February Church Roundup

February 24th: We headed to the little road just across the river to a large building, half full. When we arrived at 7:00 am, they were already singing their last few songs before the sermon.  It was a breath of fresh air to see that there were no jumbo, over-powering speakers to help with the process of hearing damage.  It seemed like everyone was participating in the singing, which was led by a young woman.  All the women wore something to cover their heads. (Head coverings were the norm for women in Haiti until fairly recently. Now, for the ones who still hold to this value, it doesn't always matter what the covering is made of either. I've seen it all, it seems. Any scarf, Lacey thing, T-shirt, children's pants, stocking caps, ball caps, or even wash cloths are consider adequate for covering.) 

After Pastor Bazalet gave his usual introduction and shared what a "great sacrifice" Barry has made to come live in Haiti, Barry's 90-minute sermon held the full attention of the congregation.  Afterward, the pastor stood up to reiterate what Barry shared.  "Usually we don't have anything to do with Americans," he said, "but it was a blessing to hear one preach the truth." 

February 17: A large group meeting in an old brick structure, squeezed tightly into the bustling town of Mouri, about a half hour north of our house. The building itself was only feet away from the blacktop, but the tight quarters meant the only place large enough to park was a fair distance down the dirt lane that ran nearby. Approaching the church on foot, we could not actually see the building until we had squeezed through a single file alley between other buildings, and stood in the small, paved courtyard just outside. Tne church seemed to have been added onto. A side wing that looked like it was still under construction allowed several more people to sit and participate. As we took our seats on the last available bench, we quickly realized we had to spread out evenly and try to keep our weight towards the ends, or the on remaining board may not hold our weight. I couldn't help but notice the pile of rocks in the back of the room, implying there was still work planned. I wonder if we would ever consider it viable to meet for worship in a building that was still under construction. Many, many churches here do this for years and years, simply for lack of funding. 

Barry delivered a practical message, using simple explanations and examples to paint a picture of holy living that was easy to understand. There was a small group of Americans visiting as well, workkng with the children's home that this church operates. 

February 11th: A somewhat familiar church. Barry has spent a lot of time with this pastor and having Bible studies at this church. Before we left for furlough, Barry had bumped into the pastor at the market. He was beaming. He joyfully told Barry that he was a changed man, and he was going to start getting his church in order. He didn't care if everyone left.  Well, a few months later there's not an empty seat in the house. 

February 4th: The "fancy" church. It stands tall in the village of LaDigue. For nearly a year it was a place that Barry said he would hope to be able to preach, but didn't see it as a very likely possibility. It turned out that one of the young men working on the house is a faithful member, and arranged to opportunity. Despite the grandeur of the structure, it was one of the smallest congregations we've seen. I haven't quite figured out exactly what draws people to one church over another, but it often seems like the more humble church houses are bursting at the seems. Of course, many of them have money for loudspeakers, drum sets, and everything it takes to have a good time during the music portion, and that does draw a crowd. This particular church was more on the mild side. 

This was Piker's first opportunity to translate a Sunday message. Josnel wasn't coming, so I suggested he give Piker a chance. He was evidently very nervous, but the message went forth nonetheless. 

Putting the Roof on (and other scenes from the week)

 Recently a group of three dozen or so were down for a week, both for Rameau's wedding and to put the roof on the mission house. Without many words, because our internet signal is currently strong enough to do so, here are some glimpses of the week in photos.

With the roof finished, the mission house is nearing completion.

Darla is familiar with the Haitian concept of "Degaje," which means to "make do." She's using a utility knife to cut meat to serve to the large group.

Rameau's tap-tap was one of the ways everyone went from place to place.

Sorting clothes to be taken up the mountain

Maryaj de Rameau & Helene

Last Saturday was another first for us, but this time it was a pleasant experience. There are many long-term relationships in Haiti, but rarely do they lead to law-binding, God-honoring marriage. Since most committed couples, even those with several children, are joined only by their life situation and a statement of commitment, the wedding of our friends Rameau ("Ramos") and Helene was the first one we've seen.

Rameau, being the generous giver that he is, was busy the week before with wedding errands and preparations, but still made time to help us out with transporting the large group that was visiting from home, or any other thing that was asked of him.  There were many similarities to the way things are done back home.  When the wedding day come, we headed over to Rameau's house to pick him up, with several of our neighbors dressed in full suits riding along. Rameau was also dressed to the tilt in several fancy layers, complete with white gloves. I'm always amazed at the way they can dress up that way but never complain about being too hot.

