Friday, March 14, 2014

Last day of missions - Barbancourt

Today was a joyous day of community celebration with our new friends at Barbancourt Baptist church. We had a big meal planned and provided all the supplies and clean water for the women to prepare. We arrived to see the entire church preparing and cooking for the last day. Some of our men helped a man cutting logs move a large tree trunk to his prep area. That saved him the labor of dragging that over the rocky ground in the heat of the day. 

I found Pastor Louissant, who was fluttering around with his big smile and fast hands making sure everyone had a job or was happy. I pulled him aside and asked if I could pray for him in some way. It took a few minutes for us to understand- he speaks some English and my Creole hasn't progressed too far this week. I think I surprised him by praying with him immediately for his church, his orphanage, his family and for his strength as a pastor. I know I have a new friend for life in Pastor Lousisant. 

After a few songs lead by Pastor Dorcean- including our new favorite "Deep Down Inside" we shifted to our final Bible story on Faith and Forgiveness using the story of Zaccheus from Luke 19. It was an uplifting story of taking the first step of Faith and the power of Jesus' transformation through forgiveness! We made sure we wanted anyone without Jesus to discuss with Pastor or any of before we left. Our small groups were the most passionate yet! Multiple stories of hurt and struggle to forgive. We heard so many sad stories and prayed for the strength that would be required to soften hearts and minds. I can say that was our best small group time of the week. 

Next we sang another song and prayed for our meal. What a meal! We passed out about 70 trays of black beans, rice and potatoes to those gathered inside the church and then we served our team and translators. All smiles and full bellies with plenty to share afterwards. 

We look forward to returning to Barbancourt again one day in the future to see our brothers and sisters. They will never know how they ministered to us this week. While we are blessed with material possessions in America- you have to wonder if what we call "blessings" are really what keeps us apart from knowing God better. I think the Haitians we met this week have so much less to compete against God's worship and I am humbled and inspired by their simple lives.  I encourage you to take another look through Matthew 25 as Pastor Bill encouraged us to do last night. The least of these is the most important. Merci, Haiti





Day #3

Day 3

Hot and humid- I think most of us had the worst night of sleep so far. 

Kendall went to the mission point with us today- a smaller crowd today because it was market day. We expect a bigger crowd tomorrow for the community meal. 

Jake and Shawna led the Bible teaching reinforcing Faith. Good small group time today with good examples from our small groups. 



We reviewed Malaria and Dental Hygiene. Used an Evangicube to talk about HIV and AIDS- difficult topic- something lost in language and culture. We made it through a few Q&A- not too far from typical  teenager questions about the same subject in America. 

After our craft- we used a Polaroid to take pictures of the adults and helped them put into frames we made. That was a BIG deal for these folks - they ate it up!

For lunch we went to Stopover cafe in the Montruis village along Route #1. We had BBQ chicken with fries and fried plantain. The picklese- spicy salad was EXTRA hot here. We all enjoyed ice cream and soft drinks from the store right next to Stopover restaurant. The same owner so they make you buy drinks at the store. We even saw a vendor selling shell necklaces wearing a TL Hanna t-shirt (shoutout to Anderson, SC!!!). 

The quick afternoon was spent preparing for the big Alex's House 4th Birthday celebration. Special songs from the children and staff- Pastor Dorcean can sing like few others. We also had a great primer in the history of the organization and history. Alex died in the earthquake of 2010- but, not before sharing his vision of the organization that is here today. Incredible vision for such a young man. A traditional Haitian meal and lots of fellowship. We welcomed many of the area pastors from the mission points - including Pastor Louissaint and his sweet wife- she once attended a meeting with her husband for Alex's House and then went home that night and had a baby. We met that little baby last night too. Great time with a slide show of pictures and introductions of all the precious children at Alex's House today. A HUGE birthday cake was shared by all. 

4th birthday for Alex's House


We ended the night with a long walk down to the beach club on a moon-lit road to use wifi and check-in. 

Our last day at the Barbancourt mission is tomorrow- looking forward to the BIG meal- we paid for the prep food, water and are supplying everything required. 

More to come!

