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A "NORTHERN
LIGHTS" MAGAZINE ARTICLE
(from Issue #506)
BUD ELFORD:
MISSIONARY, LEADER, COMMUNICATOR:
Impact
& Influence in God's Work
 L.W.
(Bud) Elford passed into the
Lord's presence on September 20th, just three days short of his 84th
birthday.
Not only did Bud spend his
entire adult life as an NCEM missionary, but he was also an
influential leader for our Mission. He was, as well, an exceptional
communicator. His leadership, preaching, teaching and writing impacted
our workers and many others for God's Kingdom.
Raised in southern
Ontario, Bud placed his faith in Christ at age 16. He committed his
life to missions in 1945 on his return from military service in
Europe, where he had encountered near-death. He earned a B.Th. degree
in Missions from London (ON) Bible Institute & Theological
Seminary, followed by linguistics training. In 1952 he & Marge
joined NCEM to begin a lifetime of reaching First Nations for Jesus.
FAITHFUL
MISSIONARY
Following a year of
on-the-field training in Buffalo Narrows (SK), then language school in
Meadow Lake, the Elfords served in the northern communities of
Churchill and Brochet (MB) from 1954 to 1963. Their next move was to
Ft. McPherson (NWT), NCEM's most northerly station, serving there till
1967. Then it was on to Cold Lake (AB) where, along with outreach on
the Reserve, new ministry responsibilities were added.
Easier fields could have
been considered, but the Elfords committed to reaching the Denesuline
(then known as Chipewyan). Despite their remoteness and difficult
language, Bud & Marge took on the challenge, trusting the Lord for
everything.
Bud tackled a language
that very few nonNative people have learned, at a time when there was
very little help to learn it. Dene languages are considered among the
world's most complex. In an early report, Bud told of sitting in a
northern village, not understanding one word -- and that was after
six months of language study! Earlier attempts to translate Scripture
had used syllabics, a system that worked well for Cree, but not for
Athabascan languages. So Bud and coworker Murray Richardson developed
a new alphabet using English characters, adding characters and accents
for "tones, nasals, clicks."
Working alongside
Denesuline language helpers, Bud completed translation of Scripture
portions, a songbook, dictionary and evangelistic literature. These
projects required years of difficult labour, but the Elfords were
motivated by a strong longing to see people saved.
There were encouraging
occurrences as they served among people hesitant to receive the
Gospel. Bud told of the time he was driving near Cold Lake, talking in
Dene with a couple fellows he'd picked up. He stopped to pick up a
third fellow, someone he had never met before. The fellow jumped into
the back seat and said (in Dene) to the two men, "What kind of
stupid white man would pick up dumb Indians like you?" The man
sitting beside Bud shot back, "Be careful what you say! He's one
of us."
The fellow could have
said, "He understands us," or something like that, Bud
noted. But he'd said, "He's one of us" -- a compliment to
the Elfords' efforts to identify with the Denesuline, who remain
generally resistant to the Gospel.
Gilbert Bekkatla, a
Denesuline NCEM missionary, describes what Bud did those years as
"the rough work." He says it's because of the Elfords'
faithful service that today there is more of an openness to
evangelical outreach in some Dene communities.
VISIONARY
LEADER
In 1967 Bud was asked to
take on Mission leadership responsibilities, and he did so for the
next 22 years. While living in Alberta, he served as Western-Field
Director, and as Assistant General Director. In 1980 Bud & Marge
moved to Mission Headquarters in Prince Albert when Bud was called to
be General Director, a position he held till his retirement from
leadership in 1989.
At Bud's funeral our
present General Director, Albert Heal, described Bud as a firm, gifted
and authoritative leader. "His style of leadership was influenced
by his military service, which wasn't always appreciated," he
recalled. "However, one knew exactly where he stood, and Bud did
encourage us in the areas of service God had called us to."
Albert and his three siblings had the privilege of living in the
Elford home during their high school years. They also knew that,
though firm, Bud wasn't overly-serious. He easily shared a warm laugh.
