WIDER WORLD Autumn: Sept - Nov 2019
THE ONE WHO RESTORES
Annual Conference 2019
Maud Kells & Jean Gibson talk Open Doors
Growing Strong Ministry Teams with Sandy Galea
BOTH LIVES MATTER Pro-women & Pro-life
Beautiful Daughters on Instagram Sharing Fellowship with PCEA’s Women’s Guild
A Life in Service TO G OD
In 1965, Maud Kells was a reserved, twenty-five year old midwifery graduate when she decided to leave her home in Ireland and prepare to travel over two weeks by boat to Congo, to replace missionaries who had been martyred the previous year in the war-torn country. How did she take this remarkable step of faith and walk through the door God said he would open for her?
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s I was finishing my midwifery training in Edinburgh, the one overwhelming desire in my heart was to follow the Lord. I was a relatively new Christian and I desperately wanted to be obedient to him. I had heard about the need for missionary nurses, particularly on the mission field, but I always said that I couldn’t do that. Those women were strong and courageous; I was timid and feeble. I put those thoughts to the back of my mind and applied for district nursing to get back into Northern Ireland. But, I had no peace of heart at all, I just had a constant niggling in the back of my mind about missionary work. One particular day, because I couldn’t find peace with my plans for my future, I decided to fast rather than eat dinner. I went up to my bedroom, closed the door, and opened my Bible and my Scripture Union notes. The reading for that particular day was from Revelation 3:8, ‘I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.’ I felt God was telling me that he was opening this door for me, and was also acknowledging my excuse that I was too weak to be a missionary. But, I was still doubtful, so I prayed that if it was God’s will, and that I wasn’t just reading into Scripture, that I would hear something about a Bible college within 24 hours. Every morning after breakfast, we went to the pigeon holes to see if there were any letters from home. And, sure enough, there was a letter. I thought it would be from my mother – she was very faithful in writing to me. But it wasn’t from her, it was a syllabus about a Bible college in Glasgow called the Bible Training Institute (BTI). Well, wasn’t that exactly what I’d prayed for?! It seemed as though the Lord was saying, “Now do you believe me? I’m calling you into full-time work.” I continued to pray and ask which college he wanted me to go to. After a month of applying to other colleges, I realised that I had to decide which to attend. I remember putting the leaflets out on my bed and asking the Lord to clearly guide me. I was directed towards one: the Worldwide Evangelisation Crusade (WEC) Missionary Training College (MTC) in Glasgow. I couldn’t even recall how I had received their information, but I really felt the Holy Spirit guiding me towards it. In fact, God so directed my application to WEC, that there was a missionary place available for me in the January, and I was finishing midwifery in the December. His timing was perfect.
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L I F E S TOR I E S
“I already had the desire for Africa, my heart was already prepared, and I knew to trust God and not myself.”
There were two elderly ladies who opened their home in Edinburgh to Christian nurses, particularly ones who had come from overseas, and they had great spiritual input into the Christian nurses. When I was about to go off to missionary college, the older of the two asked me, “Where did you get that leaflet from?” I said, “I have absolutely no idea.” She said, “It was me who gave it to you.” She had worked in the youth association of WEC for a time, and so always had an interest in it. She was a great influence and it was through her that God had been at work to guide me towards WEC. Having learned about the history of WEC, I developed a desire to go to Africa. I always thought it would be wonderful to be called there. I went home to Ireland the year after the 1964 revolution in Congo, and attended a memorial service being held in Belfast for missionaries who had been martyred in the violence; WEC missionaries were among those who had been killed. The particular Bible reading delivered on the night was from Revelation 7:17, which was the reading from the Bible study notes I had read that morning in my quiet time. “That’s a coincidence,” I thought. But, by the time whoever was leading the service was making an appeal for any young person who would be willing to go out to replace those who had been martyred, I knew God was calling me. I already had the desire for Africa, my heart was already prepared, and I knew to trust God and not myself.
I always remember that when I went back to MTC and told my teachers that I felt God was calling me to Congo, they said I should think of another country because the door to Congo was closed. I prayed for guidance, but God didn’t show me any other country. By the time I had finished my two years at MTC, completed a candidates’ course in London for five months, and a nine month tropical diseases and language study in Belgium, the door was, of course, wide open to Congo again, just as God had promised.
