JiHM

Larger Than Life

2010-03-04T15:32:00.000-06:00

Hi from Haiti,

Thursday morning.

I do apologize for being out of touch past week or so. I have been so busy I have not had time to even have a cigarette. (That is for those of you who think I am losing my sense of humor.)

We are in a phase of going from 5am to midnight and very, very busy. Part of that going though INCLUDES family and the needs they have and the time they need. We also have had a couple of large groups here helping so much. Currently, we have friends from Seattle. Yesterday they sorted several thousand pounds of food that we had donated to us.

Today my board of directors arrives. They were originally scheduled to come two days after the quake but rescheduled for today. Because of the air mess, they are coming in 5 different flights at 5 different times so we will be doing some running. Add working with the group here, having a family and making a rice run for 100 boxes of rice...it will be quite a day.

Last night, a dear pastor friend of ours, Pastor Victor Honorat was taken to his Heavenly home. Pastor Victor is the pastor of the church that our church, Victory Bible church rented for 4 years. Pastor was a bear, over 400 pounds, 5' 9" but a very powerful man of God. I have not met many better in my life. He pastored the Wesylan Church, has 10 children, runs a school and....................was Jesus every day. I can't tell you how many times I would "catch" him in Cabaret, preaching and loving on the homeless people, when nobody was watching.

The Quake destroyed his church and so they held worship on the front steps every Sunday from 6-9 a.m. Every Sunday, as I would drive by on the way to our church, he would be there preaching and always would wave to me, while preaching. Then at 10 a.m. he would lumber down and come to our church. This morning, the villages are shedding large tears for a large man who did a large work for a large God. Pastor Victor's reward will be large. (My one prayer is they have coke in Heaven.)

We will be trying to help his family is some small way-- we are already reaching out to his church to see what we can do. They are only a half mile from our church. Pray for a very hurting family, a very distraught congregation, and a village in mourning.

Now some better news. This past Monday we started, are you ready for this, might need a drum roll..... We started our permanent feeding program at the New Roads Garbage dump. We have been feeding them when possible off and on but now, as of this past Monday, 80-some people will eat 7 days a week, until Jesus comes, if God wills.

A young man named Alex from Seattle Washington, had a dream to make this happen. He started a fund raiser called "Simply Haiti" where he challenged people to eat only rice for one week, then save the money to feed the folks at the dump. What he didn't know when he planned this fund raiser last year for the week of January 11th, was that the next day an earthquake would hit, putting his fund raiser on the front page. He hoped to raise $5,000. In a month, this project raised $30,000 with every penny going to feed these people, every day, for a very, very long time.

This week I have been to the dump every day. Tears were hard to fight back as, FOR THE FIRST TIME IN THEIR LIFE, they knew they would eat every day. Their whole attitudes have changed so positively. Life has just handed them the golden goose: they get to eat. What a joy to be a part of this. We went from providing 10% of their daily needs, to 100% concerning food and water. We have already been bringing a truck load of water in weekly. Thank you Alex, thank you Seattle, thank you God for loving these folks and allowing us to be Jesus to them.

I wish I could go on and on for what God is doing. Because so much has changed, this weekend the board and I will be planning the next couple years out. The one thing we know has not changed and that will not change now or in the future is what we were doing on January 11th: Giving hope to the hopeless! Preaching the Gospel, making disciples of Jesus, and teaching them to do the same. Some of the rules changed, the game is the same.

Someone said to me we have to make sure we are on top of our game because all the new donors of relief will expect this and that and.................I simply said, we have always done it right, we have always been good stewards, we need to change nothing. Just keep being Jesus to these folks. Only difference may be, instead of feeding 500 with our fish and loaves, we may now be feeding 5,000.

Please don't stop praying, don't stop helping our relief fund, don't forget our general fund. We are rolling and have everything at top speed. We can't afford to slow down a bit, especially because of a lack of funds that God has already placed in our pockets for this.

I am off (no not mentally) physically I am off to get rice then airport runs then meetings tonight from 6-9 and then driving and then maybe some sleep. Pray for this weekend and the next few days. This will be an exciting time for all of us. Tuesday, I promise to take a day off, maybe even Wednesday.

Love you guys, and do me a favor will ya? E-mail me and tell me about your "Anderson" that God has used you to reach out to this week, or last.

tominhaiti

Anderson, The Man, Not The City

2010-03-03T18:19:00.000-06:00

Let me tell you about Anderson. Anderson is a young man who graduated high school. He went to college and got a degree in computer science and accounting. He was hired at a spaghetti factory. He got married and had a beautiful baby.

In other words, he has done it right, every step of the way. He is also a devoted follower of Jesus. I spoke at his mother's funeral 7 years ago. Anderson is 31 years old. He calls me poppy.

The earthquake ended his job and for 44 days he has been looking for work, with no luck. He has been living under a piece of plastic with his wife and baby, for 44 nights. Today he stopped by to check on "his poppy." What I saw was a look of defeat, a look of hopelessness, a man who has done it right, but now sitting with nothing, not even a bed for his family.

My heart broke and I knew right then, right there what I needed to do, what I had to do. I asked him if he would come to work for us. He looked up with shock and said "what, are you serious?" I said yes, could he start tomorrow morning at 9am. I then gave him some MRE's (meals ready to eat) a small advance of pay and off he went.

I went in my room and wept very hard. I thought of a man, who has done it right, sitting on a tap tap, with some money in his pocket, food in his hand, and a job. The first thing I said is "this is one of the reasons I am in Haiti."

Some might say, is that normal business, giving jobs because you feel sorry for someone? No, it is called giving hope to someone who deserves a break, and can fill a hole in this puzzle.

I already have a job description for him. It will involve a couple different hats. He will set up some computer files on our relief efforts recording food distributions. He will work with my board member Dan Neal helping with the website from Haiti. He will do ordering for our church and home for supplies and such. He will be contacting and working with some organizations that may have supplies for us and...............much more.

Anderson, a man of God, doing it right, part of our team. tominhaiti

Anderson, the man, not the city

2010-03-03T12:46:00.001-06:00

Is Matthew 25?

2010-02-25T15:49:00.001-06:00

hi,

Thursday afternoon, somewhere in the bermuda triangle

This morning we sadly dropped off 13 friends from Minnesota who have been with us this past week. What a great group of dedicated, loving people.

Here are some goings on for the past few days:

New Tent: Monday we put our NEW white tent up and yesterday we had our first church service, from 3-6 pm, with over 300 people in attendance. It was a wonderful time of dedication and praise.

Earlier yesterday, starting at 8 a.m. we had our first clinic at our mission. A group of doctors and volunteers from Cincinnati, Ohio, with the organization Matthew 25, spent 6 hours treating over 200 people, all who needed medical care. It was a wonderful day but we were very tired when we arrived home about 6:30 p.m. last night.

Tents: We are working hard on finding tents to ship to Haiti. We are looking to buy 350 tents for our families. Please pray we can work this out and get these folks in a tent before the rains start, in the next few weeks.

Speaking of Tents: Just outside our suburb of Bon Repos, on the way to our ministry area, a new Port au Prince is springing up. Daily probably 50 "houses" are springing up. When I say houses, I mean sheets tied to sticks or cardboard walls.

Last week every time I drove by the new city, I prayed to God. I knew I had the right motive for wanting to visit these families, but I didn't have a reason. What I mean by that is I didn't feel good about walking into the middle of all these people, not knowing anyone. People would think we were there to pass something out or from the UN and we might draw a big crowd, more than we wanted.

I kept praying and Tuesday I found out that several of our leaders from Merjay have built these little "houses." I was thrilled. This weekend we are going in to visit our friends, make new friends and begin to be Jesus in this new tent city. I am ready to call it our 6th point of light but my board may have some questions first. Please pray that we will be accepted and be able to be the hands and feet of Jesus to these precious people.

A special thanks to a young man in Seattle, named Alex, who did a fund raiser to make the dream of having a feeding center at the dump become a reality. Thanks to all my Apple state friends who were part of this.

Power: After 43 days without any city power, yesterday it came back on. And today we have had it most of the day. Praise God for this!

The beat goes on: After a couple days of rest, Sunday is church followed by a team from Seattle coming to visit for a week and do ministry. We are very excited about Pastor Jason and his wife bringing another team. Three days after this our board of directors comes so I will be hopping for a couple weeks. Just the way I like it.

Generally speaking: Our general fund was about $2,000 short for January and February with so much focus on earthquake relief. Our general fund suffered and we need to pray this in quickly. Disclaimer: There are 3 days left in February so maybe, just maybe it will come in and we won't be short. Remember, we had a full slate of ministry and expenses before the earthquake and all that still continues.