Freedom Fellowship mission team

Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Day #1

Monday 3/10/14
Today was our first day of missions at Barbancourt Baptist church in the village/neighborhood of Arcahaie. The term "church" is a very loose description. A partial tin roof with tarps flapping over a hodgepodge of cinder blocks and pieces of what looks like driftwood strapped together is the structure. During the week, this also serves as the school for the orphanage there too (not the same as Alex'a House) so we are meeting and teaching in another section near the sleeping quarters for the orphanage. It's also the "bathroom" for the area too - well, really anything or any place can serve as a bathroom here. It's hard to describe the smells and sounds, but if you visited or lived on a farm, that's a good starting point. 

To get to the mission point, we drive about 5-7 miles back towards Port-au-Prince on the only main paved road in Haiti - National Route #1. Like almost everyone north of PAP, the village of Arcahaie is down a rocky, bumpy dirt road somewhat perpendicular to Route #1. You pass huts, shacks, partially-constructed homes and structures of pure white cement plaster often hidden behind banana trees and overhanging mango and grapefruit trees. This is a densely populated road. Motorcycles and other trucks compete for space on the cramped dirt road. We are met with stares and occasional smiles and a wave.

On the way to the mission point, we stopped for water- actually about 100 sealed squares of plastic containing clean water- everyone just bites off a corner and squirts the source of life. We also visited the local "supermarket" to buy crackers for snacks at the mission point. Lots of beer and liquor on sale with low lighting and minimal refrigeration in effect. 
Saw rum spelled "rhum", egg nog and red bull too. We even found the namesake liquor of our mission point - Barbancourt is a distillery. Wow. 

Day #1 was a slow start- not everyone understands or knows about Daylight Savings Time. We planned to start at 10am but the children from the orphanage swarmed us and a few adults straggled in. We finally got the children to head back to school - they were on break just as we showed up. We spoke with Pastor Louissaint and his wife and the others who lead worship there on Sunday. He was very excited and beaming happiness. We got a crowd of 10 -12 and sat under the tarp in a corridor between dorms, probably an uneven 12 feet wide by 25 feet. We started with a praise song in Creole- the Americans got excited when they got to a simple "aaa" "ahh ahh ahh" sounding section we could echo. Smiles all around. 

After that song, more adults trickled in. We lead our first Bible teaching on Faith talking about John the Baptist asking from prison if Jesus was really the Messiah and Jesus answering with performing of miracles and healing. Pastor Dorcean from Alex's House served as my Creole translator and Tricia read the scripture. I think we connected!

We then formed small groups using colored pieces of paper as group identifiers. We had more adults join us by that point- I think we had at least 45 total at some point. We tried to do a name game and favor color exercise as an icebreaker, but our group struggled mightily with instructions- most likely a translation issue. But, we made it around the "circle" and then we spent about 20 minutes discussing faith and our group did open up and tell some stories about true faith and leaning on God. Good stuff. 

We had a snack break of water and crackers and then another praise song lead by the deep bass voice of Pastor Dorcean. 

Then, Amy and Shawna used a prop called an Evangicube with simple pictures on a cube with moving sections to teach about malaria. I personally saw sick and invalid women on cots in the village and it was so awkward talking to them about illness and treatment. Voodoo and evil spirit cleansing are still deeply engrained here. They laughed about having mosquito nets ( most likely sold on the market if ones ever show up) or having spray. It can be frustratingly slow here in Haiti. 

We then changed course, set up some makeshift tables and had one of the best parts of the day- a simple craft of putting stickers on a foam cross that they could keep or give as a gift - we made a very strong point of that- don't sell it, keep it as a Bible bookmark ( not a lot of Creole Bibles) or hang on your wall. 

We left the church and headed back to the Alex's House complex for lunch rest and planning. We spent the afternoon hours playing with the wonderful children at Alex's House orpahange- the highlight of the day for us. Excellent Creole food of rice and beans with an amazing red sauce for dinner. 

That's a basic idea of how are 4 days of missions with flow with a rotating crew for Bible story and Health lessons. We have a different craft each day and will end the week on Thursday by paying for a large community meal with the church. 

