Volume 41, Number 7 July-August 2016

We Welcome Pastor Laurel Neal Pastor Laurel Neal begins as our Interim Pastor on July 1, 2016, and will preach her first service at MPC on July 3rd. We warmly welcome Laurel to our church community and look forward to getting to know her. Ordained in 1992, Laurel holds a Master’s in Divinity from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, and a Master of Arts in Linguistics from the University of Texas. Laurel is a Certified Interim Pastor, having completed two weeks of Interim/Transitional Ministry training, in 2009 and 2011. She also has participated in a long list of continuing education activities, including workshops on mediation, transition and leadership. She has over 20 years of ministry experience, and has held leadership roles as Interim, Discipleship and Associate Pastor. For her Interim experience, Laurel just completed a nine-month stint as Bridge Pastor at Hillsboro Presbyterian Church, filling in between the departure of an Interim Pastor and the hiring of a Permanent Pastor. Prior to that, for three years, she was Interim Pastor at Smith Memorial Presbyterian Church in Fairview, Oregon. Before that, from 2009 to 2011, Laurel was Interim Pastor for East Woods Presbyterian Church in Vancouver, Washington. Ministry gifts that references ascribed to Laurel included patience, intelligence, kindness, leadership, administration, facilitation, sensitivity, personable, good sense of humor, well-organized, transparent, able to juggle multiple balls at one time without becoming stressed out, trustworthy, and good trainer and mentor. According to comments from the search committee, “we found her to be warm, friendly, open and a good communicator.” As is the custom with Interim Pastors, Session entered into a 12-month covenant agreement with Pastor Laurel to provide Interim Pastor services. The relationship is reviewed by Session and Presbytery leadership at the end of 12 months and can be renewed. Interim Pastors typically stay with a church 18 to 24 months until a Permanent Pastor is selected.

July Sermons

3rd “Grace & Peace” Philippians 1:1-2

10th “Mission: Organization” Phil. 1:3-8

17th “You Get What You Pray For” Phil. 1:9-11

24th “Sizing Things Up” Phil. 1:12-18a

31st “Sizing Up the Future” Phil. 1:18b-26

August Sermons

7th “Soulmates” Philippians 1:26-2:4

14th Alaska Mission Presentation

21st “Getting Low” Phil. 2:5-11

28th “Outliers” Phil. 2:12-18

Page 2 Multnomah Announcer

Presbyterian Women’s Summer Update

Deacon News

Pastor Brian Craker, our Guest Preacher for May.

Ahhh…..the warmth of summer (or perhaps just,… ohhh, the HEAT!!!). Summer is now in full force these next two months and while there are some interesting things going on (these are the months in which the Perseid meteor shower peaks; the first Sunday in August is International Forgiveness Day and Friendship Day), too often our focus is on the weather and our discomfort. We need to remember that, as Annie Buell sings in her song, I Will Lift My Eyes, (God is) “a shady place in summer, he is ever over me.” God is always with us – whatever the world throws at us. So, when it seems that the heat of the day will never stop or life seems a bit much, rest assured that your cooling, resting place is with God. Spend time with Him these next two months.

Happy Summer!

Your Deacons

We are on summer break now and will resume our 2nd Wednesday of the month meetings on September 9th. There will, however, be a planning meeting on Wednesday, August 10th at the home of Melissa Milnor, 7976 SW Skyhar Dr. Any member of Presbyterian Women (of course, this is every woman at Multnomah Presbyterian!) is invited. We will be considering some ideas for the upcoming year. Please let Melissa know if you expect to attend. The meeting will begin at 11:00 am and include a luncheon.

Our next Bunco Buddies party will be Friday, August 19th at 7:00 pm. See you there!

Have a great summer!

Presbyterian Women’s Ladies Tea Presbyterian Women's Fellowship hosted the biennial Ladies Spring Tea on April 30th. Ten uniquely decorated tables adorned the Fellowship Hall, and approximately 83 women and girls were in attendance. Socializing, eating, listening to good music, being challenged by a speaker from Round Rock, Texas, saying farewell to Sylvia, door prizes, etc., all made for a fun (if emotional) event. Several men from our congregation were kind enough to serve the ladies. Each Tea gets bigger and better, so plan now to attend the Tea in 2018!