Thanks: Thanks for all you are doing for God through this ministry, thanks to our Minnesota friends, thanks so much to Matthew 25 and................to God for allowing me and my team to be Jesus in Haiti, tominhaiti

Will It Ever End?

2010-02-23T22:10:00.001-06:00

It is 2am and we just experienced 2 pretty nice size shakers. Yesterday one hit also. I am sitting in my room with a couple young ones, scared out of their wits. The rest of the families, including most of our 15 guests from Minnesota have taken their cots outside in the yard.

Tonight they were 5 minutes apart, the first one being one of our bigger ones, top 5 probably. Seems odd, we have a big family talk about the quake, then have 3 shakers since then and the kids are scared out of their wits, again. It will end someday, right? Just when I think things are getting back to normal, it happens again.

Monday morning we got our tent up. It is big and it is beautiful. One of our visitors said "I did what I always wanted to do, I built a church." We had our visitors and about 35 of our men working and it was a great morning. We then moved the pews from the old tent into new tent and didn't even fill half the church. We have 33 pews, 10 ordered for this week and get this; we need about 35 more to fill the tent. Do the math, 35 x 70, well, too late and too tired for me to figure but, if you want to help, we won't turn you down. I believe with 80 pews, with 15 or so in a pew, we will have them all full. We may have to put both tents together at some point. All for the Glory of God, to know Him, and to make Him known.

I have to tell you I was touched emotionally today. The ladies from our Minnesota group met with our Esther girls for a few hours. They talked and shared their quake experience. Tonight during our time of reflections, the ladies told me that our girls at the mission all basically said the same thing, "the quake hit, we did this, and then......Tom came."

What a thrill to be able to be the one who went. Thank you for allowing me to be here, being Jesus for these folks. I can't put into words what God is doing and what is happening on a spiritual level. I can't help thinking of those great words "for such a time as this." I do believe that God has prepared our ministry; our teams back home (you) our board, my staff, our church and my family, for such a time as this.

We are ready, whether the earth shakes or not, we are not going anywhere. I gotta go. I have a sermon idea I gotta work on entitled: "I got a home just over the hilltop that will never shake."
As I write this, millions of Haitians are awake, standing around, wrapped in sheets and blankets, wondering the same as me, will this ever end? Take care, tominhaiti

Weekend at Bernie's

2010-02-22T07:18:00.000-06:00

Dearest Friends,
Monday early

There is so much going on in my world, I can hardly hang on, I can hardly hang on.
Last night for the first time we sat the 20 older boys down and let them share their experience, when the quake hit, their feelings afterward and much more. It was an amazing couple hours to listen to them share from their hearts what they felt.

For a dad, tears came a few times but especially when several of them said "the house started to rock, we ran outside and all we thought about was poppy was gone by himself. Then we saw the truck pull up and we said thank you Jesus."

Amazing insight was gained listening to them. Matthew said "I know you won't like what I am about to say but, the earthquake was a good thing for me, I became a man, and I learned to appreciate what we have and what we need to do."

Roger said "just sitting here tonight made me realize why God spared our family and we had shelter and enough food. God needed us strong to help everyone else."

For the record: At 5 a.m. this morning another aftershock, the first in a week or so.

Victory Bible Church: Yesterday the bus we rent broke down so we had no transportation. We still had nearly 600 people, having to walk a great distance. It was a great service. God was glorified and the body was made stronger.

The NEW Victory Bible church: As you know, we had been trying to start construction on our 2 story church building. We could not figure out why we had so many obstacles. Then the quake hit and everything made sense. Yesterday, we drove to Missionary Flights International hangar and picked up a 2200 pound tent, our new church. We have the wheels in motion to set it up this morning, with the help of our visiting team from Minnesota.

This tent is much larger than our current tent. We will use the current tent for junior church and school, and the new larger tent just for church. We are so excited over this!

Matthew 25: This organization named after this great Bible passage, will be here with a medical team Wednesday, doing a clinic, on our property. My staff today is passing out 200 tickets to sick people who need medical attention. Pray for these 24 doctors as they minister.

Weekend at Bernie's: The day after the earthquake I was walking the village, I saw a man who was not part of our church but I went out of my way to go see him. I introduced myself and asked his name. He told me it was Bernie. I then listened as he shared his story about the quake and then showed me his broken down house. I never said where I was from, I never invited him to church, and I never mentioned the name of God to my knowledge. The following week Bernie came to church, he accepted Christ a few weeks later and now his whole family sits in the 2nd row, every Sunday. Bernie wants to be baptized and become a member of our church.

I say that for this reason, I didn't have to invite Bernie to church, didn't have to preach to or at him, didn't have to even mention God's name. I just had to care. I didn't have to mention God, he saw God. Maybe there are people in your life that you are so busy inviting to church and telling about God that you are forgetting to show God. Just saying...

So much more going on but gotta head out to the mission, we've got to get a church up. tominhaiti

For Contributions
Jesus in Haiti Ministries, Inc. Suite 155 10214 Chestnut Plaza Drive Fort Wayne, IN 46814

Another story from Haiti.....To help you know how to pray

2010-02-20T17:58:00.001-06:00

Hi from Haiti,
I received this in an e-mail today and wanted to share it with you. All I can say is wow. How did our Roger and our Jony get in this man's story? As I read this, it brought tears to my eyes. I hope it touches you as it did me. tominhaiti

Steve Spellman is a missionary with Reachglobal to Brazil.

STEVE---FROM HAITI
Day 12-"So, where were you when...?"

There is no need to finish that question...no need at all. Unlike some TV or world event that effects many, if
not most- this was a moment, some 40 seconds, that every single person in Port au Prince remembers, and
will remember, for the rest of their lives. Today, I'd like to share some of their stories. We can get caught up
in the food distribution and relief efforts and teams that are coming and.... and...and it would be wrong to
gloss over what was experienced and what was felt personally by each person. For those of you who come
down in the future could I challenge you to remember this simple question? These personal stories are incredible
in their power, unforgettable for their victims, and will forever mark the lives of those who just happened
to be here at around 5 p.m. on January 12, 2010.
~~~~~~~
Ed is the head of a Mission organization with a school, orphanage and church. He has served here with his
wife for many years and at 5 p.m. on that day, he was standing outside when the earth buckled and threw him
to the ground. His first thought? "My wife, no-no-no, my wife's in the house!" He tried to run but was thrown
to the ground 3 times before he could make it to his house. He arrived bruised and a bit bloodied, but his
house was (mostly) still standing-his wife uninjured. 3 weeks have now passed and they refuse to sleep inside...
~~~~~~~
Less than a quarter mile away Mary and her husband Jim were upstairs in their living room when the house
began to shake and the entire second floor "pancaked" (that's the most common word here for the affects of
the quake) on top of the first floor (in other words, the first floor was no more) and as Mary ran to where the
indoor stairs used to be, that wall collapsed, with only one wall of the second story still standing. Her husband
yelled to her to run for the outside stairway. When they reached that wall they ran out, literally running
from the second floor onto the ground (again, there was no more first floor). As Mary recounted this story,
she said that it was a miracle the second story door was opened, which allowed them to run out. Jim corrected
her by saying "Mary, we didn't run out the door, we ran out the wall!" Theirs is a miracle story of coming
out unhurt, from a two story house with only one wall remaining.
~~~~~~~
Augustine was outside, chatting with friends when the shaking started. His friend started to run for the house,
running "to" shelter. Augustine tackled him...and within seconds the house was flattened. Were it not for the
tackle, this friend would have perished.
~~~~~~~
At 5 p.m., Leunard was cooking dinner outside over an open fire while 8 relatives chatted
inside. Her cooking pots were thrown to the ground and her entire house collapsed. 7
miraculously survived ....but her sister did not. As she recounted "her story" she spoke
without feeling, devoid of emotion-almost what you'd call "numb".
~~~~~~~
Olrich was ending play practice at church with a time of prayer. With Haitian passion and emotion- many in
the group were stomping their feet and calling on the Lord to rain down His power. They felt the ground begin
to shake and ran outside. For a split second they thought they were experiencing an answer to prayer, when
suddenly they knew the truth and ran-ran as fast as they could to their homes.
Day 12-"So, where were you when..."
And then there was Roger's story.
Roger had taken a TapTap (Haitian form of a bus/taxi/van/rickshaw) the 10 kilometers to afternoon classes
at seminary that day, and he was downstairs studying theology. Upstairs were about 40 students with another
30 or so in his classroom on the first floor. At 5 p.m. there was some initial movement, most realized
what was happening, but before anyone could react an entire wall fell on the class, killing several. He
wanted to run but fell before he could stand. Rocks were hitting his head, he couldn't see amidst the cloud
of concrete dust filling the classroom. The girl next to him was screaming and he held out his hand to her,
willing her to run with him to cover. At that moment he looked up and saw the professor, a local pastor,
crushed by a second wall coming down. With tears in his eyes, Roger told how he felt "led" through the
dust and rubble outside, but not before having a hand grasp his leg from a fallen student pleading for help.
He led the first girl outside, and yelled for others to help go back in and save those perishing. A friend told
him that he was crazy, and in the next instant the whole building pancaked before his very eyes...none of
the students in class on the second floor survived...not a one.
Everywhere there were screams and panic, houses and walls and buildings continuing to fall. When the
shock of the moment passed, he too thought of his family. With no transportation available he walked, ran
and walked for over 3 hours to get home. He was bruised and bloodied but all he could think about was
"my family...my family". He could barely speak as he told of running by buildings still falling, devastation
everywhere. In his words: "that day I saw death...I saw death come to me."
Late that night he arrived home to find his entire family safe and sound.
He couldn't sleep that night...but then who could? And he, like many, still finds
it difficult. He went on to tell us how he senses the ground shaking every day,
even when he knows it isn't.
He's a pastor...a theology student and he can't get over the question "Why?"
Why was he spared? Why were the others not? Why did this happen at all?
But he knows there are no answers. He spends a good part of every day just
listening, listening in the village, listening on the hill, listening to the kids at the
orphanage as they tell their stories. For they all have one, and they all need to
be heard.
"But Roger" we asked "What do you tell the people when they ask why?" He responded "I tell them I don't
know ... I tell them I don't know" but then he paused for a moment and added these words: "But I also tell
them to not give up."
And somehow, on this afternoon we see a people who haven't given up. Roger is out listening to others,
Jony just got back from the hills distributing food and money. While walking through a slum, Jony saw a
young girl all alone and totally dejected. After visiting one last family he walked up to this girl, told her to
not give up, prayed for her and then gave her enough money for rice and beans for the week. As he walked
away the girl screamed out "Thank you, Thank you-I had nothing...nothing to eat. You've allowed me to
eat today." No, she won't-she won't give up...not today.
And incredibly, there is one comment shared by not just a few of my new Haitian friends. Roger said
it...Augustine said it....Charles said it...Jony said it as well. The words vary slightly, but allow me to use
Jony's words to end this letter:
~~~~~~~
"I believe this is the beginning of a new Haiti. Pray for us. Pray for us for this to be true."

