Still Jamaica… Update on March 13, 2010

We have had one billion school kids come on board the ship in the past week. All of them have been saved from their sins and converted. Not really, but that’d be cool, huh. The truth is that working in the I-Café now means I do see loads of schools come and go and buy things every week day. The teachers and schools here are very different from ours. The teachers are very rude, and can still hit their kids. The kids can be anywhere from crazy, loud, and extremely rude to quiet and nice while ordering. The difference seems to depend largely on which school they are from. It makes me wonder what it would be like to have all the Port Huron or Detroit schools come on board, and how I’d feel about those kids. The kids here are hard to handle, and it is apparent they are short on love. I wish I could say I love them when they yell out of turn in the line trying to order, or when they try to cut everyone then give a nasty look when you tell them off, but I have failed many times to see the kingdom of heaven in these kids. It’s a shame that I don’t have time to love them all, if any, but that is the reality.
I went on a church team last Sunday to a church about an hour away in a town called Spanish Town. I gave my testimony (seems to be recurrent theme from me, eh?) at the early service, which started at 8, which meant we left at 6:50 or so. The church was full of people, even though it only seated around 50 or so, it was full regardless. Our group of five sat up on the stage with the band and pastors the whole time, which was a bit awkward, but alright in the end. The service was loud, as usual, and the actual music during worship was almost inaudible behind screams and general noise. That may have been due to the fact that there were tambourines for the congregation to use, and two ladies went nuts on them. The service was enjoyable, as our group presented a French version of Amazing Grace, a one man drama about total commitment to God, my testimony, and some book offers, after which they prayed for us.
After the service and a Sunday school, they proceeded to feed us rich in local delicacies which included this vegetable that is almost exactly like an egg in all aspects, some awesome fish, and some roll type deals that were delicious. We even tried some Jamaican Apple Juice, which is basically spicy apple juice. The first drinks were rough, but it got better the more you drink it. Apparently, they put ginger in almost everything they make. During lunch, they proceeded to probe us about life on board and where we come from. The pastor was an amazing people person, even though age seemed to hit him rather hard, and it was a joy to talk to him. Another guy that stuck around the whole time was “not fully committed, but was on the way”, which was left open for interpretation on our part. At the end of the meal the pastor asked us to pray for his church and for this man who has yet to commit. We did, and then he drove us home.
The rest of my week has been filled with school kids and ultimate Frisbee, which has been good. I even played soccer again, and had a little bit of fun. As it is almost baseball season, and a new sense of longing for home has hit along with a deeper desire to see my family, since a little more of life is becoming unraveled this Wednesday. All I can do is pray.