Haiti or bust - January 2012

This crew is headed to Haiti - plus 3 more who couldn't be there for the picture.  

IMPACT is sending FIFTEEN people to Montrouis, Haiti.  Seriously, we can't wait.  There are 4 of us going back for the 2nd & 3rd time and there are 11 of us who are brand spankin' new to Haiti.  Meet the crew:

From bottom left: Garrett - first trip to Haiti, nurse in SLO, asset to our medical team & group humor.

                             Jarred - P.A. just moving to CA, lived in Haiti for 2 months doing clinics, stoked to go back

                             Johnny - first trip to Haiti, incredible call to missions, great thinker & tons of fun

                             Amy - first trip to Haiti, loves kids, stoked to help at the school & the mission (orphanage), organizer extraordinaire 

                            Sarah - IMPACT intern, first trip to Haiti, HUGE heart for our interns there and the Haitian people she's never even met

                            Miriam - first trip to Haiti, servant-hearted doctor in Paso, stoked to use her gifts for the Kingdom

                            Lindsey - went to Haiti in Sept to help "settle in" our 9-month interns, was absolutely captured by that place and those people, can't wait to see what God does in this girl

From top left:      James - EMT, first trip to Haiti, gifted musician - God will use his talents to bless many

                           Bree - yours truly, #3 trip to Haiti, stinkin' love that place and cannot wait to go back.  I could write a book, but I'll spare you :) 

                           Todd - lover of people, talented musician, incredibly gifted with teenagers, extended family has lived in Haiti for 30 years & this will be his first visit there - stoked for his experience

                           Jenny - nurse, care-taker, servant - she will be awesome at clinics and loving on kiddos

                           Kyle - EMT, disaster planning and mission-minded man - can't wait to see how God will use him to dream about changing the village of Montrouis

Not pictured:      Carol - 2nd time to Haiti, captured by this ministry in March and cannot wait to return to minister to the Reeves family, the school and the Haitians

                           Andy - pastor, comedian, lover of Jesus, people and restoration - stoked to have him minister with us in January

                           Marina - IMPACT intern, added merely days ago, up for anything, really interested in cultures and what others bring to this world, stoked to use her micro-finance gifts there

PRAY FOR US.  Buy an "espwa" bracelet and join us in bringing hope to Haiti.  Keep reading here to follow us as we go.  

Empowerment at its finest

Here at IMPACT, we believe in partnerships with people across the globe that are empowering them to help themselves - giving them the tools to have sustainable income without American intervention and loving them immensely while they sort through the process of going from poverty to success.

This article is GREAT.  Some of my very best friends are living in Peru running this program for 10 women there.  Some of my other good friends plug six interns I love dearly are living in Haiti doing the same thing.

We all have a story to tell and loving our neighbor as we love ourselves means helping them write their story while they continue to give life to ours.

.more on short-term missions.

this is good.  read it.  understand what it means for you.  weigh your decision when you decide to go on a short-term missions trip.

http://www.theveryworstmissionary.com/2011/09/using-your-poor-kid-to-teach-my-rich.html

Turkey... Acorned

So our Turkey team had a GREAT article written about their trip in the Camarillo Acorn!!  Awesome stuff - for them, for missions and most of all for Jesus.  We love it.  Check it out.

http://www.thecamarilloacorn.com/news/2011-09-16/Faith/A_church_family_without_borders.html

Proud

Incase you didn't know or you haven't gotten the memo, I'm PROUD OF OUR GALS.  There are 6 women who've given up everything to be in Haiti for nine months and holy smokes, I couldn't admire them more.  Having spend a week with them at training and week with them in Haiti - they are nothing short of incredible.  They form this beautiful team and work so well together that they didn't even need "leaders" to bring them there (except maybe a little help killing spiders and moving book shelves at the school).

Seriously, my heart is overflowing because our God is so stinkin' good. 

One of the most touching things to me about these girls is their servant hearts.  I see this so much in Shala - she sacrificed a ridiculous amount of American dreaminess to be in Haiti (a job... with a promotion to boot, a 2-year relationship with a guy that totally supports her, a more than ideal living situation, etc.) and she's finding the sacrifice is so worth it.

Read her most recent blog... you won't be disappointed.

Did I mention I'm proud of these girls?

Meeting the people of Montrouis

The girls have some trouble uploading videos from Haiti because, well, it's Haiti and they're even lucky to have internet ;) They get limited bandwidth and videos take up WAY too much of that, so I decided I'd share them on our IMPACT blog so you could see a bit of what's going on in Montrouis.

Here they are getting to know some of the kids that live at the mission... only girls could be entertained for long periods of time playing games like this - Naika caught on quick! 

We have some videos of Dr. Kerry Reeves explaining to us why the people in his discipleship program in the fishing village of Callalan are so eager to learn English and how our team can help them while learning Creole.  We also have a video of the girls introducing themselves in Creole and the Haitians introducing themselves in English.  I'm still trying to figure out how to upload them, but I'll put links in as soon as I figure it out.  I'm excited to go back and see what incredible progress has been made in a few months... my hunch is that the English/Creole language barrier will hardly be a barrier anymore :)

God is SO good.  Kerry and Joy Reeves & Stephen and Autumn Byxbe are THRILLED to have the girls there and know that it will make a huge difference in the quality and quantity of ministry that can and will happen there in Montrouis/Saint Marc.  We are so blessed to have been called to partner with New Vision Haiti and pray that God will bring much fruit.  While Lindsey and I are sad to be home, we are grateful to have had the opportunity to go and we know that God will use our stories to invite people into the story of what He's continuing to do across the globe.

