Belize Mission recap
The LifePoint Church Belize Couples Mission Team headed out on the morning of March 3rd, 2022, for a week of service. With the temperatures in the mid-’80s and 80% humidity with no a/c, we all enjoyed our dewy glowing skin. Fans quickly became our friends at night while sleeping, helping to keep the biting bugs away so we could enjoy some rest.
The team was sent with the following encouragement and guidance; to go with no predetermined expectations, let the Spirit guide you, and it will change your life. All three of these pieces of advice came to fruition for every member of the team.
The Belizean couples, the team fundraised and sponsored to attend the marriage retreat, “Jus Chillin’ Wit My One”, was pre-assigned to their small group leaders (the missionary couples) by Pastor Kenny Welch, our mission partner in Belize. This was done with intention, and an action plan for these couples to continue with small groups after the retreat was over, and to be an example to others. We did not expect to create lifelong friendships.
Our mission team members (Aguirre’s, Gamel’s, Noel’s, and Swerbensky’s) were all led by the Spirit to share our testimonials about our own marriage, in each of the sessions we held as a large group. Then we broke out into our small groups to dive deeper into discussions. We were moved at how open and vulnerable the Belizean couples were with us. A few Belizean couples shared that small groups were their favorite time. Pastor Kenny said that us sharing our testimony in Christ was more powerful than any teaching or sermon they could hear. All the couples shared their contact info with their small group leaders so they can keep in touch and continue to be mentored.
This retreat is such a blessing. Belizeans get paid for work by the day, which can be a twelve-hour workday for most careers. A big issue in the marriage and family unit (besides the culture) is no time to spend together and very little income. The cost of living in Belize is double what it is in the US. The minimum wage is $3.50 an hour BZ, which comes to $1.75 US. Without our support, something such as a Christian Retreat will not happen. For these couples to be able to take a weekend to spend together, learn what God’s plan for marriage is, bond with other couples in Christ, and connect with a mentor is priceless.
The men on the team worked with Pastor Kenny to help complete a few maintenance projects for Galilee Gospel Church in Gales Point. They fixed plumbing and replaced a toilet, ran and fixed electrical, hung security windows, sanded and re-varnished doors, and installed new locks. As well as purchase more chairs. Then the women did a big clean-up of the church in preparation for the worship night.
The team had prepared a worship set for the retreat and a worship night that we held for the villagers of Gales Point. The women of the team taught art lessons for all age groups at the village school. We were able to leave all the art supplies with the school for the teachers, knowing how much teachers appreciate supplies. The team members ran a clothing and school supplies drive before we left on the mission, to bless the villagers of Gales Point. We had a little boy who looked between 7 and 9 years old show up to worship night with no pants and we were blessed to clothe him and he got to enjoy worship with us. All the children in the village were calling us women “Auntie” by the end of the trip.
At the end of the worship night, the team offered to pray over anyone who needed it. To our surprise we had a lot of villagers come to us and ask the team to pray over them, men, women, and children! To be able to offer worship at the retreat and to host a worship night in the village was truly a blessing, not just to the Belizean people but to the team as well. We all sang so loud the whole village could hear us singing in that church.
A lot of sore legs, feet, and backs with a few blisters, bruises, and bug bites, but the team stayed in good spirits the whole time. There is still so much more we wish we could have done but God called us for a specific reason for this trip. Pastor Kenny has such a big heart for the people and it shows in everything he does! We spent our mornings and evenings in devotional as a team and we all have created such an amazing bond through this mission.
As the team takes time to wrap our heads around ALL that we witnessed while serving in Belize, including everything on the way home, we understand that we will still have attacks from the enemy over this mission. He will want to twist and make everything we did in the Lord’s name into something different and not good. Even traveling back home the enemy was trying to drive a wedge between us and Jesus, testing our faith. But each time God provided a way, He protected us, and put people in our path to share the testimony of our mission.
Just because we are home, the mission doesn’t end. We will continue to share our testimony of ALL that our Father did while we were in Belize, leading up to leaving, and coming home. If anyone would like to meet with any of the team members and discuss in more detail the Lord’s mission to Belize that He placed on each of our hearts, we’d be happy to meet. We are humbled and honored to have had the opportunity, and want to thank each of our donors, supporters, family, and friends that prayed for this mission. We could not have gone and served without each of our supporters and your prayers. God is so good.
– The Belize Couples Mission Team 2022
“Jus Chillin’ Wit My One”