By Wes and Patsy Jeffcoat
When our pastor, Rev. Dee Ford, called us about the opportunity to go to Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s Advocacy in Action, this was our first reaction, “Are you sure? Why us? We’re old. We’re natural introverts. We aren’t clergy. We know very little about advocacy. Do we really want to get on an airplane right now?” There were many reasons to push back.
But there was also that underlying peace that this was something we should and would do. That “still, small voice” saying, “Do not be afraid. You need to do this, and you will be glad you did.”
And my goodness, was that voice right.
We have dabbled in advocacy work here at home for the past couple of years by becoming involved with some local groups, both non-partisan faith-based and secular, including two trips to our state capital to meet with legislators. While we strongly believe we are called by Jesus to love and care for others, to say we have been effective advocates is certainly a stretch.
The training and experience we received at CBF’s Advocacy in Action in D.C. in March was just what we needed, giving us not only the confidence to get out of our comfort zone and do the work, but also to share what we learned with our church.
We first delivered a brief “Missions Moment” presentation with the entire congregation the Sunday morning after our trip, followed by a more in-depth presentation one Wednesday evening. We tried to convey to our church family all the many facets of Advocacy in Action: the Scripture that calls all followers of Jesus to be advocates, the real hands-on training we received, the historical significance of being in D.C. and the fellowship, guidance and support we enjoyed from the other 28 people that were on this five day journey with us.
The reception by those who attended our Wednesday night presentation was encouraging. We began by confessing that we were outside our comfort zone and not professional presenters, but that we believe this work is important enough to show up. Those friends in attendance were attentive, asked great questions and some even wanted copies of the training so they could feel more confident speaking with elected officials, writing op-eds and performing other forms of advocacy themselves. They also have made the decision to show up.
We are thankful for CBF’s focus on advocacy, for each of the staff who organized and presented and for every person who attended and shared experiences, struggles and insight with others. We started out as strangers but became friends attempting to follow Jesus together by working for a better tomorrow for all of God’s children. Our prayer is that by bringing the experience home with us and sharing it with our congregation, the enthusiasm and confidence we gained in D.C. will continue to spread as we all show up in our own ways.
The Jeffcoats are members of Crosscreek Baptist Church in Pelham, Alabama. Wes is a retired teacher, coach and guidance counselor, and Patsy is a retired information technology manager at a large health insurance company.