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Blessings in 2024!

December 28, 2024December 28, 2024 Phil TroutmanLeave a comment

When I joined Wycliffe USA in September, 2022, my primary responsibility was to build a team of financial and prayer partners who would make it possible for me to give full time to my Wycliffe ministry. Many of you came alongside me with your prayers and your monthly financial gifts, and I thank God for each of you. However, as the end of 2023 approached, I was still far short of the monthly support I needed for Wycliffe to release me to full-time ministry. To move things along, I asked Wycliffe to allow me to reduce my monthly budget by 20% and they agreed. However, even with that reduction, by November, 2023, the monthly gifts of my financial partners still totaled far less than my ministry budget.

Then, in December 2023, I received an unexpected blessing! God moved the heart of an anonymous donor to begin partnering with me monthly. With that new gift, along with those of my other faithful financial partners, I finally reached full funding of my ministry budget. Wycliffe quickly released me to take up my assignment as a full-time professor at Dallas International University (DIU), training women and men for service in Bible translation and other cross-cultural ministries. And in January, 2024 DIU appointed me a full-time Assistant Professor of Applied Anthropology and member of the core faculty. Praise the Lord!

I am so grateful to God for all of you who have opened your hearts to partner with me through your prayers and through monthly or annual financial gifts. Your love for God and your generosity in supporting the work of Bible translation make it possible for me to give myself full-time to training current and future Bible translation workers for the service to which God has called them. Without your support in giving and prayer, I literally would not be doing this ministry.

From January until now, I have been busy with three main duties. First, I teach classes in Cultural Anthropology, Cultural Competence and Communication, and Training Across Cultures to undergraduate and graduate students. I teach my classes online via video conferencing from my home office in Bethany, Oklahoma.

Teaching entirely online has made it possible for me to serve students from around the world. During the three school terms of 2024, I have had students connecting to my classes from five countries: the UK, Japan, Kenya, Canada and the United States. And the U.S. students have connected from four different states. What a privilege it has been to interact with men and women from around the world who are following God’s call to dedicate themselves to Bible translation and related ministries!

Second, I have been engaged in continuing education to enhance my teaching skills so I can give my students the quality education they deserve. In addition to reading several books, in April I participated in a four-week course in Learner-Centered Training sponsored by SIL International.

And third, I am working feverishly to get ready for the Spring, 2025 semester, when I will teach two sections of a brand new course, Introduction to International Studies, for DIU’s Center for International Studies. One section will be in a typical live online setting. But for the other section, I am scheduled to travel to Gulu, in northwestern Uganda, to teach a two-week intensive to Ugandan young adults students who are working toward their Associate of Arts in Agribusiness, a new degree DIU is offering in cooperation with the Bobi Agribusiness Institute, a Ugandan Christian NGO. It’s been 8½ years since I was last in Africa and I can hardly wait to go back!

“Pray continually”

In 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, the apostle Paul gives the Thessalonians—and us—these instructions: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” That’s pretty clear, isn’t it? It is God’s will for us to rejoice, pray, and give thanks. So, here at the end of 2024, I want to share with you 1) some answers to prayer, so that you can rejoice with me, 2) some prayer requests for 2025 that you can lift up to God with me, and 3) some reason for us all to give thanks to God together.

1. Rejoice that Dallas International University continues to expand our faculty, with three new full time professors this year, along with six or seven new adjunct professors. These new professors come from three different countries of the world!

2. Pray that God will guide our college president, Dr. Scott Berthiaume, our Dean of Academics, Dr. Heather Beal, and other key administrators as they work to expand DIU’s international cooperation with seminaries in Thailand and Brazil.

3. Give thanks that God continues to call men and women to the work of Bible translation and related ministries such as literacy training and scripture engagement. And pray that more and more young people will be called from other countries in addition to the United States and Europe.

For more about how you can pray for the ministry of Wycliffe Bible Translators, go to Wycliffe.org/prayer.

Co-Workers in God’s Service

In 1 Corinthians, Paul teaches a fundamental principle of building God’s Kingdom. He writes, “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow… The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose. … For we are co-workers in God’s service” (1 Corinthians 3:6, 8-9 NIV).

That’s what you and I are: Co-workers in God’s service! I work daily at Dallas International University, training current and future cross-cultural Christian workers to make sense of the new cultures they will serve. And you work hard every day at your job, doing it for God’s glory, so that you can support your local church and so that you can partner with me in the ministry of Wycliffe Bible Translators. And that makes us co-workers with each other and with God. What an amazing privilege we have to serve God together! As your co-worker, I invite you to partner with my Wycliffe ministry through prayer and regular giving. If you are ready to do this, please go to Wycliffe.org/partner/philtroutman and click “PRAY AND STAY CONNECTED” to become a prayer partner, and click “GIVE” to become a financial partner. Together, we can make God’s Word available to all peoples!

