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Mission Team Finds South African Experience Rewarding
CHICAGO, IL (July 18, 2001) - A 14-member Central Conference mission team returned Saturday following two weeks in Johannesburg, South Africa, where they provided a Vacation Bible School (VBS) experience for children.
The program was provided in partnership with the South Africa Chinese Covenant Church (SACCC), which invited the group to participate. Frank Tuan is pastor of the church. Brad Hill, Central Conference mission facilitator, and Covenant missionary Judy Dolan were trip co-leaders.
Other members of the team and their church affiliations included Doug and Ryan Johnson and Phillip Naffziger, Evangelical Covenant in Princeton, Illinois; Dan Radakovich, Beverly Covenant in Chicago; Robert and Novella Larson, Northwest Covenant in Mount Prospect, Illinois; Sharon Gerde, Department of World Mission in Portland, Oregon; Betty Clower, Church of the Good Shepherd in Plainfield, Illinois; Stephanie Lakomy, First Covenant in Iron Mountain, Michigan; Ingrid Forsberg, North Park Covenant in Chicago; Rebecca Busenitz, Evangelical Covenant in Lafayette, Indiana; and Barbara Hasenjaeger, Antioch Christian Church in Toluca, Illinois.
While most of the Chinese children speak English, many of the Chinese parents are not fluent in the English language. That made the team's participation all the more valuable, Hill noted. The VBS program attracted 58 children, with approximately 130 individuals attending the concluding evening program. The accompanying photo shows Stephanie Lakomy with several of the VBS participants.
Many of the family members attending the final VBS program were non-Christians, according to Hill, which provided team members an ideal opportunity to share their faith in a friendly environment. Pastors Tuan and Calvin Lee collaborated in setting up the program and will provide follow-up ministry to those who participated in the event.
Tuan initiated connections with the Covenant in South Africa while still a pastor in the Taiwan Covenant Church. He and his wife, Ada, came to South Africa in 1991 intending to work with individuals of Indian descent. Once they discovered a large population of non-Christian Chinese, however, they changed the focus of their ministry. "Tuan's work has been instrumental in the development of a host of Chinese churches in and around Johannesburg," Hill said.
Copyright © 2008 The Evangelical Covenant Church. |
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