Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Zach, Sharon, Hannah, Isaiah, Vivian and Esther!

We appreciate all your prayers and support during the up and down days of 2017.  God has been good to us, though we often experienced it as painful stretching as we made the transition from Haiti to Michigan.  Though we appreciate all those who welcomed us back to Michigan, we still miss the presence of friends and colleagues who remain in Haiti.  Thank you all for your prayers and hospitality!

Segaar-King December Update

Dear Friends and Family:

With hordes of sword-wielding Egyptians approaching before and the Red Sea hemming them in behind, it was “game over” for the people of Israel in Exodus 14. Faced with their inevitable destruction, the Israelites turned upon themselves like wounded animals, attacking Moses for leading them out of Egyptian bondage.  What was God’s response at the uttermost end of hope? “Do not be afraid.  Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring today…The Lord will fight for you.  You only need to be still.”  As I (Zach) have been traveling around North America, I realize that churches are in a similar position to the people of Israel in Ex 14.  Like Israel, we have a mission to enter in to God’s wholeness. But this happens only when the church shares Christ’s love in a hurting world.  The headwinds are strong and we feel hemmed in.  Yet, God’s message is the same: “Do not be afraid.  Stand firm.  The Lord will fight for you.  You only need to be still.”

Please give thanks for:

-A group of 24 neighbors who shared a meal with us in our home recently.  Pray that God would show us how to be a light and source of encouragement in our new community.  Sharon has been working hard to get to know our neighbors.

-Safe travels.  As I (Zach) write this update, I am returning home from visiting with church leaders and donors in California.

-Success in leading an all-day retreat for Resonate’s Leadership Team (six leaders of our departments).  One of Zach’s most important tasks is building up our key team of mission leaders to guide the mission efforts of the CRC.

-A great opportunity to participate in a mission-focused conference in New Jersey in November.  It was so encouraging to see one hundred mission-leaders come together from Korean, Hispanic, Caucasian, and African American congregations to plead with the Holy Spirit to bring renewal for mission.

Please pray for:

-Wisdom as Zach and other mission leaders put together a strategy to present to the CRC leaders for church planting, evangelism, and congregational renewal by the end of January.

-Continued patience for Sharon as she tries to discern God’s leading in the next ministry to which God is calling her.  She has had to give a lot of time to helping our children through the transition.

-Attentiveness to God in shaping an organizational culture at Resonate Global Mission that is aligned with the Holy Spirit’s leading in mission.   

-A spiritual retreat that Zach and Sharon will take on the first weekend of December.  Pray that God will meet us as we set aside time for him.

Thanks for your prayers and support,

Zachary, Sharon, Hannah, Vivian, Isaiah and Esther Segaar-King

Resonate Global Mission (a ministry of the Christian Reformed Church) 

Fanning the Flame

A kaleidoscope of  Korean, Hispanic, African-American and Caucasian CRC leaders met for two days to "Fan the Flame" of  mission in the CRCs of New Jersey and New York.

Those that have been around Zach for the last few months will agree that one theme is near to his heart and on the tip of his tongue--the need for the Holy Spirit to "reignite" a heart for mission among established churches, pastors and other leaders.  Given the North American context where the Christian faith is increasingly marginalized, no amount of programmatic tinkering will change the basic calculus the church is facing.  The Fanning the Flame prayer conference at Midland Park CRC was organized by our Resonate Regional Mission Leader, Marco Avila, to bring churches and leaders together to pray for mission renewal.  It was awesome to be surrounded by leaders praying for renewal in mission together.  The next day after our prayer time, Zach was pleasantly surprised to find a delegation of pastors from New Jersey CRCs present at a session on Resonate's mission-focused church renewal process called Go Local.  Please pray for mission-focused church renewal in New Jersey and New York and give thanks that so many Christian leaders from different cultures and races are praying for and working toward that end.

An Eastern Canada Travel Log

Zach and James VanderLaan spend some time at Maitland River Community Church, a recent church plant in the Wingham area of Ontario.  Zach got to preach and give and update on a ministry project that Maitland supported through a tithe given as part of the congregation's building renewal program. 

St. Jacobs dam just north of Waterloo.