For Contributions
Jesus in Haiti Ministries, Inc. Suite 155 10214 Chestnut Plaza Drive Fort Wayne, IN 46814

A Perfect Day...Almost

2010-02-18T20:59:00.000-06:00

Hi from Haiti,

Yesterday I did something I had never done (no smarties, not showered) I drove west of Port-au-Prince. For the first few years in Haiti I did not have dependable transportation. Then the kidnappings took over for 3 years and for the past year I have been too busy.

Yesterday I took Matthew and Jovens to see an eye doctor a couple hours away, on the west side of Por-au-Prince with the boys. As you remember Matthew cut his eye two years ago and has had two surgeries but still blurred vision in the eye. Jovens is blind.

The trip took us through down town Port-au-Prince and through Carrefour which is where the center of the earth quake hit. Wow was everything in shambles. It was a very interesting trip and I had a great time with Matthew, Berthony, Georgie, Jovens and our security man, Mark.

At one point we saw a line nearly 2 miles long of women waiting for a bag of rice. Marines were stationed every so often to keep the men at bay. I know many of you are teachers and so I have a problem for your class to figure for me. How many women could stand in a line 2 miles long, if each woman took up 15 inches of space? I await the answer.

The paved road on this trip was cracked and broken in many places. At one point I drove over a 3 foot wide crack I didn't see.

We arrived at a Christian community mission called Christianville. An American doctor checked Matthew's vision and thought if he were fitted with a contact lens, that would clear up the blurry vision and he can do that in two weeks and order the lens. Matthew could have full sight restored within a month or so. Please pray that way. NOT ONE time has Matthew complained or thought it was a problem that he could only see with one eye. I have prayed many times for God to take the sight from my eye and restore Matthew's vision, if that was the only way for him to see.

Then it was time for Jovens. A doctor had visited us and given us hope for what he saw. That hope was drained out yesterday as the doctor explained that some form of glaucoma had stretched his eyes so badly that he would never see, short a miracle. It would have had to have been repaired the first 6 months of his life.

As I looked at Jovens, tears just started to roll down my face, thinking that this boy would never see, unless God intervened. We don't know the future of Jovens, or if his mom will want him back or want him with me, but, we know who holds the future, and we trust HIM.

The ride home was a great time as we listened to praise music, and even stopped by the ocean for some fresh cooked Griot, or fired pork and plantains. And a coke of course.

Today we have our first group arriving around noon, 15 brave souls from Minnesota. Their mission they say is to serve us, build bunk beds and continue our mission of sharing the gospel with these wonderful people of Haiti.

I ask that you continue to pray for Haiti and the spiritual awakening that we see. I told our staff Tuesday that at some point, the momentum will fade. If anyone thinks that the old crusty general Satan is going to hand over his country without a fight, they are not thinking right. As we plan our strategy, you can bet there are staff meetings in hell to stop what has started in Haiti, for God. We prepare for the onslaught and although we know every battle has casualties, we have read the end of the story; we know we win, so we press on.

Much more exciting news on the horizon but I will close for now. Keep us in your prayers. Thank you for your support of our general fund needed to run this mission, and the extra for the relief fund, which is still making a difference, every day in the lives of these wonderful people. God bless you folks and keep being Jesus in your neck of the woods will ya? tominhaiti

Jovens
For Contributions
Jesus in Haiti Ministries, Inc. Suite 155 10214 Chestnut Plaza Drive Fort Wayne, IN 46814

Speaking of President's Day

2010-02-15T08:00:00.000-06:00

Hi from the island.

Survivor: Yes, I am still here, they did not vote me off.

Weekend of prayer: Haitians by the hundreds of thousands from every corner in Haiti spent 3 days praying and thanking God. What a weekend. Friday and Saturday my nearly 20 teens went to a soccer field nearby from 6am to noon.

Something interesting happened as my boys were leaving Saturday. Those of you who have been to Haiti know that garbage is everywhere. One thing I teach my boys is that no matter what the rest of Haiti does, we are going to try to keep our home and mission trash free.

After the Saturday service of over 10,000 people finished, Altimae and my boys began to pick all the trash up from the soccer field. The pastor on stage grabbed the microphone and thanked them, and everyone joined in this effort. Isn't that neat?

Food getting around: Today as I went to pick up some tents in the city, I saw people carrying bags of rice on their head, and I mean thousands of people. The food is getting out, but there is still a great need for food in the villages we serve.

I did get 12 more tents, although it took about 8 hours, I do have them. Praise God.

Presidential Pardon: We have unofficial word that our President Renee Preval accepted Christ as his personal Savior this past Friday, then shared this at a mass rally, and asked the people to pray for him to lead. If this is true, watch out for Haiti. The Heavens might open up.

Victory: Our church service yesterday morning had, are you ready for this, drum roll please, 1300 people in the morning and 400 at the night service. Here is the exciting part. Ninety people came forward and gave their lives to Christ, having their names written down in the Lambs book of Life. How about that?

Included was the entire family of a man and wife who accepted Christ two weeks ago. Ironic thing is, they were big into voodoo and after the service they went home and smashed all their voodoo stuff. Roger visited today. Roger our assistant pastor was excited because growing up this woman was like a mom to him and he has prayed for her for years.

Grace Emmanuel School: Today we had English class for our teachers and kid's club for our students.

New Tent: One decision the board and I made was to hold off on the start of building our new church. It didn't seem proper with so many people homeless plus the Haitians are afraid to go into a building. A new, much larger tent has been purchased and is being sent. The new tent should hold well over 1000. Between two tents we feel we can seat 2000 people. God is moving.

Eyes: This Wednesday little Jovens, my blind boy, will be going for an eye appointment. A visiting Doctor said he thinks he has cataracts and that it is treatable, pray with us, will ya?

So much good news: Have you digested what you have just read? To me it is pretty remarkable. However, like Fox news, I need to be fair and balanced. Today I had a gut wrenching experience as I drove by the only American fast food restaurant in Haiti, Domino's Pizza and...................it crashed and is no more. A fat guy without pizza, does it get any worse than that? Sorry to leave you on this terrible note.

More: So much more to share but will stop to let you digest just how God is working here in Haiti. Take care, tominhaiti

It's All About Me

2010-02-13T19:06:00.000-06:00

Hi from Haiti,

I have received many questions from family, friends and strangers alike, wanting to know how I was doing, over the course of the past month.

