Barnabas Task

I wish I could have a cup of coffee with you

I would love to sit and have a cup of coffee with you. There is a lot happening.  Here’s a few things that are on my mind:

• I had coffee with a leading pastor in Santiago, Dominican Republic several days ago.  He affirmed the tremendous need for the church plant in the area where we are planting.  He offered his support and prayer.
• I spent quality time with the Junta de Vecinos (Association Presidents) in Cien Fuegos.  Great men!  We are developing a plan for clean water, micro-finance and health education.  Their vision is growing.
• I had coffee with a new friend Hendrik Kelner whose family owns an awesome tobacco plantation.  They seem interested in helping us.  I am so grateful.
• Last night the young adult team from Level 13 arrived jazzed and ready to rock.  They are going into a school today!
  

  Young Adult team tried out a great place to eat

I have been busy.   The journey continues. There  is a factor in all of this that is huge.  In the book of Philippians there is a great affirmation that is given to the Philippian church (1:9):

The Dominican Republic was introduced to Snuggles and Wuzzles

This is my prayer for you; that your love for God may grow more and more in knowledge and depth of insight so that you may able to discern what  is best.

Here’ the deal: Time with God in His word and in prayer are huge. Paul is saying you will make “best” decisions as you place yourself in God’s hands through prayer and consistent Bible discovery. Paul encourages you and I to put first things first.  at the end of the day, I want to have proper perspective and be able to say I made principle-based decisions in as much He helped me make “best” decisions.

I have not arrived yet. Join me in the journey.

Grateful.

When people ask me what I do, the simplicity of it all surprises even me.  I connect people to people and resource and along the way I make friends and together the Kingdom is advanced.  Your faithful giving  to Barnabas Task is making a difference.

Children are left without care

I originally intended to crop this photo on the left but felt what I was trying to say is better said by the photo itself. There is a very real sense of hopelessness for the kids in Haiti, and for that matter children in urban areas throughout the world.

Let me explain what I believe has been one of my lifetime messages. I don’t write or speak because I need to.  I do it because I think I have something to say.  What I am going to share is a primary reason I do what I do.

• Generally speaking, many children are born into a world of hope and promise.
• Generally speaking there are many children that are born into a world of rejection and anger because their mothers (or
  

  Many kids are born into poverty, disaster or war

  fathers) never wanted them in the first place.

• Generally speaking, many children are born in geographic areas where disaster, war and poverty are as normal as a rainy day in Seattle.

Kids accept reality as is

All three scenarios seem different don’t they?  Hope and promise, rejection and anger, war and poverty. At a very young age children do not know the difference.  They accept reality, as it is, not knowing how or why to compare.

At some point in their young lives children “get it.”  Whether it is at age seven or fifteen, many children began to realize that life is a hole they want out of.  They have repeatedly walked into the same pit day after day, doing the same things and one day a light goes on and they say “Wait a minute,” even at age seven or younger.

“My daddy molested me.  My daddy is an alcoholic. My mama is a prostitute.  There is another world besides this one.

A little girl's dream can be shattered

Other moms and dads are different.  I am missing a mom, a dad, and a family.  I have no one.  Perhaps there is another world.”

This moment of clarification and reality check is happening throughout the world, every day.  This arrival point is a strategic, cutting edge shift in a persons’ paradigm.  What happens next is a painful reminder of why we do what we do.

Here’s the deal:  at this crucial point in a child’s life they say, “whatever will be will be.”  “Que sera, sera.”  Their mental, spiritual, emotional and psychological growth is truncated.  For many, life stops.  They give up.  There is no hope.  There is a no salvation.  There is no way out of the hole.  The growth timeline becomes a flat line.  Many kids think this way and parents do too.

Many kids have nothing, not even a crayon

This is Haiti today as you read. I observed kids on the street that have nothing.   No one looking after them.  Their lives have been shattered and broken not only by the earthquake but also by rejection, poverty and previous disaster.  Think about it.  They are in a dark hole without sight and nowhere to go.  They give up.  They finally just sit down and say,” This is life.”  They accept it.  They can’t color their own world.