When we arrived at the church building, Helene was already there waiting. This in itself was a blessing. We've heard there's a "tradition" that the bride shows up late to her own wedding, so she can make a big entrance for herself when she so chooses. We were glad to see her desire to be humble and keep the whole event simple and Christ-like.

The ceremony included many of the brothers visiting from the States. It began with an introduction from the officiating pastor, then an opening prayer by Dan, and scripture reading by Nate. A friend of Helene was on the program to sing a special solo, but for some reason she announced with hand gestures that it wasn't going to happen. The congregation then sang a beautiful rendition of "How Great Thou Art" in French. Barry shared a sermon that was a perfect mix of love, appropriately enough, and the need for Christ in all our lives. 

The couple exchanged vows while nervously and seriously looking into each other's eyes.  It was evident by their demeanor that this commitment was not something to be taken lightly, and its a good thing.  The large group of youth from ACCF went to the front to sing a couple of songs. In the middle of the first song, the officiating pastor announced over the mic that the couple would sign the marriage certificate while the choir sang. However, since he announced it in Creole, nobody that was singing knew what he said, and the song quickly tapered off into silence.  Several parents tried to signal them to continue singing. After a long minute of looking around wondering what was going on, they began another song while the witnesses came forward to also sign the documents. Denny and James also prayed and offered a word of blessing for the bride and groom.

Signing the Marriage Documents

"Best Man" Dan

The pastor announced the couple officially married, and Mart said a final prayer.  "Before we finish," the pastor said, "there's one more thing we need to do. It is something very important for a wedding in Haiti." The close family members in the front row knew exactly what was about to happen, and they all left their seats to gather around the couple in front, with cameras ready.  After a loud count to three, Rameau and Helene had to exchange their first married kiss in front of everyone.  I never asked them just how they felt about that little tradition.

Leaving together as a married couple.

We all headed over to the tidied up, yet incomplete mission house for a short reception. Several ladies had worked hard to prepare a lovely spread of all kinds of special Haitian food. The bride and groom didn't stay long, but got their food in a take-out box and headed to their new home to enjoy it together.

It sounds as though they've really enjoyed their first week together.  They were gifted with a two night stay at Kaliko, the local beach resort. They returned to work shortly thereafter. Before the wedding, Helene desired to keep her job at the nearby orphanage, knowing she really enjoyed working there. It only took a few days, though, before she was ready to "stay home and take care of her husband" in her words.

Overall, it was a blessing of a day. We are pleased to see them take their commitment to each other seriously and desire to honor God with their lives. Since their home is the next one over from the mission house, we look forward to being able to spend even more time with them soon.

Violence and Political Unrest

Some of our previous posts have shared a little bit about the road blocks that occur on a somewhat regular basis in and around our area.  Last week, the chaos began with more fervor than anything we've yet seen around here. There's a lot of political unrest over the district that is Arcahaie. From what we hear, the federal government has proposed a notion to take away Arcahaie's title as a district (or whatever the correct translation is) because there can only be so many of these districts throughout the country and they would like to create a new one up north. This would also mean a loss of all of the little tax money they receive to function.

To put it lightly, people are pretty upset about it. We have seen some peaceful protests, but there is always the group that likes to take the violent approach.  After the first bizarre couple of days of numerous vehicles and tires sent up in flames, guns fired, and "the blacktop" backed up for miles, law enforcement stepped in.  The police and UN troops are both out in full force along the main road.  Armored vehicles with fully-automatic machine guns, helicopters overhead, and guns in every hand are on standby in order to prevent the chaos from continuing. They have announced that they're not afraid to shoot anyone who gets out of line.

Schools are not in session, stores are closed, and the usually very busy streets are mostly vacant near and on the blacktop. All of this prevention has caused the gangs to be upset about their inability to wreak havoc, so they said, "tomorrow, we'll call on the voodoo powers." Thankfully, we heard or saw nothing of anything really coming of it. For now, on Friday, people are still very cautious, but starting to ease back out toward the blacktop. We are prayerful that no unprepared lives will be lost by all of this, and that the whole ordeal can be resolved peaceably.

Troops and police guard a protest.

A burnt flat-bed truck, still loaded with bags of concrete that never made it to the job-site.

