MTinHaiti

In 2009 we did our first Youth Rally at Beauchamp and only allowed the churches to invite 10 youth because we could not handle all the sleeping arrangements and water issues. We had 80 to 90 in attendance. The rally lasted for a couple days and it was a great success.

One thing we know at the Mission is that we need to do more with the Youth in Haiti. The children and the adults tend to have a lot more things offered for them and the Youth seem to be overlooked. So this year we wanted to top what we did last year. We wanted to reach more Youth and to branch out from Beauchamp and branch out we did.

John Lancaster officially known stateside as “Phat Rok,” and in Haiti as “Gros Roche,” — brought in his posse from Huntsville, Alabama and they went to work. They arrived in Beauchamp on Tuesday and on Thursday they were in tap-taps traveling to the mountain community of Pillette hosting the first Youth Rally of 2010. Three of our mission churches attended this rally with 150 youth in attendance. Then came …

I know I do not blog every day….so finally…. here is a little bit about —-
The first 6 months of 2010 may go down as the busiest of our lives.  January 4 found us on a plane back to Haiti after spending the holidays with our family. By January 6 we were hosting groups from Ohio and Indiana who were tirelessly trying to finish up the sewing room. The dust had hardly settled from them leaving when the earthquake hit on January 12. The next two weeks will never be forgotten as we tried to put together plans to help  the people of Port-au-Prince as well as our own Haitian family members who had lost love ones and friends. — Putting together a plan in the U.S. is tough to say the least so trying to formulate a plan in Haiti is compounded 100 times over.
By the end of February air travel was restored and groups begin to pour into the mission again which brought lots of helping hands and big hearts as well as lots of work and supervision.  Over the next 5 months we would have around 500 …

Blogging is not my thing but I know it is important. I have two great stories to blog about and they both have to do with what I love and feel is the most important work in the world — evangelism. Preaching and teaching others about Christ—sowing the seed—letting God give the increase— saving souls is our number 1 priority. There is nothing more important in this world than preparing people for eternity. Satan sure likes us to focus on other things, some are even good things, but may we always remember Jesus’ last words before He departed. — Matt. 28:19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
Matt. 28:20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Now that my mini sermon is thru on with the two great stories. Last Wenesday we started with our crusade in Mare Rouge. Mare Rouge is out toward the west end of the  northern penisula part of the island. The city …

As I write this post this morning I am trying to think of some clever thing to say — we’ll it’s just not there so we’ll just talk about the things God puts before us and the work we are really called to do.

Friday morning we are heading out to Mare Rouge — a new church plant.  The crusade starts Wednesday night and will continue through Sunday.  That is the way we do the crusades here in Haiti.  These remind of the days when our Restoration Heritage was started long ago in the United States.  People come to see and hear what is going on and with that the Word of God is preached for many to hear.  These crusades are well received here in Haiti and usually many people are won to Christ during this time.  This is also the way that we begin our new church plants.  We have several of our pastors go to the new area and talk to the people of that community, talk to the leaders of the community and scope out the best place to hold the conference and also look for a …

Wow, how important it is to do just that. Since January everything about and around us has been a whirlwind.  So much has happened and is still happening that I feel like I haven’t even been able to come up for air.  I have felt so far behind — behind in blogging, emails, pictures, and everything that we are “required” to do.  But ministry doesn’t wait for those tasks — when it is put right before you you just do it.  God has given us a ministry here in Haiti and it is not for the faint of heart.  As we have said before, Haiti is the hardest ministry both physically and spiritually that we have ever done but it has definitely been some of the most rewarding.
Over the past 4 months so many things have happened — the earthquake, changes in physical and spiritual needs, a new grandbaby to help with, shipping of needed supplies via the shrimp boat, speaking engagements in Nebraska, groups and more groups, medical groups, completion of a new children’s church building, completion of the sewing room, almost completion of a new campus house, start …