Stay in touch!

Email me at: phil_troutman@wycliffe.org
Or send me a card or letter at:
Dr. Philip Troutman
7712 NW 25^th Ter.
Bethany, OK 73008 USA

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New Place of Service in 2024

February 7, 2024 Phil TroutmanLeave a comment

Happy 2024! I have some exciting news to share with you. I now have a regular full-time assignment with Wycliffe USA! Here are the details.

I joined Wycliffe Bible Translators USA in September 2022. My first task was to build a team of prayer and financial partners to sustain me in my Wycliffe ministry. Through most of 2023, my team of partners grew slowly. But by the end of my first year as a Wycliffe missionary, monthly contributions from my financial partners were still far short of what I needed to take on a full-time Wycliffe assignment. But in October, God moved a key financial partner to commit to contributing the rest of my monthly ministry budget. In November 2023, Wycliffe USA approved me to take up a full-time ministry assignment. But what would my new ministry be?

During 2023, I had been teaching part-time at Dallas International University (DIU), which is a key center in the U.S. for training Bible translators and also workers for other types of cross-cultural Christian ministries. Many DIU students are members of Wycliffe USA. I loved teaching courses at DIU, so I approached the administration about a full-time position. After much prayer and several meetings with DIU, I was offered a full-time post as an Assistant Professor in the Applied Anthropology Department. My Wycliffe supervisor agreed to the appointment, and I began my new assignment in January 2024. What a thrill for me to be teaching full-time at DIU!

There was just one issue still to be resolved. My wife, Paula, and I make our home in the Oklahoma City area, but DIU is located in Dallas, Texas. At first, the DIU administration told me that to teach full-time I would have to move to Dallas. We didn’t want even to think about moving. We have family here in the OKC area, and the cost of such a move would be prohibitive.

But as He always does, God had a plan. I talked with the DIU administration and I pointed out that while I was teaching part-time, I had taught all my courses over the internet from my home office in Oklahoma. During that time, most of my students did not live in Dallas, but in various states of the U.S. and several countries around the world. This Spring 2024 semester, my students live in three different countries, so I will have to teach my classes over the Internet, no matter where I live. The DIU administration has a vision for more of our students to come from around the globe. After praying and considering the options, they agreed that I could become a full-time professor and continue to live and teach from my home in Oklahoma. Praise the Lord!

As you can see, the last months of 2023 and the first month of 2024 have brought many answers to prayer! Among them is the way God has provided for my ministry budget through my faithful team of prayer and financial partners. Your commitment to lift me up in prayer and give monthly to my Wycliffe ministry makes it possible for me to serve in the place God has called me to. Thank you so much, and may God give you a blessed 2024.

DIU Welcomes Highest Enrollment Ever

DIU is growing! In our Fall, 2023 semester, we had the highest enrollment for a single term ever! About 25 percent of those enrolled were new students, and these included our our largest freshman class ever. Now, in 2024, our enrollment continues to stay strong.

We are excited to expand our efforts to prepare global leaders in cross-cultural ministry and to partner with local communities around the world. We are also excited to discover how these new students will enrich our DIU community. If you would like to learn more about Dallas International University, check out our website at D I U.edu.

“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all things”

In 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22, the apostle Paul gives the Thessalonians—and us—these instructions: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” That’s pretty clear, isn’t it? It is God’s will for us to rejoice, pray, and give thanks. So, for the first quarter of 2024, I want to share with you 1) an answer to prayer, so you can rejoice with me, 2) a prayer request, which you can lift up to God with me, and 3) a reason for us all to give thanks to God together.

Rejoice that Dallas International University is growing and that many new students are learning how to better serve God in cross-cultural contexts here in the U.S. and around the world!
Give thanks that the translation for Colombian Sign Language (CSL), the official sign language for Deaf people in Colombia, is progressing well. More than 554,000 people use CSL for their communication needs.
For more about how you can pray for the ministry of Wycliffe Bible Translators, go to Wycliffe.org/prayer
Pray that God will raise up translation teams and finances to begin Bible translation projects in the 1,336 languages, spoken by 99.8 million people, who still have no part of the Bible in their language.

