I had an incredibly busy weekend and fulfilling weekend and wanted to share it with you! So here we go!
Saturday, June 21:
Was my busiest day of the week as I had two large commitments that I had made earlier on in the month. Commitment # 1: Acolyte Training. One of the parishioners has a number of neices, nephews and grandchildren who come to church regularly and wanted to learn how to be servers for the service. So I arranged to train them on Saturday morning at 10am. I was only expecting to have 2 or 3 show up, but was surprised when 5 of them came, including Maesha a 4 year old who was determined to learn how to serve even though she wasn't big enough to hold on to the cross that we use when processing in. They showed up, we went through a few bags under the altar, found a bunch of cassocks and found everyone's sizes and wrote their names on the tags. Their faces beamed as I put their names on the tag, it somehow made it that more official for them. Unfortunately all of the cassocks were too long for little Maesha, so we improvised and put a surplice on her. She spent a large amount of time swinging her arms around pretending to be an angel!! About 20 minutes into training I realized the the four older children all wanted to serve in church the next day, which left me in a little bit of a pickle. Serving isn't overly difficult and is usually only done by one person, but I didn't want them to feel like I was favoring one person over another, so I split the one person job into a 4 person job. Tanlyn was the cross bearer and led the procession in and out of the service. Cameron carried the cross during the reading of the Gospel and collected the offering. Chelsea served during the offertory hymn when I needed to set the table, she passed me stuff. And Myra read the second reading.
Committment # 2: I was invited to attend and pray at the Graduation Excersices for St. John's Memorial in Placencia. It was a wonderful day as I watched the young people who I have gotten to know over the last 6 weeks walk across the stage to get their certificate. Like at the IPS ceremonies I had a chair reserved for me with my name on it. I wasn't taken a back by it like I was at IPS. But as the ceremonies started and the childern came up to give their speeches, I'm pretty sure my face dropped and I turned a little bit red. You know when at these ceremonies and the kids giving speeches welcomes everyone, but before they welcome everyone they acknowledge all of the big wig people who have a lot to do with the school like the "Chairman of the Board, and the Principal", and so on and so forth. Well I was listening to the first young person acknowledging people, and all of a sudden I hear "Deacon Chelsy Stevens." Holy crap....my name was on the list of big wig people to acknowledge. It blew me away, and I was touched to be included and to know that in the short 6 weeks that I've been here, I've been able to have a small impact on the 25 young people who graduated from St. John's.
Sunday, June 22:
Sunday Service in Mango Creek. Well, I had 4 servers for the morning and must admit there were times it was a bit chaotic. But seeing the smiles on the childrens faces just made my day and affirmed that this is exactly what needed to happen. It was super encouraging to see them so excited to learn. On Sunday morning they showed up at the rectory at 8:30 to get ready for the 10:00 service. It was a great morning and our numbers at St. Michael's were up. Granted half of the congregation was vested and sitting near the altar (including 4 year old Maesha in her white surplice), but we had 14 people in church, and 2 other children who couldn't make it to our first acolyte training but are going to come back when we practice again!!
From the service I hopped on the James Bus Line to Belize City. While waiting at the bus station I met a young woman about my age named Molly. We chatted while we waited and I found out that she's from Iowa and has been living in Belize for the last two years serving with the Peace Corp. She has one more month left. It was such a blessing to have met her. I sat with her all the way to Belize City, and I honestly will never forget that trip. For the first time all summer I got to sit down with someone and share my experiences with someone, and listen to someone else's stories and experiences. Our experiences were very similar. We talked about the difficulty we had with the culture shock, we talked a lot about the isolation that we felt and how we have found ways of dealing with the lonliness that we feel (ie: excersicing, journaling, traveling, etc). We talked about the stress that we felt in trying to acheive the goals that we set for our time here and the fear we had in dissapointing supervisors. We talked about what our view of success and acheivement was before arriving in Belize and how that view has changed. We talked about some of the aspects of the culture that we like/love (ex: laid backness of the culture, the importance of family and how all businesses are closed on Sunday in order to sit around and be together). The conversation was so refreshing and fulfilling -and the first time I was actually able to openly reflect with someone. I have no doubt in my mind that God sent her to me and I'm so thankful that he did!!
Monday, June 23:
Unfortunately after arriving in Belize City I found out that the Sampson's were not going to be able to go out to the Cayes with me. I was dissapointed, but told them that I was going to go out on my own. I was nervous, I've never traveled by myself. I was worried that I would be so focused on the fact that I had no one to talk to and I would be experiencing everything on my own with that the trip would turn out to be dull and boring. It was the complete opposite.
