This week, missionary Scott Phillips stood on a sandy beach at St. Augustine, Florida, reading a note he had received just before leaving for home assignment, and remembering the urgency in Debatoma’s voice.

“You can’t forget!” Debatoma told Scott. “You must send us those new books as soon as possible! We need to carry the Creator’s message to my relatives up valley and I need those books to do it! Please don’t forget!”

Before heading to the USA to have their first child, the Phillips were presented with their written reminder that the Dao people wanted more of God’s Word in their language.

After leaving their tribal village, Scott and Jennie spent two weeks in the city revising and printing 13 different projects.

“By God’s grace all 13 of the projects were completed and packed to be taken in to the Dao believers and to the eager teachers,” Scott wrote.

Debatoma and his fellow believers have a passion to reach more of their people and have begun teaching literacy in another village so they can read God’s Word and review the Bible lessons that will be taught.

“Even though we are about as far as we can possibly get on the earth from the Dao valley, my mind is still there feeling their excitement with them and also grieving their recent loses with them,” Scott wrote.

One of the losses still on the Phillips’ minds is the death of Ikimiya, the young daughter of Bible teacher Daapoi and his wife, Otopina. The couple lost the child to an illness while faithfully teaching God’s Word in another village. Now, their only other child, a son not yet a year old, has become ill.

Please pray with the Phillips that God will see the Dao believers through their times of suffering and bring about times of rejoicing as they see more of their people come to faith in Christ.