To be honest, I am not sure. The first 10 days or so were pure shock and reaction to what was going on. Time was not on our side so experience and quick thinking had to get us through each day.

The next 10 days was moving more into the recovery mode and making sure all of our points of lights were covered. The past 10 days has been continued relief as well as long term planning.

I suppose the jury is still out on how we did. I told my staff the day after the earthquake that history will judge how we handled this crisis, and the main thing is to not forget why we are here, despite the tragedy. We are here to help the folks who can't help themselves, to share Jesus with people, and to teach them to do the same. For a long time we have been the hands and feet of Jesus, we just continue to do that.

What I didn't expect was the spiritual explosion we have seen, over 1000 one Sunday morning, 700 at youth group, over 200 at prayer service and nearly 100 people becoming followers of Christ, all in one month.

I am thankful to God that my health has been nearly perfect through all this. I have lost 33 pounds since the quake hit but that is like taking 1 brick off a stack of 100, still lots of bricks left.

Sleeping has been difficult, always thinking of how better to serve the people we love. Much of the time feeling inadequate for what we are doing compared to what I would like for us to be able to do. The other night we had our first big rain since the quake and I lay in bed and cried for the million or more people probably huddled under trees, the whole night.

One down side was the family side. Twenty hours per day was earthquake related, with 4-5 hours of sleep, totally neglecting my family, but not by choice. Add 10 new ones in our home who I did not bond with, and the home life struggled. The past few days I have worked hard to correct this as I have let my staff do more of the ministry stuff, by themselves.

Many times I get really discouraged and even depressed at life and struggles here but that has not happened in the past month. It has been a tough month but I have felt full of energy and life. I have seen the 17 young men in my home become men, and take on huge responsibilities for their people. I have seen my staff grow up overnight. I have added 4 new young men to our staff whom have really energized our efforts.

Obviously God is the reason I have made it this month and why our ministry has moved forward. The next greatest thing is............all of you. You do not know the weight of the burden you all have lifted, by your sacrificial giving. The money that has come in has taken that worry off my plate. We have been able to relieve so much of the pain and loss of these people because you gave. What touches me also is the trust that you have placed in us, a trust that we take very serious. Thank you for that.

Also, several THOUSAND emails in the past month have encouraged me and kept me going. Knowing that you cared, knowing that you were praying, and feeling the love you sent really did make a difference.

So many exciting things are happening in Haiti, I get really excited to be a part of it. I still can't say the earthquake was a good thing, because too many people died. I can say with confidence, GOD WILL USE THIS TRAGEDY TO BRING PEOPLE TO HIM, AND TO BUILD A NEW HAITI. I believe that with all my heart.

This weekend Haiti has stopped to pray. Haitians by the hundreds of thousands are crowded in every church, soccer field, park or open space in Haiti, praying for Haiti. These folks are doing this from 6am-12pm then from 3pm-6pm, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Every one of my boys has been up at 5am the past couple days, dressed up and out the gate with a chair in their hand, headed to park Charlie, a nearby soccer field. God will bless Haiti for this. I believe that. Tomorrow, Sunday, our church is meeting from 6am-6pm for prayer and fasting, like most churches in Haiti.

Again, thank you so much for what you have allowed us to do this past month. This week we move forward aggressively rebuilding folks homes, hopefully 10 per week until everyone in our points of light are again sleeping inside. We still need funding, this effort will go for the rest of the year and into next year. At some point when I get caught up, I will send you a break down on how the funds are being spent, you will be pleased I believe. Knowing your giving is allowing people to stay alive and healthy, has to bless you.

Today we had another shaker, which is over 80 aftershocks we have felt. After the house stopped moving, I looked out to the next house and saw Claudy stroll out on the porch. I said "what happened, you didn't run out of the house?" Claudy said "I am tired of running, time to start trusting."

Keep praying. God is working in a big way. Today as I ran to the store, I saw hundreds and hundreds of people walking down the street, all dressed in white dresses and white shirts, most with a Bible in their hand and I thought "wow, wouldn't it be fun to live in a country where this was the norm?" You never know, with God all things are possible. Maybe JiHM will be sending missionaries to..................................your neck of the woods, you never know. Love you guys, skinnytominhaiti

For Contributions
Jesus in Haiti Ministries, Inc. Suite 155 10214 Chestnut Plaza Drive Fort Wayne, IN 46814

MESI PAPA

2010-02-11T20:35:00.000-06:00

Hi from New Haiti, Thursday PM

This has been an incredible week as we continue to be the hands and feet of Jesus. Here is a peek:

Monday: Staff meeting from 9-noon, team then put up 5 large tents for families.

Tuesday: Drove to Love a Child to pick up 100 boxes of rice while staff put up more tents. While at Love a Child, I met Jentezen Franklin, an American TV evangelist. His ministry is the largest supporter that sends food to us, and he interviewed me for about 30 minutes, with preaching mixed in. What an insightful, caring man.

He did mention that he felt God would pull the United States out of its bad economy based on how the American people have given to Haiti, despite their own troubles.

Wednesday: Up at 7am, packing 100 food boxes, by 7:30 packing boxes with my family, by 10 we were off to the garbage dump. We passed out close to 70 ready to eat meals and water, then to our villages to put up more tents, then by 1pm we met 100 of our church families at the mission. They presented tickets they had been given in their home and received a large box of food. Then from 3-5 we had a prayer service. More later on this.

By 6pm we were home for supper, then from 7-9:30 I had a time of teaching with my 19 older boys. It was a great time as we talked about having Godly attitudes in all we do. What a long fulfilling day and I was so proud of the boys.

Thursday: Again, up at seven to box another 100 food boxes. Then the boys left for the mission to put up more tents and distribute the final 100 boxes to our church families. I had work to do at home, along with going for supplies and tents.

This weekend: The government of Haiti has declared Friday as a day to mourn and remember the over 220,000+ people we lost in the earthquake. The Haitian Churches have said this weekend will be 3 days of prayer for Haiti. Many of the boys are walking to a nearby soccer field tomorrow for a huge prayer rally. Sunday we will have a 6am-6pm prayer service at our church. Sunday is also a time of fasting, but we do have over 3000 bags of water ready to drink.

Prayer service: I was tired and was not looking forward to a 2 hour prayer service in the middle of the afternoon. I knew it was important that I be there so I was. I read my Bible during part of it, prayed for must but towards the end someone caught my eye.

Right in front of me and down a bit, a lady, probably 50, with hands toward heaven, kept repeating "Mesi Papa, Mesi Papa" (thank you father). I began to look at her very closely and pondered. I saw a battered pair of shoes, wearing a one size fits all sheet dress, head wrapped in an old bandana. I began to listen to her say "thank you papa."

I thought, here is a lady who will NEVER eat an ice cream cone, who will NEVER sit down in her kitchen with a cup of coffee, she will NEVER see the inside of a mall or a Wal-Mart, she will NEVER see her kids graduate, NEVER ride in a car with AC, NEVER travel more than 2 miles from her home, NEVER take her grand kids to an amusement park, NEVER receive or give a wrapped present. She will NEVER lie in a warm comfortable bed, NEVER have "her shows" to watch on TV, NEVER have a hair appointment. She will NEVER have a dime in her pocket, NEVER go to a buffet, NEVER touch a stove or refrigerator. SHE WILL NEVER HAVE OR EXPERIENCE WHAT WE HAVE YET, SHE SAYS "THANK YOU FATHER." I wept as I heard her say this. How could she possibly say that, and then go home to sleep on the ground on a piece of plastic?

What is inside her that could make her be so thankful for...................nothing? No promise of a better future on this earth, nothing to look forward to on this earth, but so thankful.

Then you got a bum like me who lives like royalty, and what do I do? I complain. I wonder if I say "why father?" more than I say "thank you father." This lady touched me in a big way. She made me think of a faith that could be so thankful, for so little. This is the kind of person that God loved so much, he sent me to Haiti for. These people continue to amaze me. We had over 200 people at that service, with no giveaways and they knew it. They came to pray, to thank God, not to ask, but to give thanks. I am thankful that at my age, I can still learn. Thank you Father! tominhaiti

For Contributions
Jesus in Haiti Ministries, Inc. Suite 155 10214 Chestnut Plaza Drive Fort Wayne, IN 46814

And the beat goes on

2010-02-09T08:25:00.001-06:00

One month ago today you know what happened. This past month has been a sprint, just trying to keep up with life as it rolls by. I am now busier than I was when it hit. Things have settled in, our new plans are in place and we are busy. Just because my emails slow down and Haiti is not on the news, much is happening.
Word came to us yesterday about a young boy rescued after 27 days under rubble. We know this is not possible except, with God, all things are possible.

