Lessons from Mesari
Mesari’s heart was full and Elli Schlegel was deeply touched.
Every Tuesday afternoon, Elli and Mesari meet together to work on the Dinangat Bible translation. Last Tuesday, Elli had to hold back the tears.
“Yesterday,” Mesari told Elli, “I worried a lot about whether or not I will be able to think straight and talk right when I will meet again with Elli to check the Bible translation. Then today I worried again but then I thought that those worries probably make God sad.
“Hasn’t He helped me all those years and hasn’t He worked through me and done it well? Why do I think that maybe God would not help me again?” Mesari shared. “So I stopped worrying and trusted God.”
Elli was stunned by these words of trust in God. “How can Mesari have such a trust in God after knowing Him for only five years? How can she trust Him so much better than I?”
There sat Mesari, wearing a ripped shirt and a stitched-together skirt. She wore no shoes, no watch and no jewelry of any kind. She sat cross-legged on the floor and read with Elli the words from 1 Timothy 6: “Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.”
When Mesari read these words, her eyes flashed a look of shame, showing that she felt convicted about her discontentment.
“Yes, that is true,” Mesari exclaimed. “When we have food and clothes, what else do we need? We have God, our Savior. He is everything we need to live and die!”
Elli listened to Mesari’s heart responding to God’s Word and felt awful. A moment earlier, Mesari had shared her family’s struggle with a roof that leaked badly and had necessitated them moving farther away from the village. This would mean a longer walk to the village for Mesari to do translation work.
And Elli couldn’t forget the ripped shirt Mesari had worn for many weeks. Or the reality that her family’s daily meal prospects were pretty predictable: sweet potatoes—for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Elli shares, “I felt ashamed. And somehow it felt good. … I saw in that moment what a precious example my friend, Mesari, is to me. I am proud of her and I will never forget how she trusts God … and finds contentment in Him. …This is what I want! And I thank God for Mesari.”
In the process of Bible translation, God uses missionaries, along with His Word, as His instruments in the lives of tribal people. He also uses tribal people and His Word as His instruments in the lives of missionaries.
You can be part of Bible translation too. Your gift can help pay for the costs of translation.