Guatemala RPCV Myles Fish's journey of faith
A journey not alone, but with the Lord’s leading and guiding.
A journey of faith.
Rev. Myles Fish’s pilgrimage to the presidency of International Aid, effective June 2001, can be traced back to his days as a Peace Corps worker in the jungles of Guatemala.
Upon his graduation from North Carolina State with a degree in aquatic biology, he looked for a Christian organization that offered an overseas outreach in his field. Myles couldn’t find one. But he did find that opportunity in the Peace Corps. And those three years in remote and primitive villages in Guatemala – teaching Mayan Indians how to build ponds so they could raise fish to supplement their diets – changed his life forever.
“My experience in Guatemala really impacted my life; I developed a passion for working with the poorest of the poor,” he says. “As I engaged in service and ministry to others, I also was the beneficiary. It was a time of great spiritual growth and of drawing closer to the Lord.”
Inspired by his experiences in Guatemala, Myles entered Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton, Mass., in 1980. His plans were to serve the Lord on the mission field.
“My wife (Belinda) and I have this vision of going into world missions,” he says. “I was going to do food development and use my seminary training and my wife was going to use her nursing skills. I thought that was the package God had wrapped up for us.”
But God had another road for Myles to travel.
During his final year at seminary, Myles needed one more credit in field education. Due to his tight schedule, he was placed as a volunteer at an area prison. There he was introduced to Prison Fellowship Ministries, headed by Chuck Colson.
“God had another plan for me…a ministry of reaching out to men and women behind bars who also desperately need the Lord,” he states. “What started out as a volunteer job grew to 17 wonderful years of ministry. It was a marvelous experience.”
Myles wasn’t looking for a new life’s path during the winter of 2001. But it seemed the Lord was challenging him to consider a change of direction.
“I really wasn’t looking for a change, but I was encouraged by others to look at International Aid’s web page,” he recalls. “And I was surprised. Some of things that were important to me – a holistic and comprehensive ministry that engages the Church in carrying out its mission, ministering to the ‘least of these’ and placing a high priority on reaching people that they might know the Lord – were being carried out by International Aid around the world. So that piqued my interest and led to more conversations and meetings with the International Aid Board of Directors.”
Myles was offered the position of President/CEO and accepted in March, 2001.
“It is an honor to be selected and be part of what the Lord is doing through the work of International Aid around the world,” he says. “I approach the future with a prayer of humility that God might enable me in some way to provide for this ministry what He has in store for it. I don’t know what the future holds, but I do know that God has called the Church to do the ministry in what International Aid is engaged in. Partnering together we can continue to reach out in compassion to the sick, the needy and the disenfranchised people of the world.”
Myles D. Fish
Formal Education:
*
Undergraduate degree in Aquatic Biology from North Carolina State University
*
Master of Divinity degree from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
*
Ordained by the American Baptist Churches USA in 1986
Experience:
*
1978, Peace Corps volunteer in Guatemala teaching local residents how to develop fish farms to improve the availability of protein in their meager diets.
*
1980, Began Master of Divinity degree. Began serving as volunteer with Prison Fellowship ministry.
*
1984, Graduated from Gordon-Conwell and joined Prison Fellowship ministry as the Massachusetts State Director.
He has remained with Prison Fellowship since 1984 and has progressed through the following positions:
*
Regional Director
*
Vice President of Field Operations
*
Senior Vice President of Ministry Development
*
Senior Vice President of Ministry Services
Affirmation:
"We are excited how the Lord has used International Aid and its partners to meet the needs of people around the globe for the past 20 years. We believe Myles Fish will provide the experience and vision to give focus to that same compassionate ministry in this next millennium. He has a heart beat for people in need, starting with his years as a Peace Corps worker in the poorest areas of Guatemala and continuing with his ministry with Prison Fellowship. Myles is a dynamic leader and transparent man of faith."
Dr. John Mulder, Chairman, International Aid Board of Directors
“I would like to welcome Rev. Myles Fish to West Michigan and the presidency of International Aid. I recently witnessed International Aid’s eye ministry in Ghana, West Africa, while on a Congressional tour and was impressed with its professionalism and compassion. I am sure Myles will build on that legacy of care which International Aid has established around the world over the past 21 years.”
Rep. Peter Hoekstra, Holland, MI
