There we were gone

Well, I had a whole post written up while we were on the plane, however I didn't save it. So here I am not wanting to rewrite this, however this is how things have been going the last couple days (this will be a compressed version of what I originally wrote). 

In Haiti our ride arrived late, but we told them an hour earlier on purpose.  A very chaotic airport lead to frustration and concerns about making our flight, only to find out our flight was delayed due to poor weather in Montreal. We arrived in Montreal after a turbulent (I now sympathize with anyone who gets airsick) and disgusting flight (enough said).  Our connecting flight to Ottawa was canceled and they rescheduled us on a much later flight direct to Calgary for the 17th. We tried to get home sooner, to no avail. So away we go to a very interesting hotel/apartment (only place place available). So we ended up knowing we had a day to kill in Montreal and more time away from our family.  

What do you mean we're not done!

Well as the title states, we weren't as done as we thought we were.  We had used up the last of the cement powder on Saturday and so figured we were finished our construction work.  So we'd head to the site one last time, take the forms off from Saturday's pour and clean up a bit.  Pastor Furnel had other plans however, he bought more cement powder.  He asked us to finish up one more vertical column, so what can we do, we formed and poured one more column. We ripped off the other forms, changed one to be the inside corner and Art, Kelly, Tim, Nick & Pierre placed and tied the form. Dan, Durand and I went to a Compassion International Site here in the Carrefour area. We had arranged this before we left, and got to see over 400 kids receiving care and education from what is a very reputable organization. Dan & I were very impressed. They had songs for us, poems and testimonials from the recipients. It was a great experience and very reassuring to see where sponsors funds are going. Meanwhile, the other guys had set the form and started pouring. We managed to do a very speedy visit with compassion and get back to help "finish" the work, or at least we thought we had finished. The form was filled, the amount of concrete mixed was perfect.....and Kelly says "We should put the extra concrete into a form to make a step for the stage". What extra!  "Oh, we should make more then." Thanks Kelly!  So we made some more, Pierre made a form and we made a step for them to get up on the stage easier. Then finially we were done/complete/fini. One last lunch with our hosts, then back to the hotel. 

We had talked about going to the ocean, however our hosts changed their minds on whether it would be safe. So we opted for some time by the pool, and we invited Durand's family to come when they got home from school. Durand stated he does not swim, and apparently his kids don't much either. We managed to get a couple of them playing in the pool, the funniest part was watching their teeth chatter with how cold the water was for them. I decided to show them how I could swim the length of the pool underwater. I did, however I apparently thought the pool was longer than it really was, because I ran into the wall at the end and created a giant creator over my left eye. Probably the worst injury of the trip, serves me right. It was great to see their kids have fun though. 

Tonight we are supposed to be meeting with the church leaders, at 7:00....it's now 8:00 and they've now texted us to tell us they will be late. "Haiti time" is a saying here, but it's also a reality. Cultural differences can be very frustrating, if you let it. We have gotten used to it, for the most part. That being said we are intentionally telling our ride to the airport, a time that is much earlier than our flights actually are.  We have learned much about our cultural differences, but that's not to say we can't appreciate our differences. There are things they do here, that we in Canada could learn to do better.  They celebrate life very well here. They make opportunities to display affection for one another, publicly. They live in community very well, four families in one house! They make efforts to give compliments publicly to their spouses and family members. There are many other things that make the Haitian people very unique and very enjoyable to be around. They have given us so many thanks already and tonight is another thank you from the church leadership. We have been blessed to be here and serve the Lord along side with this part of His Church in Haiti. 

Colossians 3:23-24;

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

Rest Day

Here we are at the end of a day of rest exhausted, in a different way than our work days, but exhausted just the same. The time away is starting to get to us all. We are looking forward to being home, but still prepared for what God has left for us to do. 

The Bon Berger (Good Shepard) Alliance Church celebrated with us all day. Making us feel appreciated and loved. It was a great experience, but a long (and loud) day. 

Finishing Strong

This morning Nick gave a great devotional about finishing strong. Nick's words were something like; "okay here comes the cliché devo on finishing strong" He read for us; 2 Timothy 4:6-8 "For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing."  Nicholas was referring to finishing strong on the project set before us. Even though we may be tired and all of this now feels like routine, we should pray for the ability to work diligently and complete the task at hand. "You may pray for added strength, and 10 seconds later you can't believe how frustrated you are." Nick explained, and that this is how he felt several times on his World Race mission experience. It was a well timed message, as it was a long day with much work to be done. 

