Archive: April 2016

Suppose John Wycliffe Had Used a laptop?

John WycliffeIt’s hard to imagine how Bibles were translated without the technology available today. Hundreds of years ago John Wycliffe and others literally did everything by hand. When the Wycliffe Bible Translators (WBT) was started in the 1940's, handwriting a translation was still very tedious, but typewriter technology began to help. Before the advent of computers, manuscripts had to be manually re-typed with each major revision.

Nowadays, editing the text has become far easier. Software programs help with language analysis and the translation process, and fonts are available for just about every human language sound. Computers definitely made translations better, allowing translators more time for analyzing the language.

And communicating is far easier now, as well. It used to take weeks or months to send a paper letter from overseas and receive a reply. In an instant, this now happens electronically, changing the ways translators work and even making it possible to do translations collaboratively, remotely, communicating with teams in the field.

According to Global Technology Information Services (GTIS) at the JAARS Center, in North Carolina, USA (a technical support group for Wycliffe Bible Translators)... During its 16 years of email services, 553 translations of the entire Bible or the New Testament were finished, and their hub alone had processed over 1.14 billion messages. Think of it! Prayer letters, wedding announcements/ arrangements, birth announcements, transportation plans, comfort and encouragement to translators, and communication with remote language helpers laboring hard to make the finest translations possible for their people.

And God continues to use technology to put His life-giving Word into the hands of people in the language they understand the best.  Note: over 200 people with information technology skills are needed for what comes next.  -- some text above freely adapted from an article by Chris Sheeran

I (Brian) am ptech with icthusart of this world-wide team, but by the grace of God and with the help of many supporters and friends, Helen and I are allowed to live and work in the remote country of Papua New Guinea.  My technical support is more along the lines of helping Papua New Guinea translators be successful on their laptops running powerful language software and translation tools.  But all users of computers run into technical problems, and I am there to help.



Our Furlough is About to End

Some time back in July 2015, while very weary and tired from our work in Papua New Guinea, we traveled back to the USA, for a much needed break.  Our main home church, is in Jericho Vermont, and so we made two excursions to the North East of the USA in the period between July 2015 to March 2016.

Lake Camplain, Vermont








Beautiful Lake Champlain, our home valley and where we started as a couple over 30 years ago

Our Jericho Congregation Church received us warmly and it was so refreshing to renew old relationships and form a few new ones.  It is so nice to see a thriving fellowship and with many newcomers coming into the church. Many are younger couples with children just starting out in their lives with the church. It was wonderful to see this.

 Our travels went mostly up and down the East Coast of the USA, and we regret not being able to see all our family relatives, and friends and supporters in other parts of the country.  There just is not enough time to get around and see everyone.  But someday, we will all meet up again, and it will be a grand time for all.

We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps...  (NLT)

— Proverbs 16:9

We saw our itineraries change due to unexpected events, but to all those who took us into their homes while we traveled and then heard our stories about life in Papua New Guinea, we want to say a big "thank you" here.

Helen and Lisa HappyHere's a rare and happy shot of Helen with my younger sister Lisa who came to visit in October, 2015.  She loved participating (serving tables) with Jericho Congregational Church's famous "Chicken Pie Supper" where people come from miles around just to attend this historic and annual event.

What is our future travel schedule like now?  Click the link below to read our latest newsletter, and send an email if you want to be included in our popular weekly photo list which centers mostly on life in Papua New Guinea (brian_chapaitis[at]sil.org).

Newsletter: Prayer Requests and Plans in early 2016 »

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“Those who look to Him for help will be radiant with joy; no shadow shame will darken their faces."
— Psalm 34:5

We praise the Lord for the privilege of being in Papua New Guinea and the opportunities to serve the local communities in this country.

It is fashionable in some academic circles to exercise scholarly criticism of the Bible.  In so doing, scholars place themselves above the Bible and seek to correct it.  If indeed the Bible is the Word of God, nothing could be more arrogant. It is God who corrects us; we don’t correct Him.  We do not stand over God but under Him. 


—  R.C. Sproul,  Five Things Every Christian Needs to Grow

Photo Insights into Papua New Guinea Life

Yellow FlowerHere is the entrance to our photographic favorites. Come journey to the "land of the unexpected" as seen in our eyes after 30 years of ministry in this fair country.

See More as published from the Years 2005 to 2015»

Higher Resolution photos are freely available upon request. Just email and let us know what you would like.


Let the heavens be glad, and the earth rejoice!
Let the sea and everything in it shout his praise!
Let the fields and their crops burst out with joy!
Let the trees of the forest sing for joy 

— Psalm 96:11-12 (NLT)