Tag Archives: Evangelist

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD AND PRINT THIS UPDATE LETTER

On March 1st I landed in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and as cliché as it may sound, I really can’t believe it’s already been a month.

As an always-busy American, one of the hardest things for me to adjust to any time I enter a third-world setting is the lack of ability to get anything done quickly. This is just as true of Haiti as it has been anywhere I’ve been. But despite all of my workaholic frustrations, I still believe that things  are getting done exactly as they should in God’s sovereign timing.

The HGIM-Haiti orphanage is still going through the government’s bureaucratic process for certification, and because it is a lot of inspections, meetings and paperwork, there has not been a lot I have been able to do yet as far as assisting and equipping the staff in daily administrative work. Unfortunately, even the church planting work has been put on hold until the government certification work can be resolved.

In the mean time, my month has been filled with making various connections with other Christian ministries and NGO’s working here, many of which have come through the guesthouse where I am staying. I have also had the opportunity to share my faith with many people I have met around the area, both Haitian and American. I am also hoping to begin finding some preaching opportunities as I continue to meet other missionaries and pastors here.

The biggest challenge I’m facing is the Creole language. Most places I have been to before have had a fairly large English speaking population. In Haiti, though, the problem is that even many people who can speak English will not do so as a matter of pride. This means a large part of my free time is being spent in language study, and it certainly isn’t as easy of a language to learn as everyone keeps tells me it is.

Also, I have been working on video editing and article writing for a forthcoming discipleship website being developed by HGIM. This site will be a great “equipping” tool for us and our ministry partners as we continue to expand our evangelistic efforts, and hopefully for yours as well. Be watching for the site’s release later this year.

“Men may spurn our appeals, reject our message, oppose our arguments, despise our persons, but they are helpless against our prayers.” Sidlow Baxter

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD AND PRINT THIS UPDATE LETTER

The Flight is Booked. I’m On my way!

Officially, I will be flying from Florida to Port-au-Prince, Haiti on March 1st to begin my 4 months of work there.

What has changed, however, is that I will not immediately begin working with the Heart of God – Haiti orphanage upon arrival, as we are still waiting on the government inspection that is required for the certification. The inspection should be scheduled early next week, and if all goes according to plan there will be no problems and the paperwork will move into the government bureaucracy for final approval.

As my presence at the orphanage prior to final certification could pose problems for the staff, I will in the mean time be dedicating myself to learning the basic navigation of the culture. This will include things like figuring out public transportation, learning how to exchange money, getting a local cell phone, buying food, and other basic skills necessary for daily life.

Upon arrival I will be meeting with other orphanages in the area to observe their day-to-day operations to get an idea of how we can run our program with excellence as God’s stewards, and I will also be making contact with some local non-profits involved in food distribution and healthcare, in order to build partnerships that will benefit our children.

Your prayers are greatly appreciated as the first week in a new place is always the hardest.

In addition to this monthly update, when possible I will also be posting weekly updates of the work being done on this blog and at www.heartofgodhaiti.org.

All of the departure delays the last couple of months have been somewhat of a blessing in disguise. They have given me the chance to do some fundraising, work on my spiritual preparation without the drain of working long hours in a truck, and also to minister personally to some friends in their time of need.

This month, I was invited to be a part of the mission conference at Friendswood Baptist Church in Friendswood, TX, and also to share my ministry with some local brothers and sisters at Odessa Bible Church in Odessa, TX.

Last week I also had the opportunity to preach my first funeral after the death of a dear friend, Helen Bond, who was like a second mother to me for a large part of my life.