The picture above is of the sign that is on the side of all the AIM relief vehicles in Haiti. It states our name and says "Mercy in Motion." Pretty straight forward wouldn't you say? I thought so too, until I was in Haiti several weeks ago. I was standing next to our van one day and a Haitian man pointed at me and said in creole "Mercy Man". I was good with that, because I've been called worse and I kind of liked the thought. The very next day, I was on the back of one of our pickup trucks and as we stopped for traffic, an older Haitian woman starting speaking to me in Creole. One of our translators, seeing my confused expression, explained that she wanted to know if I was with the feet people. I realized she was seeing the above sign, so I nodded and said,"Yes, I am with the feet people". She smiled and said "Thank you, thank you!"
That AIM logo in Haiti is a very good thing. They may not get the whole Adventures in Missions thing (much to the chagrin of our marketing people) but where that sign shows up there is hope. There are people to pray with them, and to listen and care. There is evidence, in a practical way, that they are not forgotten. That sign says to them tomorrow does not have to be like today. God's love rides behind that sign.
All this got me to thinking. Back here at home we all wear a sign also. That sign says "Christian". When our sign shows up here, what do people point and say? Funny, I lived a life time here, but I'm more confident in how I'm viewed in Haiti. How about you?
I am writing this today from Miami, as I wait to board a plane for Haiti. I will once again be one of the "Feet People."
We arrived in Haiti just after the earthquake and asked the question, "How do we help?" The answer was painfully clear in the early days that these people were in desperate need of water, medical supplies, doctors, nurses, and food. In the process of helping to meet these needs we learned that the most effective way to deliver the aid was through the established Haitian church. The church had the community's trust and knowledge of the need.
As time passed, it became clear that we needed to add tarps, tents, and cots to our needs assessment, as tent cities became home to the displaced. Again the Haitian church is who we turned to. It became clear to us that the best way to help Haiti was to help the Haitian church get back on its feet. This is how our church to church partnerships were born. We began to connect Haitian churches individually to American churches with a heart for Haiti.
The problem is, the job of restoration for Haiti is so enormous that it is hard to see which way is up. We, at AIM, believe that part of the answer is micro economics. It's part of the ancient remedy "Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day; teach a man to fish he will eat for a lifetime." Seth Barnes has a saying, "To be successful, we need to skate to the puck." Not where the puck is now, but to where it will be. We believe that the puck is headed to a place where grants will be replaced with loans. Haitian church members, who were successful business men and women before the earthquake, can get loans to start businesses to support themselves and create jobs.
To meet that need, AIM is setting up the framework for a loan program for Haiti. It will become part of the church to church program. In Haiti the need is so overwhelming that the fear is that organizations will give up in frustration and walk away. We have decided to skate to the puck instead.
We cannot do everything, but we can all do something.
I want to share with you some moments from my time here.
Today, I was in a room for a meeting between Pastor Ed Noble from Journey church in San Diego, and a Haitian pastor he was talking to about a church to church partnership to help them. As I was sitting there and they were sharing, the Spirit entered that room so thick. For no reason, I had tears running down my face and Ed got choked up also. At that moment the partnership was sealed. The pastors moved from get to know you better, to how do we help each other. A little piece of Haiti will get brighter and I believe the Spirit showed up to approve.
Tonight some of us were on the roof of the base looking out over Port-Au-Prince harbor. Clouds were rolling over the mountains. I saw Kelsey who I hadn't seen since thur. She looked at me and said " Why do we ever go to the office" We had different but same experiences during the week and were sharing them. Not even half way through sharing we both had tears. Most awful conditions here you could ever imagine, but yet..........
We pulled into a diesel station in Carrefour on thus. and two Tap Taps pulled in full of passengers. Out of nowhere I heard my name called. The Tap Taps carried an AIM team. On board was a Lady named Angie Jeffers from a church that had donated a large circus type tent to a Haitian church in our program whose church fell. She was here with AIM to check on her churches donation. She started to tell me about her week and the service she attended under that tent and she had tears in her eyes.
three stories of tears and all tears of Joy. But just look anywhere here and it wouldn't seem possible. God has not forgotten Haiti. I talked to a girl tonight who came done on a trip with AIM last week for one week. She works in a medical office back home. When her group left she just stayed, staying again next week. I asked her why. She said I don't know.
Today began as we loaded two AIM trucks with 52lb. bags of rice and 104lb. bags of beans, and topped it off with water proof tarps to be delivered to a tent city associated with one of the pastors in our church to church program. We were just taking the loads to a staging point where they would be reloaded for delivery with a police escort by one of our teams. Since we did not have security for this first stage of the shipment we had people sitting on the supplies in the back of the trucks.
Our route took us through the market area of Port-Au-Prince, a very crowed , traffic congested area. On the other side was Marassa 14 and 9 two large tent cities side by side with over 5,000 living there. When we arrived we dropped off our team, and I moved to the back of the truck to help with security for the load, as we headed back to the staging area at Pastor Christians.
