Barnabas Task

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!

When we celebrate the 2010 Christmas there will be a new church in Santiago, Dominican Republic.  I believe that.  For more than two years we have been going to Santiago with medical teams, prayer teams and investigation teams.  Each time the circle of influence there has expanded.

Three things have marked our time there:

Prayer

Fasting

Connecting

God spoke to me about Inside/Out; that He would watch over things and give me direction if I took time with Him and that He would form/create a pattern.

This seems to be working.  A rhythm has brought success that equates to “God works.” Imagine that?!  For the first time I am publicly sharing in writing what God has spoken to me. I have bounced this off of about 15 people whom I respect. What God has spoken is a bold declaration and I speak it humbly.

Vision for Santiago, Dominican Republic

To be people of influence so that others know Christ.

The most effective agent for influence is a vibrant and strategic church, which becomes self-supporting, self-governing, self-propagating and self-sending. Secondly, we desire to influence through just relationships (meaning–without agenda) with those that have need and in so doing encourage community development.

1.  Vibrant and Strategic Church*

The location for the church is a middle-upper class area that is notably non-evangelical with a population of about 250,000.  This area was carved out with prayer and fasting, investigative questions, and significant consultation. We will influence this area with the establishment of a vibrant and strategic church.  Long-term strategy includes the development of emerging leadership as they develop others who in turn will be people of influence establishing other leaders and churches.

2. Community Development**

We have brought Health Care teams to the Cien Fuegos neighborhood, considered to be the poorest area of Santiago.  More than 200,000 people live in this area.  There are neither titles to properties nor official representation to the city.  In effect it is a “squatters rights” domain.  After much prayer and reflection, the “best practice” is to encourage the establishment of on-going community development with others in this area, in lieu of establishing a church. Three areas of focus are:

1.  Micro-Finance                                                                                                

2.  Health Education

3.  Clean Water

Six principles of community development and just relationships include:

• Sustainable Solutions–local resources and skills
• Active participation–vision sharing, decision making
• Shared Vision–a dream that is Kingdom minded
• Servant Leadership–listening, learning from each other
• Effective Institutions–opportunities that fit shared vision
• Restoration of the city–people restored to God and each other

*We just had our first Getting to Know Meeting at the Hotel Almirantes in Santiago.  (El Primer Encuentro de Conocer)  What a joy it was to share vision with those who had expressed interest.   (Picture at top left) These meetings are part of the unfolding vision for starting a church in Santiago.  Information and Connection.  I shared three main values for the church.

• Amar a Dios (Love God)
• Amar a los demás (Love Others)
• Servir el mundo (Serve the world)

**I shared these principles with Cien Fuegos community leaders recently.  It was historic in that I was told they had never come together like this in the past.  (Picture to the right) Relational equity and doing good has paved the way for everything that has taken place and will take place.

Human Trafficking

After arriving back from the Dominican Republic, I had the privilege to speak on Human Trafficking,  on Nov. 13, helping a couple raise funds to adopt two orphan children.

Orphanages must release orphans at a certain age. Human Trafficking vilolators know this. Thus children become children at risk.  I have been looking for a lighthouse photo for a long time. what better way to invest than to help the cause of the couple.

Connections

Being in Santiago with John Kindler and Peter Conner has been a delight.  Great to have friends with me.  We are watching the favor of God create some things that are pretty cool.  After arriving at our hotel at 5 am, we slept a little, prayed together and went out to Cien Fuegos in the afternoon.  It was significant time to observe where people lived in comparison to where the potential of a water plant would be placed which is part of a three fold community development project. We then had a meeting with a lady  we had connected to on the plane, on the last return home from Santiago. The lady brought a friend.  We freely discussed the high priority of planting a church in Santiago, the cornerstone of everything we are doing.  We also discussed community development in Cien Fuegos.

New worker for Barnabas Task

This morning we had breakfast with Paul Allyn, an 28 year veteran independent missionary who has given his full support to help us establish the first Foursquare church in Santiago, a city of one million.  Peter went to Cien Fuegos with a new faithful worker that will be a great asset to Barnabas Task. His name is Jose Lino. He is a strong believer and will assist in bringing influence  to Cien Fuegos.  He was a surprise. John and I had a meeting with Osvaldo Torres , the pastor that we worked with when bringing the last medical team.  We have been invited to speak to the entire group (16)  of Neighborhood Association presidents. This meeting is significant in that we will begin dialog for community development in Cien Fuegos.

Taxi driver

During the medical clinic we gave out small teddy bears and other stuffed animals.  After arrival I needed a taxi to another hotel to confirm some plans. The taxi driver who stopped had a small stuffed octopus on his dashboard.  After asking, the taxi driver explained that there was a medical team that came to Cien Fuegos about a month ago, placed a roof on a house and were full of God’s love. He explained the meaning of the colored  beads on the octopus.  In fact he shared that he had given his life to God.  I then told the taxi driver that it was Barnabas Task that brought the team and that I knew the director of Barnabas Task!

