not what you might think...

Most people don't realize how high the crime rates are in The Bahamas.  Because it is a VERY small country...only about 319,000 people total among the 8 or so inhabited islands.  The Bahamas' 2011 murder count was 127, with 110 of those murders taking place on our small 21x7 mile island of approx. 250,000 people.  That's about 1 murder for every square mile of this island or one murder for every 2200 people.   Three weeks ago, one of those murders hit home for one of our church members.  Patrice, a lovely single lady who has served us faithfully in the area of childcare, received a call on Tuesday, April 24th telling her that Don Newbold, her brother in law, was murdered around 1 pm that afternoon, shot several times and left dead in his vehicle on a road paralleling a major road here in Nassau.  He left behind some older children, a wife and 22 month old son.  We thank God that Don knew his Savior, but the loss is great.

 At the funeral, nobody seemed all that shocked that Don's death was a murderous one.  That's not because Don dealt with dangerous people, quite the contrary, but because murder has become so common here.  The Bahamas' death rate was 6.91 per 1,000 people in 2012, so based on the murder numbers, which are on the rise, one in 14 deaths here every year (and rising) is a murder.  Most of these murders are related to the drug trafficking.  Home invasions, petty theft, rape, human trafficking, drug trafficking, armed robbery, and murder are all on the rise here at an alarming rate.  Just in the 10 months we have been here, 2 women in our church had attempted home invasions, and 2 more woman had car break-ins in our church parking lot.  A few weeks ago at a playground on the beach, my purse was ransacked while it was out of my eyesight.  I only lost a camera and $30, but it was a disturbing occurence when I realized what had happened.

 Now one church member has a murder in her family.  Kingdom Life Church is just a small piece of the Nassau pie, representing about 100 total people.  The people of The Bahamas are in general, a peaceful, hospitable, friendly people.  They are not violent.  But now they are concerned for their country.  Many church members can recall the days when nobody locked their doors, when young people answered with "yes ma'am, no ma'am" and The Bahamas was a welcoming place to live.  Today people stay behind their gated walls, bars over their windows and security alarms turned on, even when it is daytime and they are inside the house.   It has slowly occurred to us that the reason you will never find a "24-hour" store here is because the crime at night would keep people from shopping anyway and most people won't venture out at night unnecessarily.  Such are the realities here in "paradise."  We are reminded that for all the beauty of the beaches and palm trees most people love and enjoy, there is an equally formidable darkness at work.  We pray that God will begin to mightily save the souls of men here in this country.  We pray He will protect His church from violence.  We pray the children here will grow up knowing the love of Christ and will become a generation of change for this country.  Our times are in His hands.

Mother's Day Brunch

Just back from our Ladies' event, a Mother's Day Brunch which was held from 11am-1pm today.  Grace and I were handling the decorating for the event...which according to Grace turned out WAY simpler than usual.  I, however, thought it was more decorated than most ladies' events I've been to!  Lots of work and love went into this day, so I thought I'd give you a peek into our church life.

our lovely ceiling focal point

we used teapots for each centerpiece

Grace (who is also our church secretary) and I started decorating on Wednesday.  Lots of hours went into trying to string these lights, tulle, and balloons!  Next year, we will be using what we learned from the process to make things run more smoothly.

a view into our room

A few ladies in the church willingly loaned their teapots for us to fill with flowers and use as our centerpieces.  I think they turned out beautifully, don't you?


the girls rehearsing a "tribute

to mother"

Keva, in the black and white, was our guest of honor

 To add many dimensions to our program, Alexine, Cedric's wife (affectionately called "Sister Alexine" by our children) had the young ladies prepare a M-O-T-H-E-R acrostic tribute where each one spoke a word of honor to our mothers.  We also had a musical piece, "You Raise Me Up," sung by our young ladies in two-part harmony, a short devotional by Alexine, a reading of a poem (written by yours truly) and a time of paying honor to our own Keva Poitier.  In another post I've written of Keva, who has been an exemplary sister in Christ, daughter, and mother despite the very difficult trials God has brought her through.  She has spent about two months of this new year in the hospital so far, yet continues to praise God and relish every moment she gets to be with God's people.


