Why Jamaica?

You don’t have to go much past just saying the word “Jamaica” to elicit visions of beauty in your mind.  Known for its beautiful terrain and easy going people, it is a wonderful place to visit.  However, masked in its natural beauty are the very deep spiritual needs of the Jamaican people.

It is an adherence to a variety of commands in scripture that people follow by obediently involving themselves in missions. Acts 1:8 provides for us a blue print to follow when beginning to embark on mission work.  Amongst the variety of levels are to the uttermost parts of the earth.  Namely this refers to, in our case being from the U.S.A., going overseas. To do so often requires entering an unfamiliar culture. Venturing into such an arena brings with it some interesting challenges, not the least of which are language barriers.  In and of themselves, language barriers shouldn't keep one from taking the Gospel message to a particular people group.  However, for many who haven't yet had an overseas experience, it can be extremely overwhelming.

Another potential barrier may be mere distance. Although the advancement of technology certainly makes it seem like the world is a small community.  Our reality is that many hours must be spent on perhaps multiple aircrafts in order to reach certain destinations.

Along with the travel, there are the shots and accompanying records of these.

One last thing that may make a list of why not to go overseas for missions may be the lack of a drinkable water source.

Fortunately, Jamaica provides a reprieve from many of the above concerns.   Jamaica provides an excellent entry level overseas experience for these reasons:

• You have the opportunity to enter a different culture without a language barrier. English is spoken quite prevalently in Jamaica. There is a dialect called “Patois” in which many Jamaican converse and is a mixture of French Creole and English.
• To enter the country, special inoculations are not required.
• With only a three hour flight from many major U.S. cities, Jamaica remains just far enough away, but not too far.
• Although classified as a developing country, Jamaica has a number of public utilities including a drinkable water source.

Whether you are a veteran missionary or only beginning in your quest for obedience in the area of missions, Jamaica is a perfect ministry site for you.