An Empowerment Conference for Pastors
An empowerment conference for pastors and their spouses kicked off today in Belize City. The two-day event features international speakers and will include worship and transformational sessions. The aim is to equip the church leaders with skills, resources and knowledge on how to better serve their communities. Andrea Polanco stopped in at today’s session and shares more in the following story.
Andrea Polanco, Reporting
A two day empowerment conference for pastors and their spouses is being held in Belize City. The conference brings together denominational and non-denominational church leaders for a day of inspiration and transformational learning. The initiative is co-organised by a local organisation called Children’s Cup.
Derrick Pitts
Derrick Pitts, Director, Children’s Cup
“What Children’s Cup does is that we partner with the local church and we reach out to the children though feeding programs, after school programs, discipleship and medical checkups. We also know that the church is the only institution that Jesus left behind that can b ring about transformation so Children’s Cup itself cannot do that. So we partner with the churches and we work with key pastors and key communities. What we have realized working with several of these churches and pastors, it is a lot of work. So we wanted to reach out to the pastors and as much as they pour out we see it necessary that someone pour into them and encourage them and inspire them.”
The Experience Church from Ohio in the USA is a co-sponsor of the event. Pastor Justina Brownley is one of the visiting pastors who hope to inspire and show the local religious leaders how partnership and smart use of resources can impact many lives:
Justina Brownley
Pastor Justina Brownley, Experience Church
“As pastors, my husband and I know how weary and discourage you can become in trying to make a different in your community. So our hear in empower conference is to bring in other pastors that they don’t have to come in and actually prepare and have a message or have to minister to anyone, that they can be minister to. So that is why we came to Belize, to really pour into them, to encourage them and come alongside many pastors that maybe have thought about quitting or maybe feel like they are not making a different in their community and their region, to come along and say that you are making a different and you can continue to make a difference.”
Andrea Polanco
“Talk to us about what some of the different elements that you will be covering today.”
Pastor Justina Brownley
“So we have worship during some of the sessions and then we will do different teachings during the sessions. We have about eight sessions plan. Some of them are going to be just to encourage the pastors and their wives personally and others session are going to be about how you can build the church and how can you make the biggest in your community with the resources that you have. So we are just coming to share what we learned and what we experience as well as allow the pastors to connect and network with one another. A lot of times those relationships in Belize long after we are gone, we want them to be able to pray for one another, encourage one another and have friendship with one another so when they are struggling they can encourage one another. Also to share ideas with one another; what’s the need of the community and how we can we meet that together.”
Pastor Manuel Guardado of Orange Walk shares how this kind of event will help to make his work more meaningful in his church and community.
Manuel Guardado
Manuel Guardado, Pastor, Joshua Assembly of God
“There are so many issues that we find in the children and also in the families so having a conference to receive resources and information to how to a job better in the community that is just amazing.”
Andrea Polanco
“What are some of the challenges and how do you think this will help you to solve some of the issues that you have seen?”
Manuel Guardado
“One of the main issues that I see, not only in the church, but also in the culture that is some time very easy to speak about the hard issues that are happening in the country right now. We can do two things, talk, speak and say that the things are wrong in the country right now but I think as a church God has empowered us to do more than that, to go into the community, to speak with the people and tell the people that there is hope for change for the family, children and the country of Belize. So we need to share that hope. As a church we have that hope and we have to share that hope with everybody. So there is a challenge on just talk and doing.”
Reporting for News Five, I’m Andrea Polanco.
