languages) and he decided to share about the effects of studying the Bible in one’s own language. He told how he had started a Bible study at church more than 20 years ago, but it wasn’t considered a “real” church service because people sat in a circle and no offering was taken. That went on a few years and then petered out. Then 15 years ago, our pastor suggested that our church have a service all in Zapotec. Nicasio was asked to lead it and this service was seen as more “real” because people sat in rows, there was an offering taken, and a Zapotec worship team was formed, making it more official. This is the service that we are still having, all in Quiatoni Zapotec. Nicasio then asked Beto to share about the effects of studying God’s Word in their own language. He told how that encourages people to listen, participate and ask questions. He also told how when he is home with his wife and daughters, they continue talking about what we have studied in Zapotec. He said that it’s easier to share the Gospel with others now because they have the vocabulary in Zapotec and don’t have to struggle with how to explain things. He told how one lady has said that because of studying in Zapotec, she knows now that Jesus came to save us from our sins. Another lady said how she now understands what baptism means and would like to be baptized again, since she really understands it now. The director of the meeting thanked them for sharing, and thanked Nicasio for sharing the things that didn’t work as well as those that do. Many others thanked them later for sharing; we hope that God will use this to encourage others to do interactive Bible studies, using their New Testament translations. Nicasio had gotten sick a couple of days before the presentation but felt well enough to do it. But that evening he wasn’t feeling well again. The next day I came down with it. It’s been two weeks for Nicasio and about 10 days for me and we are still not back to normal yet, especially in our energy levels. We’d appreciate your prayers for us to feel better again. Last Saturday (June 24) was our third class with the Quiatoni pastors and church leaders.[1] The town where we were to meet is at a lower elevation than most of the Quiatoni area and where we live, so it’s almost always hotter and more humid. I was dreading the day there since it’s been so hot and humid at home but God is gracious: it had been raining there since Friday and was much cooler than we had anticipated. We were so thankful! We are so encouraged by the pastors’ and leaders’ interest and participation. Thank you for praying! As part of the introduction, Nicasio asked, “Why do we need to read and write in Zapotec? Several answered along the lines of, “We can understand the Bible better in Zapotec and it helps us preach better and to know what the Bible is really saying.” One added, “It’s a tool we can use; we need to have our tools ready al the time. We need to sharpen our machetes so they are ready for use.” Beto shared more on how to use the 10 Commandants to give the bad news that we are all sinners and then to give the Good News that Jesus came to die for our sins. He put everyone in pairs to practice it. After that, Nicasio said, “OK, you’re all ready now to have your evangelistic campaigns!” Florencio, one of the pastors, said, “No, not yet! This is only the third class!” (out of the four that they had planned.) This is quite a change in attitude from when they first approached Nicasio about helping them with strategies for holding evangelistic campaigns! Then they were wanting to fill their churches and now they are seeing the need to make sure that each person understands the Gospel. Candy shared on how to pray and why pray in Zapotec. (Even though she always says she is very nervous, she doesn’t show it and always does a great job. Imagine Candy, who went to school through 6th grade—and even Beto, who just finished his bachelor’s last year—teaching the pastors! Of course, most of the pastors don’t have much education, either, but they are very respected because they are pastors.) After she finished teaching about prayer, Nicasio said, “You might be wondering why we’re studying this, since we should already know this.” Florencio burst out with, “But we don’t!” Beto gave them homework: Witness to at least one person before our next meeting. Nicasio added that it could be someone in their church. A pastor said, “Yes! Because not everyone who attends church understands salvation.” At the end, Florencio thanked Nicasio, Beto and Candy for coming to teach them. Then he prayed all in Zapotec, just as if God were standing there listening to him. It was beautiful! On the way home (two hours to cover about 60 miles on paved roads), the truck started acting up. Even though we were driving home earlier than usual, no mechanics were open, probably due to it being Saturday evening. Nicasio said that we might as well drive on home and we are thankful that we made it and nothing seems to be worse. He took the truck to the mechanic this morning but he was too busy, so he’ll take it tomorrow morning. We are hoping it’s nothing major. Two more quick notes: 1. Beto and Candy’s older daughter graduated from high school and will be attending college in the fall. We are so proud of them all! 2. Mike and Tara have asked me (Valerie) to drive to Mexico with them when they move here, some time in July. We would appreciate your prayers for preparations and the trip. Thank you for your interest, support and prayers—all of which are giving the Quiatoni people God’s Word in the language they understand best! love, Valerie and Nicasio www.cten.org/NicasioMartinez Dear Friends, Attached is our June 2023 Quiatoni Crier newsletter [download below]. We hope it's an encouragement to you and that it also encourages you to pray for us and our ministry. We so appreciate your interest and prayers for the people who speak Quiatoni Zapotec to have God's Word in their own language. Thank you! Valerie and Nicasio Martinez www.cten.org/NicasioMartinez
|
MissionariesPeriodic Updates Archives
April 2024
Categories |
||||||||||
RSS Feed