What's left of the dozens of tires that were burnt in the streets. The police have done a lot to keep things cleaned up, which helps keep a sense of peace and tells the trouble-makers they aren't accomplishing anything.

Some Trust in Chariots, and Some in Horses:

For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me.

This past week, Barry has seen more violence and hatred than ever before.  A few days ago, he received word that our dear friend, Ramou (lovingly also known as Ramos) was being held captive by Odmar and his friends. Ramos was trapped inside his vehicle while it was violently rocked and shaken, machetes were brandished, and angry men threatened his life. When Barry heard the message, he quickly got in his truck to head the scene. As he made his way down the road, he started passing more of his friends, each running full sprint toward the same scene, with machetes in hand.  These men, who have been working on the mission house, are from the mountain. There, the people uphold their own law. If someone does wrong, his life is taken by the people's own system of "justice." Now they are all ready to enforce it here in Arcahaie, on behalf of our own Haitian friends.  One by one, they jumped into the back of the truck as Barry rushed to find Ramos. When they arrived, a war broke out.   Hand to hand battle raged with machetes, rocks, or any other nearby weapon. Barry did all he could to try to get it to stop. Odmar, the man leading the whole insurrection, fled for his life, and the fight eventually dissolved without loss of life.

The battle, like most, is all about money. Years ago a few brothers purchased the land where the mission home is now being built from a middle aged man. That man took the money gladly and went on with life. Some time later, the man's nephew came around raising a stir, claiming the land to be his.  After months of digging and investigating, we discovered that Odmar, the nephew, would have had some rights to the land through an inheritance, but because he was in prison at the time of the sale, he was excluded from the money distribution.  Over time, he's done all he can think of to make up for the money he was shorted by his uncle. The land used to be a full field of plantains. Thousands of dollars worth of plantains were stolen from the land. Before we started building, the whole issue was settled in court, and Odmar was paid his share of the inheritance.

But it's not enough.  The heart that seeks after wealth will never be satisfied.  He has threatened the lives of our friend Merelin, whose name is on the land.  The men working on the mission home, who are many of Merelin's family and friends, have all taken to sleeping locked up together in the same house.  There is a price on Odmar's head, and these mountain men, without Christ, will not let go until they feel justice has been served. Odmar announces almost daily that he plans to come with guns.  Thursday night, he made claim that Ramos has less than a week to live. Knowing the reality of the situation and the hearts of wicked men, Ramos asked Barry to take care of his bride-to-be, with only a few weeks left until his wedding day.

Meanwhile, the work has to continue on the house. If Barry would decide to call it off because of the whole mess, it would only aggravate the situation even more. What little reserve the men have now would be gone. If they aren't working, they aren't making money, and Odmar would surely be killed.

Our prayer through this awful, messy situation is that God's mighty power can be revealed.  We desire that others can see, through a few believers, that we do not want to fight.

But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle..."

We desire that all of the men involved may see Christ shine through in this.  Jesus said, "do violence to no man," and we pray that in refraining from the strife and bitterness that is so welled up, they will see something different in us.   We pray that God can be glorified as this is all somehow, someway resolved once and for all.

Eight Things We're Thankful For

In no particular order, a glimpse at a few recent scenes. 

The "backyard" of the mission home

8. The view of God's creation.  Haiti is a country where beauty collides with garbage.

Beautiful farmland meets rolling mountains and the bluest skies one can imagine, but

the cities are smoggy, dirty, and polluted. The ocean surrounding the island nation is the most inviting crystal blue, until a heavy rain washes trash and waste by the trainload out of the riverbeds and into the Caribbean. When we see God's splendor in the physical features of the landscape clash with the rubbish strewn about, it speaks to me about the people of Haiti as well.  Although Haiti has become a place that's drowning in corruption, false religion, lying, and indecency, we can remember that every person here was created by the same God who created the majestic landscape.  He created them with a desire to see them turn to Him and be redeemed from their sinful, polluted state.  

7. Visitors From Home.  After two months back in Haiti following furlough, it was a blessing to have others here to see what's been happening. They were updated on everything from the equipment, to the mission-house project, to the school in the mountain, to the lives of various individuals that have been in contact over the years.

Bobcat being repaired under plenty of supervision

School children in the mountain

6. Churches to Preach in. The time has not yet been appointed to build a church facility we can call home, but thankfully there has been somewhere to go to church nearly every Sunday since we've lived in Haiti, where Barry has the blessed opportunity to share his heavy burden with many souls.