The answer for them is prostitution, drugs, human trafficking.  Some choose to sell themselves (not forced) because it is money to feed their own kids.  What an open market for the wrong people to “lend a hand” with false, wicked motives.

However, this is where you and I can make a huge difference.  Precisely at the place where “kids” around the

We can make a difference

world have come to this juncture in their life, you and I can be difference makers.

I preach Christ because He makes a difference. He changes people, inside out. You and I do what we do because we know that besides medical care, hope is given.  My prayer has always been, “Lord do a work that is so profound that  this little girl/boy will be able to see outside the hole.” And when that happens, they know who lives and they can face tomorrow.  The flat line of growth stops and life begins.

Anybody want to start an orphanage with me?

When people ask me what I do, the simplicity of it all surprises even me.  I connect people to people and resource and along the way I make friends and together the Kingdom is advanced.  Your faithful giving  to Barnabas Task is making a difference.

Location where medical team will be

Heart and Soul of Human Suffering

A primary reason I came to Haiti now was to connect and get a handle on an assignment that is complicated. I have been asked by the

Government buildings damaged

Associated Churches in Fort Wayne to prepare for and give direction to a medical team coming from Fort Wayne, IN.  Father Dan Layden of St. Albans Lutheran Church will lead the team.

Post-Operation Infections

I am finding much post-operation infection and infection in general while in the city.  I would suspect that malaria and dengue fever, caused from mosquito bites, would increase because of the rainy season.  Diarrhea is on the increase.  The amount of amputees needing post-operation medical assistance and therapy is staggering.

I chose the location of the medical clinic in the Carrefour area because World Vision has placed clean water there, it was one of the hardest hit  areas and the fact that no one had specifically reached out to this area yet.  The primary reason though is that I sensed the touch of an angels’ wing on my leg while walking in this area.  (See earlier post)  I am following what I believe to be an indication from God that this place was where I was supposed to be.

Location where medical team will be.

Huge Haiti/DR network

I have connected to a network that is the largest church network in Puerto Au Prince.  (PAP)  The name of the organization is Mission Social des Eglises-Haitiennes  (MISSIH). It is connected to a large functional group with the same mission in the Dominican Republic, Servicio Social de Iglesias, Dominicanas, Inc.  In this world, meeting the needs of people demands that churches think differently. The church then is an agency that includes the bonding of social issues and spiritual formation.

The medical clinic then has a much broader appeal than just from a local church.  It is something for all to recieve in the entire area.  I have connected as well with the General Secretary of MISSEH, Pastor Clement.   Plans are being made for a formal invitation to the Associated Churches in Fort Wayne to have a stronger relationship.  That would be interesting.

General Secretary of MISSEH

New friends-Bougier and Guy

Bishop Jean Claude Dorlean, the pastor of the church, has received the idea of a medical team with open arms.  At his church there is a health clinic that already exists, depleted of most medicines you and I would use.  There are several Haitian doctors that will probably work with the team when it comes in May.

The date for the medical team is May 11-20.  I am anticipating a strong team of medical professionals and compassionate care givers.

Looking for whatever is left

One highlight for me was helping the Bishop connect to water filters he was going to use for evangelism.  If one water filter is good for a

Loading a bus with 500 water filters

family of ten people (an approximate average), 500 water filters represents 5000 people.  Bishop Dorlean is going to use the water filters as an evangelism tool, blessing people outside of his church but also having the opportunity to share Christ.  I might mention that receiving a water filter is not contingent upon praying a prayer of salvation.

Many came to Christ

There is a spiritual hunger in Haiti.  While speaking at a church there on this trip, many came to Christ. He is the hope for this country.  I have heard of many stories where voodoo villages have denounced false Gods, burned mountains of fetishes and have given their allegiance to Christ.  I meant a young man that has denounced voodooism.  He preaches to those in the tent.  His message begins by announcing his allegiance to Christ and that he was the son of a voodoo priest.  I sat with this young man and encouraged him to get education, to be a difference maker in his country.

