PRAY IT FORWARD

Table of Contents

Letter from the Director 

LuminAfrica Prayer Working Group

Sepulana Team Learns the Luke 10 Prayer Model

Pray with Us: Our Prayer Needs

A Call to All: Ways to Get Involved in Prayer

Stories of Answered Prayer

The History of Prayer at Wycliffe South Africa

50 Years of Wycliffe South Africa: 1995 - 2005

Announcements
We're Updating our Newsletter List
Prayer for the World

Kids Who Care

“Take it to the Lord in prayer”

D.A. Carson, co-founder of The Gospel Coalition, once said: "Much praying is not done because we do not plan to pray. The neglect of prayer is not a little sin. It is a direct denial of God’s Word." His words highlight the intentionality required to maintain a life of prayer.

From the moment the disciples asked Jesus, “Lord, teach us to pray…” (Luke 11:1), to Paul’s exhortation to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17), Scripture makes it clear that prayer is both an action and an attitude. A persistent posture of prayer is strengthened by the regular habit of praying—something Carson warns must be part of our daily plan or it risks being neglected.

At Wycliffe South Africa, prayer is woven into the fabric of our community. It’s part of our planned programme, our daily work rhythm, and our shared life. We pray not only to acknowledge our dependence on God but to seek His kingdom first in all we do. For us, work is worship, and prayer is the principle that empowers and guides us to keep following Jesus.

What does this look like in practice?

• We have a dedicated prayer room at the office for quiet reflection and intercession.
• A weekly prayer time is set aside for the team.
• The first Monday of each month is reserved for prayer and fasting.
• Our Board members have “prayer buddies” and commit to praying for one another regularly.
• Each of our translation communities has a dedicated team interceding for them as they work.

Why build a lifestyle of prayer? Here are just a few biblical reasons:

1. Deeper relationship with God – “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.” (James 4:8)
2. Peace over anxiety – "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer…let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God…will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6–7)
3. Forgiveness and healing – "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9)
4. Strengthened faith – “They ought always to pray and not lose heart.” (Luke 18:1)
5. Guidance and wisdom – "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him." (James 1:5)

We are deeply thankful for all who pray for our people and our Bible translation work. Please keep in touch—let us pray for you too. Prayer links us to Jesus, our faithful intercessor. “What a friend we have in Jesus!”

Alan Webster

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LuminAfrica is a collaboration of six Bible translation organisations in South Africa and resource partners working together for greater impact to make God’s transformative Word accessible. From within these organisations, a prayer working group was formed to raise up intercession for Bible translation efforts across southern Africa and beyond.

In March, prayer coordinators from LuminAfrica, The Word for the World, Hands with Words, and Wycliffe South Africa gathered for a strategic retreat. The purpose of this gathering was threefold: to plan and coordinate prayer initiatives within LuminAfrica, to foster team building and mutual encouragement, and to seek God together.

During the retreat, we explored key topics such as the vital role of prayer in Bible translation and in securing funding. We also began to plan prayer events for Johannesburg and Cape Town in 2026.

Looking ahead, we envision developing a mobile app to help mobilise prayer support for the Pray for Zero movement—a global initiative dedicated to praying that zero people are left without access to God’s Word in their heart language.

Additionally, we laid the groundwork for the upcoming Week of Prayer for Bible Translation, which will take place from 29 September to 5 October 2025.

• You can sign up for the week of prayer by contacting This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
• You are welcome to join the Unceasing prayer meetings on Wednesday mornings from 9:00-10:00 or you can sign up for other prayer slots at https://www.unceasingprayer.bible/schedule or contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Pray for Zero publishes a journal every Saturday featuring translation projects from across the world.

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By Lenthia Erasmus

In May, I had the wonderful privilege of visiting the Sepulana Bible Translation project in Bushbuckridge with two of my colleagues: Carol van Heerden, Senior Field Coordinator, and Sizukiwe Vimbani, Field Coordinator for the Anglophone programmes.

It was truly a blessing to meet the Translators, Reviewers, and the Scripture Engagement Team — to get to know them personally and witness the incredible work they are doing. I also had the honour of sharing a devotion with the team, based on Luke 10:1–9.

This passage outlines a powerful prayer lifestyle — one of Pray, Connect, Care, and Share. In it, Jesus sends out 70 ordinary people, just like us, to the places He was about to visit. He gives them simple, yet profound instructions:

Luke 10:5–9
“When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you. Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages... Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The Kingdom of God has come near to you.’”

