MNA Global Missions Conference

Celebrate the advancement of Christ's kingdom through His global church! Join fellow believers from across the PCA November 8-10, 2013 for the Global Missions Conference in Greenville, South Carolina. 

http://www.mtw.org/Pages/global_missions_conference.aspx

New CMP Moderator

At the January 2013 Stated Meeting, following elections at the October 2012 meeting, RE Brent Stutzman will assume the office of Moderator, with TE Geoff Ziegler as Vice-Moderator.

Nueva Esperanza

Take a moment to click through the website for Nueva Esperanza, Pastor Al Guerra.

http://nesperanza.org/

re: Connect Youth Ministries Retreat

Save the date for the re: Connect Youth Ministry Winter Retreat

January 18-20, 2013

For more information:
email: Deedee Freemire
website: re: Connect Youth Ministries

30th Stated Meeting | October 17, 2012 | Westminster

The 30th Stated Meeting of the Chicago Metro Presbytery will be held, October 17, 2012 at:

Westminster Presbyterian Church
2700 West Highland Ave. 
Elgin, IL 60124  [Map it]
http://www.wpchurch.com/
Phone: 847-695-0311

Schedule:
12:00 pm - Lunch

1:00 pm - Business Begins

4:00 pm - Business Adjourns

Please join us.

2012 Haiti Trip

Here are a number of udpates from our recent Haiti Trip all zipped into one file. Pictures are also included.

Updates | Pictures

Contribute online to the Haiti Trip

Hello Team Members and Friends (from Ms. Hoffmann)

We are beginning the process of collecting supplies that will help us fulfill God's purpose in Haiti.  There are 13 of us going, which means we have the opportunity to bring 1300 pounds of much needed medicine, clothing and hygiene products for the people of Haiti.

I have a created a Wish List on www.walmart.com I hope will not only allow for an easier process for donations but for a broader donation base - people who do not live in Chicago or who are not regular church attenders but would like to contribute.

The Wish List list works the same way a wedding or baby shower registry does.  There is a list of items, and people can choose what they would like to donate. 

Simply go to www.walmart.com, scroll over Registry, then click on Wish List. 

First name: Haiti

Last name: July 2012

All items will be shipped to my home address, and I will bring them to the team meetings to distribute. Please pass this on to anyone who would like to contribute, post it on Facebook, Church announcements/bulletin, etc. 

New Building for Grace Presbyterian

Grace Presbyterian Church of the North Shore has a new building!

July 2012 Haiti Mission Trip

CMP Haiti Missions Trip, July 27 – August 4

Informational meetings will be April 12 and 13 at NPC/Naperville and Covenant/Chicago, respectively, at 7:00 pm. The commitment deadline for team members is May 11.

Download information here.
Donation list here

Updated GA Schedule

The AC published an updated schedule for the Committees of Commissioners. You can find it here: Schedule

29th Stated Meeting | July 18, 2012 | New Covenant Naperville

Please join us for the 29th Stated Meeting of Chicago Metro Presbytery on July 18, 2012 at New Covenant Church in Naperville, IL.

New Covenant Church1 Bunting Lane

Naperville, IL 60565 [Map it]
www.newcovenantnaperville.org/ 
630-357-4092 [office]

Schedule:
12:00 pm - Lunch

1:00 pm - Business Begins

4:00 pm - Business Adjourns

28th Stated Meeting | April 25, 2012 | Covenant Presbyterian

Wednesday, April 25, 12:00 – 4:00

Covenant Presbyterian Church
2012 West Dickens Ave
Chicago, IL 60647 [Map it]
www.covenantchicago.org
773-486-9590 [office]

Schedule:
12:00 pm - Lunch

1:00 pm - Business Begins

4:00 pm - Business Adjourns

2012 Midwest Connection | Church Planting

Time to register for Midwest Connection, a church-planting regional conference. Wed, April 18 through Fri, April 20, 2012.

Download information here | Register here

Haiti Mission Team Update - Feb 24

The team’s devotional time tonight went a little longer than usual. You would think after a day like today it would be shorter, as they are tired. But a great kind of tired.

By 1:00, the medical team had seen 115 kids in Savannes. They worked on until 5:30, doing at least three major procedures as well as the more typical range of care needed among the children and adults. There were 5 different medical stations set up now that the team was all working in one place again. There was barely a stop for lunch; usually the team just snacks while they go. Every person was prayed for as they came through for care. Some were taken off to the side for longer conversations about Jesus. At least a few accepted Christ as a result.