I left the dock at Belize City at 8:00 and took the 45 minute water taxi ride to Caye Caulker, on of the tourist islands in Belize. Arrived at Caulker by 9:00 and walked around. The island is home to about 1200 locals, and lots of tourists who are visiting. I had my lonely planet Belize book that I had been studying the night before and tried to introduce myself to the village. My first duty: find a snorkeling tour shop and sign up to go snorkeling. It needed to be the first thing I did or else I would have chickened out. So I signed up to go snorkeling, grabbed a quick bite to eat, and was in the water by 11:00. It was a three hour long trip with three stops. First stop: Southern Channel of the Barrier Reef. It was beautiful. I've never snorkeled before and it was a lot earier than I was expecting. We swam through tones of coral. Tones of schools of fish and a gigantic turtle that is rarely seen by the reef. At one point I turned around to make sure I could still see the group I was with, and there were about 15 yellow tail snapper fish following me - they followed me all the way through the reef!! Second stop: Shark Ray Alley. It's a section of sea near the reef that is home to sharks and sting rays. There were no sharks around on Monday which I must admit I was thankful for. There were about 175 sting rays around though. And I got to swim with them. They are so neat....I was floating in the water at one point and this foot long fish with a beak like thing coming out of it's head swam right in front of my face while at the same time a sting ray swam under me and rubbed itself up against my stomach. What a great experience....and definitely my favourite. Third stop: Free for all. We got an hour to snorkel through the coral on our own. I was a bit hesitant, to do it by myself. The waves were a bit stronger at this stop, and they can easily push you into the coral, and I didn't want to chance getting hurt, so I swam around the outside of the reef and enjoyed the fish life from a distance. After that I grabbed a bite and a drink. (Before coming to Belize I read about a drink called a "Panty Ripper" the name made me laugh so I figured I would try it). Very delicious, it's pineapple juice and cocunut rum. From there I found a dock with a little palm branch shelter on it and a hammock, and laid down for a little siesta beforing heading back to the mainland. It was the most refreshing and fulfilling day of my life. And I was by myself the entire time....it was a new experience, and one that I would be happy to have again!!!
Monday: June 24:
Departed from the Belize City Bus Terminal at 10am. Destination: Mango Creek. About 45 minutes into our trip, the bus pulled over to the side to pick someone up and as we stopped, we got into an accident. An SUV of young people rear-ended the bus and part of the hood got stuck under the bus. The police were phoned and we had to wait about 45 minutes for them to show up. They ended up having to hitch a ride with another bus to get to us, because they didn't have a police car to drive. Thankfully no one was hurt and everyone arrived safely to where they were headed.
This week proves to be busy as well. I have to go back up to the city for a meeting with the clergy on Thursday before the Bishop leaves for Lambeth. I've been invited to travel with Dawn Sampson to San Pedro on Friday until Saturday (flight and hotel paid for) and then I will be heading to Placencia to take in the LobsterFest, and lead Sunday service there and back in Mango Creek.
VBS is fast approaching and my home parish in Ponoka raised money and purchased all of the resources we will need for the week. It was just sent on June 23. This may be a weird prayer request, but please pray that the stuff gets here in time. We've been finding that the mail from Alberta to Belize is a bit slower than what we were told. So please pray that we will have received the VBS resources by July 8th.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Friday, June 20, 2008
"Puh, puh, puh, please!!"
I received a phone call yesterday from one of the parishioners in Placencia asking me if I would be willing to make a trip to St. John's to lead a memorial service for a member of the community that died a year ago today. I said yes, and got to planning the service. Miss Lorna was gracious enough to sit down with me and lead me through what a memorial service looked like as she has led a number of them for people who have died in the community. God bless her!
I got to Placencia a bit late and found that the congregation was significantly larger than I was expecting. I figured that the memorial service idea was a last minute thing and that only 3 or 4 people were going to show. I found out just before starting the service that it had been advertised for weeks and so they were expecting a number of people......nerve wracking!! So to calm my nerves I said a quick prayer and began the service. Due to the short notice, I didn't have a whole lot of time to prepare a sermon for the occasion, but knew that I was going to be expected to say something. One of the parishioners got up and said something to the family and shared a couple of memories of the woman. I probably could have moved the service along from there, but something inside of me was pushing me to get up and preach the good news of the resurrection to the congregation and the gift of eternal life that the resurrection gives us. So I did. I've never just stood up and preached without notes before, and I wasn't nervous, I've never felt so calm when standing up in front of a congregation preaching, it was an amazing experience....I have no doubt the Holy Spirit was guiding me through the whole thing - it was apparent to me, I don't know if it was to the congregation, but it defintely was to me.