One of the great opportunities in Zach's job as the Director of Resonate is traveling to places where the CRC is working in mission.  One of those places is southern Ontario.  At the end of October Zach took a trip to Southern Ontario to spend some time visiting mission leaders, pastors and significant donors of Resonate Global Mission.  About 30% of CRC churches may be found in Canada and many of those are in southern Ontario.  Zach's travels took him from Burlington (near Hamilton), south of Woodstock and north of Waterloo (to a town called Wingham).  One highlight of the trip was seeing Randy and Karen Lodder, our missionary friends from Haiti, who were in Hamilton to have their fifth child.  While it was great catching up with the Lodders, the trip was focused on ministry.  One thing that the trip taught us was that many of our Canadian CRC congregations are feeling strong headwinds because church attendance is declining on average even faster in Canada than in the United States.  In this context, congregations are looking to Resonate Global Mission to walk with them in community outreach and church planting.  We are convinced that the Gospel fueled by the Holy Spirit's presence can ignite a new movement of renewal in Canada and in the Christian Reformed Church.

God Makes the Many One

Resonate Grand Rapids and Burlington (ON) staff.  Resonate has many other staff members (missionaries and other mission leaders) around North America and the world.

One of the biggest challenges of making two organizations (Christian Reformed Home and World Missions) into one (Resonate Global Mission) is developing a new organizational culture.  Since Resonate is an organization built around serving congregations in mission, that new culture must be one that is receptive and aware of how the Holy Spirit is moving God's people to proclaim Christ as Lord.  On the afternoon of September 28, Zach led the Resonate staff located in Grand Rapids and Burlington (ON) in a time of reflection about the culture that God is developing at Resonate.  Out of an afternoon of prayer, listening and reflection, Resonate staff members developed a ministry covenant to guide them in this season of change. It is exciting that listening to the Holy Spirit, discernment, and willingness to change play such a crucial role in our new ministry covenant.  God is doing a new thing with Resonate and we trust that as we become more and more aware of God's leading in mission, our connection to CRC churches will bear fruit in renewed passion for mission in God's hurting world.

Resonate's Ministry Covenant

Segaar-King October Update

Dear Friends and Family:

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.”  This declaration in 1 Cor 4:7 is Paul’s reflection on the source of power for his ministry.  The point was simply that God’s choice to work through flawed and fragile human agents (like Paul and us) underscores his power to change us and the world.  In the last few months we have been learning just how powerful God is in our weaknesses as we struggle to adapt to our new life and new roles.  We appreciate your prayers!   

Please give thanks for:

-God’s great blessing on a recent staff retreat for Grand Rapids (MI) and Burlington (Ontario) staff of Resonate Global Mission.  During our retreat we had two goals: building relationships between each other and listening to the Holy Spirit about what God is calling Resonate to be.  Please see our blog post for more information.

-The first meeting of Resonate Global Mission’s “Council of Delegates” governing committee.  This committee takes the place of the former Boards of Christian Reformed Home and World Missions. 

-Our daughter, Esther, has fully healed from her broken collarbone. Our children seem to be happier in their new schools as the weeks pass.

Please pray for:

-Wisdom in managing all the responsibilities we are juggling.  In addition to all our other work, we have begun doing presentations at supporting churches and Zach has begun visiting donors around the country.

-Safe travel for Zach as he will be going to Canada, New Jersey, and California in the next six weeks to visit donors and ministries.  Zach will participate in the Fanning the Flame mission conference in New Jersey which will be a gathering of evangelists and church planters.

-Attentiveness to God in shaping an organizational culture at Resonate Global Mission that is aligned with the Holy Spirit’s leading in mission.   

-Patience for Sharon as she tries to discern God’s leading in the next ministry to which God is calling her.

Thanks for your prayers and support,

Zachary, Sharon, Hannah, Vivian, Isaiah and Esther Segaar-King

Resonate Global Mission (a ministry of the Christian Reformed Church)

Segaar-King September Update

Dear Friends and Family:

Acts 16:5-16 recounts Paul’s missionary journey through Asia Minor in which the Holy Spirit “blocked” his ministry.  Later, Paul received a vision of a man inviting him to cross over to Macedonia to preach the Gospel.  Because of Paul’s obedience the church took root on another continent.  As we reflect on this story, we are convicted how important it is to see God’s leading in the roadblocks and the successes.  Please pray that God will make us attentive to where the Holy Spirit is guiding us as we give leadership to the mission efforts of the Christian Reformed Church.

