Off the Beaten Path

During a three-day training event in October (pictured above), several of the participants gave reports about what they are doing with Timothy Leadership Training (TLT).  The most interesting was a young man who, after taking the training module on Christian Stewardship, organized a pledge-drive to purchase a set of drums for his church.  If this doesn’t sound like a big deal, note that the average weekly offering in a Haitian church is not more than $20 USD while a set of drums in Haiti cost over $1,200 USD.  Because of the Spirit’s blessing, faithful promotion, and good planning, the church raised the full amount for the drums in only a few months.  Hope and trust in God’s provision radiated out of this young man’s report.  Because of this success, the church is now motivated to tackle some tough problems in its neighborhood it felt formerly powerless to touch.

Surprisingly, one of the greatest struggles we have in ministry in Haiti is finding out what is going on.  Haitian culture generally does not place a lot of emphasis on reporting and we don’t have a lot of money to hire staff to track information down.  Often, we find out about the greatest results of our work coincidently.  Recently, we made a proposal to Timothy Leadership Training (TLT) International to fund a small scholarship that will pay for the travel expenses of trainers who covenant to go “off the beaten path” and train in isolated communities.  The condition of this scholarship is that the trainers have to give a full report of the results of their seminars.  Six pastor/trainers (pictured below with certificates) have agreed to be part of the program.  One pastor, Obed Laventure, has already broken ribs trying to get to his training station on a motorcycle as there are no roads and bridges to the community.  Pray  that God will use these six trainers for his glory.

Election Update

Political slogans are not often well-formulated expressions of leadership vision.  Taking his cue from President Martelly (whose slogan is “shaved head”), the slogan of the leading candidate from the Martelly’s party is “The Plantain Guy” or “Nég Banann nan.” A plantain is basically a large starchy banana that is boiled or deep fried, a very popular food.  This slogan really captures the surreal political developments in Haiti since the second round of elections on October 25.  While many acknowledged that the voting itself was a success, the situation degenerated during the processing and publication of the results as different political parties hurled accusations of fraud at each other.  Specifically, the “Banana Guy” got many more votes than anticipated.  Please pray that the final election on December 27 will be successful in all aspects.  Pray also that political demonstrations would be peaceful and that school and ministry events can take place as planned.

Called to love...Cities?

Zach spent a week in Guatemala City learning about urban ministry initiatives in November.  This picture, taken from the municipal cemetery overlooking the city dump where thousands of people make their living picking through garbage, encapsulates the enigma of poverty afflicting both Port-au-Prince and Guatemala City.

Guatemala City has many talented graffiti artists just like Port-au-Prince.

Quite often those who live in cities wish that they don't.  First, cities are expensive.  Food, housing and transportation are many times more what they would be in a small town or countryside.  Second, cities are congested.  Traffic is horrible and it is hard to find living space.  Finally, cities often suffer higher rates of violence and crime because of both high population density and their attraction to those struggling to survive.  It is true that cities can sometimes offer more opportunities for economic advancement.  However, more and more people compete for the same opportunities in cities.  Our city, Port-au-Prince, is a good example.  With nearly ten times the population of Haiti's second largest urban area, Port-au-Prince is overwhelmed by the nearly constant inflow of new residents.  Port-au-Prince's roads and infrastructure were designed for a city one-quarter of its size.  In Haiti's countryside hedgerows of cactus keep goats and pigs out of gardens.  In Port-au-Prince fifteen-foot-tall block walls topped with razor wire keep thieves at bay.  Billowing waves of dust, diesel exhaust, the smells of 2.5 million people living without a sewage system daily greet inhabitants.  Why even live in the big city?  The answer?  2.5 million.  Jonah learned the same lesson at the end of chapter four when God said, "And should I not have concern for the great city Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left?"  God cares about the city because the city is where his children are being born, living, rejoicing, suffering, and dying.  As we are reminded in the story of Jesus' birth, God (or Emmanuel--'God with us') wants to be where his people are.  Over the next year, we plan to put more focus on urban ministry in Haiti.  Please pray for us as we seek to be God's witness in Haiti's largest city.