Jim and Betty McKinley

175 Timeline / All Profiles

Jim and Betty McKinley

Surrounded by a mob of a thousand angry men, Jim and his two young sons sat in their vehicle and wondered how they would escape.

DECADES OF SERVICE
1970s, 1960s, 1950s

MINISTRY EMPHASIS
Evangelism & Church Planting

AFFINITY GROUP
South Asian Peoples

Back to 1970s

Surrounded by a mob of a thousand angry men, Jim and his two young sons sat in their vehicle and wondered how they would escape.

In 1971, in what was then East Pakistan, Jim McKinley would bring his 4- and 6-year-old sons with him on his trips to Muslim villages while his wife, Betty, stayed home with their two daughters. East Pakistan was in the midst of political turmoil that would soon lead to the beginning of a new nation, Bangladesh. Jim, Betty and their family had witnessed mobs before, but they didn’t fear for their safety, because the hot button issue in East Pakistan was independence, not foreign policy.

Understandably, Jim was surprised when the thousand-strong mob surrounded his vehicle as he and his boys headed home after a visit to a Muslim village. When the chants of “Rock the vehicle!”, “Remove the gas cap!” and “Who has a match?” reached Jim’s ears inside the van, he feared for his family’s lives.

By God’s grace, an elderly village leader stepped through the crowd and told Jim he would help them escape safely. Acting like a madman, the village leader shoved a path through the crowd and created a passage for Jim to drive away quickly.

Even in the midst of this political turmoil in the 1970s, Jim and Betty McKinley did not leave Bangladesh. Their persistence was a testimony to the Bangladeshis and a key factor in building relationships with the refugees. It paved ways to share the gospel with both groups.

The McKinley family remained in Bangladesh until 1992 when they retired. Jim and Betty left behind a legacy of dedication to the Bangladeshi people that continues to this day. Jim also wrote several books about the family’s experience in Bangladesh, touching the hearts of readers around the globe.