We managed to finish up the areas that we set out to complete, minus one of the verticals columns. In the end we used over 600 cinder blocks, 63.5 bags of cement, 22 cages worth of rebar, 3/4 truckload of sand (which much of was sifted through a screen the size of a dinner plate), 2 rolls of wire and 1/4 truckload of gravel. We felt good about the work done, but you could tell everyone was tired, however Christ enabled us to perceiver. At the end of the day we ended up having a bit too much concrete mixed up, so we offered some to our one neighbour to make up for the trouble we caused yesterday. With the rest we made a small pad at the side door and etched "High River Canada" into the block, which they had asked us to do. I wanted to put our hand prints into it but was told that would be childish, Dan's a poo poo head.  We talked about heading back for construction again part of Monday to clean up a bit more, pull forms off and fix a couple other small issues. We'll see what works out, we will be there for sure tomorrow for church. Very excited about that, but like everyone else on the team, very tired right now. Very thankful to have a safe and dry place to rest tonight, as it has been raining off and on tonight. 

Good Neighbours

The walls are up higher and the pile of building materials is getting smaller. We are making good progress and might make our goals that we started with. God has blessed us with good health for the most part and we have been relatively low on injuries. We will see what the next few days before we leave bring us. As Kelly so eloquently pointed out "We will get done exactly what God wanted us to do", paraphrased version would be "we'll get done what we get done, and we won't get done, what we don't do". 

What we did get done today was create some tension with our neighbours on both sides of the church. Tim and the contractor were supposed to go into the neighbours yard on the south side of the building, in order to put up a ladder and help put up one of the forms. Tim said they went through the "front yard" (which is more like a small courtyard beside their house) then the contractor went to proceed up and over, or through a makeshift metal fence. Well the neighbours did not like this much. So Tim said they had to go around the house and through a back gate into the area they needed to be.  It took awhile and the South neighbour seemed quite upset.  Earlier on, Dan and I were filling forms on the North side of the church, it was hot and our concrete was drying fast. We were waiting on a new batch to be mixed to finish out that lentil. In order to prevent the concrete that had already been poured in the form, I was sprinkling the concrete with water. Well of course I decide I should sprinkle Dan as well, because he was drying out. Some of the church folks were there at the time and they thought this was so funny. Well now I have an audience. So what am I to do now, I must please the audience more. As I looked over at them I did an over the shoulder throw with the rest of my container of water. Well I missed Dan for the most part, but I hit the form and splashed watery concrete down into the neighbours yard on the North. Who just happened to have done laundry, their whites in fact. So they were not very happy with us. Actually I should just say Dan got the brunt of the frustration. After it happened he was the first one that looked over the wall. We apologized up and down (literally and figuratively, from upstairs and we went downstairs to apologize) eventually they took our apology, especially when Dan offered to wash the laundry again. So our neighbours around the construction site haven't had the greatest friendship with us. At the hotel however Dan and I have got to meet our neighbour and have good conversations. She is a older lady who is from Quebec originally, she has lived in Haiti for 35 years, and at some point in her life she lost both of her legs in a motorcycle accident in Canada. She is a very interesting lady, who has been trying to teach us Creole, and has told us about a friend from the community that needs help. We prayed with this lady and for her friend, and got the contact information for the local church to connect with this person.  Hopefully we can create positive relationships with all of our neighbours at some point. 

One of the things that Durand said to me one day, is standing out for me now. He said "You all have such big yards there. You don't know your neighbours. That's why at church on Sunday you stand far apart shake hands at a distance and never get to know each other". Here there is no personal bubble space that I like so much, and I'd like to say I'm getting used to it. Even their yards have no bubble space, the church building would be the lot border on one side and there may be 4' on the other side. Durand feels they have better relationships with others because of this closeness. In fact four families share the house that Durand lives in, and it seems like a very close community. 

Many of us in Canada do have good relationships with our neighbours, but  we should remember how Jesus answered when he was asked "Who is my neighbour". Luke 10:29 Jesus went on to tell the parable of the "good Samaritan" as an answer to this question. God wants us to serve all people without prejudice or resentment, even to those who don't like us. I pray that all of us can let the Lord change us, so that we may love our neighbour. 

Least of these?

