Michael Bagby

Michael Bagby has lived a life that makes no sense or perfect sense, depending on your perspective.

He grew up in a military family living in Germany, Turkey, and the U.S., graduating from Miami University with a B.A. in European History. He served in the U.S. Navy six years as an Attack Pilot flying the A-6 Intruder aboard the USS Enterprise, Kitty Hawk, and Coral Sea. Then he spent two years as a ski bum, banquet waiter, and wine steward in Vail Colorado before traveling to Maui to help a friend open an ice cream business. There he had an encounter with a demonic spirit in a scene right out of the movie The Exorcist, which cause him to investigate the reality of the spiritual world, and resulted in him becoming a follower of Jesus.

After three years on Maui, he volunteered to go on what he thought was a two week trip to the Coco River region of Honduras and Nicaragua to where the Sandinista-Contra war was in progress, to deliver relief supplies to Miskito Indian refugees. It was a year and a half before he returned to Maui, but in the meantime he and others began a primary school project in the refugee villages.

It was during this time that Michael was given a 1953 Piper Pacer which allowed access by air to this remote corner of Honduras. Having this four seat fabric wing aircraft changed everything for Michael and his friends. Before, the nearest cold drink was a eight hour walk. With the "Yellow Banana" (it was painted bright yellow) that cold drink and other conveniences was a 15 minute flight! Later a church in Vero Beach Florida donated a twin engine Piper Seneca, which served the school project for 10 years. This was because the pastor of that church was hesitant to get into an airplane with duck tape covering a hole in the bottom of the wing caused by a student poking his pencil through the fabric. He prophesied that "God was going to get you another airplane" which in fact He did a year later!

He continued to work in Honduras with these refugee villages along the lower Rio Coco, and when the war ended in 1991, their non-profit organization, Seek The Lamb, crossed the river and became the community school in many villages. Today this school project continues in eight communities with an enrollment of over 1700 students.

In 1997, he and his wife Laura took three of their Miskito Indian leaders to Israel for a study tour of Biblical Culture. They returned again to live in Jerusalem in the summer of 1999, and the following year began a relief project with Dr. Randall Smith to help victims of the 2000 Intifada. They also continued working with Dr. Smith, taking study tour groups to Israel, Greece, Turkey and Italy for the next eight years.

In 2004, they began a fundraising project, Rio Coco Beans, importing coffee beans from Nicaragua to sell in the United States to make money for the school project. That led to the establishment of the Rio Coco Cafe on the Western Caribbean Island of Utila in the summer of 2011 as an outreach to the scuba diving and backpacking tourists who travel to this island off the north coast of Honduras. A few months later they opened the Rio Coco Cafe in Vero Beach Florida when they roast coffee and serve specialty coffee and food (You can find these two cafes of Trip Advisor).

During many of these years, his pastor at Hope Chapel Maui referred to the ministry of Michael and Laura as "Blurred Vision" (as opposed to "World Vision"), but now all the elements have come together in a coffee ministry that reaches out to internationals in a cross-cultural manner and supports and education project on the Coco River which is in it's 31st year.

In 1994, Michael was encouraged by Ralph Moore to write about his experiences as a missionary, the result was "Just Another Lump of Clay". After spending the summer working with Dr. Randall Smith in Jerusalem, he wrote "Living In The Spiritual World" with Dr. Smith, which was publish in 2004.

Michael recently completed three writing projects which are part of the series "Things That Really Matter:"

1) Echoes Into Eternity -- Gen Maximus said it in the Oscar winning movie "The Gladiator". What things in life really send echoes into eternity? After experiencing much of what this life has to offer, and extensively studying ancient civilizations, the only thing that really matters is Christian Discipleship. So what does being a follower of Jesus look like according to the Bible? What does it really mean to Lover God with all your heart, soul, and mind? What are the practical aspects of "Loving Your Neighbor?" How did Jesus make disciples? What does that look like in our world? What do disciples do? Michael uses many examples from his days as a Naval Aviator to connect the dots of discipleship.

2) "Living In The Spiritual World" which is a audio discussion between Dr Randall Smith and Michael recorded in Jerusalem a few years ago that has been transcribed, and with photos and other additions is now a round table discussion about various aspect of our lives as spiritual beings, according to the Bible. Call it Christianity 101-404 with an emphasis of understanding the historical and cultural context of the Word.

3) "The Vision Behind The Verses" is a discussion of the most published book in history- The Bible. How did it become just "mythology and philosophy" rather than God's Word? What does modern archeology say about the Biblical record. A big challenge is understanding the Bible in our own cultural setting, which is impossible unless you consider its own historical/cultural context. The Vision Behind The Verses explores the geographical, historical, cultural, and linguistic context, as well as how understanding the original languages help us get the message that that authors intended.

Future project include "A Cup of Life" which is a study on the Book of Acts and its application to coffee shop ministry; and "The Easily Distracted Person's Guide to the Bible", which unfortunately has been put on hold due to the distractions of these other books as well as the Rio Coco Cafe ministry.

Michael, his wife Laura, and his four children Mikaela, Lukas, Arielle, and Moselle all work in the cafe ministry on Utila and in Vero Beach, and continue their periodic travels to Nicaragua to work with the Miskito school project teachers.

More information on the school project is available at seekthelamb.com and you can help support the school project by purchasing Rio Coco Bean coffee at riococobeans.com.