Leaving Nicaragua--Henry's Post

I didn't think that I would fall in love with this place. These little kids just craved attention and were so sweet. Everyone here is just amazing. Leaving tomorow will probably be one of the hardest things that I'll ever have to do. On Thursday I was outside playing with some of the kiddos. One of them, whose nickname is "puerco" (little piggy) started chasing me around. Obviously I had to chase him down and tickle him, which is what he did to me the ENTIRE week. His laugh was one of the most precious things ever. His accomplice then decided to join him and I was tackled to the ground. I'm pretty sure I was covered from head to toe in dirt..as well as mosquitos. I also didn't notice that "puerco" was such a hefty little
thing. It was so much fun.
Well, I should probably end this post. Thank you all so much for praying!

My First Blog

There is no way I can begin to share this experience in a paragraph or two. God is at work. He is working in hearts of kids. He is touching moms and families. He is making his love and power known to this community. He is working within this team. God is at work in me. Thank you for your prayers. They are being answered in ways that are clear and obvious and in ways that are unseen but everlasting. Please continue to pray as God continues his work. Again, I find myself unable to condense, sort, organize or express all my thoughts and emotions briefly.

God is Good.
God is Love.
God is at Work.

AMEN

Richard

Smiling is the same in every language

Hello Everyone!! Well it was another amazing day here in Nicaragua yesterday. We all were pretty tired by the end of the day. We had a great day and yesterday two young men accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and savior. This morning we had three young men accept as well. It has been so great to see how much these young men have changed in such a short time. The kids have also picked up frisbee. They love to run around and throw it back and forth, especially now that they have the form down. They also think its funny to throw six at you at one time and run around to grab them. Also yesterday we had our Ladies Bible Study. It was such an amazing evening words can't describe. There are 20 women who come on a regular basis and they were challenged to each bring one friend. By the end of the night over 50 women had shown up! Terra was able to share her testimony with the women and she did an amazing job. The women were so glued to her story. After that we wanted to pamper and love on the women so we had set up tables and painted each of the women's nails. These women were so excited and beaming that we were taking time to paint their nails. It was a lot of fun but hard at times because of the language barrier. We have all learned how important hands and body language is. Well that was a bit from the day yesterday and some of the things I experienced. I hope everyone is doing well back home. Please continue to pray as tonight is our big presentation of all the work the kids have been doing on learning some new spanish and english songs.

God Bless.

Kaleigh



WHAT UP, AMIGOS & FAMILIA?!
Henry here! This is the first time that i've blogged since before I left for the trip. We have one computer here so time is usually limited..but that's okay. It's been nice to update facebook and send an email to my momma :) I've fallen completely in love with the people here. In the morning we have the kids up at the windows yelling, "Emily! Emily" in their precious accents. All you have to do is walk outside and your name will be shouted with much excitement. Everywhere we go you can be certain that you'll be greeted with a smile and an "hola!" Yesterday, I got to to into downtown Masatepe and bought some cake for our women's tea last night. I got to ride in this thing called a "motor taxi" and it was AWESOME!!! People do drive like crazy though...definitely not like suburbia KC (shout out!) There are so many things and experiences here that have been indescribable. It wouldn't be right to even try to type them. The moments and emotions are something that I'll treasure in my heart forever. God is very real and very powerful, no matter where you go. Whether it may be Anaheim, California, downtown KC, or a little village up in the mountains of Nicaragua, God is the same. God is very present in this town and it's such a cool thing. Hope you all are doing well. I must say the food here is definitely not Taco Bell. It's muy delicioso!
It's time to get my frisbee & plato, plato, ganzo (duck, duck, goose) on!
Henry