The Important Things

We - as a crew, 6 interns (and a 7th who met us here), Bree & Lindsey H - are learning alot our first week here in Haiti. 

 

Visit: newvisionhaiti.org to see the ministry they are working with for the next 9 months.

The gals are learning how to live with cold showers, sleep on the roof because the power goes out therefore, so do the fans, we're learning how to live in community, make new friends, run programs, set up classrooms but at the core of it we're learning that there are two things in life that really matter - loving God and loving others.  The most important thing on this earth are our relationships.  God is teaching us incredible things about that even in this first week as we get kids fed & sponsored to go to school, pray with and get to know the people of Montrouis that the girls will be living with and the girls learn to live in their new community here at the mission.

We know they are incredibly blessed with running water, electricity (most of the time), a washing machine, food on the table each day, ample space in their apartments and most of all, a Christian community to live in, not to mention an incredible 180 degree view of the Caribbean from their apartment where they get to watch amazing sunsets & lightning storms.  

In comparison to the life that's happening outside these gates, we have SO much.  

This week, we've been...

- At the school setting up classrooms...

- In the fishing village meeting the people in the community & helping with Bible studies & prayer meetings

- Getting to know & love on the kids that live below the girls at the mission (Bree's loved this one for a while)

- And relaxing one evening at a local hotel, taking a sunset swim in the Caribbean and eating hamburgers :) 

While it's hot, humid and sticky, the gals are learning to acclimate, learning to love each other & those God's putting in their lives and learning to live in Haiti.  Their work each day involves educating kids who would otherwise receive minimal education and never learn English, feeding and educating 150 kids through the sponsorship program, loving on and praying for the people in the village of Montrouis - many of whom are new believers, helping them with the fishing program as they are able to feed 1500 people through the feeding program, helping refugee victims find trades and rebuild their lives and serving alongside the Reeves & Byxbe families as they change this village for the Lord.  They are learning that them being here will change lives for eternity.  They are learning about the important things - God and people.  Lindsey H and I couldn't be more grateful to have taken the beginning of this journey with them.  THANK YOU for your support! 

If you're interested in helping the girls financially, go here: https://sna.etapestry.com/fundraiser/IMPACT/impact2011/team.do?participationRef=2963.0.36276270 and click "make a donation"

If you're interested in sponsoring one of the Haitian kids for school/food this coming year, visit: http://celebrationchildrenshome.ning.com/group/CKC and see how to help the girls in their ministry!!!

Hope for sale...

We are selling these bracelets to help raise money for our awesome gals headed to Haiti in 2 weeks!!!!!  Help support these courageous, incredible women by buying a bracelet.

They say "ESPWA" - hope in Creole.  We believe that what these girls are going to bring is the hope we have in Jesus Christ.

Buy a bracelet.

Wear it.

Remember to pray for them.

Pray ESPWA over the nation of Haiti.

(The gals are selling them for $10 per bracelet, but I'm selling them for more - ha!  But truly, if you can give more, the money is going straight to their accounts for their year in Haiti, so we'd love help reaching our goal...)  CLICK HERE to see how much more they need!!!  THANK YOU!!!!

Inspired by these 6

This IMPACT blog started when I was in Haiti in March.

As a result of that trip - seeing the ministry that the Reeves family is doing there and sensing God's call on my life to "do something" with what I'd seen and learned, an intern program was born. The vision was to send interns over for 9 months to partner with Joy & Kerry Reeves at New Vision Ministries.  The work they are doing is life-changing.  I remember them saying something like this about their call to Haiti: "Let's not waste another day living for ourselves.  God is writing a big story in Haiti and we could choose to be part of it or we could let him choose someone else."  And this changed everything, for hundreds of people.  They amaze me.  They inspire me.  They make me want to be more like Jesus.

I seriously thought it was a vision that God gave me to accomplish "at some point," but had NO IDEA that it would actually materialize this fall.  Holy smokes, I'm still in awe.

We presented the need and have 6 incredible women who are called to Haiti for nine months!!!!  It's an inspiring crew... (if you click on their names, it'll link you to their websites so you can follow them in Haiti)!  

- Elise

- Amber 

- Kelsea

- Nikki

- Shala 

- Lindsey 

They have filled out a 16 page application, been met with individually, been told how crazy hard it will be at times and they feel undeniably called.  With each of these women comes an incredible backstory and journey to how they got to this place.  Get to know them.  Pray for them.  Help support them.  Love on them as they love on the people of Haiti for the sake of the Gospel.

 This is a big deal and I. AM. SO. PROUD. OF. THEM. 

A Note from our partners in Turkey

This is why we continue to do short-term missions... grateful for amazing teams & phenomenal partnerships around the globe.  God is good.

My name is Hanspeter Tiefenbach, I am Swiss and live for many years with my wife in this land. During Ramazan's absence I am  the interims pastor for the Turkish church. 

 

I write you today in order to thank you and the Impact team for the great ministry that has been done during their stay here in town. I was not very much envolved with the team but saw them regularly in the church garden or one of our meetings. They have been humble and so much willing to do whatever they were asked for and I saw them being involved with local people in praying for them, encouraging with a word of love and a bright smile or sharing the gospel with people who came to the language practies which the team offerd. We heard them give testamonies at church and saw them do practical work in houses or the meeting place. They have been so generous as well with a great financel gift they gave to the church. I know that they have contributed to the different houses they have been staying at, which helped this families in their personal financial struggles. I know that they could have had a relaxed time with air conditioner and pool in a hotel but they wanted to share their lives with local belivers and be of support to them instead. GOD bless them all. I know that HE is going to "repay" them in HIS own ways. Thank you so much for the organisation of this outreach and all the churches for making it possible for this people to come and help us. If you have an opertunity please let them and their churches know our love and gratitude. 