Finally, I have observed a lot of people sitting on top of rubble while they mourn the loss of loved ones.  It is heartbreaking.  Others attempt to dig into where their floor or house once was. Pray for Haiti is an understatement.

Spoke in Spanish, translated in French

I left Haiti, broken for the people there.  I wept for them.  Some all-star relief agencies are leaving.  Others are planning to do so.  However, the real story is just beginning.  In the next few months we will hear of disease, lack of water and a multitude that have no place to lay their head at night.

I am planting a church in Santiago, Dominican Republic.  The vision tarries.  Please pray with me that the funds we need will stretch from the Dominican Republic to Haiti.

When people ask me what I do, the simplicity of it all surprises even me.  I connect people to people and resource and along the way I make friends and together the Kingdom is advanced.  Your faithful giving is making a difference.

I fly to Haiti today. Sorry, no photos.  In Miami, I will board a chartered plane with relief workers going to provide compassion.   We will land in the dark I imagine. Flying into Port Au Prince has always been a different feeling for me.  The view from the plane is a lot of individual lights that represent  about 4 million people in a small geographic area.  I have always felt pain as I have flown into Haiti.  And now the earthquake.

Would you pray for the relief efforts in Haiti?  Would you pray for me while I am there? As I can, I will blog but I don’t know what Internet contact I will have.  I am so grateful that God is helping and guiding my steps.   And I am grateful for my wife, Nancy.  We are together on this.  We encourage each other in our passions.  I love her so.  I am thankful for you that will whisper a prayer.

I know of two young ladies in Fort Wayne, (elementary age) who pray for me when I travel.   They are the daughters of Corbin and Melissa Prows. I pray that as they pray God will raise them up to be strong missions minded women of God, filled with His grace.

Grace and Peace

Dear Bill Clinton:

Haiti is off the front page.  It is a natural thing.  Other news will take its’ place and life goes on.  The Disaster Relief First Responder stage is over.   The Olympics are here.

Haiti will now move into the new territory of starting over again.  I talked with officials from Japan while in Haiti.  They were at the border of Jimani, Dominican Republic and Haiti.  What they told me made sense.  Very matter of factly they are pulling out their medical “first responder” teams and replacing them with engineers who will help rebuild the devastated port of Port Au Prince.

There is still a need for the medical personnel.  However they will deal with infections and post-operation issues and the depth of concerns that come with trauma and physical issues.

The shift though is in process. Relief workers I have talked with are wrestling with “how to do this when this has really been done before.”  Millions of dollars have been invested in Haiti by governments and organizations throughout the world.  There is little to show for this.

Can I ask a question?  What about including the church at large to help set priorities and goals for Haiti’s future? What about being able to tap the money that has been promised by so many and allow the church at large to have a prophetic voice in the re-construction of Haiti?  I am not talking about a “back seat” “glad you are here guys.”  I am talking about a “front seat” question like, “You guys have years of experience as missionaries, have developed infrastructure, have a handle on culture and the priority of sustainability.  What could we do different?  Where is the starting point in all this?”

I know it may seem a far-fetched idea.  I am sure they would cooperate with you.  They don’t want the glory for all that happens. But I do feel missionary sending agencies could give you a perspective and voice that must be heard. I guess if we look at the response and long-term efforts after Katrina, the 2005 tsunami in Southeast Asia and other major disasters worldwide there is a strong history of what “the church” can do.

One other thing, Mr. Clinton, there is a spiritual dynamic in Haiti that needs to be addressed.  What about including this dynamic as part of the overall plan to rebuild Haiti.  Believe with me  for Haiti’s spiritual deliverance.

It is a new day for Haiti.  What an opportunity to see what God and His people can do.  I include you in that statement by the way.

I write with conviction and deep concern that this is Haiti’s greatest opportunity ever in its’ history. Perhaps there needs to be church led protocol collaborating with others, playing a significant role in decisions that effect destiny.  Is there really anything to lose?

The task is daunting. With hope, I reach my hand to you along with many others and make this one request.   Let a prophetic voice be heard for Haiti’s new day.

Bill Clinton is the UN Ambassador to Haiti.