5. A Translator to Help Preach the Message. Josnel has been doing a fine job translating for Barry on Sundays and as needed. This particular Sunday, pictured, something came up and he was late for church. It was a reminder, after being a little shook up, that the message can't go out without an interpreter!

Counseling with two young ladies after the service

4.  Large, eight-legged visitors don't make it inside often.  There's no doubt that spiders are everywhere in Haiti. Some of them are big enough to make a grown-up squeal, but relatively harmless. Others are small, discreet, and dangerous enough to bring great harm, or worst case, death, to a small child.  God has been faithful in this area in keeping our children protected from yet one more potential hazard, building our faith and trust in Him.

3. Work Ethic.  There seems to be a growing number of able-bodied young men who have become afraid to perform any manual labor. Many of them have had everything handed to them and have no idea what it means to work.  "Give me one dollar" and "I am hungry" are the English phrases that everybody in Haiti seem to know. However, there are some who are not afraid to do whatever it takes to earn a day's wages. They'll eagerly push up their sleeves and dig in until they're exhausted. These are the ones who continue finding work and  putting food on the table.

2. The progress on the mission house. The result of hard work and close supervision is the future home going up at an exceptional rate.  

1. God's Promises.  So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereunto I sent it. Isaiah 55:11

With fervent, righteous prayer and the zeal to continue preaching there will be revival here!

Mission House Going up

The mission house building project is well underway, as two dozen or so local men have been happily employed over the last several weeks.  The property that was purchased years ago is now realizing its purpose, and will, Lord willing be the location of a mission home and church, with room for future growth to focus on specific needs. It's been interesting to watch it all coming together. Barry's days are mostly spent being "boss" alongside Merlin, while still having Bible studies and preaching as time permits.

A larger building project like this is another excellent opportunity to financially help many families at the same time through the long term work provided. They are learning about consistent work ethic, that it's not just what you do when the boss is looking. They are learning about dependability, efficiency,  how to build things plumb and square, and honesty. Most importantly, they are being exposed to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, both in hearing and seeing. 

The house is designed to be home for a mission family, with plenty of space for "teams" to come and have a place to stay while they work and minister in Haiti. The picture above shows a small concrete pad in front of the future garage, attached to the house. . What a blessing it will be to have a place to fix and maintain vehicles! 

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When the concrete for the slab of the main house was poured, it was a very busy, fast paced day, with nearly 30 people working together for hours and hours in the heat of the day. Typically, concrete is mixed on the ground with a shovel, then hauled with a five-gallon bucket to the prepared area.  Since this was a fairly large pad of concrete to pour, a cement mixer was rented for the day, and it still took many hands to work efficiently.  Some carried water from the nearby canal, some fed cement into the mixer, and several formed a line from the mixing area to the place that was being poured.  They would  fill a bucket, then quickly pass it down the line until the last man received it and poured it into place. They all worked hard for their wages that day!

Merlin supervises while the first row of block is laid for interior walls.

Sunday mornings, thankfully, are still "preaching days."   We have been back in Oscar's church, down the road, as well as a newly formed church in the area. One well-loved pastor was fired from his position because of allowing guest speakers to preach "things the church doesn't agree with," namely, preaching against sin. Several people left the church with the pastor, and they meet regularly in a quaint little structure in the pastor's front yard. They don't seem to mind that they left one of the "fancy" churches in the area, and now come to worship with only tarps overhead and palm leaves for walls.  The dirt floor doesn't matter either when, perhaps, they are seeking after the truth. 

We are rejoicing again for God's protection, and thankful for all the prayers daily lifted up for Barry's safety! Last Monday, a tap-tap (one of the colorful old pick-ups all over the roads that are used for taxis) made a sudden left turn with no turn signal, just as Barry was approaching on a motor bike. He reacted quickly enough to lock up the breaks and lay the bike down right before impact, and Barry skidded down the road apart from the bike. He walked away with some painful road burns, a sprained ankle, and some aches and pains in other areas, but relatively unharmed. Many of our friends and neighbors came to check on him at home as word spread about the accident. It was a scenario that was inches away from being much, much worse. God is always in control, even on a crazy, dangerous road like "the blacktop." 

We can't thank everyone enough for the prayers and support while the work continues here! 

New faces peeking in from the front steps of our current home.