Major Neil Lewis
Mark Dawes, Staff Reporter
LOCAL CHURCHES and para-church
organisations have often sought to tackle the nation's spiritual and socio-economic problems without much collaboration. These Christian groups often operated independently of each other. But this overlapping was
not always productive. For
example, four Christian groups operating in a community might independently decide
to set up four small bakeries. But acting together, they could have established one bakery, which would generate greater profits and more employment.
Often with planning, co-
ordination and co-operation these groups would be more effective in serving their respective communities. It is this kind of vision that gave birth to Operation Save Jamaica (OSJ).
OSJ is the brainchild of its chairman, Bruce Fletcher, associate pastor at Christian Life Fellowship, in Papine,
St Andrew. "Bruce's concept was that we needed to have a means of bringing transformation to the nation -- not so much by creating a new ministry or ministries. But by marshalling and
co-ordinating all the various ministries that are already in the business of transformation strengthening them, harmonising their efforts, in order to bring maximum impact wherever they are functioning OSJ is a kind of catalyst. If there is need for a particular ministry somewhere and it does not exist, OSJ will create that ministry and give it a whole lot of autonomy as it maintains harmony with all the other things," said OSJ director Major Neil Lewis.
"Transformation is not just
a matter of changing the
economic and social
circumstances of the nation as
a whole, but changing a critical mass of people's hearts to think differently, act differently,
and give each one of them a framework to act differently.
"By that I mean, it is all well and good to get people converted to Jesus Christ. Having brought about that
conversion, it is now a retraining of one's life and a retraining of one's conduct and a re-socialising to have
a different approach to life to be
successful," Major Lewis said.
He further explained: "A lot of
persons have been converted but they have not stuck with it for one reason
or another. A lot of it has to do with
a lack of instruction and a lack of
training, but also a lack of being able
to make a living. For example, people in concubinage who get saved and are not able to come out of it because of economic bondage to the concubinage situation."
OSJ HOPES TO CHANGE JAMAICA
POSITIVELY BY:
Transforming communities
Transforming churches
Transforming young people
Transforming the Jamaican
mindset
Transforming national governance
The OSJ has identified about 600 communities, which it is targeting for transformation. The strategy to transform a community begins with Prayer Reconnaissance .
The first step in its reconnaissance is
a meeting with the Ministers' Fraternal from the area. Aided by the showing of films that documents how revival and transformation came to other communities and nations, OSJ sells the fraternal a vision and a strategy to transform the community they serve. After mobilising the ministers, OSJ seeks to mobilise the churches in the community. It does so, in part, by showing the same films that the ministers had viewed. Church
members are then given training in aspects of Intercessory Prayer and Prayer Evangelism. Thereafter teams are sent house-to-house to pray for the felt-needs of residents. These householders are also invited to attend an open-crusade slated to take place within days.
SPIRITUAL DATABASE
When the prayer teams return from the field, a debriefing takes place. The teams report on their experience in the field. Their findings are fed into a
computer database, and are by OSJ for spiritual mapping -- i.e. a charting of the spiritual history and present condition of the community. The spiritual mapping, he said, would thereafter be used to help the churches to pray more intelligently for their community.
Specific information on individuals visited by the prayer teams is also logged into OSJ's database. Careful note would be made of persons' socio-economic circumstances -- those in the most dire economic needs are treated as a priority and immediate assistance is rendered where possible.
The Ingathering Phase follows the Prayer Reconnaissance. In this phase, a playfield is secured and various tents are placed on the field where persons can go and seek out persons to pray concerning different needs including the casting out of demons.
Sports tournaments are held there also, where Christian teams play non-Christian teams from the community. At some point during the tournament, the Christian gospel is shared with the non-Christians teams. All of this is complemented by the convening of evangelistic crusades at multiple locations within a community.
A Follow-up & Teaching Phase follows where OSJ convenes four weekend teaching sessions covering such topics as: 'Victorious Christian living', 'Successful family living', 'Baptism in the Holy Spirit', 'Bible interpretation' and 'Life-Skills and Personal Development Training'. The new converts are also mentored. These sessions also assists OSJ to assess the educational background and literacy levels of the new converts. This information is stored placed in its database to assist with future planning.
The Consolidation Phase follows where OSJ seeks to galvanise and organise zones within the community for self-empowerment spiritually, socially, educationally, economically
providing human resources and
infra-structural base for each major investment and resulting small
entrepreneurial opportunities.
OSJ is hoping also to train community co-ordinators -- people who would function like general secretaries to
help a community to empower itself
and to secure the sustainability of such things as citizens associations, neighbourhood watches, and chambers of commerce. In this way, OSJ believes it is helping communities to become self-reliant and thereby reduce dependency on handouts.
This is the phase in which community outreach programmes are implemented along with remedial educational,
vocational and entrepreneurial training. During this phase para-church organisations would be encouraged to establish a permanent presence in each area to maintain the evangelistic and ministerial momentum on a sectoral rather than regional basis.
Stage five, the Economic Empowerment Phase, seeks to
stimulate economic development through funding small enterprises and establishing at least one major investment in each area that will create jobs and stimulate other economic activity.
Major Lewis disclosed that through an investment club which operates under the auspices of OSJ US$1million is being raised. "While we are working towards the US$1 million, the funds in hand are being invested on the currency trading market and the returns has been between 5-12 per cent per month. When they get to the US$1 million threshold, it is going to be invested in a bank programme to generate greater returns."
Thereafter, he said, the OSJ will
seek to establish financial institutions to
pursue investment banking and insurance -- life and general. Christians and non-Christians are at this time eligible for membership in the investment club. The investment club, Major Lewis said, is on target to attain the US$1 million by year end.
OSJ is hoping, Major Lewis said,
to "bring into each community, or
each unit of community -- sufficient economic development that can
stimulate local revival which in turn
creates jobs and enables people to make a living and plan their lives. Our hope is to put at least U$20 million into each of these communities to create viable businesses and maximum employment."
Continued next week
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