I returned to Mango Creek and headed to the rectory to pick up my laundry to take over to Miss Lorna's house to do this evening. I grabbed a quick bite to eat, packed up what I would need while waiting for my clothes to wash and dry and headed out the door. I hopped on my bike and just as I made my way to the road I saw 3 familiar little busy bodies running towards me yelling out, "Miss Chelsy, some cold waata (water in Creole)." I turned my bike around and went back to the rectory ran upstairs, grabbed my jug of cold waata, 3 orange glasses that I bought for the kids and met them at the gate. They each took a glass (they love them it makes their waata look orange) and held them out for me to top up. They drank it in about two gulps and then pushed the glasses back at me and said "More." Manners are a bit foreign to the kids down here, so I figured this would be a good time to teach them. I looked at the boys and said, "What do you say?" They looked at me like I three heads and said, "More waata!" "Say please." I said back with a smile. They smiled and said, "Please." And I topped em' up. They drank their glasses in two gulps and pushed the glasses back at me. I looked at them again, and refused to give them more until they said please. I figured I wouldn't have to remind them to say it, we just went through the teaching session...it's fresh in their brain right? WRONG!! They just stood there, with outstreched arm holding their water glasses.....so I decided I would give them a little hint as to what they needed to say in order to get more. I quickly made "p" sounds by saying, "puh, puh, puh?" Nothing..."puh, puh, puh, Please," I said again. They smiled, looked at each other, and said almost simultaneously "puh, puh, puh please more waata!!" I couldn't help but let out the biggest laugh ever as they tilted their heads and smiled at me. So they finished the jug of water off, and descended down the stairs, one of the little boys Ali turned around and said, "Miss Chelsy, some food." I told them I didn't have any food, I just ate the last of my chicken, and as they turned around to walk away they all said, "puh, puh, puh, please!" So my manner lesson turned into a new found game with the boys!! And as they hopped on their bikes I yelled out, "Bye boys!" They yelled back, "Bye girl!" And as they rode away they yelled at the top of their lungs over and over again, "puh, puh, puh, please!!!! It doesn't matter how gloomy a day I'm having, I could be in the worst mood ever because of homesickness or worry, or I could be in a wonderful mood and so thrilled to be having this experience. As soon as I hear those children calling out my name and running up the stairs of the rectory I can't help but be so thankful that they exist. And so thankful that God has given me the chance to see him at work in them. Wonderful blessings!!
Tomorrow will be another full day. I am meeting with a couple of the young children who come to St. Michael's regularly to teach them how to be acolytes. I'm really excited. One of the little boys, Cameron, never sits in the pew. He always comes up and sits on the steps beside where I stand in by the altar and repeats everything that I say.....can you say vocation?!?! And then I will make my way back to Placencia for St. John's Memorial Graduation ceremonies, where I have been invited to close the ceremonies with prayer. I'm pretty pumped!!
Hope all is well. Thank you so much for your thoughts, prayers and encouraging words.
Chelsy
I got to Placencia a bit late and found that the congregation was significantly larger than I was expecting. I figured that the memorial service idea was a last minute thing and that only 3 or 4 people were going to show. I found out just before starting the service that it had been advertised for weeks and so they were expecting a number of people......nerve wracking!! So to calm my nerves I said a quick prayer and began the service. Due to the short notice, I didn't have a whole lot of time to prepare a sermon for the occasion, but knew that I was going to be expected to say something. One of the parishioners got up and said something to the family and shared a couple of memories of the woman. I probably could have moved the service along from there, but something inside of me was pushing me to get up and preach the good news of the resurrection to the congregation and the gift of eternal life that the resurrection gives us. So I did. I've never just stood up and preached without notes before, and I wasn't nervous, I've never felt so calm when standing up in front of a congregation preaching, it was an amazing experience....I have no doubt the Holy Spirit was guiding me through the whole thing - it was apparent to me, I don't know if it was to the congregation, but it defintely was to me.
I returned to Mango Creek and headed to the rectory to pick up my laundry to take over to Miss Lorna's house to do this evening. I grabbed a quick bite to eat, packed up what I would need while waiting for my clothes to wash and dry and headed out the door. I hopped on my bike and just as I made my way to the road I saw 3 familiar little busy bodies running towards me yelling out, "Miss Chelsy, some cold waata (water in Creole)." I turned my bike around and went back to the rectory ran upstairs, grabbed my jug of cold waata, 3 orange glasses that I bought for the kids and met them at the gate. They each took a glass (they love them it makes their waata look orange) and held them out for me to top up. They drank it in about two gulps and then pushed the glasses back at me and said "More." Manners are a bit foreign to the kids down here, so I figured this would be a good time to teach them. I looked at the boys and said, "What do you say?" They looked at me like I three heads and said, "More waata!" "Say please." I said back with a smile. They smiled and said, "Please." And I topped em' up. They drank their glasses in two gulps and pushed the glasses back at me. I looked at them again, and refused to give them more until they said please. I figured I wouldn't have to remind them to say it, we just went through the teaching session...it's fresh in their brain right? WRONG!! They just stood there, with outstreched arm holding their water glasses.....so I decided I would give them a little hint as to what they needed to say in order to get more. I quickly made "p" sounds by saying, "puh, puh, puh?" Nothing..."puh, puh, puh, Please," I said again. They smiled, looked at each other, and said almost simultaneously "puh, puh, puh please more waata!!" I couldn't help but let out the biggest laugh ever as they tilted their heads and smiled at me. So they finished the jug of water off, and descended down the stairs, one of the little boys Ali turned around and said, "Miss Chelsy, some food." I told them I didn't have any food, I just ate the last of my chicken, and as they turned around to walk away they all said, "puh, puh, puh, please!" So my manner lesson turned into a new found game with the boys!! And as they hopped on their bikes I yelled out, "Bye boys!" They yelled back, "Bye girl!" And as they rode away they yelled at the top of their lungs over and over again, "puh, puh, puh, please!!!! It doesn't matter how gloomy a day I'm having, I could be in the worst mood ever because of homesickness or worry, or I could be in a wonderful mood and so thrilled to be having this experience. As soon as I hear those children calling out my name and running up the stairs of the rectory I can't help but be so thankful that they exist. And so thankful that God has given me the chance to see him at work in them. Wonderful blessings!!