Please give thanks for:

-Several beneficial days spent in Detroit and Ann Arbor discussing the direction of Resonate’s church planting, leadership development and congregational renewal efforts globally.  It is exciting to be part of an organization that is constantly praying and reflecting about how to be faithful in mission.

-A good start to the school-year for Hannah (as a freshman), Vivian and Isaiah (sixth-grade) and Esther (third-grade) at Grand Rapids Christian Schools.

-A great trip that Zach took to Canada in August to spend time with Resonate’s Canadian staff.  Zach is learning about Resonate’s church planting and campus ministry in the Canadian context.

Please pray for:

-Our colleagues in Haiti who received a glancing blow from Hurricane Irma.  Resonate Global Mission has many contacts in Southern Florida where Irma made landfall.

-The Zuiderveens as they serve in Haiti in our absence.  We know how difficult this time is for them.

-That we would be a light for Christ in our new neighborhood in Grand Rapids.  We look forward to making connections with our neighbors and sharing our faith in encouraging ways.

-Healing for Esther who broke her collar-bone playing with her older sister. She seems like she is making good progress.

FOR MORE PICTURES, STORIES, AND INFORMATION ABOUT OUR MINISTRY AND FAMILY, PLEASE SEE OUR BLOG AT segaarking.blogspot.com

Thanks for your prayers and support,

Zachary, Sharon, Hannah, Vivian, Isaiah and Esther Segaar-King

Resonate Global Mission (a ministry of the Christian Reformed Church)

What the Wind Does in the Moutains

Afternoon winds whip up massive thunderstorms over the mountains near Furcy in Haiti (above).  Some of these storms have dumped six inches of rain in thirty minutes on our home in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

We got soaked by this afternoon rainstorm forming over the mountains near Breckenridge, Colorado.  The rain was a lot colder than in Haiti!

Those who live near mountains, whether those of Haiti (where we lived) or in North America (like the Rockies pictured above), know that the weather in large part depends on the wind.  Every afternoon the wind blows air over the mountains, condensing moisture in the form of fog, rain, thunderstorms, and blizzards.  These weather changes can happen unexpectedly and spectacularly.  In mission, the Holy Spirit really functions much like the wind blowing through the mountains.  Despite all our best efforts to plan, create strategy, motivate, and connect people to the Gospel, real change only happens when the Spirit blows through us and our efforts.  At those times, the change that the Spirit makes is often immediate and spectacular.  Through this dramatic action of the Spirit, Christ draws people in our families, neighborhoods, and cities to a life-changing encounter with the Gospel.  For this reason, our biggest and most pressing item of prayer is that we will be attentive to where the Holy Spirit is leading the Christian Reformed Church in mission.  This is, without a doubt, the most important task of Zach's job description as Director of Resonate Global Mission.  However, human nature constantly resists the direction that God longs to give.  Please pray that we will be attentive to the movement of the Spirit in mission.

New Steps

Segaar-King Family in Colorado for a Re-Entry Program

Our Twins at Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs

Each day we take a new step by God's grace.  Yesterday was the day our three youngest children began their new school-year at Grand Rapids Christian.  In years past, the children would have left at the end of February to return to Haiti for our field service.  Now that our service in mission will happen in Grand Rapids, the children face school with a sense of permanence.  At the beginning of August we moved into our new home in Kentwood, MI.  For many people, moving in to a new home is exciting and joyful.  While it certainly has some of those feelings for us, it also marks a sense of loss because it means that we have put done long-term roots in Michigan and will not return to former friends and colleagues.  We are finally beginning to plan our supporting church visitation which will last over the course of a year or more.  Resonate's Church Relations department will be contacting your church soon to set something up.  One thing that hasn't changed is that we are still involved in mission for the Christian Reformed Church, but in a different way.  Now we see church planting, church renewal, campus ministry, international missions and missional leadership development from a different angle.  While it is a privilege to be involved in strategy and high-level leadership, we miss the "earthy" mission experience in Haiti.  Please pray for our family as we take all of these new steps.

