Bringing the Bible to the Jonam People: How Harvest Church is Living Sent
At Harvest Church in Middle Georgia, Senior Pastor Jim Cowart and his congregation are living out the Finishing the Task vision in tangible ways—both at home and around the world. Their commitment is rooted in Jesus’ command not only to receive His grace but to live sent—“here, near, and far.”
This fall, Harvest launched a new teaching series called SENT: Life on Mission, designed to help believers embrace the Great Commission as their everyday calling. But this vision isn’t only preached from the pulpit—it’s embodied in the church’s global partnerships.
Bringing God’s Word to the Jonam People
This summer, Pastor Jim and his wife Jen traveled to Uganda, where Harvest has long partnered with local churches to strengthen leaders through Healthy Church training. While there, Jim also introduced pastors to the Finishing the Task movement and its 2033 vision.
One of the most powerful moments came when Jim joined Wycliffe Bible Translators in northern Uganda to witness the progress of Bible translation among the Jonam tribe. Harvest Church had sponsored the translation of the Gospel of Luke for the Jonam people—the first Scripture to be translated into their language. The translation team was gathering to refine the text.
“I didn’t know how Bible translation really worked,” Jim shared. “I kind of thought it was a guy with very thick glasses sitting beside a computer. But it was actually the Jonam elders of the church, sitting in plastic chairs under the shade trees with Wycliffe representatives, reading a few paragraphs at a time, debating the nuance, saying, ‘This is so important. God says, don’t add to or take away from His Word. We must get this right.’”
The Jonam community has long carried the weight of displacement, with a history much like that of Native Americans in the U.S. Understandably, some are cautious of outsiders. But when Jim explained why they were there, he witnessed a profound moment of openness.
“One man working near where we stayed asked what we were doing. When I said we were visiting the Jonam people, he grew defensive. Then I told him our church was helping to bring the Bible to the Jonam. He froze, then softened. He said, ‘You’re bringing the Bible to my people? Oh, thank you! Can I have the first one? I want to tell the people—this is good news.’”
Advancing the B: Bibles Goal
Stories like this remind us why the B: Bibles goal is central to the Finishing the Task vision: that by 2033, every person on earth would have access to Scripture in their heart language. Wycliffe and its partners are working tirelessly to see this accomplished, and churches like Harvest are joining hands to make it a reality.
Pastor Jim’s story from Uganda is a glimpse of the powerful transformation that’s possible when we partner to see the gospel taking root in the language of a people who have long awaited it. Together, as we live sent, we move one step closer to completing the task.
To learn more about how you or your church can partner with Bible translation agencies to bring God’s Word to more people, visit https://illuminations.bible/.