 

With best regards and blessings,

Hanspeter Tiefenbach    

I like it

There's a great conversation about short-term missions that's happening here.  My prayer is that IMPACT will always go to serve and never to be served, that our ministry will always be first about Christ and second about those we go to serve, that we will be welcomed back with open arms because we were about those two things.  I am constantly on the look-out for better ways to do STM trips and more effective ways to serve our friends in-country.  I love a good conversation about all this... let's keep it going, let's keep learning, let's keep changing so that we may change others for His glory.

P.S. - We still have 3 teams out... continue to pray for them - that God is wrecking them and making them more like his son.

Teachers Wanted... in Haiti

• Here's the details. Our missionary friends & partners in Haiti (Kerry & Joy Reeves) called me this afternoon & said that there's a "situation."
  
  The school their 4 kids were scheduled to attend in the fall is threatening to close its doors due to the need for 2 more teachers. We are sending one teacher there for the school year, but they need 2 more total to keep the school running. It has been running for 15 years and is on YWAM's property. They are the managers of the school, Liberty Academy
  
  It is an all English-speaking school with about 26 kids total. Kerry & Joy's 4 will go there in the Fall. He is concerned about the closing of the school for a few reasons:
  
  1) He wants that consistency in education for his own kids.
  2) The Haitian kids that attend are Haiti's future leaders. They are the ones that are educated and speak English and if this school closes, many of those kids will either be sent to boarding schools or they will be sent to the normal schools with sub-par education.
  
  We trust the Lord and believe that we can get 2 more teachers for them. They pay is non-existent, but food, housing and transportation are fully covered for the entire school year and we're working on a travel stipend right now.
  
  IMPACT is running an intern program and already sending 4-6 people in their 20's and 30's over to Haiti for 9 months, so we would likely run the teachers through that program.
  
  Our partners there are INCREDIBLE. Visit newvisionhaiti.blogspot.com for more on them. And we just believe that God is going to provide.
  
  Qualifications from the school:
  - a Bachelor's degree in something - anything
  - a heart for kids
  - a heart for missions
  - a love for Jesus
  
  That's it. So if you know someone who meets those areas, then let's talk! :) Would LOVE to hear from you.
  
  And besides... you can get some new dance moves from the kiddos... check it out - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5-tKbuAgWg
  
  Let me know what other questions you have! 
  email: impact.sbp@gmail.com

Prayer Request from Romania

Yesterday I was going to send you an altogether different newsletter.  The below trumps any concerns or issues I could have mentioned.   Ilie asked me to to share this situation as a prayer request with you, our praying family:

 

(sent yesterday evening to some friends by email)
Dear friends and family of the New Horizons Foundation in Lupeni,

A serious accident has befallen one of our most beloved team member's family. Ilie Popescu's - our Viata Program director's - 7 year old son Adonis fell from their 5-story balcony today.  Miraculously he landed on a bit of rain-softened grass, rather than cement, but his little body is quite injured.  After time at the hospital in Petrosani, he is being transported by ambulance to Timisoara (4 hours away) where there is a pediatric hospital. 

Dana, who was at the Petrosani hospital, writes this: 

Hi all,

A little update.  While at first everyone was fearing for the worst, in the light of those fears the initial news was good.

But Adonis did break his spine-the good news is that he can move his feet; he also broke his skull and it is hard to know how bad that is, but the good news here is that Adonis was talking; he also injured one of his lungs pretty severely.  From what I could pick up from conversations, and what was told me, he is still in serious condition.  

He landed on grass and somewhat soft soil, which softened the impact.

Keep praying.  Ilie and Robi are headed to Timisoara; Tina is with Adonis in the ambulance, hopefully on the way by now.

Dana 

That was yesterday.  News just received is that Adonis was complaining of being bored in the hospital.  This is very good news indeed if one knows Adonis!   However after one night in the hospital he is being prepped for surgery for internal bleeding.  The doctors assessment as of now seems to be that the head and the spine will heal, but they are concerned with the internal bleeding. 

You may be receiving this e-mail as someone who knows and loves Ilie and even Adonis, or as a dear friend and partner in our ministry. If you are part of a missions committee, please would you ask your committees and even church families to be praying?

Please join us in prayer for Adonis' body, and for Ilie and Tina.  If you'd like to contact Ilie, please do so via e-mail (not by phone) either to his address or reply to us and we will send it on.

Thankful for the prayerful Family of God, especially in times such as these.

the Bates' on behalf of Adonis, Ilie and Tina

Simply Complicated

I’m learning that Peru, Spain & Mexico have alot in common: es simplemente complicado 

• las cucarachas (look it up) - they’re in the shower usually, awesome. 
• internet - here & in every other developing country, inconsistent & at times no bueno (but don’t get me wrong, i’m crazy grateful for wifi)
• nothing is easy - it took us 3 hours to run two errands - traffic was horrendous, parking was an issue, we got pretty darned lost, we almost got in an accident (or three) and the people here drive like they didn’t to drivers ed & don’t have driver’s licenses... oh wait, many of them don’t... notice the painted lane lines?  they totes don't matter.