Churches across Haiti rallied yesterday to pray and fast for their country and mourn the death of loved ones.  To date, more than 200,000 people have lost their lives.  I was in the capital city of Port Au Prince yesterday and observed literally thousands of people not only at the front gate of the National Palace but also in their churches.  I observed weeping, singing, praying.

It is my understanding that the large gathering of thousands of people at the Palace gate was only part of the story.  They will pray and fast today (February 13) and Sunday (February 14) as well.  It will be a united effort to say, ”Let’s start again.”  This is Haiti’s hope.  To start again.

While in the city I went with new friends from World Vision (they actually live in Santo Domingo) to a church in downtown Port Au Prince.   Their purpose was to  investigate where a major  water station could be placed.  We passed through some of the hardest hit areas of the earthquake.   We heard the singing and prayers coming from a fairly large church.  We had to walk through the throng of praying, desperate people to get to where the water station would be placed.   We side-stepped our way through, people literally elbow to elbow joined together to plead with God for a divine alternative.

For me, I sensed a moment of God’s grace and wonder.  Why was I here, right at this moment?  I had a lot on my mind.

The man traveling with me was the vice-president of a large association of churches that represents every denomination that I know of.  At that moment, he turned to me and asked if I would speak.  Without doubt, there was a large crowd including those under a tent next to their church that had been condemned, those who were in the street, in median areas, parking lots etc.

Dripping with sweat I declared your message that was God’s message.  ‘This is Haiti’s greatest day because we move from here to better days.  This is our opportunity to start over, forgetting the past and press forward.  Haiti’s history will turn a page now.  It is up to you.  I invoke the name of God and His power and come against every power of sin and Satanic influence, every spirit and stronghold that God’s name be glorified, in the matchless name of Jesus.”  I think I shared a few more words.

I had just prayed in the center of Port Au Prince.  I was amazed by it all.

My dad told me before he died, “Talk about God and missions.”  I talked about God today.  His name was lifted up.

Note: I will post more pictures next week and write more in coming days. My hats off to every medical person that has contributed so heroically in Haiti.  You rock! I saw many people that have been taken care of, attended.  Still I saw others that needed attention. The Haiti Disaster Relief is moving into a different stage.  There is still a need for medical teams but the initial “first responder stage” is ending.

I am writing a short post today.  I just arrived back in Fort Wayne with Kati.  She is back at school.  I am seeing a doctor in a short while.  I need to get my knee (leg) checked out.  It is wierd being back here. Contrast is defined as difference between two ideas or objects. Because of contrast between “here and there” there is a nagging in my soul for three reasons.

1.  Haiti-We must do something more.  We are placing emphasis on a Compassion Station on the border of the Dominican Republic and Haiti.  We are also organizing and collaborating with Associated Churches in Fort Wayne, IN to bring a team to Port Au Prince, Haiti, April 13-22.  As I write, there are other teams being coordinated to go to Haiti.  I will have dates soon.  If you are a doctor, physicians assistant, nurse practioner or nurse…. come help us bring hope to Haiti.  Make the call and do it!

2.  Project Bernabe (barnabas)-We have undertaken a huge project in Cien Fuegos, a “squatters rights” area of Santiago.  I spoke there last week.  I love those people and want to help in a way that is the best practice of what I can offer.  We are developing 1. Clean Water  2.  Micro Finance  and   3.  Health Education. A team of people are being formed.  Soon I will introduce them to you.  I am not and cannot do this alone.  Others are coming alongside the vision.

3.  Church Plant-Cántico Nuevo-We have a name for the church now.  Cántico Nuevo. (New Song) I am meeting and connecting with some incredible people that want to see something happen, a strong stamp of God’s grace and agreement.  We are sowing good seed and seeing it return. Every time I am there I meet with people and share the vision of what the church will be like. We have now rented an apartment in Santiago.  It is so well located I have to pinch myself when I think about it.  It was His choice.  The location is a center point of activity.  The street address is E. Leon Jimenez, known by everyone.