Great leaders are those
who inspire, and many in our Mission were personally inspired and
encouraged by Bud to step out for the Lord's sake. Bud's Northern
Lights "Direction" articles, written while he was
General Director, reveal his visionary leadership.
In 1980 he wrote: "NCEM's
vision has not changed, but to accomplish it is going to take far more
missionaries, finances and technology than we envisioned in ... We
have had problems growing beyond 120 workers. As nearly as I can
compute, considering the number of still unevangelized villages, the
distance in miles, and the linguistic diversification, we must have at
least 100 more field missionaries and perhaps 25 more resource
personnel to fulfill our mandate ... Workers are needed to evangelize
every Native village in the North (where no one else is doing it),
provide adequate training for converts, and establish biblically based
churches."
The Lord honored these
faith goals. By 1985 staff numbers had grown to 220 (including some
associate part-time workers). More faith goals were set regarding
staff growth that extended into the 1990s.
Bud's visionary leadership
was also evidenced as Tribal Trails television was launched during his
term as General Director. Also, in the early 1980s, NCEM expanded into
the Eastern Arctic.
EFFECTIVE
COMMUNICATOR
A gifted communicator, Bud
was in demand for church missionary meetings. On the field, his
preaching abilities were used on radio. In 1967 Bud & Marge
launched a Dene language radio broadcast, where Bud preached for 10
years.
The vision for radio came
as the Elfords counted 35 Denesuline communities, knowing that
missionaries wouldn't get to all of them. Results were encouraging
from the start. People wrote in to say they were listening -- which
was significant, considering how difficult it was for some of them to
write. The Elfords heard of a Roman Catholic priest who used the radio
broadcasts in his weekly mass. In another RC church with no resident
priest, people gathered on Sunday and "opened the radio" for
their service.
"For the first time
in 16 years of work, we feel we are having an impact (on the
Denesuline) as a whole," wrote Bud. The program eventually aired
on five stations and helped launch the translation of the Gospel of
Mark, with the entire book read on the broadcast over a period of
time.
In English Bud also loved
to preach and teach the Word. Over the years he lectured at
Key-Way-Tin Bible Institute, at NMTC (summer training program),
missionary candidate sessions and, as mentioned, he preached in many
local church missions conferences.
Bud knew the Word of God
well. It was said he could write four lines on a piece of paper and
preach for an hour. He had many stories from personal experience, and
that made him an interesting missionary speaker. The Elfords moved
back to the Cold Lake area in 1989, then to Caronport to 2004, and Bud's
ministry never stopped. Retirement from leadership provided more time
for teaching and preaching. For 10 years they spent part of each
winter in Arizona, teaching at CHIEF's Native discipleship school. Bud
was also a gifted writer, authoring several poems and articles
published in Christian magazines.
So what did he preach,
teach and write about most? Spiritual warfare was a regular topic.
Perhaps it was because he'd practiced it in his missionary work, and
others weren't preaching about it enough. He understood the spiritual
battles faced by new Native Christians as even more intense. "No
tourist ever felt these things," wrote Bud. "No
anthropologist ever recorded them. These special 'treats' of hell
were reserved for saints who, in Jesus' name, would set the prisoner
free."
He preached victory:
"Direct resistance in Jesus' name on the basis of Calvary always
brought relief, victory and eventual joy," he said.
"Depression in most cases was defeated, health was restored and
fear was changed to expectant faith. The enemy had been uncovered --
now the battle could be joined."
Bud also spoke of faith.
"A working knowledge of missiological and indigenous principles
would have been helpful," he wrote of NCEM's early workers,
"but if any method is of God, it must pass His test. The test of
any program, strategy or idea is always, 'Will it work apart from
faith?' 'Can it be just as effective by human effort, higher
training or natural talents?' If the answer is 'yes,' then (as in
Abraham's plan to have a son), the idea is an 'Egyptian maid.'
"
Strong words, but
from a man of faith who practiced what he preached. Reflecting on Bud's
missionary work among the Denesuline, who have yet to see a
significant turning to Christ, Gilbert Bekkatla says, "He tried.
He never gave up." A quality our Mission -- and the entire Church
-- needs today, as we seek to reach those among the world's
hard-to-reach peoples for Christ.
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