Today I get the pleasure of sharing our experiences (Dan) 
So far our trip has been full of new and exciting experiences, that's what I love about being called to these trips. God is here with us and directing our paths and stretching our boundaries and perspectives. I want to thank everyone back home for checking in on us, through this blog and praying as well. I know that through your prayers God has guided this trip so far. 
I want to warn everyone before I start this blog it might be a mushy one, so heads up!
I've been given permission to share this with everyone, although some of you might already know about it. Mike and Rachelle have been great friends of ours and we are proud to say that they are in the process of adopting a beautiful little girl here in Haiti. Today we got to experience first hand as to how much need there is in Haiti.   You will have to ask them about the details as to how God led them to to take this step of faith but James 1 says;
Religion that God our father excepts as pure and faultless is this; to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself being polluted from the world.

Mike had been trying on his own efforts to try to get a ride and spend some time with his Daughter but everything he tried seemed to fall apart. Mike and I were even thinking about renting motorcycles to make our way up the hill to Petionville to the orphanage. (I know this wouldn't have been our wisest decision and I'm sure our family's back home would disapprove too). But God had a different plan. 

We have had a few God moments and one of them was meeting another servant of God here at the hotel. We were eating dinner when all of a sudden we hear "hey is that you Robert?" It was a friend that Robert had grown up with and he was here on his own working with another orphanage. He also happens to be a redneck Albertan from Edmonton! It's is funny the connections that you can still have around the world. God's timing is perfect and He lined up Roberts friend, Mike (yes, another Mike, i'll call him new Mike so that story doesn't get confusing) to be here while we were here. After chatting with him for a bit and getting to know him over the last few days he offered us a ride to M&R's orphanage. 
So, this morning New Mike, his driver, Mike and I headed out around 8 am and our first stop was at new mikes orphanage. I've been to a few of these types of orphanages over the past few years and have seen some tough living conditions for these littles ones but this one was rough. It's hard to describe my thoughts and feelings but I'll try; we were greeted (not with smiles) by dirty but beautiful little bare foot boys and girls.  We got a tour of the facility and it was very dark and dirty, an old sewage pipe sticking out of the wall and you can imagine the smell of human waste. We were told that the kids went without any food this morning due to no money.  There also were lots of adults around too (which didn't seem to fit) which made me question the management of the place. It broke my heart to see the way these little ones live. Are these the least of these the scripture speaks of?
We then headed off through Petionville which is a "nicer and cleaner" part of town. You can tell that there is more money in this area, not by much I'm sure. How about these people, are these the least?
We made it to GLA orphanage and I could tell by how swiftly Mike jumped out that he was excited and I could tell the anticipation in his voice!
The facility was very clean, well kept, smelled nice, organized and tidy. Well managed, well supported, I thought. 
One of the workers came out with a VERY cute Hatian girl, Mikes face changed, was filled with joy. 
We spent about half an hour with his little one on his lap, she was very comfortable with him, so much so she fell asleep. When it was time to go and Mike went to put her in her room she started to cry and grasped at Mikes neck with all her might, she just wanted to be safe in the loving arms of her father. It's no different than us wanting to be safe in the loving, gentle arms of our Heavenly Father! It was a tearful moment for not only Mike but also those witnessing it. Yes, it's true firefighters may look tough on the outside (some anyway) but we still can shed a tear with the best of them. It was a touching blessed moment and so grateful God allowed me to be apart of it. 

Mike and I also want to thank the rest of the team for graciously letting us skip out on work for the morning to do this. They were able to get a lot of bricks laid and the next concrete columns prepped and ready to pour, which Mike & I helped pour in the afternoon. 

God really showed us today that the least of these aren't only the dirty, hungry orphans, the healthy clean little ones but everyone who hasn't accepted Christ in their lives, wherever we are in the world. How are we as followers of Christ loving the least? 

Our intentions are good, our BO is not!

As I sit down to write tonight, the smell of smoke is in the air. Normally that could alert a firefighter, however here you get used to it. The normal practice here is to pile the garbage on the street, then burn what can combust. The rest that doesn't burn...well, stays on the street. They have no public systems here to take care of such things, so they "Debrouyait" (make do). And now, since I've walked to my room, to find out how to spell that word, I'm reminded of another aroma that that I've grown accustom to, the smell of sweaty stinky shirts. All of us have been doing our best to rotate shirts and wash shirts in the shower (or in the pool, thanks to Curtis). However the best attempts are not working out so well (especially for me). I watched as Dan grabbed a shirt from the pile of clothes we had dried. He got the shirt over his head, grunting loudly and making every effort to retreat from his newly found torture chamber, he pulled the shirt off and threw it on the floor. Looking up, he states firmly "that's not my brand". So in an attempt to make do, I filled the shower with water, by plugging the drain, added laundry soap (which my wife made me bring), and soaked/scrubed my shirts. Drying them in the sun I thought this will work well and I will have shirts of plenty. Well now I know why my wife tells me that she washes my work shirts in a separate load than all the other clothes, I still can't use them.  I would throw them in the garbage, but as you know already that's the side of the street, and if anyone decided to burn these shirts there may be a small explosion. I'll probably end up buying a shirt or two here, maybe I can get one like the one I saw today, with a superman symbol and the words "Super Mommy" written across the shirt. The big guy wearing it was obviously proud of his shirt (without knowing what it actually said). 

