SARAH'S RED LETTER DAY

Tomorrow we finish what has been a wonderful week at Seneca Hills Bible Camp in Pennsylvania, where we have had daily opportunities to share about missions in general and Haiti in particular. The food has been top-notch, the scenery gorgeous, the counselors enthusiastic ... and our kids exhausted.  

Caleb, Hannah and Samuel have had the pleasure of being campers and mixing in with the other kids here, living in the cabins and playing all the crazy games.  At the beginning of the week, Sarah was quite sad that she was not going to be a camper herself. (Apparently she didn't comprehend that "Junior High Camp" meant only junior high kids could be campers.)  She couldn't believe that she was going to be left out, sleeping in the guest room with mom and dad, unable to join ALL the activities.

It didn't take her long, though, to realize that she still got to do a lot of great things right alongside the big kids.

She has spent time in the pool...



And enjoyed all the wonderful meals (like this giant sandwich our first night)...



And she's even formed a couple of sweet friendships with other kids in the same boat!



And a little extra time with Dad -



And mom - hasn't been all that bad!



PLUS, she's done a few things the big kids DON'T get to do.  Like rollerblading in the chapel while mom and dad get things ready for a presentation about Haiti.



And she has gotten to spend WAY more time in the craft barn than ANY camper.  This is her happy place, for sure.

But Tuesday proved to be the greatest day of all!

First, Sarah got to climb the rock wall. She made it to the top and rang the bell!



Fearless!

Then it got BETTER.

Next came the zip-line.  The starting platform is from the back of the rec center.



Daredevil in flip-flops!

Then the day got WAY BETTER, with the start of the greatest adventure of all.

In the evening, a traveling ministry team from Florida put on a martial arts demonstration. These high school students and their youth pastor included a lot of physical humor and personal testimonies of coming to faith in Christ. At the end of their presentation, the youth pastor issued an invitation to the campers to yield their lives to Christ...

And Sarah was among those who responded! Melissa and I had the chance to speak with her about it later and it was the "real deal" - She has believed in her heart and confessed with her mouth. She has a clear understanding of the concept of her own sinfulness and her personal need for a Savior and I have no doubt this was the working of the Holy Spirit.  

In conversation afterward, Sarah was particularly concerned about a recent growing tendency toward lying and Melissa was able to assure her of God's forgiveness and grace.  

We are overjoyed and thankful for this new beginning and pray that her life will bear much spiritual fruit in the years to come. 

We couldn't ask for a better outcome for our week at camp and we are praising the Lord for bringing our family to this place!

We often refer to Sarah as our "princess", but now she is indeed a princess - the adopted daughter of the King. Thank you, Lord Jesus!

THE DAYS ARE FULL

... like a cup that runneth over!

This past week has seen a lot of activity.

I spent a good chunk of time working at our old house, trying to get it ready to sell. Lots of weeds to pull and I got the back deck power washed and ready to paint - whenever the rains give me a window to do it.

The older kids and Melissa helped out with VBS at our home church while Sarah was a participant.

We house - and pool - sat for some friends.  A great place to stretch out a bit and a great pool to invite friends to.



A couple of nights, Melissa and I used it as a quiet retreat from the kids (who stayed back at Grandma Trudy's house)! Here's Melissa finishing an entire bowl of late evening cereal without once hearing "Hey, Mommy..."  It was wonderful.



We spent an afternoon ice skating ...



As guests of the Sharpes'.



It was the coldest we've been in two years!



We got to catch up a bit with good friends like the Hartwells...





And Beka...

And Bob and Jill - and their three adorable kiddos.

Tonight we are bedding down at Seneca Hills Camp north of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania!  Drove through hours upon hours of rain today and hoping that the weather improves for our week at camp.  Tomorrow morning we will be worshiping at East Main Presbyterian Church in Grove City, PA and sharing with a Sunday school class about the ministry in Haiti.  That's the home church of Kathy, one of my former youth from Le Mars, Iowa from way back.  She's all grown up now with a family of her own.  In fact, one of her sons will be a camper here at Seneca Hills next week.  How cool is that?

God is good.

All the time.

SMALL BLESSINGS

While we're in Haiti, I have trouble keeping this blog up to date - lack of energy, lack of time, lack of internet.  There are so many experiences from the past year and so many day to day realities that I have never addressed here, I figured over the summer I might try to post on some of those - along with updates of life "on the road" this summer.