From this, we can draw four key steps:

1. Bless
2. Build Relationships/Fellowship
3. Meet the Need
4. Share about Jesus

Practicing the Four L-10-T Steps

After the devotion, the translation team showed great interest in the L-10-T prayer model. I shared the training manual with Pastor Jeffrey Malebe, who immediately printed it. The team is now excitedly engaging with the material.

Luke-10-Transformation (L-10-T) is a simple, practical, and life-giving way to equip believers — both adults and children — to live a prayerful, missional lifestyle. It’s an invitation to make prayer a natural part of everyday life.

If you'd like to learn more about L-10-T training, feel free to contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Shalom,
Lenthia Erasmus

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Our Prayer Needs

Please join us in prayer for the following needs and praises:

1. Health and Protection
   Please pray for the health and safety of the Wycliffe South Africa Field Coordination (FC) team, as well as the various translation teams. Many are facing serious health challenges such as malaria, blindness, accident-related injuries, jaundice, high blood pressure, stomach issues, and heart problems. There appears to be a significant spiritual attack on the health of those serving.
   Psalm 103:2-3 – “Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases.”

    

2. Himba Bible Translation Project – Namibia Visit (2–6 June 2025)
   Pray for safe travels and fruitful interactions during the upcoming visit to the Himba Bible Translation Project. The team is undergoing a period of transition and restructuring, which has brought about new challenges. Pray for unity, relationship-building, and grace throughout the visit.
   

    

3. Strategic Fundraising for LuminAfrica
   Wycliffe South Africa is part of a collaborative network called LuminAfrica. In June, our Resource Mobiliser, Mesuli Tshele, and Executive Director, Alan Webster, will meet with the collaborative fundraising team in Cape Town. Please pray for wisdom, innovative strategies, and divine provision.
   Philippians 4:19 – “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”

    

4. Thanksgiving for Financial Provision
   We rejoice in God’s incredible faithfulness! Despite significant budget cuts, all of our projects have continued without interruption. Even more, over the past six months, eight new Bible translation projects have begun. We give God the glory for enabling these new initiatives:
   1. Kaaps – South Africa
   2. Meetto – Mozambique  
   3. Koti – Mozambique
   4. Holo – Angola
   5. Kisuku – Angola
   6. Camacuio (3 languages: Oluhumbi, Olukuvale, Olukwando) – Angola
      Psalm 23:1 – “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.”
      

       

5. Celebrating 50 Years – Jubilee Year
   Wycliffe South Africa is celebrating 50 years of God’s faithfulness! As we mark this Jubilee milestone, we hope to host a special event to honor God and His work over the past five decades. Please pray for the necessary funding and support to make this celebration possible.

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Ways to get involved in prayer

“Pray without ceasing.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:17

Wycliffe South Africa is extending a heartfelt invitation to intercessors and prayer warriors to join us in standing in the gap for our Bible translation projects across the continent. This is a call to persistent, Spirit-led prayer for the nations and the work of God’s Word.

If you feel led by the Holy Spirit to become part of this growing army of intercessors, we invite you to connect with us. Below are some of the ways you can join us in prayer.

Intercessors for Africa

We seek to have people praying for each of the translation projects we work with. You can choose which language(s) you would like to pray for, and you will be kept up to date about specific prayer needs for that language. Please visit our Intercessors for Africa subscription page, where you can see a list of projects and sign up to pray. Or, for more information, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Translation programs with the fewest intercessors:

Join our Prayer and Praise community

Prayer & Praise is a bi-monthly bulletin featuring personal and work-related prayer requests from staff and members of WSA inside and outside of South Africa. This is an opportunity to see what the various team members are busy with and stand with them in prayer. You can sign up here.

Adopt a Language

Churches are encouraged to get involved by adopting a language group. This partnership allows churches to walk alongside specific communities—loving, serving, and supporting them as the Lord leads. You could even start a weekly or monthly prayer meeting at your church. For example, Godfirst Benoni, who pray for the Marenje in Mozambique, meet weekly on a Wednesday to pray for revival and Bible translation.

Join us in monthly prayer and fasting

This takes place on the first Monday of every month, with a prayer meeting from 10:00 to 12:00. You’re welcome to attend online or in person at our office. Contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you would like to take part.

Your prayers are powerful. They make a difference.

“If we want to leave an indelible mark on the world, there is no more powerful way to do it than joining in God’s purpose through prayer. Our prayers go where we cannot. While many things may seem impossible from a human standpoint, in the realm of prayer there are no impossibilities.” – Brother Andrew

We look forward to hearing from you and joining hands in prayer for God’s work across Africa.