New Followers

Last night was a special night.  John and I went to the home of Penelope Bravo, a sales person from the Hotel Almirantes.  She has been a key person of contact for any hotel accommodations.  She gave her life to Christ the first week of July.  Last night, her husband and mother became followers of Christ. As well, a friend from San Francisco, Dominican Republic became a follower. It was the first time she ever visited the home.  Penelope and her family are planning to attend the first “Getting to know meeting,” which is Friday, Dec. 18.  (El primer Encuentro de Conocer) They have asked that I dedicate their two young children to the Lord.

Health Care Team-Santiago, Dominican Republic from tom hinton on Vimeo.

The medical team that we brought to the Dominican Republic was pretty incredible. We  saw more than 500 patients, many come to Christ, at least three confirmed healings and an awesome expression of love.  Besides the medical team, a group of men replaced a roof and a wall of a home as a “random act of kindness.”  The woman living in the home has six children.

The eternal results of the team cannot be quantified.  A foundation has been set in motion to speak to neighborhood leaders  about community development during the month of December.

I am reading two books right now.  Forthright news analyst and consultant David Gergen has written a book that gives historical context for four presidents, evaluating leadership qualities, both bad and good.  The name of the book is “Eyewitness to Power, The Essence of Leadership,  Nixon to Clinton.” There are nuggets of gold in this book.  I learn from leadership and history.

Another book is titled “The Hole in our Gospel.” World Vision leader and author David Stearns attempts to answer the question, “What does God expect of us?”  This book is a classic and you need to read it.  It gently but firmly confronts us as readers.  How can one read the book and say, “Maybe some day?”

Where Gergen helps us evaluate the development of leadership traits that we aspire to, Stearns confronts our Christianity to the core challenging you and I and our worldview.

Nancy and I had lunch with missionaries on Saturday.  That can be dangerous.  We heard their struggles, victories and most of all their heartbeat.  My prayer is that we were at least half as encouraging as they were to us.  However  delightful the “jump in when you can” conversation was, it reminded me of the books I am reading as it relates to you and I.

We can theorize  all we want! There is a point that we need to jump off into the radical edge of living, loving, leading and doing.  What about you?  Will we look, read and debate as if  we  are tourists looking at the Roman Coliseum for the first time and end up doing nothing?  Do we live in a world like a museum; look but do not touch?  Are we insensitive to get our hands dirty?  Are we cold-hearted to need?

Until my neighbor also includes a hungry child in Sudan or the prostitute that we pass by in our city, have we really gotten it?   Will you  just flat make a decision today to touch and change  your world?

What am I learning?  I need to lead in a world that is not my own.  I am passing through.  I need to lead in a world that has heard the Gospel but also needs to see and feel it.  Leadership is intentional.  Transformation is hard work, demanding patience.

What are you learning, doing?

My dad passed away last week. It was a joyful, tearful celebration at 12:15 pm on August 30, 2009. This post is sent on what would be his 88^th birthday, Saturday, Sept. 5. Having worked for 35 years with General Electric as an engineer, my mom and dad retired in the great northwest locating in Poulsbo, WA. Space does not permit full resume of accomplishments and journey.

To the point, I had the honor to give my Dad’s eulogy at the Silverdale United Methodist Church, Silverdale, WA. This church is a jewel of life and Spirit filled living. My hesitation to write personal insight is outweighed by the force of impact my dad had on me. My mother encouraged me to let young men hear, so listen.

In the eulogy I shared at least five thoughts that every young man should read and older men need to remember:

· My dad was a romantic-He often whispered to my mom, “You were my first love.” In 1982, he wrote on a card, “Half a lifetime, but not enough to show my devotion and love. Forever yours.” I remember my Dad getting up every morning to make my mom coffee and serve her toast. He deeply cared for her. It was evident in all he did. The “house” was in order when he passed on because he loved my mom and his children. Later in years he talked of dance lessons in Spokane, WA. I never knew that. When asked which dance was his favorite, he crisply replied, “Helen S. Hinton,” who is of course my mother.

· He was an activist-His life was a discovery of causes and involvement with these causes. He cared about the environment, political strategy and community events. Because of a love for the outdoors, he bought a donkey for backpacking and actually kept the donkey on their property. Their home in Poulsbo overlooked Port Orchard Bay, a place they called the “Eagles Nest.” Everyone who passed by knew whom Thunder, the donkey, was. Dad made a fairly large red-lettered sign that said, “This donkey is a Republican.” He led the U.S. Marines in the funeral parade of President Franklin Delanor Roosevelt’s funeral.

