Mission Trip to Haiti: Day 2

Haiti does not participate in daylight savings time.  Therefore it becomes light around 5:15am.  At first I didn't know how to respond to this, but I will say it makes it much easier to wake-up in the morning.

After the rest of our crew woke up, we joined a group from Ohio that was working on homes the week prior and headed to church.  Since it rained a lot the night before the roads were wet and difficult to maneuver.  When there is a puddle of muddy water in Haiti, it's best to go around it since you can't safely assume that the potholes in Haiti are shallow.  Many of them could be classified as craters.  Church was only about 6 miles away from the Villa, but it took us over an hour to get there.

When we arrived we were escorted to the very front.  It was fun to see the church already have the sound system that we gave them the night before up and running.  They had us stand up, and thanked us for our hard work and contributions to the church.  Songs were sang, some of which we knew the english version to, and a sermon was given.  At the end of the service, communion was given.  It was a piece of a cracker and actual wine.  The church sustained extensive damage during the earthquake and as a result had to be leveled and will have to be rebuilt.  As of right now, they hold church on the same ground the original church was, but underneath a tent.

After church, we went to a hotel for lunch.  All the rest of our meals were held at the Villa for the rest of the week, but on Sunday's the kitchen staff has off to be with family and worship the Lord.  When we arrived we walked into a room with A/C.  It felt great.  Right off, we could tell this hotel caters to Americans, even the menu's were in English.  What we didn't know however was the amount of time it was going to take to eat.  It became apparent that the restaurant did not have enough plates for all of us to eat at the same time.  Thus, one table would eat, then the next, and so on and so forth.  It ended up taking us 3 hours to eat lunch.

On our way home, we stopped by a street market so people could collect some gifts for supporters and family members.  It was an interesting site, and it took a lot of convincing on my part to persuade the street sellers that I did not have any money on me. I remember one conversation with an individual who  said, "You do to have money on you.  You have Jesus in your heart."  I was a little taken back by the comment and told him that it's true that Jesus is in my heart and he gives me joy, but the joy in my heart given to me by Jesus did not give me money to buy something from him.

Picture of the Street Market

When we got back to the Villa, the rest of our team arrived from the airport.  Half of our team left on Saturday with me, and the other 4 came in on Sunday.  They too, had a tight connection to make in Miami, but they weren't as lucky as we were.  Their luggage did not make it to Haiti.  Luckily most of it would arrive the next day.

The rest of the day consisted of resting and preparing for the week ahead of hard work and sharing with the Haitian people.

Mission Trip to Haiti: Day 1

I woke up at 3:45am to get to the airport at 5:15am.  As soon as the alarm went off I knew it was going to be a long day.  Getting through airport security was a piece of cake.  We had enough time to get a last minute breakfast from, of all places, TGIF.  Our flight to Miami was delayed a couple of minutes which worried us because we had a close connection, but I guess the pilots opened the throttle because we wound up arriving before than we were scheduled to.  Luckily too, our flight from Miami was delayed 10 minutes, which gave time for our bags to make it to the new plane.  Both flights were smooth and comfortable.

As soon as we landed, the team could tell "we weren't in Kansas" anymore.   The Port-au-Prince airport was badly damaged in the Earthquake from last year.  They have one terminal open.  When you get off the plane, your escorted through a non-airconditioned hallway to a security checkpoint where you wait to be bussed to customs and baggage.  Even though most of the airport is still standing, much of it is uninhabitable, and thus customs and baggage claim are now in an old airplane hanger.

Customs and baggage claim we fairly easy to get through and once we walked out of the old hanger, the fun started.  As soon as we walked out, we were swarmed with people trying to carry our baggage for us talking to us in a language that was foreign to most of us.  We were able to find our driver and blindly followed him to his car.  It was half parked on a sidewalk and we watched as Haitians tried to fit 8 bags of clothing and work materials and 6 people into a 90's Toyota 4runner.  At first the group didn't think it was all going to fit, but we soon found out that Haitians can make anything work.  We got in the car and hung on for dear life as we headed toward "The Villa", the place we would be staying for the next week.

As we were driving, we all rededicated our lives to the Lord, as we learned that Haitian driving laws are merely just a suggestion.  Seatbelts are not used, nor are blinkers, speed limits, stop signs, red lights, and even driving on the correct side of the road.  It was interesting to say the least.  Right out side of the airport sits a decent size tent city with a couple of out houses near it.  The smell is strong, but the sight of it really broke my heart.  Street sellers were everywhere, and people were coming up to the car asking for money.  We passed several similar sights, the destroyed capital, and even a dead guy on the side of the road before arriving at the Villa.  In terms of distance, the Villa is about 10 or so miles away from the airport, but on an average day it takes about an hour to travel to and from because of traffic and road conditions.  Many of the roads were nothing but dirt and large rock/rubble.

When arriving at the Villa, the site of the outside is not much for the taking, but once inside the gate the inside was surprisingly well taken care of.  Luckily the Villa managed to escape the earthquake with not a lot of damage.  We were able to unload our stuff, adjust to the temperature and rest until dinner.  After dinner, we were able the pastor of Portial Leogange Evangelical Church was able to stop by and we were bake to give them the prattle sound system the team brought down for them.  It was fun getting to train them how to use it and see the excitement on their faces. 