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Jean Gibson was involved in theological education in Kenya for a number of years, and later became Northern Ireland representative for Care for the Family. She now enjoys her role as a grandparent alongside writing and speaking. Here, she shares how her fourth book, An Open Door, came about.
“Hi Maud! Delighted that you’re back in Ireland again. What about meeting up for a coffee somewhere between Cookstown and Donaghadee? Great. See you then!” I ended the call and took a deep breath. Over the previous couple of years, I had been in touch with Maud by phone and email; our contact rendered sporadic by her regular return trips to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). This time we were actually going to meet and we could return to the discussion of her possible biography in more definite terms. Up to this point, she had been too busy to think about it and reluctant to have her story put in writing. Her concern was always that God, not herself, should be glorified in anything accomplished in the DRC, but friends were now convincing her that God could still be glorified through a book. That first meeting was a disaster in terms of any fruitful book discussion. A Presbyterian Women’s Group, for whom Maud had spoken the previous month, descended on the coffee shop and on Maud. Delighted to meet her again, they came one after the other to tell her how much they had enjoyed her talk, how challenged they had been and how much they wanted to keep in touch. She received them with her usual charm and enthusiasm. I watched and listened with interest, and decided that I would plan our future meetings in a more private venue! My desire to write Maud’s story had grown out of my own personal call to mission as a teenager. Having worked in Africa myself, I knew that, through writing, I could spread the story of what God was doing, on a wider platform. God’s call on my own life, and my continuing involvement in Africa, allowed me to identify with Maud’s feelings and experiences, and would, perhaps, enable me to share those experiences with others.
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Using almost fifty years’ worth of prayer letters as a springboard, Maud recalled the many exciting incidents that lay behind brief summaries sent out to supporters. Anyone who knows Maud will not be surprised that the first draft was 20,000 words over the word count! Editing had to be ruthless, but we both wanted to keep the message at the heart of the “Her concern story: if God can use a shy, fearful, young nurse, then he can use anyone. was always that We all need great role models to encourage and inspire us God, not herself, in our walk with God. Maud’s story shows us what God can do in a life surrendered to him. Maud loves to quote, ‘God chose the should be glorified lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may in anything boast before him.’ (1 Corinthians 1:28-29) accomplished Aware of her own shortcomings, she knew that anything she accomplished was in God’s strength. Time has not diminished in the DRC, but her zeal for God and her trust in his providing power. My desire friends were now is that younger women will grasp what God can do in their lives, and how he can use everybody. God was able to call Maud convincing her that and use her in such an amazing way because she was determined God could still be to follow him. Regardless of how glorified through a we feel about ourselves, he can use all of us for his Kingdom. book.” It is my prayer that An Open Door will point us all to a greater openness to God’s work in our lives and inspire us to follow the example of a life that has counted. The book demonstrates the continuing need for those willing to share the message of God’s love today. Doubtless, Maud’s legacy will impact many generations to come in DRC. The challenge remains for each of us: what will I allow God to accomplish through my life?
An Open Door is available to purchase now in all Christian bookshops and via www.10ofthose.com
Jean’s first books, Seasons of Womanhood and Joyful in Hope, have just been republished by Authentic in an omnibus edition (visit: www.authenticmedia.co.uk). Journey of Hope, published by Monarch and available to purchase on Amazon, gives an insight into the lives of local Christians in Malawi and Kenya.
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Breaking Ground O N S O CIAL M EDIA
Through their Instagram page, Beautiful Daughters, Sarah McCullough, a secondary school teacher, and Amy Moore, children’s worker in Hamilton Road Presbyterian Church, Bangor, are pushing into exciting new evangelism and discipleship opportunities opening up on this social media platform.
