Our missionaries

Ministry

Download the Vanuatu Kids Activity Sheet

Equipping local believers with the Bible in their heart language

Why we chose mission

At the Newcastle University international student group, we saw the power of God’s word to transform people’s lives, and the difference it made when they could read it in their heart language. We also came to realise how many resources God has blessed us with here in Australia and felt convicted of the need to share those resources with the world.

Growing Christians in God’s Word

The first Christian missionaries arrived in Vanuatu over 150 years ago. Today, most people would call themselves Christians, but only six of the 100+ languages in Vanuatu have a complete Bible. People want to follow Jesus, but when you can't understand his word it’s hard to know what he has done for us. Many live in fear of witchcraft and evil spirits. A chief reported: “I see that people are mixing [Christian] religious belief and traditional thinking.” People may not have heard of God’s grace. A former shaman was sent out as a missionary, preaching “You have to work hard to get into heaven.” But after joining a Bible translation team working on Galatians, he finally understood: “There’s nothing we can do to be saved. [We’re saved through] the blood of Jesus.”

You can help us make a difference for the people in one of the 100+ language groups living in Vanuatu. In partnership with SIL and Vanuatu Bible Translators, we’ll live alongside these people, training local believers in understanding the Bible, translating it into their heart language, and discipling them to apply God’s word to their lives.

Will you partner with us?

Bible translation is a long slow process, and is challenging in Vanuatu in the face of spiritual, logistical, and health issues. We can’t do this by ourselves. We’re convinced that "Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labour in vain" (Psalm 127:1). We need people to pray for us and the people we serve alongside. We also need people to care for us and support us financially.

Would you prayerfully consider partnering with us in sharing God’s life-giving word in Vanuatu, so that people there may share our joy of truly knowing Jesus?