OMS CONFERENCE IN MARION - Part Two: GOING HOME

Beyond all the fun we had with the teens at the recent OMS International Missions Conference, we were also given the privilege of addressing the entire conference audience on Friday evening in order to raise awareness of what we are doing in Haiti and our need for support in getting back to work there this fall.

The schedule was pretty tight, so we were asked to write out ahead of time what we planned to say.  Below is the text of what Melissa and I shared that night.

"When Melissa was first introduced to OMS’s ministry in Haiti, a stop at Cowman International School was just another item on the itinerary for her short term mission team. She had no warning that the Lord would be calling us to teach there: Melissa in kindergarten and first grade and I in junior high.  That was 2010.  Cowman had 23 students. 

"This year Melissa and I finished our first year on staff at Cowman.  The student body has swelled to nearly 100, with more expected when school starts again in September.

"It’s a rapidly growing ministry because there’s a rapidly growing demand in Northern Haiti for what Cowman provides: a Christ-centered education in the English language.  Cowman’s value to missionary families is obvious.  It is a support to all other OMS ministries around Cap Haitien in that it allows missionary parents to devote their time to ministry with the confidence of knowing their children’s education is in good hands. 

"Most of our students, though, are not MKs (missionary kids).  They are Haitians and Haitian-Americans whose parents appreciate a Western approach to education – who want their kids to know English – and who want them, especially, to know Jesus. 

"Like one of Melissa's kindergartners, Abby, who came to her one day after the morning Bible lesson and said, "I don't know Jesus in my heart, but I want to!"

"We started at Cowman last year by special permission.  Even though we were not 100% funded, the school needed us in place.  The need at Cowman for this upcoming school year is even greater, but now the funding MUST be in place before we return.

"Cowman International School of Vaudreuil, Haiti, has been in existence for fifty years and has never had the capacity to offer a high school education.  Until now.  Internet curriculum and an expanded staff make it a realistic possibility.  God willing, our son Caleb’s class (currently 8^th graders) will have the distinction of being the first to graduate from Cowman with a high school diploma.  That goal is within reach, but it will be set back if Cowman loses two out of its seven core teachers this coming school year due to lack of funding. 

[We stuck to the script pretty closely, but this closing was adlibbed in the moment:]
 

"I realized something recently: a profound change has occurred in my approach to raising the funds necessary for us to return to Haiti.  I don't know that it is evident to anyone else looking on, but I feel it deeply in my soul. 

"Here's the change: Last year we were raising support to get us to Haiti.  This summer we are raising support to get us Home."

******

We are still in need of further support to get us to Haiti and to keep us there throughout the coming school year.  If the Lord is nudging you towards being a part of this ministry, please consider joining our support team at http://www.onemissionsociety.org/give/theGrosses.

 

OMS CONFERENCE IN MARION

A week ago Melissa and the kids and I spent a few days at Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Indiana for the 2014 OMS International Missions Conference.  It was a fantastic gathering of folks united together in their desire to see the fulfillment of Jesus' Great Commission. 

We went with a trunk full of goodies ...



... because while everyone else was listening to special speakers, attending break out sessions, and drinking coffee at various receptions (first honoring a retiring president, then the new president, then the 60th anniversary of Men For Missions), we had the privilege of working with the 25 teens in attendance for the weekend. 



We had a unique meeting space - the "Little Black Box Theater" - and lots of help, from old friends and new.

New Friend: Erika.



Erika has been working as an Intern at OMS Headquarters in Greenwood for several months.  She led times of singing and worship with the youth for the weekend of Conference.

Old Friends: Bob and Jill.



We've known Bob and Jill for years and years.  Bob and I are both Wabash College/Asbury Seminary alums.  (And that's not a very common combination, I imagine!)  It was such a blessing to get to catch up with these dear friends over the course of an entire weekend - even sharing a dormitory suite with them.  Bob helped with the teaching and programming with the youth and Jill worked with Melissa mostly behind the scenes.

Jill also spent a fair amount of time chasing our two...

Relatively New Friends: Turner and Lilli Jo.

 

 At two and a half, these twins are so stinking adorable! They even made getting out of bed in the morning a pleasant experience for our kids.



Samuel, waking up to pure cuteness.

(All of a sudden, Samuel strikes me as being so big and so old - at age ten.) 

There were plenty of opportunities for fun and recreation throughout the weekend.  Caleb and I ran in the "Homes for Haiti" 5K, which raised money for the ongoing OMS project of building new houses for Haitians who were left homeless by the 2010 earthquake. 

Caleb and I were proud of the fact that we ran the entire 3.2 miles without stopping to walk.

There was also time in the university's game room:



Meals with friends:



And time to relax and enjoy "college life":



For many of us, the highlight of the weekend was something that NOBODY planned ahead of time.  One of our teens was a sweet-natured young man in a wheelchair.  When Saturday morning rolled around, I wasn't sure how he'd react to our scheduled event: climbing the rock wall. 

He sat and watched as one after another, three at a time, teens strapped on harnesses and helmets and climbing shoes and then pulled and stepped their way up the wall, each aided and guided by one of the college-aged staff.  When the last group was on their way up the wall, I leaned down to him and asked, "How's your upper body strength?" 

