Background

Jean - When I was growing up I learned something very important. Missionaries are not necessarily out of the ordinary, super-spiritual people who hear from God in a way that regular mortals don’t.  Nor do they necessarily have great insights not shared by the usual young person who knows Jesus Christ as Saviour.  How did I learn this?  Rarely did a few months pass in our home near Templepatrick, when, as a young person, we did not have these rare creatures, called missionaries, stay in our home.  And as I got to know them I found out they are “normal!” That was one of the first steps in God’s preparation of my life for work overseas.  From recent conversations with friends I have learned that even yet it would seem that many say to God. “I can’t be a missionary.  I am not an exceptional person.  What could I do for God?” 

 

I had given my life to Jesus as a very small girl.  It was at a point when my mother read me the story of Jesus dying on the cross for my sins.  Like many young people brought up in a Christian home, that early decision was repeated several times as a teenager, as I sometimes doubted that I was really His child.  I wanted to make my parent’s faith my very own.  Many times I offered my life to God for His use, and told God that if He wanted me to go overseas to serve Him, I would be willing to do that too.  It was partly with this in mind that I decided to be a nurse, much to the displeasure of my headmaster, who voiced the opinion that “Nursing is only something you do if you do not make it to university!”  The decision to follow a nursing career is one that I will never regret as the practical training has been so valuable in different areas where I have worked.  I did my general nursing training at the Royal Victoria Hospital, midwifery at Royal Maternity Hospital and a psychiatric course at Purdysburn Hospital.

 

Before my 21st. birthday I met Sid Garland, and four months later we knew that we would one day be married and serving God together.  Those were exhilarating, heady days.  We were both young, but our fervour for God, eagerness for mission, and love for each other were sweet delights that we shared.  We both had a great excitement about what God could do for us and through us.  Sid headed off to Westminster Seminary for two years, while I finished my general nursing training, a psychiatric course and my midwifery training.  We were married in my home church, Lylehill Presbyterian Church, in 1976 when we were both 23 years of age, and I joined Sid in Philadelphia.  I worked as a nurse while he finished his M.Div. and started his MTh.  Unknown to us then, getting to know America and how Americans think was part of God’s preparation for life in Nigeria, as our children would eventually go to an American school in Nigeria and Debbie would go to an American university.  We grew to appreciate Americans and their efficient, meticulous way of doing things.

 

After Sid graduated from Westminster, we came back to Belfast, and he was installed as minister of Finaghy Evangelical Presbyterian Church where we were for nine years.  Our children Peter, Debbie and Anna were born during that time.  In those years, God also give us the opportunity to serve with LIFE, the pro-life group.  We started the group in Northern Ireland. I now see this work as part of His preparation time for me to learn the counselling and communication skills needed to help young people in very difficult situations.  I am still using those skills in Nigeria within the AIDS programmes that I work for and more recently in being part of Prolife Evangel in Jos.  God does not make mistakes.  Nothing in our life is wasted if we let Him use it.

Gods' Call

In 1986 God began to speak to us about serving him overseas.  Those were exhilarating days as we scrutinized and prayed about various openings for service.  The life and ministry of Rev. Bill Leach prompted us to think about Qua Iboe (now Mission Africa) and Nigeria.  Taking courage and being persuaded that God was leading us, we applied to Qua Iboe Fellowship to go to Samuel Bill Theological College for only a two year period.  Sid would teach young men training for the pastoral ministry, and I would teach our three children.  Looking back on those decision making days now, it was a considerable step to pull the children out of Finaghy Primary School, pack up, let our house, and head off to the bush of South East Nigeria.

