Would you like to live in Haiti?

Above, the pastor's wife in Haiti cooked meals in this kitchen for the crew. Boy, isn't that a disaster waiting to happen? It is hoped to remodel this kitchen for this dear lady later on. The guys tried to adjust the stove for her so the flame wouldn't be so dangerous. Below is another picture of the dilapidated kitchen of the pastor's home beneath the missionary apartment that is being added on.

Many of the meals consisted of rice and beans (left) and chicken with vegetables.

The guys making plans while others hold the cord for the light.

On Saturday afternoon, there was a "Christmas banquet" for everybody, after which Christmas gifts were given to the orphans and pastor's children.

Hungry boys eager for the feast. In Haiti, most people may only get one meal a day. So this rice and beans, meat, fried plantain, etc. is a real treat. 

More lovely food that the pastor's wife prepared.

The children received gifts of shoes, backpacks,  and other fun items.

What fun the children had going through everything! They loved those orange hats!

And the balloons!

Hats, yoyo's and backpacks!

Breakfast might consist of spaghetti! No kidding. When Jonathan called on one of the crew to pray the blessing on that breakfast of spaghetti, there was uncontrollable snickering! Spaghetti with boiled eggs sliced and onions. NO meat or spaghetti sauce. Some of the guys really couldn't eat that morning. 

The evening before Jonathan left home for Haiti,  there was some room left in his bag, so I sent along some extra fabric, lace and buttons we've been given, along with a few sewing notions such as needles and safety pins, and a kitchen towel set, which Jonathan gave to the pastor's wife for me. I wish we could have done more. We have so much and they so little.  Jonathan was told that in Haiti it is often the men who do the sewing/tayloring, and sure enough, it was the pastor himself who sews! I have to wonder if it's because the women are so busy just trying to put meals together and keep clothes washed by hand, etc.

The almost finished kitchen cabinets before they ran out of material.

Loading for the crew to go back to the airport and back home!

The boy leaning mournfully against the tree is Laqua, a dear 12-year-old boy that really loved having the crew. He isn't much bigger than our 7-yr-old Danny, but he wanted to help Jonathan with pulling wire through the conduit, etc. He was the crew's shadow. Laqua had been found abandoned when very small. He felt very, very sad when the crew left. 

A castle the crew visited on the way to the airport.

This is how a Christmas tree at the Haitian airport was decorated!

Snaps from Haiti

 Above: Mission Helps crew to Haiti: Jonathan, John Holderbaum, Michael and Jason, Dave Holderbaum, missionary Danny Flowers, and Dave Weaver

Below--part of the mission area, with the blue water barrel on top of a roof, feeding spigots with gravity flow water

A banana tree. We learned that a banana tree only produces one bunch of bananas and then dies! It takes about four years to grow a bunch of bananas, but one bunch might have hundreds of bananas. The banana tree sends out sprouts around it, so that when the main tree dies, other smaller trees are already growing up to take its place.

Electric cords running from the generator to the apartment where the guys were working. And laundry in the background, of course.

Our children were so excited to see this picture of their daddy with this huge leaf. Danny begged him to bring one home! And amazingly, customs let him bring one leaf in his suitcase. Which reminds me that just as the guys were arriving back to Florida, the computer systems for airports countrywide shut down. Thankfully, the guys were on a small plane and the officials had a list of all their names and info, and the crew was allowed through customs before the computer system came back on.

Some sort of pod from some tree...

This is how goats in Haiti get around--with a big wooden yoke around their neck to keep them out of places they don't belong.

Homemade car made out of water bottle with lids for wheels.

Amazing creativity!

An overloaded truck!! But typical scene down in the middle of town.

Hijacking electricity! Typical scene.

Village oven

Unloading the truck

Had to wear night goggles at night, and try to work by lamplight

 The well pump burnt out while the guys were there, on Saturday night! So they spent hours replacing it with another old pump, to be used until a new pump can be bought.

Jonathan at the pump situation

Don't reckon that Dave Holderbaum is just taking a nap!

"If He can hold the weight of the world, brother,

Don't you think that He can carry you?"

says the good song.

God's Glorious Frost!

I had to share this beautiful walk I had today. 

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 While working in the office this afternoon, I am uploading these photos that I snapped--just for the blog.

It was one of those days when I felt carried.

With only half a night's sleep--I didn't know how I could face the day,

but strength was given. 

Jonathan is a good truth speaker--helping me see what is my problem--

and what is NOT my problem.

Sometimes it is what is NOT our problem that is the problem. 

Because we make the mistake of thinking it is our problem--when it does not belong to us.

When you know the truth, you can throw the burden off. You can get out of your bed and face the day with cheer,

get lots of hugs and kisses from your hubby who has been away tooooo long, to Haiti, 

and pray together, him doffing off his hat before he leaves, and holding me close 

and surrendering our cares to the Lord. 

This was one of  those rare days when everything was covered with frost, and much of it did not melt all day, not even in the sunshine. When I went out for a late afternoon walk, it was still breathtakingly beautiful!

Don't fence me in!