Trading shrimp for relief supplies.  This has been 45 days in the making.  David Bates, owner of Capt. Scott B, said to Danny Jordan (Teresa’s brother) that he really wanted to be a part of the earthquake relief by bringing supplies into Haiti using his shrimp boats.  With that the wheels began to turn.  My son-in-law (John “Phatrok” Lancaster) then called Janeil and thus was the beginning of this adventure.  When the plea for supplies was put out after the earthquake, the churches and people responded.  They began to pour in and there was no quick way to get them to Haiti.  But God does provide and now we have a shrimp boat converted to haul these supplies.
With the generosity of the people at Port Canaveral a warehouse space was donated to house the tons of supplies pouring in from all over the country.   It is amazing as you watch what people and organizations have donated to help the people of Haiti.  Orlando Drum donated 340 plastic barrels to be used to haul donations and protect them from the weather.  On this shipment alone there is 80,000 pounds of meals …

I cannot believe that so much has happened in the 2 weeks since the Bethel Church of Christ and Outlook Christian Church left out campus.  This was supposed to be the first post after they left and then the earthquake hit and everything has been centered around that.
These two groups came to NWHCM and out to Beauchamp to help with the Sewing Room.  We were beginning to wonder if they were going to get to come at all.  January is the rainy season and 2 years ago the rain stopped them from coming then.  We thought that it was going to be a repeat but then the sun came out and the river went down.  It was a long trip to Beauchamp in a very jam-tight Deuce-and-a-half on very muddy roads.  Again, travel is never easy in Haiti.  They arrived with weary bodies but with big smiles on their faces and a desire to get right to work — and work they did.
They were only on our campus for 2-1/2 days but they accomplished so much in that time.  They made shutters for the windows in the sewing room and …

As I am trying to pull my thoughts together for this blog I cannot help but be in awe of how much the Sewing Hope Program has grown since its inception.  I started with 5 ladies and now have 16 ladies in my employment.  We have been making blankets for the mission programs, studying the bible and having prayer time for the last year-and-a-half.  I have prayed and asked God for wisdom on how to direct these ladies and this program.  I have gotten some glimpses of what I think God would like.

 
God has answered and new things are in the works for January 2010.  I put out a plea for treadle sewing machines and one of our preacher friends responded.  His church has donated 5 treadle sewing machines and hopefully we should have them by January.   They then asked Mike if we had a project that his church and another church could help with when they come in January  as a mission group.   I said yes! –  a sewing room would be wonderful.  They have provided half of the funds needed for this room but we are …

September 23rd – Sept 27th found us planting our 4th new church in 2009 in the countryside of Nan Chapelle.  This area was back up in the mountains that was remote but at the same time filled with many Haitian homes.  The people had put up a chacoon church, which is made of palm branches, and put in tree benches to sit on.  We started Wednesday night and closed on Sunday morning.  During this time 92 people came forward at the invitations.  Of this total some were redidications, other are in the process of being taught more fully the steps of salvation and 25 were baptized at the end of the week.

 
 
  
In this small chacoon structure we as Americans might have put 50 people but for a Haitian revivial/crusade we found ourselves in the midst of over 200 people.  People brought their own chairs, people stood for hours as we praised and worshiped God and listened to His Word preached.
     
During this week we had a Boco (Witch Doctor) who gave his life to Christ and was baptized.  He gave up his voodoo hankercheifs, his magic book and one of the two ladies …

I have been trying to write this post for about 3 weeks now.  It started in my mind while we were in the states. As Mike and I travel to speak and present the work that we and Northwest Haiti Christian Mission are involved in — I cannot help but get overwhelmed at times with all of the generosity that pours out from God’s people. Tears have not come easy to me through the years (I always thought it was girlie or I would be considered a cry-baby and me being a tomboy — you can imagine) but I have been so touched that my heart is just overwhelmed.    
We were in North Carolina going to Cape Lookout to look at the wild ponies and were just talking about the work in Haiti.  When we finished that afternoon and pulled up to the dock we offered the captain of the boat a tip — he said no and reached in his pocket and gave us his entire days’ worth of tips for the work in Haiti.  Now that is amazing.  He did not even know us but felt God’s …