Christians in the National Baptist Association annually support the Lott Carey Convention. Each year, churches send delegates and finances to continue the support of the gospel being preached in Africa. This year, the event that promotes foreign missions will be held August 13-18 in Birmingham Alabama.
The origin of the Lott Carey Convention
From childhood, I can remember my grandmother going to the Lott Carey Convention every summer for decades. It always lasted a week and I knew it had to do with foreign missions but no one ever explained who or what the yearly gathering was all about.
A recent article in "Christianity Today" however gives details about this organization that are pretty fascinating. In "Remembering the other Carey: Unsung hero of the modern missions movement", John Richards explains in detail how Lot Carey began his missions work.
A recent article in Christianity Today gives details about this organization that are pretty fascinating. In "Remembering the other Carey: Unsung hero of the modern missions movement", John Richards explains in detail how Lott Carey began his missions work.
Lott Carey was a slave born in Charles City, Virginia around 1970. Unlike many slaves whose families were torn apart when slave master sold them, Carey's family remained intact.
His grandmother told him that African people did not know God and she believed one day her grandson might travel and take the gospel to that continent. Carey, as an adult, decided he would do just that. he became a minister and later the secretary of the African Missionary Society. For a time Carey pastored a church with 800 members.
A pioneer in foreign missions
In 1821 Lott Carey set sail for Sierra Leone and went to the African village where his grandmother lived before being abducted and carried to America to be enslaved. He initially met resistance but went on to pastor a 60 member church in Liberia. Although this was much smaller than the church he pastored in the United States, Carey served well.
He was an excellent example of a leader of foreign missions in West Africa.
On August 13-18 the 120th session of the Lott Carey Foreign missions convention will be held in Birmingham, Alabama. National Baptists will gather in the name of the man who first took the gospel to Africans. The money raised will help modern missionaries to continue to establish churches and share the gospel of Christ on foreign soil. Those who believe they are called to the mission field do not have to take on long term
Those who believe they are called to the mission field do not have to take on long term assignments because the Lott Carey Foundation offers short term missionary stints. This organization also has a Missionary Baptist School in Liberia.