But sometimes, God allows fences--circumstances that imprison us, situations that make us feel stuck.

But even those--

those ugly, miserable fences--

if we look at them with new eyes, 

are crowned with the glory of God.

Those beautiful, frost-covered trees were glorious. 

But weeds--the unkempt, the ugly, the dried up, unwanted, unloved, despised plants along the path of life--

do we have eyes to see God's glory in those unwanted people, those dried-up, prickly circumstances?

I couldn't help but think about these things as I walked in the crisp, fresh, frosty air, 

drinking in the stunning beauty covering all that brownness--

all that weediness along the path. 

And this--this was just a clump of grass,

until I got down low and snapped a shot from ground level.

When we are up on our high horse, all we see is brown.

All we see are those unwanted and despised people and circumstances.

We don't see anything but a clump in the dirt.

A clump of dry, brown, ugly grass--miserable, disgusting specimens of humanity, and frustrating situations.

But when we get down low, 

from the perspective of our knees, 

ground level,

the perspective changes. 

At the foot of the cross everything changes.

There is the glory against the blue sky. The beautiful whiteness--the crystal frost.

There is beauty in that clump of dead grass. There is glory in that despised person. There is hope in that hopeless situation.

Those earthen vessels--not looking like much--not very often displaying glory but more often earthiness--they are just that, earthy, in order that it be God who is seen and glorified.

God shining in our darkness.

God radiant in our frosty coldness. 

God shimmering in His glory--

when we find ourselves low at His feet.

Our Oldest Daughter Turns 18!

 Crystal celebrates her 18th birthday!

She made this beautiful and delicious mint icecream cake with brownie crust on the bottom.

The only problem was that the frozen crust stuck fast to the glass pan! It took Jonathan a long time with a big sharp knife to get even the first piece loose. How many calories did he burn wrestling with that cake?

Oops, Crystal said, the recipe did say to line the pan with foil so you could lift the cake out. 

First time making the cake--we learned a lesson--and laughed a lot! 

Crystal had made most of the supper, too, with wondrous help from the rest of us, while the rest of us cleaned, scrubbed, did dishes, and so on. I let the older children choose and make their own cakes and sometimes all or part of their birthday meals. I know that is different than most people--but hey, our children are very happy with the arrangement--as long as they don't have to do school that day or the dishes afterward!!  It works well!

I know that is one of those "I-don't-want-to-see-you" moments for me--actually I was having to try to make sure Sam got an appropriate  picture and not something with our heads cut off or something. Plus I thought Crystal looked so lovely in the above picture despite how I looked, so I am putting this in just for her...

and then to be fair, one with my eyes actually open!!

The gift Crystal is holding is a sewing box with some new sewing notions inside--

for her hope chest.

After all, she's 18 now. 

Yikes. Help!

We just thought a couple pictures of Crystal with her parents and grandparents would be special on her 18th birthday. 

She'd invited our pastor and his wife and children for her party, because she is good friends with Cheryl. I am thankful for my children to have good friends of all ages. Some of the best friends are ones older and more experienced than we, who can be a godly example and mentor. 

Above, Grandpa, Cheryl, Marvin, and Jonathan are practicing a song Cheryl had asked them to play for the Christmas program at church. 

Crystal tying Charisse's shoes.

The girls, Cheryl, and Jonathan with his baritone horn, practicing another song for Christmas.

Mission Trip to Haiti

 

 Below the Mission Helps crew boards the Missionary Flight Int'l airplane in Ft. Pierce, FL. 

enroute to Haiti.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 This is inside the plane. One side is used for stowing cargo. A lot of cargo is sent each trip to Haiti. This plane used to be an army plane! Now it carries everything from missionaries to cargo to horses and goats, they were told!

This is what the unfinished upstairs apartment for the Danny Flowers family looked like when Jonathan's crew of eight arrived. Here Dave Weaver and a couple other guys are laying out the cupboard plans for the kitchen. The other men got busy putting up drywall right away. 

This is the main living quarters on the mission compound. In the first story live the national pastor and his wife and four children. To the right in the wing live the eight orphan boys that the mission cares for, and further down the wing is where the Mission Helps crew stayed. There were no glass windows--it was open to the air--and to roosters, dogs, cats, voodoo off in the distance, and the sounds of prayer in the church at 5:00 in the morning!

 Here is the church where the early morning prayer meetings were held.

This is the school that the mission staffs with Christian teachers. 

At night, the men wore headlamps to work, and used the generator.

Jonathan's main job was to install conduit and to wire the apartment for electricity. He said the Flowers are not going to have it easy when they arrive in January to a still unfinished house. But the crew sure got a lot done while they were there. 

I believe the guys are working on sewer pipe here in the darkness.

More work. Three young guys traveled 8 hrs. from Port au Prince from GMC missionary Don Mobley's work. These young men were from Don's orphanage there. Don also loaned his truck for the purpose of this trip. Blessings on him and his people for their sacrificial support!

Building drawers for the cabinets. Hope to post more later. Jonathan hasn't even had time to show us all the pictures yet. It is just so good to have him home again. We missed him so much those ten days!