Here's one of those day to day realities we've gotten used to: 

Where we used to live in Indiana, we were literally a block behind a Target store.  There was a grocery within walking distance too. So convenient. 

When it comes to getting food you want/need, it's funny living in northern Haiti sometimes. There are plenty of fresh fruits and veggies around: the Haitian pineapple is incredible, mangoes are often plentiful and so are avocados (in the right season).  But no broccoli, asparagus, mushrooms, cauliflower, or peas. Worst of all: no cilantro! As far as pre-packaged foods go, there's pasta, tomato paste, generic cornflakes, cookies and a type of cheese puff that is 95% air and 3% styrofoam. 

Some familiar items are available out in the street market stalls - Pringles, sometimes Oreos, Mac and Cheese, ketchup and mustard. And we've been blessed beyond reason by quite a few generous friends who send care packages overflowing with junk food! 

In between those boxes, sometimes it's possible to find some more unusual fare in the couple of grocery stores a few miles from our house - but these places are the size of what would be called "convenience stores" back in the States. Unfortunately, the things that catch my attention usually have a pretty steep price tag (a small jar of Nutella that would last me two or three days asking $10) or a bit past their prime (Halloween candy in April).  Sometimes you justify the expense because "it's been sooooo long since we had this" - last November we found a 12 pack of Root Beer for $10, bought it and wrapped it up for the kids as a Christmas present.

Made them happy.

And then, every once in a great while, you can walk through the market in Cap Haitien and find PURE GOLD.  I'm not sure exactly how it happens, but there must be an entire crate of some particular product and all of a sudden the market is glutted with something that many of the locals probably don't even recognize or necessarily want.  Demand is low and supply is high and that means the price is right. 

Keurig Coffee singles. 
Pop Tarts. 
Combos.  

But, in my opinion, the best find of all was the 2-pack of Nyquil ("super-strengthed" at that) which Melissa got for 75 gourdes one weekend.  That's less than a dollar a bottle!  And with the non-stop sinus infections I've fought since moving to Haiti, that Nyquil was a true God-send.  

By the way - we'll be at our home church, giving an update at both services - tomorrow morning.  Looking forward to seeing everyone at Community Church of Columbus!

THANK YOU, CORNERSTONE!

Our first Sunday back in the States found us at Cornerstone Community Church in Seymour, Indiana and what a great morning it turned out to be! 

We've had a connection with this congregation for at least three years now, traced back to a "chance" meeting that was later clearly revealed to be a "God Appointment" in reality. 

Russ, an electrician and member of CCC, was working on a project at Southside Elementary, where Melissa was teaching at the time. Russ had been to Haiti several times and was getting ready to return for yet another short-term mission project and was very supportive of Melissa's talk of our family preparing to move there full-time.  He gave our name to Cornerstone's Mission Board, which interviewed us and then added our family to the list of missionaries they support annually. 



We have been so blessed by this congregation ever since, but Sunday was the first time we've actually had the opportunity to speak to the congregation as a whole about the ministry we have given ourselves to in Haiti - the ministry that wouldn't happen without their support.  

The moments we get to share our hearts for Haiti throughout the summer - with big groups, small groups, and individuals - are truly highlights of our time in the States.  And this Sunday morning seemed like perfect timing in so many ways. 

First, this church knows how to WORSHIP.  So refreshing, especially coming off nine months of attempting to join in hymns sung in French or Creole ... and even THAT is only possible when we manage to find the right song in the hymnal in the first place.  (We have a long ways to go in our language acquisition still!)

Secondly, Pastor Johnnie had a great sermon about God as the SOURCE of joy, righteousness, peace, and security.   How often we look to other things to fill these needs!  Ultimately we find that nothing but the true Source can ever satisfy.

Finally, about 12 to 15 individuals were joining the church that morning and they were being treated to a pulled pork luncheon after the service - and Pastor Johnnie invited us to join in. PULLED PORK, people!  

And would you believe that one of the young ladies who was joining the church that day was born and raised in Haiti?  Evie and another young Haitian lady sat with us at lunch and we had a wonderful conversation about their lives in Haiti and their new lives now in the States.  They thanked us profusely for the work we are doing there.  Like us, they long to see God's will done in Haiti.  

It was a joy to get to know them, and the entire congregation, a bit better.  Thank you, Cornerstone, for coming alongside us for the sake of Haiti.  We look forward to seeing you again soon.  God bless you!

The sign at the exit of the church's parking lot.  They really seem to function in this reality!