Is a child ever too young to pray big, visionary prayers? And then to back up their prayers with homegrown fund-raising events to help get a major ministry project off the ground?

May it never be! We need more kids like Sam Anderson.

When Sam was just five years old, he decided to pray for the people of Easter Island—one of the world’s most remote inhabited islands. It’s located in the Pacific Ocean about 2,500 miles off the western coast of Chile. Tourists flock there to see the nearly 900 monumental statues of carved human figures with oversized heads that were created by the early Rapa Nui people.

Sam prayed that God would send His Word to the Rapa Nui people living on the island. That began an almost 45-year connection with the Rapa Nui and the people called to serve them.

Sam’s parents, John and Joy Anderson, were missionaries with Wycliffe Bible Translators (https://www.wycliffe.org). In 1975 they were serving in Nevada, working with the Northern Paiute New Testament translation.

“As kids we were given an allowance and if we did chores around the house, we received a wage from Mom and Dad, a whopping 10 cents an hour,” Sam recalled, laughing.

Like his siblings, Sam placed a tithe of his earnings in an old metal Twinings Tea box. The money went toward supporting a Wycliffe translation project somewhere in the world.

“There was a large world map on one of the walls near that box where we would stick a pin on a location indicating a [people group] we wanted to pray for and to support the mission team there,” Sam explained.

Sam studied the map and became fascinated with Easter Island. He jabbed his pin on Easter Island and boldly announced his intention to pray for and give toward the translation project there.

There was only one problem with Sam’s choice: at that time, no translation project was yet underway on the island. That didn’t deter Sam. He told his parents he’d ask God to get one started!

As Sam prayed for Easter Island, he was unaware of how God was working in the lives of Bob and Nancy Weber.

Bob and Nancy Weber grew up in Peru and, like Sam, were children of Wycliffe missionaries. They had married around the time Sam began to pray for Easter Island and were asking God for His clear direction as to His will for their lives and how they could help bring hope through Bible translation.

Months later, Sam’s parents received a letter from a friend who mentioned that Bob and Nancy were being assigned to a new project on Easter Island!

Eventually the Webers and Sam were introduced to each other by mail. Bob and Nancy discovered that Sam had begun praying for someone to start a translation fo the people of Easter Island and had also sold stationary in help financially support the Webers’ work. Bob and Nancy wrote to Sam and told him that their interest in Easter Island was sparked just after he started praying in 1975!

“That really impacted me as a kid,” Sam said, “to be praying for something of that importance and then seeing God bring it to fruition.”

God proved Himself faithful to the Webers by enabling them to complete the Rapa Nui New Testament. During a glorious ceremony on the island, it was dedicated in late 2018—after more than 40 years of hard, dedicated work.

In early 2019, just months after the completion of that New Testament, Sam and the Webers reconnected at Wycliffe USA’s headquarters in Orlando.

“It was special to meet Sam and his sister Kara, who is with Wycliffe in Orlando, and also their parents,” Nancy said.

Bob and Nancy handed a copy of the completed Rapa Nui New Testament to Sam. “Growing up as a missionary kid, I knew that a Bible translation project is a huge undertaking and takes a long time,” Sam said. “It was amazing to hold the Rapa Nui New Testament in my hands and to see living proof of God’s faithfulness in answering prayer.”

I had the wonderful privilege of visiting with Bob and Nancy in Orlando and then to talk with Sam about his inspiring meeting with them and to hear how God answered his prayers after all those years. To God be the glory!

ACTION STEP: How about you, my friend? Do you have children who have a heart tender toward God and His work? Are you searching for creative ways to pray with them about what He’s doing around the world? Check out Wycliffe’s new kids devotional at https://www2.wycliffe.org/kidspraydevo?utm_source=pardot&utm_medium=lp&utm_campaign=kidspray.

I’d also encourage you to contact them on how to pray for Bibleless peoples, that God would send His Word to them. Who knows just how God might answer!