Ten missionaries from Jamaica, Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago, and Guyana joined the short-term mission “Called to Serve” and traveled to St. Lucia to serve alongside Castries Church of the Nazarene in July for 11 days of community outreach and ministry.
The intent of the leaders was to encourage the brothers and sisters in Castries and help to build relationships between the church and the community.
The time together began with two days of capacity building and leadership training with the leaders and members of the Castries Church. The participants included a wide range of ages, and the presenters sought to empower, equip and encourage them, especially after the previous two years of pandemic challenges.
Following the training days, the Called to Serve team and the church did a Community Walk on Sunday afternoon to connect with, pray for and invite the community members to join in the following week’s activities. A highlight of the afternoon was the opportunity to meet a shop owner and pray a blessing for him, his business and the friends who were with him. Team member Timmeon Spencer, who serves as the Caribbean field Global Missions Coordinator, said, “This expression of love touched his heart so much he could not stop smiling and saying thanks for the prayers and kind words of encouragement the church provided.”
In the week of July 25-29, the church members and team worked together to hold a Vacation Bible School in the mornings and sports evangelism in the afternoons.
Fifty children from the community participated in the VBS where they learned to taste, see, listen, learn and know that the Lord their God is good. At the end of the event, 19 of them decided to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
A total of 60 young people, mainly young men between the ages 12-20 years old, participated in the afternoon sports camp, which used the sports of football, basketball and cricket to share about the gospel of Jesus, build character and teach life principles. Six young people decided to accept Jesus Christ into their lives as their Lord and Savior during this time.
The team spent their last hours in St. Lucia spread across four churches in New Hope, Gros Islet, Grande Riviere and Castries to share in a variety of ministries. They preached, taught, led worship, helped with live streaming and shared Scripture according to their gifts and the needs where they served.
The Castries Church of the Nazarene has several plans to continue the momentum of the Called to Serve team, including launching an ongoing Sports Ministry, follow-up discipleship classes for the new believers, and ongoing visitation for the new relationships built during this time in the community, among others.
“Please keep the church and the work ongoing in St. Lucia in your prayers,” Spencer said. “Pray for the leaders, pray for the community, and pray that God would provide more workers to serve in his vineyard in St. Lucia.”
Source: Min. Timmeon Spencer, Caribbean Field Global Missions Coordinator
