Haiti 2011 Day Three

Today we went to Titanyen (which is a nearby village) and painted a house for a couple. The house was large - 4 rooms and a few out buildings, 2 dogs and 5 chickens. Interacting with the Haitians is a blast. This afternoon we went back to the village and hung out with children. We spent most of our time in the town square. Picture in the middle of the square a common source of water, lots of buckets and a hand pump that was continually working while we present. Rock roads - lots of children and curious onlookers. Jeremy stole the show making balloon figures until things got out of hand and he shut down his operation. The children have all been in awe of Paul Markwood's beard and hairy arms. It has been quite funny. The heat is here but nothing like last year. Last night I even had to cover up with a sheet because it got cold. The team is doing well. Pray for Megan she is having trouble with a tooth. Other than this all is well in Haiti.

Haiti 2011 Day Two

Both teams arrived without incident on Tuesday. Thankfully our luggage was waiting for us in their baggage claim area. The country looks much better than it did one year ago when we first visited. The sights and sounds are the same from congested traffic where it’s every man for himself which is the reason for the constant honking of horns as you maneuver the highway. The familiar smells are present. Thankfully the Mass Grave were most of the Port-au-Prince casualties are buried no longer reeks of death. We’ve noticed a big effort to clean-up a lot of the devastation.

Mission of Hope has changed A LOT. There are many new buildings and accommodations. The Lord is doing an incredible work here. Obviously being spring break there are many people here working and the new guest house will be ready to occupy soon which will house 120 visitors. The Hope House now has 62 orphans and new accommodations to house 120. The school is growing and the clinic is growing. Today we went and worked one of the projects that has been talked about. Currently there are 40+ house being built off site for new residence of Haitian families. In all, this project will build 500 homes. We painted inside these homes and painted trim on the outside. Others planted cactus which was harvested off trees and planted in rows to serve as a privacy fence. These plants grow as tall as eight feet within a year. The cactus will be topped at 6 feet and will fill in to complete the privacy fence. No injuries except the minor cuts and scrapes. The team is in good spirits. Thanks for continuing to pray. We realized our travels were challenging and stressful but most dealt as best they could. All in all if we would have stayed together one of the teams would have arrived today and missed two days. The other thing shared by Jeremy was missions is not supposed to be an easy thing. Just ask a missionary. It takes a lot of determination and patience to carry out this work. Be blessed, we are!

Haiti 2011 Day One

Haiti 2011 – Day One

Wow, all I can say is the temperature is much cooler than I expected. It’s only 49 degrees and it’s 4:00 o’clock in the afternoon. Wait a minute. This isn’t Haiti – this is Dallas, Texas. Today has been an adventure in what missionaries would term “Patience,” which is not one of my strong points. If it’s mechanical – it will break. This morning’s 6:00 am flight finally left the gate in Tulsa around 9:00ish. Our connecting flight to Florida that departed DWF at 8:40 was missed. Subsequently the 1:15 flight from Florida to Haiti was departing as we were finalizing our plans (minus 8 people) to get to Haiti on Tuesday which is tomorrow which is better than the fall back plan to leaving for Haiti on Wednesday. (#!O&@!)! Translated this means I want to put the Spirit of Slap on airplane carriers. But they say not to slap the hand that feeds you. Kaysarasara.

In the mad dash to try to reschedule and such and considering we had to disembark so the infamous and well equipped mechanics of an airline who will remain anonymous could work on the plane (FFA rules) we rescheduled and cancelled 8 people standing at the gate who would not get on the plane but are now in Bentonville, Arkansas (by auto transfer) catching a flight to New York City to fly into one airport – transfer to another – and fly out tomorrow to Haiti. We on the other hand have all had a nap and waiting to eat dinner on the unnamed airline at a hotel at DFW. Tomorrow morning we leave again at 6:10 to Florida then 1:15 to Haiti (which was our original flight times today). We had the privilege of working with the most amazing man at DFW. His name Matthew Gilmore and was the Operational Supervisor in the gate area I just happened to run across. Not only did he take care of us – we hold in our hands boarding passes for both flights in the morning. We bypass the ticket counter in the morning because 1st we have no luggage and 2nd because we have everything we need, we just need a plane that functions. The 8 members in New York arrive in Port-au-Prince around 1:00 PM and we arrive around 2:20 PM. We cross our fingers and pray our luggage, which should be somewhere in or near Fort Lauderdale now, will be on the same flight we take from Florida to Haiti tomorrow.