Segaar-King August Update

Zach spent a few days in August getting to know the new team of regional leaders for Resonate Global Mission (pictured above).  These regional leaders coordinate ministry in the US, Canada, and throughout the world.  Please pray for them!

We escaped to beautiful Colorado to spend a week reflecting on the transition from Haiti back to the United States.  This thunderstorm reminded us that the tempest can teach us about God's love.

Our children loved getting back to the mountains of Colorado.  It will be so hard living without our Haitian mountains.

Dear Friends and Family:

Greetings from Michigan.  It seems that God conspires to place us in situations where we are overwhelmed by change.  That is where we are now as a family.  After a few short weeks of adjustment in June, God has launched us.  In July Zach started his new job as Director of Resonate Global Mission, we have traveled to Colorado to participate in a “reentry” program for returning missionaries, and we have moved into a new house in Grand Rapids.  One thing we learned in our reentry program is to accept that our new life and new job will feel overwhelming for a long time, possibly years.  The sense of loss for the ministry and people we left behind in Haiti will continue.  But God can use this experience to launch us into a new life and ministry better connected to him and his Holy Spirit.  This is our primary prayer request—that God will use this experience of readjustment to bring us closer to him and closer to each other.

Please give thanks for:

-A successful trip to Missionary Training International’s reentry program in Colorado.  We spent a week praying, sharing and discerning what God wants in this new epoch of our life.

-We have moved into a new house in Grand Rapids.  Though chaos abounds on so many levels, we are glad to be in the place we will call home.

-The opportunity to continue to serve in mission.  God has given us a great opportunity to grow the mission of the Christian Reformed Church.  In a few weeks we will begin setting up times to visit you, our supporters, and share about what God has done through us in Haiti and what we will be doing in mission in the future.

Please pray for:

-Our children’s adjustment to school that starts in a few weeks.

-The anxiety surrounding this transition for all our family.

-The Zuiderveens as they serve in Haiti in our absence.

-God’s wisdom in understanding how he is using us in ministry.  For Sharon this means discernment for new opportunities to serve.  For Zach this means allowing the Spirit to guide him as he gives leadership to Resonate.

FOR MORE PICTURES, STORIES, AND INFORMATION ABOUT OUR MINISTRY AND FAMILY, PLEASE SEE OUR BLOG AT segaarking.blogspot.com

Thanks for your prayers and support,

Zachary, Sharon, Hannah, Vivian, Isaiah and Esther Segaar-King

Serving with Resonate Global Mission (a ministry of the CRCNA)

Days of Reckoning

For months we have been anticipating (both fearing and looking forward to) the transition.  On July 5 Zach officially begins his new role as Director.  Only God knows the challenges and opportunities that await him in the next few months.  On the other hand, we are somewhat familiar with what challenges and opportunities our successors, Cody and Jessica Zuiderveen, will face in Haiti in our absence.  Though Haiti has its own unique beauty and character, it is a very difficult place to serve.  Furthermore, Resonate Global Mission is critically short-staffed in Haiti as the Zuiderveens are the only missionary family on the field.  Please pray that God would give the Zuiderveens strength and patience for what awaits them.  One piece of good news is that Cody successfully passed his examinations and has been ordained as a Minister of the Word and Sacrament in the Christian Reformed Church (see link).

June Highlights

Dear Friends and Family:

The last few weeks have been a blur.  We arrived on American soil early in the morning on June 6.  Less than 48 hours later Zach was on his way to Palos Heights for the 2017 Synod of the Christian Reformed Church (June 9-15) where delegates would ratify him on June 14 as the first Director of Resonate Global Mission (See link).  The delegates made many other important decisions on this day, including the acceptance of the name Resonate Global Mission for the agency created from the union of Christian Reformed Home and World Missions (see link).  For the remainder of June we tackled many logistic challenges, the greatest of which was finding permanent housing.  It is daunting trying to find a house for a large family in the hottest housing market in West Michigan in the last decade.  We have been praying and trusting God to provide.  Meanwhile we have been buying up second hand furniture to furnish the house that we will eventually buy.  Finally, we have been struggling with some environmental adjustments.  Several members of our family have developed serious asthma because of the abundant Michigan pollen.  We would appreciate your continued prayers for God to guide our transition.

