Church Plant - First Week

Last Sunday we had our first service of the First Presbyterian Church of Port-au-Prince. It was a very beautiful service. All 4 pastors participated and lead the service, doing different parts. There were about 120 people in attendance. Pastor Charles preached on Luke 23:39-43, which tells of the robbers who were crucified beside Jesus, when Jesus was crucified. He focused in on 3 points titled, "Salvation Today!" - 1. Knowing Jesus 2.Knowing ourselves 3.Finding our salvation in Jesus.
It was nice that John Kottelenberg could be here to share it with us, and he gave an address at the end of the service. It was also nice that we had a work team here from Canada who could join us as well, and help us prepare to get some things ready for it. And it was nice that all the families of the pastors could be there (a few were missing) as I had not yet met their families.

On Wednesday we had our first prayer service. Pastor Leon led us in it, and gave a devotion on Acts 12, Peter being freed from prison. He talked about how when we pray the LORD breaks the chains that bind us and opens the doors, in answer to our prayers, even when things look hopeless. It was a beautiful evening of prayer, song, and worship.

And on Friday we began our Bible study evening. We are studying the Larger Westminster Confession of Faith. Pastor Leon led the singing, and Pastor Delfis led the study. He explained the neccesity of confessions, and the need to study doctrine, and be alert against heresy's that creep into the church. It looks to be an exciting time as we work through it.

Here are some pictures of the first worship service. I didn't get any pictures of the prayer service or Bible study, as i forgot my camera.


Before the Service - people coming in.


John K giving an address at the end of the service.

Pastor Leon and Pianist leading Singing.

During Singing.

Pastor Charles preaching.

3 Haitian pastors.

The pastors and their wives, and us. (Pastor Octavius Delfis's wife was absent because she was sick.)

Church Plant - begins this Sunday!

Church Plant“Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to the power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” Ephesians 3:20, 21 (NIV)

Once again God has proven His promise that He is able to do way more than we could ever ask or imagine. Once again I am blown away by how our God works. Once again I humbly write a blog update excited to tell of what the LORD is doing.

So, we have been dreaming of and praying for having a reformed church connected to the school and work being done here, a church which we could encourage people to attend and be a living and active member of, a church in this section of Port-au-Prince. Well, the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) and the Presbyterian Church of America (PCA) are both working here in Haiti, and have wanted to do a church plant in Port-au-Prince too. So we have connected with them, and after much talking, researching, planning, and prayer, we have decided to partner with them, for them to do a church plant here at the school. They will be doing the church plant, we will just be helping them out.

The goal is to establish a presbyterian and reformed church in the capital city of Port-au-Prince: a Bible-believing, prayer-saturated, God-glorifying, Spirit-led, Christ-exalting, outreach-focused, Training-oriented, worshipped-filled, people-loving body of believers.

The Name of the church is (in English), the First Presbyterian Church of Port-au-Prince.

Leadership Team:I am super excited about the leadership team the LORD has given us, and allowed us to work with, for this church plant. Let me briefly introduce them:
• Pastor Benjamin Hopp (ordained OPC pastor).
• Pastor Charles Amicy (ordained PCA pastor)
• Pastor Octavius Delfils (ordained PCA pastor)
• Pastor Leon Amicy (ordained PMH pastor)
• Randy Lodder (director of Adoration)

I am truly excited to work with this team. They have many years of experience, bring many different gifts to the table, and each have a passion for the magnifying the Name of the LORD, and spreading His fame and awesomeness here in Haiti. They also love the Word of God, and the Reformed faith, and see the need for this in Haiti. And also, what I am truly pumped about and thankful for, is Charles, Octavius and Leon are all Haitians: they are indigenous pastors, who know Haitian culture, the language and how the gospel needs to be contextualized within this setting, and have years of experience, and are fully trained and ordained. How amazing is that. (God can and will do way more than we can possibly imagine.) I am truly excited to be a part of their team and learn so much from them, as they have much they can teach me. I am so thankful for that.


A Brief History:
I just want to provide a brief history of the organizations involves, and how it has lead up to this point, with us moving forward with this church plant.

The Presbyterian Mission of Haiti (PMH)(PCA) has been working outside the city for the past 10 years, up the coast, with churches from Cabaret to Saint Marc. They desire to work their way all the way up to the D.R. They have a ministry center in Messailler (close to Cabaret), which includes a Training Center, Church, School, Orphanage, Office and House. (The center has received a lot of damage due to the last storms.) At this stage, they desire to do a church plant in the capital city, as there is no church in the capital at this point. Also, all three pastors live in the capital now, so of course it is on their hearts to have a church here in the city too.

The Orthodox Presbyterian Mission of Haiti (OPMH)(OPC) has their churches on the island of Lagonav. They had also started a church plant in the capital of Port-au-Prince, but this work was closed down in August of 2007. They, as well, desire to target the capital, as they see the need for a presbyterian and reformed church here in Port-au-Prince.

