We made it to Jamaica on March 28th and made our way to Brown’s Town where my team, RITz, is paired with Joyful Awakening (a team of 6 girls) to serve Pastor Raymond and his church. We’re spending our time out in the community, ministering to church members and community members alike through prayer and fellowship. Our first day was us getting situated in our new home, and the second day we traveled 45 minutes to the town where Pastor’s church is. We met with people in the community and started building relationships.
Friday was Pastor and his wife’s wedding anniversary so we went to the beach to celebrate. I’ve never seen water so clear and blue! As I was admiring the beauty, I met a new friend. He is 25 and sells touristy items on the beach, but has dreams to be a carpenter. He was high as a kite as we talked, but I was amazed at how his eyes cleared as we shared conversation about the Lord. He ended up sharing a part of his testimony with me – Getting mixed up in the wrong crowd, spending a year in jail for a murder he didn’t commit and through it all finding Jesus in that solitude. He says he goes to church but doesn’t know how to walk out of his old ways. I can’t wait for the day he commits himself fully to the Lord because while I prayed for him, the Lord simply said “I have so much more for him than this.” I didn’t get to say goodbye to this new friend, but I pray that he listens to that still small voice and has the courage to commit to the Lord.
Then on Saturday we went to Aboukir to prayer walk and spend time in the community. There I met Michael, a 36 year-old who can quote just about anything in the Bible but walked away from the church. On Sunday, this same man showed up at church, volunteered to sing when the pastor asked for someone to lead song and spent an hour prayer walking with us after service. As Teresa would say, “Just start waving that white flag” because Jesus is after this man’s heart and just waiting for him to surrender.
We also were able to play dominos with the town’s lead drug dealer, teach a 14 year old a new game (one I learned in Lesotho) and pray for healing and provision over a family. It was a beautiful day!
Sunday we had church service and the evening off for our own Sabbath. We were all in the Word, listening to podcasts or just relaxing, enjoying a bit of downtime before the beginning of a new week.
Today, our teams begin serving the Brown’s Town community. Please join us in praying for revival of this church community and pray for strength for us and we press into whatever the Lord places before us.
Thanks in advance and have a blessed week!