The children’s ministry was going full tilt all day, ushering in 15 kids at a time for an hour of crafts, coloring, and singing. They were riveted to Hector’s story telling about Jesus. Pastor Louis was astonished at their reaction, as they settled down to do these group oriented things requiring quiet and giving attention. In fact, they waited quietly outside for their turns in the hot sun for hours.

The engineers also put in another day’s work, this time plotting out a plan for a school in Savannes. It would be the first school to operate there. As soon as funding is in place, the building will go up – yet another way the Christian voice in Savannes will be heard, proclaiming God’s love for these broken and hurting people and working to change the very heart of the community from darkness to light.

Other seeds were sown today, too. A team member met a man who had just on Monday lost his wife and was now a single parent to two young children. He has no work and begs everyday for food to give to them. Antoine has been to America, and is highly educated by Haitian standards. Yet in Savannes, there is no work for him unless the “godfathers” allow him a job…and that won’t happen until he swears allegiance to them and to their voodoo gods. Thus far he has refused. He says he used to pray and used to believe in God, but “where is God now?” Would you please pray with the team for Antoine, that God would meet him at this crushing point of need and make himself known to Antoine, giving him hope and a future as he deals with sorrow, loss, and the responsibility of raising his children alone?

By the end of the day, more than a few people had pulled aside a team member to say they knew the team really cared about them because they came to Savannes - messy, poor, forgotten Savannes. They saw how they cared for each person who came to them, and how they treated each other. This spoke volumes to them about the love of Jesus – that they came, and they showed love “nan nom Jesi”.

As our tired but full of praise team members finished up their week in Haiti, their last team meeting had a hard time breaking up. They just didn’t want to be “done” – not with ministry, nor with each other.

Tomorrow is a long day of travel (they’ll be on the bus for the long ride from Cayes to Port au Prince at 4:00 a.m. EST) and a “re-entry” day. It seems that people who go to Haiti for a week feel like they’ve been there much longer due to the intensity of the experience. Please pray for safe travel and on time arrivals, for continued good health as they arrive home, and for a smooth re-entry and re-orientation to “real life”. 

They’ll all have more stories and pictures to share in person. You will enjoy every one of them! And be sure to ask them if they want to go back.

Haiti Mission Team Update - Feb 23

“Savannes has been transformed. It’s different.”

This comment is from one of the team members who was there a year ago. Today was like a crazy celebration all day long. There was still a huge crowd, but the personality was different. Instead of desperation at the edges and the scent of discontent and wariness everywhere, like a pot of something bad ready to boil over, there was a happily bubbling feeling of reunion with touching moments and beautiful stories.

Jude was there waiting for the team to arrive and stayed all day, helping, hugging, and smiling. Here’s his picture with the team leader who forged a relationship with him last year. At that time, Jude was one of the wary, angry, powerful leaders of the community steeped in voodoo. By the end of their multi-day visit to Savannes, he was saying he wanted what they had. He wanted Jesus. And in the intervening year, he has grown much and become a leader in the fledgling church in Savannes.  

Vilia Seide was also there. Last year, she was the mother of a very sick newborn as well as six other children. She had also just become a widow, her husband dying of cholera. With no husband, no money, and seven children her future was bleak indeed. Women in her situation often have only one thing left to sell, and that is themselves.  Pastor MonChera knew she had an idea of how to open a legitimate business to support her family, but had no funds. One of the doctors on the team last year went home and mobilized a group of women to underwrite a business plan for Vilia which included support until her new business could get up and running. Today she was beaming like a light bulb, and when she was taken to see this same doctor, once again on the team, the tears flowed all around.

Two changed lives because of the power of the gospel. The ripple effect has been enormous. The church began to grow quickly after much prayer and the concerted prayer and mercy ministry of the team there last year. In December, Pastor MonChera (the second attached picture is of him and his wife) held evangelistic services where another 100 people responded to the gospel. Things are indeed different in Savannes!