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recent report produced by the Royal Society for Public Health, an independent charity that works to improve the health and wellbeing of the public, and the Young Health Movement, stated that ‘91% of 16-24-year-olds in the UK use the internet and other social networking sites regularly.’ They found that, ‘Although social media can connect people from all over the world to provide a strong sense of community, rates of anxiety and depression in young people have increased by 70% over the last 25 years.’ How then, as Christians, do we speak into this public space that is coming to dominate more and more of our young people’s lives? “We were painfully aware of the negative influence that social media can have on teenage girls,” says Amy. “However, as we chatted with them we discovered that, while they were aware of the impact being overexposed to certain lifestyles or body images would have, they still enjoyed using Instagram to chat with friends, express their creativity and convey their individuality, so didn’t want to completely boycott those social media platforms.” As a result of those conversations with teenage girls, Amy and Sarah decided that they wanted to find a way to connect with, and encourage, a wider teenage audience, as they began and progressed in their faith journey, using Instagram. “It became clear to us that we could use this platform, not only to be a positive female presence,” explains Sarah, “but also a positive Christian presence.” So, in October 2018, Beautiful Daughters posted their first devotional based on 2 Corinthians 6:18, ‘And I will be your Father, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.’ “We plan either monthly or seasonal topics, then between us alternate writing a weekly devotional posted every Wednesday evening. We also thought it was important to celebrate significant seasons in the Christian calendar, by doing something different and posting more content. For example, during Advent we posted a series of devotionals entitled, ‘Hope, Peace, Joy and Love’, and during Lent, we encouraged our followers to use that time to focus on building and forming holy habits, including praying, reading the Bible, having fellowship and praising God.” It is clear from their Beautiful Daughters page that Amy and Sarah understand the need for their posts to be visually distinctive enough to catch the eye of a teenage girl scrolling through Instagram. Their designs are contemporary, but always ensure that the scriptural focus of that week’s devotional is the centre point of the image. “Our intention is that this wouldn’t be our followers only devotional connection throughout the week but that they would be inspired to turn to the Bible to learn more about God.” Jesus calls us to be ‘the light of the world’ in all places and to all people; so, almost a year on from their first post, I ask them how successful they feel this mission into that populous public square of social media has been? Amy continues, “To our delight, we’ve not only had positive feedback from teenage girls but also from their mums and youth leaders. We love that young girls are interacting with our devotionals as part of their faith journey, and it’s an extra blessing to us that Beautiful Daughters has been a useful tool and resource for those intentionally walking that path beside them.”
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Beautif inspiring y come t
If you w Daughte @beautifu devotio
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“It became clear to us that we could use this platform, not only to be a positive female presence,” explains Sarah, “but also a positive Christian presence.”
Beautiful Daughters Ministry Beautiful Daughters is a ministry dedicated to inspiring young girls to root themselves in Christ & come to full bloom in his calling on their lives. If you want to find out more about Beautiful Daughters you can follow their Instagram page @beautiful_ _daughters and check out their weekly devotionals posted Wednesday nights at 8pm.
“Mums have come to us excited that they can use the devotionals as a base to do further studies with their teenage daughters, allowing them to engage with their growing faith in a new and relevant way. Some mums have been showing our devotionals to younger daughters, sharing those biblical truths early on in the hope of preparing them for when they reach their teenage years. This is a side to the ministry that we didn’t plan for, but it’s become clear to us that God can ‘do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us…’ (Ephesians 3:20). We are so aware this form of social media wasn’t even possible when we were teenagers, and we love the opportunities to engage with teenage girls that God has provided us through Instagram.” Amy and Sarah are both twenty-five years old, and yet, as Sarah has shared, technology has progressed at such a pace within their lifetime that even Instagram wasn’t available when they were teenagers; and soon it will be replaced with the next social media giant. So, where do they see Beautiful Daughters in 5 years’ time? “We have our own ideas, but we are holding on to God’s guidance and ultimately seeking His will in this ministry. We have been able to reach girls beyond our own communities and even countries through Instagram, so our focus right now is to increase our engagement with teenage girls, mums and youth leaders through it,” shares Amy. “We also want to continue exploring our potential to influence, reach and encourage this group of young women as they grow in their faith, come to know the Lord even more and root themselves in the truth of their identity as his beautiful daughters.”
31% of self-identified Christians use digital communications when sharing their faith with a non-Christian (email, links, videos, Facebook etc).
58% of non-Christians say someone has shared their faith with them through Facebook, 14% through other social media.
Barna Group ‘Evangelism in a Digital Age’, 26 June, 2018
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