91 year old man needs a house

THE NEED IS STILL GREAT IN HAITI!!! I know that it has been almost five months since the earthquake that devastated all of Haiti, however the problems that surround that horrendous quake have not gone away. Many, many people in our village of La Digue, where Lifeline is located are still hurting in so many ways. The rain has now started and houses are still in much need of repair. Each day I hear more stories from the families here; one father telling me how his wife took their small one year old child and stood up almost all night because the rain was coming in on them and they could not sleep. I always try to be encouraging and smile when I visit in the village and many days we laugh but, today this 91 year old man came to me and actually told me "I didn't come for laughing, my house is broken and it is ready to fall down." As I went to see it, he had one side propped up with a stick to keep it from falling. Much of the mud was missing where the rain had washed it away from the sticks that the house was made of. My heart is breaking for this dear man who I am for sure has worked hard all his life and is old and feeble now and only ask that his house be repaired.

Even tonight as I took this picture he began telling me about how bad it was and I told him I promise you I am going to try to help you. You see when you are here and looking at them face to face when they are telling you all their problems it is much more difficult, because you know they are telling you the truth and you can't do anything to help them. In reality he needs a new house and his house is just one room, I am praying dilegently for the funds to come in to help with this project as well as a few more homes that are so terribly broken. Tonight, I am seeking God to open up the hearts of people that could help us in this endeavor!! I am for sure that it is difficult for people in the US to comprehend the vastness of this problem of one of the poorest nations in the world even before the earthquake of January 12th, but now is so much more, I ask you to take us upon your heart to help in whatever way you can and MAY GOD RICHLY BLESS YOU AND GIVE BACK TO YOU TEN FOLD. I am already claiming the victory, because God is forever faithful! Amen

Mountain Man!

To many in the US this picture may look like someone dressed up for a skit or a Halloween costume but, this is a very poor man that came down from the mountain today and was very much in need of our help. As you can see he is not a young man, and the shoes and clothes that he is wearing are very poor to say the least. He has walked a long, long way in shoes that have holes in the soles over tough terrain and rocks. He has come all that way just to ask if we could help him. His wife is very elderly and sick in the mountains. He had a scar that reached from his shoulder all the way around to his back. He explained to me that he wasn't able to work any longer and could not help his family. He was very hungry!

Our head cook came out and specially waited on this man at the gate because our feeding center was filled with school children at the time. She gave him a large plate of food to eat. After finishing the plate of food that he gulped down, our head cook Aline, so compassionately filled his metal bowl with cool water and packed it to him.

I was very touched as I watched one Haitian caring so preciously for another that was much more worse off. Sometimes, it takes us just taking a step back and allowing the goodness of God to take control. After eating, and helping him with some food, we quickly fitted him with a pair of shoes. Our gateman, Joseph, helped him put them on. 

He put a back pack, which was a burlap bag usually used on donkeys, around his head and left out to go back to the mountains with his family. The man continually thanked us over and over. God is so good for allowing us to be a small part in helping precious souls such as this dear man. Thank goodness that Lifeline is here!! TO GOD BE THE GLORY!!! EVERYTIME!!! ALL THE TIME!!! AMEN!

Receiving a blessing of Food!

Well, once again our GREAT and AWESOME GOD has chose to show up for the people in Haiti!!! Through much hard work and I am for sure miraculous connections, a very special donor has chose our mission to bless. Our food was getting low in the warehouse and I had received the word that containers were on there way but, I continued to work on Faith and helping the needy with what food we could give out. I had no idea just when we would receive anything because in Haiti everything is flexible and we are never for sure when things will arrive, if they do. Pastor Rony, our mission's Pastor had asked me to preach on Sunday and so on Saturday I was studying and working on the message that God would have me to deliver to the people. In this message I spoke about God not allowing his children to go hungry, and it was in giving that we receive, and God was the one that had the greatest storehouse that we could every imagine and he was going to provide for his people. Now this was around one'clock Saturday Afternoon when I completed the message. Then about 5:00 Saturday evening a wonderful sound came up our road and the men of our village came running in, YES!!! It was the big truck hauling our food supply that was so wonderfully welcomed! I really couldn't believe what was happening!! I began to tell the Pastor about the message I had just prepared and how God had answered this prayer! We were both jumping up and down and literally laughing out loud for joy and the goodness of God and of course for those special ones that had a hand in bringing this very precious gift of beans and rice to OUR MISSION! Well, everyone was so excited and many said they had never had this much beans and rice come to us. BUT THEN...(you know in the word of God when there is a BUT, something more is going to happen) Well, I went ahead and preached on Sunday the message God had given me and explained to the people what had happened. Then on Monday, ANOTHER, YES I SAID ANOTHER container of BEANS and RICE was delivered to us!!! I had just told one of our little Haitian boys (15 years old), that one day we might have enough to feed all of our village!! and spread it out to many, many more! And as many of you know we do feed a great number of people already but, during this devastated time of this earthquake, the number has rose immensely. I JUST WANT TO THANK ALL THOSE RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS MIRACLE AND MOST OF ALL FOR GOD'S HELPING HAND IN BLESSING ALL OF OUR PRECIOUS PEOPLE OF HAITI!!! With great tears of joy in my heart, THANK YOU!!!!

