Is anything too hard for the Lord?

Jamaica is a land of beautiful mountains, swaying palm trees, and breathtakingwaters. It is also an island known to be blessed with many churches and cursed with many bars. Rum, marijuana, and Rastafarianism have ravaged the people and many have found the devil to be a ruthless tax master. You can't walk very far without noticing the down and out, so consumed by their sin that they stumble to walk and some lie on the ground in their drunken state. We are indeed a country of contrasts between great grandeur and grave sin.

This last month has provided us with two opportunities for service that have burdened our hearts deeply here in Jamaica. One of these I will share in this blog.

Along with a group from Gospel Baptist of Greensboro, NC, we were privileged to go into Canterbury, considered to be the most violent area of Montego Bay. Our friends from Gospel have been to Jamaica twice previously to work short term in this squatters community. Their purpose in coming this time was solely humanitarian, to meet the physical needs of a people who seemingly have failed miserably at helping themselves. Cletis and I merely went along with them (as all the locals had many times warned us NOT to venture into this area alone) to meet some of the people and begin to establish an avenue of trust among them. To say that their plight is desperate would be an understatement. You can only enter Canterbury at the invitation of one who lives there and then only in daylight. The night hours are often riddled with gang warfare (three warring factions), gunfire, and useless killings. As we enter in we have to cross over the bridge where we pass the "wall of death". Here you find the pictures of those who have died painted on a cinderblock wall. The faces of the dead are strikingly young and your heart hurts for these families. At the entrance you also notice piles of trash and at times the smells coming from within the squatters homes rivals the odor coming from the garbage here on the outside. The stench is only made bearable by the sounds of the young children all around who are laughing and playing. As we walk in further we come upon some of the young men of the community who are glad we are here. They recognize their friends from Gospel and greet us warmly. All seems normal here except we immediately notice the unmistakable aroma of marijuana and the all too familiar smell of rum. A small crowd gathers as we begin to distribute the clothing, shoes, and toiletries and at once the grabbing begins, all trying to make sure there is something there for them. As we gaze into the eyes of the little ones our hearts are broken that we can't do more, anything just to make life one minute better for these little ones. We have quickly realized the monumental task it will be to meet even the slightest of their physical needs. As we hand out the childrens gospel booklets we stand back and watch as the adults also take the literature and lean back against the wall to read it for themselves. "Suffer the little children to come unto me and forbid them not for of such is the kingdom of God" Matthew 19:14. Our hearts are then warmed as we walk up the steep hill to the house of a dear old saint of God who has for years interceded in prayer for the salvation of her people and the demise of the satanic forces at work to destroy them. We smile as she takes the pretty pink dress brought in for her, holds it up to herself, and says she will wear it to church. As we venture back down the hill and towards the entrance we can't help but wonder who will still be here the next time we come? Which of these young people will have their face painted on the wall at the entrance of Canterbury? This is the kind of day that leaves a missionary feeling overwhelmed, undone, and somewhat bewildered. We have heard from some that Canterbury is "unredeemable", beyond hope.

This sort of opportunity for ministry is all around us in Jamaica. There is a clear and present danger known all too well by the locals here in reaching out to those some consider to be the lowest of the low. Cletis and I have spent much time discussing our time in Canterbury and balancing their need for physical nourishment ("For whosoever shall give a cup of water to drink in my name..." Mark 9:41) with their need for spiritual food and ultimately regeneration in Christ. As missionaries we find ourselves always looking to find balance. Is Canterbury truly "unredeemable"? No doubt there are those who have stiffened their necks and hardened their hearts and have been turned over to their fleshly desires. There is also a generation of young children whose only hope for a future are those who dare to cross over the wall of death and bring the message of life everlasting. Is there anything too hard for God? "The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men consider slackness; but is longsuffering to usward, not willing that ANY should perish but that ALL should come to repentance." II Peter 3:9

EVEN CANTERBURY!