THE GREAT NORTHWEST - NEWPORT AND DEVER CONNER

It's not hard to see why people fall in love with the Pacific Northwest. We just returned from a trip to Oregon and Washington and, if not for our call to Haiti (not to mention the frigid climate!), I might be ready to make the move myself.

Of course, the Northwest's draw on me may not have so much to do with the beauty of the surroundings as with the wonderful people we encountered there. Our trip was "double-duty" - with the opportunity to visit with family at my nephew's wedding AND opportunities to share with friends and strangers about the Lord's work in Haiti. (While our kids enjoyed the week in Indiana at Grandma's, spending time with her and various local friends.)

Our main hosts for the week were our good friends, Paul and Jen. They arranged the speaking engagements, got us to and from the Portland airport, fed us, housed us, made us laugh, and poured hospitality all over us. Their love for Haiti has brought them to the island on several trips now, so it was wonderful to have the opportunity to visit them in their home neighborhood of Albany, Oregon, south of Portland.

In the interest of keeping as current as possible (while wanting to share more pictures than should go into a single blog post), I am starting at the tail end of our trip - our side trip to Newport, Oregon and the ice cream social with the fine folks from the Dever Conner church.

Our hosts in Newport were Jan and Chester (once little more than acquaintances, now dear friends!). Sunday evening, they fed us some wonderful Thai food and then introduced us to their congregation at South Beach Church for evening worship.

 SB Church meets in a nondescript warehouse ...




Which, on the inside, looks kind of like an upscale bar. Melissa and I have never seen a church quite like it and we were so impressed with the spirit of the worship. Those gathered together were from clearly diverse backgrounds but they shared an obvious love for Jesus.



We only had five minutes to share with the entire congregation, but we were able to speak with a couple of folks after the service about possibly coming to Haiti themselves. I get excited about these sorts of conversations because you never know when you are participating in some sort of divine appointment. Time will tell!

Before heading out, Jan gave us a couple of SB Church sweatshirts to help keep us warm along the coast.



Jan and Chester had offered to host us overnight before we headed back to Albany and we were so glad they had made the offer. It would have been a shame to leave Newport without stopping to admire the beauty of this special place.

So, on our way to their house after worship, we stopped here ...



To admire this ...

The next morning, Jan walked Melissa and me across the road and down to the beach! 

It turned out to be a lovely setting for a long conversation about the needs of Cowman School. Jan is a retired teacher, so she can relate to some of the challenges Cowman is facing. 

By the end of the conversation, Melissa had Jan considering coming back to Haiti this fall for a few weeks to help get the next school year started right! We're praying this will become a reality. 

Before we hit the road, Jan buried Melissa in some excellent curriculum and several educational games leftover from her years in the classroom. 

This is Melissa's "I must get these resources to Cowman" face:

We had a hard time tearing ourselves away from Newport, but we needed to get back to the Albany area for a cookout and ice cream social put together by our friends George and Linda and hosted by new friends Neal and Melinda. 

What a gorgeous evening!

And Linda went all out on the ice cream and toppings. (Check out her granddaughter's reaction in the background!) 

Again, we had the opportunity to share information about Haiti with some folks who are looking at the possibility of a trip in the fall. We will be looking forward to their arrival in Haiti!

Our hosts for the evening:

Between dinner and dessert, we slipped out for a few minutes with George to get a quick tour of a special farm just a mile away. It almost felt like a pilgrimage because this property belongs to Dave and Marilyn, a couple of heroes in the faith and role models for us in serving in Haiti. 

We've had the pleasure of knowing and working alongside Dave and Marilyn for several years now and have often heard about the family farm in Oregon. 

It's an even more impressive operation than I had imagined - built with countless hours of hard work and strong family bonds. 

We had heard about the hazelnut trees, but weren't aware of all the other crops. Like blueberries...