Having Fun!

Sometimes it would be nice just to allow the Haitian people to have some fun. We could have never dreamed how important it was to have a soccer field where the people of the village come and laugh, play, and enjoy themselves. Recently we had the most fun because the boys of the village were playing soccer and it began to rain.

As the rain poured down we expected them to quit and go home. Instead they were having so much fun that they just continued to play. The rain came down so hard that the boys were slipping and sliding everywhere. It was so funny watching them slide through the mud after the soccer ball. I think they laughed harder than I have ever seen before. Thank the Lord for little things in life that can bring such joy to our lives. Don't overlook those little things in your life today. Let every moment be special and let it bring joy to you.

Saving one baby at a time!

Today we had a lady come from the mountain with a newborn baby.  The baby's mother died giving birth to the baby and the father stayed in the mountain to work.  The baby was extremely small and crying. I asked what had they been feeding her and the lady explained that they had been crushing up cookies and soaking it in water and feeding it to this newborn baby girl.  I couldn't believe what I had just heard, but I guess in desperation, one does whatever they can. I bathed the baby and found an infant love bundle that had a new t-shirt and some hygiene items and went and made a fresh bottle of baby formula milk and wrapped the baby up holding her close and fed her. She was comforted and quickly fell asleep. After speaking with this kind lady that was trying to assist in this baby's welfare, I asked her how long she was going to be here. She said for five days.

I asked her to bring the baby each day to visit so I could keep a close watch on her. Then God worked the plan out!!!  A nurse came by the mission to give me some paperwork that runs a clinic, and  I ask her if she could look at this infant. She was more than willing to check this small infant and assess her situation. She also conselled the lady as to what she needs to do because they will be returning to the mountain soon. Thank You Lord for being on time everytime!!!! It made a difference in this child's life.
Just like the starfish story, it made a difference for this one!
Praise the Lord!!!!

National Flag Day

National Flag Day in Haiti brings great pride and celebration!  Many Haitians show were showing their pride for their country after so much devastation has been endured. They have faced so much but are amazingly resilient.  Arcahaie is the area where the celebration was held and for those who have not been to Haiti, that is where our mission is located.  The President of Haiti came and spoke along with others, many bands came to play, they sang their countrie's song and there was a great display of their country's flag. It was truly an exciting celebration.

Kid's Club in Action

It is a Hallejuah time in Haiti!! Not only is our Church growing and doing well but our Kid's Club is 150 and counting.  More and more young people are coming to the gate at Lifeline wanting to come in and learn about Jesus!! They are walking long distances to be a part of this enjoyable time on Sunday afternoon.  They are learning scriptures in the Word of God, they listen to a story in the Bible and then they sing praises to the LORD. They are also learnihg about doing drama acting out some of the stories as well as working on a craft. God is forever faithful to continue to help us with teens that want to help
by taking their precious time and taking great pride working with this group of young people. GOD IS SO GOOD!!! We can shout this from the mountain top!!  Amen

Today was a wonderful day for our Lifeline cooks!!!

Today was a wonderful day for our Lifeline cooks!!! We presented them with some very much needed new aprons that were donated by Esther Rule and others from Kentucky. The cooks were extremely happy to receive these professional aprons that will last them for some time!!

They were smiling at each other picking out their favorite color and then calling out "Bon" which means GOOD! They are some of the hardest working ladies at the missino and they cook to feed over 3,000 children each day now. Thank you for having a heart to remember these ladies in Haiti and their special needs!!

May God richly bless you for this kindness that you have shared!!

Update from Haiti

I apologize because you haven't heard from us for a while but we have experienced a little difficulty with our camera and I wanted to send pictures to show the work being done. We have been extremely busy, still rebuilding homes in the village and also completing the soccer field walls as well as a canal that will turn the water so the soccer field will not be washed away. Even though the work is going on, the Haitians have already been utilizing the soccer field playing a few games of the evening. It is extremely enjoyable to sit on the side lines and watch as they compete to win!

Although we are in much need for a large warehouse for food we have just extended our small building to make a warehouse to prepare for the food that is on its way. Many are still coming needing extra help, even though it has been four months since the earthquake, the situation here is still devastating and the people are still suffering from the earthquake. It has been miraculous to see God's Hand at work as He has supplied the needs to help so many with medical help, food, and of course God's Word that is so Faithful! Please continue to do what you can to help and I will send pictures to update you as soon as possible.