Jamaica: Month 3
The view from our backyard
I cannot believe we are more than halfway through month 3! Time really flies by when you are serving the Lord. For this month, my team and I are pairing up with another team called Team Tent. Our ministry this month is door to door evangelism and to share our personal relationship with Jesus Christ to others.
Team Oasis and Team Tent in front of Penbrook Church
When I first found out that we would be going from door to door, I was nervous but very excited. This is something that I have been wanting to grow in so much. Now if you know anything about me, you would know I hate pushing my beliefs onto others and it’s challenging for me when I feel that I am, so evangelism was definitely going to push me out of my comfort zone. Once we got into St. Andrew Parish, Jamaica we met with Pastor Peter and went over some training that we received at training camp way back in October about sharing the Gospel with others.
Day 1 of door-to-door evangelism
It wasn’t even 12 hours at our new ministry before a small group of us were walking the streets with Pastor Peter doing night evangelism. We ran into several people that knew the Lord but weren’t ready to give their lives to Him. This was surely going to be an interesting month. As the days went on we saw more and more people, many of whom know of Jesus Christ but none really knowing how to receive salvation. You see, the Jamaican people are so deeply rooted in the “religious” aspect of Christianity that they are missing what Christ died for. They believe that reading your Bible, going to Church, doing good deeds, getting baptized, and looking a certain way makes you a Christian. But this couldn’t be further from the truth.
With this in mind, we had to come up with a new game plan on how to speak truth into these people’s lives. We needed a way to share what the Gospel really means. Christ was leading us to be the teachers. Once all 5 of us got on the same page, it seemed that we were unstoppable! We were on fire!
Team Oasis
For the next couple of days, everything was going great… Then I started to struggle to see the big picture. I asked my team, “Are we just pushing our beliefs onto these people, or are they actually choosing the Lord?”
“Why does it feel so forced!” I exclaimed. I didn’t want to go door to door anymore. I wanted the Lord to guide people to us. There was a moment on the mountain where I needed the Lord to show me that He was with us. So as the rest of the team went left, I went right. I left the 99 so the Lord could come after me.
“Lord, if this is Your work and Your will PLEASE guide me! PLEASE show me! As I cried out to the Lord and struggled to find a way back down the mountain I came across a farmer with his ax and a beam of light glowing from his heart.
“My friend, you look lost,” the stranger said. “Come this way; I will guide you back.”
What the heck is going on, I thought! I don’t know anything about this man yet he looks so familiar. “What is your name, sir?”
“My name is Ezekiel.” He declared. “How’d you get stranded on the side of this mountain? You look like a lost sheep.”
“Well, Ezekiel its funny you should ask. You see I’m a missionary from the United States and the Lord sent me here to spread the Gospel of…” before I could finish my statement Ezekiel shouted the words “Jesus Christ, my Savior!”
“Do you personally know Him, Ezekiel? I asked.
He replied, “Of course I do. He is my best friend. He is my Savior!”
Ezekiel, myself, and Christ sat on that side of the mountain and talked for nearly 30 minutes. It wasn’t until I heard shouts of my name that I realized that I needed to get back to the group. I gave him a big hug and followed the trail back down the mountain. After explaining to my team what had just happened I asked to go back up and see him one more time. This time I brought Meredith with me.
With a proper entrance, we stayed and talked with Ezekiel and his wife. They welcomed both Meredith and myself with loving arms. Not only did they know of the Lord, but the Holy Spirit was so clearly evident in them. They shared their lives with us. They shared their struggles with us. They shared how so many in the church community were not there for them when they lost their son. But instead of shutting down and pushing people away they continued to love unconditionally. They shared their love with us.
As I walked the mountain for the second time, I was walking as a new man. I went up the mountain as a lost sheep but came down a found son.
My Jamaican rite of passage of picking and cutting a coconut.