Grace Emmanuel School: We had planned on starting school yesterday, but our director received word last Friday that NO school could start until they were inspected for damage. At first I laughed at this since we have school in a tent but I had our director go meet with the inspector.

The inspector correctly informed us that everyone has a story for him, wanting to get around him checking them out and he must come and see. For all he knows there is a 3 story building NEXT to the tent ready to fall on the tent. We accept and await his inspection.

Today at 10am, we started kids club at our school, with invitations going out to all our school kids, and their siblings. We will have a chapel type meeting everyday as well as the return to their daily hot meal. In the afternoons we will be teaching our nine teachers English. Best we can do for now.

Tents: Wow, Shelter Box came through with the help of Touch Global to supply us with 15 very large tents. Yesterday after staff meeting, my staff and boys went out and began to put them up. The women chosen, with their kids were so happy for the 2 room tent, and the supplies that came with it. If you can help support Shelter Box or Touch Global in anyway, please check them out online. They are both a God send.

Family fun night: Last night we had our first family fun night since the quake, a Monday tradition. Was good to laugh again and see the boys having so much fun competing. Last night it was 3, 6 man teams competing in English, Bible questions, coin stacking and the final, mystery game. (please no emails from nurses or doctors on this one) I had found a cooler earlier in the day that had a horrible smell bottled up, rotted food or something. Each team had to have one boy sit in front of the open cooler while I interviewed them, last sitting was the winner. I of course had a mask on. It was a hoot.

Today we are going to Love a Child Mission a couple hours away to pick up 80 boxes of rice for distribution and for our school and the Good Samaritan Orphanage. My staff is passing out tickets to our church members to come tomorrow to pick up a case of food each. New believers class is today for our newly baptized folks, followed by a leadership training class.

New Haiti: Just outside my burg of Bon Repo, on that long road to our ministry area is quite a site. It reminds me of the 1849 gold rush to California. I wasn't there in 49 but several of my board members have shared their memories.

The government has said that the people can come and have free land, just plot out a certain size piece, put a pole in each corner with your name and build a house. People by the thousands are out digging with pick axes and shovels and claiming their new home. It is a fantastic sight. Of course they are making shanties which in the near future will bring a whole new set of problems but at least for now they have a place to go. I wonder if I can name the newly built town, hmmm, Osbeckville, Little Indiana, Tomsburg...........

My Colts: I know, the Saints really did go marching in. Another missionary came to watch the game with me, and we didn't get CBS signal until 5 minutes left in the game, just enough to get my heart broken.....

All for now, gotta hit the road, thanks for your emails, your support and prayers. I hope to get many more pictures out to you this week and some detailed plans for our ministry as we continue to do what we do....meet the needs of people, share the gospel, make disciples, tominnewhaiti

The angels really do walk among us

2010-02-04T20:32:00.000-06:00

Hi from Haiti,

This morning I received a phone call from a visiting pastor friend who is helping a medical team and has been utilizing my boys to translate. He said he had a connection with an American Colonel and we could get all the food we needed. We had an hour to get there. This short notice made it impossible for me to contact some police friends who I use for security.

Off I went with 9 of my boys, in 3 trucks. We met pastor Murph, and soon were inside the giant warehouse. Sure enough, we backed all three trucks up and loaded 50 tarps and over 5000 meals into the truck. These are MRE's ready to eat meals.

We took 3 of the tarps and tried to hide the food for the trip home. Half way, several boxes fell from the back of my truck, the first one. We pulled over and quickly saw people starting to converge on the food. Just as we were about to be swarmed, 4 Angels walked up with sub machine guns, wearing police uniforms after exiting their police truck. They stood guard while we reloaded and left. Never knew angels needed guns.

Yesterday we got our bridge on the road to our house fixed and were not supposed to drive on it for 2 days. We had no choice but to roll the 3 trucks over it, and then home. We messed it up and I had to pay the guys a little more to "cover our tracks".

I was so proud of Claudy and Manel driving the other trucks, and the rest of the boys as we had a successful mission getting food.

Two of my staff, Fondi and Jony took a truck to pick up food from marines who brought it to us by helicopter. They then rolled in and boy do we have the food. We already took 30 cases of food to 3 pastors in our ministry area, including our former pastor, Pastor Jackie.

I am bummed I can't use the bridge tomorrow to deliver more food but Saturday we will hit it hard. My boys did deliver 30 meals tonight to the small, 28 child orphanage by our house that we have been helping.

We are going to move this food quickly to people who need it, mostly women with children and the kids at the Good Samaritan orphanage. Speaking of them, as of this week, they are now all sleeping in tents.

Did you pick up on it when I said, "We took all 3 trucks". A visitor this week said, "You need another truck? Let's go get one." And we did just that. A big people mover, which will help so much.

We also had a motorcycle club donate money for us to buy a motorcycle, which we did. This will come in so handy to make short runs and runs through the terrible bottleneck traffic. God has blessed us as we roll on.

I didn't really get the rest I had hoped for but do feel somewhat rested. Since I can't go anywhere tomorrow because of the cement on the bridge, I may get some rest tomorrow. Don't hold your breath.

I do understand there is a Superbowl on Sunday, and of course, I will be cheering for my home-state COLTS TO win it all. The Saint's ain't got a chance against the Colts.

Jony has youth group tomorrow (had 700 last week) and we have our first baptism at our property Sunday at 9am. Whew, so much going on including re-starting school this upcoming Monday. So much more to share but will stop. I love you guys, thanks for your support.

Tominhaiti

ps- Oops, forgot to tell you we are re-building our first house this week. My staff member Jony lost his house, so for $475 dollars it is being rebuilt. I will send pictures.

A few good men, and one woman

2010-02-02T22:18:00.000-06:00

Hi from Haiti,

Today was a long day but a very productive day.

Auddy: It began with me taking "my" 10 year old girl, Auddy, to an orphanage, as we expect her to go to the states, maybe this week to be with her adoptive parents, in Minnesota. It was a sad good bye for all of us but knowing what lies ahead, we are excited for Auddy. Please pray this is finalized this week.

Another good-bye: Then it was on to the airport to drop off our 4 visiting guests, Mr. and Mrs. Nuest and their daughter Ashley. Also board member, Linda Neal, who arrived the day of the earthquake, finally was able to go home.

Dr Matthew: Then we went to Pettionville to pick up my son Matthew who was helping a team of doctors who were working in a very terrible situation, Matthew said the saddest thing he saw was a 4 year old who lost both of her feet. He was grateful to be able to help. Now another of my sons, Tito is there for the next couple days.

While coming back home, we received a phone call saying the Marines were on their way to our property with supplies. We rushed there with two trucks for the drop, when we got a call saying the helicopter was too big for our property and had to land at a cement factory a mile away. We then rushed to the cement factory only to find out the security guards would not let us enter.
Finally, after much debate, they let just me go inside accompanied by a security guard.

I reached the marines and what a great bunch. The leader asked if I could bring truck inside the facility to the helicopter but security said no. Finally, we talked him into contacting his boss, which took another half hour, and we got clearance. We then loaded 60 boxes of MRE's, (meals ready to eat) and that was fun. I know I don't have to tell you this but to see these young men, and one woman, in action, filled me with pride. They were taking pictures of our truck load and with us and were so pleased when we thanked them.

Trip home: Then on the way home we passed out these meals to folks we knew on the road by the dump. They were so hungry and grateful. To help them was a joy for us.

Home alone: Here I sit, for the first time, by myself since the quake-no American friends. I am tired, sad my friends are gone, but with a huge to-do list.

Tomorrow morning we have a teachers meeting as the government says we can start school. This will happen Monday and we have so much to do to prepare. Then my staff will be taking relief supplies to over 100 families, all tomorrow.

Another good-bye: Our dear friend Stephanie who has been the kids' nanny for 2 years, and was Mommy Tia's caretaker, has left us. She takes with us her two little girls: Kayley and Beverly. This was a very sad goodbye for all of us. In one day, I lost 4 of my 5 girls. We have 8-year-old Kimberly still. I am going to hire an older woman to come help with Kimberly and the other little ones.

Rest: Tomorrow at 6pm, I plan to start a 36 hour rest period. I think things are in place for this to happen but, I am not holding my breath. We hired someone to fix our bridge coming down our road so I can't leave Thursday even if I want to.

Relief funds: God has blessed us greatly through your sacrificial giving and we are putting it to good work. Daily relief is going to the Good Samaritan orphanage, our 95 school children, the folks in the garbage dump, and our church family, as well as many others. Tomorrow my boys are taking some MRE's to their classmates who have been struggling to survive.