· He was a lover of the outdoors-He knew every inch of the land that he owned. We remember him as one who loved to cut trees, haul brush, pull weeds, plant flowers and make pathways. His gardens were to die for. At 6:30 am, the day of Dad’s funeral, I wrote:

“He planted and watched it grow, early in the morning he would survey the land, every seed he did know.

He reaped the harvest for to show, in the afternoon he would hold every strand, ‘Here’s dinner Helen, he would glow.”

· He was a difference maker-Five words describe the difference. Linda, Pam, Patsy, Tom and Jeff. He made impact, a difference. As we came together and shared stories we discovered in a very fresh way, that our father had touched us each individually and collectively, a tapestry that was now woven into an esteemed memorial of honor and respect. The stories of grandchildren stamped our dad as one who had a far-reaching effect. He was our DNA. He was good stock. What a legacy to follow. I want to finish strong and pass on the legacy. We all do. On a personal note, just after Dad breathed his last, I “heard” his words to me that he shared on a rare, special day as the sun brought solace to Port Orhcard Bay with Mt. Rainer in the background, “You have a gift to communicate about God and missions. Do nothing else.”

· He was a follower-He knew the Lord. When he prayed, his words had depth and compassion. Scripture was not an add-on but rather a solid center-point. It was not always like this. Coming from a background of intellectualism, the other side of the railroad tracks and being self-made, he initially struggled with the God factor. My mom’s steadfast faith in God was heroic and honorable. Dad changed. The older he became, the stronger was his faith in God, evidenced by his generous giving and constant prayer for family members. One day, he called all family members and said, tearfully, “Forgive me. I have missed it. I have given my life to Christ.” Mom said he wept for three weeks as he pondered this discovery of faith and relationship in Christ. At his bedside, we told him he would soon be with Jesus. He weakly replied, “I am already there.” May the synthesis of culture, education, background, heartache and/or loss thread us to Him that was crucified for our sins and misgivings so that we place ourselves in the hands of Him on a daily basis without hesitation. This pleases God the Father.

It was Frost who said he had “…miles to go before he sleeps…” I too must steward my life from this point onward.

My resolve is to make life a better place for those whom I can, to treat others with the kindness and deep respect they deserve and I wish for myself, to learn from mistakes and failures, to touch those closest to me the best I possibly can so that at the end of the day I can but look back, if possible, and simply say, my fleeting presence made a difference; may the Lord be glorified!

Good job, Dad. You did a good job. Grateful I am!

I was not supposed to sit next to Hampton on the plane coming back from Santiago, Dominican Republic in June. He wanted to sleep and at the last minute they changed his seat assignment.  We talked during the entire flight to Miami.  He is a creative businessman in Santiago developing a recycling business.  He has come back to his country after being educated in the United States where he graduated with a pre-med degree from the University of Wisconsin.. We talked by email and then were able to meet again in Santiago on this present trip.  I joined him in his journey, wanting to do everything I could to encourage, give ideas etc.

Fast forward to a view of Cien Fuegos where we are bringing the Health Care Team in November.  Cien Fuegos is a group of small hills where squatters find their way.  Close  by is a large garbage dump that is a “life saver” to many.  They find their daily ration there.  There is a humanitarian issue there.  Poor people getting sick for various reasons including lack of education in areas such as hygiene, diabetes and high blood pressure.  Lack of employment leads to malnourishment, social issues as well as a deep frustration of what life is all about.  It reminds me of the  awarding winning Nobel Peace Prize book entitled, “The Colonel has no place to lay his head. ” written by Garcia Marquez.  In the book, Marquez descriptively colors a picture of desperate living, a culture within in a culture.  There is an oppression that settles in leading to “que sera, sera” which means whatever will be will be.  The book deeply affected me when I read it in Spanish, mentored by Spanish professor Luis Solano.  I got it.

My friend Hampton was developing his business.  My friends in Cien Fuegos were living their lives looking for whatever would hold their day together each day. What if Hampton connected to the  church world providing employment for some and in turn developed his business?   In God’s timing we had a meeting with Hampton and Pastor Oswaldo, the pastor of the Cien Fuegos church where we are bringing  the Health Care Team in November.  It was like magic.  It was God.  A connection was made.

There are young people in Cien Fuegos that will be employed soon. Hamptons’  business will continue to grow.  As a matter of fact, a model will be created so that others can be involved.  This was a dream come true, responding to great need that not only included a clear presentation of the Gospel, one of integrity and smothered with love;   but also a compassionate response to a place I knew needed creativity and God’s stamp of favor.  I think the Gospel will be heard!

It was a miracle for Cien Fuegos on a cloudy day.

We also were able to do the necessary measurements and prepare a purchase list for the roof we are going to place on a house in Cien Fuegos as a random act of kindness.

Nancy and I are so grateful to all who give to Barnabas Task.  As we reach out in faith, God is providing through faithful people like yourself.