Haiti 2013 July 6 and July 7

Saturday 6, July

Kirk

We arrived safely at Mission of Hope today.  We were plenty early to the airport this year as compared to last year, where we barely made it through check-in before the flight was closed out.  Most of us managed to grab a few hours of sleep in the cars on the way, or on the airplane.  We acquired an 8^th member of our team, Micah, an 18 year old young woman from Fort Leonardwood, MO.   April and Micah are already hanging out in the Three Cords store doing some shopping.

Mike

As Kirk already outlined, we have arrived safely in Haiti. The airport continues to get renovations and I was very pleasantly surprised at how different it was from 2011, when I was last here. Still, with a better facility comes more traffic and it took quite a while to get our things and clear customs. We waited awhile in the parking lot for some additional things coming in for MoH. That gave us time to meet and greet several vendors – with one in particular being very persistent and scoring some early-trip purchases from the team. He also testified to God’s power which brought to mind 2 Timothy 1:7 – our recent VBS/VBX theme verse: For God did not give us a spirit of fearfulness, but one of power, love, and sound judgment.

For me, this trip has been quite different so far from my previous missions to Haiti; however I am filled with expectation to see what God has in store for the rest of our week! Jezi se wa!

Jonathan

  Arriving at the airport was a pleasant surprise. The improvements at Port Au Prince were huge. We got to meet some great people while we were waiting. The group I’m with is very enthusiastic.  I have finished settling in. We’ve started reading  Bruchko. Now it’s time for supper! God is great!

Paul

Unlike the other guys, I have never been on a mission trip or to Haiti before, so I came into this with no idea what to expect. While the veterans have made several comments above about the improvements to the Haitian airport, it still seemed pretty run down to me. I had no idea that we would have to tip so many people just to make it through baggage claim! Driving through the city to the mission was an interesting experience: I was pretty sure our bus driver was going to run over someone (he certainly ran enough people off of the roads in from on us)! Along with the behavior on the road, I was taken aback by just the state of the country’s infrastructure. There is still a ton of wreckage from the earthquake in 2010 and we must have passed thousands of little tarp-covered-shacks, and a ton of barbed wire. I wasn’t expecting the barbed wired or the armed security at the Mission. It is just a demonstration to me of how much this country needs to experience the love and peace of Christ. On our flight here, I identified at least 5 different church groups on a mission trip. It is my prayer that all of the groups on that flight (not just our own) will have a positive influence on everyone we come across.

Keith

Well, as everyone has already said, we arrived in Haiti safely.  A big shout out to the drivers that sacrificed their time in the wee hours of the morning to get us to the airport in plenty of time!  The flight was cold. When we arrived at Haiti, the hot temps actually felt good… for a while.  The ride from the Port-au-Prince airport to the MOH campus was interesting…. Lots of honking, lots of passing, and a few close calls.  On the way, we saw a multitude of the temporary houses, many just consisting of tarps for the walls.

Just finished dinner and its already rained several times since we arrived at MOH.  I’m really looking forward to the worship service in the morning!

 April

Out of the U.S. for the first time, and I’m beginning to truly understand poverty. Yet my journey in Haiti has just begun, only arriving here at Mission of Hope a few hours ago, l have seen enough of the culture to grasp the concept of what it means to be poor.

From driving in the pouring rain in the wee hours of the morning, to the Atlanta airport, a 3 hour plane flight, and now in Haiti, I know God has something special in store for our team this week. I’m not sure what He has for me this week, but I’m putting my trust in God and doing what I can with what He has provided me with.  

When we arrived in Port Au Prince, I met a girl named Micah. She’s sweet, and came on this trip from her church alone. I immediately made friends with her, with a little help from Mr. Kirk. I thank God for her, and I pray I can be a good friend to her. She needed a friend as much as I did.

We’re about to have orientation. As the Apostle Paul ended each letter (paraphrasing): May the grace of God be with you.

Sunday 7, July

Kirk

We started off the day with the Haitian worship service.   It’s always very emotional to see friends from previous years.  Schnieder and Ricardo were there (the boys).  Our translators were not (Ricardo and Charlens).  Worshipping in more than one language is also very hard to describe.  The Doogie Howser throwback keyboard was in full effect.  Today’s worship “theme” was the power of Christ to overcome and give freedom from any burden.  We sang “Our God” which most of you are familiar with, but also a song “Depose” (day-poh-say) aka “Lay it down”.  The lyrics were simple but very powerful.  We also sang (more like shouted) this song:  “There is power in the name of Jesus (x3); to break every chain (x6); There’s an Army rising up (x3); to break every chain (x6);  I hear the chains falling (x6); chains falling (x6).”  I’m sure it’s out there somewhere.   John 8:36.  “So if the Son sets your free, you will be free indeed.”  I’m sure the others will be able to be able to give a better description.

 

Since it’s Sunday, we toured the campus and saw the progress being made.  The warehouse is in full operation.  The pipe we buried last year provides all water the compound and saves the mission about $140K a year.  They also purify the water so that it is now safe to drink vs buying Culligan water.  We also toured the village of Leveque where they have built a large Church and are expanding to go beyond 500 homes to 750+.  The Bercy campus has many more buildings and we will be working there to put in footings for a pastor training center.  April, Micah, and Andrew will be concurrently helping with VBS at Bercy.

Tonight is the famous Haitian chicken dinner from Gwo Papa Poul (Big Daddy Chicken), being catered in to the mission.  Apparently Schnieder and Ricardo work there and we will see them again tonight.  Tomorrow the work starts.

Mike

Sunday morning started out with shouts of young men and feet clanging on the metal stairs that lead up to the roof over our dormitory. I looked at my “smart” phone – which has morphed into a fancy clock and camera since it’s a company phone and doesn’t have International roaming – and discovered it was 5:45; time to get up. After getting cleaned up and re-coated with sunscreen and bug spray, I made my way up to the roof for morning prayers and Bible reading. It was a beautiful morning in Titanyen with the mountains to the north and east blocking the sun and the sea to the south twinkling in turquoise.

Breakfast was relatively healthy with Special K and the ever present peanut butter and jelly. I don’t know if our mission buddies from Santa Rosa County (FL) will read this but I thought I’d note that there was plenty of shuggggg-aaarrrrrrrrrr for the coffee. They’ll know just what I mean J

We embarked on a tour of the campus and it’s really amazing to see and hear about the breadth of services that Mission of Hope is providing to the people in this community. After the campus tour, we ended up at the bottom of the hill at Madam Cheap-Cheap’s emporium of all-Haitian souvenirs. I suspect I’ll end up back there but it’s Sunday and I wanted to see the church.

Wow! For someone who is used to very small Haitian churches, this was like a megachurch. It was still open air, and the pews were still quite narrow and hard on our posterity. Yet the cross-shaped design of the sanctuary, the three wings of pews, the full Haitian band, and even the front wall where lyrics to the songs – in both Creole and occasionally English were displayed – this church was a big deal. And worship was awesome! I had a 13 year old boy who asked to sit next to me who helped me out with some of the creole lyrics, and he even knew the English ones to songs I should have known better. I think his name was au Lenassan but I will have to ask him again if I see him this week.

The rest of the day was taken up by some exercise – it’s not hard to break a sweat here – lunch, and tours of Leveque and Bercy, other locations nearby where Mission of Hope is expanding their services to the community. Now, we are in contemplation and reading through the book “Bruchko” as a team, and using it to lead our devotions in the evening. In a few moments, it will be time to enjoy some of that famous Gwo Papa Poul (Big Daddy Chicken) I’ve heard so much about. Jezi se Wa!