The Time Has Come!

September 26, 2015

Mission Haiti 2015 is now history. The days went by so fast.  I set up a busy schedule before I left. Almost too much. There were some things I wanted to do but the time filled up quickly. The pastors/wives conference was well attended and they did well participating in the discussions.  Healthy marriages are an issue everywhere…a worldwide issue. They share the same concerns as all of us.

I haven’t totaled up the number of pastors who wanted a one-on-one visit time with me. All of them are in need of encouragement and the affirmation they are headed in the right direction. A difficult element in leading the churches is the power of tradition. “We have always done it that way before”….scripturally or not. In most of the churches tradition trumps scripture and the pastors realize that. They also realize that this will take generations to change but it must start with them.

They love the people in their churches and want them to grow spiritually. Almost all have building needs. One pastor doesn’t have a building. His church meets under a tent the year round. They have purchased a piece of property and hope one day groups will come in and help him with a new church building…made of concrete blocks/mortar. Haiti is in need of many churches from USA to come and help with construction.

One of the pastors did not have a mattress for his children. They slept on the dirt floor with rocks protruding upward. A blanket was laid down on the floor and that’s where they slept. That situation was taken care. The children slept on a mattress for the first time. During the Wednesday break at the workshop, a lady came up to me and gave me a BIG hug. I had no clue who she was but found out quickly she was the mother of the children. Great feeling to be able to help.

The goats and pigs were bought to finish up the herd of each. This has been a project in process for a year. People at Crossroads, kids in the church, and a few outside the church gave so this project could be finished this year. There is now another project in the works to get two goats per pastor so they can build a herd for their church/orphanage. This has been a God sent idea.

Some fun events happened beyond those mentioned: We did a Lord’s Supper American style although I don’t think it was not much different than theirs. I did a wedding for a couple who were living together, were convicted of it being wrong, and wanted to get back their close relationship with God. The pastors/wives were elated at these events. When I passed out the oven mitts to the ladies and the concordances to the pastors the responses was that of children at Christmas time. These were Items they would never buy for themselves. Thank God for touching lives that are so hungry for help, friendship, and education, and for further relationship building.

Thursday, August 13
Only one and a half weeks till the Haiti trip begins. I am anxious to renew relationships with the pastors and the orphans. Again, I will be lodging with Terry and Carolyn Routon. They are great folks and have a heart for the Haitian peo30, 2015ple. I believe they are living out their calling. This couple has a deep passion for their various ministries to men, women, and children. God has truly put them where He desires for them to be.

This year's workshops will be directed towards the pastors and their wives.  Other than a relationship with God, this is the primary relationship in the church...the pastor and his wife.  I have seen several churches become sidetracked, get off mission, and experience turmoil because the church's first family was in conflict. Like all men and their wives, pastors/wives must  build a marriage that honors Jesus and edifies the church.   Good marriages don't just happen. They must work to have a good marriage. Pastors/wives face many pressures that the members are unaware of and these pressures need to be addressed maybe in a non-threatening conference setting.  The pastors/wives in Haiti face difficult circumstances because of their culture and, with direction/brainstorming, they can work together to find solutions. We will address "Marriage for a Lifetime". 

Another element this year will be spending one-on-one time with pastors.  Sometimes pastors need  to talk to another pastor. Sometimes they just need someone to listen and sometimes they need some suggestions. I will enjoy this part of the trip. I love pastors. I know what pastors go through. I want to help as I can.

Another new element is to gift the pastors/wives. They live in a survival mode daily. There are things they could buy for themselves but will not because they need to put clothes on their backs and food on the table. I want to encourage them with items that they can use.  (Note: I would put the name of the items on here but some may be reading this post. LOL)

Since last year, I have seen several pics of the children and heard some good reports of great happenings as well as needs. One of the joys of last year's trip was spending time with them.  I plan to do the same this trip. They are hungry for love and attention and they are just hungry.  Food is not abundant. With God's provisions and the help of others, since last August I have been able to provide 4 goats and 3 pigs. The pastor who directs the orphanage has a vision of having 6-8 goats and 6-8 pigs for the purpose of continually raising animals for food.  I am hoping to make that a reality this trip.  One goat will provide food for about 3 days.  Add rice to that and there is food for everyone.  

