By Rick Burnette, CBF field personnel
We were hot and exhausted, but in the best way possible.
Among the worn out were 24 youth of Central Baptist Newnan, Georgia and seven adults who accompanied them. The Misión Peniel and Cultivate Abundance teams were equally exhausted.
We had wrapped up several hours of preparing and serving food to more than 350 Immokalee residents, most of them also hot and exhausted on a Friday afternoon in late June.
A week prior, the 27-member Johns Creek Baptist Church team from Alpharetta, Georgia were equally hot and exhausted after days of community service and sharing food.
We don’t normally host two large volunteer teams back-to-back. It takes considerable effort to help church teams plan and organize effective engagement. However, this year is different.
We’ve been increasingly concerned about the rise of anti-immigrant rhetoric and its impact on our farmworker neighbors. With increased law enforcement presence and ramped up arrests, since January 2025, the peaceful immigrant community of Immokalee has become increasingly anxious.
As we are engaged in CBF Global Missions’ key contexts related to global migration, global poverty and the global church, Cultivate Abundance (a Global Missions Engagement Partner) works closely with local partner, Misión Peniel, to meet various felt needs within the Immokalee farmworker community. Our primary mission is to grow, collect and share nutritious food of cultural preference.
At the core we are compelled to follow and represent Jesus Christ, who leads us to love our neighbors and partner with them to overcome various challenges, including inequality and injustice.
Restorative justice for the underserved and downtrodden is a dominant biblical theme, with God’s concern frequently expressed for the enslaved, poor and oppressed. Amos thundered, “But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream,” and Micah’s exhortation was “only to do justice and to love goodness, and to walk humbly with your God.”
Jesus at the synagogue in Nazareth read from the scroll of Isaiah, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor,” following this text by stating, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Being an ally in the pursuit of justice requires a shift from our own limited worldviews and personal agendas to gain greater desire for the common good, a reflection of the Kingdom of God. Such awareness is nurtured through exposure to situations of injustice and poverty, guided by humble interaction with those who struggle, and being enriched through collaborative service.
Seeing the faces and hearing the voices of the marginalized can transform us. Worshiping and serving with faith communities lacking the resources employed by wealthier congregations will lead to reflection. Ultimately, respectful and meaningful engagement must be led and instructed by local wisdom as opposed to attempts by less informed but well-meaning outsiders to go in, get things done and go home.
This year we feel compelled to enable as many congregations as possible to grow awareness and nurture compassion regarding the current plight of our immigrant neighbors. We hope their experiences in Immokalee will help deepen commitments to serve as allies among the marginalized.
When CBF congregations inquire about possible missions involvement in Immokalee and surrounding communities, it is our obligation to understand what gifts they are offering. It is also necessary for them to better understand the local context before arrival.
In preparation, we send documents to inform team members of local challenges and opportunities as well as to highlight the demographics of those they will serve. We make every effort to avoid painting our neighbors as powerless victims. Our priority is to have engaged volunteers who radiate sincere love and respect. Completed projects are secondary.
Ultimately, volunteer teams should leave Immokalee with increased awareness of injustices and other challenges. They should also have gained an appreciation of the local goodness and strengths. We also hope they will have learned useful things to take back home.
Along those lines, we were not disappointed with the two back-to-back groups.
We were impressed by the preparatory efforts of the Johns Creek leadership to inform their volunteers about Immokalee, the farmworkers, local cultures and the ministries of CBF Global Missions, including Cultivate Abundance and Misión Peniel.
We were impressed by the collaborative spirit shown by the Central Baptist Newnan team to jointly plan music camp activities with Juan Pablo, the Misión Peniel music teacher, as well as to receive guidance from Primera Iglesia Bautista Hispana de LaBelle for involvement in their 2025 Vacation Bible School.
We were impressed by the enthusiasm of both groups to listen and learn from the narratives shared by Misión Peniel/Cultivate Abundance staff and Primera members about the local situation.
We were impressed by the willingness of both teams to serve and be served as well as their flexibility each time plans shifted.
We were impressed that the youth and adults braved the heat, humidity and the risk of fire ants while pulling weeds from the garden. Ice pops are always a morale boost.
We were impressed by the guidance of the adults as well as the manners and constructive energy of the youth. We were impressed by the inclusiveness displayed by both teams to include volunteers who could have been easily overlooked due to perceived disabilities.
The capstone for both weeks was the respectful and cheerful sharing of food to hundreds of Immokalee residents.
However, another high point was the joint Wednesday night concert held at Primera in LaBelle during which VBS attendees joined with the Misión Peniel music students and the Central Newnan team. While Central Newnan’s talent was obvious, they made every effort to shine the light on the local kids.
Hot and exhausted was how we felt at the end. But I am certain that awareness was nurtured, and compassion was cultivated.