I spent Christmas and New Year’s with a team in Jamaica, serving in the parish of Kingston. In the mornings we hosted a Vacation Bible School program at one of the local churches and then in the afternoons we helped lay foundation for a church building in a rough area of the inner city. It was a great blessing to watch students share Christ’s love with the communities in Kingston.
I had the opportunity in February to travel on mission to India through my church. India was like nothing I had experienced before. Idol worship is a major part of their daily activities. It was heart-breaking for me to see individuals with barely enough to eat give their food and money to temples and idols that cannot see or hear their prayers. Each day the group of us traveled from house church to house church sharing our testimonies and emphasizing what Christ has done in our lives. Most of the time I felt as though I weren’t doing any good at all, until we heard report that several individuals had decided to follow Christ after hearing our stories. This was a great reminder for me that sometimes all we must do is share what Christ has done in our lives and the Holy Spirit will do the rest. The cost is great for someone deciding to leave Hinduism and their family gods to follow Christ. Their family will disown them and in some cases try to kill them. In fact, the last day as we were heading to the airport we stopped at another house church whose members had fled to that particular part of India to escape religious persecution. Many of their family had been killed because of their professions of faith in Christ, and yet they still boldly follow Him. Remarkable.
A few weeks after returning from India I left for Jamaica again, this time for a month. I helped lead four back to back trips in different areas of the island; Port Maria, Falmouth, St. Anns Bay, & Kingston. We hosted Vacation Bible School programs, participated in construction projects, visited infirmaries & children’s homes, and even had a group of medical students come and serve with us. If you haven’t read it already, check out my blog entry entitled “When Words Fail” about one of our encounters at an infirmary. God is always faithful to show up each day. You can also check out our trip journals at PrayingPelicanMissions.org that detail our daily activities and experiences.
While there I also met with several pastors who are over churches that some of our upcoming teams will be serving alongside. It was a very productive time. Plus, it was wonderful to be able to spend Easter worshiping with the people of Jamaica.
Your continued prayers for my husband and me are appreciated as I continue to plan trips for this summer. I know that this is not something I can do on my own. I will be returning to Jamaica at the end of May through August. Don’t forget that it’s not too late to come along for a week or two! There is much work to be done and we could use your help. If you cannot go but are interested in giving to my ministry or the ministry of Praying Pelican Missions, simply click on the donate button on the right side of my blog page. :-)
And to think this is what I am blessed to experience every day I serve in Jamaica. Makes you want to join me doesn't it?