Our construction has carried along well today. We have 3 sections done with spots for windows, only needing the pillars poured in between and the top lentil above the window left to do in those sections. We also got allot done at the front of the structure and we got one pillar formed and poured. Along with more rebar columns being built it was a very productive day yet again. 

As today was still a holiday, due to carnival, the kids were at the construction site again. They helped again along with other members of the Bon Berger Church. We have built also some great relationships with this community of believers. One lady, Madina, from the church baked us a cake with the CMA symbol on the top. It was a very nice gesture. We have felt very loved by them and have seen their willingness to serve along with us, and into their community. This morning Durand had decided to have us walk to the church, which is only 1 Km away. On the way he pointed out different peoples houses from the church, and one lot that he said the house had fallen apart and they had helped demo. These folks are involved in helping their community, and teaching them the love of Jesus Christ. They have also been really great in trying to teach us Creole. At times I have been a bit overwhelmed, not just from the language, rather from my personal space issues.  I have been surrounded by people trying to teach me Creole trying to read me the book that I've been using to help me learn.  Very caring folks, but when I say "you're in my personal bubble", they just laugh. "What's a bubble?"  Plus with my fore mentioned problem, I'm not so comfortable with being so close to others.  Oh well they didn't say anything, in English or Creole (I think). 

Guess God is growing us in accepting other cultures here. We can look at the way others do things, and just reject them or try to change them. Or we can look at others, and love them for who God made them to be. Also remembering, changing someone on the outside does not matter. We need to share the good news of Jesus to others.  Then when God redeems them for His purposes, He will change them from the inside out. 

Romans 5:6-8

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Set apart?!

Today saw much work done, and friendships deepened. So, much more roses & sunshine today, and speaking of sunshine, a whole lot of sunshine. Did you know it's hot here in February, we've also heard it's been hot at home too. Inside, I was hoping that it would be -30 at home, just so we missed cold weather.  We could probably use some +15' weather here, it would make the work a bit easier than the +33'. Although I have a feeling the Haitians wouldn't like +15' much.

We popped the forms off our lentils this morning, they looked good. So blocks started being laid on those sections and the forms got transferred to the other lentils we've yet to pour. By the end of the day, we got 2 courses done on top of the lentils we poured yesterday, the lentils poured in the other spots we had up to the proper height. We will have one more section to pour the cement lentil, we had an accidental demo of one section on the front wall, and that had to be rebuilt from the floor up again. Our hope is to finish two walls before we leave next week, and that will use up all the building supplies that were purchased. So you can see from the pictures things are really starting to progress. 

We had a great time playing with the kids at the end of the day, and also working along side of members of the Bon Berger church the rest of the day. We are constantly working on our Creole, and teaching some English.  

Today was the second day of Carnival  here. It was apparently a national holiday. There were still many working, so I asked Durand about Carnival. He told me that Christians don't participate in Carnival.  It is a big party and we are set apart for God, Christians don't have any part in that. He even gave Dan a hard time about tapping his shovel to the music. Why?  Well if others see you, he explained, they may think you feel those parties are what life is about. I'm paraphrasing on what he said, but I can't remember his exact words. This may sound like legalism, however, I believe they're doing this as authentic worship to God. Maybe, we can learn from the example of our Christian brothers & sisters here, what it might mean to be set apart. Dan riding to and from the hardware store in the back of the pick-up stands out like a sore thumb here, so should we as believes be different by how we live and how we love one another. 

Romans 12:1-2;

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

John 13:34-35

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Not All Sunshine & Roses.

