Deaf language versions of the Bible; Disaster Relief comes to quick aid in Puerto Rico; Facing bitterness

Good News for Today

Only 2 percent of an estimated 80 million Deaf people alive today have ever been told the Gospel in their sign language, with at least 380 sign languages in use globally, according to ministry leaders.

The International Mission Board (IMB) and Wycliffe Bible Translators are among more than 95 organizations and churches collaborating globally to change the dismal statistic.

Eurasia, IMB and Wycliffe have collaborated with others to begin Bible story translations in more than 75 new sign languages, said Andy Keener, Wycliffe’s senior director of global partnerships.

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Send Relief crisis response experts and volunteers were already in Puerto Rico for a long-scheduled training session when Tropical Storm Ernesto rapidly developed into a storm that has caused widespread damage on the island.

The team’s quick pivot came as strong winds knocked out power for nearly three-quarters of a million people, nearly half of the island, along with 235,000 losing their access to water, according to multiple sources.

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Bitterness will consume you, if you don’t let it go, writes church leader Chuck Lawless.

He says he’s seen it many times over his years of ministry and it is heartbreaking.

What should you know about bitterness?

1. The enemy wants you to stay unforgiving so your prayers are hindered. Jesus’ words were clear here: “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven will also forgive you your wrongdoing” (Mark 11:25). Satan delights in anything that harms your own walk with God and halts your prayers.
2. Your bitterness is sin. When you stay angry and unforgiving, you are living in disobedience. That sin has a way of becoming a foothold, and then a stronghold – even while you deceive yourself that your continual anger is just.
3. Your stronghold of bitterness can quickly become an idol. If you choose to stay bitter when God demands a change of heart, you are choosing to serve your emotions over God’s command. You may not have a carved idol sitting on a shelf in your living room, but you’re just as much an idolater.

He also says bitterness is hard to escape.

1. You carry the bitterness wherever you go. Even when you separate yourself from the person who’s offended you, the bitterness resides in you—and affects the rest of your life.
2. Your bitterness affects every other relationship you have. Few of us are so intentional and strong that we can compartmentalize every relationship. Your bitterness affects all your relationships, even if only by others seeing your continual anger.
3. Even stifled bitterness is still present in you. You may have pressed it down, but all someone needs to do is “push the right button” in you—and all that anger rises to the surface again. It’s still there, slowly eating a hole into your soul.

He encourages people to turn to God, repent of their bitterness and seek forgiveness.

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If you’re a medical professional, you can use your skills to bring more than physical healing. Learn how at IMB.org.