22 Apr...2:21a

Good morning, everyone!

It would appear that our internet connection is back up and running.  I'll post again later this morning when the sun comes up.  Right now, though, I can hear God milling about upstairs, and I want to be ready to hang out with Him when He comes down.  While I'm waiting for Him, I'd like to tell you that it's a really cool thing to get up very early, take a cool shower, and then be able to soke in the pleasure of God's company out under the stars.  Because it's soooo dark here in this part of Haiti, the stars are always so vibrantly brilliant (unless it's overcast).  This is one of the few places in the world where I've been able to consistently see the milky way really clearly.

Oh that you might find in Jesus your greatest joy and satisfaction in life!!  There's nothing in all creation like having and enjoying Him.  I love what John Piper writes in his seminal work, Desiring God...I believe that God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.

May God's blessings on all of you in this moment, and may you enjoy Him and His people today,

Dave

The Lord directs the steps of the righteous.  He delights in every detail of their lives. -- Proverbs

BTW...It's really funny to experience God first thing in the morning with His Hair all mussed and before He's had His first cup of coffee.  :o)

Oh...and this is for Team Haiti 2012/January...the roosters are up and at it and wondering where all'y'all are.  :o)  CU...

21 Apr...2:59p

Hey...

This morning began wonderfully with breakfast and Connie's devotion, which took place out under the mango tree, on God's rending of the veil.  After devotions, we loaded up and headed for Bohoc.

The drive today was fabulous!  For those of you who've never been to a mountainous, tropical environment, it's difficult to convey just how beautiful this country is.  About all I have to say about that is this:  "All'y'all are just going to have to come join us sometime."  BTW...Speaking of future missions trips, if you go to the Hope Mission/International (HMI) table in Higher Grounds at newhope central, you'll find a tentative schedule for HMI trips in 2013.  If you want me to e-mail you one, just send me an e-mail request at hopemissions@newhopenc.org.

I think it took us about three-and-a-half hours to make the trip from PaP to Bohoc.  Only one of us got a little motion sick.  After this person took some Dramamine and was handed a coke that Ronald aquired for her, it was amazing how many members of the team all of the sudden felt sick.  (!!)  Man, the lengths some people will go to score colored sugar water!  As PBK might say, "Those people need some Jesus!  I'm just sayin'..."

Anyway, at about the two-thirds point, we stopped at someone's home in Henche to use the bathroom.  Denise turned around and asked me if I knew who's home it was.  I said, "I have no idea.  But the owner is probably related to Tompy in some way."  A few minutes later, I was informed that the home was indeed owned by Mary, who is (of course!) one of Tompy's cousins.

At around 1:30p, we pulled in to the village of Bohoc and stopped near the town square at the home of one of the members of the Bohoc Leadership Council (BLC).  It was nice to see Jedlain again as well as Tompy's brother, Edwin.  Pastor Isaac was there and so was Adias, the new BLC President.  While he's still a member of the BLC, Pastor Jean-Claude (JC) stepped down as the BLC president due to his extremely busy schedule.  (Such is the case for many pastors in Haiti; they work like almost no one else.)  In fact, the teams from newhope church have yet to meet Pastor JC.

We got to the Haiti Outreach Guest House (HOGH) in Pignon about an hour ago, and I think dinner is just about ready.  As such, I'm going to signoff for now.  BTW...if you have google earth, you can see the airfield in Pignon; the HOGH is located on the northwest side of the grassed air strip.

God's blessings on all'y'all!  And thanks, too, for holding us up with your prayers!!!!!!!!!!

Dave
On Behalf of Team Haiti 2012/April

PS...For those of you wondering, I think all the e-mail server connections in this part of Haiti are not working at this time.  Hopefully, they'll be up and working later.  Peace...

The Lord has appeared to us from afar, saying, 'I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.'--Jeremiah 31:3

21 Apr...8:43a

Hey everyone,

Check out Melinda's blog at redbone.blog.com!

