Summer Vacation Bible School

Our summer school program started in the summer of 2004, as a tutorial program that catered to Church youth and the children of the local community. The program ran from Monday to Friday from 9:00 a.m. -1:00 p.m., and taught them about our Awesome God. The children are given a meal at the end of their busy day. The children are kept busy with games, crafts and different activities along with messages of the gospel. About 130 children took part in the program last year.

Last year, our congregations in California partnered with us, and helped us to put together our best program so far. They will join us again immediately after the Orlando conference for what we hope will even top last year’s camp.

Soup Kitchen

The soup Kitchen was started in 1999, as a way to help the people of the local community. It is held every Wednesday between the hours of 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m., and caters to approximately 100 persons weekly. The ladies from church volunteer their time to prepare the meal once a week. We also run a “meals on wheels” feeding program in our Freeport congregation.

At the airstrip I was met by three of our member ladies and some children and ‘reported’ my presence in the village to the new Toshoa (captain) of the village.

I checked in at the village Guest House and spent some time chatting with the members who came to see me. I shared some sweets/candy with the children. I brought in 12 copies of some specially selected songs/hymns I did, CD’s with the music, a DVD with ten of Dr Tkach’s Speaking of Life programs, some foodstuffs for the ladies to prepare my meals and some supplements and medications for some of our brethren there.

Brethren after services

We arranged for meeting at 3 p.m. Twenty-six persons attended. After some announcements I led some songs using the music from a battery-operated CD player I took in with me. I read from a Speaking of Life text, Why Church? and explained the reasons we need to attend church, that besides coming to church, all we do at home, work and everywhere is worship, that we must grow in grace and knowledge. We sang some children’s songs from the new ‘hymnal’ and the children enjoyed them very much. I spoke to the children about Jesus’ love for them as we sang these songs. I gave out some more exercise books and later some pens and pencils so much needed by the children for school.

After services I took a few group pictures. The rain began to fall so the brethren used the opportunity to watch five of the ten Speaking of Life programs thanks to the DVD player hooked up to a TV set provided by the Guest House. Electricity is provided to the Guest House from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. I promised to send in more DVD and song CDs from time to time but they would need their own DVD player/TV set and a car battery (electricity is not available to the villagers, except to the school, Guest House and medical buildings there that are government-owned) to play them at their meetings.

On Thursday 20^th May members came to see me as the day progressed. One of our team leaders came to ask me to pray for her daughter who was having a hard time delivering her baby at the clinic. She would be flown to the city hospital for a possible caesarian section to deliver her baby if necessary. We prayed for her. The child was delivered safely later that day to the relief of the mother, grandmother, relatives and nurse/midwife.

Blessing Daisy Aaron

At 9:35 a.m. services I asked God to bless a member’s little girl, Daisy Aaron. Songs were led by Violena Andrew, a member of the team leadership, and I gave a message on the “Irreducible Minimum” explaining to the brethren, who are so good at listening/and being taught, that the two great commandments Jesus gave to us under the new covenant, that is, love of God and love of our fellow human beings can be simply expressed — reduced to – love of neighbor or just LOVE. God is LOVE. We cannot love God without loving our neighbor. So when God says to love Him he means that we have to love our fellow human beings. Loving our neighbor is the principal way God desires for us to express our love for Him. Loving God is the greatest command — and loving our neighbor is its greatest expression. Thus loving our neighbor is the simplest summary of all God’s commands. It is, in effect, the summary of the summary. In this case, it means that the one summary — loving God and neighbor — has been further “squeezed down”, or reduced, to its smallest expression — loving neighbor.

At the conclusion of services I prayed for all those who were sick with various ailments including back pains and influenza. One of our ladies was suffering from serious kidney stones. I brought her a couple small boxes of a herbal tablet to take and she felt the pain went away a day later. The medication was supposed to melt the stones away.

After services I had a long talk with team leader, Rachel James, who pointed out the many and various problems faced by the brethren there in their meetings, relationships and economic difficulties. They got permission from the village council for a piece of land to erect a church meeting place. The foundation beams will have to be cut first and set up and later the boards etc. One member has a chain saw which they will use to cut the trees/lumber. They have some funds available for fuel and they need a file to sharpen the chain saw.