I was sitting next to Stephanie Pridgen in the back of the truck. I asked how she was doing and she said "Fine Now". Then she proceeded to tell me that when we came through the market area earlier, a man in his twenties had jumped her truck and grabbed her camera that was around her neck. Geftay, one of our Haitian staff, had to jump across the truck bed and hit the guy to make him let go. I was inside the lead truck, and had no idea it had happened. Then I realized that we were headed back now through that same market, in that same creeping traffic, carrying the one thing these people desperately need and trying to protect it for those that don't just need it but have to have it.
It was in the back of that truck, that I had one of those life moments. What in the world am I doing in the back of this truck, in the pouring rain, in Port-AU-Prince Haiti. My adrenalin was in overdrive, My fight or flight was engaged, and I realized that at that moment I felt fully alive. I was on a natural high. God had me exactly where he wanted me and he was putting on a show and I was just along to enjoy the ride, and I was enjoying it when everything around me and my circumstances said I shouldn't.
This morning we went to the Son of God orphanage. This is an orphanage AIM has been assisting since we discovered it two months ago. When we found it they had no beds for the 126 children they were caring for. They had only enough food for one small meal that day, and only the hope of food for the following day. AIM did an immediate food drop later that day and brought them mattresses that next week. We have stayed involved with them for two reasons. First, right now there is not one else. And Secondly, their Director is a real life hero. He is a trained physician and could live a much easier life, but he chooses to pour his life into these children.
The two story structure they call home is still standing but badly damaged. The building has been condemned but the children still live there because there is literally no other option. I can't describe how sweet and loving these children are. They reach out to you and love to play games. As the Director was sharing with us some of their stories I noticed a young woman with a new born. I went over and asked if the little girl was hers and she said no. Then to my fear and surprise she handed me this one month old to hold. As I held her she held my finger. Then the young woman asked if I would take her. Her real mother was living in a tent city where the temperature in the tents goes well over 100 degrees daily. No place for a new born. She brought her daughter to the orphanage because she had no other choices. A lot of things happen in Haiti for lack of choices. Imagine that Mother's pain.
If that wasn't enough emotion for one day, we went in the afternoon to visit a small tent city next to a church we assist. We had sent teams there in the past and also provided the tarps to protect their so called "tents". While there we heard some testimonies from some of the residents. Heart breaking. Seth asked the Pastor if anyone needed prayer to have them walk over to the church and we would pray for them. As they began to file in we realized there were more than we expected. Since the church was so hot we asked them if they wanted us to pray for them corporately or one at a time. They said one at a time. So the four of us stood at the front of that little church and prayed for every one. And they waited there turn in all that heat. We had an interperter so we asked what they wanted prayer for. The first lady I prayed for nearly wrecked me. She asked me to pray that she could stop crying all night every night since the quake.
When we left I was exhausted, hot, and feeling totally inadequate for the task. However I have a heavenly Father who loves these people and is more than adequate.
I have arrived safely in Port-Au-Prince Haiti.I have been here less than 12 hours so
far but in many ways I feel I have left the planet.
I have decided that the best way to share with you my day is
simply a stream of consciousness blog. So here are my random thoughts.
We arrived on a large American Airlines plane, seven rows
wide and almost full. As we approached the Island it was much more mountainous
than I expected.As we began to taxi
in I realized that the airport control tower had collapsed and been replaced by
a little 10' x 14' trailer on the ground.Very large plane being controlled by a very small trailer with no visibility.
We had no real problems clearing customs but as you leave
the airport you are faced with large Red secured gates to exit through. On the other
side of the gates is a mass of humanity six or eight rows deep pushed against
the fence.As we exited people
started to grab my bag and my first thought was that they wanted to take it ,
but then I realized they wanted to carry it for me in hopes of a tip. I was
advised by our people meeting us to not let go of the bag, period. After we
cleared the gate area, the crowed thinned. I was approached by an injured man
who was hungry. He asked if I could give him money.I gave him some money, and realized too late that I had made
a mistake.Immediately I had
women, children and other men following me asking me for money.Geftay, a great Haitian brother, I work
with here on church to church, came to me and said lets go, and never do that
again.
We piled into our waiting van and drove a ways toward
downtown Port-Au-Prince. We were headed to one of the few restaurants in the
city that our team feels is safe. They explained that the U.N officials staying
on the island eat there. The food they had on hand consisted of two choices ham and cheese sandwiches or chicken
spread sandwiches.Welcome to
Haiti!
After lunch we drove through downtown Port-Au-Prince.It is hard to describe a city of well
over a million people that just fell down but all the people that survived are
still there. I don't have words.The most pitiful sight I have ever seen.There were children begging for money against the van
windows as we stopped for traffic. There were Tent and tarp cities of thousands
everywhere. Imagine a city that size with no garbage pickup in over four
months.
We had a chance in the afternoon to check on one of our disciplining meetings
and on one of out
STM teams.