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Finance and Administration Update May 2016 Financial Recap May 2016 Year to Date 2016 Year to Date 2015

Income $30,666.10 $151,406.33 $159,749.35 Expenses 31,764.48 149,242.28 158,953.93 Difference -1,098.38 +2,164.05 +795.42

Year-to-date operating income was $2,164 greater than expenses as of the end of May. Giving and spending were both lower than at this time last year. Expenses so far this year are about six percent less than last year and income is five percent less than last year. The Building Fund balance at the end of May reached $58,848.72. There are now sufficient funds for the new sanctuary roof, however there are several other building projects waiting for funds before proceeding. In other words, if you haven't given to the Building Fund lately, your participation would be most appreciated. The Youth Annual Mission Trip Fund reached $15,487.34 as of the end of May, following the successful Youth Auction held on May 15th. Kudos to the Youth for their excellent work as cashiers. A detailed financial report showing monthly operating results and all designated fund balances is available upon request from the church office.

During the busy summer months, a special thank you to our church family for staying current with pledge

giving.

Buildings & Grounds Update

Grauer Back-to-School Project!! July 10th ~ August 1st

It’s that time again. School is barely over and we are already planning for next Fall’s school year. Grauer Back-to-School Project serves approximately 600 low income

children right here in Southwest Portland. While you are shopping this month, please remember to buy supplies for the needy children who are our neighbors and friends and

who attend the Wilson cluster of schools. Place your donations in the big collection barrel in the Fellowship Hall. Items that are needed: school supplies such as crayons, pencils, pens, erasers, small solar calculators, new backpacks, new athletic shoes,

new winter coats, new underwear, new socks, new t-shirts. August 5th will be the big give-away day at St. Luke Lutheran Church just down the

street from MPC. Thank you for your generosity!

The countdown clock for our new Sanctuary roof is ticking! The first scheduling milestone, summer break for Dove Preschool, is now behind us. As I am writing this, the second milestone, VBS 2016, is occurring. The following week, roof work will commence. The Buildings and Grounds committee thanks you again for your generous support of this project. We couldn’t have done it without you! As Dennis reported earlier, the unpleasant discovery of leaks in the Open Door roof occurred last winter. Preliminary planning for this additional roof replacement is underway. We plan to make a brief presentation to the congregation in July about this need. If you wish to continue with contributions to the Building Fund, these will go to help replacing the Open Door roof which is currently estimated to cost approximately $20,000. We look forward to providing more detailed information soon. Emergency Planning and Emergency Preparedness will continue to be topics of discussion. Your thoughts on these topics are appreciated. Please feel free to contact Dennis Zerba or Dick Eyberg.

Page 4 Multnomah Announcer

Flip Flops and Solar Calculators for Kids

Please remember to pick up flip-flops for our “Operation Christmas Child” shoeboxes which we assemble in November. We also would encourage you to buy small solar calculators when you see them on sale. These would be extremely helpful to include in our shoeboxes also.

Sunday in the Park

July 31, 2016

One of our favorite church events is the annual “Sunday in the Park” worship service and picnic at Gabriel Park. This year we will meet at 10:00 am at the park on Sunday, July 31st, near 43rd and Vermont. We’ll have a morning of singing and worship followed by a picnic and games. The church will provide hamburgers, hot dogs, corn dogs, including vegetarian options, items to dress your burgers and hotdogs, condiments, and drinks. Members are asked to bring a salad or dessert to share. We’ll also have a game of softball to top off the day. It will truly be a great time of Fellowship, Fun and Food for the church Family. Please note – the service and picnic location will be in a different area of the park this year. It will be just a little east of our usual spot, near the playground area. We need volunteers to help with the food, set up and/or clean up, including bringing chairs and items from the church as well as returning them. If you’d like to help, please contact Sherri Kessler @ 503-245-6336 or Courtney Tomastik @ 503-246-5459 at the church office.