His quick reply: "I think I could do it, if they'll let me." 

They let him.

And he did it.

 

 

 

A crowd gathered - even beyond our teens - and they were cheering and urging him on.  It took a few minutes, but he made it to the top and the crowd erupted in applause.

 

 

 

While the wheelchair sat empty.

 

 

In a way, this whole episode fit in and reinforced what Bob and Jill and Melissa and Erika and I were trying to communicate to the teens throughout the course of the weekend, primarily through the story of God calling Moses via the burning bush, as found in Exodus 3 and 4:

 

-That God calls the unlikely.

 

-That when God calls, it's natural to feel a bit of fear.

 

-That when God calls, the Holy Spirit equips and gives strength.

 

-And, God is more concerned with our "inner being" than our outward appearance.

 

As often happens, as I helped teach these truths, the Lord knocked ME over the head with them afresh.  I love it when that happens. 

 

****************

 

Do you have time for a few prayer requests?  If so, we'd be so happy if you would lift us up for the following:

 

*Four weeks from tonight we should be on the road to Florida.  Our return flight to Haiti is August 21st.  Please pray that, in our remaining time in the States, we would not allow busy-ness or misplaced priorities to preclude any divine appointments along the way and that we would find time to see all the friends and family members we can.

 

* Also, it looks like our current renter is moving out of our old house here in Columbus at the end of the month, which should give me some time to get into the house and tend to any necessary upkeep before we leave town.  Please pray that we would locate a good renter within the month.  (We can't afford for the house to sit empty!)

 

* We praise God for so many wonderful opportunities to share at churches from West Virginia to Iowa so far this summer.  We speak at Hope UMC this coming Sunday, the 27th.  August 3rd we'll be at Freedom Chapel here in Columbus.  August 10th is still open! (Suggestions for filling it?) And our final Sunday, August 17th we will be at Shiloh Community Church in Franklin in the morning and at an ice cream social at Shiloh-Wesley Church near Spencer in the evening.  Please pray that our sharing about Haiti will bring glory to God and will be fruitful in gathering support as we continue to raise funds to return and remain in Haiti.

 

God bless you!

 

BONN FET, RUYSDAEL!

Sunday was the 21st birthday for Ruysdael, one of my three "Haitian sons".  I can't tell you how sad I was to be a thousand five hundred and seventeen miles away in Columbus, Indiana. 

(I Googled it. It feels farther than that.)

We first arrived in Haiti on August 13th of last year and before the month was spent, God had already brought Ruysdael (and then Johnny and Mikenn) across my family's path. 

Here's my earliest picture of Ruysdael, hanging out with Caleb on the patio at Cowman School before the school year started:



He came back a second day, shyly hanging back and out of the way as I prepped my classroom, now and then venturing to practice his English skills.  At the end of the day, when I asked if I could take his picture, he agreed but then gave me the typical Haitian expression for photos:



It's a cultural thing - apparently they think showing their teeth in a broad smile is ugly. 

I wish I could remember what I said to get this reaction, but I am glad I still had my camera up and pointed in the right direction to capture Ruysdael's reaction:



Because THIS is the Ruysdael I would come to know, and then to love, over the coming weeks and months. 

I had to get over some initial suspicions first.  Just after snapping the above picture, I ushered Caleb and Ruysdael out of my classroom so I could lock up for the day.  Ruysdael stopped in the doorway and said, in clear English, "You are like a second father to me." 

I remember having serious doubts of the sincerity behind this statement.

But I soon discovered that "sincere" indeed was an apt word to apply to Ruysdael and, in time, my role as "second father" took shape.

Here's a picture from mid-September, when Ruysdael (to the right of our front door) was already in the habit of hanging out on our front "porch".  (Mikenn and Johnny are to the left.)

Nobody around the mission grounds could recall ever seeing Ruysdael around before our encounter with him those early days in August.  Before long, Caleb and I had the chance to walk with him, down the main road towards Cap Haitien a ways and then up the hillside, to his house - exactly a mile away from ours.

 

The doorway behind Ruysdael (wearing the blue and yellow plaid shirt) leads to his mother's room. A couple of siblings stand in the entry to the only other room of the house, a bedroom/dining area.  In between is a covered nook that serves as kitchen.

Ruysdael was proud to show me his corner of the room and the bed he shares with a sibling.

As weeks and months passed, we all came to appreciate Ruysdael's grace...



And strength ...



And intelligence ...

 

And dedication to his mother ...



And fashion sense!

 

And artistic ability ...



And joyful spirit ...



And playfulness ...



And his brotherly care for Caleb, Hannah, Samuel and Sarah ...



And his work ethic. (Here, hard work was followed by an impromptu nap on our front porch!)

Not to mention his faith in Christ, which seems to seep naturally from his pores. 

What a privilege it is to know you, Ruysdael!  I think of you (and Johnny and Mikenn) and pray for you often.  I am sorry to have missed your 21st birthday, but I am looking forward to our upcoming reunion in August, God willing.  I thank the Lord for bringing you into my life and the life of my family.

I miss your hugs!

 

 

 

 

Mwen renmen ou, pitit gason mwen!