Post 89 / The Next Language

Mixteco del Progreso

The call to the language of Mixteco del Progreso was in the form of a red dot on the Google Maps app for Mexico which indicated no recordings and no other Christian resources.

At first it looked like a slam dunk. In fact we were told that recording arrangements had already been made by Senior Recordist Chuy Tejeda. It was right on a major highway and adjacent to another Mixteco recorded language – Ocotepec: Cuquila. Furthermore there was an active church in Cuquila. And even more importantly an active participant in GRN outreaches lived with the Cuquila and was a Cuquila speaker and married to the daughter of one of the GRN board members. Marce Leon and his very pregnant wife hosted us several times as we went through the area to reach other languages.

On one of our first visits we went to follow up on the potential language helpers but they could not be found. Then later we were told that they would not work with us.

We were invited to have a service in the church of Marce. We presented the need to reach their Mixteco neighbors who we had learned actually speak a very distinct language variety. In a shared meal afterward we learned of the long history of trying to reach the Mixteco del Progreso.

On my last personal visit I was with Nathaniel and we had determined that we were not going to leave without recording that language. We soon realized that Marce’s wife was within days of having their second child and it was not an appropriate time for us to be a burden to them. So we moved on but not until after spending a day on a construction project that was a virtual outreach to the Mixtecos del Progreso.

They had determined to provide all the labor and a lot of the material to make a restaurant for a handicapped lady of the Mixteco del Progreso who had been born without legs. Her name was Eusebia. We helped pour concrete pillars which were to frame this project of love and evangelism. Eusebia, who lived nearby (right on the highway), made a dinner for us all before the day was over.

When Stephen and Ana Pallot decided to try to record this language again in March they began with Eusebia. Here are Stephen’s words.

Pastor Luis (Marce’s uncle) introduced us to Eusebia (she is the lady who was born with a disability, to whom Marce witnessed). She was the only person who was willing to help us at first, and it was really challenging recording by the roadside!

The same day we went to visit Eusebia, we went to visit another sister, but she said she didn’t know the language well enough. However, she was prepared to go with Ana and speak to the pastor who was in the church. At first, he told us that most of the speakers had left for the USA and he seemed quite reluctant to help. One other sister was quite upset too, but after Ana apologized for any past misunderstanding, the pastor agreed to come and talk to Luis and myself. Thereafter, the pastor was happy to assist.

We started a recording with Eusebia the following day and managed to advance little by little. On that Sunday we went to the temple and the pastor allowed us to make an appeal for help with the recording. There were a couple of sisters who translated in the service and were very capable, but they declined to help. Finally a younger sister (Lizeth – 17yrs) agreed to help, but we had to wait until the following Wednesday.

On Wednesday we went to the early morning prayer meeting, after which we ate lunch, helped excavate sand and mix concrete. During a break I played the recording that Eusebia had done. The sisters listened intently and following that two more ladies offered to help.

We also managed to record a male voice, along with his testimony. At the end of our time there, all the people asked us when we were planning to return to do some more recording.

It seems that God used Eusebia’s willingness to change the situation. Praise His name.

Here you can see a photo of Stephen actually recording and also the recording being played back.

We thank God for answered prayer and also the reminder that the call to “go” means to keep going and going and going until there is no further need to go.

God Bless,

Larry DeVilbiss | Executive Director

Global Recordings Network USA

If you are interested in learning how to share links on social media that will promote use of our recordings and the Gospel in general, please contact RolandHeck@GlobalRecordings.Net

Previous “The Next Language” posts
Go – Post 88
Those Word Lists – Post 87
Altars – Post 86
Oh, for a Thousand Tongues – Post 85
Voices in the Wilderness – Post 84
Nigeria – First Impressions – Post 83
From the Land of Nod – Post 82
Tribute to Mexico – 1967 – 2022 – Post 81
Miniaturization – Post 80
Knowing The Times – Post 79
God Comes to a Dirty World – Post 78
Corn in Mexico – Post 77
When the Church Says No – Post 76
War – Post 75
Theirs Is the Kingdom – Post 74
The Hippie Era Lives On – Post 73
Genesis of a Recording Set – Post 72
Back Tracking – Post 71
Witnesses- Post 70
Who Is Your Owner? – Post 69
An Unsolicited Endorsement – Post 68
Oral Tradition – Post 67
Works of  Man – Post 66
Deliverance – Post 65
New Discoveries – Post 64
The Wall of Pain – Post 63
Is There a Place for the Gospel in Your Story – Post 62
The Love Pyramid – Post 61
Obsession – Post 60
Verb Tenses in Hebrews – Post 59
The Unseen Weapon – Post 58
The Gospel Arrives in Zapoteco:Elotepec – Post 57
Fishing – GRN Style – Post 56
A New Day in Mexico – Post 55
Seeking – Post 54
Pick Your Battles – Post 53
How Big Is Your God? – Post 52
A Muted Gospel? – Post 51
Dedication Service for Marcos – Post 50
Two Weeks, Two Months, Two Years – Post 49
What Will You Give to Jesus – Post 48
Special Assignment – Post 47
The Good and the Best – Post 46
How Many Languages Are There? – Post 45
Verifying Speech Varieties – Post 44
Those God Things – Post 43
Meet Notch, the Desert Cottontail – Post 42
The Lost Languages – Post 41
The Rest of the Yoke – Post 40
What About Those Last Languages – Post 39
A Yoke That Fits – Post 38
The Other Side – Post 37
It Is Finished – Post 36
On the Ground in Culiacan – Post 35
I Will Go With Thee – Post 34
Unseen Warfare – Post 33
God of the Gaps – Post 32
The Father of Faith Missions – Post 31
WAIT – Post 30
Our Ultimate Weapon – Post 29
What Are You Doing Here – Post 28
Recordist Training Course Update – Post 27
Still Shameful – Post 26
Numbers Update – Post 25
The Gospel and Idolatry – Post 24
Could Ye Not Pray – Post 23
John the Baptist and the New Normal – Post 22
Genesis of a Script – Post 21
Embena Experiences – Post 20
An Easter Like No Other – Post 19
Go Or Stay Home – Post 18
The Next Language – Post 17
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