Segaar-King June Update

This photo was taken at Hotel Montana in 2010 just a few days before Haiti's 2010 earthquake in which 200,000 Haitians died. Hundreds died at this very location.

In this picture, taken at the same hotel on the day of our departure from Haiti (June 5, 2017), is mere yards away from the 2010 picture.  We are so thankful that God protected us as a family throughout our time in Haiti.  In reflecting on our years, we realize just how much of a blessing it has been to be involved in God's mission in Haiti. 

Dear Friends and Family:

Greetings from Michigan!  We have returned to Grand Rapids nearly twelve years after we first set foot in Haiti.  Many times in the past months we have asked, “Are we really going home?”  Our years in Haiti have changed us so much.  Moreover, things are very different where we came from.  Old friends and family members have married, had children, and moved away.  Society and culture have changed dramatically.  In sum, Grand Rapids feels nearly as foreign to us as Haiti did when we first arrived.  In fact, we recently realized that we did not remember the culturally appropriate way to greet Americans since we are accustomed to the expressive Haitian and Latin American styles!  It will take a lot of concentration to leave the “anything-goes” Haitian driving style behind too—no more driving on the sidewalk, tailgating and u-turns blocking several lanes of traffic.

Our comfort is that we know the same God that sent us out twelve years ago is also sending us back.  Hebrews 11 talks about our citizenship in a “better country” or “heavenly country.”  In whatever country we are, our ruler is Christ and our citizenship is in his Kingdom.  Please pray that God will remind us of this often as we face the challenges of the transition.

In addition please pray for:

·       1.  A successful synodical vote on June 14 to confirm Zach as director and to confirm the name of the new mission agency of the CRC (Resonate Global Mission).  If all goes well, Zach’s first day in his new role will be July 5.

·        2. Quick progress in overcoming logistic hurdles including finding permanent housing.  If you have any leads on a good house for sale in the Grand Rapids area, please let us know.

·        3. Strength for the Zuiderveen family who will remain in Haiti doing the ministry.  Pray also for new missionaries to join the Zuiderveens.

FOR MORE PICTURES, STORIES, AND INFORMATION ABOUT OUR MINISTRY AND FAMILY, PLEASE SEE OUR BLOG AT segaarking.blogspot.com

Thanks for your prayers and support,

Zachary, Sharon, Hannah, Vivian, Isaiah and Esther Segaar-King

Missionaries to Haiti through Christian Reformed World Missions

New Mission Agency Finally Has a Name

Dear Friends and Family:

Many of you know that Zach has been appointed to be the first director of the "New Mission Agency," the combining of Christian Reformed Home Missions and World Missions.  This decision has to ratified by the Synod of the Christian Reformed Church which is meeting in a few weeks in Palos Heights, Illinois (near Chicago).  There has been another major development in the New Mission Agency--a name has been chosen by various boards of the CRC.  The New Mission Agency of the CRC will be called Resonate Global Mission (http://network.crcna.org/global-mission/new-mission-agency-behind-new-name).  Like Zach's candidacy, the new name needs to be ratified by Synod as well.  As you can imagine, this is a time of great excitement and anxiety among the missionaries and staff of the New Mission Agency.  Please pray that God will guide the mission ministry of the CRC both domestically and around the world.  Zach will be participating in Synod beginning June 9.  The ratification of both Zach as director and the new name will happen on Wednesday, June 14, Lord willing.  Please pray that God will give Zach the right words to encourage the CRC and promote the vision of mission that God is developing in the New Mission Agency.   Most of all, please pray that God will guide the mission ministry of the CRC both domestically and around the world.

A Grace-Filled Pause

Our Sous Espwa Team Group Photo

Sharon helped to organize the 2017 Spiritual Retreat led by Seminarian Cara DeHaan.