Red Lights are Optional

Hello everyone!! This is Kaleigh again. Well just letting you know that if you are not here on this trip you better plan on coming next time because it’s A-MAZING!! God is doing so many awesome things here, not only with getting things together but, in me as well. I can’t believe it is already Tuesday. Today I went into Managua to go shopping for supplies that we would need for our ladies tea (coffee). The ladies here in the community meet every Wednesday afternoon for a bible study, this week we are going to join and pamper the women. We have been working with the kids and rebuilding some homes that we wanted to make sure to make to get involved with the parents as well. Tomorrow we plan on painting nails and just making the women feel special. We also gathered a small gift for them of toothpaste, toothbrush, soap and some hair ties. I am very excited to interact with the women. Today I got to see some awesome sights and realized on the way home that I did have my camera in my purse. A little bummed but the bright side is we will be going on Friday so I can get pictures of them then. I was glad to just enjoy the moment and take time to realize where I am and what I am doing here. I got so see a volcano, a large statue of Jesus and the Virgin Mary, and a replica of the Mayan/Aztec temple. I was a little bit disappointed to see a McDonalds but I guess they are everywhere. Things I learned today: 1. Red lights are optional 2. We may see deer, raccoons, etc as road kill but here, dogs are the road kill 3. Honking means a number of things such as: move, hello or go. 4. Cars don’t watch out for you, you must watch out for them (or you may be the road kill). 5. Wal-mart is everywhere!! I thought those were pretty interesting. Well that was a lot of typing but that was a bit from my day. I hope everyone is doing well! Please continue to pray for everyone. Everyone is in good health and seems to be having an amazing time!!

In Full Swing

Hello Friends and Family,

Yesterday we jumped right into things. Richard safely made it here(big anwser to prayers and jumped into some gutter hanging. Henry woke up feeling sick and was the whole day. Kaleigh painted hundreds of pictures on faces. Katelin created it seemed a million balloon animal. Terra played hours of fresbee. I was able to do a little of everything and catch the rest on video. Today is much of the same but different activites and more and more children showing up all the time. Sometimes it hard to see how our Nicaragua amigos can be so happy with so little but they are. We are experiencing the joy of their simple lives and it is freeing in many ways. Our Hope team has had a lot of laughs and we love hanging out. The food contunues to be amazing- yeserday we had tostadas for lunch and carna asada for dinner with fresh avacados with lime. The people here are very friendly and continue to make us feel welcome. I finally had my first conversation with a girl in Spanish and only because it consisted of a few words and numbers I know. Hope to have another team member jump on today and let you know what they are thinking. By the way- Henry woke up feeling a lot better today and has been rough housing with the kids all day. Please pray for energy and patience as we continue to work with children. Love you all and thanks for being a part of our team.

Just Getting Our Feet Wet

It is hard to believe that we have already been here a day. The place we are staying is incredibly beautiful. It seems to rain on and off all day and night but I am not sure where all the water is going. We have had the chance to take the of Nicaragua and it is wonderful. We have had everything from chicken and beef to seafood. Most dishes contain rice and/r beans. It is differenct then Mexican food and the main bean they use is a small red bean. So far we have no clue what all the plans for the week are but we will be meeting with our team in a few hours to figure all that out. They just got in before lunch and have had little rest between Saturday and today. We have had a chance to visit a few homes in the neighborhood and have been welcomed with open arms. Life here is similar to most the world I guess- people have very little and make life work. Many homes here do not have good roofs and they must always be wrestling to keep things dry. We saw a new roof that the group before us put up last week and we may have a chance to finish the way this week. The plan for the week is to love on the kids in the community and hoping to do a tea for the ladies in the community. Please contiue to pray that God will show us what to do. A little worried that we will have trouble figuring out how to blend our teams together but God can work all that out. We offically hand our lead over to the Magnolia group today. We all seem to be taking things in stride and ahving fun. We went to church today and Katelin would fill us in on the sermon from time to time. Wonderful to see people worshiping God in a tongue you do not know but still clearly see that it is worship. Today is yet another reminder that our brothers and sisters around the world have so much to teach us in reguards to being grateful and joyful in all situations. Richard come in tonight- pray for his safe arrival and that he can quickly jump into things. Thanks again for the many prayers- love you all.
Chris

Hello from Nicaragua!

Hello from Nicaragua! Let me start by saying that this is Katelin typing to you from a computer that has several keys that either don't work at all or don't type consistently, so I apologize in advance for any misspellings or lack of punctuation. (Chris was able to email me Katelin's blog post so I could add in the missing H's and periods for you! ~Stefanie)

Today was spent as a somewhat relaxing day after arriving in Managua in the early afternoon. We ate a wonderful lunch with Pastor Rolando and then headed into Masatepe.

Let me tell you a little about my journey to get here. A few months ago, my dad called me up to let me know of an opportunity to join a group from our church on a mission trip to Nicaragua. Almost immediately I was on board and working on the details of getting to where I am today. My biggest concern, probably not surprisingly, was how to raise the funds as many of my contacts, while all being wonderful people, are not those who tend to have a lot of extra cash lying around. Looking back, God was revealing to me from the very beginning that I was going to have to learn to trust him. Each day since then, He's shown me more and more areas in my life that I need to surrender and trust in him, from my job search to my relationships, and definitely on this trip.