The PMH and OPMH are partnering to form a presbytery here in Haiti. This would allow them to have a governing body over the churches, as well as to further organize training for, and to ordain, leaders (pastors, elders and deacons). This has been agreed to in principle and work is going ahead to form a presbytery in 2009.

We, Adoration Christian School, (and CDIA) are working in Haiti as an Aid Organization, with a Medical, Educational and Spiritual thrust. We have been searching and praying about the opportunity to have a Reformed Church here in Port-au-Prince, which the organization could work side by side with, as right now there is no particular church in which we encourage people to attend and be an active and growing member of. Partnering with the PMH and OPMH is a huge blessing to establish a presbyterian/reformed church which could teach people about the Reformed faith and in which people could have their membership. We are excited about this possibility, to say the least. Again, CDIA is not doing a church plant, nor is Adoration. We are, and will be kept separate from it. It will be the PMH and the OPMH who are responsible for it. But the church plant will be using our facilities.


Starting Date – This Sunday: We are having our first Worship Service this Sunday - Sunday, October 26! I know this is 1 day from now, with not much warning, but things are moving. This service should be a beautiful one as all pastors are participating in it, a board member is here for the occasion, and we have a work team visiting us, who can witness it as well.
I guess things has happened rather quickly, but we have talked about it, sought out advice, planned, and brought it before the LORD. And now we are moving forward, with much prayer, humility, boldness, and expectation.

Prayer:Please pray for us as this church plant begins. We pray that a church may be established: one that is what our vision hopes and longs for: a Bible-believing, prayer-saturated, God-glorifying, Spirit-led, Christ-exalting, outreach-focused, Training-oriented, worshipped-filled, people-loving body of believers. This is Christ’s church and He will build it, and it is for Him. Our prayer is that we may have this as our focus and that we would move forward only in His strength, and for His glory.

Visitor/Team Update:Well, before I sign off, I wanted to give a quick update about the team that is here right now helping us out. Nicole DJ came last week and has been busy doing many, many tasks, from helping in the medical clinic, to building things, putting together teachers’ desks, taking over the office on occasions for us, organizing and cleaning. We are having a lot of fun with her, especially because she lets me win Ticket to Ride every night.
John K arrived on Wednesday and we have been having some great meetings with him and working through a lot of the work that is happening, reporting, evaluating, and planning. It has been a real blessing. And 4 other team members arrived Thursday: Leanne and Tanya from Carmen, and Andrew and Pierre from Carlyle and Glanbrook respectively. They finished their first day of work today, and got much accomplished. They did some concrete work and installed a drainage pipe, cemented a great platform for a pulpit, and have been doing a lot of fix-up jobs. They also plan to raise the front wall next week, and do a few fix-up jobs and build a few things for us. I don’t have any pictures right now, but we will post them as the week progresses. They also brought with them many donations, which we praise God for. Thank-you to so many people who donated materials, clothing, school supplies, etc. These donations will be put to good use, and will be a blessing to many people.

Anyway, I better get to bed, as it is getting pretty late.
Randy


Handing out invitations to the church to the patients at the medical clinic at Adoration.

Having a meeting, planning for first service.

The Leadership Team for the church plant, from left to right: me,(Randy), Pastor Charles Amicy, Pastor Ben Hopp, Pastor Ocatavius Delfils, Pastor Leon Amicy.

First Few Weeks of School

Here are a few pics of the first weeks of school. As you can see the students are thoroughly enjoying the new art ideas their teachers learned at the teacher seminars in the summer. There is also a picture of some of the students with their new glasses! A glasses clinic was held at Quisqueya chapel and we were able to take some of the students there to get their eyes checked. All of them received a pair of sunglasses and some got prescription glasses as well, hopefully it will help them out in school. Also Nicole has arrived safely in town to visit with us as well as get ready for the team that is coming at the end of the week. It's always good to have family around again and we're looking forward to the rest of the team coming in on Thursday.

First Day of School!

Well today was Adoration's first day of School. It was an exciting day as we got to see "old" students again as well as meet new ones. The teachers did a fabulous job today with their students, breaking them into good school routines:) Only three minor... maybe not so minor... accidents. Some of the little kids had trouble finding the toilet today but hopefully a few days of showing and reminding them will put them right back on track.
It was so good to start the year off with prayer with our staff asking for a blessing on the school year as well as opening as a school and being reminded to say "Mesi Bondye!" Thank you Lord! We pray that the school year may be a blessing and that it may be blessed! Thank you for your prayers today!
... tried to post a few pics but the internet is going a little too slow....

Pics of Belladere

Well, were back with another update. We just spent sometime 'deyo', that is outside of the city, in the country side. We stayed for 15 days in a little village called Belladere which is about 3-4 hours from Port-au-Prince, close to the D.R. boarder. We stayed with a Haitian family while we were there - well, they were actually an extended family, as there were a few families who lived right there on the same property. The purpose of the trip was to continue to do language and cultural training. It was an amazing experience, as country-side life is different than city living. We learned a lot about this Haitian culture, and learned a great deal from them. We spent time studying the language, helping out with basic daily chores and work, visiting peoples' homes, learning how to cook Haitian style, just hanging out and talking to people, visiting the markets for shopping, helping at a stand at the market, singing, making visits to the hospital, etc. We are very thankful to the family that took us in, who we got to know very well. They have taught us a lot, especially of their devotion to Christ. We were very encouraged by that!