And mint. They harvest the mint and then run it through a "mint still" (below) to extract the mint oil, which ultimately ends up in chewing gum and toothpaste and elsewhere. We would have loved having a little more time to explore the farm - with Dave as a guide! Maybe another day...

Next thing we know, our week was up and Paul was driving us to the airport.  He told us we needed to experience one more local landmark before leaving the Northwest: Voodoo Donuts in Portland. 

He was right! And generously bought us some incredible donuts and even a few to take back to our kids.

What a guy!

The kids were certainly happy to see the donuts the next morning. The photo below is how they looked BEFORE I accidentally dropped the box at the Portland airport. 

Many thanks to our brother in Christ, Bob, who was willing to pick us up at the Indy airport after midnight and deliver us and the donuts to Columbus. 

So good to be reunited with the kids after a week. I was thrilled that their first order of business once everyone was awake was to present me with a couple of belated Father's Day gifts. I didn't even mind the cliche, because, as a matter of fact, I actually DO need a new tie and wallet. 

The wallet, I was informed by Sarah, was the "greatest present EVER" (because she bought it with her own money). And it IS pretty special. One more blessing to add to all the other blessings, too innumerable to count.

Thank you to all who made this trip possible and so very enjoyable - from Chris who drove us to Indy, to Keri, Bonnie, Melinda and Trudy who watched over our kids, to the pastors and youth pastors who gave us a platform to share, to Ryan and Suzan who included us in the wedding festivities, and especially to our gracious and generous hosts, who made even the great state of Oregon a WARM place for us. 

In working backwards, I hope to share some photos soon from the FRONT end of our trip - time in Albany and my nephew's wedding. 

We'd appreciate prayers as we next pack the whole family for a trip to camp in Pennsylvania, with a church visit in Grove City on the front end and a weekend with The Refuge in West Virginia on the back end! So much to look forward to...

SUMMER - ENDINGS AND BEGINNINGS

Our school responsibilities ended officially on Friday, May 27 and two days later we were on a plane to Miami.

Hannah was happy to share this first leg of our journey with her friend Anna, who lives about an hour's drive from us in Port Margot.

The boys happily slid right back into the easy availability of junk food and touch screen entertainment. I joked that it was American Airlines' way of easing us back into American culture. 

Now that our kids are getting older, it is so much easier to travel with them. Our kids strike me as SO mature as they ride the Miami airport train to reach the baggage return. 

Old friends, Gonzo and Twila met us at the airport and guided our rented van to the best Mexican restaurant I have ever had the pleasure to visit. Amazing food and sweet and generous hosts for our first meal back in the States.

After spending Sunday night in Fort Pierce, our family was unanimous in requesting a stop at a Panera Bread for breakfast. Our plan was to drive to Orlando, pick up Grandma Trudy (who was flying down from Indiana to meet us), and then spending about five days "decompressing" in Florida before driving north.We'd spend our hours relaxing by the pool, visiting real grocery stores, walking around Sea World, and generally being spoiled by Grandma.

But the Panera stop Monday morning was the last thing to go according to our plan. 

Sometimes life rudely reminds us of the truth James taught in Scripture:

Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.”  Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” (Chapter 4:13-15)

On our way to the Orlando airport to get Trudy, we got a call from Melissa's youngest brother letting her know that her other brother, Randy, was in the hospital and not expected to live.

It was certainly a bittersweet reunion with Trudy a few minutes later at the Orlando airport. In shock, we weighed our options and decided to send Grandma Trudy and Melissa north on an afternoon flight the next day. The kids and I would stay and make use of the time share for at least a day or two more and then drive ourselves back to Indiana.

I took took the kids to Sea World the next day, Wednesday. It was fun and interesting, but not the same without Mom and Grandma.

The Antarctica exhibit was the coldest we've been in 12 months. We didn't linger long with the penguins!

We made sure we caught one of the dolphin shows. The whole motivation behind going to Sea World in the first place had been Grandma's love of all things dolphin related. Meanwhile, Grandma and Melissa were at the hospital at Randy's bedside.

