Looking Back

This afternoon I took some time to look back at the blog posts from this past year.  I was amazed to remember where the school building was at in January!  Only by God's grace have we been able to make so much progress in just one year.

Sometimes the going is so slow and gradual that you don't really see the change.  It is interesting how many things God established in the Bible to help us look back and remember His faithfulness.  The rainbow, the rocks by the Jordan, and Communion are a few that come to mind immediately.  God wants us to not only be looking ahead, but to look back too and remember how faithful he has already been to us. When we do, we do we have more strength to face whatever may come.

Tonight we will be having a program in the church to thank God for His protection, provision and work in us over this past year, and to commit 2013 to Him.

Deborah Dennis, who is visiting from Emmanuel Church in Exeter, has kindly agreed to write a blog post about the program tomorrow... so you can read all about it then :)

On another note, please be in prayer for Bonita Sparling, our new team member (I will be posting a bio on her in the next week or two).  Over a week ago she began having pain in her tooth that has developed into an infection.  She is now in a lot of pain, has been having fevers ad swelling and is just generally not feeling well.  She is on antibiotics now and we are all praying that they can clear out the infection.  If she does not start feeling better soon we will have to look at getting her into PauP or she may possibly have to fly home.  We would greatly appreciate your prayers for healing for Bonita and wisdom for us.

Thank you and may God bless you as you close out this year!

Christmas Eve Program

On Monday the school, church and youth group presented the long-awaited and hard-worked for Christmas Eve Program.  It took from 8:00 in the morning till 5 in the afternoon to finish all the decorations and final preparations, but their work paid off.  They did a beautiful job.

  Blowing up balloons...

 

...balloons...

 ...and MORE balloons!

 Still blowing up balloons... and doing other prep work.

 

 Mezou, president of the youth group, has been planning this program for months.

 

 That's what all those balloons were for!

 

 They draped red material over the whole wall behind the podium.

 Things starting to come together...

The cooks preparing a LOT of chicken.  500 people were invited!

 ...and all their hard work paid off!

 

 The program we beautiful and fun.  

Manis gave a brief message on the meaning of Christmas.

 Looking through the star bedecked window

Singing "The First Noel" Haitian style...trust me, it is very different from the one you know :)

Each class from the school presented something.  

This is the first grade class and their teacher, Andiose, performing a song.

  MCs, Almais and Wiltha did a great job keeping things fun and moving along.

There was also a singing competition which I unfortunately don't have pictures of :(

At the end of the program (about 11:00pm) each person got a plate of food to take home.

Thank you to all of you who participated in making the Christmas Program happen this year.  A special thanks to third grader, Julia Nause, who sold bracelets to family, friends, teachers and peers to raise money for the Christmas program.

 Julia, we hope you had a wonderful Christmas!
Thanks for helping to make it special for the kids here too.

In Loving Memory of Anna Elgby

Tonight we received news that our dear friend, Anna Elgby, was killed today in a car accident.  Anna, along with Jon Stitt, was part of an internship program here on the Plateau in 2010.  She had such a sweet spirit and kind heart but at the same time had a great sense of humor and was quite a prankster!  What a joy she was to have here!  She brought so much life and laughter.  Anna befriended people that most of us had given up on.  She saw the good in people that nobody else saw.  Over two years after leaving Haiti, Anna still regularly kept in touch with friends she had made here. 

One of Anna's closest friends while she was here was a girl named Enide, a brilliant young woman who had had to drop out of school after having a child at a young age.  Anna promised her that she would do whatever she could to help her finish her schooling and she kept her promise.  Not only did she sacrificially help Enide, she would talk to Enide on the phone almost every week and encouraged her in her walk with God.  Just this week Anna had spent time praying with Enide over the phone that God would provide for her.  She always told Enide that she wanted her to know a "BIG GOD."

Anna had written to me on Monday, but I did not see the email until tonight.  My heart broke as I read how excited she was to spend Christmas with her family.  Our hearts go out to her family at this time and to those she was closest to and our prayers are with them.  Particularly I want to thank Anna's parents for allowing her to come down to Haiti and to be a part of our lives for those seven months.  You raised a wonderful daughter and she was a great blessing to us.  I cannot imagine the pain you must feel right now and I know there is nothing I can say that could alleviate that.  Please simply know that your brothers and sisters here on the Plateau are and will be upholding you and your family before the Father in whose arms Anna now rests, her Beloved Father. 

Wisconsin Team (Plus one from Minnesota :)

We have a team here right now from four different churches in Wisconsin/Minnesota.  For pictures and updates from there trip please visit their blog at http://hearts2haiti.wordpress.com/