• clean - the term “clean” is relative in places like this.  blowing your nose & having it be straight dirt AFTER your shower is totally clean, right?
• on time - means about 20-30 minutes late.  i mean, what’s the big deal... everybody’s doing it.  

But I’m also learning alot about what it would look like to simplify my life... to live the way most people in the world do.  To stop “needing” so much of what we’ve thought we were entitled to and to start living more simply in order to be able to provide more for those who only dream of things like hot water, internet, a mattress and a washing machine.  

I did some laundry here in Peru tonight and there’s a sweatshirt I never dry when I wash it - you know, one of those “it fits perfect & if I dried it I know it wouldn’t” sweatshirts? That one requested special permission not to be dried so I decided to hang it out on the clothes line.  As I was clipping the little clothespins, I had a glimpse of simple.  I turned around and went back into the little kitchen with no dishwasher and no garbage disposal and thought, “This actually is the life.  This is the better way to live.” 

You see, I think sometimes we think we have it good because we have every modern convenience and everything we could want easily accessible and readily available, but I actually think it harms us.  I think hanging up my sweatshirt, drying my dishes, losing my internet connection and showering with cucarachas has brought more life to me in the last week than my hot shower, my automatic coffee maker, my super speedy wireless distraction tool internet and my strip malls have done for me in the last 10 years.

I think less is more... stay tuned to hear why.  

His ways are higher

A blogpost from our Haiti partners, Kerry & Joy Reeves about our God, about expectations, about how much we don't understand.  Click the link above...

Easter in Peru

Holidays are hard in another country.  I don't care who you are or how tough you think you are or how long you've lived in a different place than your family - holidays are when it hits you that this is not home.  Yesterday I got a glimpse of what it's like to spend Easter in another country.  I can't say I've ever done that before.  I've spent many Easters away from my family, but never spent one this far away from everything I know... except for these people who I truly consider family.

We woke up and had cereal for breakfast, per usual... except the 3 older kids had a little surprise on top of their cereal - a peep, I know, disgusting but I couldn't resist :)  We then headed to Peruvian church for Easter service.  There was something about worshipping in Spanish that took me back to how and where I grew up and it made my heart glad.

As much as I missed ROCKHARBOR's Easter service, baptisms & craziness at the amphitheater, it was amazing to see how easy it was to have a full heart despite missing what I think makes me happy on Easter.  I was sitting in church with the people I've spent the past 5 Easters with, worshipping the same risen God on what might be my favorite day of the year.  He is still risen.  He is still alive and active.  He is still in control.

We came home, had PBJ's for lunch - you know, your standard Easter feast and we hid some eggs in the yard for the kiddos, making our best attempt at keeping Easter as normal as possible for the 4 little people in the house.  All 3 of us adults called our parents & wished them Happy Easter, I know at least one of us felt a teensy bit triste that I wasn't celebrating on the lake with my family.

But we sucked it up - we played games, jumped on the trampoline, died laughing watching Blake & Sarah's wedding video, I got bit by something & my thumb swelled up and went numb, we treated ourselves to the only Mexican joint in Lima and we had a great conversation about missions - about Jesus being worth the sacrifices, about how stinkin' hard it can be at times, about transition and trust.    These people have been family to me for the last 7 years and on any day of the year, that is enough.  And we went to bed glad to be together.

Easter was still Easter and He is still risen.  Yesterday's grew my appreciation for my friends all over the world who have sacrificed much and spent a ridiculous amount of holidays away from family because Jesus is worth it.  I have a feeling this may just be the beginning of the holidays-on-another-continent journey for me.  And my first year, I think I'll be TOTALLY open to amigos joining me - come one come all... wherever it is that He's gonna have me.

Happy Easter from Peru to you.

The Spanglish Debaucle

It's me... out of the country again.  Did I mention I love my job/my life these days? Because I do.  You may be saying, Bree, where are you off to this time?  Well, let me just tell you.  Some of my very favorite people on the planet moved to Peru in January.  If you ask me to rehash the goodbye at LAX, it won't be pretty, so don't ask.  They left because they felt called to this awesome ministry called Krochet Kids, which is busy changing lives of impoverished women in Uganda and now, because of Blake and Sarah's faith and obedience, in Lima, Peru.

As you could imagine, this whole moving to Peru, not knowing Spanish, having 4 little kids thing is a bit of a difficult transition.  So I decided to show up... do a little kid spoiling, a little Sarah's birthday-celebrating and a little "He is risen" celebrating Peruvian style, a little translating, a little checking out the ministry they are just beginning and ALOT of laughter and honest conversation.  We're really good at that.

All that to say, I'm en route. I'm in Costa Rica on the 6 hour layover of death, but not so death-like since I found the wireless :)  But now to my debaucle... I spoke Spanish once upon a time.  Fluently in fact.  I lived in Spain so fluency was a requirement.  I also lived in El Paso so quasi-fluency was a requirement.  Well, I don't use it as much anymore and here's the awkwardness I've found myself in today.

SCENARIO #1
Older woman on the plane (in Spanish): Can you get me my umbrella? (from the luggage compartment)

Me (in Spanish): Yes, ma'am

Older woman (in Spanish):  Thank you very much.

Me (in Spanish):  You're welcome!

*at this point, I'm thinking, "I'm good to go, it's like riding a bike."  Si senora and de nada?  Really Bree?  Side note - everyone automatically speaks Spanish to me instead of English because I look like I belong - finally, I've found my people.

SCENARIO #2 - ordering coffee

Young Costa Rican barista (in Spanish): How can I help you?

Me (in Spanglish): Can I get a latte with vanilla (Spanish) and can you fill up my water bottle (English)
*what the!?!?!? Not sure what was going through my overtired brain.