About the time the kids and I returned to our room, I got a text from Melissa that Randy had passed away. We were so thankful that she and Trudy had flown back to Indiana when they had.

Friday was a long day for everybody. Melissa and Trudy and other family members were involved in funeral arrangements. The kids and I drove from Orlando to Columbus - a little over 900 miles - with minimal stops. The kids were troopers and we made it to Trudy's house around 1:00 am. 

Sunday morning we were all more than happy to worship at our home church, CCC, before a long afternoon of visitation at the funeral home.

I was privileged to lead the service for Randy's funeral Monday morning. Sad, sad day. He was only 43 and left behind three daughters, college aged and younger. If the Lord brings Melissa's family to your mind in the coming days and weeks, please lift them in prayer. It's going to be difficult moving forward.

Tuesday was a recovery day for us. Melissa took Caleb shopping for clothes and discovered that his favorite color is gray. Any non-gray shirt was "ugly". Loading a cart in Kohl's was a good way for Melissa to start - or restart - our summer break.

And then yesterday felt like our summer was truly BEGINNING. We drove to Indy to spend some time with precious and supportive friends, Bob and Jill, and their kids. Sweet corn, potato salad, and a swimming pool. And the weather has been glorious.

We finished the day with a cookout at my brother Russ' house. Again, good food and good company. This is the highlight of our summer - catching up with friends and family. The Lord has blessed us so much!

Beyond Melissa's extended family, our immediate family also covets your prayers. We need wisdom as we seek to find a good balance over the summer and, of course, God's protection as we travel. Our kids would be in paradise if our schedule allowed them one sleepover after another with their friends, but our reality is that much of our summer will be focused, once again, on sharing about our ministry at Cowman School and raising the necessary funds to keep us working in Haiti. 

While we're on the topic, Melissa and I still have several Sunday mornings we'd love to use in visiting supporting churches. We are always open to any lead which God might lay on your heart - just contact us through Facebook or email at sgross@onemissionsociety.org.

I will post what we know of our summer schedule in a day or two! Looking forward to reconnecting with folks in the coming weeks!

MEET THE NEW NEIGHBORS

Maybe I've watched too much TV over the course of my life, but you know how your favorite sitcom will throw in some new twist at the end of a season - a big breakup, an unexpected wedding, a new job?  And then comes the summer hiatus and and you've got to wait months to find out how it's going to play out in the next season?

This feels a lot like that.

We're nearing the end of our third school year and it's been a wonderful and exhausting season and last week I heard our family has new neighbors.

I have probably never mentioned that the old seminary dorms are within sight of our house?

Or that there's a local pastor and his wife who manage them as a retreat center and long term rentals?

Or that OMS employees get a discounted rate?

The guys told me they like this particular dorm room because they can see our house from that window behind them!

Apparently this sitcom is called "My Three Haitian Sons". I'm looking forward to seeing how this plays out.

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Our Internet connection is dependent on Radio 4VEH's generator for power and over a week ago that generator went kaput. This has put me behind even further in finalizing our summer plans. It might still be several days before we get a dependable connection back. We're looking forward to seeing everyone this summer and we still have a few open weekends for sharing with churches or other groups, near or far. Drop me a line if you have any leads. Thanks!

THE WHOLE GOAT

At 9:45 Saturday morning my phone rang: "Good morning, Teacher Gross. We are waiting for you at the front gate."

My adult English class is a funny group this year. They like to party. At Christmas time, it wasn't enough for me to bring a cake for our celebration together - they had to turn the whole thing into a feast. Fried goat, plantains, pikliz.

So I wasn't surprised when, as our final class of the school year began to approach, they decided they wanted to organize a trip to the beach before we went our separate ways in June. Yesterday was the chosen date and preparations were made and we were to meet at 9:00 a.m. at the OMS office and I would drive us all together in the big OMS truck.

