Q&A with an SIM leader: Phil Bauman

PHIL BAUMAN ANSWERS KEY QUESTIONS

Tell us a little about your background.

I was born in Ontario, Canada, to Christian parents and grew up in Waterloo Region, an area well known as Mennonite. Our family attended a gospel-centred church with a strong mission emphasis. I came to faith at an early age, but it was easy in my environment to ‘do’ Christian things.

In secondary school, my relationship with God became more real and personal, and I grew in my faith. I went to university to study engineering. My programme interspersed academic semesters with employment. This was a challenging but growing time. Friends and others challenged me about my life’s direction, and I chose to take one of my ‘work’ terms to explore missions. I ended up at Mukinge Hospital in Zambia to assist with a hospital expansion. My time in Zambia gave me a whole new perspective on life, faith and love …

Tell us a little about your family.

While in Zambia, as a good engineer, I consulted the nurses of the paediatric ward I was helping to design. A lovely British nurse headed up the paediatric ward, so I sought her advice for what the new ward should be like. I consulted her a bit more than was necessary, and she figured that out.

Thankfully, Andrea became my wife, the mother of our kids and a wise counsellor to me. We were married in the UK, then Andrea emigrated to Canada. We are blessed with three kids: Kieran, Liam and Cara.

How did God lead you and Andrea to SIM?

After getting married, we allowed ourselves a year to adjust to married life and for Andrea to adjust to Canada. Then we began to explore whether God was calling us to use our professions in global missions. Four years later, we headed to Ghana with two little ones to live among the Sisaala of northern Ghana.

What key things do you hope to achieve in your role with SIM?

My prayer is that SIM will continue to be committed to accomplishing our purpose as we engage communities with love and pursue kingdom outcomes. May we focus on our purpose, our ‘why’, and think creatively about accomplishing it, rather than being defined by ’what we do’ or ‘how we do it’. This way of thinking is the core of ministry focus and the reason for Synergie.

May we focus on our purpose, our ‘why’, and think creatively about accomplishing it.

COVID-19 is impacting SIM in ways we can’t determine yet, and accelerating changes in our environment. I pray that as part of the Ministry Advancement Task Force, I can serve SIM by recommending adjustments to current practices, explore new ways of doing things and pursue purpose-driven ministry strategies.

What inspires you when life gets difficult?

Two key things inspire me in times like these. The first is that he is faithful. Andrea and I can look back on many times when we have seen God carry us through. The second is that God has called us into what he is doing, to follow him. From an engineering perspective, God choosing to use sinful humanity to accomplish his purposes seems very inefficient. But not to God. That is humbling and inspiring.

What do you do when you’re not working?

Andrea and I love to go on walks. We are most refreshed when we can enjoy the beauty of God’s creation.

What is your favourite Bible verse?

One of my favourites is 2 Cor. 5:17: ‘Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!’

What piece of technology could you do without/ never to without?

My phone and my computer have a role in almost everything I do. I can survive without one or the other, but not both!