Posted: 2/18/05
| African villagers’ natural respect for their elders provided a welcoming context for a mission team of senior adults from First Baptist Church in Georgetown. |
Georgetown senior volunteers
find warm welcome in West Africa
By Sue Sprenkle
International Mission Board
Women and children lined the footpaths throughout the West African village, each wearing their finest festive clothes and adornments. Warriors escorted their Texas Baptist visitors from the main road to this village made up of mud and stick homes.
As they approached, the entire village erupted in song and dance. The visitors were overwhelmed at first but soon joined in. The chief raised his hand to silence the joyous celebration. Then, he ceremoniously welcomed the newcomers to his home.
He told how his village was blessed not only to have people come all the way from America but for the visitors to be wise, respected elders. Then he turned to 84-year-old Alice Nelson and presented her with the most cherished gift imaginable in this culture–a sheep.
She smiled graciously and offered to pray for this Muslim village.
Standing toward the back of the senior adult volunteer team, two International Mission Board journeymen missionaries smiled. The 20-somethings were totally amazed at how well the volunteers from First Baptist Church in Georgetown had been received in every village. The missionaries requested a volunteer team of senior adults in hopes that the visit would bring some validation to their ministry.
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| Jerry Counselman of Georgia and Joyce Faye Cox, Rodney Cox, Kim Hoerster, Charlotte Watson and Alice Nelson of Georgetown pose with new West African friends. |
"In Africa, elders are highly respected," Journeyman Han-nah Jones said. "Because there is so much sickness and very few people live to be over 40 or 50, people who are older are given such respect."
Many times the only Christians these people see are younger people. The idea behind this unique volunteer team was to show there are older people in the American culture who are followers of Christ, as well. The concept worked well within this culture. Jones said it is customary for elders to speak through young people.
"So, to have journeymen translating for this volunteer team was so culturally appropriate," Jones said. "Part of this culture is also that you show honor to someone by visiting them. For our senior adults to visit a village was to bring honor to them."
Charlotte Watson said when the initial request for seniors came across her desk back in Texas, she knew it would be the trip of a lifetime. Her volunteers knew living conditions would be primitive in the West African village. But the hardest thing for them to grasp was the focus of this trip–"being" rather than "doing."
"This is a hard concept for Christians who feel they must be doing something all of the time … like construction, medical or Bible school," she said. "But this trip of 'being' was amazing. We spent hours praying and being spectators as God's word was read. We spent hours just sitting in the villages visiting, talking and observing."
Nelson said during this trip of "being" she prayed, smiled, hugged, shook hands and loved more than ever.
God "seemed to give me a greater awareness and sensitivity for these people, their simple way of life, their love for their children and concern for others," the 84-year-old said of this West African people group numbering more than 140,000. "I have never felt so welcomed in my life. They treated us like celebrities."
When the team visited a village, a journeyman or one of the local Christians led a session of Bible storying, telling scriptural stories in chronological order. Most West Africans are oral learners. Jones said it was amazing to have so many people come to the sessions, all because the presence of the volunteers validated that this message was very important. In one session, a group of women requested prayers that they would remember these stories and understand them.
The senior volunteers made an impact on the villages they visited. In one village, storytellers told the history of their people complete to the point where this volunteer team visited.
One Muslim chief even accompanied the team on the trip from the bush back to the capital city. He attended a church service with them and then saw them off at the airport.
"We were so blessed to have him come back with us," Watson said. "He wanted to make sure Alice got safely on the plane headed back to America."
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