One of the final tasks left for us in Haiti was to organize the 2017 Sous Espwa Retreat.  Sous Espwa is the collaboration in Haiti of three denominational agencies of the Christian Reformed Church, World Renew, Christian Reformed World Missions, and Back to God Ministries International.  A huge part of our ministry over the last twelve years has been managing and encouraging that collaboration.  At times this aspect of our work has felt like a burden as the cultures and visions of these three agencies seem very different.  Other times, facilitating the collaboration of Sous Espwa has been a huge blessing as we see how each agency compliments the others in developing a holistic Christian worldview among the Haitians with whom we work.  Our final Sous Espwa Retreat was definitely a blessing. We enjoyed seeing the families of Sous Espwa staff members get to know each other and build on a shared experience of growing in Christ.  One lesson that we will carry away from Haiti is that time spent building a team is always time well-spent--especially when that time is spent reflecting on Christ and his blessings.  Cara DeHaan, our recent Calvin Seminary intern, returned to Haiti for a week to lead our retreat as a speaker and musician along with her husband, Dave and three children.  Thanks for your work, DeHaan family!  You led us in a brief but grace-filled pause.

What God Is Doing in Pignon

The calm before the storm: The beautiful view climbing up on Haiti's Central Plateau early in the morning.

By the time we got down into the Plateau, the rain was falling in sheets.

The mountain outside of Pignon during a brief, dry moment.

The leaders working with MCD in Pignon.

Zach's last trip to Haitian countryside was to Pignon, a small town in northern Haiti.  Pignon also happens to be the first place where the Christian Reformed Church worked in Haiti.  In the mid-seventies and eighties Christian Reformed World Relief Committee (CRWRC) started agricultural work in this area.  Many of the first CRC staff to serve in Haiti lived in and around Pignon, and some local Haitians still remember their names.  Later, in the late eighties, CRWM began training church leaders through the John Calvin Bible Institute.  Pignon was also one of the first training sites chosen for this work, which eventually became known as "The Ministry for Christian Development" (MCD).  Today, MCD supervises the work of both CRWM and World Renew (formerly CRWRC) in Pignon.  During our trip to Pignon, we filmed a new promotional video which will be completed and posted to Youtube sometime in June.

We are excited about the work in Pignon.  We visited with a number of deacons, pastors, and other church leaders who are making a difference in Pignon because of their faith in Christ.  In addition to the growth of the churches partnering with MCD, the leaders have built latrines, tree nurseries for reforestation, and even a home for a widow in the area.  On a lighter note--it rained during the whole trip to Pignon, making some of the thickest and slipperiest mud Zach has ever traversed.  At one point, the muddy water was so deep that it gushed in our car and submerged the seat belt tensioners, causing them to become locked.  Traveling is never simple in Haiti!

Segaar-King May Update

Dear Friends and Family:

As the time draws near for our family to leave behind the country and people that have nurtured us during the last twelve years, our days are full of business and emotion.  Last week we wrapped up the last two projects remaining.  The first was our team Spiritual Retreat.  Sharon has worked tirelessly to grow our team spiritually during our tenure in Haiti and the annual Retreat has been a big part of that.  The second activity was our combined agency video (one video presenting the work of World Renew, World Missions, and Back to God Ministries in Haiti) which was done in Pignon, Haiti.  Both the Spiritual Retreat and the video are great opportunities to see what God has been doing in and through the Sous Espwa team.  It has been a great blessing to serve with a committed team of Christians who have dedicated themselves to seeing the Haitian church and Haitian communities grow and thrive.

Please join us in giving thanks for:

-A successful conclusion to the Zuiderveens’ language learning.  They are back with us in Port-au-Prince for a time of orientation.

 -A successful trip to Pignon, Haiti in a driving rainstorm.  Zach boldly (or fool-heartedly) pushed through some of the thickest and slickest mud he has traversed in years to make sure our combined agency video could be a success.  Hopefully the video will be posted on Youtube in June.

-A great Spiritual Retreat for our Sous Espwa team.  Cara DeHaan, our friend and seminary intern, returned to Haiti to lead us in reflecting on God’s grace.