Tonight we were given briefings from the AIM Haiti staff.
Then we were joined by 8 Haitian pastors in our church to church program and 8
of our staff translators for dinner. Each of us ate with a Pastor and a translator and had a
chance to hear their stories.
I will sleep good tonight behind a security wall with security and 2 guard dogs. But what about the tens of thousands in these tent cities?
Sometimes you read something that really hits your spirit. I had that happen today. My son Evan wrote this and put it on his facebook page. As Christian men, we must be prepared to battle for the King.
I am primal. I am fervant. I will not be held down by the stereotypes this modern world has
fashioned for men. My heart cries out from the chasm, from depths I've long thought were lost. "Come at me!", I cry at the darkness. At least give me the chance to prove I am worthy- worthy to be called a man, a son of the King. Bring me a battle and I'll not let you down. Give me that chance, though all the world has left such things and succumbed to a somber dullness called 'proper'. I am wild, and cannot be tamed no matter how many chains you put on me. I beat my chest and lash out at the calm ones, the ones that gave up their instinctual rights and caved to political correctness. I will not be bought. I will not be told what I should or should not do- not any more. I am primal once again, the rescuer of those in distress- the hero of my own story. I am a servant to the Most High, and to the shadows I yell with the strength of all those men who went before me- for in those shadows lie the cunning heart takers. Though they may break me, I'll never bend for them- not in this life or the one to come. As I've said, I fight for the King- the One who made me primal. Evan Dawson
Haiti has an immediate need for food, water, medical supplies, and other essentials. AIM is actively involved in trying to meet that need. Our relief teams, plus our base Director and others from our base in the Dominican Republic, are daily assessing how we can help in the most effective way. Through all of this, we are mindful that in time the need for the basics will be met.
However, there will be another important need that will not be met, and that is the need for hope. Haiti has always been a country whose people have struggled to find hope. What they need now, and in the future, is a Savior. Only He can awaken in their spirits a hope for the future. Only He can help them come to terms with their loss. Only He can provide a future, not just for tomorrow, but for eternity.
With this in mind, AIM is not just sending relief teams and care givers, but we are assembling an intercessory prayer team that will leave soon for Haiti. They will begin to prepare the ground through prayer. Our prayer is for revival for Haiti. We pray that all those in need of hope will meet the One that offers eternal hope, love, peace and yes, even joy again.
Learn how you can help. http://adventuresinmissions.com/haiti
God bless Haiti.
Psalm 31:24
Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD.
Psalm 33:22
May your unfailing love rest upon us, O LORD, even as we put our hope in you.
Psalm 39:7
But now, Lord, what do I look for? My hope is in you.
Matthew 12:21
In his name the nations will put their hope."
There were 23 million marriages in America. 12 million ended in divorce. 80,000 were same sex marriages.
America's GDP grew 55% and remained the largest economy in the world. However, most of that growth came in the first half of the decade. Meanwhile, China's economy grew at over 300% and established itself as the 3rd largest economy in the world. (from #7 to #3)
America added over 6 trillion to our national debt. 11% of the entire debt is owned solely by China and Japan.
Gas prices doubled from $1.29 to $2.52, as supplies continued to dwindle.
800 million were born in the world.
7 million were infected with HIV.
60 million were killed by starvation, as 1.2 million Americans were killed by obesity.
570,000 were killed by natural diasters.
3.2 million were killed by wars and terrorists.
The number of internet users went from 350 million to 1.7 billion.
350 million now have facebook accounts and 11.5 million of them play WoW.
1,000,000,000,000 web pages have been created.
13 million Wikipedia articles have been written.
8 billion songs have been purchased and downloaded, but 160 billion were pirated.
Cell phone use increased dramatically from 1 out of 10 people in 1999 to 2 out of 3 in 2009.
The number 1 song in America today as I write this is Tik Tok by Ke$ha, a girl with a dollar sign in her name...how appropriate!
America needs to wake up. There are tears in the fabric of our society. Given our downward trajectory, imagine how this will read in 2019.
It will probably start something like... A once proud, Godly nation...
In 1926, Dr. James A. Francis wrote, "Here is a man who was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman. He grew up in another obscure village. He worked in a carpenter shop until He was thirty, and then for three years He was an itinerant preacher. He never wrote a book. He never held an office.
He never owned a home. He never set foot in a big city. He never traveled two hundred miles from the place where He was born. He had no credentials but Himself. While still a young man, the tide of popular opinion turned against Him. His friends ran away. One of them denied Him. He was turned over to His enemies. He went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed upon a cross between two thieves.
His executioners gambled for the only piece of property He had on earth while He was dying - and that was His coat. When He was dead, He was taken down and laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend.
Twenty-one centuries have come and gone, and today He is the centerpiece of the human race and the leader of progress. All the armies that ever marched, and all the navies that ever were built, and all the parliaments that ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as that one solitary life - Jesus Christ."
True in 1926, and still true today. Tony Dungy shared this online today, and I thought it was worth passing on.