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God provides funding
At the end of our last financial year, we (Wycliffe South Africa) were praying about our project funding deficit. Our financial year starts on the 1st of October, and on that very day we received a call from a lady who wanted to donate some money to Wycliffe. It came out of the blue, and we realised that this is how the Lord will provide for us in this financial year. We started a list to write down “miracles of supply” like this one.

In November last year, the director of Wycliffe Ethiopia, Tefera Endelew, preached at a church in Johannesburg and received an honorarium of a thousand Rand. He gave that to us and wrote on the envelope that it is seed money for a gift of hundred thousand dollars. In April, Alan called him to report that a church and a donor in the USA had promised funding of a hundred thousand dollars for the Himba transcription in Angola.

We also obtained new funding partners who have come on board and helped close our funding gap, giving more than their original commitment.

The Mozambique branch of Simply Mobilising gave us a gift of 200 British Pounds, which they collected through several Kairos courses. The people who gave were mostly very poor women, who over time brought what they could. This was a story reminiscent of the widow who gave her two small coins—an act that Jesus commended.

God provides an airstrip in the jungle
Years ago, Wycliffe South Africa had a visit from JAARS (Jungle Aviation and Radio Services), based in North Carolina. They wanted to see if it was feasible to set up a base in South Africa to fly members out to remote areas. JAARS finally decided not to pursue this, because of the political situation in South Africa at the time, and the presence of MAF which could provide the same service. In this time, Harry Brasem met Butch Barkman, who was the executive director of JAARS.

This connection was not all lost opportunity. Several years later, when Andy and Debbie Abbott were serving in Papua, they experienced a family medical crisis. Their little girl of only 18 months, Jessie-Fay, became extremely ill with cerebral Malaria. The nearest medical help was several days away by small fishing boat or a risky plane landing on the beach. There had been a landing strip, but this had become overgrown by the jungle. The Wycliffe prayer groups were contacted, and they prayed. A pilot was able to land on a small strip of beach safely and take the family to hospital, and Jessie-Fay recovered.

Harry contacted Butch Barkman and explained the situation to him. As it so happened, Butch had actually flown on the now overgrown airstrip! He assured Harry that he would make this a top priority. JAARS had monthly prayer breakfasts, during which they would present certain projects needing urgent funding. At the very next prayer breakfast, they presented the airstrip clearing and rebuilding project, and raised sufficient funds to cover the cost, US$3,000, with the local Isirawa providing the labour.

Three members of the Marenje team healed
Recently, our field coordinator for Mozambique, Jadreque Buanaite, asked for prayer for three members of the Marenje translation team who were sick. He said that Angelina, one of the translators, had been admitted to a hospital in Malawi because her condition was critical. At the same time, Helena (one of the reviewers) and Pastor Alex had also been ill.

Just a few days later he said, “Thank you so much all for your prayers over our 3 members of Marenje. Pastor Alex and sister Helena they are healed and today have reported at the translation team. Sister Angelina has been discharged from the Hospital in Malawi, and she is in the recovering stage while home. We praise God for her improvement and we continue praying that may the Lord continue extending His hand for her. Thank you all.”

Healing after a serious accident
Another memorable answer to the prayers of intercessors happened a few years ago when the man coordinating the Tonga translation in Zimbabwe was involved in a terrible car accident, just outside Bulawayo. He suffered extensive head injuries and was not expected to live. Our intercessors prayed, and God answered their prayers – he was miraculously restored. His words were: “God told me that I still had much work to do, and that it was not my time to die yet.”

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“Pray with us that the Lord’s message may continue to spread rapidly and be received with honour….”  

- 2 Thessalonians 3:1  

As an organisation, we have always believed in the transformative power of prayer. When we unite in prayer, extraordinary things begin to unfold. Challenges are met with divine strength, and battles are fought on a higher plane. That’s why, when a prayer partner intercedes for the well-being, protection, and effectiveness of the translators and the work of Bible translation, powerful change is set in motion.

1973 to 1981

Tony and Mary Williams, who first established a Wycliffe presence in South Africa, took up residence in Kempton Park where they had a combined home and office. They began sharing the work of Wycliffe and the challenge of Bible translation with churches and established some prayer groups. 

1983 to 1986

The prayer groups were added to by David Abernathy, who took over leadership from 1983 to 1986 when Tony and Mary returned to their home in Australia. By 1986, there were various prayer groups up and running:

The Florida Group (West Rand) – led by Nan Glasson. 

The Alberton Group (Johannesburg South) – led by Anthea Grobler, sister of translator Nick Swanepoel

The Fish Hoek Group (Cape Town) – led by Gerald and his wife, Ruby Martin.

