What Do You Do When You Would Rather Look Away?

You know that feeling when you're scrolling through disaster headlines and your brain just...

shuts off? Yeah, me too.

So when tragedies strike on the other side of the world, most of us—myself included—have a reflex we don’t talk about much: we as Christ Followers simply tune it out. Our minds jump to what psychologists call “cognitive dissonance.” We think, “That’s awful,” and then we move on. It’s how we protect ourselves from being overwhelmed. But sometimes, if you stay still long enough, the suffering catches up with you. And if you listen closely enough, you hear God asking you not to look away.

That’s what happened to me this past week.

A few days ago, I sat on a video call with my friend Nigel Wilkinson in Jamaica. Nigel is the Director of Back to the Bible Jamaica. I’ve worked with him for over 15 years through surveys, radio broadcasts, discipleship projects, and more. But this conversation wasn’t about ministry strategy or spiritual growth data. This time, we were talking about survival.

Just days before our call, Hurricane Melissa slammed into Jamaica as a Category 5 storm—the strongest since Gilbert in 1988. In its path: small towns, coastal villages, and dozens of churches I’ve visited over the years. Nigel described how families were sitting silently on piles of debris that used to be their homes. “Arnie,” he said, “it’s like a war zone. We’ve lost so much.” He shared the story of a man who survived by clinging to the corner of a concrete wall as a wall of water washed away his house, his chickens, and his refrigerator—none of which have been found since. These aren’t just statistics or headlines. These are our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Now, I understand that many of our readers may not know much about Jamaica. It’s easy to assume it’s all beaches and Bob Marley. But let me tell you what I’ve seen over and over in this beautiful island nation: the Church is not just a Sunday gathering. It’s the emergency shelter, the food pantry, the school, and the hospital. In many rural areas, churches are all people have. There’s no FEMA. No social safety net. If the church falls, the community falls with it.

And right now, the church is hurting.

Many of the churches Nigel and I visited during our first research project—small wooden sanctuaries in remote hillsides—are completely gone. In one town, 90% of the buildings were damaged or destroyed. Thousands are without electricity or water. Whole communities have no communication. No way to contact family. No way to hear a Bible broadcast. No way to even say, “We’re still here.”

Which brings me to why this matters to us at Back to the Bible—and to you.

Nigel and I are praying, planning, and dreaming about the launch of the next phase of our work in Jamaica: a national follow-up to the groundbreaking Transform Jamaica research we first conducted in 2017 that exposed the spiritual crisis hiding beneath Jamaica's "Christian" surface. We discovered that in this supposedly Christian nation:

• Most people can't explain salvation by grace

• Young men are completely missing from churches

• Teens grow up in church, then vanish by age 20

• Pastors are exhausted and have zero support

We had the plan. We had the strategy. We had everything lined up to help the Jamaican church transform from the inside out. All that was left was God’s guidance and funding.

Then Melissa hit. And suddenly everything changed.

Now everything is delayed, damaged, or displaced. But maybe not lost.

What’s needed right now isn’t just rebuilding buildings, it’s rebuilding hope. Rebuilding communication. Rebuilding the ability for the Church to reach people not only with aid, but with the Gospel. That’s where we believe we can help: by standing with Nigel and Back to the Bible Jamaica to get them the tools to reconnect.

Right now, Nigel’s team is trying to acquire a Starlink satellite system and a small solar generator. Not expensive. Not fancy. Just enough to let them get back on the air. To broadcast Bible teaching. To let rural pastors check in. To give someone a moment of peace in the middle of chaos. A few hundred dollars will open that channel again. And from there, if the Lord provides, we’ll continue on to Transform Jamaica Two—reaching a shaken, ready nation with the truth of Jesus.

Why should we care? Because the Church is one body. And Jamaica is a deeply Christian nation—one that has given more than its share of worship, resilience, and beauty to the global Church. Today, they’re asking for a lifeline. Not a handout. Just a way to stand again. And together, I believe we can help them do it.

So today, I’m not asking you for anything—except to not look away. That’s how healing begins. That’s how hope spreads. That’s how we remember that we’re not so far apart after all.

And for those of you who would like to help Back to the Bible Jamaica, you can watch my interview with Nigel and support them here. All proceeds (100%) go directly to BTTB Jamaica. 

In His service and yours,

P.S. If you have a comment or prayer request, contact me here: or call me and leave a message at 1-800-811-2387. And be sure to join me tomorrow through Friday on our new podcast Spiritually Fit Today. This week I'll be talking to Caleb White, a youth director and spiritual growth coach. Discover with us how mentorship can transform lives and learn practical ways to encourage and disciple the next generation, build strong faith foundations, and make a lasting impact—one relationship at a time.