Eric Binion '78 is a missionary in South Africa.
I was a History/Literature double major at Wheaton. During the spring semester of my senior year, I met Jerry Harpool, a TEAM missionary on furlough who was recruiting teachers for Franson Christian High School in Swaziland. I immediately sensed a great excitement about this opportunity. God confirmed this call in a variety of ways and opened the door for me to serve there for two and a half years. I returned to the US, completed a M.A. in English from University of Texas and then a Th.M from Dallas Seminary. My wife and I did a couple of short pastoral internships and then came to South Africa where we’ve been doing church planting and training leaders at Union Bible Institute for the past twenty-seven years.
I had not planned to be a missionary or to go into full-time Christian service. This was an unexpected gift from God.
History relates in some ways to almost everything in life and certainly to cross-cultural ministry. I teach Old Testament history and am enjoying learning more about archaeology. I also teach Leadership and enjoy reading biographies of great leaders, past and present.
I believe God designed each of us uniquely. It is good to study something you are passionate about. It was always tough, sometimes embarrassing, to answer the question: “History and literature? What are you going to do with THAT?” I didn’t know. But God did.