We will keep meeting with people, expanding our circle of influence.  Secondly, we will continue to have Encuentros de Conocer  (Get to Know Meetings) that are very relational.  Finally, we will soon begin Convivencias.  (Restaurant setting meetings where a meal is shared and a story of the Gospel is the topic of conversation.)

Kevin Delagrange and Kyle Norwood came from Fort Wayne to build bunk-beds for us.  They did a fantastic job. I wanted to be able to receive teams of people.   I am grateful to three churches;  Life Bridge in Fort Wayne, Grace Community in Kokomo, IN and Ignite Church in Flint, MI. They provided the funds for this. Mission accomplished except for three mattresses.

I have layed out a vision that is our pathway by faith.

Restless for the world that is mine.

Grateful!

(Note: Pictures taken by Kati who traveled me on this trip.  She was a great companion.  My hearts desire for her was to expand her world view through exposure.  More to come.)

I can’t predict the future!  Can you?  We were on our way to Jimani yesterday and stopped in Santo Domingo to connect with Foursquare missionary Charlie Finocchiarro who was leading a caravan of California Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT’s) going to work with Convoy of Hope.  We stopped at a tollbooth to connect, exchange a few words and waiting for one more truck to come through the tollbooth.

I asked an Emergency doctor about my right knee that has caused discomfort before this trip.   The doctor examined my knee, looked in my eyes and said, “This has the feel of a blood clot.  If I were you, I would go to the emergency room or a clinic right away.” I guess I looked at him with unbelief because he repeated it.

I did not enter Haiti today.  Kati did. I entrusted her with some great men that I have become acquainted with.  Relationships that are being carved out here cross new barriers when you say, “I trust you with her.” Kati arrived in Jimani late last night, had a Malaria shot early this morning and is there now as I write.

I will go to Haiti but it was not in the “cards” for me right now.  Can I give you a perspective?  The apostle wanted to go to Asia but was forbidden.  I don’t know his reason for being forbidden.  (Acts 16)  I do know I did everything I possibly could to go but was forbidden for now.  I have a peace, not upset about it.  This is God’s thing.  Not mine.  Feels good.

Update: I went to a clinic in Santo Domingo.  The doctors’ prognosis was thrombosis of the vein.  He recommended 5 days in bed plus meds.  I opted to go back to Santiago, with my leg positioned straight.  Kevin Delagrange and Kyle Norwood drove me back to Santiago.  I needed them for this. Kevin drove on the most dangerous highway in the Dominican Republic. Last night, late; I went to a clinic in Santiago. A cardiologist gave me a shot in the stomach and said I would rest better at the apartment, which I loved to hear.  This morning, I went to the clinic and spent the day going from station to station getting x-rays and blood tests.  I wondered about Health Care here.  I needed the tests and needed to have my leg straight.  Oh well.  The bottom-line is that no thrombosis was found in the testing!  In all of this was a caring loving wife who just happens to be a heart nurse.  Nancy was my second opinion, on the money!

Kati will have an experience that not many her age will have.  She will see first hand and will give the initial report on Barnabas Task. I won’t.  But isn’t that the way it is supposed to be?  I love this.

Would you pray for the people of Haiti tonight? The Relief effort is going well, never fast enough for some “Grande, non-fat, vanilla latte” executive who writes from afar.  Our virtual “get it now” world is meeting the reality of an unstructured, geographic location let alone a country that has been pulverized by an earthquake.

Let’s pray for relief workers who are doing all they can in the Haitian capitol and in every other area they may be.  I know what they pray at night.  “God I did what I could do.  I rest in that.”  And sometimes they weep in private because of what they have seen or heard in public.

Kevin Delagrange and Kyle Norwood have been a great blessing.  Every morning they have devotions.  They are journaling and contributing in every discussion.  Love them.  They are bro’s.  Anyone that knows me would recognize that calling someone a “bro” means they are family and I would go to the wall for them.  I feel the same from them.

The bunk beds are completed.  Today, Kyle and Kevin brought the extra lumber to the home and back yard of Jose Lino, a faithful worker with Barnabas Task.  Jose lives in Cien Fuegos where a young adult team will be pouring cement in March.  The lumber will be used to support the walls as the cement is being poured (by hand.)  Pretty cool huh?