Tomorrow will be another full day. I am meeting with a couple of the young children who come to St. Michael's regularly to teach them how to be acolytes. I'm really excited. One of the little boys, Cameron, never sits in the pew. He always comes up and sits on the steps beside where I stand in by the altar and repeats everything that I say.....can you say vocation?!?! And then I will make my way back to Placencia for St. John's Memorial Graduation ceremonies, where I have been invited to close the ceremonies with prayer. I'm pretty pumped!!
Hope all is well. Thank you so much for your thoughts, prayers and encouraging words.
Chelsy
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Ministry to Belizean Men!
Another week has gone by and this puts me at 6 full weeks of living in Belize. I'm realizing that the time is beginning to slip away, and the next 6 weeks are going to come and go faster than I think they are. So I've been trying to take in as much of the community as possible with that in mind.
This time of the month is graduation time as I'm sure it is everywhere!! I was invited to a graduation ceremony for the Independence Primary School last night. On Wednesday I received an invitation inviting me to the ceremony. I was tickled pink to go. I got myself ready showed up at the Senter, with every intention of making my way to the back to find an empty seat. To my surprise I turned out to be one of the distinguished guest for the evening, I sat among some of the Town Council Members, and Board Members. My chair even had my name on it. I was blown away, to have been thought of as a distinguished member for the ceremony. I don't think I stopped smiling last night. There were 75 graduates, graduating from Standard 6 level which is the equivilent of Grade 8, which means they will be applying to highschools next year. What a wonderful bunch of young people, so vibrant and gifted. I didn't know all of them, but was so proud of each and everyone of them. Each child that got up to speak (3 in total) first foremost thanked God for his guidance in their journey through primary school. It was so encouraging to hear them as they thank God for blessing them with this accomplishment. Inspirational!!
Because of the work that I've been doing with the St. John's Anglican School in Placencia, I will also be at their graduation next week which I'm excited about, as I know a number of the young people due to my weekly visits!!
I've been diligently following and reading my Day By Day devotional this summer. I usually start my day out by reading scripture, the reflection and then praying. It's been wonderful, as many of the sciptures and reflections have tied into my ministry down here and help me to reflect on my ministry daily, it's something that I've been finding difficult to do without a supervisor. One of the appointed readings for yesterday was that of the Transfiguration. An event where Peter, James and John go up a mountain with Jesus and experience a moment in which they get a glimpse of Jesus as they have never seen before and ultimately are given a glimpse of God's presence. I was blessed to have couple of really precious moments today in which I was given the opportunity to acnknowledge glimpses of God's presence. Glimmer #1: I was walking to the Hokey Pokey (Water Taxi) this morning (6:30) to catch the boat to lead service at Placencia. On my way down the road, one of the taxi drivers, who I have gotten to know over many games of Domino's at the water taxi shelter, offered me free ride. On our two minute ride he told me that he wanted to change the way he was living his life and he want to live a life with Jesus. I was so excited for him to be taking this step and encouraged him in his decision to give his life to God. He ended up having to run to pick up some other folks, and my taxi was about to take off, so we didn't get much of a chance to talk. I told him that I would love to talk to him about his decision, and that I would pray for him. He seemed eager to set up a time to meet again. I have a feeling our discussion will be over a few games of Dominos. Glimmer #2: As I got off of the water taxi I started down the main street of Placencia toward St. John's. I've gotten to know a man by the name of Omar who owns a resturaunt and guest house beside the rectory. We've had some great conversations over Snapper Fish and O.J. Anyway he just opened up another resturaunt on the main street of Placencia, it opened this morning. It's a bright pink and green building, you can't miss it. I was making my way down the street when all of a sudden I hear "Hey baby, you want a coffee? It's the grand opening of my shop!! Come on in, can I get you a coffee? You'll be the resturaunts second customer!" He gave me a hug and kissed my cheek as he guided me onto the patio of his new resturaunt. I ordered myself a Lime Juice. Omar was beaming, he was so excited. As I waited for my juice he turned to me and said, "Chelsy, would you please pray for my resturaunt and for me?" I was taken off guard as I was in the middle of putting down my bags. I said sure, and before I could put everything down, every man in the resturaunt stopped what they were doing, and bowed there heads to pray with me. It was AWESOME!!! Glimmer #3: I finished the service at St. Michael's, which went really well (8 people in church today YAY!!) and decided that I was going to hang out at the Triangular Park down the street from the rectory and read and hang out. So I greased myself up with Sunscreen, grabbed a book and claimed a park bench. I was starting to get extremely hot, so went to leave when I heard someone greeting me. I turned around and there were a group of 4 or 5 men sitting under a tent barbecuing chicken and hanging out listening to music. They invited me over to sit with them, I introduced myself to them and we had a great 2 hour long conversation over wicked barbecue and beer!!
