Hospitality

I write this from Haiti. It has been a great time so far. Our small group of Pastor Marc and Lisa Honorat, Barrie Hoffman, John Fleck and myself all convened in Florida. We awoke at 4:30 am Saturday, January 4^th to begin our journey to Haiti.  We arrived at Port au Prince by 9:30 am greeted by heat and humidity. As we left the airport, we were not sure what to expect for our 2.5 hour journey to Grand Goave. But our fears were not realized. The trip was uneventful. After a stop at the warehouse to stock up with groceries, we made it to Grand Goave in time for lunch. After a short break and then unpacking our bags, we got in the car again by 3 pm and headed out to Les Caye were we helped plant a church two years ago. We arrived in Les Caye at 7 pm. In Haiti you never know what might happen.

The hotel that was to receive us failed to mention to the organizers of our trip that they only had two rooms for six people. This did not seem a problem to them, as we could all share a bed. Canadians don’t like that too much, so we decided to move on. Fortunately, the church family we were visiting agreed to host us. At 9 pm they started cooking for us, but not as we would expect. This was a meal prepared over an open wood fire, which consisted of fried plantain, goat, and Haiti style, spicy coleslaw.  A wonderful meal. They brought us water from the well, so we could shower before bed. “Shower” means, dipping a bucket in the pail of water and then pouring it over our head and body. Their hospitality was complete when they gave up their beds (they slept on the floor) while we enjoyed the comforts of home. By now it is past midnight and we had been travelling for more than 20 hours. To say we were tired is not adequate. To say we were humbled would be an understatement. Here are perfect strangers making a meal (not just a snack, but with extravagance) giving up their bedrooms all at a moments notice - late at night. The word “hospitality” could be shortened to Haiti.

In the morning, they had breakfast ready for us. We then went to worship which started at 8am. The church is just 18 months old, but have about 75 in attendance already. The building is really just a shelter, with a metal roof, no walls and a loose rock floor. The culture is to dress up for church. Perhaps the biggest miracle of the morning was that no woman sporting spiked high heels did not roll an ankle. We would like to help them with a cement floor. They have raised $300 for this already. Pastor Marc committed to matching any funds which they raise towards this project. Estimated cost is about $2000. US.  If you would like to support this new church plant with a decent flooring surface; so they can dance like true Haitian Worship, we would be happy to pass on your donation. 

This weekend Haiti Arise is hosting approximately 200 pastors and leaders from the area for a two-day conference. Please pray that they will be encouraged and strengthened for the work to which they are called.

We are happy to report that the children have returned to school, the country is back to commerce, and a cautious optimism has returned to the people.

I close with this from the ancient scriptures. “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality.”  We can learn a lot from the Haitians.

Here is the link to the KCF missions section of our website. 

http://kootenaychristianfellowship.com/dat/?p=missions-haiti

Ten years ago 17 students from Mt Sentinel school near Nelson and six adults were in Haiti on the day of the earthquake. Attached is a video we made nine months later. This is now my tenth trip to Haiti. I have been working with Haiti Arise. Since the earthquake Haiti Arise and KCF with other partners have built more than 325 homes, repaired dozens of others, created a home for abandoned and orphaned children. (they have 23 in their care right now) created a technical school for adults, and a elementary school for over 600 children, a medical clinic, and their most recent ministry addition is a birthing centre. There are well documented accounts of donated money for earthquake relief as misused or missing, but this is not case with Haiti Arise. So proud to be here right now to see the work going forward making Haiti - Arise. Watch the video. If you would like to continue to support this worthy cause, it can be done through Kootenay Christian fellowship website.

Financial Foundations Seminar

Money can be one of the biggest stressors in our life. It may not be because we don’t have enough but because we do not manage it properly. Sometimes we think that if we had more money we would be not as stressed; this can be a deception. We need to learn how to manage what we have. If we don’t, we will always feel like we don’t have enough. There is a financial seminar happening at Bethel Christian Centre on Saturday Jan 25 and Sunday Jan 26 (1pm forward). I think this would be a great tool for us to take advantage of.

Register via the link https://www.familyfoundations.ca/ffi-canada-events