The week leading up to this for me was no more busy than normal, but considerably more taxing emotionally as I was faced with things in my personal life that I never had expected. In the background, I could almost hear God calling me to trust in Him and His plan for everything that was happening. I arrived at the airport this morning with a sense of peace about where we were going and what we would do while here. Now, I just get to trust that what we are doing here God will use in incredible ways, even if we're not around to see the results.

Please pray for the safe arrival of my dad tomorrow as he flies down to meet up with the rest of us from HFC, but also for the safe arrival of the team from California. Continue to pray for our health and safety on the trip as well.

Safe Travels

Hello All! Just a quick update to let everyone know that the group (minus Richard, who will be joining them tomorrow) has landed safely in Managua, Nicaragua! Thanks for your prayers!

~Stefanie~

Using the Right Eyes

Where does one start with giving a glimpse into what God’s doing, what’s going on in my life and how I’m dealing? Oh, yeah, now I remember – my name … hi, I’m Terra Price (that’s Power T to some of you). I’m the elderly member of Team Nicaragua. They say you’re never too old, so this grandma is trusting God to take her where He promised to keep her. Tomorrow we leave! I’d say the past few days have been hectic, but that’s such a shallow word. I could say God’s been working in amazing ways, but that’s nothing new. Probably the new thing is how remarkably aware I have become of His working in and through every situation.
Not everything has gone smoothly (especially this week) and sometimes it made me wonder if I’ve headed in the wrong direction. Or is it the right direction and are those fiery darts I see?
Awhile back, my granddaughter was riding in my car with me, telling me about some “scary things” in her room at night. But there was a verse she learned at school and she wanted me to learn it too. So she had me repeat it several times and it has stuck with me. (This is all “coincidence” of course!) When we got home, she wrote it out for me in her own language: “Wut time I am afaid I will trust in the.” Solm 56:3. No, that’s not Spanish, that’s a really smart 6-year-old sounding things out. But let me translate for you: What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee. Psalms 56:3.
Whatever else I may forget, I going to try to remember that … trust in Thee. For whatever my fear is, whatever the problem is, whatever we may face, it is no bigger to God than that “scary thing” under my granddaughter’s bed is to me. God’s perspective … it’s a wonderful thing to have.
So pray for us to have God’s perspective, to trust Him, to be safe, to be wise and to show His love without reservation.

Serving Wholeheartedly

Hello everyone! Let me introduce myself, my name is Kaleigh Steward. When I first heard about the Nicaragua trip I had no hesitation or doubt that I was suppose to go. A movie was shown in church about this opportunity and instantly God put it on my heart and I knew that he was telling me to go. That is when a lot of planning and trust in the Lord came into play. I knew that since God was calling me to go I knew every door would be opened for me, and it was. As the days have been building up and getting closer I can't believe how much stuff there is still left to do. I know the hard part is still to come but, my main focus has been on trusting God. I know in the planning and preparation of things such as this, we can sometimes lose focus but one verse has always stuck with me "...doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does..." Ephesians 6:7-8. I would ask that you can continue to pray for each person that is going, as well as, everyone's health while we travel and while we are there.

God Bless,

Kaleigh Steward

To Do List

Hey everyone,
So before I start this post, I'll tell you all a little bit about myself. My name is Emily Henry and this is my first mission trip, woo hoo! God has opened so many doors to allow my team & I to go on this trip. Preparations for this trip have been exciting, nerve-racking, new, fun, long, and basically any other adjective you can think of! This being my first trip has made me so excited to embark on this crazy new adventure that God has placed before me.
The fact that we leave Kansas City in a couple of days for Nicaragua is SO exciting. However, this week (and it's only the beginning) is one of the busiest weeks ever. There are people to see, laundry to be done, things to buy, items to be packed, blog posts to type (haha just kidding), work to be done, etc. etc. Last night it felt like my to-do list just kept getting longer and longer. I was talking to a close friend of mine and she told me to read 1 Peter 5:7. It says "casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you." Through all of the craziness of this week, Jesus was kind of put aside. Why I thought it was okay to push the God of the universe to the side still baffles me. The reason I'm going on this trip is because I was called to. It's for Jesus. I just got caught up in the to do list of life. Not saying that this week is going to get any less hectic...it'll probably just get more. But I'll keep reminding myself why I'm going on this trip. To all of you going on this trip: I urge you to do the same. Because this trip would be a whole lot of lame without Jesus in the equation. Please pray that we would cast our to do list on Jesus and focus on Him. :)