I've been noticing over the last couple of weeks that ministry is arising among a lot of men in the village. I'm aware that some of them only talk to me because I'm white and figure they can convince to take them back to Canada with me. But there are a number of them who are genuinely interested in what I'm doing in Belize, and why I've decided to answer God's call to ordained ministry. It's been a really neat experience, an experience that I'm not used to. In Canada, my ministry seemed to gravitate toward women's stuff, because I'm a woman. It's been a great new experience, one that I've had to get used to mainly because men don't come to church down here, yet it's the ment that I'm having religious conversations with. There are moments where I can get pretty embarrassed, with some of the conversations. Example?!?! I was walking down the street and a guy, about 50 or so, stopped me, introduced himself to me, when he found out I was working at the Anglican Church his first response was "You work at the church? I think I might have to become a Christian!" I chuckled, told him when the services in Mango Creek were, and headed on my way. He never did show...oh well. It's been a joy getting to know the people here!!
Our plans for VBS are continuing, it's been a bit of a frustrating week for me, as we've been trying as a congregation to figure out how we can reach out to all children- anglican, non-anglican, christian, non-christian. But we need to be careful because come July 8 it's likely we could have 300 - 400 children at the church which would be a wonderful turn out - but unfortunatley we don't have the resources or the volunteers. I'm praying lots about it, and with the congregation discerning ways in which we can be hospitable to everyone who comes. I'll keep you posted!!! In the mean time, continue to pray for the VBS as it approaches. Pray for the children who are called to attend, and for the volunteers!
This time of the month is graduation time as I'm sure it is everywhere!! I was invited to a graduation ceremony for the Independence Primary School last night. On Wednesday I received an invitation inviting me to the ceremony. I was tickled pink to go. I got myself ready showed up at the Senter, with every intention of making my way to the back to find an empty seat. To my surprise I turned out to be one of the distinguished guest for the evening, I sat among some of the Town Council Members, and Board Members. My chair even had my name on it. I was blown away, to have been thought of as a distinguished member for the ceremony. I don't think I stopped smiling last night. There were 75 graduates, graduating from Standard 6 level which is the equivilent of Grade 8, which means they will be applying to highschools next year. What a wonderful bunch of young people, so vibrant and gifted. I didn't know all of them, but was so proud of each and everyone of them. Each child that got up to speak (3 in total) first foremost thanked God for his guidance in their journey through primary school. It was so encouraging to hear them as they thank God for blessing them with this accomplishment. Inspirational!!
Because of the work that I've been doing with the St. John's Anglican School in Placencia, I will also be at their graduation next week which I'm excited about, as I know a number of the young people due to my weekly visits!!
