Haiti Update

1. I am still here in CA waiting to hear when I can go to Haiti.
2. Good things are happening...Read below and join me in Praising God!
Brian And Sarah's Update
Missionary Aviation Fellowship: Call to Prayer and Fasting

Great Info On Haiti past Present and Future: Haiti's Hour This is a webinar link, it is a bit long, but worth watching and listening to for a better understanding of Haiti's Situation. Provided by World Relief

3. In light of the updates I am going to be fasting on Friday, join me in praying that God would indeed Save the nation of Haiti, and that it would have it's foundation built on Him.

Join me in Praying through this Passage with Haiti in mind:

Proverbs 3 (New International Version)


Further Benefits of Wisdom
1 My son, do not forget my teaching,
but keep my commands in your heart,

2 for they will prolong your life many years
and bring you prosperity.

3 Let love and faithfulness never leave you;
bind them around your neck,
write them on the tablet of your heart.

4 Then you will win favor and a good name
in the sight of God and man.

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;

6 in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight. [a]

7 Do not be wise in your own eyes;
fear the LORD and shun evil.

8 This will bring health to your body
and nourishment to your bones.

9 Honor the LORD with your wealth,
with the firstfruits of all your crops;

10 then your barns will be filled to overflowing,
and your vats will brim over with new wine.

11 My son, do not despise the LORD's discipline
and do not resent his rebuke,

12 because the LORD disciplines those he loves,
as a father [b] the son he delights in.

13 Blessed is the man who finds wisdom,
the man who gains understanding,

14 for she is more profitable than silver
and yields better returns than gold.

15 She is more precious than rubies;
nothing you desire can compare with her.

16 Long life is in her right hand;
in her left hand are riches and honor.

17 Her ways are pleasant ways,
and all her paths are peace.

18 She is a tree of life to those who embrace her;
those who lay hold of her will be blessed.

19 By wisdom the LORD laid the earth's foundations,
by understanding he set the heavens in place;

20 by his knowledge the deeps were divided,
and the clouds let drop the dew.

21 My son, preserve sound judgment and discernment,
do not let them out of your sight;

22 they will be life for you,
an ornament to grace your neck.

23 Then you will go on your way in safety,
and your foot will not stumble;

24 when you lie down, you will not be afraid;
when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.

25 Have no fear of sudden disaster
or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked,

26 for the LORD will be your confidence
and will keep your foot from being snared.

27 Do not withhold good from those who deserve it,
when it is in your power to act.

28 Do not say to your neighbor,
"Come back later; I'll give it tomorrow"—
when you now have it with you.

29 Do not plot harm against your neighbor,
who lives trustfully near you.

30 Do not accuse a man for no reason—
when he has done you no harm.

31 Do not envy a violent man
or choose any of his ways,

32 for the LORD detests a perverse man
but takes the upright into his confidence.

33 The LORD's curse is on the house of the wicked,
but he blesses the home of the righteous.

34 He mocks proud mockers
but gives grace to the humble.

35 The wise inherit honor,
but fools he holds up to shame.

Footnotes:

1. Proverbs 3:6 Or will direct your paths
2. Proverbs 3:12 Hebrew; Septuagint / and he punishes

New International Version (NIV)

Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica

Holding Pattern

First off thank you for all your kind words, your prayers and your support!

I wanted to let you know that as of yesterday (meaning could change at any moment) I am in a holding pattern for Haiti. I spoke with some of the men in charge and they felt that at this point Haiti is too unstable/unsafe and they would like to hold off in sending me.

So I am waiting.

When I signed up to go I was willing but not longing to go. In the past week I have developed a heart for Haiti, and for the people there, and I can honestly say I long to be there helping as soon as can.

I will keep you posted.

Please continue to pray for those serving there, and for the people of Haiti who for so long have lived in the midst of death and fear. Pray with me that God will use the people who are left and the people on the ground to bring peace, and life to the nation of Haiti! That He will not only meet their needs but will raise them up out of the rubble and plant them on a firm foundation!

I want to be sure you see positive images coming out of Haiti not just the stories the news chooses to focus on. Here are some pictures from last Sunday morning in Haiti, where hundreds of Haitians gathered together in a tent to worship God!



The images are of my team leader Sarah and some local people, whose names I do not know. Please pray for more of these kind of situations and reports flowing out of Haiti!

"Are you excited? Are you Ready?"

These are the two most popular responses of friends when I tell them I am heading to Haiti. Excited is not the right word, and I am having a difficult time finding one that sums up the energy about me when I think of going to Haiti. I am not scared. And as surprised about that you, but I can honestly say I have an indescribable sense of calm. Peace, maybe, but peace implies that I am not bothered,and I am. I am saddened by my lack of knowledge about Haiti prior to this Earthquake, disturbed by the ongoing decay in the country and lives of the people who call it home. At the same time calm, because I fully see hope in the person of Jesus Christ and have joy in the fact that in some small way I will get to minister to the needs of the people in a country that to be honest I still know very little about.

Which leads me to the question of readiness. How can one ever be ready for this? I am more prepared than I was last year, even more than last week ore yesterday. I have been through training with ReachGlobal, I have worked a week here and there at the Dream Center, never imagining that I would need that experience as much as I am drawing on it now. I got my shots, I am getting Malaria meds in my system. I am reading Mountains Beyond Mountains, watching the news old and new on Haiti, and I am collecting my supplies, but no I am not ready.

I doubt I will be ready. But I am not sure that it matters...if I failed to go because of my lack of preparedness I would miss out on having God meet me in my weaknesses. I know I am going to need God like never before, and I am ready for him to meet me in Haiti in ways I cannot prepare for.

