Kylie is the Women’s Dean at Johannesburg Bible College in South Africa, a CMS Missionary and 2014 Moore College Graduate. Below is an interview with her from the latest Moore Matters publication.
Kylie, you were raised in a Christian home, discipled by faithful Christian mentors, and worked in a variety of cultures from America to Fiji to South Africa. You even studied at Bible College in Johannesburg and had a vibrant ministry there. How did you end up studying a Bachelor of Theology at Moore College?
Despite my education degree, the volunteer work I was doing in Johannesburg, ministering to students and the homeless, lacked the firm foundation of theological education. So in 2010 I came to Moore College intent on studying for a year. But I soon realised I wanted to go deeper into the word and grow skills in how to approach ministry, so one year grew into four, and I finished the Bachelor of Theology.
I am really thankful for my time at Moore. I was surrounded by women with whom I could walk the journey of life and ministry, with whom I could think through future plans, and who encouraged me in my faith. Looking back now, the student body were formative in encouraging me in mission and sharpening me, preparing me for the mission field.
Mission had been on your heart since being a youngster in church when you responded to a call from the front for those interested in mission. Once you had completed your Bachelor of Theology and worked as a Chaplain in a school context, your heart once again turned to the mission field. But this required more training at CMS in Melbourne.
Initially I wasn’t keen to undertake more training but looking back, my time at CMS’s St Andrew’s Hall was essential and so helpful in preparing me for long-term ministry. They want to help you be as ready for mission as possible.
You take yourself on mission, and that includes your weaknesses! They follow you wherever you are. My time at St Andrew’s Hall was invaluable in helping me identify areas of sin and areas I needed to strengthen and just be aware of. A greater awareness of self allows you to serve deeper. By God’s grace when he sharpens us, cutting bits of our heart and life, we are more able to fully serve, and those things that could hold us back are less likely to if we have dealt with them. So I am really thankful for that training.
Johannesburg Bible College has been seeking to prepare students with biblical and practical knowledge which they can take into their ministry roles for almost 20 years, and your work there centres on working with women students and staff. Can you share some of the joys and challenges of working in that space?
JBC aims to address the needs of the 188,000 pastors in Africa who have no formal training in the Bible. So many of the students who come to us are already doing ministry and understand the need to upskill, while for others studying is a means of kicking off into a ministry role. One of the beauties of JBC is that the students come from all over the continent of Africa. There’s a welcoming unity which reflects the body of Christ. It’s been beautiful, both at church and at JBC, learning with and sitting with people who think so differently and yet they sharpen the lens of life for me. It has been beautiful to be refined by the difference of others and them speaking into my life and the beauty of that two-way relationship.
Yet, living in a foreign culture has many challenges and when I first arrived, realising I was there for the long term, it felt very different from my other short-term visits. The idea of being a foreigner in the Bible has taken on a new meaning, living in a culture that is not your own. I have been in Jo’burg for 10 years and yet I still don’t understand so many things—I miss things or don’t get the humour, for example.
But so many times I’ve just been wowed by the wisdom and life experience of the students I’ve been working with and other people in the community; I have been open to things I have never previously thought about. We don’t necessarily think the same and we approach situations from different angles, but it’s been really encouraging to see that that’s a strength. We are grown through working through our differences.
It sounds like one of the biggest joys is the women you work with, teach and share life with. Can you help us glimpse what it means for these women to be part of Bible-centred ministry?
Every day before class I get to sit with students and just hear their stories. What a joy it is to see them as they are wrestling with the word, ministry and life. Mum Emily is one such student. The passing of her husband opened new doors for her. She saw her community in a new light and her life in a new light and she used the opportunity to ask, What can I do with my life? How can I serve? Her eyes were opened to the needs of children whose parents weren’t very present due to work or their drug addictions. It was like God grew her heart to serve and to give. She came to JBC particularly to be trained to reach the children and the youth in her community. A very gentle, humble, Godly woman who just loved Christ, it turned out that Mum Emily was feeding 120 children! Feeding them not just physically but spiritually. Her desire was to be able to teach these children clearly about Jesus so that they may want to grow to know Jesus and serve him. She sat so humbly under God’s word and teaching at JBC, literally putting into practice what she was learning the following Saturday. She didn’t want to hold all the wisdom and knowledge she was gaining but wanted to gift it to the children in her community.
For those who might be considering overseas mission, do you have any advice?
Come to the Lord in prayer! And do not fear. I think sometimes the idea of overseas mission can be overwhelming, so prayer is essential. The community aspect is also important. Talk to the people around you who know you—your pastors, friends, people who see you in ministry—they can give wisdom and insight which could be really beneficial for the journey. It is a journey; mission preparation is not a quick decision or process.
Talk to a mission organisation early as they have experience, know what questions to ask and help you to work through if this is the right path for you or if God has another direction for you.
Find out more about life at JBC, the mission journey and how you can support Kylie here. (insert QR Code)
Pray for Kylie
- Pray that both my team and I would be really intentional about raising up the next generation of teachers.
- Pray that I keep trusting in Jesus. It’s very easy to lose focus on what you’re doing. When life is stressful or tiring or overwhelming, pray that I just keep fixing my eyes on him and trusting him through those mountain top experiences and all those valleys as well, which are ahead.
Blow is a longer form interview of Kylie with Isobel Lin.