 

Life in Nigeria

For the next two years we experienced and absorbed Nigerian church life in SBTC, Abak. in Cross River State, (now Akwa Ibom State).  Sid never failed to come home from the classroom full of enthusiasm at the honour of teaching his students.  They were so prepared to be trained.  I established a small classroom in an empty house on our compound and each weekday the three children and I went to school from 8 am. to 12 noon.  Dealing with the sweltering muggy climate proved to be one of my biggest hurdles.  In the classroom my three pupils would have no shirts on, and the condensation would build up on their backs by 10am.  Pencils would slip from their hands, and they would wilt half way through the morning.  We dealt with this problem by going out and buying a small portable generator that ran a fan.  That was one of the best decisions we made.  Moving air in the classroom helped the teacher have increased staying power and her three small students deliberate better.  When not in school the children loved African life.  They ran barefoot with their Nigerian friends, climbing and naming trees, burying each other in the dark mud, and making up imaginative dramas.  They were extremely happy and apart from malaria now and then, very healthy.

 

In the afternoons, I used my nursing skills to run a small dispensary for the theological students.  This way I got to know them and to pray for and with them when they were ill.

 

Learning how to run a home in this remote corner of Nigeria was a challenge.  It took me most of the first two years to learn how to make good yeast bread, and develop recipes using local foods.  We all lost weight which for me was no bad thing!

 

As the two years passed in Nigeria, God spoke to us about staying longer.  A Nigerian missionary leader, called Bayo Feminure spoke at a mission’s conference at Abak.  As he told us of the many millions in Nigeria who have never heard about Jesus, we both felt that God was speaking to us.  From the vantage point of Abak, when we looked at Northern Ireland, and the comfortable and materially undemanding lifestyle, the many evangelical churches and the opportunities for Christian teaching every night of the week, we were moved with compassion for the millions who have never had the opportunity to know Jesus Christ, nor the opportunity to be taught the Bible.  Like many before us, Africa had invaded our hearts.

 

Nigeria is land of gifted, warm and resourceful people.  Even though Nigeria has oil resources, the ordinary family often lives in poverty and too often only a few privileged rich benefit from the oil money.  Nigerians are very patient people.  Even though they are often not paid for months on end, have to line up for hours or days for fuel for their cars and kerosene stoves, they seems to take it all with great grace and rarely protest with more than words.  Nigeria is a vibrant country with the West African cotton continuing to colourfully illuminate the people on the street adding to the vivid scenes of daily life.

 

After furlough in 1989, we moved came back to Nigeria and to about 500 miles further north from Abak, to Bukuru and the Theological College of Northern Nigeria (TCNN).  This meant that Sid could continue to teach theology, and mission, and that the children could now go to Hillcrest School, Jos, which would help prepare them academically for life ahead.  I had been running out ideas on how to teach Peter.  He was 10 and needed better teachers than me, and all three needed the competition and social stimulus of a school.  We have been very privileged to have our children live with us in Nigeria.  Many of their friends were boarders at Hillcrest.  All three have received a wonderful education at this American mission school, having opportunities for sports, drama, music as well as a wide general education.  Peter left Nigeria in 1997, and went on to do his GP training having graduated as a doctor in 2004.  Debbie left in 2000, did a nursing degree in Jackson, Tennessee, and went on to work as a nurse in N. Ireland and Anna left Nigeria in 2002, did a psychology degree at Queens and then went to study Physiotherapy at the University of Ulster.

 

God opened doors for me to serve him in Bukuru too.  Our home became a hospitality centre for many.  With good helpers in the house who clean and cook I have had the time and energy to work outside the home.  We make our own bread, cakes, biscuits, yogurt, breakfast cereals, sauces, etc.  Food preparation takes so much longer than in Northern Ireland, and the dust and dirt on the concrete floors needs daily attention.

 

At TCNN, I supervised a Primary Health Clinic which served the college community and the surrounding area.  It was a busy place.  I also led a women’s Bible Study group for 8 years under the umbrella of Bible Study Fellowship.  The opportunities for fellowship and learning with Nigerian women during those studies have been the nearest that I have ever been to heaven on earth.  I have often been in sharing times with Nigerian women and have just not wanted them to stop.  Many times I have wished that I could transport my friends from Northern Ireland to Nigeria to sit in on those precious times.

 

Current Ministry

AIDS

Since 2000 we have lived in Jos.  A combination of my nursing training, experience of working with LIFE in Northern Ireland, learning in the medical field in Nigeria, getting to know and understand some of Nigerian culture, and a compassion that comes from Christ himself, have helped me to minister into the crisis of AIDS in Nigeria.

