Bonjou
tout moun, (good morning everyone) Well, another week has rolled by very
quickly. As they say in Greece, ‘tempus fugit’ (time flies). I’m not sure where
the time goes, but as historians chronicle the events of importance, I too am
attempting to inform you of the work performed here on your behalf, any
ministry areas that would stand out, and in general, the day to day happenings
that make up our awake hours here in Marchand Dessalines, Haiti. And as we
labor here at the Ebenezer Glenn Orphanage on the projects set before us, I
will try to share my perspective of why this mission is so different than the
many others that now flood and in some cases, overwhelm tiny communities that
have no means to resist or to even have input to the changes that are sometimes
helpful, but in many case harmful.
If
any of you are interested in the social impacts that so affect 3rd
world countries like Haiti and even our inner city areas that have high levels
of poverty, there are 4 books that I would highly recommend for you to read so
that you might gain insight into this ever changing strategy. “When Helping
Hurts”, “Toxic Charity”, “The New Jim
Crow”, and lastly a brand new book which I have not read, but have seen the
rave reviews, “The Locust Effect”. I
apologize for not naming the authors. Without my library surrounding me in the
confines of my office, I am at the mercy of my failing memory, which as many of
you realize, the older we get, the worse it gets! To summarize the first 2
books, the authors state that in many cases, our donations of clothing, money,
food, etc. actually hurts the locals in the areas where short term mission
teams tend to congregate. Without a real plan to help the locals so that they
see the benefits of community working together for a common goal, then we can
actually hurt or in some cases, destroy the economic infrastructure where we
go. We give out clothes and this hurts the local vendors who sell used and new
clothing for a living. We build buildings that they can’t take care of properly
because they have no money for the on-going maintenance costs. And, we pass
dollars out freely as our consciences wreak havoc from the guilt we feel, and
this creates a dependency that is really hard to undo once we start. The 3rd
book talks about the imposed segregation of our poor and socially unacceptable
minority groups that have been created by the welfare programs in the USA. As
long as they don’t bother us or move into our neighborhoods, we tend to ignore
this sub-culture of people who are struggling even more so than many who live
in Haiti, as an example. Out of sight – out of mind goes the mantra of the
rich, middle class, and in many cases, the churches who should be on the front
lines in these areas, but for the most part, ignore these citizens as equals in
light of the stars and stripes of our countries hard fought freedom and
independence that is so dearly coveted by its citizens. Now to the Locust
Effect – buy it and read it after you have read the first three. Then you will
be current on the discussions and debates that are being discussed by the many
non-government organizations, charitable groups, churches, and folks like you
and me who really don’t know which direction to go. We know we feel bad and
want to help, but how do we do so without hurting those we are trying so
desperately to help? I am so glad that the many who have gone before us are
sharing their successes and failures of their attempts to ‘go into the world to
help the widows and orphans’ and more. Hopefully, we can all learn from each
other as we strategically plan the future of our mission teams and donations!
MONDAY, February 10th On Monday, we resumed work on the septic tank, finishing the walls, installing the middle baffle wall, and forming and pouring the top. Dave excavated & installed the leach field bed, the distribution box all drain lines, and finished up all the inside plumbing inside & outside of the septic tank. A big job done! Thanks for your donations. The orphanage is really thankful.
THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
So
many thoughts race through our feeble minds during the course of a week here in
Haiti, that it would take volumes of pages to write them all down. I realize
that God has dealt to me my fate in life that He uses to propel me towards the
finish line of the race I entered when I trusted Him for my salvation so many
years ago. I cannot begin to
describe the emotions that invade each of us daily here at EGO. Never ending
lessons that God uses to teach us and mold us into the vessels that He sees fit
and useful for service in His Kingdom. So many lessons to tell, but only a few
pages to try and do so.
In
one of the photos above, you will see the Delta Table saw. Some of you donated
money for this saw back in 2006 when we first started the new school
construction project across the street from the orphanage. Shiny and new, it
was my pride & joy as it took its place in the EGO shop alongside the older
pieces of equipment that were in some cases, relics of time gone by. I returned 6 months later with another team
and found this new, shiny table saw not so shiny anymore. The motor was burned
up. Someone had tried to run it on a long, small gauge extension cord that was
hooked into a very small portable generator. In doing so, they fried the
windings on the motor, so I had to haul it back to the states to have it
rebuilt. I had initially envisioned this table saw to be used for fine cabinet
& furniture work, but to this day, it has only cut cement covered boards,
nail infested wood and the like as it struggles to maintain its intended
purpose among the other tools in the EGO shop. Yesterday, as I was cutting up
boards for desks and benches, God reminded me that now he is letting me see
clearly His intended purpose for the saw. Even though I could not clearly see a
time when the saw would be used for its ultimate purpose to build furniture,
God did. And because my goal for this saw was to be only used for the best,
others who labored here at EGO needed it for lesser things and in God’s eyes,
equally important projects. Only as I relented and allowed myself to concede
that it’s not our intent that matters in the big picture of mission trips or
church outreach events, or even the smaller purposes for tools & equipment
that one might bring and use here in Haiti, ultimately the value or worth will
be revealed by something that is greater than oneself. In the case of the saw,
God reminded me that now is the time for this saw to perform the work it was
intended for. And likewise, as God refines us with trials, troubles, incidents,
episodes and events in our life, He determines when we are fit to build
furniture instead of forms. He decides when we are ready to be used to glorify
Him in all that we do instead of claiming the credit for ourselves.
Kevin
DeYoung, in his book, “The Hole in our Holiness” says in chapter 8, “If I had
to summarize New Testament ethics in one sentence, here’s how I would put it:
be who you are…. Do not strive after holiness because you cower in dread of
God. Strive after holiness because you are confident you already belong to
God….Union with Christ fundamentally and irrevocably changes our relationship
to sin. Our old self has been crucified (Romans 6:6) and sin has no dominion
over us (vs 14). This doesn’t mean a part of us called the ‘old nature’ has
been replaced with a different substance called ‘new nature.’ Paul is not
talking about parts. He is talking about position. The old man is what we were
‘in Adam’ but we died to that team. The contract was revoked. We now wear the
‘in Christ’ jersey. Union with Christ is like being placed on an NFL football
team through no talent of your own. Though you didn’t earn your way onto the
team, now that you wear the jersey you want to play like a real football
player…..The Christian life still entails obedience. It still involves a fight.
But it’s a fight we will win….. Sin may get in some good jabs. It may clean
your clock once in a while. It may bring you to your knees. But if you are in
Christ it will never knock you out. You are no longer a slave, but free. Sin
has no dominion over you. It can’t. It won’t. A new King sits on the throne.
You serve a different Master. You salute a different Lord.
In
effect God says to us, “Because you believe in Christ, by the Holy Spirit I
have joined you to Christ. When he died, you died. When he rose, you rose. He’s
in heaven, so you’re in heaven. He’s holy, so you’re holy. Your position right
now, objectively and factually, is as a holy, beloved child of God, dead to
sin, alive to righteousness, and seated in God’s holy heaven – NOW LIVE LIKE
IT! This is also the long way of saying “be who you are.”
Now
the table saw has always been what is was designed to do. To just saw wood. It
was me who was attempting to influence the use of it and change its purpose
from sawing bad wood to only good wood. What I forgot was that this table saw
was designed for a singular purpose to saw any kind of wood. It would and will
experience all types of wood to saw over its lifetime. So why not just let it be
what it is? It is objectively and factually designed to handle it! Your thought
for today.
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