A wonderful surprise came this year when I found out that our Church's Teamkids, that meet on Wednesday nights, had decided to begin collecting mission money to buy a goat.  On their behalf I will be purchasing five goats.  They have had many projects in the past.  They have heard me talk about the orphans need for food and they decided to do their part by purchasing one goat. Glory be to God one goat has grown to five.  The love of children for other children.

There around 40-50 pastors in the area. Terry and Carolyn have set a goal of providing 2 goats for each church. Donations have come in and each pastor has been provided with one goat.  If possible, I want to be able to add more.

Well, I need to get back to workshop preparations. Please pray for: trip safety, the workshops, the children, and Terry/Carolyn. Trusting God for a rewarding, fruitful trip.

Planning for 2015

Time to begin looking at a plan for 2015. In reviewing 2014, Haiti missions went very well.  I was able to connect with the local missionaries, Terry and Carolyn Routon. You can find more info on their ministry at www.routonshaitiblog.blogspot.com. This couple has a deep passion for their various ministries to men, women, and children. God has truly put them where he desires for them to be.

I was able to connect with the pastors.  Several of them send Facebook message often. They experience the same kinds of issues that American pastors face. People are people whether in the jungles of Africa, the Northwestern Mountains of Haiti, or downtown USA. They have spiritual, emotional, social, and physical needs that can be met with a pastor/shepherd who has a heart for people.  The pastors of Haiti are eager to learn how they can be better pastors to their people.

I was able to connect with the pastors/wives concerning the primary relationship in the church...the pastor and his wife.  I have seen several churches become sidetracked, get off mission, and experience turmoil because the church's first family was in conflict.  Pastors/wives face many pressures that the members are unaware of and these pressures need to be addressed maybe in a non-threatening conference setting.  The pastors/wives in Haiti face difficult circumstances because of their culture and, with direction/brainstorming, they can work together to find solutions.

I was able to connect with the local orphanage that provides for 42 children. One of my joys of last year's trip was spending time with them.  They are hungry for love and attention and they are just hungry.  Food is not abundant. With God's provisions and the help of others, since August I have been able to provide 4 goats and 3 pigs. The pastor who directs the orphanage has a vision of having 6-8 goats and 6-8 pigs for the purpose of continually raising animals for food.  We are praying that someday that will be a reality. One goat will provide food for about 3 days.  Add rice to that and there is food for everyone.  A wonderful surprise came when I heard that our Children's Teamkids, that meet on Wednesday nights, had decided to begin collecting mission money to buy a goat.  They have had many projects in the past.  They have heard me talk about the children's need for food and they decided to do their part by purchasing a goat.  The love of children!

There around 40-50 pastors in the area. Terry and Carolyn have set a goal of providing 2 goats for each church.  Donations are coming in and they are on their way make that goal a reality.

On a some occasions, as time permitted, I had the opportunity to engage with people walking on roads, people shopping at the market, people looking around in stores, making home visits with a few of the pastors, and preaching in two churches. So in 2015, I plan on doing much of the same. As of right now, the plan is to go to Haiti the last week of August.

Looking Forward to 2015

The highlight of 2014 was my mission trip to Haiti.  God birthed this trip in my heart and mind in February 2014. I have a passion to help other pastors.  The purpose of the trip was to provide inspiration and instruction for pastors in a group setting. I spent three days with pastors and two days with pastors/wives. Terry and Carolyn Routon were great hosts and I enjoyed having JP Williams as a co-teacher. On my blog page this venture is titled “OUR MISSION HAITI. Certainly a group effort of God and people.

The pastors were very warm, courteous, and eager to learn. They were hungry to be affirmed in the ministry they were doing and to be encouraged to broaden the scope of pastoral ministry. I was learning right along with them as they asked questions and we discussed pastoral issues. The pastors/wives sessions were very informative as we encouraged each other to be supportive and enduring in working together as a team in ministry. Having an interpreter helped with the language barrier even though some knew a little English. Just being brothers and sisters in Christ brought a unique bonding that transcends any language and cultural barriers.