 

In 1997, I  initially mostly worked with Fellowship of Christian Students, which is affiliated to Scripture Union, Africa.  My job with them has entailed a lot of travelling and training others, e.g. pastors, teachers and youth workers, to do AIDS education for those in their care.  This involved training in the facts about AIDS, how to avoid it, and how to care for and counsel those living with HIV/AIDS.  But it also involved training young people in life skills, based on God’s word, so that they will not be in danger from AIDS.  As many as 2 out of every 10 young people in Nigeria are dying from AIDS and need to know Jesus.  It is hard for us in Northern Ireland to imagine the scale of the problem faced by the African church.  AIDS is an issue that almost every pastor and extended family deals with frequently.  Personally I have several friends dying from AIDS.

 

Other AIDS ministries involve co-writing AIDS curriculum for the Federal Government of Nigeria. This is for use by Primary and Secondary school Christian Religious Knowledge teachers and Islamic Studies teachers.  Training teachers how to use this material is something I continue to do all over Nigeria.  This involves a lot of travelling for week long seminars usually in the State capitals.

 

Spring of Life

Spring of Life is an HIV/AIDS counselling and care centre is run by the Evangelical Church of West Africa (ECWA) at Evangel hospital in Jos. The ECWA AIDS ministry (TEAM) was started in 1996 by the late Dr. Randal Bailey.  Today the coordinator is Rev. Isa Bello.  The ministry has an awareness team which travels out doing training of church leaders.  It also has a counselling section headed by Mr. E. Johnston, and a Care and Support section headed by Mrs. Rose Akwai.  TEAM is one of the leading AIDS ministries in Nigeria.  I have the opportunity to serve on the supervisory committee of this ministry and also be involved in developing a programme giving antiretroviral drugs to adults and children living with AIDS.  The Mission Africa Widows and Orphans Fund has continued to help many at Spring of Life.  Daily, people come to the centre for HIV testing.  About 50% of those who cross the door step daily turn out to be HIV positive.  The antiretroviral drug programme is funded my the US government and Evangel hospital is one of the centres for paediatric AIDS in Nigeria.

 

God giving me the ability to write booklets about AIDS for use by young people seems to have proved beneficial to many.  See www.aids-is-real.com  for my book about AIDS which is being used widely across Africa.

Hobbies

It is important to me to have relaxing times in Nigeria.  I have developed a love for reading especially non-fiction and biographical books.  I also try to take regular exercise (I have an exercise bicycle) and listen to music.  We also watch videos and play board games.

 

A wider perspective

Each time we return to Northern Ireland we are saddened by how western culture is rapidly slipping further and further away from Biblical standards.  We are also saddened that many, even within our churches, have little concern for those in developing countries who are poor, have few opportunities for good health and education, and may have never heard of the love of Christ.  We long for more people from Northern Ireland to actually go out to other parts of the world which are so needy.  When Jesus said to go into all the world, he did envisage us getting out of our comfort zones and going somewhere else. 

 

My testimony is overwhelmingly one of God’s provision for us and goodness to us.  As both Sid and I are now in our fifties, we do not feel that our lives to this point have been times of hardship, loss and deprivation.  True, we and our children have had our struggles, especially with separation from each other, sickness, and adjustment to other cultures.  But he has given us the joy of rewarding service, and the delight of seeing others come to faith in Him.  He has given us the crises from time to time that have caused us lean back on Him and helped us to prove that even in sickness or loneliness, God is totally good.   As we have stepped out in obedience to Him, He has provided for our needs in every area.  As a family, we often literally laugh out loud at God’s goodness to us as we prove over and over that when we repeatedly give to others, both in monetary terms and materially, God just keeps giving even more back to us.  Our children have a world view that is much wider than if they had been raised in Northern Ireland.  They appreciate other cultures and they love the Lord, and desire to keep serving Him too.

By God’s grace, I want to continue to serve the purpose of God in my generation.  I want to continue to give my life for something that will last forever.  May God help me to do this.