So I ask myself – what in the world? Well first – traveling airlines seem to have its challenges. I remember Pastor Heaston describing Nairobi and the street conditions and obstacles they had to overcome just to drive down the street. So, I shouldn’t be surprised. It just reminds Rhonda and I about our dream 30th anniversary cruise that never happened. I can’t believe my blood pressure didn’t spike today but I’ve for all practical purposes remained calm. Oh I’ve had my moments. So, Lord, for what practical purpose did todays events play in your master scheme of “all things work for the good of those that love the Lord?” Yes, I think it’s ok to ask God why.

Three Days and Then

Three long full days ahead and then our team leaves for Haiti. Counting Rhonda and me, last year we took eleven great people to minister at Mission of Hope. This year our group has doubled. Excellent growth I'd say. When you stop and think about it, for a church that seemed to always throw money at missions our teams are growing from last years initiative. To me that spells success but more importantly it spells excitement and enthusiasm to take the message of the gospel ourselves into the world. From every indication I see that temperatures will be 10 degrees cooler than last year. You might be saying, "Big Deal." When you consider last year we left after a snow storm and when we got off the plane in Port-au-Prince the temp was 98 degrees, I'll take 10 degrees cooler.

There is so much excitement about the trip. Some are veterans and others are newbee's. Of course we have no idea yet what we will actually do but we know it will be life changing. Mission of Hope is in the process of building a new warehouse for Convoy of Hope. That's right people - Convoy of Hope distributes (along with two other relief groups) their resources and donations out of Mission of Hope. This speaks volumes to me of the reputation of Mission of Hope. In addition Mission of Hope is in the process of building homes for the people of Haiti. This is huge. So off we go into the Wild Blue Yonder to do the work that God has called us to do - serve others, make disciples, share the Love of Christ. The orphans, the orphans, the orphans - can't wait.

Haiti 2011

In just a few weeks I'll be headed once again to Haiti. I've looked forward to this return trip for a year now. There is much to do for the people of Haiti. The task seems so overwhelming. It is difficult to choose where to begin. And of course looking from the outside in the obvious must be the government. The government is not getting the funds promised primarily because there is no guarantee that money sent will go to its intended use. In other words will all of this money disappear into foreign bank accounts and the corruption continue to spiral out of control. That said, all I can do is what God has placed on my heart to do and that is spend time with Mission of Hope, helping them in whatever capacity they need. This is my destination and my purpose. The people at Mission of Hope are so warm and receptive and I can't wait to see my friends. Four weeks and counting.

mike

Fast Day One

Today I started a fast. I had every intent to do an all liquid fast. This lasted till about 3 pm when I had a bowl of veggie soup. I was starved - or at least my stomach said I was hungry so I ate all the broth then had to eat the veggies too. Later tonight I had another bowl of soup and a little salad. Fasting is not as easy as I thought it might be. I really am determined to do a whole week with just liquids but I think it might be something I've got to really prepare for before I just cold turkey jump in. I'm not a good water drinker and I know I need to do better at consuming water. All for now.

mike

Christmas Gift

Someone today posted a tweet on the best part of 2010. Mine was easy. This year has been quite a radical change. Ministry has taken a turn. The kind of turn that is not just positive - it has been electrofying. You see this year is the biggest turning point for a family that Rhonda and I are discipling. I've watched an alcoholic and drug addict come totally clean. No alcohol since December of last year. I watched as first daughter and now son have come to the Lord. I've baptized the parents and can't wait to baptize the kids. There's more to come - that's for sure. There is still drug addictions to overcome in the family and together we are believing for miracles. One is headed to a teen challenge in the next few weeks and the other is so deep in meth that it seems an impossible task. But with the Lord - "Nothing is impossible." I've seen such a hunger for the Word of God in this family that it puts my Bible study to shame. Their life change fuels me to continue on and to reach out and pour myself into others. There is hope in this world. This year Rhonda and I along with our daughter Melissa had a very meager Christmas. We decided we would rather bless others and we did. So what's the payoff? I have the greatest satisfaction that I made someone else's Christmas the best Christmas ever. That's enough. Would you like to make a difference in someone else's life? You have to be willing to pour yourself out, be transparent (real), be willing to put others before yourself. Is it possible to balance all this and maintain healthy family relationships? I do, and I work two jobs. My life is all wrapped up in helping others find their place in the Kingdom of God and their place in ministry. 2010 was a great year and I believe 2011 will be even better. Watch and see.

mike