I've been diligently following and reading my Day By Day devotional this summer. I usually start my day out by reading scripture, the reflection and then praying. It's been wonderful, as many of the sciptures and reflections have tied into my ministry down here and help me to reflect on my ministry daily, it's something that I've been finding difficult to do without a supervisor. One of the appointed readings for yesterday was that of the Transfiguration. An event where Peter, James and John go up a mountain with Jesus and experience a moment in which they get a glimpse of Jesus as they have never seen before and ultimately are given a glimpse of God's presence. I was blessed to have couple of really precious moments today in which I was given the opportunity to acnknowledge glimpses of God's presence. Glimmer #1: I was walking to the Hokey Pokey (Water Taxi) this morning (6:30) to catch the boat to lead service at Placencia. On my way down the road, one of the taxi drivers, who I have gotten to know over many games of Domino's at the water taxi shelter, offered me free ride. On our two minute ride he told me that he wanted to change the way he was living his life and he want to live a life with Jesus. I was so excited for him to be taking this step and encouraged him in his decision to give his life to God. He ended up having to run to pick up some other folks, and my taxi was about to take off, so we didn't get much of a chance to talk. I told him that I would love to talk to him about his decision, and that I would pray for him. He seemed eager to set up a time to meet again. I have a feeling our discussion will be over a few games of Dominos. Glimmer #2: As I got off of the water taxi I started down the main street of Placencia toward St. John's. I've gotten to know a man by the name of Omar who owns a resturaunt and guest house beside the rectory. We've had some great conversations over Snapper Fish and O.J. Anyway he just opened up another resturaunt on the main street of Placencia, it opened this morning. It's a bright pink and green building, you can't miss it. I was making my way down the street when all of a sudden I hear "Hey baby, you want a coffee? It's the grand opening of my shop!! Come on in, can I get you a coffee? You'll be the resturaunts second customer!" He gave me a hug and kissed my cheek as he guided me onto the patio of his new resturaunt. I ordered myself a Lime Juice. Omar was beaming, he was so excited. As I waited for my juice he turned to me and said, "Chelsy, would you please pray for my resturaunt and for me?" I was taken off guard as I was in the middle of putting down my bags. I said sure, and before I could put everything down, every man in the resturaunt stopped what they were doing, and bowed there heads to pray with me. It was AWESOME!!! Glimmer #3: I finished the service at St. Michael's, which went really well (8 people in church today YAY!!) and decided that I was going to hang out at the Triangular Park down the street from the rectory and read and hang out. So I greased myself up with Sunscreen, grabbed a book and claimed a park bench. I was starting to get extremely hot, so went to leave when I heard someone greeting me. I turned around and there were a group of 4 or 5 men sitting under a tent barbecuing chicken and hanging out listening to music. They invited me over to sit with them, I introduced myself to them and we had a great 2 hour long conversation over wicked barbecue and beer!!
I've been noticing over the last couple of weeks that ministry is arising among a lot of men in the village. I'm aware that some of them only talk to me because I'm white and figure they can convince to take them back to Canada with me. But there are a number of them who are genuinely interested in what I'm doing in Belize, and why I've decided to answer God's call to ordained ministry. It's been a really neat experience, an experience that I'm not used to. In Canada, my ministry seemed to gravitate toward women's stuff, because I'm a woman. It's been a great new experience, one that I've had to get used to mainly because men don't come to church down here, yet it's the ment that I'm having religious conversations with. There are moments where I can get pretty embarrassed, with some of the conversations. Example?!?! I was walking down the street and a guy, about 50 or so, stopped me, introduced himself to me, when he found out I was working at the Anglican Church his first response was "You work at the church? I think I might have to become a Christian!" I chuckled, told him when the services in Mango Creek were, and headed on my way. He never did show...oh well. It's been a joy getting to know the people here!!
Our plans for VBS are continuing, it's been a bit of a frustrating week for me, as we've been trying as a congregation to figure out how we can reach out to all children- anglican, non-anglican, christian, non-christian. But we need to be careful because come July 8 it's likely we could have 300 - 400 children at the church which would be a wonderful turn out - but unfortunatley we don't have the resources or the volunteers. I'm praying lots about it, and with the congregation discerning ways in which we can be hospitable to everyone who comes. I'll keep you posted!!! In the mean time, continue to pray for the VBS as it approaches. Pray for the children who are called to attend, and for the volunteers!
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
I just got back into Mango Creek late this afternoon from a trip up to Belize City for my day off. I spent my time with the Sampsons again. I had planned to take this trip about a week ago, that was before all of the flooding happened and the Kendal Bridge at Sittee River was destroyed. So I had planned to fly up to the city. As my day off crept closer I grew a bit weary of paying so much to spend one day in the city. So I phoned the James Bus Line to see what was up and if they were still running. They were. So on Monday late morning I jumped on the school bus and made my way north. We came to Sittee River where the Kendal Bridge used to be. We all got off the boat, walked down to the shore banks of the river that you could tell was hundereds of meters higher days ago. 25 of us were put in a dory boat and boated across the river. As I looked around I saw locals standing at the edge of the road where the bridge used to be, and all they could do was look across, they all looked absolutely stunned at the damage. The people in the boat with me were terrified to cross the river, they worried that something unexpected would happen on our 2 minute ride across the river. I don't blame them for being scared, the damage that the floods caused is definitely a scary matter. We made it safely across the river to the north side of Kendal and we waited about 20 minutes for the next bus to pick us up. As we drove along the highway I saw Orange Trees completely destroyed. It looked like someone had picked them up effortlessly and broke them as if they were twigs. I had no idea water could be so destructive. What I saw on the highway was only a small glimpse of what happened. I'm sure had I ventured off road I would have been witness to much more destruction and devastation. After arriving in Belize City, I found out from Lorna that she accomponied Bishop Writght on the weekend to Gales Point, Hope Creek and Sittee River to drop off care packages for the victims. The water level has receeded which is a blessing, and now residents are working at cleaning out their homes. The flood brought with it a lot of mud, 2 - 5 inches and victims have been spending most of their days washing out the remains of their homes and belongings of the mud. The month of June brings with it rain, usually at night, and then sun during the day. I'm praying that the rains do not cause more flooding damages just as the victims start to get their lives semi back on track.
