Mission Cruise in Belize
While the major cruise lines are working out the kinks for a new tendering policy, one cruise ship sailed smoothly into our waters today. Belize is one of the regular stops for the cruise ship carrying missionaries who travel the world doing volunteer work and sharing their faith. It’s called the Mission Cruise and through their relationship with My Refuge Christian Ministries in Belmopan, they have been visiting Belize every year in January for the past six years. They are usually spread across the country, but for this visit, My Refuge Director, Richard Smith, has teamed up with Mayor Zenaida Moya Flowers to bring the entire group of missionaries to Belize City. Moya Flowers and Smith told News Five today, it’s all a part of the initiative to bring peace to the murder capital.
Zenaida Moya Flowers, Belize City Mayor
zenaida moya flowers
“Pastor Richard Smith and Pastor Mark Humes and a number of pastors have been working with the Belize City Council primarily, myself and the PR team to ensure that we get many different missionaries coming down to our city to do some work. At the end of the day we have the violence prevention initiatives that we’re still trying to ensure that we get more out of and what they are doing here will be simply to go out to different areas so that we can get some work done and some more upliftment.”
Richard Smith
Richard Smith, Director, My Refuge Christian Radio
“This is a group that comes every year. Instead of going to tour, they offer themselves to serve in the community. We used to be going to prison, going to the old folks home in Hattieville and other areas. This time all five groups will be staying in the city. We’ll be taking on a community upliftment project, which the mayor is working on, where we’ll be doing painting, cleaning and everything we can to support that initiative. That is being headed by Pastor Mark Humes of the Dream Center Ministry. So today we’ll be doing that, next week we’ll be doing that as well. One group will be going to Sister Cecilia Home for the elders where they’ll be working with the elders, just spending time with them. One group will go to two schools to do puppets; there’s a professional puppet team that came. We have, we have community cleaning and other projects that we’re doing as well door to door. On Mahogany Street we’ll be going to houses, visit houses and just share the lord with them and give bibles or whichever.”
The group has a total of fifty-seven members, including adults and children. Another group of missionaries is expected to arrive next Wednesday.
Good work missionaries I am sure the people of Belize will greatly appreciate what you are doing.
The churches need to form their own mission groups in Belize, local groups that can go around that country to do the same work the other missionaries are doing today. The crime rate in Belama would not be so high right now; the local boys could have fixed the roof of the police station by now, and when citizens call the police on their phones about crimes happening in their neighbourhoods, the police would have no excuses for not doing the jobs they are being paid for.
I don’t understand why people get so excited about people coming in from the outside doing what the locals should be doing… As a missionary to Belize ( Belize American ) I believe we have to learn to do for ourself, that way we will be more appreciative of what we do .. I bring in Americans and they clean, paint, build etc. and within months after they are gone, things go back to how it was… That makes missionaries feel good about themselves, but really, what are they teaching the locals? We are to teach people how to fish, so that they can feed themselves. That is one of the problems we face in Belize as a people, we are always looking to see what we can get from others while others come in and do quite well, then we become resentful of them because they are making it…..
For the first time, I agree with Maddyvandijk on something.
Preach in Somiah, Preach on; its the damned colonial mentality, everyone looking for a handout, that is why so much beggers on the streets of Belize, how can a strapping man be begging?
Glad to hear about the visit of the missionaries. May God bless you all and continue to enable you to carry out His will. I pray that our local members of the body of Christ can unite with any foreign missions that are bold enough to enter our very troubled country. I pray for the safety of foreign missionaries—-and ours.
I truly long to see, more than anything else though, that any sort of missions work be focused on addressing the spiritual needs of our people—-more so than any other need at this time. Our country is in the throes of an extremely severe spiritual malaise at this time—-resulting from our having turned our backs on the God we once served,. We have replaced Him with every other kind of god man can imagine—-drugs, sex, murder, materialism—–hence the current state of affairs. It is only as we turn away from our wicked ways, turn our eyes back to Him, humble ourselves and pray—-that He will heal our land. May God bless, preserve and save Belize—-my beloved country.
As an aside, whatever happened to our National Prayer? Perhaps reinstating its reading daily over the public media—-with sincerity and humility, could be a start to turning back and repenting to the God who alone can save us.
Belizean National prayer
Almighty and Eternal God, who through Jesus Christ
has revealed Your Glory to all nations, please protect
and preserve Belize, our beloved country.
God of might, wisdom and justice, please assist our
Belizean government and people with your Holy Spirit
of counsel and fortitude.
Let the light of Your divine wisdom direct their plans
and endeavors so that with Your help we may attain
our just objectives. With Your guidance, may all our
endeavors tend to peace, social justice, liberty, national
happiness, the increase of industry, sobriety and useful knowledge.
We pray, O God of Mercy, for all of us that we may be
blessed in the knowledge and sanctified in the
observance of Your most holy law, that we may be
preserved in union and in that peace which the world
itself cannot give. And, after enjoying the blessings of
this life, please admit us, dear Lord, to that eternal
reward that You have prepared for those who love You.
Amen.