Summer is a time for reading great books; starting, of course, with God’s word, the Holy Bible. Then, the Book Group’s selections are for those times of relaxation when it’s fun to read something new. Now, in preparation for meeting with a group of people who have read the same book, be ready to hear different perspectives from people in the group. That is one of the many strengths of the First Friday Book Group that meets…yes, on the first Friday of each month.

Here’s the reading list for the next three months:

July: Where the Bluebird Sings to the Lemonade Springs, by Wallace Stegner

August: The Orphan Train, by Christine Baker Kline

September: Under the Banner of Heaven, by Jon Krakauer

So, July 1st, the group will meet in the downstairs fellowship room to review and discuss Stegner’s book about the West: its people, as a place to live in and care for, and other writers who have been influenced by this amazing geographic location. And, as always, we will have a potluck. This month’s theme is the season of the year. It’s summer time, so we will have the food of a summer picnic. Bring something you would like to share with the group, and if you run out of time and can’t prepare something, don’t worry, there will be enough for you, so come. We meet in the downstairs fellowship room at 6:15 and sit down to dinner at 6:30 PM. Need more information? Please call Karen Beers, 503-799-817, or email Nancy Trullinger at nancytru@mac.com, if you have any questions. We’d love to include you in the group. Welcome to all summertime readers!

July Birthdays 2 Evva Swan 3 Charlie Beaudoin 10 Judah Haynes Katherine McLean 11 Denise Gannett Douglas Gannett 12 Janet Jones Stuart Jones 13 Russel Haynes 15 Elizabeth Agosti 16 Randy McCourt 19 Micah Haynes 21 Claudia Zerba 24 Don Byers 26 Madeline Tomastik Spencer Magnusson 29 Kathleen Loomis

August Birthdays 3 John Dilworth Roy Magnusson 7 Darren Megarry Timothy Bernasek Wilma Lee 10 Thomas Bernasek Steven Hendricks 11 Marjorie Enzor 12 Chandra Farrell 13 Teri Bertell Rhea Sukumar 17 Valentine Hellman 19 Jan Hawthorne Louise Hood 21 Duane Deal 25 Grant Wheeler Ulrich Soumokil 26 Lukas Aberle 28 Edward Kuehnel 30 Ethan Morehouse

Page 5 July-August 2016

PLEASE PRAY FOR THE ALASKA MISSION TEAM

Our Alaska team leaves on July 1st to head to Skagway for our 6th year of ministry in Skagway (7th year of partnering with them). Our schedule is included below with some suggestions of things you can pray for during the week. If we have reliable access to the internet connection, we will be blogging and posting the blog to the church Facebook page.

FRIDAY - July 1- Traveling to Skagway with stops in Vancouver, B.C. and Whitehorse, Yukon. Pray for safe flights, easy connections, no lost baggage and bear sightings on the drive from Whitehorse to Skagway.

SATURDAY– Excursion to enjoy the wonder of God’s creation and VBS Decoration Set Up. Pray for team bonding, whale sightings and if you really want to pray for a miracle, pray for Moose sightings (we have never seen a moose). We have a lot of rookies on the team this year and they have never seen glaciers up close, whales, bear, or moose in the wild.

SUNDAY– Church, Vacation Bible School Family waterslide party, Youth Group party and fireworks. Pray for great reunions and introductions.

MONDAY- Participating in 4th of July Parade, helping the Chamber of Commerce run the foot races. Pray for health for the team, and continued great reunions and introductions.

TUESDAY- Vacation Bible Schools, Youth Group. Pray for a great day of ministry and good moods for the team as Tuesdays tend to be grumpy, tired days.

WEDNESDAY- Vacation Bible School and Youth Group. Pray for relationships to grow and kids’ hearts to be moved with Jesus’ love.

THURSDAY- Vacation Bible School and Youth Group. Pray for the same things as Wed.