Nicaragua

We find ourselves 9 days out from getting on a plane and heading to Nicaragua. There is much excitement and a lot of "firsts" related to this journey. We have seen God's hand at work in many ways: the forming of our team, financial support, and lots of little cool stories (I will share one in a moment). There are no doubt a million other ways God is at work but we simply can't see it or lack the faith to realize it. We would be pridefully wrong to think this trip has been made possible through the work of our own doing. We also understand that we cannot hope to accomplish Kingdom purposes without a strong team of prayer saints. We have made this blog available to you and whomever for the purpose of prayer. I am not sure how often we will be able to update while in Nicaragua but we hope to share our story here during and after the trip.

A small but cool story of God's work: For those of you who do not know, our church was invited by another church (Magnolia Baptist in California) to join them on a trip to Masatepe Nicaragua. So in many ways we are piggybacking on Magnolia. It is a little bit of a challenge to figure how to work together when half the team is in California and the other half in Missouri. So Magnolia has planned a lot of the trip and we are stepping in where needed. So I get an email from Magnolia asking if we have anyone on our team who can make balloon animals and anyone who can do face-painting. I could not believe it! In our little group of six people we have both an experienced face-painter and an experienced balloon-animal-creator! Some people would say it is just coincidence but not us - God is at work!

Here is the list of our team:
Chris Borkert (Hope Fellowship)
Emily Henry (Hope Fellowship)
Terra Price (Hope Fellowship)
Katelin Duffie (Hope Fellowship)
Kaleigh Steward (Hope Fellowship)
Richard Duffie (Hope Fellowship)
Alvin Co (Sunkist Community)
Yeegee Co(Sunkist Community)
Mike Nelson (Baptist Church in Santa Ana)
Pastor Daniel Pacheco(Pastors an NAB church in Chula Vista)
Jessica Gough (Teenager)(Magnolia)
Brittney Grant (Teenager)(Magnolia)
Bill Hatch(Magnolia)
Jerry Henning(Magnolia)
Rodica Marc(Magnolia)
Cody Mora (Teenager)(Magnolia Baptist)
Dave Pugsley(Magnolia)
Corey Wylde(Magnolia)

Last Full Day

Here I am typing my last post from Haiti.  Today has been a day filled with much emotion.  You think of an emotion and I have most likely experienced it today.  The last day of a mission trip is always this way- well at lest for most.  You pour your heart and soul into a few days and build quick but real relationships and then you leave.  I have connected with a boy here named Davidson- he is the master of the kite builders.  He has to be somewhere around 13 years old and we have just really hit it off.  Today the kids went back to school.  This is a huge step for these children because school came to a hault after the quake.  Today was yet another step towards the normal and it was great to be here to wittness it.  After school Davidson came up to me with a picture he made and it was a thing of beauty.  He colored a beautiful kite and a man flying it with my name below him.  He also had written in english "I love you".  He wanted me to take it home.  The two of us had been doing fine all week communicating but he really wanted to ask me something and I just could not figure it out.  What ever it was was important because for the first time he took me to one of the care ladies that spoke english.  He knew I was leaving today and he simply wanted to know if I would be coming back. It is moments like these that break your heart.  I would not lie to him and told him I would like to come back to see him but it would not be soon maybe even a long time.  So much of this trip has been impossible to discribe but isn't that just the way the King works?  I truly believe that this is Haiti's hour.  God is taking pain, loss, death, hunger and redemptively willing joy, gain, life and fulfillment.

May God break your heart for the widows and orphans- He has mine.  This my friends is true religion!

Please pray for our travel back home.  Besty had a great day and is doing great.  We look forward to sharing our journey with you. 

Other Kids and Kites

  Yesterday was a long, good day and I was exhausted last night.  It is hard to believe the trip is almost over and I will be heading home the day after tomorrow.  We visited another orphanage yesterday and had a chance to visually see more of the poverty of this country.  We have no clue how good we have it.  The kids we are staying with are the fattest orphans in Haiti (this is what Mike Fox- the founder said last night).  We saw that this was true when we visited the other orphanage -- the children are still in good health but skinnier and smaller.  This orphanage also had a lot more young children -- several Scout's and Flora's age.  In many ways the earthquake has been the best thing for Haiti -- a lot of people died but I think in the long run even more lives will be physically and spiritually saved because of what is taking place here.  We must play a greater role here but I'm not sure what that will be.  You need to come down here to see what is really taking place in Haiti and not just what the news wants you to see.