Peace...

Dave

21 Apr...6:11a

Good morning, everybody!

The internet went down yesterday evening, so I wasn't able to post anything after dinner.  The spaghetti Dinner was FABULOUS last night...and, by that, I mean it was made with chicken (which I'm not allergic to!! ), and I got to eat it!!  Thus far, I haven't had to open a single package of tuna.  :o)

After dinner, Ronald led the debrief for the team and talked with us about a number of the things occuring in Bohoc.  He didn't want to say too much because he didn't want to "ruin the surprise" (those are my words) for those on the team whp've not yet experienced Bohoc.  At the end of the debrief, we all laid hands on and prayed for Ronald as his back has been bothering him for months.  After that, some of us (well, pretty much, just me) went to bed.

Right now, I'm sitting in the dining area waiting for the coffee to finish brewing.  The coffee here in Haiti is REALLY good.  Back in the states, I drink only decaf coffee as I don't typically like how caffeine makes me feel.  Whenever I'm here in Haiti, though, I drink ALOT of coffee.  I do the same thing in Kenya.  When I get back to the states, though, it takes me about a week to wean myself back to drinking just decaf again.

Anyway...

I'm hoping that everyone on the team slept well last night as we have another big day ahead of us.  Breakfast is at eight, followed by devotions, packing up the bus, and then heading out for Bohoc.  (For those of you who may not know, Bohoc means "Beautiful Rock".)

The drive to Bohoc takes several hours.  In January, it took us about four+ hours to make the trip there.  On the return trip a week later, it took only about three hours, principally because our friend Tompy drove (in a former life, I think he was a race car driver or played Fred Flinstone or something).  For the one or two of you who don't know who Tompy is, he's the national Haitian director for The 410 Bridge.  And he's related to EVERYONE here in Haiti, with the exception of (if I read the Haitian demographics correctly) three people:  A teen-aged boy named Edwin (no, not his brother Edwin), a lady named Rosa (no, not his cousin, Rosa), and some other person who immigrated to Haiti and settled just outside of Cap-Haitian some thirty-five years ago.  I had intended to have a tee shirt made up with the words, "I am NOT Tompy's Cousin" on the front, but I kind of ran out of time before this trip.

In Bohoc, today, Lord-willing we'll meet with the Leadership Council, tour the village, and, most likely, do some home visits.

For all of you who are following and praying for us, we are all so very grateful.  We consider it such a privilege to be able to share this time with you.  Please continue to keep Bill and Brit in your prayers as they lead us throughout the week.

Okay...I think the coffee's about ready, so I'm going to go grab a cup and take my place in line.

God's peace to all'y'all; more later...

Dave
On Behalf of Team Haiti 2012/April

PS  I'll try to post some pictures tonight.

20 Apr...2:59p

Thank you to everyone for praying that we might have safe travels today!  You got what you asked for!  (And I'm kinda glad about that!) 

Tonight, we're staying at the guest house attached to the New Life Childrens Home (NLCH) in Port au Prince (PaP), Haiti.  It's quite interesting that NLCH is located right next to the airport, and yet it's at least a 30- to 45-minute drive from the airport.  Go figure that one out!  I guess with the traffic, the top speed in PaP (if you're not walking leisurely or riding a motorcycle) is still hovering at around one mile every five weeks.  ;op

Marriam, the founder of NLCH, has been stateside this month doing fundraising and awareness outreach.  We were told by Sarah, who's been living and serving here for about a year and a half, that Marriam should be back toward the end of next week.  As such, we may get to see her when we stay here next Thursday night.

The guest house is really nice.  The four guys are in room 1 (the green door), and the six ladies are in room 2 (the yellow door).

Dinner is at 5p tonight, and breakfast will be at 8a tomorrow morning.

While we were with Sarah, earlier, we learned that this is the first year that Haiti adopted daylight savings time.  It's taken them quite a while to get the word out.  In fact, American Airlines still thinks it's an hour earlier.  Perhaps one of you reading this could call them and let them know.  They just might appreciate the info.

