A Bittersweet Goodbye (47 of 56)
Series: The Church in ACTSion
Wyman Richardson
Acts 20:17-38
Read Acts 20:17-38
Gene Dilliland was a missionary to Africa in the 1960's. He tells an interesting story about how the African believers with whom he worked told him and his family goodbye as they prepared to go home on furlough.
After an extremely difficult term as superintendent of the Nigeria mission, I recall when I and my wife, Lois, and our five children were leaving Nigeria for a one-year furlough in 1963. This African church has always had to deal with the painful problem of tribalism. Over six major language groups make up the total membership. Each ethnic group struggled to keep its own people in leadership positions and to gain attention for its own particular causes. I, along with three other church leaders, had recently negotiated that the headquarters of the church be moved from its traditional site to a more promising place, a location more central to the whole church. This meant that the people in the historic location had lost the prestige that comes with residing at the official center of power. The church leaders came to the airfield to celebrate our farewell. They had actually arranged a service that included speeches, songs, and prayers. Africans are very careful about saying good-bye so that their guests will carry a special kind of memory as they depart. The purpose of the farewell was to review our progress and to attempt to quiet down the controversy that had ensued with the moving of the headquarters. The farewell was meant to show honor and to ensure that, during our absence, we would not forget events or promised intentions.
However, the African leaders were not aware of the stress this farewell would have on the pilot's schedule or on the other passengers who were en route. Even though little patience was being shown for the farewell, the African leaders were not moved. They eloquently summed up what they had to say, presented ...
Series: The Church in ACTSion
Wyman Richardson
Acts 20:17-38
Read Acts 20:17-38
Gene Dilliland was a missionary to Africa in the 1960's. He tells an interesting story about how the African believers with whom he worked told him and his family goodbye as they prepared to go home on furlough.
After an extremely difficult term as superintendent of the Nigeria mission, I recall when I and my wife, Lois, and our five children were leaving Nigeria for a one-year furlough in 1963. This African church has always had to deal with the painful problem of tribalism. Over six major language groups make up the total membership. Each ethnic group struggled to keep its own people in leadership positions and to gain attention for its own particular causes. I, along with three other church leaders, had recently negotiated that the headquarters of the church be moved from its traditional site to a more promising place, a location more central to the whole church. This meant that the people in the historic location had lost the prestige that comes with residing at the official center of power. The church leaders came to the airfield to celebrate our farewell. They had actually arranged a service that included speeches, songs, and prayers. Africans are very careful about saying good-bye so that their guests will carry a special kind of memory as they depart. The purpose of the farewell was to review our progress and to attempt to quiet down the controversy that had ensued with the moving of the headquarters. The farewell was meant to show honor and to ensure that, during our absence, we would not forget events or promised intentions.
However, the African leaders were not aware of the stress this farewell would have on the pilot's schedule or on the other passengers who were en route. Even though little patience was being shown for the farewell, the African leaders were not moved. They eloquently summed up what they had to say, presented ...
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