Where do we start? Yes let's talk about Service!!
For us a very different experience indeed.
Saturday 2nd November
Out in the woods, beyond the city limits, we had two car loads but ended up as 16 people - so you can tell we crammed into the cars & the rest got the bus. Seat belts are not used often unless you physically pull them over the passenger & clunk them in.
Here you start early in the day as it's cooler & boy it got hot by lunch time. Nice actually, not unbearably hot, with a pretty brolly over you ( not the brothers of course) or with a hat which made it comfortable.
So, about this area, a wooded area (some call it the boonies) out by the city trash site. Sadly trash was strewn about in the woods too but people were trying to collect it. Folks collect plastic for cash & even brothers when in service have a carrier bag to collect up quite a quantity (it makes them some extra money).
It was hard to park up too with real dirt roads but Barbra has a 4x4.
So I've nearly painted the scene:
Here are a few other details.
A prolific amount of dogs, most adhering to the pack order but occasionally a real gnarling fight broke out.
Dog poop all over the place (bet Phil was pleased he had a lie in at home in the morning!!) oh but that could be why he trod in some right by the car yesterday afternoon.
Houses run up and down the track of the single road into & out of the colony.
Also a project was going on - run by a church charity group that was building small homes for folks alongside the corrugated school house.
Up higher, a tin Evangelical Church with a service going on inside, pumped out the female preachers voice for us all to hear, although it seemed quite empty but unsure as it was dark inside & we couldn't see clearly.
So our mixed group systematically called at every home with around 85% being in!!
The S8 form, incidentally used by JWs since 1953 - wasn't needed much today for recording NH's.
Here they would be called NCs - 'Not in their Casas'.
The territory was fruitful. Ones had good witnessing opportunities. One young girl whom we called on went to fetch her black cover NWT & followed along as the Kingdom News 'Can the Dead Really Live Again?' was discussed. Another woman was very touched by the scriptural comforting points as 'the Day of the Dead' celebration had brought back to her the pain of the loss of both of her parents in an accident in recent years. Two little (not attractive) puppies sniffed around my feet during this witnessing episode (oh dear!!)
I pressed the 'suppress fear' button & prayed that I would concentrate and support my witnessing partner. Enjoy the positive aspect of this service - People Are Listening - this Is Good!!
I presented the tract too in my imitation Spanish - poorly but people were generous & listened but Barbra took over as planned and progressed each call. Oh what joy to preach to ones who listen despite the churches strong influence. One evangelical man was most polite and respectful & 'interested' as we spent half an hour on his door step witnessing progressively with him.
And if Laura & Ian are reading this 'Don't Fret' - Antigua is more civilised!. It will not have the same negative dirty bits but will hopefully resemble the positive opportunities we had on that sunny Saturday morning service 1st November 2013
For other readers: Ian & Laura from MSN Somerset ( our home congregation) are joining us in our rented house when we move over to Antigua City tomorrow - they arrive Thursday & will stay two weeks of our seven weeks with the English language congregation.
Sunday meeting 9am
With Barbra's home Spanish Congregation Alto de Señora
Very welcoming brothers & sisters indeed, some we've already been out in service with and wothers we remembered from our last trip in 2009.
So after the meeting & lunch more field service. But this time the clouds blackened and rain poured down. Drenched everyone, Phil & Barbra had brollies - yes Phil had my floral one but was more than grateful to use it, but no one could last a minute longer in that - so. 'Rain stopped play'.
This is the same view (below) as the scene from the top picture but as you can see sheets of rain obscure the Agua Volcano .....
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