Spoke through Skype with the Board of Associated churches early this morning.  How cool is that?  Loved meeting people for the first time through Skype.

That’s the way it is!

Grateful!

“When He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion

for  them, because they were weary and scattered,

like sheep having no shepherd” Matthew 9:36

We had a tremor about 6:30 this morning.  I have never danced at 6:30 in the morning, but I did today.  In another room, Kati slept like a baby.  What a wake-up call. It’s been quite a day.  I have talked to the right people in Jimani, a border town that has become the passageway for many Health Care workers attempting to get into Port Au Prince, Haiti.  The Port Au Prince airport is “open” and then “closed.”  Eventually it will open.   I have talked briefly with my friend Charlie Finocchiarro about his recent trip to Port Au Prince.  The city is jammed with workers.  Thus, Jimani has become a center-point for workers and for Haitians fleeing from their homes looking for a better place to rest their heads. The guys are progressing with the bunk beds.  I am so grateful for their sacrifice in being here.  Soon, we will have a place to house teams. The first step in Disaster Relief is the collection of information.  It is fluid and ever changing.  Some organizations and denominations do not do relief work but rather collaborate with others.  Yet again, there are other organizations that are Disaster Relief oriented and somehow the joint efforts surge forward together.  Information collecting eventually becomes information you can count on.  There is no exact formula but there are some significant principles in the process of determining what to do and when:

1.   Information This is primarily gathering information to the following questions: Who? What? Where? Why? How? When?

2.   Analysis What are the physical and medical needs?  Is the in-country medical system functioning?  In the case for Haiti, it was quite weak before the earthquake.  There are factors that hinder accurate response:

1.  Logistical-communications and transportation

2.  Organizational-Leadership is not in place or are not informed.

3.  Technical-Individuals with skills or expertise are not available.

3.  Diagnosis To be arrived at jointly between local leadership on the ground, national leadership, Regional Representatives and emergency relief providers utilizing both the information and the analysis provided above. Information + Analysis = Diagnosis This part of the process is significant because it helps discover the precise need: although it may be obvious.  It is like a doctor who collects information, gives analysis and finally gives a diagnosis.  Final diagnosis includes:

1. Type of injuries-number of persons involved, severity
2. Survivors in need-age, sex, psychological stress.
3. Environmental Health-water supply, sanitation.

4.   Strategy What plan works for Haiti?  The strategy will need to target a specific segment or area as any organization can’t possibly be the solution to all nor be in all places at the same time.

Today, I made plans for a team to come to Santiago in March.  It is a young adult team from a Wesleyan church.  Perhaps going to Jimani, the border town, would make sense in the big plan.  Don’t know.  I made transportation arrangements today for the team.  I checked in with Penelope Bravo, a follower of Christ, the new Foursquare church we are establishing in Santiago.

Kati and I also had lunch with 28-year veteran missionaries Paul and Eileen Allyn.  They have a wealth of information to draw from.  It’s fun when Paul and I drink coffee together or have lunch.  Our phones are constantly ringing. Kati says I am in meetings all day!  I have been in a few.  The payoff though is good information.  Here’s the deal.  We leave today (Thursday) for Jimani, Dominican Republic.  It is a five-hour drive.  We have some great contacts there where we will be received well.  We will access Jimani as a potential Compassion Station.

There are a band of brothers there from various churches and denominations in Jimani.  We will stay in an Episcopal church there, sleeping on the floor.  We will leave early Friday morning for Port Au Prince.  We will “look and see” and then go to an exact target location where Barnabas Task is going to put its’ emphasis.  Our first team there will be from Associated Churches in Fort Wayne, IN from April 13-22.  I am sure the door will be open for other teams.  We need doctors, nurses, construction workers and caregivers.  Father Dan Layden, an Episcopalian priest, will lead the team.  He will do a terrific job. By 10 pm, Friday, we will be back in Santiago.  I am taking Kevin Delagrange and Kyle Norwood with Kati.