After popping in to see the staff and Bishop at the Diocesan Office for a quick visit, I traveled to Belmopan the capital of Belize on Monday with the Sampsons. And I have to admit, my entire trip I was a big grouch. I was a bit tired, but usually being tired doesn't effect me the way it was on Monday. Everything the Sampsons would talk to me about, I would have some negative thought go through my head and it was driving me nuts. I was pulling off being polite, but really, I just wanted to be quiet for a while and be by myself. So after we got home I called it a night and was asleep by 9:00. I woke up this morning and decided last minute that I was going to stay in the city for a few extra hours so that I could take in a service at the Cathedral. Best decision I have made all summer. It was so wonderful to be able to sit in the pew, listen to the readings, listen to the sermon and participate in the service as everyone does without having to lead it. It was so nice to receive the sacrament and pray with the community not as the person in charge. After the service I told Lorna that I was feeling really Spiritually Satisfied - it was the only way I could explain the energy I had after the service. I've become aware of the fact that as a clergy person part of my vocation is to lead others in worship and spiritually feed them in the worship through the sacrament and preaching etc. But I also need to be aware of my spiritual needs and the fact that I need the opportunity to be spiritually fed as well. I don't know how often I will be able to make it to services that I'm not leading where I can just go to worship, but I'm sure that through prayer and patience I will find a parish near Mango Creek that I can visit one weekday afternoon. That being said, it may not happen, which means I need to be praying about ways that I "spiritually satisfy" myself. I'll keep you posted.
I joined the Bishop and 2 missionaries from Fort Worth, TX who were down to visit Belize and discuss a potential summer mission with the Bishop for lunch. It was a wonderful aftenoon full of lots of laughter and....well....we laughed a lot! From there Lorna Sampson had me drive while we ran errands. I can proudly say that I surivived driving in Belize City where the roads are super narrow and full of pot-holes, people don't stop at stop signs, people cut you off, bicycles dodge in front of you or hold on to the back of your vehicle so that they don't have to work so hard in the heat, police officers pull you over to check your insurance (yip it happended to me today), and it's just basically chaos....and it was so neat to. I must admit, I loved it!! It's definitely an interesting experience to be a driver in this country, VERY different from Canada. Toronto drivers are angels when compared to drivers in Belize!
I head out to Placencia tomorrow morning for a service and then will spend some more time at IPS, next week is the last week with exams happening. It will be weird not having the school to fill my days. I'm happy to report that St. Michael and All Angels will be holding a VBS this summer for 3 days from July 8 - 10. We're just waiting to hear about potential funding for supplies and hope to advertise and invite a number of Anglican children in the village to attend. We're also hoping to ask some of our youth to help out as counselors. I'm really excited about this and pray that God will be present in our planning and in our ministry. Please keep this important ministry in your prayers. Pray that we will be able to reach out to children and share the Gospel with them, pray that they will encounter the love of Jesus through this ministry and ultimately that seeds will be planted and that future ministry will nurture those seeds and allow them to grow.
In Communion,
Chelsy
After popping in to see the staff and Bishop at the Diocesan Office for a quick visit, I traveled to Belmopan the capital of Belize on Monday with the Sampsons. And I have to admit, my entire trip I was a big grouch. I was a bit tired, but usually being tired doesn't effect me the way it was on Monday. Everything the Sampsons would talk to me about, I would have some negative thought go through my head and it was driving me nuts. I was pulling off being polite, but really, I just wanted to be quiet for a while and be by myself. So after we got home I called it a night and was asleep by 9:00. I woke up this morning and decided last minute that I was going to stay in the city for a few extra hours so that I could take in a service at the Cathedral. Best decision I have made all summer. It was so wonderful to be able to sit in the pew, listen to the readings, listen to the sermon and participate in the service as everyone does without having to lead it. It was so nice to receive the sacrament and pray with the community not as the person in charge. After the service I told Lorna that I was feeling really Spiritually Satisfied - it was the only way I could explain the energy I had after the service. I've become aware of the fact that as a clergy person part of my vocation is to lead others in worship and spiritually feed them in the worship through the sacrament and preaching etc. But I also need to be aware of my spiritual needs and the fact that I need the opportunity to be spiritually fed as well. I don't know how often I will be able to make it to services that I'm not leading where I can just go to worship, but I'm sure that through prayer and patience I will find a parish near Mango Creek that I can visit one weekday afternoon. That being said, it may not happen, which means I need to be praying about ways that I "spiritually satisfy" myself. I'll keep you posted.