All in all, a good day with a good amount of work done, however like the title states, not all sunshine & roses. We had a really sluggish start to the day, no delco=no power tools (generator). At least not a generator that was working. We waited for some of the guys to try and fix it, until it was apparent they were having no success. So, "A" type personalities to the rescue, Dan & I started working on it. After going through the basics; Air, fuel & spark. We figured out it didn't have an air filter so....at least we know it's got air. Fuel to the carb, check. Spark is where we determined we had a problem.  Cracked spark plug, so off I go with the 76 year old Pastor to find the proper plug. While I went to do that, the rest of the team did a great job improvising with no power tools. Things took longer, but they got allot accomplished. Forms built, treated and in place, for the horizontal lentils, another section in the front of the church received the proper amount of blocks to prepare it for the lentil. They also prepared the batches of concrete we would need, minus glo (water). Meanwhile I am off looking for a spark plug, Haitian style. The vehicles were already in use so the Pastor secures us a Moto (Motorcycle taxi). So away we go to the local shops to find a plug; driver, pastor and I on the Moto. First stop no success, second shop nothing, the third shop we finally succeeded. These shops looked like improvised lemonade stands at best. Literally on display; Candy, sunglasses, cinderblocks, hair products and spark plugs. All three of us back on the bike and back to the church we go. We got the generator started right away, just to discover that the power was not getting to the plugs. 🙄 Luckily we have a power lineman with us, so Tim to the rescue now. We worked on it awhile longer, sorting a few things out, figured out how we would try and make it work, only just to find someone has come and changed things so we can't fix it. In the end by the time we got the generator working, we didn't need it any more. 

Afternoon had us adding water to our batches, and making concrete with shovels. Pouring the concrete into the forms with buckets. Final step, smoothing out the tops of the lentils. We got over half the lentils done that we need, so we should have more than enough work for everyone tomorrow. 

What I heard, and felt myself, was a frustration of being told we're doing something wrong constantly. Even when their way is the most backward, inefficient method we've ever seen. This is where the rubber meets the road though, we see the way they do things here, and want to fix them. Well they don't want fixing. They see the way we do tasks that they have "expertise" with, and they want to fix us. We don't want fixing. No one wants to be fixed.  It's in our very human nature to assume we're right, I am something of significance. Romans 1:21-22; "For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools "

God alone is good and when we love others we reflect the image of God. I cannot choose to love people that I struggle with, especially if it's a person trying to learn me on the proper techniques of a shovel. It's easy to love the cute kids that come to say hi to us at the end of each day, but it's impossible for us to love someone who makes my life difficult. However when I submit my life to Jesus, who loves so perfectly that he died for the World while we were still sinners, then I can love others the way God designed me. The youth group here was studying the following scripture on Sunday, her is an opportunity for you to read it and reflect on what does it mean. 

Ephesians 2:1-10; As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

The Lord's day, Haitian style

The sun was warm early this morning as we prepared for church. Sunday school started at 7:30, but we ended up opting out of that.  The streets were less crowded this morning, many less vendors sitting on the side of the road than normal. We made good time and didn't have the typical traffic that these folks work through most days. We arrived to the same building we have already been visiting the last few days, only this time we had different actions. I can say our intention for being there wasn't any different this morning than the other mornings. We have been intensionally trying to make our construction an act of worship to Jesus. Today started with greetings, to those we've met so far, and to some we just met this morning (this might not be the first time meeting for Dan & Art). We managed to find our seats eventually, which was embarrassing to find out that they had us right in the front row. Here we are a group of Blanc's on display (Blanc is what the locals call us on the street). We felt very welcomed and accepted. As they begin the service, the singing is becoming very vibrant and joyous. What tunes we do recognize, we piece together with what words we remember, "Power in the blood" was my favourite. We had our very own announcement, presenting the group from Canada, as if they didn't guess we were guests. They were extremely appreciative and welcoming.  There was a great message to follow, which Durand translated for us. The message talked about how we all can assist and love one another. And as our church is trying to assist their church, they should go out and help others. Jesus said these very same thoughts; Matthew 22:37-40 "Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

We came back to the hotel for lunch and a rest till evening service. Some of us attended and had a great time there also. In all the day was a fantastic opportunity to praise and worship our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. I can tell you what happens when you put to much draw on the power supply system, from a sound system and lights during an evening service. The lights and sound go out, but the singing keeps going (Somehow maybe even louder). Meanwhile hook up a generator in the back, fire it up, voila you keep on singing like nothing ever happened. That is what I appreciate about my experience today. It was not a performance, it was genuine worship to the King. Hallelujah!

Pwotestasyon

Well, I'm not sure what news you are seeing from Haiti, we have seen demonstrations ourselves, but none have been violent in our area thus far. Brother Durand has good connections with his job, and has known about the demonstrations and locations of them ahead of time. In knowing all of this, we knew about the protests today, and planned for a half day. We ended up with more of a 3/4 day, with a little progress on the building and a chance to clean things up for the church service tomorrow. It was an okay day, with someone still feeling ill, but we didn't have a huge workload today. A little frustration with our local contractor, however it wasn't anything to serious.  

