At last!

Rosemary Guillebaud will be dancing in heaven!

I blogged on this back in April, and it’s taken until this week because of various frustrating delays, but now I’m so happy to be able to say that the new updated version of the Kirundi Bible has been launched in Burundi!!!

I’ll paste the previous blog below for context. Many thanks for all those who sowed money into this, so that we were able to help the Burundian Bible Society to get the project over the finishing line. Now may the new version be quickly accepted (there are always some who are resistant to change) and get out there into the hands of thousands of hungry believers. Do pray for that.

And if you wanted to buy any Christmas Bibles, feel free to do so here (mention ‘Bibles’)

Here are some of the pictures…

“Please, please we need Bibles! And not just any Bible, but a new version. The old one I can hardly understand!”

I could have been offended, but I’m not. You see, my great-aunt, Rosemary Guillebaud, was the person who brought God’s Word to Burundians in their own language, after twenty years of hard graft working on it.

But that was a long time ago – 1967 to be precise – and language evolves steadily. You’d understand the King James Version in English better than Burundians understand Rosemary’s 1967 Kirundi translation.

For example, ‘imbata ya Yesu’ meant ‘slave/servant of Christ’ back then, now it means ‘duck of Christ’ – that’s just no good…

And Rosemary wouldn’t be offended at all. In fact, she’d be frustrated that a new version hadn’t been released before now. I know this would have her full blessing.

So here’s the good news: after many years of hard work, the revised new Kirundi version is ready! It just needs ordering. But the Bible Society here is broke.

I’m desperate to see these new Bibles get into as many hands as possible, and gain broad acceptance by the Body of Christ in Burundi. So we really need your help if we’re going to raise the money for the Bible Society to get a copy of the new Bible into the hands of every Burundian who wants one.

I’m so excited to be a part of this – together we can make it happen. You can donate here.

A subsidised, beautiful, freshly-printed Kirundi Bible costs £7 or $10, with import duties and transport costs. The first print run will be 5000. So we need £35,000 or $50,000. Then we’ll have played a huge role to bless the Body of Christ in Burundi. Please join me!

Could you buy 10 Bibles for £70 or $100, a hundred for £700 or $1000? More, or less? Every one counts.

I hate hearing false teaching. It grieves me when I hear a zealous evangelist preaching a slightly twisted message because his knowledge is stunted due to not having access to a Bible. In our work in schools, we often find the leaders of the Christian Unions, with maybe a hundred students in their care, without their own Bible. That’s wrong, but together, we can easily help put this right.

Please help us make it right. The impact will be stunning, and lasting, into eternity. Please click here to contribute. All money raised will go into this, getting the word out and getting people grounded and equipped in God’s Word.

In a few months – in faith – I’ll send you pictures of the new imported Bibles in the hands of brothers and sisters in Christ here, and you’ll see the biggest smiles ever. That’s a promise!

Thanks for partnering with us to make this happen!