The team prayed for every patient that came through today (100 kids alone and many more adults); at least five were led to the Lord by the team’s interpreter.  The day was really chaotic at first, but settled into somewhat of a bumpy routine. Once the kids figured out you got a new set of clothes after a scabies wash, the little curtained facility that was set up was overrun with volunteers. Eventually, a ticket system was put in place to restrain the crowds, and things went fairly smoothly from then on. Such is the way of ministry in Haiti…try, adjust, try again, flex, and get it done, praying for people all the while!

Meanwhile, a small contingent went to Cherette again to finish up the medical attention needed and the survey work. It took three different replacement vehicles and a few hours waiting for them on the side of the road, but they eventually got there. It was hot work out at the river, really hot, for hours and the Haitians with the survey team recognized that white people can’t deal with the sun as well…so they used their bodies to shield the team members from the sun. Whenever the team members sat down to work something out, subtle shifts would take place so they were shielded. The team was touched by this silent service and the way the Haitians showed their gratitude for their labors in this most sweet and unassuming way.

The medical team had one serious thing to work on, and it took the whole team plus Pastor Nerva and a few others.  One very resilient and determined 6 year old orphan had injured her big toe, and one of our team members taking a closer look at the missing nail and injured nail bed brought her to the medical team saying, “there’s stuff alive inside her toe”. Indeed there was. But to thoroughly remove the “stuff alive” she needed a nerve block shot…which is where she showed her determination. Suffice it to say, the shot was given and the procedure completed but not until all were exhausted! You never know what you’ll be asked to do on a medical team in Haiti.

The team is thankful for many things –

• For your prayers, especially, as they have held up the team during long days and unusual circumstances.
• For the impact they’ve been able to have as Jesus’ hands, feet, and heart in this hurting world.
• For the physical relief they’ve been able to give to so many.
• For their ability to work seamlessly together and the joy they’ve found in each other’s company.
• For their good health this week.

Their last full day is already upon them. Tomorrow, all will go to Savannes. They could stay for weeks and still be busy there, so tomorrow will be bittersweet and difficult when it’s time to go. Please pray for them – that they have a sense of completeness and an ability to let go. Pray for the children’s ministry, which will run alongside the medical team, sharing bible stories and the gospel through story and acting. And praise God with the team that they have a ringside seat to see the gospel in action in Savannes, Cherette, Casa Major, and Cambry.

Thank you for reading to the end of this update. You’ve probably noticed as the week goes on they get longer!

Haiti Mission Team Update - Feb 22

It doesn’t count as a trip to Haiti unless there are rain and transportation issues. Today was a “two for one”!

The early start to Cherette was delayed until it was determined that the rain falling in Cambry was not worse up in the mountains. It is very easy to get stuck in Cherette if you are on the wrong side of the rainfall – for days. So, with a later but safer start, the entire team boarded a bus for the first leg of the trip.

 The plan was to change into four wheel drive vehicles at the end of the road. Literally, the end of the road; it’s creekbeds from there on up. But the bus had other ideas (busses in Haiti live a hard life and there’s hardly a bus repair shop on every corner; breakdowns are common), so more time was lost waiting for the four wheel drive vehicles to meet them a little nearer to Cambry than originally planned. Once again on their way, spirits were high. The off road “road” to Cherette has been described as better than a Disney ride through a rain forest. And two of our team actually got to drive some of the vehicles up. Awesome!

And as they pulled into Cherette, the best was yet to come. Two hundred children were gathered in worship and were singing with such joy at the top of their voices they could hear them from a distance. As the team came in the building and filled in around the edges to watch, they saw a display of joyful singing and dancing that “made the whole trip worth it right there”.  The children sang for them and after introductions were made, the team trouped up to the front and sang for the children (a rather credible version of “Jesus Loves Me” in Creole – they had been practicing!). It was met with clapping and much approval!

The picture attached is the first group of children waiting to see the medical team. The team was very encouraged at the progress the children have made in comparison to their first visit two years ago. These orphans have been sponsored by a consortium of individuals in several churches for a full year now, and it shows. The funds go for adequate food and care by more and better trained housemoms. It also helps to raise the quality of education by affording better trained teachers.  There were the ever present scabies issues, but not to the extent seen in the past. The kids are growing and are happy. They weren’t at all shy with the team, which is another big change. The first team that visited Cherette was quite a shock for these remote village dwellers, who kept trying to see if the “white” went all the way up past the edge of a shirt sleeve!

