There are many small villages “in the middle of no-where,” that are tucked away by the side of the mountains in Haiti. If someone else did not know they were there, we could have never found them… But, when working with a good local man, Pastor Souffrance, who is well respected, we find great needs that few know about. These are the people with sweet children, who work hard, and very few go to school. Good water is far away and the soil is bad, making it difficult to grow much of anything. But, there are many, many Christians in these “forgotten areas.”
This morning with our Food Distribution team, we made a journey to a small village in the mountains. We had given out “tickets for food” to 200 families and we had a feeding program for over 150 “hungry children.” We felt “so small” when these sweet people would grab us, hug us, and thank us again and again for their box of food and for feeding their children. It let them know that, “despite all the gangs and roadblocks in Haiti,” and “despite that their families are taking a beating from the insecurity in Haiti,” God still loves them, cares for them, and uses people “like you” to get food to them!
Thank you, because “God used you to meet a great need today!” The poor of Haiti are sending hugs and kisses your way! Great is your “Reward” in Heaven!
Jackson has been doing good with his dialysis in the country of the Dominican Republic. This report is from Jesse Ostrander of Love A Child, and he will also tell you about “the girls,” Jovanie, one of our Love A Child girls, now a nurse, and Phanise, one of our Jesus Healing Center nurses… They are in charge of Jackson’s dialysis.
“Today Jackson had his longest day on the machine to date. He has gone about 7.5 hours. The doctor was here earlier in the day and is actually back here right now. Jackson was hooked up to the machine at about 11:30 this morning as part of the training routine. The team is currently going through the disconnect procedure and disposing of the removed fluids. We were supposed to meet with the lead doctor this afternoon at her office, but that appointment was postponed due to today’s dialysis schedule.
So far so good though… Everyone is happy with his progress. Jackson’s body is doing great. He has no signs of infection or complications. I am not sure when they will have me take him for blood work. But when he finally does get a new analysis, the doctors will know more about how the current combination of chemicals is working. They may need to tweak things a bit now and after the first month or two in Haiti.
The long hours on the machine are all part of the plan. They are ramping up his hours daily, but things will get much easier for him when he returns to Haiti and is hooked up at night. Understandably, right now Jackson is extremely bored because he is tethered to the machine and cannot really leave his room. Today he pretty much has slept all day. This morning he was telling me how much he missed Haiti, Love A Child, and all of the kids at the orphanage. He will transition back to Haiti soon. The training is supposed to wind down at the end of this week, but I am not sure how long they will want to see Phanise and Jovanie do things on their own before they release us back to Haiti.
The girls are doing great. They are both very professional and are learning to do things methodically and efficiently so that there are no complications when we are all on our own. The doctor in charge of dialysis, Dr. Basura, is satisfied with their progress.
Jackson was also supposed to get another vaccine today, but that got pushed back until at least tomorrow. I was unaware that he would be on the machine so long. So the main appointment with the lead doctor and the appointment at the vaccine clinic were postponed…”
So, Jackson is doing well on the dialysis machine. They plan to bring him back to Haiti with the machine, this weekend if all goes well. But, our prayer would be healing, and if not, a transplant in the future. Both would take a miracle, but that is what God is good at!
The Lord told Joshua to take the city of Jericho. The men and army of Jericho were strong. The Lord told Joshua to have his men and priest compass the city seven times… “make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when ye hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat [ye shall take the city!]” (Joshua 6:4-5) Read the 6th chapter of Joshua this morning…
I encourage you today to take for victory what the Lord has promised you! Be ready, the walls are about to fall over flat… The victory is yours!
Today, we are making plans for another Food Distribution in a remote area. For certain reasons, we can only say it is an “undisclosed location” due to the gangs. These precious mothers and children are suffering so much. Most of their fathers left to go to the Dominican Republic a while back and never returned.
These people have no hope because every day, the gangs make it more difficult for them to sell their small wares, tree sticks, or anything else they have.
They are so, so excited that food is coming! They will “praise God” all the way home. They will be coming by foot, by donkey, anyway they can.
Thank you, partners! We wish it were safe enough for you to be there, but we know your heart is with the poor! Psalms 41:1-3 gives Seven Supernatural Blessings to those who help and feed the poor! We pray that God will open the Windows of Heaven upon you!!
Thank you so much for your love and sacrificial help.
Today, someone is reading this post who needs a miracle. A miracle is something that you cannot do by yourself. It is something “beyond the natural,” that would not take place, unless “God did it.”