While we were in Belladere, Haiti got hit hard by a few tropical storms. We had rain and storms so often there, a because there is no room to sit inside a Haitian house we put up a small tarp and we all sat under it as we talked or played cards, etc. We didn't get hit near as bad as some other places in Haiti, as we were higher up, and farther from the coast. But we were updated frequently by different people of the tragedies that were happening all over Haiti. The road to bring us home was rendered impassable because of the storms, but thankfully it was fixed by the time we had to travel home. A lot of lives have been lost, and many peoples homes destroyed, as well as their crops and gardens, livestock, vehicles, and household belongings.
Today we visited Cabaret, a town up the coast a little ways, where the PCA has two churches. The one church is on their main compound, which houses their school, dormitories, the pastors house and an orphanige. The storms had completely destroyed all the walls around the compound, as there was water 8-9 feet high in the whole thing. The Pastor and his family lost most of their belongings in the house, including his entire library, laptop, and church records. They lost 4 vehicles, and whatever was on the first floor of all buildings. Thankfully, the pastor and his family, and the children who were in the orphanige were spared. The other pastor in the town lost everything in his house. Many people died in this town. As we drove through today, we saw many houses that were washed away -ones close to the river. We saw houses covered halfway with mud, and all the crops destroyed. We saw a bunch of tents set up in a field, a relief project, giving temporary housing to people who had lost their homes.
We went to Cabaret today with all our teachers and workers, to deliver food(rice, beans, cornmeal, oil), water, cleaning supplies and clothing to the church here. We spent a good part of the day helping them clean out their church building which had about a foot of mud covering the whole floor. That was a tough and dirty job, but we did have fun doing it. We also helped clean all the chairs and pews, and school benches which were covered with mud, grass, sticks. We are thankful that we could help out, even just a little, especially sharing with these people the donations of clothing and supplies people have given us.
Our hearts and prayers go out to all the people who have lost loved ones, or who have lost their home, and possessions, and means to work and bring food home for their families. A lot of people are going through tough times right now. We, as an organization, desire to help out in this relief work the best that we can, and pray that God would give us the wisdom to know how best to help out, and give us the resources that we need for what door He opens up to us.

The date for the school to be opened has been postponed to Oct.6. The government has pushed back the date for schools to open because of the disasters and because of the shortage of money most families are experiencing. This gives us more time to prepare, plan, and work through the school curriculum, and all the other work that goes along with it. It works out that we will be starting about the same time as last year.

Well, thats all for now. I will try to post some pictures tomorrow, D.V., as the internet is working incredibly slow. I will leave by sharing with yous some of our prayer requests.

Prayer Requests:
~for the Haitians who have lost so much and who are suffering
~for safety for the Haitians, as we are getting a lot of rain still
~Safety for us.
~That we can make all the preparations we need to do before school opens.
~The medical clinic would continue to be blessed, and that the people who really need it would be able to make it out.
~that Adoration would reach peoples needs, and through it all magnify the Name of the LORD and bring Him glory.

Randy

We just spent a blessed week and a bit having teacher training seminars as well as having two other guests work on the school property. Both parts of the team did an excellent job and we had a great time with them! Here are some group shots and some individual shots to give you an idea of what they did during their stay here.... enjoy!

We're "Home"

Just wanted to let you all know that we made it back to Haiti safe and sound this afternoon. Thank you all for your prayers and also for your words of encouragement while we were back in Canada. We feel refreshed to take on our task here again and comforted knowing that the Lord has us in the palm of His hand. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!
Good night to y'all!

Some Reflections on last few months...

Well, the school year is finished, exams are written, and we had our closing essembly today. We are very thankful to the LORD for this past year, because He has blessed us immensely. We are thankful for so much, where and how do we begin to express this on a blog. We are thankful for schools, and books, teachers, old and new friends, for fun, fellowship, for languages, pets, vehicles, beach days, mango trees, generators, fans, safety, health, painted vehicles with Bible texts on them, visitors, work teams, prayer partners, communion of saints, internet, donated materials, encouraging emails, hot weather, blue skies every morning, the Word of God, hearing phrases - 'if the LORD wills', and 'by the grace of God' every day, pictures of neices and nephews, finding real milk, the stars, deep fried anything off the streets, hard workers, Haitian worship music, laughter.... and on and on it goes.
I just posted a bunch of pictures tonight to give you an idea of the past little while and things we are thankful for. Unfortunately, there was something wrong with the computer or connection or me, but i wasn't able to add too many titles. I hope you can figure things out.
Anyway, we are off to Canada tomorrow, well i guess it is today cuz it is after 12 now. We are looking forward to seeing family and friends and trees, and less walls.
Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

Randy