There was a big issue with lice, however. Doctors and the team leader worked hard to convince the staff that the best solution was to shave the heads of the girls and start from scratch with treatment and then boiling all clothing and bedding at once. It was a hard sell but the only way to get ahead of such a bad infestation.

Even the compound is making great strides. There is a water purification system in place to go with the newly dug well which runs on solar power. There are propane tanks for cooking instead of wood fires. And the walkways are paved so the issue of walking everywhere in mud has been alleviated.

Some of our team members, who are trained engineers, spent the entire day at the river bed assessing the situation with ESMI staff member David Short. Partial remediation has been made to counteract the flooding that occurs as a result of the river actually shifting course a few years ago during a severe hurricane season. However, it is not complete and decisions need to be made about future work…or moving the village.

The second picture is Pastor Nerva, the pastor in Cherette, who is father figure to the children and tireless in his work with them. He has a very interesting story to tell of God’s grace in his life. If you’d like to hear more, let us know.

Tomorrow, the survey team and a small contingent of the medical folks will go back to Cherette, while the majority of the team will go into Savannes. With Mardi Gras officially over, it seems to have calmed down in the last day.  Savannes is one of the poorest sections of Cayes, perhaps some of the poorest in all of Haiti. Unemployment is 100%. There are no schools. It is a dark place where voodoo is followed by most. But ESMI has sponsored a church plant, and our teams have visited there before.  A year ago, our team was able to witness a moving of the Spirit there which was the direct result of much prayer before and during their visit by many people. The new church grew so fast it outgrew its brand new building in the month after our team's visit. The team is anxious to go back and reconnect with some of the people last year's team met there!

Although fatigued, the team is working seamlessly. After a very long day in Cherette, all of the remaining supplies were completely reorganized for the last two days of ministry. Fortunately, the heat seems to have abated somewhat, which is a relief.

Please pray that the team will benefit from a night of rest, and will stay in good health and good cheer for the rest of their time in Haiti. Tomorrow in Savannes is yet another “new situation” for many and will be stressful. The needs there are great, as are the crowds. Pray also for another safe travel day for those going to Cherette. 

The team is grateful for your prayers!

Haiti Mission Team Update - Feb 21

Tuesday was the kind of day that gets people hooked on ministry in Haiti.

Some good work was finished up in Cambry with a small team, including helping a man from the community swing a machete better by removing the extra digits he was born with on both hands. When you work as a laborer, it is not a small thing to be good at swinging a machete. With help from our medical team, a Haitian doctor (whose name is unpronounceable to most Americans, so the team calls him “Junior”) did the surgery with supplies and meds brought in the duffels.

The larger group went to Casa Major. The big task was to see all 190 kids, plus any adults who needed it. The children in Casa Major were mostly in good health; scabies and pneumonia were the main issues. With several teams set up and a triage group that kept the pace flowing, the goal was met. Along the way, they met some adorable children, and some who really needed a doctor.

The attached pictures tell the story of the day…see that smiling face in the red and white dress? That’s one way to get hooked on ministry in Haiti.

See the sleeping child? Another way to get hooked. They just want to be held sometimes.

The boy with the burn on his chest? This is the main way to get hooked – sometimes you see the hand of God very clearly when you minister in Haiti. Here’s his story…apparently, a few days ago he was scalded by some water from one of the ever-present outside cooking pots. The medical team quickly determined he had third degree burns on his back and chest (the picture of his back is much worse, and apparently even worse than that in person) and spent two hours debrading the wound. In the US, this little boy would have been heavily sedated for treatment and then kept sedated in a hospital for a week because of the pain. The burns had gone down to the bone. But in Haiti, they gave him what they had for pain and this little guy sat perfectly still with tears running down his face until they were done.  The docs said that no adult could have withstood it. The bravest boy in Haiti, indeed!  And how does this display the hand of God? The docs said that had the team not shown up when it did in Casa Major, the wound certainly would have gotten infected and this little boy would have likely been dead within two weeks. Now that the major repair has been done, a local nurse will be left with supplies, meds and ointments, and they believe he will heal. Certainly God orchestrated this timing to show mercy to this precious little boy, and show his glory to the team by allowing them to be a part of this. Praise God!

One last picture – the group of boys with the team’s interpreter – the boy in the red shirt, Fransco, is the one whose life became new in Christ yesterday in Cavillon. Thought you’d like to see his face!