On a different note -- I am getting pretty good at flying kites!  The kids here can make them out of about anything and I have been hooking them up with the kite string.  Betsy is doing better this morning but please continue praying for her feet and ankles.  I am a little sun burned but doing great.  Church this morning! 

Ebenezer

Today we heard the story of the place we are staying- Ebenezer.  I will briefly share it. A business man in Port-au-Prince was told by God to build a two story church with a basement (no one builds basements in Haiti) and a tin roof.  He had some land on the edge of Port-au-Prince and built the basement and church but when he got to the roof he decided to put a fancier cement roof on.  A little after the construction was done he noticed the roof cracking and he immediately knew he had disobeyed God.  So he tore down the roof and put up a tin one like God had told him.  This past summer The Global Orphan Project started looking for a place for a new orphanage near Port-au-Prince and a place where they could store large amounts of food and water.  They got connected with this man and decided that the basement would serve as a wonderful location to store large amounts of food, so they filled it up this past summer.  The earthquake strikes and the need for a safe place for newly orphaned and displaced children is evident.  Ebenezer quickly becomes that place.  There is an immediate need for food and water - Ebenezer has a basement full of food and water that is still accessible because the tin roof did not cave like the cement ones nearby did.

 

So why the story? It is a true testament to God's sovereignty.  You see, some may say God caused the earthquake, but I don't buy that.  This world is full of tragedy and pain because of our sin.  Even amidst great tragedy and pain God in His power was working out a plan to love and care for these children months and years before the quake struck.

 

May He give each of us the eyes to see His mighty hand at work in our lives. Amen    

Days One and Two in Haiti

I had to copy and paste this blog from my email, so the formatting is all messed up.  Sorry about that!!!  ~Stefanie~

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

We are definitely in Haiti, my friends.  It almost seems like the trip
was not real up until we stepped off that plane.  I'm still trying to decipher
all the emotions that are running through my mind.  Like
all good trips, some luggage was lost, there was lot of confusion
while trying to find the bags that did arrive, and all the
sights and sounds of a third world country are overwhelming.

After arriving yesterday, we loaded up in our
van and truck and we spent an hour driving to Port-au-Prince to reach
our new home at Ebenezer (the name of the church and orphanage).  We
were immediately swarmed by 70 Haitian children, asking what
our names were.  All the boys really wanted me to give them my
watch.  We then ate some delicious  Haitian meatballs with beans & rice
and prepared for today.  Our team ended the night with a team meeting
  in which we each shared treasured memories of our childhood.  We do not
know each of these children’s stories but we do know they contain
loneliness, trauma and great pain and loss. Each of them need healing
and we believe that part of that healing begins with love.  The
amazing thing about love is that it needs no interpreter to speak --- it
speaks through hugs, soccer balls and laughter.  And that is what
today is about. It is not even 3pm and we are exhausted but that’s ok
because we did not come here on our own strength.   Betsy and I are both
doing well and love all the members of our team.  Please keep us in your
prayers.

Prayer Requests:
1.  Energy to keep going (it is HOT)
2.  Betsy is experiencing a little swelling in her feet and ankles
3.  Continue to pray for unity for our team (been great so far)
4.  Pray, Pray, Pray for these precious little children

We covet your prayers and have encountered less of what you see on TV.
Haiti is a cup half-full not half-empty.  A lot of love and care are needed
but God is at work.  We are seeing it all around us.

May God's power bring wonderful healing into these children's lives.

Safe Arrival

Hello All! 
This is Stefanie posting a quick update for Chris.

He wanted everyone to know that they have arrived at the orphan village.  Travel got a little bit crazy through Port-au-Prince, but they all made it safely through.  The food has been pretty good and he even got to try goat meat for the first time.  He says the children are "precious."  He will be able to get online later in the day and send a longer update, but wanted to go ahead let everyone know that their journey from KC to Haiti was successful.  Your continued prayers are greatly appreciated!!

Getting Close to That Time

I am getting excited!  It is hard not to considering how the day started.  I spent some time at our local high school's FCA chapel.  A little singing, a little teaching and some great prayer.  How ironic/awesome is it that 50 or so high school students laid hands on me and blessed this trip -- all within the walls of their public high school!  The same God that is working so powerfully in their school is powerfully at work in Haiti.  What a blessing it will be to see His work in person. 