I would encourage you to consider a mission trip to work with the Haitian people. Christians there will be deeply impacted because of your sacrifice in going.  They encouragement to be discipled and to disciple others while they work in reaching unchurched people. If you have a heart for International mission, Haiti is the place to go.

I am in the process about 2015 and the possibilities of a return trip.  I want to continue working with the pastors and their wives as well as the orphanage. Would you pray with me and for me about 2015 and what needs God might use me to fill?

Two weeks till lift off..Prayer Warriors

Two weeks from tomorrow I will board a plane to Haiti and take an 8 hr. drive up the mountain.  The Northwestern Mountains of Haiti lives a group of pastors who are eager to learn and be inspired.  J.P. Williams and I will be there to lead a conference for Pastors/wives in the areas of marriage and pastoral leadership

 I have 18 prayer warriors.  For you and anyone else, here are some prayer needs:
1. Traveling safety for J.P. and myself.
2. Strength for the journey and the week of ministry activities.
3. Ample financial support to help provide needs for orphanage, otter families, and travel.
4. Health issues: two out of five mosquitoes in the country are carrying various virus which requires
    rest, Tylenol, and liquids.  Duirng this illness the body/bones ache The missionaries and many
    pastors have already been struck by the illness but doing much better.
5. Pray for the medical missionaries that are there.  A nurse will be about 20 minutes from us and a
    little medical clinic is about an hour from where we will be.  Pray they will have adequate meds to
    help those who are sick.
6. Pray for unbelievers in Haiti.  The missionaries are seeing many come to Christ.  Prayerfully, we
    hope our teaching will better prepare pastors to minister to believers and unbelievers.
7. And, of course, a major hope is that the pastor will come with open hearts and minds to learn, to
    be encouraged, and to unite themselves as being a group of pastors working together,  not alone.
8. JP and I are praying that we will be sensitive to the psator's needs versus just giving them what
    we have planned.  We want to field their questions and "scratch them where they itch".
9. Thankful that JP and I have the support of our churches for this mission endeavor.

Well, getting pumped.  August 14 will be here really soon.  Much left to do. Thanks for reading
and being a part of this mission trip to the pastors/wives of the northwest mountains of Haiti.

Less than a month

That's right.  There is less than one month till myself and my friend, JP Williams, will board a plane bound for Haiti.  We will be preaching at four services on two Sundays.  On the five days in between, we will be teaching six hours a day.  I will be teaching on "Our Identity in Christ" for three days and the other two days will be spent with  Pastor/wive on "Building a Healthy Marriage".   There are about 50 pastors so we are to divide those up into two groups.  We will each have a group in the morning and then another group in the afternoon.  Looking forward to being with pastors who are hungry for encouragement and education.

I am about  80% ready with teaching materials.  I want to make the materials as practical and helpful as possible.  Most believers would like to know, that now that I am a Christian, what does that mean?  Hopefully, these pastors can help their church members with that question.

In getting together items for the trip, I have a desire to help the orphanage operated by one of the pastors which has 40 children ages around 4 to 12 yrs.  Since I have two grandchildren from Ethiopia, I tend to be a little partial to orphanages which have trouble with finances and items of necessity for the children.  I have two check-in bags full of disposable wet wipes, children's Tylenol, children's vitamins, toothpaste for each child. a brush for each child,  and a water filter system for the orphanage.  Anxious to get these items there and hug on those kids.