Young Costa Rican barista (in Spanish, looking at me like I'm crazy): Yes, a latte with vanilla and you want water from the sink?

Before I could really register what she said, I nodded.  Oops and then proceeded to see that right next to the coffee stand was a water fountain.  No wonder she thought I was crazy.

What I'm realizing is that it's not quite like riding a bike.  I understand everything.  That part's easy.  I can hear people's conversations and know exactly what's going on.  No big.  But as soon as I try to find vocabulary words in the recesses of my brain and then try to conjugate a verb my mind goes to mush.  Hopefully it's the red eye flight & 3 hours of sleep!??!  If not, it's gonna be a Spanglish kind of week...

Mighty to Save

 Kerry wrote this morning:

When we moved to Haiti in 2009 we believed that God was calling us to live by a different model of ministry. We truly believed that God has a deep love for His Haitian children and a plan to lift them out of their despair and into lives of freedom through knowledge of His love. We believed that if God has a plan to do work then He Himself had the means to fund that work. We believed that if we would be faithful to throw ourselves completely into finding what God wanted to do and then spent our time in that, then He would send the money to do it. I did not want to spend several months each year doing fund raising when instead we could be rescueing babies and taking care of the sick and dying. I was totally unsure how it would all work out but truly believed God would provide the funds.

In July 2010 the river in Montrouis flooded due to many factors including a poorly designed bridge and extensive deforrestation. The flood washed away many homes in our fishing village leaving dozens of single moms and their kids homeless. Tents were provided but that was almost a year ago and the tents have been destroyed. We felt God wanted us to reach out to these desperate women and give them hope.

We had a friend that agreed to help us rent homes for 18 of the women. But we did not want to stop there. Paying for someone's house as a handout is more detrimental in the long run than helpful. So instead we decided to start a program for these women to reach out to their own community. Joy has a heart for the elderly and widows and we were already taking fish to many widows in our area on a weekly basis. But Joy had a desire to start a "Meals on Wheels" Haiti style. So we are now taking the 18 single moms that are the outcasts from their society. Many have multiple children from multiple men. All are uneducated and fundamentally illiterate. Most have been raped and abused. We want to help them become active participants in changing their community and their lives. We want them to know that God has a better plan for them and that although they have never believed it, they are valuable and lovable and loved.

In order to be in our housing program the women had to agree to several conditions. First of all they have to come to weekly Life Lesson classes. These classes involve life skills training like hygeine and mothering skills. It also involves Bible study that teaches them abstinance and the true value of their body and their lives. In addition to the classes the women agree to work in our feeding program. They will come three days per week to prepare and deliver the hot meals to the elderly shut-ins. They will also be taking clean water and vitamins. We are training them to look for signs of illness and to spend time with the client. Our goal is to help them understand the principle of investing their lives in others.

The first two days they work each week will go towards paying for their house we rented. The third day they will get paid and taught how to mange the money.

The program will feed about 150 hot meals per week and employ the 18 single moms. We pray that in the long run the effects will change many families and help many to come to know the love of Christ.

I did not know how we would pay to fund the program but we went ahead and started renting all the houses. This past week a man we met while here in Haiti called and said he and his wife really wanted to find a program they could get involved with. I emailed him the outline of Meals on Wheels and he called me tonight and said they had all the expenses covered and would start sending a check every month to cover all the costs. God had a plan. He chose by grace to reveal it to us. We started it by faith. And He provided the funding. In the words of Hannible from The A Team, "I just love it when a plan comes together!" 

This is exciting news from Haiti.  This week they are doing medical assessments on the elderly in Montrouis and will determine those who have the most dire need to part of the new feeding program.  God is so faithful.  Just a month ago, I remember conversations with Kerry about how he was going to get all these women employed & housed by July... 

OUR GOD IS MIGHTY TO SAVE. 

From our partners in Turkey

Ramazan and Karen amaze me... they have an awesome story of how our great God redeemed their lives and they live a life of sacrifice for the gospel.  I am inspired by the way they have counted the cost (potentially even their own lives) and found Him worthy of it all.  And plus... they have THE CUTEST kid in the world :)   Enjoy!

Greetings brothers and sisters in Christ, our dear faithful prayer warriors. We are so grateful for you and as we see answers to our prayers, we praise God for providing each one of you as an intercessor for us.

Our 7 weeks back in Turkey have been very busy. We have been catching up with our friends and family. It has been a blessing. It has been especially encouraging to see how the Lord has worked in individual church members’ lives as well as in the church as a whole Body. Since Christmastime, three new people have committed their lives to Christ. It has been such a blessing to see the Lord working in their lives.

Our old meeting place, St. Paul’s Cultural Center, continues to be closed and we continue to be a “homeless” church. However, the Lord has provided a full-time meeting place for us! It is the upper room of a restaurant on the same street as St. Paul’s. We are now renting this building with the international church and can use it every day rather than just Sunday mornings. Praise God for provision! We organized a calendar with the international church which allows us to share the time we have in this building. This is a 6 month solution with hopes that the St. Paul’s Cultural Center will be reopened soon. Continue to pray for that. 

This week a new young adults group will begin. The church youth group has been attended by students and young adults ranging in age from early teen to mid-thirties  For some time now, the older members of the youth group have been ready to split off into their own fellowship group. There are several married couples and some singles, about 20-25 people in total, who will move on into the new group. Everyone is very excited to start meeting together. Please pray for our first meeting this week and that the fellowship of this group will be a blessing. Pray that the Lord would knit our hearts together and that even more people will join us. 

