In the late afternoon sunlight, the barren knobs looked like long Navajo skirts with their many folds. Long shadows accented each dry rivulet. Subtle shades of grey, brown, and tan were accented by light crimson and purple. It was beautiful in its austerity. This part of Navajo land is surreal, devoid of vegetation.
As I drove deeper into the Reservation, I felt the stress of city life fall away. The pace of life slowed. I felt like I was going back in time to thirty plus years ago when the clock was largely irrelevant and where I was immersed in traditional Navajo language and culture.
Amazingly, the location I sought was in the Google maps database. There were even signs at intersections identifying route numbers! There was evidence on the sides of the road that the installation of fiber-optic cable was well underway. New mobile homes dotted the landscape.
I pulled up beside church building with a seating capacity of around 300. There were already about 50 vehicles parked around the perimeter.
I entered somewhat tentatively. Would I know anyone? To my relief, I found I knew a significant portion of the people in attendance, including the deceased’s family, at least five other alumni from IBC and their spouses, and several people from my time at Broken Arrow Bible Ranch. Of course everyone had aged significantly, but I still knew them from more recent contacts.
The service was in memory of 1969 IBC (then Southwest School of Missions) graduate Jimmie Seaton. Most of the service was conducted in Navajo, which was fitting since Jimmie had never been fluent in English. In fact, he had never attended school until he enrolled at SWSM in 1965 in the Navajo language track.
The word that kept occurring throughout the service was “faithful.” Jimmie served Jesus faithfully since the time when, as a lowly sheepherder, he first heard about Jesus and determined to turn his back on the animism of Navajo traditional beliefs. At that time, he was being pursued by several medicine men who saw his potential to succeed them as a spiritual leader. But Jimmie was steadfast in his decision to follow Jesus. Over the course of his life, he shepherded five different congregations. He married a fellow SWSM student, and they raised four children together.
What an honor to be present for this memorial time yesterday! And what a blessing to be back in traditional Navajo society, to hear Navajo spoken by nearly everyone in attendance, to eat hominy stew and mutton, and to slow down and listen.
This is one way we honor and support our alumni and their families. Above is a photo of the alumni team made up of myself, Tina (2017 graduate working with Student Life at IBC), and Roger (2021 graduate and current IBC instructor). All three of us were involved with funerals related to present students or alumni within the past week.
This semester I have more time to be intentional about leading the Alumni Relations Team. We meet weekly to pray, plan, and provide accountability for each other.
Please pray with us that the alumni will walk faithfully with the Lord and that we can continue to provide the encouragement, prayer support, and accountability they need.
Gratefully,
Martha
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