One of our brothers there brought his sick wife for me to pray for her.

The planned 6:30 p.m. meeting to watch Dr Tkach’s Speaking of Life and learn some of the new hymns did not take place because of heavy rains. This was the rainy season and rain comes unexpectedly.

School Complex

Tario Paticio and daughters

Friday 21^st May: I was able to assist one of our members with her daughter’s CXC examination fees. People do not receive a regular income there as the main source of food is subsistence farming. This day there was a public meeting conducted by the village Toshoa and councilors and so services was postponed until that was over. Two of the team leaders came to the Guest House to make parcels of the used clothing I brought to be distributed to families. I continued to receive visitors as they heard of my coming. Nurse Sago, an elderly long-serving nurse/midwife in the village, came to give me a hug for 2010.

Services started about 4:30 p.m. I conducted songs as Jeanette Thomas could not stand up to do so as her back pains got the better of her. A while back she fell while carrying a heavy load and got her lower spine twisted. The doctors cannot do anything for her but gave her pain-killers. I spoke to the gathering on “God Wants to Heal Your Hurt”. Letting them know that when we are hurt we must NOT ignore it, run from it, hide your hurt, worry about it (by doing this it exaggerates, it magnifies. It gets bigger every time we rehearse it in our minds), not to resent it BUT we must let Jesus settle the score, let Jesus sooth our wounds and let Jesus satisfy our needs.

We are sheep — we need a Shepherd. Sheep have many natural enemies — wolves, coyotes, bears, snakes, ticks … They cannot defend themselves from anything. They don’t have teeth that are sharp that they can bite with. They don’t have claws. They can’t kick. They can’t run fast. They are absolutely the most defenseless animal there is. They can’t be safe unless somebody protects them. That’s when the Shepherd takes them to a table land or mesa of green grass and drives out all the enemies before them. “You prepare table before me in the presence of my ENEMIES.” No, revenge does not work. Forgive. Pray. Worship.

The lights came on before the brethren left the Guest House so we decided to watch five of the Speaking of Life DVD programs.

Saturday 22^nd May : Communion services started at 10:45 a.m. We had our largest attendance then as the brethren are used to meet on Saturdays for services. Rachel led songs. I prayed. I took the opportunity to explain the purpose of team leadership as practiced in our Part of the Body of Christ worldwide and discuss the church building project in the village.

I gave a sermon to “Hear His Invitation and Get to Know Him Better” in which I pointed out that Jesus came so we can know the Father because he reveals God to us, otherwise we cannot know the Father and Jesus Christ. When we know Jesus we also know the Father for no one can come to the Father except through and by Jesus Christ. Jesus is extending an invitation to know God by knowing Him also. Where two or three are gathered in Jesus’ name He is in the midst of them.

William Barclay said that there are those who never give of their best except on the so-called great occasions: but for Jesus Christ every occasion where even two or three are gathered in His name is a great occasion. In the story of Jesus feeding the people with the five loaves and two fishes we (Christians) are most like the five loaves and two fishes, apparently useless to feed the many but Christ can/does work a miracle to multiply His potential in us. We take the Lord’s Supper together as members of the Body of Christ and so accept His invitation to let Him live His life in us so we can get to know Him better and better the rest of our lives and, indeed, for all eternity.

Nineteen persons took the communion.

After services the brethren surprised me by asking me to bless their children. Not one or two or three of them but twenty-four of them there and then, including four hand babies. I did. Clothing and some pens were given out to those present.

Later that afternoon/evening I continued to receive visitors, mainly our brethren. Some requested personal copies of the new ‘hymnal’ and ‘C’ size batteries for a CD player one of them has in order to play the music of the hymns I brought. Some need seeds for planting as they live by doing subsistence , organic farming.

Sunday 23^rd 2010: The day I was to fly back home but the rains fell heavily in the morning and the plane did not come in to pick me up. I had to spend an extra day/night at the Guest House. I took the opportunity to visit an elderly lady from the Church of Christ who lived many years in the village and is in the process of translating the Bible though her Bible Society overseas into Putomona language, the native language of the Paramakatoi and surrounding villages people.

