“For the word of God is living and active…” –Hebrews 4:12
Marilyn Laszlo was raised on a farm, just outside of Valparaiso, Indiana. From the time she was a young girl, she wanted to go to a foreign country and live as a missionary. She left home to attend college in Tennessee. She eventually completed her master’s in linguistics at the University of Oklahoma. After completing her degrees, Marilyn joined the Wycliffe Translators and left to join the people living in the Hauna village along the Sepik River in Papua New Guinea.
When Marilyn Laszlo arrived in the small village in the middle of Papua, New Guinea she, along with her missionary partner, were the first people with white skin that the tribe had ever seen. The Hauna people had no written language. When Marilyn arrived, she quickly realized that neither could speak the other’s language. It took her many years to learn their language and then to help develop a written language. The entire time that Marilyn lived among the Hauna people she shared the love and hope of God with them.
I had the privilege to hear Marilyn Laszlo speak live. She was so passionate about her time among the people of Papua, New Guinea. She captured our attention as she described teaching the Hauna people about the stories from the Bible. They loved to hear these stories of love, forgiveness, and God’s work in the world. They were excited to learn about God and were thrilled to hear that they would soon have the Bible stories in their own language.
As Marilyn told our audience about her time in Papua, New Guinea, she grew increasingly excited. As she told the stories we grew just as excited hearing how the scriptures were being translated into a new language. Marilyn ended her time on stage that day, sharing how the Hauna people waited on the banks of the river, the same river she had arrived on years earlier, and they leaped for joy as they proclaimed, “The word of God has arrived!”
The word of God is powerful, life-giving, life-affirming, and life-changing. Marilyn Laszlo dedicated her life to sharing the scriptures with people who have never heard the beautiful words of God. Today, the Hauana people are often found sharing the beautiful words of God with their neighboring tribes. Many of these other tribes were their traditional enemies. The Hauna people’s lives have changed for the better because of God’s powerful word.
Marilyn Laszlo’s story and that celebration of the arrival of God’s word reminds us that God’s word is available to us all. It is a powerful and inspirational gift. When we learn the stories and live out the teachings in the scriptures, our lives, our communities, and our world are changed for the better. How do we know what the most important things are in this world? We begin by reading God’s word.
Rev. Keith King, Pastor of Worship