Kendall and her friends Darnell and Jada

We had about 60 ladies in attendance, a good portion of which were family of members or recent attendees at our new "Alternatives" class on Tuesday mornings.  Hopefully gospel connections were made amidst the food and socializing of this event.  We are beginning to see God answer our prayer to "bring the lost to our doorstep."  Please continue to pray that we will impact this community for Christ.  There is an estimate of 1,200 churches on this 21x7 mile island, but many of them are preaching "another gospel."  Health, wealth, and prosperity is not the good news.  Being set free from our sin and God's wrath is.  Pray that our little church will be faithful to make it known.

when answers come

I know God has always been answering our prayers in some form.  However, it would seem in the months we've lived here in Nassau, God has answered in faster and bigger ways than we have previously experienced.  Or perhaps, as we grow in the area of gratitude, we are simply more aware?

Yesterday the fruition of prayers both simple and complex seemed to surface.  The simple? Friends who stayed a few days with us told us they were "leaving the ipod touch...5th generation" for us to keep.  Shocked, stunned, overwhelmed were we.  Just a month ago, Kristin had her purse ransacked and lost her camera.  Not a great camera, but it was all she had.  So she prayed for a replacement of some kind.  She's also been praying for some way to video some of the church happenings here so that we could share them on facebook or the blog...  And how does God answer?  By bringing these generous friends to us and putting it on their hearts to leave their nearly-new ipod with us.  We are blessed beyond words!  Thank you Anthony and Yvette Rood!!

Secondly, on Sunday, our lead pastor was away and Keith was preaching.  During our worship time, Eduardo, the security guard who often watches over our parking lot at Kingdom life, walks in and joins us.  We have gotten to know this young man, given him a book on the gospel to read, taken him food while he's on duty, given him rides home, and prayed for him.  Eduardo is a Jehovah's Witness.  But he came to our church on Sunday where he heard the gospel very clearly preached.  Last night at monthly prayer, it struck me that for months we've been praying for God to help us evangelize.  One particular prayer I remember praying was, "Lord, we don't have any fancy strategies for how to do this evangelism well, but you can simply bring people to our doors to hear the gospel.  Would you do that Lord?"  Just as I was sharing this with another friend, Eduardo walked in again to let us know he was heading home from being on guard.  We all waved goodbye to him.  I turned to my friend and said, "God brought Eduardo to our door."

We never know what God is planning.  But prayer is the key that unlocks our hearts to be conformed to God's ways.  As we pray in His will, to His ends, He delights to answer as he sees fit.  We are learning so much about prayer.  And we are challenged to pray more, pray endlessly, pray big.  God help us to have enlarged vision as we pray for Your kindgom to come on this earth!

my take on a Bahamian dish

Food is a large part of life in our church.  Every care group meeting begins with a meal together, provided by the care group members.  Truthfully, there are times when this burdens me because my cooking is SO American and doesn't always get the rave reviews here that it might get back in the U.S. (I'm being sarcastic here...).  But one recipe that I found a few months ago on a blog I follow (by a Texan mom living in Massachusetts of all places) is Coconut Crockpot Chicken Curry.  It is tasty, and I've served it twice now to out Bahamian friends here with much success.  I thought I'd share it with you!  www.glutenfreekrums.blogspot.com is the origin for this.

Coconut Crockpot Chicken Curry

4-6 chicken breasts (I use skinless, boneless) cooked and diced
4-6 red potatoes (I peel mine due to texture issues)
4-6 carrots diced
1/2 to 1 whole onion (I never use more than a 1/2) diced
4 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
1 tsp. salt
1/1 to 1 tsp. pepper
6 tsp. yellow curry
2 cans of coconut milk

Directions: bake chicken for 30 min. at 350 degrees...in the meantime, prepare all the veggies.
When chicken is cooked, dice and add ingredients to crockpot.  Cook on low 5-6 hours or on high for 3. (I always do the former).
Serve over hot cooked rice (Good with Basmati or Jasmine rice)

Enjoy!  It's easy, healthy, and Bahamian-approved!

off to the races (or, time is flying)