THE UN: I know you will hear all kind of bad things said about the UN and the relief effort but let me tell you this, from someone who is here. The men and women of the UN and other relief agencies have come to Haiti to help and care very much about these people. I know many UN troops and I see them in action near our ministry area and near our home.

This is a massive relief effort, with many logistical nightmares and, of course, they can do better but...........they are here, they are working hard, things are getting done AND things will get better.

I am so sad that we lost probably 200,000 of these precious people but I know God is going to use this event, to not only get the attention of the Haitian people, but the attention of the world. This will lead to great things, and a new start for Haiti. Besides your giving, please pray daily for the spiritual relief that Haiti so badly needs.

Emails: My emails are going down, down, down, day by day. I love hearing from you even if I can't respond often.

closing: I got nothing, goodnight,

tominhaiti

My apologies, Sunday update

2010-01-31T22:22:00.002-06:00

Hi,

I am sorry for lack of communication from me. I know you all care so much and many of you wait for the updates. I have been so busy, I just could not email. Please forgive me.

This weekend was a lot of running, a visit from two different groups, doctors and builders and church. Today for lunch, I had my 35, and another 18 Americans with us for a total of 53 people.

We are continuing to help people get food and water. We were able to help two different orphanages in the past two days. Then tonight we visited a little Haitian run orphanage near our home and put all the kids...............in sleeping bags, what a thrill that was. I forgot my flashlight so we did this in pitch dark, using my cell phone for light.

Church today was another SRO, (standing room only) with nearly 800 people. We had Mark Murphy, a visiting pastor from Fort Wayne, preach and just an incredible service.

Some of you may question why we have been giving money as opposed to distributing food. Today, in our village, some military helicopters made a food drop and, when people rushed the 'copter, a little boy was trampled to death. It is a dangerous situation.

Tomorrow we are delivering 74 food boxes to the homes of our school families, taking them rice, oil, beans and such. This is an ongoing, daily process of helping these folks.

Today at church an out-of-work carpenter came to me and said he had no money and needed food for his family. I asked him to give me a quote to build 2 new tables and 12 chairs for my home. He gave me a good price, and I paid him to build the tables, killing two birds with one stone and allowing him to earn his money.

Also, today I ordered 10 new church pews for church. We do not have this in our budget and would not qualify for relief so, can you help me pray in $700 for this much needed expense .................by Saturday. I will let you know when you prayers are answered.

By the way, I forgot Jovens, our little 7 year old blind boy, in my list of family members last week. Can't believe none of you caught that one. So is that 34 then? I have not added to my family in 3 days....I must be slipping.

Tonight my visiting board member's wife, Connie Nuest, and board member Linda Neal made pancakes for the boys, a welcome treat for all, including poppa who had 2 or 3 or 7.

Did I tell you this, our well just drilled before the quake, was damaged by the quake and we had to re-drill this weekend. Well, they found water, good drinking water at 25 feet. We bought a water pump so in the next day or so, we will have clean water at our mission, which fits our nickname, the Oasis.

I could ramble on but, will stop. You have a lot to digest and pray about but know this, we are being Jesus in Haiti every single day, and we know many of you are being Jesus in ............wherever you are. Keep it up; you don't need the earth to open up to be Jesus.

tominhaiti

Another Busy Day

2010-01-29T20:28:00.000-06:00

Hi from Haiti;

As busy as I was the first two weeks, seems I am getting busier every day....can't wait for November 3rd and that day off.

This morning we took a load of food, blankets and water to a small orphanage near us and they were so excited as they needed the help so badly.

We are having discussions with an organization that wants to partner with us to help rebuild the homes in our area. We are very excited about this. Pray that if this is God's will, it will happen.

Today was youth group, I stayed home to rest and I got a call that one of the boys coming to youth group was hit by a car. My son Claudy loaded him up, looked for medical help but could not find it. Claudy finally connected with a US army team and their doctor fixed him up and sent Claudy and the boy to a US hospital by the US Embassy. As I write this, they are enroute. Pray for the young boy, Bobby, who was hit by the car.

We continue to give aid daily to anywhere between 25-30 families who are so appreciative.

One shortcoming for me is that, because I am so busy, I have not connected with the 10 new ones and have not been a dad to the 22 old ones. I am starting to correct this as we speak, as I know I must be a dad to my own before I can do anything else.

They are still all sleeping outside, all but us crazy Americans who are inside. That includes me, 3 board members and the daughter of one husband-wife team.

Pre-quake, I told you we struck water with our well drillers on our mission land. However, the well we were drilling is now ruined so we are re-drilling at another spot on our property.

Much, much more is to be done in Haiti. As I have said, this is not a short fix but, instead, will be years. 90% of Haitian schools were destroyed so no one knows when school can resume. We can't legally have school unless the government says so. However, we can have "kids club" at our mission for our school kids AND we can teach them whatever we want.... so stay tuned, kids club is coming to a tent near you.

In case you lost count of names, here is the entourage God has me in the middle of:
The younger ones: Jony, 4, Peterson 5, Kaylye 5, Adrianno 6, Beverly 8, Robenson 8, Marckendy 10, Kimberly 8, Ricardo 12, Bony 10, Steven 13, Jay 1.

The 16-20 year olds: Shadrach, Matthew, Sonson, Claudy, Tito, Derson, Sonal, Maxim, Reggie, Berthony, Georgie, Louis, Edward, Jimy 1, Jimy 2, Toby, Kenel.

And staff: Roger, Altimay and Stephanie, and me. Seems like more but I think that is all the permanent ones, do ya get 33?

Great bunch, I am blessed, keep the prayers coming and, please don't forget we have a monthly budget we must meet--the quake relief is just for that. We still need 10 grand per month to run mission and do ministry in our 5 points of light.

Not sure if I told you this, yesterday my girls from the ministry team came to my house and made 100 rice and bean dinners. We then took them to the garbage dump where there were about 50 people. We gave them the meal and drinks, then drove up and down the road giving meals to stragglers. What a joy. Thanks for making this possible.
tominhaiti

They fell through the cracks, but landed safely

2010-01-27T17:18:00.000-06:00

Hi from Haiti,

Today as we were visiting and providing relief for our 100 school children and their families, we could not find two little brothers. We had heard they were okay but just couldn't find them. When going to their house, a man told my staff that their mom had been killed in a building in Port Au Prince and they have been living in the woods for 2 weeks.

My staff member Pierre quickly called me, found them and I went to meet them. I brought 8-year-old Robenson, and 10-year-old Marckendy home. I took them aside and asked what happened. With tears falling, they said how their mom had died and that they had not eaten for 2 weeks. I asked them if they would come live with me, and if I could be their poppy. They both said yes. They got a shower, new, clean clothes, and a meal. They are now playing and laughing with the kids.

Folks, it don't get any better than this. Keep your Pulitzer Prize, your World Series rings, your medals of honor, your academy awards.......I have two prizes to top them sitting 4 feet from me, and I will keep them.

Your prayers, your help, your support, are making it possible for us to continue to be Jesus to these little ones. I have no idea what lies ahead, but am pretty good friends with the one who does know the future, so it is in His hands. At this moment, I feel like the most blessed man in the world. Out of all of you, and anyone else, God chose me, to safe guard and care for these two little guys, Robenson and Marckendy.

I must stop before the tears ruin my keyboard. More later, promise.

Tom

A busy weekend

2010-01-24T22:22:00.000-06:00

Hi,

I apologize for the lack of communication but I think all of you know that writing emails is number 3,456 on my priority list. Someone emailed me and said "you gotta keep them coming if you want to raise money". Folks, that is not why I send emails. If that is a result, praise God.

Saturday was a day spent in traffic, Gas had just become available for the first time and the Western Unions opened up, meaning thousands of Haitians would have cash for the first time. The country was a bottle neck and we were stuck in it as we picked up 3 friends from the airport.

Our friends volunteered for an aid organization, which hitched them a ride here free. They are spending a couple days with us away from the airport.

Sunday was incredible. Recall, our church attendance before the tent was about 200. Then the tent happened and, in the past few months, our attendance has been creeping up toward 500. Well yesterday, and you better sit down, we had 914 people at church. Can you believe that one?
You probably just swallowed your teeth but............it gets better, much better because we had 50 people accept Christ as their personal Savior, becoming followers of Christ. Here is the kicker, 11 came early to church asking to become Christians.

This quake has rocked this nation and shaken people and made them think about life, and about death. Praise God we are here able to meet their needs, physically, emotionally, financially, and most important, spiritually.

We have seating for about 650 so it was standing room. What a praise service it was, at least that is what they tell me. You see, we had a shipment coming in on a missionary flight that I had to pick up at the airport. My staff did a great job.