SID GARLAND

 

Christian Background

I grew up in a loving Christian home, surrounded by spiritual encouragements and opportunities for reading good books and serving God in various church activities. I was born on Friday July 25, 1952. My parents were serving the Lord in the ministry of the Irish Evangelical Church (now the Evangelical Presbyterian Church). Their love, prayers and support have made all the difference in my life. At the age of five, I asked Jesus Christ to be my Saviour and Friend. This happened at a Sunday School class led by Miss Audrey McNeill in a very small rural church in Country Tyrone. (Audrey and her husband Paul Reid have been missionaries for many years with CEF Europe). Youth leaders, books, camps and my own involvement in ministry (initially to children) all played a part in helping me to grow in my faith.

 

The late Rev. W. J. Grier was an inspiration in my life. His courageous stand for the truth went hand in hand with his conviction about the importance of books and publishing.  I went to an excellent grammar school (known as Inst) in the centre of Belfast where there was a lively Christian Union. Even before leaving secondary school I had a sense of God’s call towards ministry. After studying Modern History, Hebrew and Philosophy at Queen’s University Belfast, in 1974 I crossed the Atlantic to the beautiful city of Philadelphia and to Westminster Theological Seminary. I will always be grateful for the solid theological foundation I received there. Westminster gave me the ability to critique anything I came across in the light of the Scriptures

Marriage to Jean

In my final year at Queen’s I fell in love with Jean Rea. I thank God for giving me someone already dedicated to serving God anywhere. But when I told Jean of my plan to go to Philadelphia, her heart sank. However, with God’s help and a constant flow of letters, we endured two years separation while Jean completed her nursing training. At our wedding June 18, 1976, Rev. W.J. Grier preached on John 1:16. “And of his fullness have all we received, and grace for grace (KJV) or as the ESV puts it “grace upon grace”. And truly our life since that day has been a story of grace upon grace.

Missionary calling

Our missionary interest started when we were young. I remember when I was twelve years old telling Rev. & Mrs. Joseph McCracken (EPC / Free Church of Scotland missionaries in South Africa) that I felt the Lord leading me to give myself for missionary service.

Serving in Belfast

Jean and I viewed our coming back to Belfast in 1977 as being missionaries to Ireland. I was impatient to get into pastoral ministry, but the Lord knew better when he put me to work under John Grier in the Evangelical Bookshop. On April 7, 1978 I was ordained and installed as minister of Finaghy EPC in South Belfast. The “troubles” in Northern Ireland were still on, but with a Reformed world-and-life view, we were filled with confidence that the gospel must have an impact not only on individuals but on the whole of culture, community life and politics. We believed in reconciliation and building bridges of understanding and common cause across the community. Jean and I together established the pro-life group LIFE in Northern Ireland. Jean had many opportunities for public speaking and training while I was involved in leadership and literature production. We were both acquiring skills which have continued to be useful in Africa.

 

Being Sent out from Belfast

As we encouraged missionary interest in the congregation, we became close to Rev. Bill Leach from the Qua Iboe Fellowship (now Mission Africa). Eventually God called us to go to Nigeria. With my teacher Prof Harvie Conn speaking at our farewell service, Harvie later became my advisor for my Doctor of Ministry in Urban Mission project on “Teaching Missiology at TCNN” (completed 1997). We set out for Nigeria in July 1987 arriving in time for Centenary celebrations for the sending of the Qua Iboe pioneer missionary, Samuel Bill, also from Belfast.

 

Early Ministry in Nigeria

It was a delight to enter the classrooms of Samuel Bill Theological College where I enjoyed being part of a team and was amazed at the hunger for the Word of God. I can vividly recall early experiences of seeing traditional shrines and carved images and feeling the heavy atmosphere of darkness in some places. I was also disturbed and challenged by discovering in a very poor home a large quantity of beautifully produced literature from the Jehovah’s Witnesses.

 

Moving to Jos, Plateau State

We had a tough start in Jos because of the serious illness of our son Peter. In answer to many prayers, Peter’s life was spared and he made a full recovery. After this event, out of a new experience of the sustaining grace of God, we quoted the words of David Livingstone:

Lord, send me anywhere / Only go with me.