-Our children are successfully enrolled in Grand Rapids Christian Schools next fall.  The pieces of the next stage of our life and ministry are coming together.

Please join us in praying for:

-Strength for the transition.  We are feeling tired and feeling torn between the massive logistical effort of leaving and our desire to encourage our Haitian colleagues who will continue serving God here in our absence.

-Wisdom to know how to spend the short time we have left in Haiti.

-Our colleagues who will have to decide what changes to make in the structure and functioning of our team for the future.

-Our CRWM employee, Fevrier Cherubin, whose wife is pregnant and living in Georgia.  The distance will be difficult for them.

Thanks for your prayers and support,

Zachary, Sharon, Hannah, Vivian, Isaiah and Esther Segaar-King

Missionaries to Haiti through Christian Reformed World Missions 

The Son Rises over Haiti

Zach led and participated in his final Easter sunrise service last Sunday.  We are going to miss those beautiful sunrises from the perspective of Haiti's mountaintops.

Easter has always been a scandal.  The thought of Jesus Christ rising from the dead three nights after being brutally killed offends human reason.  Just look at how our popular culture treats the concept of life after death (portrayed as everything from a "light at the end of a tunnel" to a "zombie apocalypse").  In the time of the early church the resurrection of the dead was considered equally as absurd.  Which, I imagine, is (at least) part of the reason neither Mary Magdalene or the disciples on the Emmaus Road recognized Jesus (despite the fact Jesus' disciples even witnessed Jesus raise the dead). Today many consider Christ's resurrection to be "metaphorical" or "symbolic" of the new life of faith.   However, our faith requires that the resurrection of Christ be real, or as Paul writes, we of all people are most to pitied (as delusional).
This leads me to a final article of faith, one that has kept us laboring in Haiti for the Gospel during these past twelve years.  Just as Christ was raised and glorified, so also God is raising his people in Haiti who will manifest (and are manifesting) the love and power of God in Haitian society until Christ returns again.  There are days when this faith seems tragically delusional--when corruption, strife, lawlessness, etc. seems to overcome the Good in Haiti.  But, on the side of Good is the Resurrection, the power of God to achieve decisive victory at the moment when all seems lost.  That is what I see rising over the mountains of Haiti on Easter morning.  The sun rising reminds me that the Son's rising on Easter morning will be the final word in the battle between the Gospel and human depravity.

Service Project for 2017-18

Someday on this property CRECH will teach Christian school teachers and administrators to be more effective in the classroom.

Beginning around the turn of the millennium, staff at CRWM-Haiti/Sous Espwa recognized the precarious position of our three Haitian ministry partners who were using large percentages of their organizational budgets to rent office and conference space.  Precious funds that would be used for Gospel ministry were instead being absorbed by operations.  Also at that time, North American churches were developing an interest in mission-service projects.  Our predecessors in Haiti made the decision to help our three ministry partners purchase property and build offices to free up rent money for ministry.  Visiting teams would help with raising capital and construction costs.  This model resulted in the purchase of the Ministry Center property and the construction of the offices and conference centers for the Christian Reformed Church of Haiti and the Ministry of Christian Development.  Now, the final partner to receive this assistance, the Consortium for the Reinforcement of Christian Education (CRECH), is making a downpayment on a piece of property on which it will build its new office.  Much of that down payment comes from funds raised from you, our support network.  Once the transaction is complete, CRECH will have to fund the rest of the purchase with its own resources over the next three years.  CRWM-Haiti will be recruiting visiting Service and Learning Teams to help in the construction in 2017-18.  If you or your church are interested in this important ministry, please e-mail Cody Zuiderveen (czuiderveen@crcna.org).  During the visit you will also learn about the great work CRECH is doing in educating Haitian Christian school teachers and administrators and developing integrated Christian primary and secondary school curriculum.

Things We Will Miss About Haiti

We will definitely miss the entertaining signs:

"'Nutrigu' cereal for children--for happy babies"

What self-respecting baby could turn up his or her nose to Nutrigoo?

