About Larry and Patty Wilson

Declaring the Glory of God among the nations and the supremacy of God in all things is the central focus of our personal involvement in missions.

Cameroon is a long way from small-town life in rural Minnesota, where Patty and I grew up. When we married in 1981, we had no idea that we would enter full-time ministry with Wycliffe Bible Translators in 1990.

Patty and I met at a technical school in 1979. Patty graduated as a dental assistant and I graduated as an architectural draftsman.

Patty had been a Christian for three years. We met in a Bible study group. I really didn’t understand what it meant to be a Christian at the time but after Patty and the pastor patiently answered many questions, I came to Christ. All this made 1979 a monumental year for us as a couple and, one day, as a family.

As a result of a struggling economy, I returned to school to study electronics, and became a radio technician, which would figure prominently in our future. When I returned to college, I had a deep desire to share the Lord with fellow students. We helped start a Bible study group, which quickly blossomed from a small gathering of 6 people the first year to a ministry involving more than 50 students the second year. That experience planted the seed, which eventually grew into a desire to enter full-time ministry.

After spending three years in the working world, we yearned for a ministry in the spirit of our college Bible study, and we began to wonder if God had a new direction in mind. We actively prayed for an opportunity to “do in full time ministry with what we did for work.” And God made sure I was listening when he literally stopped me in my tracks! While on my way to a service call as a radio technician in Green Bay, Wisconsin, I was waiting for a ship to pass under a drawbridge. So I tuned in a local Christian radio station. I listened to an interview with a man who was a pilot for JAARS – “Jungle Aviation and Radio Service.” As the bridge was going down, the pilot being interviewed closed the session by saying “Oh! By the way, we also need other workers including radio technicians. I took an active interest and decided to write for more information.

But three more years went by before we signed on with Wycliffe Bible Translators, and today, after nearly 20 years with Wycliffe, I am training people to work with translation teams to deliver scripture in the mother tongue of the people they serve. We have primarily served in Cameroon, Africa (if you are looking for it on the map it lies just east of Nigeria) and in Waxhaw, NC (near Charlotte) at the JAARS center.

We had 2 children prior to joining Wycliffe and a third just after we joined. Travis is now 22 and is a college student majoring in history. Landon is 19 and attends a local community college. Aaron is 17 and is now in the 12th grade. All of them enjoy history, drawing, video work and of course hanging out with their buddies. I (Larry) enjoy reading books on Christian doctrine & history and creating photomontage videos. Patty enjoys journaling our experiences and the lives of the boys. She captures all of our family memories in photo and scrapbooks.

Our favorite Bible verses reflect our ministry:

Philippians 1:6 "And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." This verse reminds me God is actively working in my life, every day. In the early years of my Christian walk, this verse assured me that my relationship with God was not just a passing fad.

John 15:16 This verse gives me purpose and meaning to life that has eternal impact. "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide..."

Patty cherishes Psalm 37:4-6. “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will do this: He'll make your righteousness shine like the dawn.”