I have 18 prayer warriors.  For you and anyone else, here are some prayer needs:
1. Traveling safety for J.P. and myself.
2. Strength for the journey and the week of ministry activities.
3. Ample financial support to help provide needs for orphanage, otter families, and travel.
4. Health issues: two out of five mosquitoes in the country are carrying various virus which have no
    cure...just rest, Tylenol, and liquids.  The missionaries and many pastors have already been struck
    by the illness but doing much better.
5. Pray for the medical missionaries that are there.  A nurse will be about 20 minutes from us and a
    little medical clinic is about an hour from where we will be.  Pray they will have adequate meds to
    help those who are sick.
6. Pray for unbelievers in Haiti.  The missionaries are seeing many come to Christ.  Prayerfully, we
    hope our teaching will better prepare pastors to minister to believers and unbelievers.
7. And, of course, a major hope is that the pastor will come with open hearts and minds to learn, to
    be encouraged, and to unite themselves as being a group of pastors working together,  not alone.
8. JP and I are praying that we will be sensitive to the psator's needs versus just giving them what
    we have planned.  We want to field their questions and "scratch them where they itch".
9. Thankful that JP and I have the support of our churches for this mission endeavor.

Well, getting pumped.  August 14 will be here really soon.  Much left to do. Thanks for reading
and being a part of this mission trip to the pastors/wives of the northwest mountains of Haiti.

My Church Family

I have felt God leading me into this venture since last fall.  As communication with the Routons continued, after considering ideas of topics that would specifically help the Haiti pastors, and after much prayer on my part, God seemed to let that desire deepen in my soul. 

One of the first tasks was to enlist a group of prayer warriors.  God sent nineteen. The next item was to design a blog page and start promoting the mission trip and how people could get involved. Other than to begin on the teaching material, I needed to promote how people could partner with me through finances.

Over the last seven months, I have received donations from family and friends which I humbly appreciate.  This was a non-budgeted adventure for me and I knew God would provide through His people. BUT....

I want to tell you about my church family, Crossroads Baptist, in Buffalo.  I served at a church once and asked for five prayer warriors for another mission trip.  I received no interest.  No one even asked how my trip went.  So, initially, I just let the Crossroads know I was planning to go on a mission trip to Haiti this summer.  Some asked about it especially after I had the Routons to come and talk about their work in Haiti.

As time went along I decided I would put the opportunity out there for anyone interested in being a prayer warrior to sign the sheet in the foyer. I was going to let God do the prompting and be grateful for those who signed up.  When I went to look at the sheet, I was taken back. Fifteen had signed up, later three more, and then had a friend on Facebook joined the team.  Great foundation for getting this mission trip off the ground.

About a month and a half ago, some members came up to me and ask if the church could help me financially. Again I was taken back. Since then the church has sold T-shirts and sponsored a church wide garage sale at a member's home.  I went there on a Wednesday night after service when people were to show up and help setup and also to start bringing their items.  I was the second to arrive.

I went over to visit with the lady's husband.  As I was talking, I was paying attention to the cars that were coming. And they kept coming.  I thought I was in the movie, "The Field of Dreams". Here they came and begin to unload their cars and trucks.  I was taken back.  Wow!  I heard that during the two day sale others brought and bought items.

When it was over, I realized that this had been a project for the folks to rally around and unify themselves for another common cause.  The children of the church had also been taking up a mission offering to go to the trip.  To say the least, when all was done and the sales money along with the children's donation was counted, there was a healthy donation.  On top of that, a few others in the church made personal donations. I was/am totally humbled and taken back.  These efforts will go far in making this trip a reality.

Truthfully, I should not have been taken back.  My God is able to do exceedingly and abundantly more than I or you could ever dream of.  I should never have hestitated.  My God and my church were/are awesome.

Haiti Update

Things are starting to come together.  I purchased my airline tickets yesterday.  Today, I went to get my immunization shots.  Needed update on hep A & B, Tetanas, and had to get Typhoid tablets.  Just before I leave the country I will need to start my anti-malaria immunization.  I got my yellow fever shot last year, so the nurse told me I was good for five years.   Good to know.

A Pastor in Haiti runs an orphanage so I am working with him to make a list of things that I can take to them or purchase when I get there.  He has about forty children and they have many needs.  Looking forward to going there.

Still needing funds.  My church is selling T-shirts and going to have a church-wide garage sale.  God has blessed me with a gracious church family.  Still working on materials for conference.  Teaching six hours a day for five days and speaking two Sundays.  Will be busy but will love it.