Unfortunately, heavy rains fell throughout the night and continued into Saturday morning. I had even walked through the drizzle to the front gates at 9:00 JUST IN CASE anyone was crazy enough to want to go to the beach ... and I had returned home greatly relieved to have seen nobody. I wasn't surprised, of course - people around here tend to avoid the rain. The streets empty with a downpour. And this rain didn't look like it was going to let up any time soon.

But now here they were 45 minutes later, waiting for me at the gate - about 8 die hard beach fans with three buckets of food and a couple of cases of soda. (I had anticipated around 30 students joining in - if the sun had been shining.)

They told me they understood if I didn't want to go with them, but they were determined to go. The ringleader, Abraham, explained that he planned to drive his pickup and everyone would simply crowd into IT if I decided not to go.

I HAD been looking forward to this trip, but now the weather was miserable and I could imagine driving all the way to the beach only to turn back home in disappointment at the lack of sunshine. Besides, Melissa and I had already made alternate plans for the morning. So I waffled a bit, but ultimately I ran back up to the house, grabbed my water bottle and swimsuit and joined the students in driving to Camp Louise, 12 miles (read:one hour!) away.

(By the way, at the last moment, Mikenn and Ruysdael showed up and they jumped in the vehicle to go with us, even though they had not packed a beach bag. They often hang around during my English class, so they are friends with many of the students now too.) 

I was motivated partly by the impulse to explore a beach I had not seen before, but mostly by the desire to spend some unstructured time with my students. This year's class has been a real hoot. Besides, I figured the rain would let up soon. But as we drove, the clouds became ever thicker and heavier. In places, the road became a river.

So once we arrived at the beach, we had our choice of shelters! Not another soul in sight.

Judging from this photo, maybe half of us were quite happy to be at the beach:

The first order of business was to serve the meal.

Here you see boiled plantains on the top left, boiled potatoes on the top right and goat stew at the bottom:

When I asked Abraham who had cooked the goat, he said it was his cousin. Someone asked if it was "goat head stew" (which IS a thing here) and he replied, "It was a small goat, so we threw the WHOLE thing in." 

When it came to the meal, Abraham hadn't held anything back; he threw the whole thing in the stew pot. And as my students pulled me to the front of the line and piled TWO Styrofoam containers with enough food to fill at least two men, I was humbled and decided that "All In" was, indeed, the theme of the day.

So when after lunch (which, by the way, was EXCELLENT!), half the group proposed going for a swim in the cold rain, I hesitated only briefly before changing into my swimsuit to join them in the water.

Who cared if it felt like it was 60 degrees and the wind was blowing and the rain was pelting us non-stop, we came to the beach and we were going to swim, doggone it!

We paused only for a few photos along the way...

And then went for a swim.

Jojo, Mikenn, Ruysdael and I after our cold swim. I am surprised this photo is in focus considering how much all four of us were shivering. I don't think any of us packed a towel.

The rain finally started to let up around 2:00. So after drying off and warming up a bit, these three guys and I went walking down the beach a ways, taking in the sights.

For instance, this fishing boat that was being repaired.

I was especially curious about this entire area because in front of us was the backside of the mountain behind my house.

There was a shoreline swamp that was gorgeous if you ignore the trash.

This little guy had just fetched a bucket for his dad to use in bailing water out of one of the boats.

Several fishing boats were anchored along the bay.

Another boat heading out to sea in search of a catch.

And a beached boat preaching the truth.

I ended the day so thankful that I hadn't stayed home out of fear of being uncomfortable or "being unproductive" when I had so much work I could be doing. Such good food, great company, gorgeous scenery and fun memories that I might have never known. I do believe it was the Lord who had nudged me forward and who reminded me throughout the day that I need to approach this crazy, unpredictable life with an "all in" attitude. (And I appreciated Melissa's flexibility in my absence and patience with my early waffling.) What a day I would have missed out on!

Reminds me of one of my favorite quotes, from Henry David Thoreau:

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practise resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, to cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms.”