I was at the airport from 8 a.m. until noon, then rushed to our mission as everyone was leaving to meet a 2pm helicopter full of food, rice, bread, beans, jelly, peanut butter, etc,,,,

We loaded the truck and went straight to the Good Samaritan orphanage with the food, much to the delight of the kids and staff there. It was our FIRST food from outside Haiti and we were so blessed.

This morning, a few minutes, before daybreak I am headed to Pettionvile to a Christian school. There is a team of doctors there and one of them was sent with some cash from my treasurer which I am going to pick up. We still can't find a way to cash a check or get cash.

Then it is to the airport to pick up a board member who will be helping me plan and strategize the upcoming months. Please know that anyone that comes always comes on their own dime. We don't use any our ministry money or relief funds ever to bring people here.

This and a million other things are on the agenda. Keep praying, keep sending emails, I know I am busy but it takes seconds to read an email, and they encourage me so much. Today's goal, 50 emails from YOU.

tominhaiti

These folks, wow

2010-01-24T09:32:00.000-06:00

Hi,

We picked a pastor up at the airport, a man who was involved in the Tsunami relief and been in many disaster areas. He said he was amazed at these people and how they are bouncing back, their attitude and what is going on, so quickly. He is amazed at these folks largely because he has never seen this spirit in the other places.

I knew that, but am biased and hadn't been anywhere to compare. These people are fighters and they won't quit. You are helping build a new Jaiti, give new direction and I am convinced that Haiti will become a place where God will be glorified.

Today I'll make an airport run for our water filters while my staff runs church. Then a helicopter drop of 600 pounds of rice at 2pm, then,,,,,,wait a minute, isn't today a day of rest, or is that tomorrow? Keep praying.

Love you guys,

tominhaiti

A prayer for all of us

2010-01-24T07:56:00.000-06:00

Lord, I just want to say THANK YOU,

because this morning I woke up and knew where my children were,

because this morning my home was still standing,
because this morning I am not crying because my husband, my child, my

brother or sister needs to be buried out from underneath a pile of concrete,

because this morning I was able to drink a glass of water,

because this morning I was able to turn on the light,

because this morning I was able to take a shower,

because this morning I was not planning a funeral,

but most of all I thank you this morning because I still have life and a voice to

cry out for the people of Haiti.

Lord I cry out to you, the one that makes the impossible, possible, the one

that turns darkness in to light,

I cry out that you give those mothers & fathers strength, that you give them

peace that surpasses all understanding,

that you may open the streets so that help can come, that you may provide

doctors, nurses, food, water, and all that they need in a blink of an eye.

For all those that have lost family members, give them peace, give them

hope, give them courage to continue to go on!

Protect the children and shield them with your power.

I pray all this in the name of Jesus. AMEN.

Thank you for all your support and continued prayers. tominhaiti

Buses, cash and radios flow amid Haiti's rubble

2010-01-23T14:05:00.000-06:00

This is being passed on from Tom for your reading.

Patrick Markey And Matthew Bigg - Fri Jan 22, 4:54 pm ET

PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) - Cash became available and buses started running in Haiti's rubble-clogged capital on Friday but there was still not enough food to feed desperate earthquake survivors who were expected to need emergency aid for months.

"We can do this 24 hours a day for the next six months and we still won't meet the need," said First Sargent Rob Farnsworth, part of a U.S. Army airborne unit handing out food packs at a squalid camp where survivors lived in the open air.

Up to 1.5 million Haitians lost their homes in the January 12 earthquake that rocked the small Caribbean country, devastated its capital Port-au-Prince and killed up to 200,000.

Relief agencies estimated one-third of Haiti's 9 million people would need emergency food, water and shelter for an extended period.

Haitians struggled to find food, water and medical care. Even those whose homes withstood the magnitude 7 quake were too traumatized by aftershocks to sleep under a roof.

There were signs of daily life resuming. Taptaps, Haiti's small, colorfully decorated private buses, circulated in Port-au-Prince, sharing streets with the earth-movers and digging machines clearing debris.

Banks were scheduled to reopen on Saturday and money transfer agencies did brisk business after opening on Friday.

"I want to get some cash sent by my family from Canada. It's $500 but it's difficult. There are so many people," said businessman Aslyn Denis, 31, waiting in a line with hundreds of people, some of them jostling each other, outside a Unitransfer office.

The dead body of a young man lay in a street, his head swollen and bloody. Residents said he tried to steal money and was stoned by a crowd. He wore socks but his shoes were gone and his pockets had been pulled out.

MOB OVERWHELMS 'THE BEAST'

Edmond Mulet, acting head of the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Haiti, said coordination in delivering aid was getting better every day. The World Food Program distributed 1.2 million food rations to hospitals and orphanages on Thursday and hoped to give out 10 million in the next week.

"We may be able to scale up even quicker," said Josette Sheeran, executive director of the U.N. World Food Program. "We finally have supplies and food coming in from all over the world."

The seaport in Port-au-Prince was repaired enough to partially reopen for cargo ships, while airstrips outside the capital and in the Dominican Republic received relief flights.

But nearly 1,000 hungry people swarmed a U.S. military truck as an 82nd Airborne company known as "the Beast" handed out food and water at an encampment on a soccer field. Overwhelmed, the troops pulled out after distributing 600 packaged meals, leaving 250 food packs still on the truck.

A large supermarket, Big Star Market, reopened in the Petionville suburb on Friday, selling everything from slabs of ham and goat meat to Valentine's Day chocolates. But the store manager said they had only a week or two of stocks left and had received no deliveries.

Haitians are realizing it could take months or years to regain some sense of normalcy.

"We want it to be over, but it's not finished yet, things are bad," said Jeanette, a 53-year-old architect shopping at the market. "I've lost my office. I've lost a whole year of work. We have no stability, no direction, we've been left to fend for ourselves. We can't plan for the future, we're just living day-to-day."

The United Nations counted nearly 450 encampments in Port-au-Prince alone where the homeless huddle, cook and sleep amid mounds of garbage.

More than $1.2 billion has been pledged to help rebuild roads, government buildings and homes, but the World Bank said much more would be needed to get Haiti on its feet.

"My anticipation is that $1.2 billion is just the floor," the bank's director for the Caribbean, Yvonne Tsikata, told France 24 television.

The International Monetary Fund urged donors gathering in Montreal next week to adopt a Marshall Plan for Haiti, similar to the U.S. effort that helped rebuild Europe after the Second World War.

"It is not unrealistic to imagine that the country can be rebuilt as a prosperous nation. But it needs help over a prolonged period," IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn wrote on the Huffington Post.

FREE RADIOS

U.S. Navy helicopters ferried in boxes of water to distribute to Haitians lined up at a sprawling camp that covered a golf course. Actor Sean Penn stopped by to deliver antibiotics, painkillers and water filters. "The whole city has collapsed," he said.

U.S. troops were giving away 50,000 solar- and crank-powered radios to help displaced Haitians receive announcements telling them where aid was available.

More than 13,000 U.S. military personnel are in Haiti and on ships offshore, flying in supplies, evacuating the seriously wounded and protecting aid distribution points. The United Nations is adding 2,000 troops and 1,500 police to its 9,000-member peacekeeping mission.

But for many, life remained precarious.

At another camp in Port-au-Prince, a woman tried not to moan in pain as a student doctor bandaged her badly-injured leg. In the dirty tent where he worked, cooking pots bubbled and a dog slept inches from the open wound.

"Of course there is the risk of infection," said Alexi Guyto, 26. "For the most part, we have lost the people who came with major traumas after the earthquake but we still have lots of head and other injuries."

Friday night update from Haiti

2010-01-22T22:54:00.000-06:00

Water distribution at the dump

Hi all,

I told you two per day, here is number 2. Today was a day like no other, just like that past 10.

I did something with youth group that I had never done before, and probably will never do again. I felt such a depression in the villages today, the people are so, so hungry. NO food for 10 days. Tonight 300 teens walked to our mission. My heart bled for them. I knew we have money, and I could not let them walk home hungry, until who knows when. If you want to kind of understand their hunger, eat a half a cracker for the next ten days, and take a cup of water from your clean water in the toilet bowl. Doing that for 10 days will give you an idea how these folks are living in the villages.

I devised a plan to give each teen 100 gourdes, or $2.50 which is like giving an American teen 100 dollars. However, I didn't plan on so many kids so, as Jony was wrapping up, I told Linda I could not do this anymore as my plan might cause a riot. She agreed and I prayed. Then I felt peace and I decided to stick to my plan.

I stationed my team at our gate and sent 10 youth at a time. A team member would give them their 100 gourdes and they would leave. 10 by 10, 30 groups got their money and left. Not a glitch.

We then left to see these 300 kids walking home with a bounce in their step, happy, laughing full of hope. And know this, those 300 will feed at least 5 each, you do the math.