At lunch, yet again, we had another fantastic meal with our hosts. After the meal Dan had the opportunity to give some toys to Brother Durand's wife, so that she can give them out into the community. If we hand them out, it can cause problems on the street. So we let the church hand them out, this will allow the church to be the champions in their own area. And in all these this we pray that God will receive the glory. 

Matthew 5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

Even as I write Dan is reading an email from the Canadian embassy regarding the political situation. We will continue to be vigilant as we are in public. At our hotel we feel quite safe with our walls and armed guards, so far. Pray for us regardless of how we feel. We have just discussed plans in case things escalate. We are in God's hands regardless of what happens.  

Blocks and mortar

As you would guess from the title, we started laying bricks today. Day started off well (we decided to bring everyone with us today) with cinder blocks, sand, cement powder and water being carried upstairs. From there we sift the sand, mix the cement with the sand, mix, add water mix, mix some more and some more. Then it's ready for use, meanwhile in 32'C heat you can watch the mortar dry even in the shade, so you add more water and continue to mix.... pretty much for the rest of the day. The mortar is placed under and between the blocks, and the whole wall is tied together with concrete pilars and horizontal lintels we will pour later, but we are busy making the rebar columns for already. This is difficult and fulfilling work. Today seemed a bit more somber, after all we didn't leave anyone behind, and start out with a big laugh. We had one person feeling a bit off health wise, nothing serious and he's already seems much better. I would imagine the excitement from starting a project has faded and now we see the amount of work ahead just to finish the construction that will use up the supplies that were purchased. A job of bending steel ties for the rebar columns that Dan and I were competing to do yesterday, we were  greatfully taking turns on. I could tell Dan needed a change when we heard him singing "I am slowly going crazy, 1-2-3-4-5-6 switch ...", you know the rest. Kelly, Nick & Robert did great building the rebar columns we need. Tim helped all over, which proved all the more we should never leave him behind.  Tim mixed mortar, hauled sand, helped build columns, mixed mortar, sifted sand, mixed mortar....  Dan, Curtis & I also rotated around doing various jobs, and yes at some points of the day, can you guess?  Mixed mortar. So far we've had a few interesting ideas and building practices, from our local contractor Pierre. Art has dealt with him very well, giving direction when it's necessary yet remaining silent on subjects that are of less significance. Art is a fantastic leader to have with us, it has been great to get to know him and work beside him.  We have a great team, and yet I would be neglectful to not mention the help from those in the church community here. Some have participated at various times sometimes for extended periods of time. This has given us many opportunities to learn more Creole and grow relationshis.   

One relationship I would like to share with you about is Brother Durand. He is the son/in-law of Pastor Furnell, and fills in whenever the pastor is away. Brother Durand (I'm not using his full name because I don't know who all see's this blog so I won't disclose his personal information) has taken time off his job, in a highly respected position work along side us, translate for us, feed us lunches, drive us to and from the hotel/church and even make a bed in the middle of the day because he felt his guests were tired. We have talked to him about his two week leave, and from what we understand this is not paid vacation or anything like that. He would probably be considered middle class here, but that doesn't mean his sacrifice of loosing pay will not affect his family. One part of our understanding we are trying to grasp is what is the responsibility of this church here and how much as Canadians should we help. We have been considering this. If you could please pray for us with some of these decisions, continue to pray for us as a team and please pray for our host brother Durand and his family. 

Work begins!

I thought that I would give Mike a rest from blogging as well as give you followers a break from Mikes thoughts. 
Today was another great day of building, while yesterday was building in the relational sense, today was the more of the physical. We really felt that God used yesterday to set the stage for the week, we started the day off with a joy that was from connecting with the fellowship of Bon Berger. 

We headed off in the usual Hatian way, either crammed in a small car or bouncing in the back of a small pick up. The material that we had ordered had arrived and we got straight to work, cutting, bending and tying rebar. It's kinda monotonous work as we made the rebar cages to prepare for the concrete columns we will hopefully pour.
We had worked for roughly an hour when Kelly shouts out "where's Tim? Where's Tim?!!" At first a sense of fear came over us but that went away quickly when the room echoed with laughter! We forgot Tim back at the Hotel!!! It was good to laugh together with Pierre (the contractor) and Aldolph (sorry the laughs were at your expense Tim and I really am sorry we left you) It looks like what we're learning about building relationships, we should be applying to Tim also. 

