Last week, I was teaching at New Hope Baptist Church in the village of Mt. Hope on the island of Abaco. The island is beautiful. The weather is hot. Electricity is not as plentiful as in the U.S. Electric power was off 4 to 6 hours on three of the five days I was there.
There were only two pastors in the group of 9 people who attended the sessions Monday through Friday nights. The others in the group were leading churchwomen. I taught some pastoral care principles, using some material that I have used here in our church: The Real Love Bible Workbook, Understanding Your Grief, and handouts on listening that I have shared with our deacons. I gave everybody in the group copies of Understanding Your Grief by Alan Wolfelt and of Being a Good and Faithful Servant by Cecil Sherman.
The group was very receptive to what I taught, especially Pastor Elon McIntosh of St. Thomas Baptist Church in the village of Wood Cay. He is typical of most Baptist Pastors in that area, which is called Little Abaco, in that his congregation is small and his major source of income is lobstering. Elon told me that last season did not bring him much profit, because the price of lobsters was low due to the bad economy.
I was on the lookout for the possibility of taking a group of members of our church to Abaco to help one or more of the churches. I think that a group of 5 or 6 of us could help with Vacation Bible School next summer. I learned of an 80 year-old woman who was trying to move from one house to another. She definitely needs some help.
On Wednesday evening, August 4, I will tell you more about my trip and my experiences with the people of Little Abaco.
1 comment:
I would love to hear more about your trip and the work you did there. Wish I could be with everyone on Wednesday the 4th of August when you share your experience.
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