Weeks have passed here at "life on 21/7" and no blogging to speak of.  Well, if you check out Kristin's personal blog, www.buntingnest.blogspot.com you will find some tidbits.  Ministry life at a small church is running at top-speed, it would seem.  Currently we are involved in planning/attending several things including:

• Alternatives...every Tuesday morning from 10am---? (Last week the last attendee left at 3pm)  This is an outreach to the community for those who are unemployed and need help with applying for jobs/filling out resumes, advice on how to interview, etc.  Last Tuesday, our first week, we had 15 in attendance...all of whom were complete strangers to Kingdom Life.  We had people who are literally living in their vehicles at the beach (including children) as well as people who were recently laid off from high--paying jobs in the off-shore banking industry.  This week we may have perhaps as many as 25.  Please pray for us as we are seriously outnumbered and want to help each person as much as possible!
• The Ladies' Brunch ...this is our Mother's Day activity, taking place on Sat. May11th.  Kristin is helping with planning/decorating and a tribute to one specific mother in our church while Keith is rehearsing a group of young ladies to present a song for the mothers.
• Weekly Care Group at our home...each Wednesday we meet, always beginning with a meal.  We currently have 7 adults and 6 children who attend.
• Monthly hosting of students from College of the Bahamas...every 4-6 weeks we host the group of college students for a Sunday meal, followed by a care-group-like discussion and prayer, then we transport them back to their dorms.
• Weekly worship team rehearsals...Thursday nights 7:30-9ish. 
• Counter-culture meetings each Friday night (Youth Group) 7:30-9:30 ish.
• Monthly Prayer meeting...First Monday night of the month 7:30-9ish.
• Sunday mornings...beginning with prayer at 9am, usually home by 1 or 1:30pm. 
• August VBS/Music Camp...To be held August 5-9th.  Pray that we find the curriculum best suited to the children who will attend.  Pray for hearts to be softened and fertile even now, a few months ahead.  Pray for all the many details, logistics, and necessities of the camp that still need worked out.  Mostly...Pray that Jesus Christ will be Glorified!

So, there are a few tidbits of our current involvement and planning.  This week, Keith will also be preaching as Cedric is away for his daughter's college graduation at Duquense.  We also have friends coming from Frederick, MD, who will be staying with us Friday through Monday! 

Warm Caribbean Greetings coming your way.....

our life enlarges, even as the world shrinks

In our course through life we shall meet the people who are coming to meet us, from many strange places and by many strange roads, and what is set to us to do to them, and what is set to them to do to us, will all be done.”
 
This somewhat dark quote is said by the character Miss Wade in the novel Little Dorritt by Charles Dickens.  (I highhhhhhly recommend this book and movie!)  This quote has captured my attention several times as I think about the way life seams together over the years.  Now Miss Wade's intention in saying these words was to somewhat strike a chord of fear and threat to her hearers, but I see the truth that Mr. Charles Dickens was aiming at....life is simply full of providential moments where people we never would dream of come across our paths.  In the 9 months of life we've had here in Nassau, the "world" has definitely become smaller.... Let me explain.....

Yesterday, we had the very sweet privilege of meeting Tanya Lester and her daughters Natalie and Christy.  They came for Sunday lunch.  Now who is Tanya Lester?  Well....she is the sister-in-law of Alan Lester, one of the pastors at Heather and Donovan Drew's church in South Africa.  Tanya lives here in Nassau with her two daughters.  Tanya was in South Africa visiting family in August and met Donovan and Heather Drew.  They passed along the word to us that Tanya lived here and would be glad to meet us.  Small world?  I think so.

A month or so ago, I was chatting with Alissa Finley, half of the new Canadian/American couple that are attending our church here.  She mentioned that her sister lived in Culpeper, VA and had recently started attending a good church there.  I said, "Oh, my cousin lives in Culpeper and is very involved in a good church too...What's the name of your sister's church?"  Well, you might guess the rest...not only do her sister and my cousin attend the same church, but they already know one another and have been forming a friendship.  Small world?  I think so.

