My Book That I Am Reading About Is Rowland Bingham

INTO AFRICA’S

INTERIOR

The life of ROWLAND BINGHAM

Grade 7w Bible

Name: Zachary LOEWEN

Date: June 8/09

My book that I am reading about is Rowland Bingham. My missionary is Rowland Bingham, same name as the title. The publisher and author are Janet Benge and Geoff Benge. The year it was published is 2003. The number of pages it has is181.

Rowland Bingham was born December 19, 1872 in England. Rowland’s siblings were Horace, Winifred, Joseph, Ralph, Harold, and Bill. The book says nothing about the parent’s names. Rowland lived from December 19 1872-December 10 1942.

When he was a little boy, Rowland’s father died leaving little money for higher education. Rowland decided to apply for a job as a teacher in order to make a living. He attended the Church of England, then switched to a Methodist church because of its simplicity. At the age of 15 he attended the Salvation Army Church service and began his search for the real message of being born again in Christ. At the age of 16, Rowland left England and headed overseas to Halifax, Nova Scotia. While in Canada, Rowland worked as a farm labourer, a clerk and sold Salvation Army magazines on street corners. He happened to meet a man named John Salmon who trained him for one and a half years with Bethany Chapel. He spent four years in Canada, then made plans to do mission work in Africa. By the age of 21, Rowland fell deathly ill with malaria. While he recovered, his missionary friends moved on while he remained in Lagos. By 1895, Rowland decided to head back to Canada. He moved to Cleveland Ohio to begin basic medical training, then studied at a Bible College in New York city. He accepted a pastoral position after graduation.

Rowland married Helen Blair on May 24, 1898 and worked to return to the Sudan with the support of the Sudan Interior Mission group in Toronto.

He managed to travel back to Africa in 1900 with two new missionaries, but was sent back soon afterwards because of another episode of malaria.

By 1904, Rowland was still busy with the mission board and sending more missionaries overseas, and began writing stories for the Evangelical Christian newspaper. In 1914 he managed to return to Lagos again with 6 other missionaries. He spent nearly 2 years there traveling to see various SIM groups and help where he could.

In 1923 Rowland and Helen set up a boarding school for

children in Collingwood, Ontario. They named it the Gowan’s Home for

Missionaries’ Children . After this Rowland was asked to speak at various mission conferences around the world, in Australia, New Zealand, and India.

He traveled much of Africa in 1929-30 and spoke to the International Council of Missions about conditions in Ethiopia and Nigeria.

At the end of May 1935, Rowland and Helen were in a bad car accident on their way back from a rally in London, Ontario.

In the late 1930’s he returned to Nigeria to help run some leper hospitals and spread God’s word that way. In Canada he set up the Soldiers’ and Airmen’s Christian Association because of WW2.

In 1942 he finish a book titled Seven Sevens of Years and a Jubilee. He died shortly after, on December 8, 1942. At the time of his death, there were 360 SIM missionary workers in Africa.

Over all the years of following God’s lead, Rowland’s biggest challenges were financial ones, yet he never allowed money to stop him from doing what he felt God was calling him to do. He would put everything in God’s hands prayerfully, trusting that God would provide, and He always did.