The total was about 600 US dollars. I had to do it for the kids. They, like you and I, will go to bed not only full tonight, but knowing they are loved. The PR angle will be great, but that is not why I did it. They were hungry, we fed them, period.

Today I drove by Phenix where my Arab friend Fadi works. He lost 3 family members, and his wife, who lost her sister, left him for the United States, never to return. His face was worn, but he had a smile. His store was in disarray, everything on the floor. While his store was closed we got in the locked doors, past armed guards and Linda, Shadrach, Tito and I shopped till we dropped. My bill was $68, but did we get the stuff. He gave me an $85 discount.

He also is loading up all the damaged food for us, like cereal boxes that fell in liquid on the floor. The cereal is good but the box is trashed. We will get this food tomorrow to use for our ministry. He had 20 people working and is planning on opening tomorrow...I'm not sure how.

After the supplies came by helicopter today, I gave each boy stuff and they hit the villages passing out 5 gallon water tanks, blankets and set up 3 very nice tents, I bet these tents cost over $1000 each. The 3 families our guys set up for were so, so thankful. We will set up 3 more tomorrow.

Tomorrow morning we have to drive 2 hours up the coast to pick up some money from a group that is in Haiti, and then 2 hours back. Then 2 hours into town to pick up supplies and medicine sent by my board via some doctors. Then home, 8 hours later, to rest. My team will be hitting the villages with supplies and putting up more tents.

Some of you are worried about me not getting a day off. I have thought about this and checked the calendar. I found day, November 3rd I plan to take off, and boy am I looking forward to that day.

Last item: Hundreds and hundreds of you have emailed me and I have read every one but in no way could I respond. I am sorry for this but know your personal email meant so much to me. Please keep them coming knowing I am not at the point of answering them.

Okay I fibbed, one more thing. My brother Mark's surgery was a success today, thanks for your prayers and concern.

tominhaiti

Full speed ahead

2010-01-21T22:49:00.000-06:00

Hi,

We have not had power or internet service for the past day or so and I apologize for the lack of communication. Our generator has been fixed. We found the owner of company, who lost his company but still sent the tech man to put in a new gas pump. Praise God. Internet service is back. For now.

So, so busy. I have been going 18-20 hour days for 10 or 11 days now. It caught up with me yesterday afternoon. I went and crawled in bed, and was there until 5am today. A nice rest. I am ready to roll.

I have too much to tell you in one email but will start two per day, if we have service. We have divided our relief into 11 geographic areas, with 3 teams of 9 people each giving out relief. We finally got into Merjay yesterday. They did not lose too many houses but, with the food shortage, they are all hungry. We helped 30 families, more to come.

Every day since the quake hit, we have driven a 5-mile stretch between the edge of our town, Bon Repos, and Merjay. We take food and water to nearly 100 men and women who are all rummaging the debris from town that has been discarded. What a joy and thrill to pull up and see my boys sprinting 100 yards to provide help to someone out in the field. The men now come to us when they see us and devour whatever we give them so quickly. My boys are loving it and so is their very proud dad. God has blessed me with 20 young men in my care who are becoming full time ministry partners, as well as sons.

We are helping about 50 families per day. We have not received one drop of food or supplies from outside Haiti yet. Dozens of people are trying to get to us but there are 1400 planes waiting, just to come to Haiti. Plus, once they get here, you can't get to the airport.

The good news is, and you can pray for this, between 10am and 11am, we expect a helicopter from Air Calvary and one from the coast guard to bring supplies to our mission. We are getting ready to leave to go to the site to secure it and await these desperately needed supplies.

Speaking of 10am, my younger brother is having prostate surgery at this time in Indiana and please pray for him. Mark is his name.

I am probably sharing about 2% of what is happening, so know that much more is going on. I am just realizing how my family is suffering. They have lost their country, their classmates, no school, and no idea of the future, I am working with this.

The good news is the 10 little ones have no clue and we will keep it that way, for now. Another huge quake the other day, then last night one that scared me and we ran for the door, as it "shook the house pretty good". We think we have an engineer coming today to inspect our 3 houses on our compound to see if they are safe to live in.
Fuel is back, we are loaded for a couple months as we speak. I can never repay my board for what they are doing. They have dropped their lives for 10 days and focused 100 percent on our well being: mine, my families and that of the people we work with. My board member Linda Neal, who is here, has saved me. What a great help; she was sent by God.

Keep praying, keep raising money, we need it all and yes, 100% is still coming this way.

Love you guys,

tominhaiti

Not stopping at that gas station anymore

2010-01-20T23:54:00.000-06:00

Hi from Haiti,

Last night I finally got to sleep about 2am. At 5am I woke up to a 6.1 earthquake. Okay, they call it an aftershock, IT IS AN EARTHQUAKE.

It lasted about 10 seconds and wow, was it scary. By the time I got to the yard outside-- in 15 seconds--my entire family was already there to greet me. The ironic thing was that I finally convinced everyone they could sleep inside again.

It was a tough night as our big generator was not working. We got it fixed today, Praise God. This morning was spent getting supplies and sending my team out. At one point I think we had 28 people out providing relief in some form. At 3pm, I was ready to hit the road and I took 9 of the boys and Linda, our board member who is "stuck" here. We went to see the men from the garbage dump and gave them water, rice and bread. Then we just drove up and down the road sharing our supplies with the poorest of the poor. We served about 100 men, women and children.

On the way home we saw a line of only about 4 cars at the gas station. I pulled in to fill up with diesel fuel and, while waiting there, a young man I know named Jimy, 16, came walking to the truck. Normally Jimy runs to my truck yelling, "Tom Tom" and I buy my phone cards from him. Today, a subdued Jimy came over and said hi. I asked him what was wrong. He said nothing, he was okay. When I said, "Come on Jimy, something is wrong", I found out that his mom was dead, and his dad was missing in Port-au-Prince, probably deceased, and he knew it.

I told him if he ever needed a place to stay, he was welcome at our house. He looked at me with pleading eyes and said "today?" I said, "Yes, right now." The boy had been homeless and climbed in the back of the truck, with a small back pack with all he owned. Jimy came here and ate and drank lots of water.

The worst part is, I pulled up to the pump and they were out of gas, giving the last to the truck before me. As I pulled away I thought, wow, came for gas, going home with Jimy. Not going to that gas station anymore. Of course I am kidding, like I was about God not reading my e-mails. For you new folks, you will catch my very dry, poor sense of humor.

Earlier today I felt the weight of the whole world on my shoulders. I got a headache and so badly just wanted to crawl in bed for a day or so. I cannot. We must keep pushing on. Today we were able to provide hope and supplies for over 200 people. We continue to await thousands of pounds of food promised on its way to the airport.

Thanks to all of you for making this relief effort possible. I heard someone say that if any organization says 100% of your money goes to the people, they are lying". I can tell you this in not a lie, at least for us. You see, we did not come just for the relief effort. I have been here 12 years. We have a system, trucks, supplies, and a staff and don't need to spend a penny to get ready to provide relief. We already do that, on a much smaller scale. So yes, 100% of your money is coming here for food, water, medical supplies and to help rebuild homes.

So much more but I will quit for now, keep praying, thank you so much,

tominhaiti

God Doesn't Read My Emails

2010-01-19T23:47:00.001-06:00

Two weeks ago I sent an email to my board saying "I don't plan on taking any new kids in this year", today is January 19th and just took number 3, 4 and 5 into my home to live permanently --also 5 short term). I guess God didn't check his email or He would have known what I said.

This morning at day break we were off to pick up supplies, from a wonderful mission named Haiti for Christ run by two wonderful missionaries, Pastor Joel and his wife Yvonne Trimble. We picked up blankets, cots, tarps, food and were on our way home.

We then came home, unloaded and then headed off to pick up the two little ones who lost their mom, Kimberly and Bony. On the way we stopped and gave water to the garbage dump people collecting rebar. I saw a young teen boy looking at me. He had scarf covering most of his face, and he was covered with dirt. He came to the truck and said, "Pastor Tom, you were in my village two weeks ago. Because of my bible knowledge, you called me pastor." Of course I remembered. I found out his house had collapsed and his mom died. Then the trucks took the debris away, with his mom inside. He had been homeless under a tree.

This was a no brainer. I asked if he would be my son, he said yes and into our truck he crawled. We then went to pick up the two siblings and headed home. The only thing they still had to bring along was their Grace School bag. We then stopped to deliver some of the supplies we had picked up that morning.

When we arrived home, all of the children welcomed the 3 new ones. Bony and Kimberly have been running around this house smiling from ear to ear. Not sure what will happen now as my house grows daily--sure wish God would read my emails.
Tominhaiti