It made me think of how creative our God is and how uniquely he designed us and our emotions! It is important to laugh and take in the joys and fellowship with others. Those of you reading I ask you have you had a good deep down joy laugh today? This week? Today especially we learned a quick smile or laughter can really feed your emotional health as well as others even across different cultures and languages. 

Don't worry, we did send a truck back to the hotel to get Tim, he took it well. 
The rest of the day was good consistent work together and so far we have all got along and enjoyed each other's company. Everyone is doing really well with trying to learn kreol and interact with the locals. Especially Mike and Nick are great in this! 

My heart was full today with the bonds and friendships between us all and I Thank God for the unity between us as well as the physical work we were able to complete. 
Dan

Waiting to work

First day at the work site; work boots (bòt) on, water bottle filled, work gloves in hand and ready for a hard days work. 

First step: size up the job.  Plans gets laid out, discussion on different understanding of the plans, decisions made (through prayer) supplies ordered. 

Second step: well the first step actually took all morning so second step is lunch naturally. Our guests provided an excellent meal of beans & rice, and creole chicken. 

Third step: well I believed at that time we were just waiting for supplies to arrive, so our guest played home videos from the church. We saw the last teams good bye speeches and the lead pastors 50th wedding anniversary ceremonies. 

Forth step:  I should actually add to 3rd step that it would involve Kelly falling asleep in his chair (he insists it was a head bob), which prompted 4th step. Naturally when their guests are tired, brother Durand quickly went to work on making his guests feel comfortable. He set a bed up in the front room and insisted Kelly lay down his weary head. Kelly seemed quite surprised by this coarse of action, and maybe being a bit embarrassed. And even though he tried to explain he was alright, our host insisted one of us rest (genuinely a very nice gesture).  Art decided he would rather not offend our hosts, he took off his boots and layed down. 

Fifth step: with our foremen resting we were to set off on a guided tour. Lucan and Brothet Durand lead us through the neighborhood. It was neat to walk the streets of Haiti again.  So many friendly Bonswa's (good afternoon/evening) given back in return to us. Of course we Blanc's (white) received a bit of a following at some points. Little children laughed and smiled, trying out what English they knew "Good morning". At one point one little fella grabbed onto Tim's hand and walked with him. Such a different experience for all of us. They were proud to show us a water project, that had a public area where people come to gather water, wash clothes and themselves. Probably a bit awkward for our group, but not for them. 

Sixth step: at this point I was starting to guess the materials would not be arriving soon, so I asked if the materials would come today. Well the answer quickly identified there would be no 7th step (it's good cause I didn't want to try to spell 7th). Our supplies will arrive in the morning (probably afternoon Haiti time) and we will hopefully begin construction tomorrow. 

However God has a plan for all things, and he uses these "setbacks" for his purposes. Part of the morning we spent learning Creole from Lucan (I believe this would be his name) a plumber/tiler from the church. We went over items that we had with us; level-leval, key-kle, boot-bòt. So when they pronounce bòt, it sounds like boat. Being curious then, we wonder what is boat in Creole. Only problem was there were no boats around to point to. So now we start our charades; I'm making waves with my hands, Kelly is paddling his canoe and Dan is blowing the fog horn on his tug boat, all the while we are all yelling boat, boat, boat. This only produced a look of confusion on his face, pointing down at my feet he simply states "no, no, no...bòt". After we finished laughing at ourselves we finally figured out boat-bato. 

Our main praise item for the day was the conversations. We had great opportunity in the afternoon to sit down with Brother Durand and Pastor Furnell. Curtis was a great help in this discussion and many of the important issues that we needed to cover were talked about. Please pray for this continued conversation. Durand shared his hopes and dreams of developing a congregation that serves others and goes to other areas to help and share the gospel. 

We are here, safe & sound!

Well, we arrived just fine into PAP (Port Au Prince!).  We are set up in a very fine hotel in the Carrefour area, Auberge Du Quebec. This is a very nice place to stay, it seems quite safe and we feel privileged to stay here, not just saying that either.  Our ride here has given us all a real glimpse into how privileged a life we Canadians live. I don't say these things to make us as Canadians feel remorse, rather a great opportunity to feel thankful for the things we often take for granted. All of our first world problems that we face thus far should be weighed in light to how some face life each day. 