Today we have made a list of what needs done before tomorrow.  This list includes packing and lots of playing with the kids.  It is going to be a good day and should be somewhat relaxing as well.  I will be leaving the house tomorrow at 3:30am and will fly to Dallas, then Miami, and finally arrive in Port-au-Prince at 3:45pm.

Prayer Requests:
1. A slow enjoyable day with Stef and the kids.
2. Last minute preparations for Betsy and myself.
3. That everything will fit in our carry-on bags.
4. Safe travel tomorrow for our team.
5. Safe travel for Stef and the kids. (They will head to Arkansas for the week)

"Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him, and He will act." Psalm 37:5

Thanks again for each of your support and prayers.  May God be Glorified!  

  

Last Day of Work

Today will be my last day in the office and I need it to be a productive one.  We jump into a new series for youth group when I return and I need to get parent mailers done.  We will be closing out the school year focusing on the reality that We Are Worshipers.  Please pray for wisdom on what needs to get done and what can wait. People keep asking if I am nervous but I have been so busy with other things I have not really had time to be.  But, yesterday morning I woke up praying and thinking about the trip and did experience my first bit of nerves.  I remember the days when leaving on trips or world travel was simple in many ways but with two little ones I find it much more difficult.  I have grown quite fond of daily little hugs and kisses- they will be treasured today and tomorrow.

Prayer Request:
- Productive day for Besty and myself (Betsy's last day of work as well)
- We both start our malaria meds today- pray our stomachs handle them!
- Unity for our team
- The Haitian people and basic provisions
- That God would be glorified in our lives today!

"For the needy shall not always be forgotten,
and the hope of the poor shall not perish forever."  Psalms 9:10

Our Team

So I was suppose to meet our team before we leave in a week but that is not going to happen.  But I do have a list of names of those going on the trip and would like for you to pray for them today by name.  Here are some general prayer request for our team:
1. OUR FAMILIES- We are leaving wonderful supportive families behind.  Please pray for quality time with our families in this last week before we depart.
2. MALARIA MEDS- Pray the team members remember to start their malaria medication on time. (I start mine 2 days before we leave)
3. WISDOM- Pray that we would be wise with our last week before leaving.  There is more on my list then I can do and I assume everyone else is in the same shoes.  Please pray that God would give each of us wisdom on what REALLY needs to be done this week.

Here is our team:

Schaun Colin (Our Trip Leader)

Marsha Campbell

Larry Becker

John Huber

Brenda McLellan

Chris Borkert

Jeff Bangs

Betsy Bissing (Awesome Youth Volunteer)

Steve Curtis

Ian Gold

Val Clary  
Linda Hohneke

Thank you again for showing your love through the power of prayer.

Dear God,
"Let all the earth fear You;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of You!
For You spoke, and it came to be;
You commanded, and it stood firm."  (Psalms 33: 8-9)   Amen

This is the God we serve!  This is the God we go to Haiti with and will no doubt find He was always there caring and loving for these precious children.  I am excited to see His hand at work but maybe a little scared to see true Beauty and true devastation living side by side. May we put our excitement as well as our fears into the hands of our Creator!    

The Power of a Prayer Team

I met with a lady last week who has just returned from the very place I will be in Haiti. She shared her experience, we looked at photos, she shared stories of different parts of the trip and many more things were shared. Since then the Holy Spirit continues to remind me of one thing she shared- "Make sure you have a prayer team". Oddly enough I have been working through some of the classic Spiritual Disciplines with a group of high school students on Monday Nights and all the Disciplines involve the Discipline of Prayer.

Often I step before I pray.

I have unlimited access to the Creator of all things, the Sovereign One yet I often do not call upon His Great Name and seek His good and perfect will for my life. As I seek to discipline myself in prayer I ask that God's people would also come to my aid. "Make sure you have a prayer team".

I do and it is you!

I will be using this blog to keep you up-to-date on ways you can be praying for me as I prepare, go and return from Haiti. Thank you very much for your support. Through you and others I received all the money I needed for this trip. I also want to remind each of you that you truly are a part of this trip. James 5:16 declares "The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." I believe that more will be done through our prayers then through me going.

Dear God,
May You unify this random group of people as we submit our wills to Your Will. Break our hearts for the world around us that is living in pain and darkness. Continue to supply Your church in Haiti with grace, power and faithfulness to Your Kingdom. By their example of faithfulness my we be challenged and changed. Help us make today about You. We love and so desperately need You.
Amen