Ashlynne’s Journey into Bible Translation

While many teenagers are still figuring out what to do with their lives, Ashlynne Davis was already dreaming of serving cross-culturally and helping people access God’s Word in their own language. Growing up as a pastor’s kid in Busselton, she had put her trust in Jesus as a child—but it was during her teenage years that her sense of calling became clear, setting her on a path toward theological study and preparation for mission work overseas.

It was Ashlynne’s parents who introduced her to the concept of Bible translation. Recognising her love for languages and different cultures, they were the ones who first told her the Bible wasn’t originally written in English—and that there are hundreds of languages around the world that don’t yet have a Bible. 

That knowledge sparked something for Ashlynne, so after graduating from high school, she took a gap year and spent six months in Papua, a province of Indonesia. While there she was able to spend time with a Bible translation team and get a real sense of what it might be like longer-term. It turned out to be confirmation for Ashlynne that this was the direction she wanted to take, so the next step was enrolling in a linguistics and anthropology degree at the University of Western Australia. The natural next step after that was Bible college.

“I was quite set on Trinity from the start,” Ashlynne admits. “In my circles, Trinity was well-known. People I respected had studied there and always spoke highly of it—I heard great things.”

Ashlynne started the Master of Divinity at the beginning of 2019, and her experience at Trinity echoed that of those she knew: she loved it.

“I was really excited for the opportunity to dig into the original languages of the Bible, of course,” Ashlynne laughs. “Biblical Greek and Hebrew were my favourites. I found them really useful not just for Bible translation work, but in my own walk with God—it caused me to slow down and really think about what Scripture is saying.”

Ashlynne says she had complete confidence throughout her time at Trinity that the lecturers were providing solid, foundational teaching—Bible-focused and gospel-centered. Even though students came from different denominations, those differences were never the focus. The emphasis was always on the gospel and what it means to live in response to it. She never doubted the clarity of the gospel or the depth of the faithful teaching she received.

Reflecting on her time at Trinity, she recognised that God used it to grow her in her depth of conviction. This growth tied back to her own story of becoming a Christian—she had always known the gospel and was familiar with the Bible. But the intense study at Trinity gave her the opportunity to explore it more deeply, sit with it, and strengthen her personal convictions around the truths she had long known.

“It gave me extra confidence in God’s Word, and it showed me just how wonderful he is in a new way,” Ashlynne reflects.

Since graduating from Trinity, Ashlynne and her husband Michael have spent two years in Melbourne with Summer Institute of Linguistics Australia (SILA), and they have recently been approved by CMS as Missionaries in Training. They will head to St Andrews Hall in Melbourne with their two young children for the second half of 2025, for the final component of their training.

When asked why she recommends Trinity, Ashlynne says, “It gives you a really unique, dedicated time and space to dig deep into the riches of God’s Word and the riches of his family. Do it!”

Please pray for Ashlynne and her family with their upcoming transitions, and ask God to give them wisdom as they discern where He is calling them to serve.