Sometimes, we think that God is a “one-time miracle worker,” but “if He did it then, He can do it again!” In Exodus 14, after years of wandering in the desert, they finally come to the Red Sea (at high tide), and they have to get across it. I’m sure if they ever prayed, they were praying now… Because all of Pharaoh’s army was right on their heels. They had mountains on both sides, the Red Sea ahead, and the pounding of chariot wheels and horses in the background. And the Bible says, “And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.” Of course, you know the rest of the story, the sea returned again and swallowed up Pharaoh and all his army.
Fast forward to Joshua 3… Moses has died and now Joshua has taken over. They were now facing the Red Sea, with Joshua as their captain. But, can God do it again? “The waters (from the Red Sea), which came down from above stood and rose up upon a heap very far from the city Adam… and the priests that bare the ark of the Covenant of the Lord, stood firm on dry ground in the midst of Jordan, and all the Israelites passed over on dry ground.” Joshua 3:15-17
The Word is this… “If He did it before, He can do it again!!” Have a terrific day!
It’s hard to believe our little dancer is now in 4th grade. She is “all girl.” Giniya is just one of the many hundreds of Haitian children whose father left them and went to the Dominican Republic. This leaves a mother with the big responsibility… but, when Ginyia’s mother died during a C-section, immediately, her father left the family to go to the D.R.
She was raised by her 17-year-old cousin, but when she could no longer take care of the baby, she took her to the Department of Social Services. They called us and asked if we would take her. She was quickly adopted into our family, and soon, the girls here had lots of “ribbons,” in her hair!
Ginyia is incredibly smart in school. She is kind and obedient, and always cleaning or helping with the little ones. But, Ginyia has another passion… dancing! She is right in the middle of the Praise Dance Team. She knows every step and never misses a beat! She is graceful and beautiful! I’m glad her father left and went to the D.R. Any man who deserts his children, doesn’t deserve them! She has “Poppie Bobby” for her daddy and she is fine with that! We all love little Ginyia!
Eleven-year-old Edeline (the one in the dirty purple t-shirt), will wake up this morning as she does every day. You see, Sunday is no different than all the days of hunger she experiences. While we will be getting dressed for church and maybe a lunch out, at a restaurant after church, she and her seven siblings will have the same clothes on that they wore yesterday.
Where Edeline lives, there is no church, no restaurant, and nothing that could bring happiness into her life. Only one of these children has a “Birth Certificate,” and none have been to school. Her father left their mother for another woman, so he can no longer help support the family. He left his family to go to the Dominican Republic but he will not be back. Her mother will go to the mountain today, to try to gather sticks to sell in order to buy a little “food for today.” There is no “tomorrow” for Edeline, because Edeline and her family just live “from day to day.”
So, you can tell your children and your grandchildren, that this family of children has never had a “new t-shirt,” or a “new pair of shoes,” and they have never, never had a “plate of food,” only handfuls. These children would consider it a real treat to be able to get dressed for church and walk there, with shoes on their feet. She is “one reason” why God has called us together, to work for the poor, Sherry
“This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118: 24
Good morning! The Lord hath made this day. The Lord has you and me in the palm of his hand. The Lord made this day, he owns and controls this day.
I remember a time in our marriage I would wake up every morning grouchy/mad until I had my cup of coffee. One morning the spirit of the Lord told me to wake up happy every morning because this is the day the Lord hath made!!! I’m happy every morning when we wake up at 3:30 a.m. seven days a week!
Colin was just a little child when he lived in Miracle Village, not far from us. His parents had “many children” between them. (I do not believe that his father, a man deeply involved in Voodoo, was Colin’s real father.) When the food was cooking over a hot charcoal fire, all the kids got “their small share.” When the food was quickly finished, little Colin reached into the pot to take the last handful of food.
His father yelled at him and said, “I’ll teach you to be a thief,” and held his hand down in the hot charcoal coals. His hand was badly burned. That’s when someone called us and told us about Colin. We went and got him and cleaned his wound and took him to our clinic. The next day, we called the Department of Social Services and filled out a paper of complaint. They turned Colin over to us.
Colin’s hand healed but he had very bad problems with his teeth. He seemed to grow “teeth on top of teeth,” and it was disfiguring his face. He has already had a lot of dental work done… But, we will be taking him to a good dentist in the D.R. (for more dental work) as soon as we get a few of our “more serious” children cared for. I’m sure Colin will need braces and maybe some teeth pulled… other than that, he is in good health.
Colin is now in 8th grade. His “fuel” is soccer (he is the goalkeeper). Colin helps clean the Children’s Home, gathering trash, watering the plants and flowers, and now, taking care of BoBo, our new donkey. He is extremely intelligent and makes good grades in school. His dream is to be an engineer. We are proud of Colin.
