American Missionary Fellowship

Bob and Mina Twitchell were featured in the May 2010 episode of AMF’s podcast, Called to Connection. Listen at http://amfmission.org/podcast/episode/colville-reservation/.

The early days of the American Sunday School Union (the organization that became AMF) were on our minds as we arrived at the Salish Language Project on the Colville Reservation. The ASSU helped people learn to read English by using God’s Word as the text. Now we would see if some who were trying to save their own tribal identity from extinction would be open to translating Bible verses into their native language. We brought with us copies of the New Testament in the New Life Bible translation, designed to respond to tribal culture.

Randy G. began showing up right from the start at the family night we hosted on the Colville Indian Reservation. He was in his early 30s, but while other adults visited with each other, he would get a seat right there with the little kids and watch the movie intently with them, always laughing when they did. He didn’t seem like he would be interested in Bible study or other “serious” spiritual things, so I treated him more like one of the little kids than an adult.