“Sir! Sir!” the Bangladeshi man called as he tried to catch up to a South Carolina volunteer on a shadowy street in Dhaka. Dewey Ogburn* turned toward the man, expecting him to ask for money, food or medicine.
South Carolina volunteer Daniel Rice* helps move food intended for flood victims in Dhaka, Bangladesh.“Thank you, sir. Those children are very poor and hungry. Thank you,” the man repeated as he faded back into the night.
The impromptu commendation was overwhelming for Ogburn. In poverty-stricken Bangladesh, people are in need – regardless of whether this year’s flooding affected them. The thankful man had witnessed Ogburn and two other South Carolina volunteers distribute bread to hungry street children – some who had only monsoon-induced mud as their covering.
“They wanted food, and that’s what we came to Bangladesh to do,” Ogburn said. “Being able to bless so many children for 50 cents, it’s not an impossibility in Dhaka. So many people in the area have noticed and wonder why we love those Bengali street children. That has left a lasting impression.”
Being able to feed a handful of street children was a balm for Ogburn, who had just spent several days hoping to distribute food to 2,000 families in one flood-ravaged area. Hundreds of hungry, sick people thronged around the distribution site, but after a week of waiting, the volunteer team received final word that the authorities refused to allow the relief work.
Instead of viewing the daily delays with disappointment, the trio used the extra time to touch lives they otherwise would not have encountered. They helped Bangladeshi volunteers test whether eggs had spoiled, went home with a schoolteacher to eat lunch with his family, encouraged local Christians, and shared Christ with Bangladeshi Muslims.
Traveling by bicycle rickshaws, the South Carolinians joined local Christians in distributing the Injil (New Testament). About 400 Bangladeshi Muslims have requested scripture, many responding to signs plastered across the city that ask, “Want a free Injil?” The volunteers tackled a handful of these requests, using each meeting as an opportunity to build a bridge from the Quran to the Bible.
They had an adventure trying to locate a seeker in a university dormitory where one room could easily hold 15 students, sleeping two to a bed. The volunteers found an instant audience as they delivered an Injil to the eager student.
“What was so amazing was that these guys who were seekers weren’t afraid to be seen in front of their peers,” Ogburn said. “There are many seekers and great potential for the kingdom here.”
More than 550 Southern Baptist volunteers have made an impact for the kingdom in South Asia as part of a five-year partnership between the South Carolina Baptist Convention and the International Mission Board’s South Asia region. Three years into the partnership, about 60 South Carolina teams have trekked halfway around the world to tackle the greatest concentration of lostness on earth.
“We all have a responsibility for developing groups of people outside our convention,” Ogburn said. “This is the first time a state has entered into a partnership with an entire region. It has been a great experience.”
Although the volunteers in Bangladesh were not able to accomplish their original task of distributing food to families in crisis, they did impact the people there; and they now see their role in overseas missions in a different light.
As volunteer Grant Ezell* explained, the role of Southern Baptists does not stop once the money has been given or when a volunteer team returns home. Missionaries need prayer to ensure that the money given reaches those it is intended to help, and they need to feel supported when God uses their efforts differently than planned.
“We don’t always hear the difficult stories of how the workers need the prayer support of people back home,” Ezell said. “We as Southern Baptists need to reassure them that their work in the Lord is not in vain.”
*Names changed for security reasons.
2008 South Asia Service Opportunities
(dates, project types, and number of volunteers needed)
Jan. 25-Feb. 6: Leadership Training (team full)
Jan. 28-Feb. 10: Women’s Conference; Prayerwalking (team full)
March 13-25: Prayerwalking; Storying (6)
March 16-29: Ladies’ Retreat (5)
March 19-30: People of Peace Hunting (2)
April 5-17: English Teaching Adventure (6)
April 13-26: Prayerwalking; Evangelism (8)
April 19-30: Adopt a Doc (6)
April 20-May 3: Light in the Darkness (12)
April 25-May 6: Leadership Training (5)
May 12-24: People of Peace Hunting (2)
June 1-13: Prayerwalking; Evangelism (8)
July 20-Aug. 2: Seed Sowers/Student Team (10)
July 27-Aug. 9: People of Peace Hunting; Literature Distribution (8)
Aug. 3-14: Truth Sharers (10)
Aug. 10-23: Prayerwalking; Evangelism (8)
Sept. 7-20: People of Peace Hunting (8)
Sept. 15-27: Ladies’ Retreat (5)
Oct. 6-16: Vision Trip – Evangelism; Leadership Training (10)
Oct. 12-25: Prayerwalking; Evangelism (8)
Oct. 27-Nov. 8: Prayerwalking; Leadership Training (6)
Nov. 3-16: Prayerwalking; Chronological Bible Storying (10)
Dec. 12-22: Christmas Project (8)