FRIDAY- Vacation Bible School and luncheon with families, Youth Group Overnight. Pray for a great ending to our ministry and strength and energy for our team.

SATURDAY– Clean up and pack, say goodbye to our friends, and get in some last minute sightseeing, and affirmation circle. Pray that we continue to finish well as a team and have an affirming time together.

SUNDAY– July 10 - Head home, we have connections in White Horse and Vancouver again. Pray for safe flights, easy connections and good moods!!

Leaders: John England Tori Randolph Spencer Magnusson Ian Van Buren Michael Stoeger Heather Hellman

Students: Cody Stanton Ashley Stanton Shayly Stanton Matt John Helen Stevens Tabitha Hellman Samantha Mobley Isabelle Garnand

Andrew Manilla Vance Kerwood Tristan Andre Elius Graff Isaak Simpson Daniel Eyberg Sam Jones Xavier Triplett

ALASKA TEAM LIST

Alaska Mission Report

Sunday, August 14th, the Alaska Mission team will be sharing their experience from this year’s trip. Please join us that Sunday morning during the 10 am Worship service to hear and see the ways that God used your generous gifts in Alaska.

Please pray for these

dear missionaries!!

Page 6

Grauer Back-to-School Project!! The collection barrel arrives July 10th and will be picked up

August 1st. Please look for the article in this issue about what

to bring to fill our barrel. Thank you for your generosity!!

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1

6:30 am Men's Breakfast

6:30 pm First Friday Book Group

2

3 Communion

Sunday

10:00 am Worship

4 NO Fitness

Class

5 7:00 pm

Prayer Night

6 1:30 pm

Staff Meeting

7:00 pm Praise Team

7 5:30 pm

Fitness Class

7:00 pm Bible Study

8 6:30 am Men's

Breakfast

9

10 10:00 am Worship

11 5:30 pm Fitness Class

12 7:00 pm

Prayer Night Bldg. &

Grounds Meeting

13 1:30 pm

Staff Meeting

7:00 pm Praise Team

14 5:30 pm

Fitness Class

7:00 pm Bible Study Combined

Youth Groups

15 6:30 am Men's

Breakfast

16

17 10:00 am Worship

18 5:30 pm Fitness Class

19 7:00 pm

Prayer Night F&A Meeting

20 1:30 pm

Staff Meeting

7:00 pm Praise Team

21 5:30 pm

Fitness Class

7:00 pm Bible Study Combined

Youth Groups

22 6:30 am Men's

Breakfast

23

24 10:00 am Worship

25 5:30 pm Fitness Class

26 7:00 pm

Prayer Night Session Meeting

27 1:30 pm

Staff Meeting

7:00 pm Praise Team

28 5:30 pm

Fitness Class

7:00 pm Bible Study Combined

Youth Groups

29 6:30 am Men’s

Breakfast

30

Youth Mission Trip to AK

Youth Mission Trip to Skagway Alaska July 1—10

Youth Mission Trip

Returns

31

10:00 am Outdoor Worship

and Church Picnic At Gabriel Park

Page 7

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

5

6:30 am Men's

Breakfast

6:30 pm First Friday Book Group

6

1

5:30 pm Fitness Class

Grauer

Back-to-School Project

Barrel Pick-up

2

7:00 pm Prayer Night

3

1:30 pm Staff Meeting

7:00 pm

Praise Team

4

5:30 pm Fitness Class

7:00 pm Bible Study Combined

Youth Groups

7 Communion

Sunday

10:00 am Worship

8 5:30 pm Fitness class

9 7:00 pm

Prayer Night Bldg. &

Grounds Meeting

10 11:00 am

PW Planning Meeting & Luncheon

1:30 pm

Staff Meeting

7:00 pm Praise Team

11 5:30 pm Fitness Class

7:00 pm Bible Study Combined

Youth Groups

12 6:30 am Men's

Breakfast

13

14 10:00 am Worship

15 5:30 pm Fitness Class

16 7:00 pm

Prayer Night F&A Meeting

17 1:30 pm

Staff Meeting

7:00 pm Praise Team

18 5:30 pm Fitness Class

7:00 pm Bible Study Combined

Youth Groups

19 6:30 am Men's

Breakfast

7:00 pm BUNCO!!

