March 9-15 the McCarty Student Center sent 22 Christians to St Ann’s Bay, Jamaica to share the Gospel. We want to personally thank you for your prayers and financial support.

St. Ann’s Bay is located on the north-central side of the Island in the parish of St Ann’s. The church building on Royce St sits at the base of an incline towards their mountain peaks with a beautiful ocean view. St Ann’s Bay Church of Christ was first planted in 1982 by brother Owen Hayr, a native Jamaican and graduate of Freed-Hardeman Univeristy. Universities first contact with St Ann’s Bay began in c.2002 when Norman Starling (former minister and elder) traveled there to hold a Gospel Crusade. A few years later, a group of college students led by Jeff Borcherding held the first of many Gospel Meetings. The American preacher that year was Rick Brumback. St Ann’s Bay has been blest by the consistent leadership and hard work of Brother Owen Hayr and his family. It was evident as we walked the streets that the soil had been richly prepared to hear the soul-saving Good News of Jesus Christ.

Our preparation truly began in January of this year, when our team began training. Our team of 22 met every Sunday evening for eight weeks to prepare for the trip. Our focus in these meetings was on learning the content of the materials as well as practicing Bible study techniques and mock scenarios. Along with knowing the content of the study, team members were expected to complete weekly assignment that typically consisted of memory work and an outside the classroom assignment. For example, one-week students were expected to develop a list of “Five Evangelistic Contacts in My Life” which would then be used to begin setting up Bible studies before the trip. Before we left for Jamaica, our team had already conducted 20 Bible studies! Each team member is expected to lead or assist four studies before March 9, one with a Christian, a non-Christian, a study with “David and his machete”, and then finally with myself. By the time March 8th came, we were more than ready!

Early (and I mean 2 AM early) on Friday, March 9, we began our travels to Jamaica. After a day of “acclimating” and exploring the Island, we began work. On Sunday, we began our day with Bible classes led by team members. Josh Moore taught the adult class, and our young ladies taught a group of children. During worship, our team had the opportunity to participate in and help to lead in worship, with David Harrell preaching. We were then able to rest for a few moments that afternoon before we began the first night of our Gospel Meeting. Matt Gibson, a McCarty alumnus, did a fantastic job preaching every night! 

The rest of the week was filled with lots and lots of walking that led to contacts and ultimately Bible studies. In total, our team made 70 quality contacts and conducted over 40 studies. We were blessed to have nearly every team member lead a study, even five of our young ladies were able to study with other women during the week. We were certainly blessed to have men and women capable of sharing the Gospel with knowledge, skill, and confidence. Each night, after a full day of Bible studies and our Gospel Meeting, we concluded with “circle time” where we discussed what we learned, our “highs and lows”, and ultimately how this trip changed us as we prepared to return home.

I am so thankful that you chose to support our team. I look forward to our next trip to Runaway Bay, Jamaica in March 2026. If you would like to further discuss this trip or the next, please feel free to contact me at josh.moore@bobcatsforchrist.org or (254) 913-9867.