Monday 24^th 2010: The brethren came to visit and to see me off this day. As we waited for the plane to come we sat on the Guest House verandah and sang songs from the new hymnal. I introduced two songs — ‘Now The day Is Over’ and a song in Hindi (a Bhajan) entitled Yishu Ne Kaha Jiwan Ki Roti, Jiwan Ki Roti Main Hi Hoon meaning Jesus says I am the Bread of Life, the Bread of Life I am. They liked it.

The plane came and after discharging its passenger and goods I boarded it and flew off from the Paramakatoi airstrip at 11:25 a.m.

I went on this trip, one year and six months after my last trip there in 2008, a little uncertain of what God would wanted me to do among the brethren this time. I had no special messages in mind or any specific plans when I went there but God in His great abundance for supplying our needs and rewarding our dependence upon Him has worked it all out to His glory and honor. All praise to His Great name. It is now left and rests upon Him to show us what His NEXT is for His people in Paramakatoi.

Appreciation and many thanks to all who prayed for this trip. Thanks to our generous brethren of the Queens, New York church who have provided the financial assistance for a third time now to make trips to Paramakatoi possible. Not forgetting our generous brethren in Dominica, Trinidad and Barbados who had from time to time contributed of their finances and clothing etc to our PK brethren. We are in this together.

The Honor and Glory goes to Our Great God who gives us strength and courage, even in our time of weakness, to do His Will.

Your prayers are needed for the PK brethren for among other things: illness (influenza, kidney stones, bodily pains, women’s problems), success and good weather in their subsistence farming, affordable education for their children, parents to bring up morally-upright children from temptation sexuality and smoking marijuana and drinking (a locally-made fermented cassava drink paracari), temptation with money from ‘outsiders’ to plant marijuana because of their poor economic condition, blessings from God for their continued walk with and trust in Him.

Goraiah Papayya

If you are interested in assisting the brethen in Paramakatoi, please contact Goraiah Papayya (goraiahp@yahoo.com) or Aubrey Williams (breywilliams@yahoo.co.uk).

Needs include: school materials such as pens, pencils, folders, writing books, story books for children (especially from a biblical perspective), large print bibles, C and D cell batteries for flashlights and CD players, clothing and multivitamins (for adults).

The faction opposed to that idea broke ties with him and affiliated itself with a faction of similar views in Trinidad and made their headquarters Barataria, Trinidad. This group later split over doctrines such as whether women should preach, etc.

Towards the end of the fifties, one of the members, Mr. Leo H Joseph, was introduced to the Plain Truth Magazine by the wife of a member of the opposing faction who disagreed with the doctrinal stance taken by the publisher, Mr. Herbert W Armstrong. Mr. Joseph, however, was sympathetic to the new doctrines, subscribed to the magazines and started listening to the World Tomorrow Broadcast coming from Ohio and Tennessee, on short wave radio.

He began to share information from the Plain Truth with other members and soon others joined him in assembling on the Sabbath.

Mr. Joseph began to correspond with Mr. Dick Armstrong, elder son of Mr. Herbert W Armstrong on doctrinal matters and also pursued the Ambassador College Bible Correspondence Course. He also went about preaching and baptising new converts. He was then given the option of quitting his job as a carpenter and be put on payroll from the headquarters of the Church at Pasadena, California. The Church then was called the Radio Church of God. The main identifying doctrine was the keeping of the annual Jewish feasts and holy days. The group first kept the Feast of Tabernacles in 1961, congregating in booths made of palm branches and other wild trees.

Although Mr. Joseph’s picture appeared among those of the ministers of the church in the 1961 issue of the Envoy (yearbook of Ambassador College) captioned, "Leader of a group in the West Indies", he was never ordained. The group continued until late 1964 when it was dissolved.

Members continued to receive the Plain Truth magazine, the Good News magazine and other booklets and publications from headquarters and listened to the World Tomorrow programme which by then was broadcast from Barbados.

Certain members travelled to Martinique in order to keep the Feast of Tabernacles with the church there, which was pastored by Mr. Jubert.