God and I met this morning when he woke me up so we could have an early morning chat. He kindly reminded me of the call He has placed on my life. A call that fits for Rome, fit for Youth Ministry, Children's Ministry and fits for Haiti. Jeremiah 1 is God calling Jeremiah to be a prophet to the nations. It is also how God called me into an awareness of who He created me to be. It was what I needed to hear this morning a reminder of God's hand that knit me together, His hand that touched my lips and placed His words in my mouth, His hand that is holding me now and His hand that will rescue me in my time of need.

So, yes I am excited to see how the life God has created me for continues to unfold as I follow His prompting. And yes, I am ready to know God in new ways as I encounter Him in the lives of His children in Haiti and as I struggle to understand Him in midst of a disaster so devastating.

BIG NEWS Going to Serve in Haiti

I have been asked and approved to head to Haiti to join the Crisis Response hand of TouchGlobal and ReachGlobal from February 9th through the first week of March to serve with Brian and Sarah and other Reach Global missionaries. It looks like right now I will be working to set up two houses that will be used to house all the future teams of relief workers. I will also be working on building and maintaining relationships with all of the new organizations we will be partnering with to be the most effective in helping the people of Haiti.

Many of you are giving to my financial support for Rome, and I still need you to keep doing that, and I will be continuing work on raising the remainder of my support. I am pleased to point out that I am now at 50% of my monthly support for Rome up 8% from last week. It seems that God is honoring my obedience to go wherever He leads and new supporters began rolling in as soon as I said I was willing to go.

If you would like to Give a special gift towards the ministry I will be doing in Haiti, I do need money for airfare, and to get some Haiti appropriate clothing and supplies as well as all the shots and travel insurance that I need. Please let me know if you would like to give in that way and I will let you know how to do that.

If you cannot give above and beyond what you are already giving but would like to be involved I would REALLY Value your prayers. Pray that God would be preparing my heart and mind for this time, that I would be a blessing to all that I work with and for. And of course Pray for the people of Haiti. I am also in need of some supplies like:

good boots (size 9)
water purifier for a water bottle
First Aid kit
Bug Net
Batteries
High Energy Snacks

I will let you know of other needs.

Pray Pray Pray

Thanks

Where He Leads I Will Follow

Thank you for all of your prayers for me and my team! Here is the latest from Brian and Sarah...
Update on Brian and Sarah

Also it is looking more likely that I too will be heading to Haiti to work with the team there. I am still waiting to hear the details and get the final approval, but I would greatly appreciate you joining with me in prayer about this.

For more on what we are doing in Haiti check out the EFCA Crisis Response Blog

Safely landed

Brian and Sarah made it safely to the Dominican Republic, thank you for your prayers! They are still trying to get in touch with the team they are connecting with.

Willingness

Hello there friends, I wanted to let you know that Brian and Sarah my team leaders in Rome are currently heading to Haiti in response to a call put out by ReachGlobal/TouchGlobal for help...

This is the Email Brian and Sarah sent out:

Dear praying friends,

On Sunday morning, as Sarah and I were getting ready to go to our Italian church service, we received an e-mail from the ReachGlobal area director in Latin America. They were looking for French-speakers to go to Haiti to help with relief work. We sat down to breakfast and began considering the possibility. By the time we left the church service we had our answer. Pastor Ivano preached on Mark 14:1-9 about the woman who annointed Jesus with the expensive perfume. He pointed out that if she spoke any words, that is not what is recorded in the story. Her actions were what mattered in this case. He called the congregation to seize the opportunities that are before us. It is also interesting to note that he advises us in the same passage that we will always have the opportunity to reach out to those in need. We went home and bought plane tickets.

We ask for you to pray for our time in Haiti and for the tremendous needs there. We know almost nothing about the details of what we will be doing and where. We fly through Philadelphia to the Dominican Republic on Wednesday, January 27th. From there we may help the Vision of Hope Ministries bring a vehicle from the DR to Haiti. Here is their website: http://www.vohmhaiti.com/ . You can find out more about helping by clicking on that link. We also recommend you check out Touch Global's site:here We may be organizing other teams coming to help. Pray for direction of every kind for us, from touchdown in Santo Domingo. We want to be poured out like precious nard.

We expect to be in Haiti for the whole month of February. We have a flight schedule back to Rome on February 28th. Pray and give.

I too have been feeling God asking me to be willing to go to Haiti, since I am here waiting to go to Rome. I do not speak French and have less Cross Cultural Experience than Brian and Sarah, so I was not sure I could be an asset to the work there. After talking to God about it, I felt the need to let ReachGlobal know that I am willing should they choose to use me.

I got the go ahead from Mike Davis to let the guys in charge of our effort there know I have his approval to come, I am now waiting to hear back about whether or not they would like me to come.

Here are some thoughts that I would like to share with you in regards to all of this:

1. God's timing and provision is just what we need when we need it...meaning had I arrived in Rome when I wanted last month Brian and Sarah may not have felt the freedom to go and help in Haiti for a month.

2. When I went through my hiring process with ReachGlobal there was a point during the week long interview that I came to the realization that I needed to be willing to go wherever God needed me. Rome, yes. Places less in my comfort zone, yes...I want that willingness to be used by God and follow His prompting to always remain more important than my time schedule or idea of my future.

3. If they decide they need me in Haiti, I will have a great opportunity to serve along side my Team Leaders, to get to know them better, and perhaps be prepared for some future ministry that God has for us back in Rome.

4. When I was a Youth Pastor I was always telling my students about living the life God has for you, putting His will first. If I do not live out that truth I have no business asking them too.

So, I invite you to join me in prayer for Brian and Sarah, for the people already serving in Haiti and of course for the people of Haiti. I also ask that you continue to lift me up to God, that I might have wisdom and a continued willingness to Go wherever He desires, whenever He desires.