God's Provision: Spirit, Soul, & Body

I hope you are enjoying a long, Labor Day weekend! In Haiti it's back to school tomorrow (Sept. 2)! We always feel the last minute crunch as school prepares to open, but this year seems harder than most. Inflation in the country has made it so difficult for parents to obtain the necessary items for the start of school (shoes, socks, hair elastics...). Would you join us in praying for God's provision for these families?

We had a great time with our teaching and school administrative staffs this week, as Dr. Kaylah Holland coordinated a Professional Development Seminar for them. Not only did the MOHI staff benefit from this, but even a local judge and the dean of a university in a nearby city joined us. We have received positive feedback from many concerning the content of the seminar. Thank you, Kaylah, for your preparations and execution of this impactful event.

With the start of school comes the continuance of feeding about one thousand people daily. What a joy it is to see hungry tummies being filled with nutritious hot food! We started a little early with folks in the yard this week.

It's time to start collecting jars of peanut butter for our clinic patients, as well as the students. Please consider spreading the word and possibly asking your church or a local business to be a drop off point for peanut butter. Please reach out to me to coordinate together. Donations for shipping are welcome, as well. Shipping a 55-gallon barrel full of peanut butter from Boston costs $160. Donations will be combined to cover shipping costs.

Both the medical and dental clinics were in full swing this week. I cannot even begin to fathom the fact that millions of people around the world have no access to even basic medical care. I am so grateful for partnerships with organizations like Bless Back Worldwide and Mission USA who enable our medical and dental clinics respectively to function on a daily basis.

I so enjoyed our time in Haiti with Kaylah. Lex and I are back in the States now, but remain in daily contact with Kaylah.

Unfortunately life in Haiti is not quite as simple as what we're accustomed to in the USA. For example, today I was suggesting to Kaylah that she keep an eye on the propane tank so that she can give someone a heads up when it starts getting low. (I have had many experiences of running out in the middle of cooking dinner - when propane was not available locally.) She asked how to tell when it was getting low. I told her there should be a gauge on the tank. She sent me this picture. Knowing that we'd been using this tank for over two weeks, we both thought perhaps this was not the way to keep track of the usage. We went to plan B: Rock the tank back and forth regularly and when you feel like it's getting light, request a refill.

Did you get to watch any of our worship service in Thozin this morning? Check out the Facebook Live video on our Facebook page.

I am grateful for the Spirit of God's presence during worship services in Haiti. This morning the "mothers" of the church (the older, married women) sang together. These women have tremendous influence in the lives of the men and youth of the church. They teach and encourage by every word they speak and the care that they give. Here's a little clip of their joyful singing:

Lex and I have returned from Haiti to prepare for another open abdominal surgery for me on Wednesday. I so appreciate many prayers that have gone up on my behalf and am grateful for each of you who continue to support me in this way. Thank you!!! I am trusting the Lord will again bring me through this. Know that I am praying for you, too!