These words are from Pastor Moses, with Karen’s explanations in parentheses.
I shared the audio Mende Bible with Mama Baindu, a devoted elderly member of our church. Her Muslim friends were around in number. (Mama Baindu has been involved at the church since we intervened with her son Ishaka, probably 7 or 8 years ago. While Ishaka has not shown great interest in Jesus or the church, his mother has!)
I played the creation story from the book of Genesis in the Mende language to help her understand God’s Word more personally and deeply. Mama Baindu only speaks and understands Mende. For many years she has attended church faithfully, but she could not understand the sermons or Bible readings in Krio or English. (About 80 percent of the services are in languages other than Mende). I wanted her to finally experience the Word of God in her own mother tongue. As I played the creation story, she was amazed and filled with joy, smiling and laughing. She looked at me and said in Mende, “So this is how everything began? So God really made all of this for us?” I used the moment to explain in her own language how the creation story shows God’s deep love for mankind and explained the role of the trinity in it all.
While the audio was playing, some Muslims who were passing by heard the message and quietly came closer. They were surprised and curious to hear the Bible being read in Mende. They stayed and listened for some time without interruption. One of them said, “This is good. We have never heard the Bible speaking Mende like this before.” The evening was special. It reminded me that the Word of God, when delivered in a language people understand, is alive and powerful.