Also yesterday we had a few more surprises in this small world of ours.  Ian McConnell and Bo Beck were here from Grace Bible Church in Philly.  Ian stood at the pulpit wishing us greetings from none other than SARA RANKIN!!!  and then preached a wonderful sermon on seeking Christ in all of scripture, based on the conversation between Jesus and the two men on the road to Emmaus, found in Luke 24.  Dan and Jodi Birkholz, who were at the PC last year, just had their first Sunday meeting in their new church plant last night, which was birthed out of Ian's church in Philly.  Small World?   Bo Beck shared his passion for coming alongside missions in local churches and around the world.  I told him about the Drews and the orphanage in South Africa.  Smiles!

And finally, another American couple and their sons attended our church yesterday for the first time.  The Seeleys, a family who just relocated here for ministry purposes, run the Adventure Learning Camp, where the mission team coming in August will be predominately staying.  This family hails from Minnesota and, as the Lord would have it, are looking for a reformed church with many of the characteristics they found at Kingdom Life.  Mindy homeschools her sons Logan and Zach (both teens), which is also a great connection for us.  There is nothing necessarily "small world-ish" about the Seeleys coming except that we've been curious about the Adventure Learning Camp for some time now, have driven out to see it...and now BOOM!  Here are the people who run it...from the U.S. who just moved here in January and are looking for a church home.  God is definitely working many things we cannot see.

So continue to pray that God will build Kingdom Life Church.  Pray that the gospel will take shape...with bones, and sinews, and flesh, and the breath of the Spirit of God pouring out of it.  All things are possible for him who believes.  And we say, "I believe, help my unbelief!"

reflections on Easter and looking forward

Happy reports are coming in from our church here in Nassau.  It seems people, both members and visitors, were greatly blessed in our presentation of "Jesus, Rock of Ages" this past weekend.  I am overwhelmed with gratitude to the Lord for helping us in the writing, arranging, and producing of this piece.  Here are some of the emails we've been getting:

"God surely answered our prayers...Praise Him!"

"My mom, sister, 2 nieces and a friend were in the audience...they said, "Man, that was just excellent!!!"  .....(niece) said her husband had to convince her the music was not a soundtrack...Yay to the band!"

"Keith, they say you are 'turning us into professionals!'....Thanks for patiently serving us."

"Hear, hear!...My family also sang praises of this production.  To God be the glory great things he hath done."

"I praise and thank God for you and your wife, Keith.  You both are allowing Him to use your gift, talents, and abilites mightily in our church.  With his strength continue to do so..."

Overwhelmed!!!  When we first conceived of doing something "in house" (aka, not buying a score from a publishing house), we knew it could be alot of work, or turn out goofy, or simply not be good.  Yet God overcame all those possibilities and answered our prayers far above what we could ask or imagine.  In this little church of under 100 people, many of whom were IN the program, we were able to have a choir, worship band and singers, narrators, and tech crew.  

What's next?  Well next up on our agenda is.....drumroll....a Music Camp/VBS in August.  We are going to host a day camp (very big on this island) where local children must pre-register, but freely come to learn musical skills, hear the gospel, and then perform in concert for their parents and the community at the end of the week (with another gospel message being given).  Currently, Metro Life Church in Orlando is arranging a mission team to come and serve alongside us in this.   How can you be praying?

1) Pray for the children who God will bring.  Most likely, they will come from the immediate community around our church, which is a low-income fairly "at-risk" area.  Pray that their hearts will even now begin to soften toward the things of God and that many would receive Christ.

2)Pray for the parents of the children God will bring.  Pray that they too will hear and receive the gospel through their contact with our church and that many true disciples will be born of this.

3)Pray for funds, strength, creativity, rapport with the incoming kids, ideas, safety, no sickness in the workers, travelling mercies, import/customs issues as the Florida team attempts to bring things into the country for this endeavor. 

4)Pray for long-term fruit from this.  We would love to see a children's community choir develop out of this music camp.  Our heart would be to see at-risk kids given a place to do something worthwhile (singing) that will give them a sense of ownership and productivity, and ultimately to hear the gospel. Along with the children themselves, we pray that parents and families will then be affected too.

None of these requests is beyond our Heavenly Father, who gives generously to all without reproach.  He is the giver of all good things.  He cares for children.  He cares for families.  He cares for His own people who seek to make His name great in all the earth.  Pray with us!