Co-Workers in God’s Service

In 1 Corinthians, Paul teaches a fundamental principle of building God’s Kingdom. He writes, “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow … The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose. … For we are co-workers in God’s service” (1 Corinthians 3:6, 8-9 NIV).
That’s what you and I are: Co-workers in God’s service! I work daily at Dallas International University, training current and future cross-cultural Christian workers to make sense of the new cultures they will serve. And you work hard every day at your job, doing it for God’s glory, so that you can support your local church and so that you can partner with me in the ministry of Wycliffe Bible Translators. And that makes us co-workers with each other and with God. What an amazing privilege we have to serve God together!
As your co-worker, I invite you to partner with my Wycliffe ministry through prayer and regular giving. If you are ready to do this, please go to Wycliffe.org/partner/philtroutman and click “PRAY AND STAY CONNECTED” to become a prayer partner, and click “GIVE” to become a financial partner. Together, we can make God’s Word available to all peoples!

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Language Barrier

June 22, 2023July 19, 2023 Phil TroutmanLeave a comment

      Recently, my wife and I visited our son and his family in Tbilisi, Georgia, in southeastern Europe. The day after we arrived we went sightseeing. We saw so many fascinating people and places! But, everywhere we went we also felt a peculiar sense of strangeness. At first, we didn’t know what was causing it. When we finally figured it out we gained fresh insight into the need for all people to have the Bible translated into their own language.
      What was bothering us? We were experiencing a language barrier! Everywhere we lived as missionaries we had been able to understand at least some of what people were saying and read some of what was written on the roadsigns. But when we listened to people speaking in Georgian we couldn’t understand a word, and when we looked at signs written in Georgian all we could see were squiggles.
      On Sunday we worshiped at an international church. Inside, I saw a stack of books. I picked one up and opened it, but it was in Georgian, so the words meant nothing to me. For me to understand that book, someone would have to translate it into a language I could understand.
      And then it hit me: What I had experienced when I opened that book was exactly what millions of people experience today. The only Bibles available to And then it hit me: What I had experienced when I opened that book was exactly what millions of people experience today. The only Bibles available to them are in a language they don’t understand, so when they open one, the squiggles inside mean nothing to them. For them to receive the message of God’s Word, someone will have to translate it into a language they can understand!
      We at Wycliffe Bible Translators have good news for those people: Right now around the world, translation teams are working to translate God’s Word into more than 3,500 languages. But there are still over 1,400 languages, spoken by 118 million people, into which no portion of Scripture has been translated and for which no translation project is yet underway.
      Does it move your heart to think of the millions of people who still don’t have God’s Word in a language they can understand? Would you like to help change that? If so, I invite you to become a partner in my ministry with Wycliffe Bible Translators. If all of us will work together, we can make God’s Word available in the language of every people on earth!

Wanted: Partners in Ministry!

      Like all members of Wycliffe Bible Translators, I am sustained both spiritually and financially by my team of ministry partners. There are two ways you can partner with my Wycliffe ministry:
      First, you can become a prayer partner who commits to praying regularly for me and the work of Wycliffe Bible Translators. Your prayers will play a vital role in helping me and other translation workers make God’s Word available to the 118 million people, speaking 1,435 different languages, who still don’t have any part of the Bible in their language. Would you be willing to become a prayer partner with me in my Wycliffe ministry? If so, go to wycliffe.org/partner/philtroutman and click on the “Pray and Stay Connected” button below my picture.
      Second, you can become a financial partner who commits to making regular financial contributions to Wycliffe to sustain me in my ministry. Your regular gifts will help make it possible for me to serve full-time as an anthropology consultant for Wycliffe translation teams and as an instructor at Dallas International University. Would you be willing to become a financial partner with my Wycliffe ministry? If so, please go to wycliffe.org/partner/philtroutman, enter an amount in the box at the top of the page, and click “Give” to initiate your partnership.
      If you’re not sure what part God wants you to play in the work of Bible translation, would you pray and ask God what you should do? Thank you so much!

“Pray without ceasing!”

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances,
for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 ESV).

      In each edition of MissioPhil, I share (1) an answer to prayer so you can rejoice with me, (2) a prayer request you can lift up to God with me, and (3) a reason for us all to give thanks. So, for June, 2023:
      1. Rejoice with me that God has provided additional financial partners to help sustain me in my Wycliffe ministry. My partners’ monthly giving now supplies 27% of my ministry budget needs.
     2. Pray with me that God will give me insight as I develop a new course about culture and communication at Dallas International University, as part of a training program for new Bible translation consultants. I will teach the course for the first time this fall.
    3. Give thanks with me for the wonderful visit we had with our son and his family in Tbilisi, and that they are well and enjoying life in the beautiful country of Georgia.

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To partner with this ministry, please go to wycliffe.org/partner/philtroutman.