Distracted by the Bible

Has your church ever had a problem with people being distracted during announcements? When a Bibles International literacy specialist, Bethany, was in southern Asia in November 2024, she attended a village church where the members were highly distracted and not listening to the announcements. But when Bethany saw the source of their distraction, she could only smile. They were utterly absorbed with reading their Bibles!

And no wonder—just 24 hours earlier, their newly completed Rhema* Bible was dedicated in a special ceremony. Thousands gathered to rejoice in what God had done to bring God’s full Word to their people. They filled the ground floor and balcony, and everyone present understood the significance of the precious Bible that was now theirs. At the ceremony’s start, designated people walked into the meeting carrying symbols representing the Bible while the narrator read verses explaining the symbols. A lamp, a mirror, a fire, a hammer, a sword—all these highlighted the Bible’s value in their lives.

Rhema Bible readers 2024 PB

The spirit of joy was palpable in the meeting hall. After dedicating the Bible, a pastor led the attendees in a call and response, shouting, “Victory belongs to Jesus Christ!” Everyone responded loudly, “Hallelujah!” The Hallelujahs continued with a 66-member choir singing “The Hallelujah Chorus” and a local celebratory song. The children’s choir added their voices to another song full of Hallelujahs, written by the Rhema Bible’s Old Testament translator. Bethany commented, “Hallelujah was certainly the most repeated word, and certainly the most fitting. Hard to add anything to that!”

Bethany stayed in Asia for a week after the dedication to conduct a writing workshop for Rhema Christian leaders. Thanks to the prior work of the translators and Bibles International personnel, the Rhema people already have a Bible, literacy materials, and a dictionary. This gives the leaders freedom to focus on creating books for Sunday School and other practical areas so that God’s Word will be fully understood and utilized.

* A pseudonym for their language

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2020 Bibles Int PB

Reliable Bible translation supported by literacy, training, and publishing services gets the Word of God into people’s hands and into their hearts.

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A recap of the 2024 ministries of Bibles International and Editorial Bautista Independiente.

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