From 1969, monthly Bible Studies were conducted by Mr. Clarence Bass (a minister from the USA, in charge of the church in Barbados) for members and Plain Truth subscribers.

During the years 1970 to 1974, brethren travelled to Barbados to keep the Feast of Tabernacles along with members from other islands. From 1975 to the
mid 1990s St. Lucia was an international venue for the Feast of Tabernacles.

Over the years, the church was served by a series of visiting ministers from the various islands, namely: Messrs Bass, Mather, Sampson, Nieto, Simpson, Jailal and Straughan. The first resident Minster was Mr. Paul Krautman who was transferred from Grenada in 1992. However, there were two local elders – Messers George Goddard and Lucius Joseph, and one deacon –
Mr. Rudolph Mills.

Throughout its existence, meetings were held in educational institutions, hotels, lodges and cinemas as it was not church policy to acquire property.

Having weathered the change that took place in our denomination we now meet at the Glencastle Resort in the north of the Island.

Our Services are held on Saturdays at 10:30 am with one exception – every second Saturday has no service as it is a visiting day.

Visitors or persons wanting to contact us can call: (758) 452 6839 or 450 2328 or 458 2528 or 451 6359.

For the last four years in Trinidad and Tobago, criminal activity has escalated with some 595 persons being murdered in 2008. It was in such an environment that in December 2006 a ‘handful’ of brethren along with Pastor Clifton Charles and Sister Pearl Charles became partners with Prison Fellowship Trinidad and Tobago to reach out to the incarcerated. For some of us in that ‘handful’, there was fear and uncertainty, we did not even want our families to know because all of us were either impacted or knew someone who was affected by crime. But, we believed that the Holy Spirit guides our pastor and we followed even though we didn’t understand where God was leading us. We are amazed as we look back how through that small beginning, God has supernaturally blessed this ministry and transformed the lives of many inmates and how they in turn have ministered to us.

Today, we no longer have only a ‘handful’. Almost everyone is on board. We have teams in the Women’s Prison, Maximum Security Prison and Golden Grove Prison all of whom conduct Prison Evangelism and Discipleship Programmes. Initially, all our programmes were church funded. Today, many of our brethren now give generously to support this ministry to the incarcerated. The Holy Spirit has turned the hearts of many in our congregation from one of indifference to wholehearted involvement. This is most evident at Christmas time when everyone is mobilized to source gifts which are presented to over five hundred children of inmates. The gifts are taken into the prison where parents give them to their children. One member, a school teacher has for the last three years used the occasion as a project in three classes where each student brings a gift. She has said that she cannot believe the excitement her students display in knowing that the gifts are to be given to children of prisoners. At Christmas time also, as well as for Mothers’ and Fathers’ Day, food and toiletry hampers are prepared at our church building in Arima for distribution to the families of inmates. Many of our little children and elderly diligently come and assist in packing hundreds of hampers for distribution.

In addition, when the Lord brought us alongside Prison Fellowship, there was no money in the Bank Account to fund the programmes. In fact, we had a number of creditors with no money to pay them. With the institution of a proper management and accounting system God has blessed and continues to bless this ministry with many corporate donors and well wishers. In addition, in 2008, the lease for the building occupied by Prison Fellowship was not renewed and up to this day the Offices of Prison Fellowship has been temporarily located at our church facilities in Arima. This has resulted in a annual savings of US$4000.00.

Undoubtedly though, the greatest blessing has been to see lives transformed. Very often, we are filled with tears to hear the testimonies of inmates and how when there was no hope, the Gospel has given them every reason to live and encourage their children and family members. And oh, how our lives have been changed through this ministry.

As I end, I am reminded of the scripture in the opening verses of Habakkuk 1 when the prophet complained to God that there was violence everywhere and that he had to watch all the misery. Then God told him ..I AM GOING TO DO SOMETHING IN YOUR OWN DAY, SOMETHING YOU WOULDN’T BELIEVE, EVEN IF SOMEONE TOLD YOU ABOUT IT.

Never in our wildest dreams and imagination did we ever think that God would use us to carry the Gospel into the prison where even to this day not many people have a desire to go. What a joy it is to work where the Lord is working.