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Amarasi farmers cultivate Indonesia’s Timor Island, where most people live in the mountainous interior. Families farm small plots of land for food to eat and sell. They also raise livestock, such as chickens, cattle, and pigs.

Their monsoon climate determines each year’s rhythm of life. They can only grow crops during a short, intense rainy season, then store food for the extended drought from April to December.

Christianity was introduced early in the 21st century and more than 99 percent call themselves Christian. It brought with it church schools, offering three years of study to all children. Therefore, literacy is widespread, but most reading and writing is limited to the national Indonesian language.

Translation is being drafted by a group of mother tongue speakers, based on a translation in progress in the related, regional Creole language, Kupang Malay. God has called farmers, other local people and a university professor to work on this team.

Amarasi pastors, working part time, help revise the drafts. They gain more understanding of God’s Word by using translated portions to teach their congregations. Believers are encouraged in their personal faith, as they use heart language Scriptures in church, in groups, and in personal Bible study.

* Scripture Prayers for the Amarasi in Indonesia.