We have been joined by our new friend- Lincoln, a teenager from Tennesee, who met us in the airport on Saturday. He wants to be a nurse and a missionary and this is his 4th time to Haiti. He is also campaigning hard to be an intern here at Alex's House when he graduates high school this year. He has been a joy to be around - he loves these people and especially the kids- and he has a deep spiritual focus- especially for a man of 17 years. Thank you, God for our new friends in Haiti and around this small world. More later!

Freedom Fellowship mission team

Day #2


Pastor Louisant of Barbancourt Baptist




Our gift from the church - breadfruit and fresh coconuts


Our 2nd day of missions was a true success. God nearly doubled the number of Haitian adults coming to hear the Word and to sing praises. 

We stopped for another bag of water on the way to Arcahaie - about $2 with a 20 GDS bill in change. Goudes is the currency here, but dollars are gladly accepted. 

We got to the site and it was decided that we would use the church sanctuary vs the small dormitory corridor. We had to help the older kids and teacher move the classroom outside - including chalkboard- that disturbed us a little. The Haitians thought little of that inconvenience. I did see the pastor - Louissant slip some coins to the teacher for the hassle. Amy checked on a sick woman near the church and confirmed she was taking antibiotics for her cough and fever. She's been on a cot outside a home all week. 

We asked for more English in the songs today and Pastor Dorcean helped us out with "Lord, I Lift Your Name on High" and we wrapped up with a sweet "Jesus Loves Me" - I spotted a young girl in the courtyard outside the church singing along too. 

Amy and Ashley spook on Forgiveness - using Peter asking Jesus how many times he should forgive someone as the main Bible reference. Our small groups were much more interactive with stories of struggles and wrongs in relationships. 

Our small group time tends to be the "it's time to get to the meeting time" and our groups swelled again during this time. We handed out 63 packs of crackers and water during snack- none of the teams or Pastors, translators took a pack. That's a great turnout. 

After snack, we had another short time of worship lead by Jimmy and Pastor Dorcean. 

Amy and Shawna revisited the malaria lesson from Monday with a quick Q&A time. Then Stan, Jason and Lincoln talked about dental hygiene using a large jaw and toothbrush to talk about proper dental care. I think the dental floss was a novel concept based on facial expressions. 

After the dental hygiene class, we shifted to craft time and the ladies showed the groups how to make some cloth and bead brackets. That was a BIG hit. 
As the Hatitans left for the day, we handed out 75 bags that contained a toothbrush, sample toothpaste and a dental floss pack. We also have more replacements for the Alex's House team to use later in reinforcement. 

The church blessed us with some breadfruit (starch) and fresh coconut at the end of the day before we departed back to Alex's House. Our cool turned those into part of our supper meal. Breadfruit fried is most excellent with some ketchup and New Orleans cooks would be jealous of the coconut tart she prepared (with powdered sugar on top, of course) as dessert. The lasagna she made was almost, almost as good as your Mother's recipe. 8-)

The afternoon was spent doing yard work and projects around the York House guesthouse complex- Stan helped Jean Claude move landscaping rock and then he helped Jason/Jake/ Mark work on doors and a new gate on the stairs to the dining area to keep Rocky and Pepe out. The dogs were not thrilled with the new gate. 

The evening was spent getting to know Kendall- the missions coordinator for Alex's House. She retuned to Haiti yesterday after a quick trip home to Arkansas for a family funeral. We look forward to Kendall's direction and guidance tomorrow as we head back for Day #3. We also found out that we will be joining a BIG 4th anniversary celebration tomorrow for Alex's House as an organization in Haiti. 

Sunday, March 9, 2014

Sunday worship in Haiti




Greetings from Haiti!

We made it to the orphanage about sunset last night. 

That ride from Port-au-Prince to Kalico was one we will never forget! A real eye-opener to the human conditions here. 

Our first full day in Haiti included worship at our mission point - Barbancourt Baptist near the orphanage. We spent the rest of day planning for the week of service at the same mission point. We took a walk down to the beach with the orphanage kids- beautiful BLUE water. Lots of waves today. We collected shells and played with the kids. It's been warm (90s) and humid. The sea breeze has been welcomed. We are now using the wifi at one of the few places in the area that has a connection or even lights/power. So, more as soon as we can. Everyone is ready to start our work and teaching tomorrow. Thank you for prayers and support as always!

Freedom Fellowship team