Or, more importantly, John 10:10 -

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."

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One last picture. Various students asked me several times throughout the day how their Haitian beach compared to American beaches. I told them American beaches are very similar in most ways. But here's something you don't usually expect to see at the beach:

RUSHING TOWARDS JESUS

Yesterday my family and I had the privilege of worshiping in a Baptist church in the heart of Cap Haitien. Pastor Marcellus Joseph is a student in my adult English class and when he pulled me aside after class one evening to invite me to preach from his pulpit, I jumped at the opportunity. 

The church sits directly on the very busy "A" Street, just down from the "four-way-go" where Route Nationale #3 leads to the airport. There's no parking on the street and so Pastor Marcellus met us in front of the church just before 10:00 am and showed us where to park on a side street. 

I've been in Haiti three years now and it just occurred to me yesterday that I have never seen a church building here with the space or need for a parking lot. Christians, by and large, tend to walk to a neighborhood church. Pastor Marcellus' church exists IN the neighborhood, THROUGH the neighborhood and FOR the neighborhood where God has planted it.

Once inside, we found a warm reception (in more ways than one). The sanctuary space had obviously been expanded over the years and some walls were going up on the second story. Pastor Marcellus has served here for 16 years.

Here was my view for most of the service, from behind the pulpit.

To my right were several very talented musicians and a door that opened onto a busy side street. This wasn't the type of church building where you can go to forget that there is a crazy, bustling, lost world right outside the walls.

As my translator for the morning, Mikenn sat beside me on the platform. Not sure if he was already sweating from the heat or from nerves about his role for the morning!

I preached from John 21:1-7, the post-resurrection story where Jesus finds the disciples on the fishing boat one morning after an unsuccessful night at the nets. Jesus gives directions from the shore; the disciples make a huge haul of fish and finally recognize Him. Peter's reaction is to jump into the water to get to Jesus as quickly as possible.

This passage caught my attention in the weeks after Easter because I was fascinated by Peter's reaction - how very different it was from the calling of the first disciples (as found in Luke 5), a story with a host of parallels:

* Unsuccessful fishing
*Directions from Jesus
*Reluctant obedience on the part of the fishermen
*Peter reacts dramatically

In the first story, Peter falls at Jesus' feet and begs him to go away: "Depart from me; I am a sinful man!" Three years later, Peter jumps off the boat in a rush to get to Jesus.

Is it because Peter is any less sinful? 

Hardly. 

In fact, he is carrying the guilt of the greatest sin of his life - his denial of Jesus the night He was arrested. (After boasting so confidently in his resolve to die with Jesus if need be.)

I would maintain that the difference in Peter's reaction is in how well he knew Jesus. There was something in Jesus' words and countenance upon their first meeting that conveyed His authority and holiness, contrasting sharply with Peter's sinfulness. 

Could it be that after walking with Jesus for three years, Peter knows His holiness and authority better than ever, but he ALSO knows Christ's great love and readiness to forgive? And perhaps THIS prevents Peter, even under the weight of great sin, from pushing Jesus away. He rushes to Jesus and finds Jesus ready to forgive.

How many Christians sit in church week after week maintaining outward appearances yet inwardly pushing God away with all their strength, desperately hoping to hide their sin from the only one capable of bearing its weight? How many outsiders recognize God's holiness on some level, but are too focused on their own sinfulness to see His love and offered forgiveness.

Don't attempt to hide your garbage from the Lord, but rather allow him to clean it all away. He has already borne its weight on the cross.


(I don't remember you asking for a sermon, but there it is!)

For the record, Mikenn did a wonderful job of translating for me ... at least as far as I could tell. :-)

Melissa and I really enjoyed getting some time after the service to get to know Pastor Marcellus a bit better. He and Mikenn and Ruysdael and Johnny joined our family for lunch at a new restaurant downtown. 

Good worship, good food, good company = Great Sunday.