20 10:00 am

Multnomah

Days Parade

21 10:00 am Worship

11:00 am Deacons Meeting

22 5:30 pm Fitness Class

23 7:00 pm

Prayer Night Session Meeting

24 1:30 pm

Staff Meeting

7:00 pm Praise Team

25 5:30 pm Fitness Class

7:00 pm Bible Study Combined

Youth Groups

26 6:30 am Men's

Breakfast

27

28 10:00 am Worship

29 5:30 pm Fitness Class

30 7:00 pm

Prayer Night

31 1:30 pm

Staff Meeting

7:00 pm Praise Team

Alaska Mission Report

Wilson Pool Party

Page 8 Multnomah Announcer

More Info

YOUTH GROUPS

Summer Youth groups are THURSDAY nights 7-9 pm. We do not have youth group July 7th due to the Alaska Mission Trip. We also don’t have youth group September 1st, or 8th to give everyone time to adjust to the first week of school for each school district.

FALL YOUTH GROUP SCHEDULE

Starting September 14th, high school youth group will be on WEDNESDAY nights from 7-9 at the Open Door. Students are encouraged to bring $5 and join us for dinner in the main building at 6pm. September 15th, Middle School Youth Group will move to THURSDAY nights from 7-8:30 at the Open Door.

THANK YOU VBS VOLUNTEERS Thank you to our MANY wonderful VBS volunteers. We had 106 kids attend VBS this year and because of our many wonderful volunteers, we were able to give them a great week. Kids learned about Jesus’ love and the Bible as they learned about nocturnal animals. Volunteers led them through science, music, story, crafts, recreation and snack stations. They spent long mornings shepherding the kids around our church and filling it with laughter and joy.

THANK YOU VOLUNTEERS!!!!

Wilson POOL PARTY

Join us on Sunday, August 14th, from 6:15-8:15 pm at Wilson Pool. We are renting out the pool again this year and inviting all church families, youth group families, VBS families, Preschool families and friends. Last year we had a great night at the pool and it was a wonderful time of connection for our church families and families that participate in our programs but aren’t around on Sunday mornings. Having the pool reserved just for our group means everyone can enjoy the slides, lazy river and lap pool without the crowds. It’s really fun! We hope you can join us this year and bring friends. Please RSVP to the church office at 503-246-5459 and let us know if you will be attending.

MULTNOMAH DAYS PARADE

Come march with MPC during the Multnomah Village’s annual parade!

Date and Time: Saturday, August 20th at 10:00 a.m.

Where: We meet at Handy Andy’s Service Station, 7991 SW Capitol Highway at Garden Home Rd.

For more information and to sign up, contact Ed Kuehnel at edgkuehnel@gmail.com or (971) 409-0495

Page 9 July-August 2016

Greeters wanted (and needed)

We would like to recruit some warm & friendly people to act as greeters for our Sunday morning services. Your mission (should you choose to accept it) would be to greet people who come through the door on Sunday morning, especially those who might be visitors or newcomers. As of now, we have the Thursday morning Bible study ladies greeting on the 3rd Sunday of each month. Please consider signing up as a team, then you can take turns throughout the year. We would love to have greeters at every service. For additional information and/or to select your time slot, please contact Dave Tomastik (503-803-2089) or Jesse Black (971-645-1139). Thanks for being of service to our church family!

Pennies for Missions Remember to save those pesky pennies and put them to good use by placing them in our “Penny Jar” at church on the Welcome Counter. All pennies are donated to Neighborhood House food bank.

Audio/Visual Team News

The audio/visual team is in DIRE need of volunteers. If you can spend just ONE sermon a month running

the slide projector OR working the sound board, it would be a HUGE HELP. The work is simple and easy to

learn. Please, contact Ed Kuehnel at edgkuehnel@gmail.com or (971) 409-0495 for more information.

WE NEED

YOU!!