As you may recall, we have asked many times for prayer to begin a church in Alanya. A few months ago, our church sent a missionary couple there and they are now meeting with the Alanya believers on a weekly basis. Our church sends delegates to Alanya once a month to encourage the believers. Please pray for this missionary couple working in Alanya. Please also pray that more people would join the church and come to Christ. 

We are looking for a flat to buy. This process has been quite frustrating for Ramazan. The most important thing for us to consider when buying an apartment is its location. Because Ramazan is a Christian pastor and quite well-known in the city, not many neighborhoods would be eager to have us living among them. There are many conservative areas in Antalya and we want to buy a flat in the area where business professionals live. These people are typically less Islamic, more democratic and open-minded, and probably more willing to accept us living among them. Unfortunately, the cost of apartments in this area is a bit high. Please pray that the Lord would provide a reasonably priced flat in a good neighborhood. 

Joshua is now seven months old. He is a joy and blessing to us and keeps us both laughing and smiling. 

Thank you again for blessing us through your prayers. 

Much love,

The Arkans

Glimpses of Hope

On Sunday afternoon in Haiti, we were sitting at the snack bar, enjoying some sandwiches for lunch & talking about what life would bring once we got back from Haiti.  Jarred told me he was planning on going rock climbing at a national park in Utah in the month of April.  To which I said, "Why don't you come back here?  They need you here way more than the rocks do :)"  Jarred is a PA (Physician's Assistant) and has an incredible giftset (medical and non) that is ridiculously useful in Haiti.

Long story short, Jarred is back in Montrious.  He is there through the month of April and in the 4 days he's been there has already done his fair share of ministry.  When we were there last month, we met this little guy named Johnny.  He had some sort of incident in November - they're not sure if it was a stroke or what but a kid who was normal - able to speak, walk and play can no longer use the right side of his body.  We found him at his home just sitting in this chair.  He doesn't move... all day unless his dad takes him somewhere.

I will never forget standing outside Johnny's home in the fishing village, tears streaming down my face and hearing Jarred & Holly (our team doctor) say, "There's nothing we can do for him.  This will be his life."  He's a kid for crying out loud.  It is SO unfair.

When we got home, we decided the least we could do is try to get him a wheelchair.  Someone donated the perfect size wheelchair and today Jarred posted pictures of Johnny's glimpse of hope.  I know we can't save this little boy and he'll never walk or talk again, but we can make the time he has left on this earth better.  And from the pictures and the way Jarred talked about it today, the ear-to-ear grin and him spinning in circles in the wheelchair is just one of the reasons Jarred needed to go back.

It is Christ using his people to reach down to the least of these and say, "You're worth it.  You matter. " And that's awesome. That's the gospel.

Vision of Splendor - Backdrop of Squalor

Haiti - a vision of splendor on a backdrop of squalor.  

This island is beautiful.  There are few places in the world with palm trees, turquoise Caribbean beaches and sunsets that take your breath away.  I've been to a few and have loved my vacations there.  But Haiti?  It's not one of those vacation spots.  If you just flew straight to a hotel on the coast and saw only this vision of splendor, you might think so.

What you don't see in this picture is the people behind the camera.  Standing behind us, while this picture was taken was a village of lost, broken people - orphans, elderly, earthquake refugees, unemployed single mothers... and the list goes on. While taking this picture, we were all standing in a group in the fishing village, surrounded by locals who are desperate for help.

Mothers who were asking us to take their children back to the United States, fathers and husbands begging for Kerry to help them get jobs to feed their families, single women who want nothing more than to be educated and learn a trade so that they can support themselves, elderly women who love the Lord and are trusting him for their next meal, orphans wanting nothing more than to be held and loved.

The backdrop of squalor in this nation is something that will also take your breath away and cause tears to well up your eyes because it seems unfair.  And it is.  It seems hopeless.  But I can tell you that because of Jesus Christ, it is not.

Richard Stearns puts it this way in "The Hole in Our Gospel" (which I guarantee you will change your life if you read it)...

"Christ is either God incarnate, risen from the dead, or He is not.  There is no halfway position here... if Christ is God, it changes everything - there is nothing more important, more authoritative, or more central to the human race, to the way we live our lives, and to our very understanding of the world.  Christ is an all-or-nothing proposition, and one way or another, every one of us has already made a choice about Him.  We have either committed our lives to him whole-heartedly, or we have not."  

I can tell you this: Kerry and Joy Reeves and their kids have 100% surrendered everything for the sake of following Christ and being his hands and feet in a dark backdrop of squalor.  They have sacrificed things you and I couldn't dream of parting with to live a better story.  This is a man who had it all - a successful optometry practice, the house, the cars, the American dream.  I will never forget him saying to us how hard it was to give that up but how rewarding it is to be fully dependent on Christ.  Here's the thing... Kerry and Joy could have chosen to say, "I think we'll wait until our kids are out of school" or "Maybe someday" or "Maybe after we get a little more experience and money saved" or "Nah, this just isn't for me."

But instead they said, "Let's not waste another day living for ourselves.  God is writing a big story in Haiti and we could choose to be part of it or we could let him choose someone else."  And this changed everything, for hundreds of people.

Even as we speak, they are doing a crusade for the next few days in Montrouis.  Saturday they will baptize over 80 people.  Every single night he is getting to speak the hope of Jesus Christ over the people of this dark land that is less than 10% Christian.  I am blown away by Kerry and Joy - by their dependence on Christ, their faith in his provision, their commitment to Haiti, their model of discipleship and love and their broken hearts for the things that break the heart of God.

