There were about as many of them as there were of us. We 10 state Baptist paper editors went around the room shaking hands with Baptist pastors from five Middle Eastern countries.
We were there to see firsthand the needs of the Jordan Baptist’s House of Faith Conference Center in Ajloun. The pastors were there at the invitation of the International Mission Board (IMB) for a specialized training conference.
The conference center rests on about 10 acres of ground on the side of a mountain overlooking Ajloun, a village about an hour north of Amman. Originally the facility was a hospital, together with a nursing school and facilities for staff. Most of the original hospital has been torn down but support facilities remain.
The Baptist conference center is one of two Christian conference centers in the Middle East. The buildings, though old and designed for different purposes, still offer better facilities than the tents of the other site.
Shaun Shorrosh, IMB strategy coordinator for a five-country area of the Middle East, led the conference. Ironically he was born in the hospital that used to be on the site.
Shorrosh emphasized the opportunities Jordan offers as a place where Christians from the Middle East can travel. He called facilities like the Jordan conference center “vital” to the training and equipping of Baptists to reach the world for Christ.
Jordan Baptists also believe the conference center is vital. On Oct. 27, a master renovation plan will be laid before the 20 Baptist churches of the nation. The approximately 1,300 members and about 2,000 others who attend Baptist churches will be asked to raise $210,000 to renovate the camp. The plan includes new wiring for old buildings, a cafeteria, converting some rooms into small conference rooms, providing central heating so the facilities can be used year-round and a host of other items.
According to board chairman Ali Badra, a Baptist businessman from Amman, other challenges include everything from trying to negotiate new entrances and exits from the main road for the camp to possible commercial development on one section of the camp, which borders the main artery of the property.
Badra said the camp’s board of directors is searching for a new director, a person trained in facilities management.
With a few renovations and a year-round schedule, he is convinced the conference center can be a contributing part of the Jordan Baptist Convention financially, as well as being an even better place for Baptists from across the Middle East.
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