1986 to 1988

When the Brasems took over the leadership of Wycliffe South Africa, a concerted effort was made to continue this trend of running prayer meetings but also starting new ones. Harry prayed for 10 prayer groups and his expectations were more than exceeded.    

By 1988 there were 11 groups meeting, including:

Windhoek, Namibia – led by Andre van Coller.   

Dundee, KZN – hosted by Dolly Roopnarain and led by Cecile van der Walt 

Kempton Park, Johannesburg – led by Ampie van Wyk 

Lynnwood, Pretoria – led by Johan van Greunen 

Pretoria Boys High – led by Craig Bloemsma

Potchefstroom – led by Santie Alberts 

RAU Hostel, Auckland Park – led by Zetta Le Roux

Rosebank, Cape Town – led by Liz Beute 

Berglvliet Group (Cape Town area) – led by Viv and Sonia Hobbs

Kempton Park, Johannesburg – led by Harry and Elsbeth Brasem

There were also a few informal prayer meetings amongst students from Stellenbosch University, and prayer cell groups meeting in Cape Town and Somerset West. In Edenvale, Madge Brown ran a prayer meeting from her retirement flat. 

1989 to 2010

From 1995 to 2005 the monthly Prayer and Praise Bulletin was sent out by Kathy Marais, and during this time the various Wycliffe prayer groups continued to pray faithfully for our members and the people groups they were working with.

2010 to 2025

In May 2016 Intercessors for Africa was launched in which people were invited to pray and intercede for specific Bible translation projects in southern Africa. This is ongoing and people are being recruited as prayer warriors whenever the opportunity presents itself. Ansie van der Merwe and Lenthia Erasmus head this special prayer initiative, and also work with other mission organisations in developing prayer mobilisation.

Harry’s dream was to have a member on staff as a full-time intercessor praying for Wycliffe. With the appointment of Lenthia Erasmus in March 2025 this dream has become a reality.

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PRAYER FOR THE WORLD

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Hey kiddoes! I hope that you are all well and warm!

Don’t you just love rhyming words? I love saying long lists of words that rhyme and then even sometimes make up words to add….cat, bat, fat, hat, spat, rat, pat, flat, brat, chat, slat, drat, at, splat, Matt, gnat, matte, stat, plait, scat…CAN YOU THINK OF ANY MORE?

I was thinking about rhyming words and even making up silly rhymes in my head when I sat down to write this to you all. I put in the KIDS WHO CARE logo at the top of this page and then I thought of something that rhymes…KIDS IN PRAYER. Clever hey? And I think it’s not just clever, but it’s also what God wants us all to be: not just kids who care about all children having a Bible that they can read, but kids in prayer about all children having a Bible that they can read.

I hope that you are a child who prays to God. Maybe you pray in the morning and ask God to help you have a good day, or you pray before you eat and thank Him for your food. Maybe you pray at bedtime and thank God for your day and ask Him to keep you safe while you sleep. It would be great if you could start to be a child who prays that all children will have a Bible.  

In 1 Timothy 2:4 it says “God wants everyone to be saved and to fully understand the truth.” This means that God wants everyone to choose to follow Him and to know Jesus as their Lord and Saviour. God wants everyone, all over the world, to hear the good news that He loves them and sent His son to die for them. God’s will is that everyone will hear His Word - that all children (and grown ups!) will have a Bible. 

In 1 John 5:14 it says “…if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.” This means that when we pray for anything that is God’s will, he will hear our prayers and answer our prayers. 

So…if we pray for all children (and grown-ups!) to have a Bible (which we know is God’s will) then God will hear our prayers and will answer our prayers. 

The people at Wycliffe work very hard to help people all over the world to have a Bible in the language that they understand. But, they need God’s help to do this. Even though we are young, we can be part of praying for God to help them. 

I asked the Wycliffe team what they would like us to ask God for and these are some of the things they said: 

• Please pray for the health and safety of the teams. Many of them are very sick.
• Please pray for safe travels and God’s grace for our trip to Namibia.
• Please pray for wisdom and good ideas for the people from Wycliffe who are meeting with other people to plan how to raise funds. Ask God to provide all that they need.
• Please pray that Wycliffe will be able to have a celebration of the 50 years of doing God’s work in South Africa. May more people get involved in celebrating and supporting. 
• Please thank God for His faithfulness and for the 8 new languages that the Bible has started to be translated into during the last 6 months. 

So, what are you waiting for? Let’s do it!

We know what to pray and we know God will hear us as He wants everyone to hear His Word. Let’s not just be kids who care, but let's be kids in prayer too!

Love,

Aunty Gill

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