Today, African-American mission co-workers continue the transforming work of God’s mission, answering the call to service through Presbyterian World Mission. Leisa Wagstaff, currently serving in South Sudan, shares her personal reflection on this irresistible call. Like the mission workers who served a century before her, Leisa has found herself personally transformed. That is the essence of God’s mission.
Jesus is calling all of us to be his witnesses at home, work and every place we visit—to be his change agents and for the gospel to transform us and transform the people we are working with.
Darius and Vera Swann used their skills as educators to spread the gospel in Asia and become an important part of the Presbyterian mission legacy. Growing up in the segregated South, the Swanns’ mission service was shaped by inequities they knew firsthand. That perspective would lead them to show respect and tolerance for their interfaith students and eventually would call them back to the U.S. to seek change in the midst of our own racial division.
The moment the teachers said they wanted to take pictures of the Americans, I got nervous. There was a Korean-language contest that we weren’t part of, but they wanted our pictures—or rather, I thought, my white housemates’ pictures. This type of near unabashed racial selection isn’t uncommon in Asia, and for universities, I knew that looking international and showcasing their diversity was good for their reputations. The only problem was that in Korea my Chinese face didn’t look diverse. My roommate, Emily, assured me she wouldn’t let them leave me out.
In late June, mere days after winning Pero’s presidential election by a thin margin, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski turned his eyes on the troubled community of La Oroya, where for more than 15 years Presbyterian World Mission and the Presbyterian Hunger Program have joined with partners Joining Hands Peru (Red Uniendo Manos Peru) in seeking justice for city’s residents.
The pair of shiny, ankle-high boy’s boots sat in my kitchen most of that day. I’d seen Paul Sinette standing outside the gate when I left my house that morning. Paul Sinette works in my house, usually showing up about 9:30 each morning. She cooks, cleans house and generally makes my life better.