The view from the outside gate of the Villa

The view from inside the Villa

When the night was beginning to come to an end, it began to rain.  Haiti is beginning to enter their rainy season, and I was grateful for the rain.  Showers their don't have much water pressure and we could get hot water to come out of any faucet while we were their.  With that knowledge, a fellow team member and I put on our swimsuits and went out side to shower in the rain.  It was the best water pressure and warmest water I showered in all week.  It was refreshing and just what I needed before I went to bed on top of my covers praising the Lord for allowing me safe travel and the chance to be the hands and feet of Jesus to the Haitian people.

Amazing opportunity!

Briyana and I were blessed to just learn about a great opportunity for you and for us.

Through the generosity of a couple wanting to help current missionaries who are raising support, One Mission Society has offered me the chance to MULTIPLY new gifts toward my missionary support.

If you are considering supporting us, or considering increasing your support, now is the perfect time.

Between now and August 1 I have $5,000 available as a matching gift for anyone who gives new regular support or gives additional regular support toward my missionary support. The way this works is noted in the following example:

Example:

If Mike decides to begin supporting us for $50 per month, then OMS will put an additional 4 months worth of support in with Mike’s gift. This would mean Mike’s first $50 gift would become a $250 gift to our support.

Example:

If Suzanne decides to change her $25 per month pledge to $50 per month, then OMS will put an additional 4 months worth of support in with Suzanne’s gift. This would mean Suzanne’s first $50 gift would become a $125 gift to our support.

We earnestly value your prayers and support, and couldn’t help but share this amazing opportunity with the people we love and cherish.

God Bless,

Brent & Briyana

TWIST

This Week In Short Term

Ecuador

We have a team of 13 at Camp Pallatanga doing a cooking class until April 14.

Haiti

We have a team of 2 working with our missionaries at Cap Haitian until April 22.

We have a team of 7 in Cap Haitian doing radio distribution/evangelism with the Resounding Hope project.

We have a team of 11 going to Cap Haitian April 16-23 to help with projects at the Seminary.

April E-Newsletter

Briyana and I wanted to share our latest e-newsletter with all of you.  We send out a monthly e-newsletter updating everybody on our ministry and lives.  If you would like to be added to our mailing list.  Email us at bmorrell@onemissionsociety.org.

God Bless,

Brent & Briyana

TWIST

This Week In Short Term

Caribbean

We have a prayer team in the Caribbean from March 17-25

Haiti

We have an evangelism/prayer team of 17 going to Jeremie, Haiti March 25 - April 2

We have a team of 13 going to Port Au Prince, Haiti to build a home in the Homes For Haiti project March 26 - April 3

Thailand

We have a prayer team going to Thailand March 31 - April 10 

Urgent Prayer Needed!

Over the last couple of days OMS staff have not been able to contact the coordinator in one of our security-risk countries in Africa.Today his phone was answered by his brother who informs us that our coordinator has been arrested, imprisoned now for several days, and is being interrogated regarding his activities in the country.

Please be in prayer for our colleagues in this difficult circumstance.

TWIST

This Week In Short Term

Haiti
We have a work team of 10 in Cap Haitian March 1-10

Ecuador
We have a team of 6 going to Guayaquil March 12-19

Prayer is SO cool!

This past weekend Briyana and I went on a marriage retreat.  It was amazing.  It provided us permission to relax, bond, and develop a closer relationship during a stressful semester for us.  On Sunday, the retreat had us do a really cool devotional on prayer and it got me to thinking how cool prayer really is.

Too many times we forget how powerful prayer actually is, and it seems that all to often Christians forget how to pray.  In James 5:13-16, James gives us a great outline of how to pray.  We are to pray for our troubles and concerns, praise the Lord for our Joys and praises, ask for help and healing for illness and pain, ask forgiveness for our sins and offenses, and ask for help for anything else that bothers us.

As a missionaries who relies on the Lord and the support of others, we take great joy at the beginning of every month praying for our supporters.  How can we best pray for you as you support us in our ministry? 

You can contact us by leaving a comment or by emailing us at bmorrell@onemissionsociety.org.

God Bless,

Brent & Briyana

One Weekend

We've posted about this event a couple of weeks ago, but wanted to remind those of you that were interested in it still that it's not to late.  Here is a blurb about the event from our head of Mobilization, Paul Cox.

It's not too late to send someone to this weekend's OneWeekend event!  Our prayer is that the retreat will deepen their relationship with Jesus and help them explore what it's like to be a missionary.   

Here are some of the subjects that will be covered in the general sessions, small groups and one-on-one time with the missionaries:

•    What does it mean to have God's calling? 
•    I feel a tug to the nations.  What should I do next?
•    I have gifts and interests that I could use in another culture.  What are some ways to plug in?
•    What do I do about a mountain of school loans? 
•    The ministry of raising support.  What does it look like? 

The retreat schedule includes worship, training sessions, small group discussions at tables, prayer, and Q&A with missionaries.  For more information and/or registration information, contact Paul Cox at pcox@onemissionsociety.org.