April 22, 2012
This Sunday we worshiped at Grace Baptist Church in Dundas Town, near Marsh Harbour – it was a very special experience and I am not sure where to start, but probably near the beginning would be best.
We came to Marsh Harbour and docked (for the first time in over 3 weeks) to wait out a strong cold front, reprovision, do laundry, etc. On a ‘major’ stop like this, we will occasionally rent a car for a couple days to make the chores easier and have greater mobility to explore the area, which we did here.
One of the things that I (Tom) had hoped to get was a haircut – I was getting pretty shaggy. We have found that it is often very hard to find a barber shop in new places, but that it often turns into an adventure. On the way back from filling a propane tank, I spied a simple sign that said ‘Barber Shop – Open’, so we pulled in. I went in while Joyce waited in the car. The shop was staffed with a barber and a stylist, both African-Bahamians. They were very nice and we had a great conversation as the barber (Ricardo) cut my hair.
As I was leaving, I said “God Bless You” – a farewell that I was encouraged to use by our dock neighbor family and dear Christian friends back in Bradenton (thanks Max & Trey). I have found that almost no one minds (is offended) and it can be a great spiritual conversation starter. When I said this to Jacquie, the hair stylist, I just knew that from her response that she was a sister in Christ.
After returning to the car, I told Joyce that there was a hair stylist in the shop (she doesn’t like to get her hair cut by a barber) and we returned for her haircut. As Jacquie cut her hair, Joyce asked her about places to eat and that we were looking for a church to attend. It turns out that Jacquie is the wife of the pastor at Grace Baptist Church in Dundas Town, the predominately black section of Marsh Harbor. Well we located the church and decided that we would attend there 11 AM service on the next day.
We enjoy visiting different kinds of churches and experiencing different worship styles, and although I never really worry about people being ungracious to visitors, you do sometimes worry about being a ‘distraction’. Well, we were seated in the third row and were warmly greeted both by Jacquie and several people around us, but there was no mistaking that we were visitors.
We were enjoying the lively service, but feeling a bit ‘on stage’ when God did something special. The wind started to blow and it started to rain heavily and after a couple of minutes the lights flickered and then went out. The worship team was in the middle of a song but they did not miss a beat: the electric piano went silent, but the drums continued loud and clear; the singers lost their sound system, but continued to sing out loudly; the congregation continued to sing and praise God. In the darkness it felt to me as we became one in a special way – no longer somewhat separated by culture or race, but united together in worship. In a way a foretaste of what John describes of heaven in Revelation 7:9-10 “After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people, and language, standing before the throne and in front of the lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: ‘Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”
Pastor Shawn began a great message, without the benefit of a sound system, about being chosen by God .
The power eventually came back on and after his message he called Jacquie up to close the service. She greatly surprised us by speaking to us from the pulpit and saying how much we reminded her of a special couple from the states that had been close to her and Pastor Shawn. She then called us up front and they prayed for us – that we would have good weather and that our house would sell quickly in June. It was a very special moment.
Pastor Shawn closed with a need to buy a van for the church, which would be used to bring people to church that would otherwise not be able to attend. This is a very real need in an area with no public transportation. He noted that he had just received a ‘seed’ gift for that purpose. Well, we added a special gift to their church for this purpose.
While I know this is unusual, but if you feel led to help some special people with a real need, they are:
Grace Baptist Church
Grace Avenue
Dundas Town
P.O Box AB-20048
Abaco, Bahamas
Tom
Marsh Harbour
Abacos, Bahamas
http://g.co/maps/ngfkk
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