Kerry wakes up every morning, gets on the bus and prays, "Lord, I need you today.  I can't do this without you.  Let's go change this village for your name."  This is a dependence on Christ that you and I know we don't have in our oh-so-comfortable worlds here in the states.  It's something to be sought after and something that can only come with complete surrender.  They amaze me.  They inspire me.  They make me want to be more like Jesus.

Because of this, God has put it on our hearts as IMPACT and Operation HOPE to start an Intern Program there called "Haiti Discipleship."  Our hope is that this will encourage our dear friends who've given their lives to this mission, that God will write the story of Haiti on the hearts of the many who will go and that the kingdom will be expanded through more long-term work in this place.  Stay tuned for a post about the program :)

Let Me Be

I drive to work on the most beautiful highway in the world - PCH (Pacific Coast Highway).  It's exactly what it its name describes - a highway that is right along the Pacific Coast.  This 30 minute drive is my thinking time, my praying time, my music time.

Tuesday I was driving to work, praying about my life, thinking about how much I want to go back to Haiti and this song came on.  It's a song called "Let Me Be" by my all time favorite band called Caedmon's Call.  I heard it once and then put it on repeat 3 more times until it sunk into my soul.  And now I've been living in it this week and this is my prayer:

"Lord, you are the maker of my heart.  The framer and reshaper of my soul.  Master and Creator, Healer and Sustainer, I will put my trust in you alone.  Teach me to be faithful to confess.  In this way my spirit will be blessed.  Though my sins are daily, you have loved me greatly, removing them as far as east from west. 

Let me be open, let me be humble, let me find the joy of my salvation in your cross.  Let me be broken whenever i stumble, let me remember the great mercy of my God.  

Give me the full measure of your grace, as it is reflected in the work.  Faith and reassurance, mercy and endurance - carry these to those who haven't heard. 

Let me be open, let me be humble, let me find the joy of my salvation in your cross.  Let me be broken whenever I stumble, let me remember the great mercy of my God. 

All I have needed, I lay at your table and all my achievements, I lay at your feet.  Alive in your spirit, I'm willing and able... make my joy complete.  

Let me be open, let me be humble, let me find the joy of my salvation in your cross.  Let me be broken whenever i stumble, let me remember the great mercy of my God."

When I think about IMPACT, about missions, about my recent trip to Haiti, I think about the line that says, "Faith and reassurance, mercy and endurance - carry these to those who haven't heard."  That is our job and that is why I love my job.  

We get the chance to offer the hope we have in Jesus Christ to people around the world - what a privilege.  Lord, let me remember the great mercy of my God today.  

Surrender

I am currently in a season of learning what it looks like to surrender... I can honestly say it's one of the hardest things to do when you are someone who likes your world under control, all the time.  God is teaching me and often he uses unexpected things to do it.

It was Wednesday morning in Haiti and our schedule for that morning was to sleep in.  If you've met me, I LOVE to do this.  Well, that was not God's schedule for me.  There was pounding on my door around 8am and so I jumped out of bed and ran to the door to find two of my teammates of my new friends that lives in Haiti standing at the door frantically telling me, "There was a bad accident.  We're getting on the helicopter right now to go take them to the hospital.  You need to go be with Joy.  We don't know who was hurt, it may have been Kerry (her husband)."

Early that morning, some of our guys had gone to Port-Au-Prince to take a team of 4 guys to the airport.

What was going through my half-asleep, pre-caffeinated mind was this:
- "My dad is on that bus.  I don't know what I'd do if my dad wasn't okay.  Kerry is on that bus.  I don't know what Joy and their 8 kids will do if he's not okay.  If Kerry's not okay, I'm not leaving Haiti. I'm not leaving Joy."  I was calm on the outside but freaking out the inside and then started shaking.  In that moment, I felt this overwhelming peace and I prayed, "Lord, if you decided to take my dad and Kerry today, I would still trust you.  I would know that you're in control, that it was part of your plan and that I would be okay."  (Believe me, this was all Jesus)  At that point, Jarred said to me, "Your dad's okay.  He's the one that texted about it. Just go be with Joy."

I threw my shoes on and ran to Joy & Kerry's apartment.  I got there and she was holding her cell phone, waiting for them to call and was trying not to panic with 5 kids needing her attention and affection. We knelt down right there and started praying.  Soon after, Kerry called and said he was fine, but to pray for Jeff.  Jeff is a pastor that was there visiting from Louisiana.  He's 36 and has a wife and kids at home.  He had a significant amount of damage to his face and will need surgery, potentially a few surgeries.  They got him to Miami quickly and he is doing okay, but it will be a long road.  If you think of it, please pray for him and his family.

But I am continuing to learn from this is that I have expectations of what I think my life is supposed to look like.  When MY expectations aren't met, I am disappointed in God because things aren't going my way.  Well shouldn't they be going his way, not mine?  What that requires is an all out surrender of my agenda and expectations so that God might have the space in my life to write a better story.  That day, I learned what it meant to surrender.  I learned what it meant to have absolutely zero control of a situation and still trust God with the outcome.  God is teaching me to surrender it all and to release my expectations in exchange for the amazing plan he is beginning to unfold.  A painful process? Yes.  But I could not be more grateful for the early morning wake up call in Haiti.

