Daniel O'Connor

"For too long, we have cautioned young people to stay unless they are absolutely sure that God wants them to go. It is time to challenge them to go unless they are absolutely sure that God wants them to stay." -Rex Cobb

“I've noticed that everyone who is for abortion has already been born.” ― Ronald Reagan

@DaveMallinak Yep. Never a dull moment!

@Danjo5string That's some rigor!

Saturday morning is our graduation here at BBTI. In nine months, all students have completed each of these courses: Cultural Anthropology Chronological Bible Teaching Ethnomusicology Articulatory Phonetics Phonemics Morphology/Syntax Situational Language Learning ⬇️

For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:   And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again. 2 Corinthians 5:14-15

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Literacy TEFL (Teaching Eng. as a Foreign Language) Baptist Church Planting Principles NT Greek Bible Translation Principles Jungle Camp

@realnaholmes Thank you. I do believe it is needed. The hard part is convincing missionaries to consider taking the time for this training. Understandably they want to get to their fields soon, and often hesitate to lengthen their pre-field preparation.

@Danjo5string I really appreciate the angle at which you guys are approaching these issues. Very much needed.

"Experts in the fields of linguistics and anthropology have gone before us and figured out many mysteries of language and culture. Wouldn’t it be wise of us to draw on their expertise?" baptisttranslators.com/hell-figure-it…

@DaveMallinak Yes sir, I believe so.

@Danjo5string As important as planting a church. We should give more attention to this.

So, nearly half the languages of the world have no available Scripture in their language. May God raise up men for this vital work.

@CoryKilgus Missionaries regularly run into issues like this. They can be trained to deal with translation issues but are generally not. I think the desire to do other ministry among people results in the work of translation being overlooked.

@Danjo5string Ive been to indigenous communities in the Amazon Jungle that had the “New Testament”, but it was so poorly translated, I don’t think it counts. All that to say, it may be worse than the numbers portray.

I was given updated statistics today on Bibles and languages: Total known languages. 7,393 Lang. with complete Bibles. 799 Lang. with NT. 1,832 Lang. with portions. 1,514 Have no published scripture. 3,248

Can we really consider a people group to be what we would call "reached" if they do not have a Bible that they can read in their heart language?

GO. Matt. 28:18-20

These numbers include CT and dynamic equivalent translations. Something must be done about the lack of good Bibles around the world.

@BigBBaptist @ChristIsKing_TM Maybe equal with some overlap? I think a problem is exclusively using modesty as an argument when addressing apparel.

Men and women should be visibly distinguishable in their dress: "A woman shall not wear a man’s garment, nor shall a man put on a woman’s cloak, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord your God."—Deuteronomy 22:5 ESV

@DaveMallinak Same.

Posting on X isn't a priority. I post if I have something to say, but during busy times, I take time off. The only drawback is that the algorithm somehow decides I must not want to interact with the friends I enjoy engaging, so they seemingly disappear from my timeline.

"What is our goal in doing Bible translation? It is to see indigenous churches established. It is because of the Great Commission. How can we teach them to 'observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you' if we do not give them the Scriptures?" -Rex Cobb

@ScottyGThompson "... moves me out of the way so that He can do his work." I like that. It is a comfort to me that God doesn't need my help in making his Word work on hearts. I'm not great at preaching, but I can trust that God will use his Word regardless.

“A passion to preach without a burden to study is a desire to perform.” - H. B. Charles The longer I’m in ministry, the more I’ve come to despise half baked unprepared preaching. If you’re a full-time pastor or evangelist who steps into the pulpit unprepared, simply rambling through the same talking points that get easy Amens, are you really preaching? Or are you just performing? I’ve seen laymen in my own church handle the text with greater care and fidelity than many pastors standing in pulpits. Preaching is declaring the Word of God. And it’s nearly impossible to declare it faithfully if you haven’t done the hard, prayerful work of studying it deeply. One of the best decisions I ever made was shifting from topical, idea driven, illustration heavy sermons to slow, careful, verse by verse expository preaching through entire books of the Bible. It doesn't mean I don't give illustrations. It just means they aren't the main thing. It doesn't mean I just read from my notes. It just ensures I stick with the text. It doesn't hold back the Spirit of God from working in lives. It just moves me out of the way so He can do His work. Verse by verse preaching forces you to wrestle with every word, every sentence, and every context. It’s far more demanding than slapping together a few observations and stories around what you think the passage means. But it’s also far more rewarding for the preacher and the church! "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." 2 Timothy 2:15

Thankful for Bro. Rex Cobb and his dedication to service. Teaching the final week of Bible Translation Principles while recovering from a bad cold as well as taking cancer treatments and physical therapy. He just never stops!