Profile Mark & Mary Esther Penner

·          Missionaries to Japan for 25 years. 

·         Grew up in Japan as missionary kids

Mark –Spearheads a sign language Bible translation project in Japan

The Need: As most Deaf have never heard Japanese, they learn it as a second language and have difficulty reading their written Japanese Bibles. 

The Response:

·         Founded ViBi (Video Bible), a Japanese Sign Language Bible Translation project, in 1993

·         ViBi brings together a broad coalition of Japanese Deaf Christian organizations for the common goal of a Bible for the Deaf by the Deaf

·         ViBi has transitioned to being completely run by Japanese Deaf leadership, and Mark serves as a consultant

·         Currently published on DVD: Mark, Acts, Galatians, Philippians,  I, II Thessalonians, James, Jonah, Ruth, Genesis

·         As one of the preeminent sign language Bible translation projects, ViBi plays a key role in the worldwide sign language Bible translation movement of over 50 projects.

Mary Esther—Directs a Christian non-profit refurbishing wheelchairs to send throughout Asia.

The Need: While old wheelchairs sit unused in Japan, there is a great need for wheelchairs in other countries throughout Asia.

The Response:

·         Mary Esther founded Wheelchairs of Hope, a non-profit that partners with local churches and their surrounding communities to collect, refurbish and send wheelchairs to those in Asia who need them.

·         Over 250 wheelchairs have been distributed to countries throughout Asia including Mongolia, Thailand, Cambodia, the Philippines, China, and Indonesia.

·         Wheelchairs of Hope gives the Japanese church an opportunity to demonstrate the love of God both locally within Japan and globally in the receiving countries.

Praise for amazing results from the United Bible Society workgroup meetings in Costa Rica. The depth and quality of the work done by the Deaf participants who arrived five days before the official meetings started resulted in unequivocal support for Sign Language translation around the world on the part of the UBS translation consultants charged with bringing a report to the whole UBS community. Perhaps more important even than that, though, was the commitment on the part of the Deaf participants to work together to improve their own projects and support other projects around the world. We’re thankful to see momentum building as we approach this “new frontier in Bible Translation.”

Praise God also for a great few days in Columbia. Though I’m eager to get back to Japan, I wish our time here could have been longer too. Pastor Matsumoto did an amazing job encouraging a group of Columbian Deaf church leaders, and then preaching/teaching from a newly translated Columbian Sign Language Bible text. We were able to encourage the translation project here, and also take back some great ideas for our work in Japan.

Mark’s work with the Japanese Sign Language Bible:

• Exciting results at the United Bible Society (UBS) Sign Language (SL) workgroup in Cost Rica.
• Excellent work done by the Deaf participants prior to the meetings resulted in UBS support for SL Bible translations worldwide.
• Pastor Matsumoto encouraged Deaf church leaders in Bogota, Columbia, preaching from their SL Bible text.
• Pastor Matsumoto and I gained ideas for ViBi’s translation work in Japan.    

Please pray for the Christmas outreach program at Deaf church December 21.

Mary Esther’s work with Wheelchairs of Hope:

Please pray:

• Two new church-plant leaders came to discuss how to use Wheelchairs of Hope to reach out into their community.
• A Japanese Christian high school teacher and 6 students came to a “cleaning wheelchair day” and want to develop a program at their school.
• A US missions-trip group that was going to help out got stuck in Bangkok last week so didn’t make it.  We are working on Plan B to accomplish that work.