"This life I live... it finds meaning in surrender.  So take my life, let it be, everything all of me.  Here I am, use me for Your glory.  In everything I say and do, let me my life honor You.  Here I am, living for Your glory." - Tim Hughes 

GREAT thoughts on short-term missions

So I have these friends... okay their friends of friends, but I wish we knew each other for reals.  Next time I go to Haiti, I'd like to try to meet them.  All that said, they are missionaries in Port-Au-Prince.  They are doing phenomenal ministry there (very similar in structure, style and family life to our AMAZING partners doing we just worked with in Montrouis).  The Livesay's recently posted this blog about short-term missions.  You should go HERE and check it out.  It's legit and needs to be read by anyone planning on going.

The end.

Mèsi Senyè...

Mèsi Senyè...

This means, "Thank You, Lord" in Creole.  Those are the only words I can use to describe how I feel about my trip to Haiti (and they're much more beautiful in Creole than in English:)  
Here's how I saw Jesus this week:

- I saw medical professionals (an MD, a PA, a nurse, a nursing student and a pre-med student) give up a week of their lives to sit in a sweltering hot, sticky school house and see patients who could never afford to see a doctor.  They treated, sutured, prescribed, scheduled surgeries for and prayed over people who otherwise may never have gotten treatment (and a few who just wanted free vitamins:).  One of them was so compelled by it that he's taking a step of faith and going back for the month of April to continue to treat & love on the people of Haiti.  Because of them, Dr Kerry was able to show these communities that he loves them enough to open free medical clinics in their villages and in turn, he's earned the right to share why he organized that - because God first loved him, he loves them. 

- I saw a high school senior giving up her spring break to see what it would be like to serve God in another country.  Her heart is pure gold and she's so eager to use her life for kingdom work.  She loved on orphans and helped in a medical clinic.  She has spring break stories that are life-changing & I'm so proud of her.  

- I saw seven moms/grandmas leave their families for a week to go and love on someone else's kids because scripture asks us to care for the orphan.  Their love for those kids & organizational skills provided things for Kerry & Joy's family that could not have been provided without these moms.  Their hearts were transformed by rescuing a little girl from a dire situation and bringing her to the orphanage.  Their hearts were broken for a little boy with special needs who desperately needs surgery or he will die.  Their loving arms were used to cuddle kids who rarely get one on one attention and affection.  Their songs were sung to bring life to kids who were forced to grow up too quickly because they had no stable home.  Without them, our team wouldn't have been complete. 

- I saw a young married couple pour their lives into men in the fishing village and orphaned young women.  Their hearts are to get the men in the fishing program sponsored so that they can be more productive in their fishing and grow their very small businesses, feed their families and put their children in school.  They are making a difference in Haiti.

- I saw my sister-in-law jumping in wherever she could to help - painting, washing clothes, holding a baby, assembling a bed, running a pharmacy, babysitting Joy & Kerry's kids, learning a little Creole, laughing and playing with the kids in the orphanage - just allowing God to use her wherever he chose to that day.  She brought so much joy to our team and to the people there and is more inspired to go back and start Young Life in her hometown with high school students.  

- I saw my dad using his gifts as a businessman to help Dr Kerry think more strategically about all the irons he has in the fire.  He spent a week problem solving and figuring out ways he could help.  He served by encouraging Dr Kerry in the work he was doing and propelling him to be able to do more - "putting gas on the fire" as we like to say.  Not only did I see my dad using what he's best at, but I also saw him loving on orphans who've never had a dad.  

- My next blog post will say more about their ministry & their lives, but I saw Dr Kerry running more ministries than one person should ever run...  1) Abraham Association (choir), 2) Fishing Program (12 guys he's teaching to make a business out of their trade while discipling them), 3) Medical Clinics, 4) The Mission (orphanage where they house & feed 17 kids each day), 5) the potential opening of a Boys Home for the older boys, 6) running the Refugee Camp where he helps feed 65 people displaced from the earthquake and is trying to find them homes/jobs before July, 7) Outreach Church in the street on Sunday nights for people in the fishing village, 8) Hosting our team which includes coordinating housing, meals, transportation, translators, Sunday church and everything in between, 9) potentially starting a "feeding program" to get the kids in local schools fed so they can at least eat one meal per day, 10) running a sponsorship program where $150/year allows a kid to get off the street and be put in school and fed one meal per day, 11) being an incredible husband and father to his wife and 8 kids (6 of whom live in Haiti) and finally, 12) he and Joy serving as weary, yet most faithful servants of our Lord, day in and day out because they realize that loving Jesus and loving people is all that matters. What an example!

- I saw myself changed forever and I don't say that lightly.  You see, when you run mission trips for a living, you've been alot of places & seen alot of things.  But I've never, ever been captured by a place like I have been by Montrouis, Haiti (pronounced "Mowee).  I've never seen such tangible need we have the potential to meet.  I've never met missionaries like Kerry & Joy and their kids who have chosen to relinquish the American Dream and the life they had planned for themselves in order to have the life that God had planned for them.  I've never seen daily surrender modeled so faithfully. I "drank the koolaid" as they say.  I'm all in.  I'm ready to give whatever it takes to keep this ministry going and to get them the help they need.  They are running more than 8 flourishing ministries on their own and they need workers, helpers, partners.  I see God calling me into something much bigger with my dear friends in Haiti. I know God is stirring my heart to do something big and I am seeking Him with all I am to figure out how he might use me to help with ministering to the people in Montrouis, Haiti.  I would love your prayers as I seek his will.  Stay tuned...

Mèsi Senyè... for how you are changing my life. 

(This is Joy and Kerry's 9 year old - Jacy and the little girl I wish I could take home - Nakisha)