By ALESHA CADET

Tribune Features

Reporter

acadet@tribunemedia.net

CELEBRATING a milestone in missionary services, members of the Grace Community Church will be hosting their 30th annual Global Missions Conference starting this Sunday.

The conference is scheduled to be held at the church in Palmetto Village, Marathon, March 6-13 with special guest speaker Henry Janowski, Caribbean leader of Operation Mobilisation (OM).

Highlights will include a mission workshop which invites other churches, a Christian education hour, church worship service and dessert competition.

The Grace Community Church has supported individual missionaries and mission organisations financially over the past three decades.

Their missionaries are involved in areas of Bible translation, church planting, leadership training and various assistance services to their fellow brothers and sisters in Christ who are suffering for their faith in countries around the world.

Members said they are thankful that God is using them to touch people’s lives in other nations of the world.

Andy Knowles, chairman of Grace’s Global Missions Board, said the church is presently financially supporting 24 individuals and organisations who are involved in taking the Gospel of Jesus Christ to people who have never heard the name of Jesus Christ. Those missionaries also ensure that many people who do not have the Bible in their own language can have a copy which they can read for themselves.

He said for the past 27 years, Grace Community Church has had the privilege to be involved in sending short-term mission teams to Haiti, the Dominican Republic, St Vincent, Grenada, St Maarten, Mexico, Grand Bahama, Camp Bahamas and Tarpum Bay, Eleuthera.

Last summer, the church’s Operation Mobilisation team visited several European countries and this year they plan to go back. Mr Knowles said they believe God wants to create a hunger for missionaries from amongst the Bahamian people and those in the region. He said they are praying that God will lead the Bahamas to become a Third World country that sets the example for sending out missionaries out into the world.

“During these 27 years, over 400 persons from both Grace and other Bahamian churches have been involved in these mission trips. This year, the short-term mission team plans to join Dale and Lisett Bourne in Guadalajara, Mexico. After our IANA (I Am Not Ashamed) Combined Missions Conference last year we have seen a revived interest in missions, including our short-term mission trips that have increased in numbers as well as an increase with those working with Operation Mobilisation on short-term mission trips. Come and join us and be a part of what God is doing in our midst,” said Mr Knowles.