Quilters

Attention all those who have sewn in the past and no longer need the fabrics on hand! If you are cleaning out over the summer, please keep the quilters in mind for your nice cotton fabrics. Watch for garage sales and ask friends who have sewn in the past. We have utilized the majority of fabrics which have been given to us. We appreciate your consideration of our request! For those of you who may have missed the Sunday bulletin which gave the information about our beautiful banners which enhance the Church seasons, here is a brief thank you to Betty Trowbridge and Jackie Magnusson who spent countless hours, designing, getting materials and constructing the wonderful banners which hang behind the choir. What a blessing they are! We will resume our Monday morning sessions in September. Please consider joining us from 10:00 am to noon. We can use home sewers, label makers, knot tiers, pinners, binders, square cutters, and anything you might like to try. We have delivered 2,030 quilts to C.A.R.E.S. Northwest for traumatized children over the past 12 or 13 years. We welcome new members to join our mission efforts. Priscilla Downing, Caroline Brandt, Claudia Zerba, Kathleen Loomis, Sharon Deal, Anne Braun, Ann Lemon, Darlene Higgenbottom, Lorraine Larson, Betty Trowbridge and Jackie Magnusson are regular participants. Barb Guerink helps by making beautiful baby quilts at home and sharing them with us! If you have questions, please speak to any of our group.

Submitted by Priscilla Downing- 503-244-9529 or cell phone- 503-319-5161.

Page 10 Multnomah Announcer

We invite you to join us for Prayer Night, Tuesdays at 7 pm, upstairs in the Chapel. If you are in need of prayer or know someone who is, please let a prayer team member know. We also encourage you to come and be prayed for after worship on Sundays.

Please keep those who can’t make it to church

each Sunday in your prayers:

Gladys Anderson Don Byers

Eleanor Caufield Ted Dorman

Ron Hendricks

Bonnie Larson Faye Quinn

Rosemary Roser Evelyn Walls

George Weidlich

Do You Shop at Fred Meyer? MPC is registered with Fred Meyer Community Rewards. If you link the church to your Rewards card (Fred Meyer's loyalty program), MPC gets a donation based on purchase amounts. You still get your personal account credit. Links to FAQs and a sign-up page are here: https://www.fredmeyer. com/topic/community-rewards-4. MPC's organization number is 88436. Proceeds go to building and grounds maintenance, with a mission contribution.

Thanks to everyone who has signed up already. So far, checks from the program have been averaging about two dollars per month for each household that's signed up.

Questions? Suggestions? (We have tried Amazon – didn't work.) Contact Steve Goodfellow: (sjgoodfellow@gmail.com).

Dear Multnomah Presbyterian Church,

The Kroger Family of Stores is committed to bringing hope and help to local communities. We do this through a variety of activities, including charitable giving, sponsorships and the unique Community Rewards Program of Fred Meyer. We are also committed to carefully protecting our customers' personal information. In order to meet their expectation of privacy, we have adopted a simple policy to never share a customer's personal information. Our privacy policy applies to Community Rewards participation as well. As your neighborhood food retailer, we deeply value our ability to support local organizations like yours.

Your supporters (13 households) who shopped at Fred Meyer between 1-1-2016 and 3-31-2016 (Cycle 2016, Qtr 1) have contributed to your $66.65 total donation. Your organization will be receiving a Kroger check in this amount within 30 days from 4-21-2016. If you have any questions, please email fmcommunityrewards@fredmeyer.com or visit our website at www.fredmeyer.com/communityrewards. Thank you for your continued support of your local Fred Meyer store.

Don't forget to use your newsletter, website, and events to encourage your supporters to link to your organization. The more your supporters shop with us, the more money your organization will earn!

