Men on Fire
Submitted by Mt. Olive Baptist Church
A Belizean man on fire for God is a rare sighting. For children, their mothers are often the leading force for attending church and making God a daily part of life. Many children grow up without fathers, and the other male role models in the village often prefer playing soccer on Sunday mornings to going to church.
The team from Mt. of Olives Baptist Church (Duluth, MN) traveled to Valley Community in Belize with Praying Pelican Missions July 30-August 6, 2005. They recognized this problem immediately and decided to do something about it.
It all came down to Earl. Who’s Earl, you say? A self-described Jonah who was running from God, Earl was also a leader in the village. Youth Director Erik Reinertsen describes him as a Dallas Cowboy-hat wearing, outgoing, animated, articulate, and young man who exuded self confidence. According to Erik, “If that guy were to get serious about God, what an impact He could have. However, it would be pretty unlikely for a guy like Him to come around.” It’s a good thing that nothing is impossible for God!
Sports ministry conducted by the Mt. of Olives group and a chance meeting all led to Earl deciding it would be a great idea to hold a men’s Bible study in the village—the first ever. With about 40 young men attending sports ministry every day, Earl and Erik knew this was their opportunity to light a fire under these men!
When rain dampened the groups’ efforts at a game of dodgeball, the opportunity arose for the pastor of Valley Community church to offer his leadership for the Bible study and encourage the men to attend. They gathered in a circle, and about 10 men committed to attend a study that Thursday night. Mt. of Olives group members were thrilled when eight young men who not been attending church arrived in addition to the pastor and youth pastor. A wonderful study was begun with one of Earl’s favorite Scriptures, Proverbs 8. There was much open sharing and communication of truth. All the guys were engaged and involved.
Praise God that the Bible study continues! Anywhere from 6-8 men gather every week to discuss the Bible. A study of the book of John was recently started. The Belizean pastors keep in contact with Mt. of Olives to encourage one another and relay the progress.
Erik concludes, “There are those times when things happen in such a way that there can be no doubt that God was clearly, directly, and very specifically involved. We had the very great privilege of seeing God’s providential hand at work on several separate occasions on our senior high missions trip to Belize.”