Well here are some of the stories from in between; we crowd off the airplane into a long line of immigration, then into a very crowded baggage area, into a very crowded parking lot, finally making to the vehicle we shoehorn all of us into a van... now take your ingredients mix until frothy and bake at 350•. Well that's at least how Kelly felt. Nicolas astonished a few of us by saying it was the most chaotic experience he's ever had. And that could not mean much to some, however he just finished a missions focused trip around the world, 11 countries in 11 months. Tim is taking it all in, excited to be here and willing to work. Dan (who I now believe was innocent of the smelly airplane) has really embraced being here again. He has a great relationship with Brother Durand and Pastor Furnell, so much so that they gave me a huge hug, thinking I was Dan. Art is prepared and ready to start work in the morning, buying materials, this marks 55 work trips so far in numerous countries. Robert seems to be having fun so far, seeing and commenting on cultural differences. And Curtis, well he just got here, we had a good car ride back with him from the airport. No baking.  I am busy blogging full time now, well maybe not but we'll see how often it is from here on. 

Airplane to PAP

We have met up with Art Wiens at the airport and are on our way in the plane. I've flown many times but have never had seats at the back of the plane. Now I understand why many don't want seats at the back, that's where the bathrooms are. If you want to see everyone who is on the plane, then by all means sit at the back, but my introverted self can't get away here. Guess I'd better just get used to it. After all it's just like all the other problems I was discussing yesterday, these are all "First world problems". We've been having a few conversations revolving around "trials" this morning. And as I write this Tim & Dan are discussing this same subject. We have been reading the book of James in preparation to this trip, and most of James ties directly to what we are discussing, real "trials". James 1:2-4 "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."  So as I consider how trivial our "trials" are so far, I know eventually there may be things that are actually a challenge. So this is preparation for when this comes about. May God give us the grace, love & patience to deal with whatever comes our way. 

Our intentions are good, our gas is not!

Well blog #2 and it's still first day! Airport went fine and we are about an hour out from Montreal. That's at least what it looks like on the little airplane moving on the map on the screen in front of me. We've met the fella from Edmonton who will be joining us for the trip.  Robert seems like a very nice financial advisor (not that financial advisors are usually mean), he has been on a couple work trips with Art in the past and we are glad to have him along. 

Sorry about the title, upon reflecting on the purpose of this trip; helping a church with a building, setting up meetings to create development, build relationships with other believers and hopefully advance the kingdom of Christ. I've also been reflecting on the discomforts of the trip; leaving our families behind (most of us anyway, Kelly decided to cheat and bring part of his with him), taking vacation time for the trip (which if you look at it is more time away from family), long flights, interesting driving conditions (with people screaming from the passenger seat "watch-out", and that was in the High River church parking lot), headrest TV's that don't work and of course the smells of someone else's bodily emissions.  Our intentions are still good, we are not dismayed by our newfound problems, although I was forced to move rows because my TV didn't work. This was rewarded however by the fact that the smells of my new row are also much  better...Dan?  

Regardless of what lies ahead I know that God has a purpose for all things. We have very large ambitions for our trip, but even if we don't succeed in any of them I'm sure God can use this to bring honour to his name. Yes our failures can bring honour to our Lord, because he may use it to humble us.  Even my failures in packing can bring honour to God. How?  Well my incompetent attempt to pack made my wife laugh so hard that I thought she might need Depends (no that is not a supposition I meant the brand Depends).  Her laughing at me is a good memory that I take with me now and will hold onto for many years to come. It was good to see her laugh like that, when we're so busy with the busyness of life we don't always take the time to reflect on the quiet moments that make up our life (or not so quiet the way she was laughing).

So as we perceiver on the road ahead we hope to keep in mind that the events (and even the smells) that await us can be used for God's purpose. To shape our lives by those around us and to serve others as Christ served. And yes we may face setbacks and even failures (like maybe I did by trying to use the word supposition in a sentence, when I'm not sure if that's the correct meaning (silly airplane mode, I have no Google (oh no I'm using brackets inside of brackets (I must be tired and should wrap it up)))).   If God can use my failures to bring him glory, then I excitedly await how I'm going to mess up next.  

 

On our way

Well we're in the van just about to hit the city limits. I've never blogged before, so much of this will be a learning (blog) experience for me. 

So far I'm just feeling sick. It's probably because I get car sick easily. I also feel like a techno dork, or that's at least what Dan will call me when he learns I'm blogging. We are all excited, but not the kind of excited of some. This is the old guy excited. "Yup I'm ready to go", so far conversations are revolving around Baptist church building, low fuel prices, falsely accused people in the news (not sure what that's about), more snow in certain areas than others and about blogging. Well is this what blogging is supposed to be about?  So far I feel more like a spy than anything. So here's some spy pictures to go along with my spy blogging. Over & out.