Lay any burden on me, / Only sustain me.

Sever any tie but the tie / That binds me to Thyself.

 

Teaching Missions and Pastoral Studies

We joined the Theological College of Northern Nigeria (TCNN) in 1990. TCNN is one of the leading theological seminaries in Nigeria. It has been encouraging to be able to remain long enough in Nigeria to see our students occupying key positions as missionaries, pastors and bishops in different denominations, also lecturers and principals in many Bible colleges. From 1991 to 1995 I was Deputy Provost of TCNN. A year after my appointment, alongside my Nigerian colleagues, I became involved in a traumatic battle to uphold and apply the evangelical doctrinal standards of the College.  It was my privilege to be able to encourage the proprietors, the Nigerian TEKAN churches, to take their stand on the truth of God’s Word. This was a difficult period for us, but also a crucial time for the future direction of TCNN.  We could also see the importance of books which defend the integrity of the Word of God and contradict attacks on the evangelical faith. I continue to lecture in Practical Theology in TCNN, mostly in the Master of Theology programme. You may like to check out the TCNN website: www.tcnn.org

 

Literature Ministry through Africa Christian Textbooks (ACTS)

By September 1991 I started bringing books to sell to students from our house. That same year, Africa Christian TextbookS (ACTS) began to take shape as a group of lecturers from different Bible colleges got together and shared their frustrations at not having textbooks and other books for their students.  In 1993 TCNN asked ACTS to take over providing a bookshop at TCNN. Initially using part-time student help, we have now grown to over twenty staff. In particular, I thank God for Rev. Luka Vandi, ACTS General Manager who has been with us from the beginning, first as a student worker in the bookshop and then our first full-time employee. Our Chairman Dr Danny McCain has played a key role. And from the beginning Mission Africa has encouraged ACTS with financial support and also sending Pamela Johnston to assist us in administration.

 

Open Doors for ACTS across Africa

With God’s help we have opened other strategically located branches. These include West Africa Theological Seminary, Lagos, Nigerian Baptist Theological Seminary, Ogbomosho, Samuel Bill Theological College, Jos ECWA Theological Seminary, and now also at Nairobi Evangelical Graduate School of Theology (NEGST) and several other seminaries in Kenya. ACTS Kenya is managed by our former colleague in Nigeria, Martin Bussey. The focus of ACTS is on providing theological books, but we also provide ministry resources, including tracts. One particular area of specialization is AIDS educational / training materials. You may like to check out the ACTS website: www.africachristiantextbooks.com

 

Many New Opportunities for Ministry

As Nigeria facilitator for Mission Africa, I have had great joy in seeing many new short and long term colleagues enter various ministries in Nigeria. As well as continuing our strategic involvement in theological education and medical work, we are also taking up new challenges. These include urban ministry to street children and others on the margins of society, ministry to the handicapped and to those infected and affected by HIV/AIDS; also reaching the unreached with a focus on a large nomadic people group. I am also involved in a new ministry to theological educators through the Theological Education in Africa Conference (June 2008). Through being assigned to COCIN HQ church as an associate pastor, I have the opportunity to preach and enjoy fellowship in this lively local church. We thank God for the three (TCNN-trained) pastors and for gifted members, including several outstanding doctors who are having an impact for Christ, for example, through pioneering the Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Centre at Vom Christian Hospital

 

Thanking God for his grace

An Ulsterman, Lowry Maxwell, was among the pioneers of the Sudan United Mission in 1904. Fifty years later he wrote a book entitled, Half a Century of Grace. It was an apt title. Recently the churches that resulted from this work were joyfully celebrating and thanking God for a century of grace. God has not only preserved the church but has given remarkable growth. This is in spite of the persecution of Christians in northern Nigeria which has led to hundreds of churches being burned and thousands of Christians killed.

 

It is also the grace of God that has kept us going. Grace has been supplied in answer to the prayers of valued supporters without whom we could not have continued to serve in Africa. In spite of some hard times, we consider it a privilege more than a sacrifice to be on the field. It is my ambition to go on serving as long as God guides and enables.