Mission Cry’s director reports on Belize trip

Belize (MNN) — Sometimes, the best way to find out what someone needs is simply to ask.

Jason Woolford of Mission Cry, formerly Christian Resources International, did just that on his recent trip to Belize. “They’re not asking for food or clothes, but they’re saying, ‘Listen, we need discipleship, we need Bibles, we need Christian books,’” he said.

That’s where Mission Cry comes in. According to Woolford, their goal “is to reach the entire country of Belize with the Bible or a Christian book in every home in this country.”

John Foy, an on-the-ground partner in Belize, said the answers Woolford got are spot on. Most local believers “don’t really need any more evangelism. What they really need is more discipleship. They need Bibles so they can read it, eat it, and grow.”

Foy first encountered Woolford’s mission when his team started a village outreach in Belize. They quickly ran out of Bibles, and a friend suggested he contact Woolford’s organization.

“A year later, I walked through their facilities and he loaded me up with concordances and all these other things I was able to bring back to some of our graduates so they could continue their studies,” said Foy.

Now, their partnership still runs strong, but so does the need for Christian literature.

“Bibles and books wear out, and to replace them is not always as easy as people would think it would be,” explained Foy.

Belize’s religious climate presents its own challenges, said Foy. “We have a church that basically teaches people, ‘Don’t read the Bible. Just come to mass and we’ll teach it to you.’”

In addition, “There are witch doctors and other religions here that use the Bible to curse people, so there’s a stigma among these people.”

Once believers get their hands on Bibles, Foy said even the children get a chance to learn about the Word of God. “We take the Bible and we give them colored pencils with the Bible, and then we take them from Genesis to Revelation teaching them eight or nine basic topics so they can make it a cross reference Bible,” he said.

Woolford said Mission Cry still needs your help. “The devil hates what we’re here doing and what we’re going to do here in Belize.” Your prayer can make all the difference.

But prayer isn’t the only way you can get involved. “We need people to look at the shelves in their house or other places where they’d find a Bible or a Christian book to bring to the mission, or visit our website so they can mail it to us.”

If you want to find out more about how you can put your unused Bibles, books, and bucks to good use, we’ll connect you right here.