Church leaders meet to plan for the future
While thousands of working men and women had a four day holiday weekend to rest, relax and unwind, those who labor for the Lord were hard at work getting their spiritual batteries recharged. Patrick Jones reports.
Pastor Mazie Straker, Church of God
“I love the Lord very much and what I would like to see everybody get saved in this world, but I think it’s not possible because in Jesus’ days, not everybody was saved. Not everybody was healed. But as we are doing the work we are to go on until the Lord comes and when He comes, well, we say our work is finished, right.”
Over fifty pastors and leaders from churches around the country were able to enjoy a weekend of fellowship while at the same time making plans for the future.
Pastor Ensford Maskall, Zoe Ministries
“Well first of all I think we have got to got a vision. The calling I think is to make a difference in our nation, but until we get a vision of what the Lord really wants, we will not be able to do it. And so the biggest thing here was us sharing and encouraging pastors to get a vision for the place where you are at.”
The three day conference was organized by Zoe Ministries with the expressed purpose of showing the participants how they can make a difference in their respective communities.
Trevor Middleton, Director, Y.W.A.M.
“I get refreshing. I really get a tremendous refreshing of the Lord in times like these. It’s time where I could sit back and receive instead of giving, constantly giving. I’m receiving at these conferences.”
Pastor Ensford Maskall
“It is basically to bring pastors. We have brought pastors from all over Belize for a time of encouragement and also for a time of vision – getting vision so that we can go and do what God has called us to do.”
And that call includes individual care for each member of the congregation. According to Pastor Lisa Quan of Harvest Christian Center in Belmopan, the conference helped to boost her congregation’s vision of ministering one on one with people in their area.
Pastor Lisa Quan, Harvest Christian Center
“We’ve gotten a lot of good ideas but we don’t want to just go on those good ideas. We want to go and say okay, God show us the strategy and how it’s going to happen. And as Pastor Maskall mentioned, the Cell Church, I really believe that we’re gonna go in that direction and see the church grow in that area.”
But increasing membership is not the only thing that these cell groups do for the church. Trevor Middleton of the Youth With A Mission Organization in Roaring Creek says they help to bring people closer to God.
Trevor Middleton
“In my community, it’s pastoral care. Pastoral care and what I mean by pastoral care? It’s taking care of your people, it’s knowing your people, it’s taking them to another level of relating to other churches. And I think this conference met that felt need in the body, where different churches and pastors and leaders come together as one man and we talked and we had discussions and so forth.”
But if the way forward is to be successful, Pastor Maskall says the church must first have an idea of exactly where it wants to go.
Pastor Ensford Maskall
“My biggest thing was to encourage them and to help them to sort of get a vision and strategize for the area. One of the things I notice in the church today is that we don’t have a strategy, we just go to church and that is it. We must have a strategy if we are to make a difference.”
And part of making that critical difference was realized this holiday weekend when pastors from various religious denominations gathered in Belize City for the three day conference.
Pastor Lisa Quan
“It has been very eye opening and mind boggling. It has taught me a lot and things that I had in my heart were confirmed here over the weekend in such a short time. It was like God just exploded. The vision has definitely been rekindled and even in the people who came with our church and not just our church but the other churches and I can see that we’re going back with a vision that’s burning more than just okay. God you had a vision for us but we weren’t sure, now God has really confirmed it.”
For the participants, majority of whom were from churches outside of the city, the conference served to make them more confident of their calling to serve the Lord through ministry.
Pastor Mazie Straker
“Oh yes, oh yes. It’s helping me from the first day I came in here. I love everything that they do and each church I wish that they would pattern it off it that we can do much better for the community. You understand me?”
Glenford Castillo, Harvest Christian Center
“Since I have been attending the conference I have learnt a whole lot. Cell groups I’ve learnt a whole lot: how to identify myself in society and to upgrade the standard of youths throughout Belize in tending to the Lord and keep focussed on the Lord. You know because He is coming.”
Patrick Jones
“Experiencing God’s abundance in ministry is not an easy thing these days, but with faith as solid as a rock, these leaders and pastors are more determined than ever to answer a calling that is not of this world. Patrick Jones, for News Five.”
Organizers say they hope to make the conference an annual event and to expand it to include pastors and leaders from the various village churches around the country.