Thank you, Community Rewards Staff

"Prayer is a powerful thing, for God has bound and tied himself thereto. None can believe how powerful prayer is, and what it is able to effect, but those who have learned it by experience." -Martin Luther

Page 11 July-August 2016

Worship Corner An occasional series on Worship

Preparing for Worship Over the summer months you may notice small changes in the way Worship services begin. These changes are intended to provide more opportunities to prepare our hearts for worshiping the Lord in Spirit and Truth, while setting aside the distractions we bring with us to His house. Preparing for worship involves time for personal reflection and time for the community of faith to gather. Personal preparation is a quiet time, which usually occurs in the Sanctuary before the service begins. We may read through the Sunday Scripture listed in the bulletin. The Call to Worship and the Sermon description anticipate the themes that will be part of the liturgy. Quiet time before the Service is also time to pray personal prayers. Prayer for the service or for all hearts to be moved closer to God is always appropriate. Preparation for worship also has a communal aspect. When the community gathers for worship, we greet each other warmly. It is a great joy to meet friends at church and share the news of our week. We come as individuals and, through our greetings, prepare to join with others as a community at worship. The Fellowship Hall and Fireside are natural gathering places before the service. It is a place to share greetings, joys and sorrows with each other, before entering the Sanctuary. After entering the Sanctuary, we can still talk with each other, but conversations are best kept brief and quiet, in keeping with our own personal preparation for worship, and that of others. Music before the service is another preparation for worship. The Prelude (now called the “Preparation for Worship”) signals to the community that it is time to gather in the Sanctuary. The Prelude is selected to help us prepare for the liturgy, direct our thoughts and prayers, and focus on worship.

Missionaries Ron & Sue Newberg Update Dear folks at Multnomah,

This past month, I had the privilege of assisting the Huichol (wee-CHOAL) Bible translation project. The Huichol people live in western Mexico in the Sierra Madre Occidental mountains. They are known for their bead-covered artwork and intricate yarn paintings. Our Wycliffe colleagues, Joe and Barbara Grimes, served with the Huichols for many years. The Huichol New Testament was published in 1967. Today, there are more than 30 congregations of Huichol believers throughout the region. Many are able to read the Scriptures in their own language.

The Huichol believers loved their New Testament but wanted more. In 2006, leaders of the church wrote a letter to Joe and Barbara. The letter said, ...Through this letter we communicate with you, asking you to help us so that we can have the Old Testament. We are willing to do the work. Resources came together quickly. By the end of 2006 the translation project was launched with sponsorship from Wycliffeꞌs partner organization, The Seed Company. The heart of the translation team is a group of Huichol Christians who have dedicated themselves to the task. Joe and Barbara helped as they were able. Dr. Elizabeth Willet was enlisted to serve as the lead advisor for the project. She and her

husband, Tom, have years of experience working with the Tepehuan people in the state of Durango. Translating the Old Testament is a huge project―almost three times the size of the New

Testament! The team has a goal of finishing by 2018. Each book must go through several steps of revising and testing. My task was to review and give advice on the translation of the book of Proverbs. A Huichol woman read the translation and put into simple Spanish what she understood from the Huichol. Her write-up gave me a way to see what is being communicated by the translation. I have now given the team my comments and questions about their work. I trust it will be helpful to them.

What a blessing it was to delve deeply into the book of Proverbs. It is a book that has value for all of us. One might think that it is just for young people. After all, the books starts out by saying, “These proverbs will give insight to the simple, knowledge and discernment to the young.” (Prov. 1:4 New Living Translation)

But keep reading. The next verse says, “Let the wise listen to these proverbs and become even wiser.” Wisdom is at the very core of creation. In Proverbs, Wisdom is personified as a woman, who tells us, “The LORD formed me from the beginning, before he created anything else. I was appointed in ages past, at the very first, before the earth began.... I was the architect at his side.... I was his constant delight.” But Wisdom doesn't force us to pay attention to her. We're urged to take time to look for her. Wisdom says, "Joyful are those who listen to me, watching for me daily at my gates, waiting for me outside my home!" Let's pray for the Huichol people that they may soon have the privilege of listening to Wisdom through study of the Bible in their language. And may they―and we―seek Wisdom with eager hearts.

Thank you so much for your faithful support and prayers. You are a great encouragement to us. --Ron and Sue Newberg

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