I joined the Bishop and 2 missionaries from Fort Worth, TX who were down to visit Belize and discuss a potential summer mission with the Bishop for lunch. It was a wonderful aftenoon full of lots of laughter and....well....we laughed a lot! From there Lorna Sampson had me drive while we ran errands. I can proudly say that I surivived driving in Belize City where the roads are super narrow and full of pot-holes, people don't stop at stop signs, people cut you off, bicycles dodge in front of you or hold on to the back of your vehicle so that they don't have to work so hard in the heat, police officers pull you over to check your insurance (yip it happended to me today), and it's just basically chaos....and it was so neat to. I must admit, I loved it!! It's definitely an interesting experience to be a driver in this country, VERY different from Canada. Toronto drivers are angels when compared to drivers in Belize!
I head out to Placencia tomorrow morning for a service and then will spend some more time at IPS, next week is the last week with exams happening. It will be weird not having the school to fill my days. I'm happy to report that St. Michael and All Angels will be holding a VBS this summer for 3 days from July 8 - 10. We're just waiting to hear about potential funding for supplies and hope to advertise and invite a number of Anglican children in the village to attend. We're also hoping to ask some of our youth to help out as counselors. I'm really excited about this and pray that God will be present in our planning and in our ministry. Please keep this important ministry in your prayers. Pray that we will be able to reach out to children and share the Gospel with them, pray that they will encounter the love of Jesus through this ministry and ultimately that seeds will be planted and that future ministry will nurture those seeds and allow them to grow.
In Communion,
Chelsy
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Mango Creek fundraises for the Victims of the recent floods
I've really been struggling the last couple of days. It's been really hard for me to be so close (35 miles) to the devastation of the flooding, and to have no way of helping. I've really been struggling with how helpless I have been feeling. It's been a hard couple of days. So I ventured over to the Primary School, and stuck around for about an hour after school let out, and it was wonderful. All of the children at the primary school and teachers were asked to bring either food or clothing donations for the victims of the flooding. The village of Mango Creek was also asked to bring any donations to the primary school to be sorted out. So I helped sort the items and was truly blessed as I worked with 20 of the teachers and a number of students sorting out clothes, and putting together food hampers. It was so wonderful to be working together as One Body and acting out our calling to mission together.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Pictures from the Tropical Storms Alma and Arthur
Here are a few pictures I found of the aftermath of Alma and Arthur
The Village of Gales Point
Sittee River is home to one of them men who drowned in the flood.
Thi is the remains of the Kendal Bridge. It's the major bridge that runs along the major highway that allows traffic to get into the southern part of the country where Mango Creek is located.
Please be praying for the people in these villages and the people throughout the country that were not affected as brutally by the storm. May the love of Christ be reflected in our repsponses, and may the victims of the flood know the love, comfort and peace of God at this devastating time.
The Village of Gales Point
Sittee River is home to one of them men who drowned in the flood.
Thi is the remains of the Kendal Bridge. It's the major bridge that runs along the major highway that allows traffic to get into the southern part of the country where Mango Creek is located.
Please be praying for the people in these villages and the people throughout the country that were not affected as brutally by the storm. May the love of Christ be reflected in our repsponses, and may the victims of the flood know the love, comfort and peace of God at this devastating time.
Tropical Storm Arthur
Over the last 5 days, the country of Belize has been rained upon. The Tropcial Storm Arthur (not a hurricane) has situated itself just outside of Placencia and has brought a lot of water with it. It's result, the northern parts of Belize from north Stann Creek up to Corozal (just south of Mexico) has been affected with flash flooding. I believe to date, 8 people have died, and many many families have lost everything. The Kendal Bridge, which is one of the main bridges on the main highway in Belize has been swept away, making transporation from the flooded areas impossible to get out of. A large number of people have been airlifted out of their communities and are safe, thanks be to God. But the damage fromthese floods is tremendous. Thankfully Mango Creek is above sea level and has not experienced any flooding and will not as the rains have stopped. I ask that you please hold the country of Belize in your prayers this week as those who have not been affected by the floods, step up and provide aide to those families who have lost everything. Pray for those families who have lost loved ones in the flood, and pray for the families who have lost all of their belongings. Pray for comfort, and peace as we work together to support one another.
The village of Mango Creek, started collecting food and clothing to be sent to those affected byt he flood. It's amazing to see God at work through the people here and the speed at which they have responded.
I will keep you posted as to the progress of the clean up of the communities affected and the bridge that needs to be rebuilt in order for food from the city to be tranported to villages throughout the country, such as Mango Creek. Please keep us in your prayers!
In Communion,
Chelsy
The village of Mango Creek, started collecting food and clothing to be sent to those affected byt he flood. It's amazing to see God at work through the people here and the speed at which they have responded.
I will keep you posted as to the progress of the clean up of the communities affected and the bridge that needs to be rebuilt in order for food from the city to be tranported to villages throughout the country, such as Mango Creek. Please keep us in your prayers!
In Communion,
Chelsy
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