The Power of the Human

In economies and societies as mechanized as those of North America, we often forget what the power of the human can achieve.  Juice comes squeezed, pasteurized and pre-packaged in the refrigerator-section of the supermarket.  French fries come peeled, precut and frozen in large bags in the freezer aisle.  Car washes churn out clean cars with a mechanical hum every minute.  But in Haiti, with its high cost of materials and low cost of labor, the "power of human" holds sway.  You need french fries?  Hire a guy like this one above to peel and cut your potatoes by hand.  When I saw this man's labor, I was reminded that we Americans, with our reliance on machines and our short attention-spans, could never summon the energy and perseverance to peel an entire box of potatoes like this one.  The power of the human is one of the things we will miss when we leave Haiti.

Segaar-King March Update

Dear Friends and Family:

In times of transition, people often quote Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you . . . ”  This declaration, recorded to encourage the exiles of Judah living in Babylon, reminds us that God watches, cares for and plans to bless his people in whatever circumstances they find themselves.  In June our circumstances will be changing drastically.  Zach has been appointed as the Director of the yet-unnamed New Missions Agency (NMA) of the Christian Reformed Church, pending the approval of the Synod of the CRC in June.  Among other things, this means twelve challenging but rewarding years of service in Christ’s name with the Haitian people are coming to an end.  Living and serving in Haiti is full of irony.  At the end of many days, packing up and going home sounds really good.  On the other hand, some of our most rewarding experiences of walking in faith with the Spirit have happened in Haiti.  Strangely, in God’s Kingdom what we suffer for most dearly is often what we come to treasure the best.  Though it will be hard to leave this struggling but endearing country, we are confident that the next step is God’s will for our family.    

As Please join us in giving thanks for:

-Safe travel to, from, and within Haiti for our many visiting teams in February and March.  Teams from Alto (MI), Grand Rapids (MI), Rochester (NY), and Brampton (ON) enjoyed serving and learning in Haiti.

-Safe travel for Zach to various interviews and team meetings in the US, Canada and Latin America.

-Gregory Paultre’s two-and-a-half years of service to Sous Espwa as Constituency Bridger.  Gregory is leaving our team on March 31 for another job.  Pray that we can find Greg’s successor.

-The Consortium for the Reinforcement of Christian Education (CRECH), our Haitian partner in developing Christian schools, has finally found a piece of property for their office.  Pray that God will make it possible for the organization to make a permanent home for their ministry.

Please join us in praying for:

-The Zuiderveens (our new missionary family) and their transition to CRWM’s work in Haiti.  The Zuiderveens signed-on expecting that we would be in Haiti.  Now that we are leaving to serve in the leadership of the CRC’s NMA, the Zuiderveens are going to have a very steep learning curve.

-The Segaar-King family’s transition to Grand Rapids, MI.  Our children’s view on leaving Haiti oscillates between excitement and anxiety.  Pray that we will transition well and that we can surmount logistic hurdles like finding a house, a car, furniture, etc.

-Our Sous Espwa Spiritual Retreat in April.  Team building and renewal depend on an encounter with God’s grace during this important weekend activity.

They Said It Couldn't Be Done

Perched high above the brackish waters of Lakes Azuei and Enriquillo and adjacent to the mountaintops of Haiti’s Central Plateau, Granbwa must be one of the most isolated settlements in the Caribbean.  With no road from the Haitian side, Granbwa can really only be reliably accessed from the Domincan Republic.  When the CRC of Haiti approached Zach about a church construction project he was understandably concerned.  But the CRC of Haiti insisted and SONBEAM International and Lakeside CRC jumped at the chance to partner with local volunteers to realize the construction of a new church building.  The logistics of the project soon unraveled, and donkeys, horses, and people were enlisted to haul building materials and water from the Dominican Republic and the deep ravines surrounding the church.  During one trip to Granbwa, Pastor Eli, one of the foreman working on the project, fell off a motorcycle in rough terrain and hurt his leg.  Despite nearly giving up several times, the leadership and volunteers of the CRC of Haiti and the Granbwa church finally completed the project.  Humans, however, can’t take credit.  Success was nothing short of a God-given miracle.  Thanks for your prayers.

Both terrible (in its isolation)  and beautiful, the view from the Granbwa Church knows few equals.  Pastor Eli and  local volunteers prepare to pour the roof.