LARRY AND MERIEL O'MAHONEY

by Martin Blewett

I am sitting talking to Larry and Meriel O'Mahoney, OAC evangelists in the Republic of Ireland. A peat fire is burning in the grate. Outside, persistent rain beats against the window.

The damp weather is something that Larry is getting used to again. After nearly thirty years, he and his wife Meriel have returned to the land of Larry's birth. Has he come full circle?

"Not really: I was born in Tipperary, so County Kerry is not exactly 'home'. And besides, many things have changed, both in Ireland and in my life since I first went away in the late 1950's."

"I left Ireland for the good life," he continues, "or so I thought. An elder brother who had gone to work in England came home every Christmas saying how easy the life was across the water, so I followed him."

Life was not easy for Larry however, and after trying many careers including a short spell in the Irish Police Force, he found himself in Burton upon Trent in 1978, alone and with drink his only comfort. But things were soon to change for Larry in an unexpected way.

"One night a fellow told me that reading the Bible would change my life. The next day I bought a copy of the King James Version for 75p. I read it every day, and remember the comfort it brought me. One evening, I went along to a small chapel with an old friend. I heard the Word of God preached and realised I needed Jesus as my Saviour."

From early in his Christian life, Larry felt strongly that one day he would be involved in leading others to Christ. In 1979, whilst visiting Fishguard, he saw a large ship sailing out to sea, bound for Ireland. "I heard God say to me that, one day, I would return to Ireland and that I would tell Irish men and women about Jesus."

In 1983 Larry and Meriel were married and moved to Bristol. Larry trained as an evangelist with OAC West Country.

"I was very nervous at first about preaching in the street. I felt that people would not respond well to someone with an Irish accent, but I found God used me and that people did stop to listen."

Larry and Meriel returned to Ireland in 1991 after spending several summers working with Irish churches. Things were not easy at first: they were living in a remote area and found the Irish winters severe. The following year they moved to Killarney, a popular tourist town on the West coast, where they were invited to coordinate evangelism for the Killarney Bible Fellowship.

The work is varied; Larry and Meriel spend a great deal of time visiting homes with the Gospel. Many people live on remote farms and so sometimes they must travel large distances.

"It's slow work;" Meriel admits. "Building relationships is the key. A lot of people here don't see anyone for days on end, so you have to be prepared to talk about the farm and even get your hands dirty." Last autumn Larry helped farmers cut the peat. It's a ministry unique to Ireland - Bog Evangelism!

During the summer Larry concentrates on street evangelism. In this part of Ireland the summer festivals are a major feature of life and tens of thousands of people attend events like the Rose of Tralee Festival. Working with church teams, Larry and Meriel share the Good News with many hundreds of individuals.

"Most people come to the festivals with one aim in mind - to get as drunk as possible", Larry remarks. "But I am able to show using my own experience that God can save them from even the most hopeless of circumstances."

I ask about the main difficulties they face in evangelism in Ireland. Larry and Meriel agree that Roman Catholicism is a major influence in the lives of many people, even if they rarely attend church.

Individuals who do become evangelicals face ostracism from their family and community. However, things are changing: they note a new openness on the part of Irish people to hear about the Bible and a greater tolerance of evangelicals than in the past.

How can we help support Larry and Meriel in ministry in one of Europe's most spiritually needy countries?

Larry thinks for a while. "Please pray for us," he says. "Finance is always an area of concern, but most importantly we need people to come over and help us, either in the short or long-term. At the moment we are praying for a couple to join us in Ireland, that's our main need."