Grateful!

Haiti is messing me up.  It’s neither comfortable nor part of my daily routine. It won’t go away.  It is already the poorest country in this part of the world.  Unemployment is about 80 per cent.  Average wage is $2.50 an hour.  It lacks the infrastructure and moral compass for turnaround.  And now the earthquake.  It is a catastrophic and epic blind side that woke up the world.

I had other plans and goals.  I had projects and focus.  But the phone rang off the hook at our house.  I was scheduled to already be in Santiago, Dominica Republic.  What could I do?

That’s when friend Paul Allyn called representing more than 200 pastors in Santiago.  He asked if I could teach “Responding to Disaster Relief.”   An organization called Associated Churches which represents more than 150 churches in Fort Wayne, IN called and asked if I could represent them, setting up a possible relief effort in Haiti.  I have been in touch with my missionary friends and colleagues Charlie Finocchiaro and Dave Stone.  I am asking questions.

So I write tonight, the first of my daily posts from the DR. I hope to be in Haiti by Thursday.  I will evaluate, connect, assess, feel and probably weep.    I know what my role is as I go.  People want to help, but where and how will they do so?  Who do they connect to?  I want to be a pointer to help caregivers do what they do.  A Barnabas.

I know we will initially go to the DR/Haiti border to connect there.  Is it feasible to set up a Compassion Station there?  (Tents that serve a greater purpose of assisting an already overstaffed hospital in the area) Evidently, refugees are fleeing Port Au Prince by the thousands.  Will they come to the Dominican border?  If so, what could be done?  One part of Disaster Relief includes finding a niche where no one is and  “set up shop.”  Hear it.  They don’t need me in the capitol city right now.

I will travel as well to Port Au Prince if we can.  It is part of analysis.  Kati is with me. I wanted her to see and feel.  Pray for her.  She has a heart of compassion. I will ask a lot of questions, do whatever I can to serve others and make some connections for future trips.  What can I do from the DR side to serve my fellow man there?   This is what I know:

Immediate Response-A quick 24 response to attend priority needs to save lives.

Second Day Response-Normally to less accessible areas where there is no water, food, shelter, and clothing.  Security is an issue.

Third Day Response-Restoring lifeline systems.

Four to Five day Response-Collaboration of Health Trends.  Health professionals talk.  They look for trends and predictability.  They know before it happens too.  Partnerships are formed.

Short Term Response-One to six months of ongoing compassion.  Depending on the magnitude of a disaster, the first four above markers are functional and fluid.  Many in Haiti will not have been touched for the first time.

Long-term response-Six months to a year introduce construction, new systems of living.  Many NGO’s and relief agencies have left by now. You can’t predict this!  About 7 am in a restaurant recently, one remarked, “it’s going to be a long haul.”

Why outline this for you?  I want you to learn.  I want you to know that giving and praying must not let up, that somehow in this matrix and timeline there are people that will be touched with human compassion.  Somewhere in Haiti tonight, compassion will make a difference for the first time. Someone will die.  Someone will drink his or her last drop of water.   Someone will be saved from rubble.  It is relative.  We must do what we can do and jump in the cycle of giving hope.

I am all messed up.  Would you give to Barnabas Task?  We need your help now more than ever.  We are coming along side, pointing, encouraging, and getting dirty. As this was being written I connected a group of doctors and nurses that will be in Port Au Prince in February.  A doctor called me from Los Angeles to coordinate meeting me in Santiago.

Please know that your giving today is allowing me to do what I am doing.  It is making a difference.

Note:  Today, Kevin Delagrange, Kyle Norwood and Jose Lino (A loyal faithful worker for Barnabas Task) bought lumber and began cutting to make bunk-beds.  We bought mattresses as well. I finally purchased an ORANGE (the company) cell phone. I spoke to more than about 200 leaders in Santiago about Disaster Relief. The city is organizing well and has plans for short and long range plans.  I told them of the need for medical now and other needs later.  From the meeting came an obvious call to keep meeting.  There is a real sense I have of unity amongst the pastors.

Grateful!