It was nice to hear a little bit more about the orphanage here.  Here's a brief run-down...

Currently, NLCH serves about 100 children, about a dozen of which have special needs.

Each child goes to school M-F, eats three meals a day, attends devotions every night at 7p, and goes to church every Sunday morning.

The top three child-development priorities at the home are as follows (and in this order!):

1. Discipleship in the things of God;
2. Education (through high school); and
3. Instruction in gardening, animal husbandry, and some kind of trade like carpentry, welding, electrical wiring/repair, etc.

The central thoughts behind these priorities are as follows:

1. If the children know Jesus, well...they'll live in the security of His love, friendship, provision, and training;
2. If they get an education, they'll have a much greater chance of landing a job as an adult; and
3. If they learn a trade and how to farm, even if they can't land a job, they can move to the mountains, farm, work at their trade, and, most likely, create rewarding lives for themselves.

I asked Sarah what she thought the financial need was for each of the 100 children living at the home.  She said they're working to develop a much better understanding of what that exact cost is.  After pressing her a little, she said she thinks it's somewhere around $200/child/month.  For 100 children, that's a budget of about $20K/month or $240K/year.  That figure covers everything related to running the home, paying the staff, and sending the children to school.  BTW...as most schools in Haiti are private, school costs about $400/year/child here in PaP.

Okay...I think that's all I'll write for now.

Take care, everyone...Lord-willing, I'll be back in touch soon.

In Him,

Dave

BTW...If any of you wish to leave a message on this site, please feel free to do so, and I'll read them to the team each night and morning.  Please know, though, that if you do leave a message, everyone will be able to read it!  Peace...

Oh...and a special thanks to PBK for the message, blessing, and prayer he left on my phone last night.  The team loved it, my brother!

20 Apr...6:35a

Hey, everyone...

We just landed in NYC, and we're waiting in line to board our plane for PaP, Haiti, so I'm going to post a prayer below that I wrote while enroute earlier this morning.

God's blessings to all'y'all.

Daver

P.S.  Thanks SO MUCH (!!) to April, Steve, and Allison for taking us to the airport this morning. 

---

Thank You, Father, for inviting us to come and hang out with You in Haiti.  Lord, You've been there in that land for a really, really long time.  Use us, O God, and extend Your kingdom into the deepest recesses of our souls that we might truly be open conduits of Your loving-kindness to each other and to our friends in Haiti.  May our enjoyment of You and each other and the Haitian people know no bounds.

Lord, tame our hearts and our minds and our tongues that our worship of You might be all pervasive and not in vain.  May our unbridled gluttony upon You and Your Word so magnify You in our hearts that those around us sense Your Presence in us before they even see us.

Keep us safe, O God, throughout our travels, today.  We know You're here, and, for that, we feel so very grateful.

Come, have Your way with us...

Thou wilt make known to me the path of life.  Thy Countenance is fullness of joy; at Thy Right Hand [Jesus!] are pleasures forevermore. -- Psalm 16:11

Having fun is at least 51% of the point of anything...even laying down my life for another. -- YT

20 Apr...2:05a

Greetings, and good morning, everyone!!

And so begins day 1 of the April 2012 Haiti trip.  Can I just say that I can hardly wait to see our friends in Haiti?

Soon, I'll be leaving my apartment for newhope church, where, at 3:15a, I'll link up with a few more teammates and a few extremely gracious people who've volunteered to come out, basically "the night before", and take us all to the airport.

At 6:15a, we'll leave RDU and head for Haiti by way of New York.  Today's flight itinerary is as follows:

American Airlines (AA) Flight #4414:  Departs RDU at 6:15a; Arrives in NY at 7:55a.

AA #837:  Departs NY at 9:05a; Arrives in Port au Prince at 1:15p.

Please keep us all in your prayers, okay?

CU soon...(More later!!)

Dave