The day came to a close for the team back at the guest house with a meeting including lots of laughter, good spirits, and a dose of dark chocolate J. All are healthy though exhausted after a long day, and looking forward to Cherette tomorrow. Cherette is quite remote - literally up the side of a mountain and accessible only via four wheel drive vehicles and roads that look an awful lot like river beds.

Please pray that good rest restores tired bodies tonight. Pray for safety tomorrow. Pray for the precious children who were taken care of today, and the adults who watch over them. Praise God for his provisions for the team - food, safe water to drink, the gift of laughter and fellowship, medicines with which to work, and clothes to provide.  

Haiti Mission Team Update - Feb 20

Our team had a lesson in flexibility today (indeed, the main requirement for ministry in Haiti), as their plan of last night to go to Savannes was changed at the last minute this morning. Pastor Louis went ahead of the team into Savannes and deemed the area too crowded and too raucous for the team to operate with any sense of organization or control. Mardi Gras is in full swing there for the next few days.

So, it was decided that some would stay in Cambry, as planned, but the larger part of the group would go to Cavillon. Cavillon is a smaller orphanage about 40 minutes away from Cambry. Although not very distant physically, the site hadn’t been visited by a medical team in two years. Some of the 37 kids there had never seen a doctor. Today, that team was confronted with a difficult look at what it can be like to grow up in Haiti – even in a place where there are caring adults looking out for your welfare to their best of their ability.

Pastor Samuel in Cavillon is a caring and servant hearted man who works hard for the children in his care. There is no room for him to live at the orphanage, so he rents a scooter to ferry food and supplies in on a regular basis. He carries the weight of every difficulty from sodden mattresses from flooding to malnourished kids on his shoulders. He himself needed medical care today for injuries from a recent scooter accident, pneumonia, and a sinus infection.

And the kids needed a lot of help, too.  There are teenagers who look to be ten years old because of long term lack of sufficient nutrition. Scabies (a skin parasite that is extremely contagious) is pronounced among the kids. The itch is maddening, and of course itching leads to skin infections, impetigo, and abscesses. Many also had intestinal parasites. These things are common in Haiti, and our team was well prepared with medicines and know-how in dealing with them. To complicate things, the water supply in Cavillon is not good, which leads to further intestinal issues for the kids.  In all, it was a sobering day for our team. Although they met real needs and saw the good heart of Pastor Samuel, it is easy to despair at the situation. Yet, they could see the hand of God in re-routing them to Cavillon today.  They were reminded of the wisdom of the Proverbs – “man plans, but the Lord directs.”

A team of six stayed in Cambry, where they saw children from the orphanage there as well as community people.  The kids at Cambry are in much better shape, although still smaller than you would expect, because of their proximity to the guest house for visiting teams. If a medical team comes it almost always checks in on Cambry. 

One bright spot today in Cavillon was a conversation our interpreter, a Haitian and former church planter in Chicago who is laying the groundwork to move back to Haiti to plant a church in Jacmel, had with someone. A young man was pointed out to him as being despondent wondering aloud to the doctors “if Jesus loves me, where is he? Why has he abandoned me here?” Our translator was able to pull him aside and speak to him in his own language of the hope of the gospel and God’s unfailing love even in painful circumstances. The conversation ended with a much uplifted young man with a new and full hope in Christ for salvation and for his circumstances. It is likely that when the church plant gets started in Jacmel, this young man will relocate there to be a part of the church planting family.

Tomorrow, most of the team will go to Casa Major, which is much larger – 190 kids, plus staff. A small group will remain in Cambry once again to follow up on some things that were done their today.  It will be a long day with that many kids to see.

Please pray for:

• Stamina – ministry days are long in Haiti. The heat and dehydration is always something to be wary of. Today a few people had to rest in the shade for a while due to lightheadedness.
• The grief the team feels as they see needs they cannot possibly meet and situations that will not turn around in a week. Ask that God give them a sense of a job well done, even if not “finished”.
• Continued physical health and safety, especially as the team begins to spread itself thin physically and emotionally.  Pray that they support each other and continue to knit together as they work in trying circumstances.

Haiti Mission Team Update - Feb 19

Today was a great day for the team!

Yesterday’s sense of being overwhelmed and tired after a day of travel, heat, new sights and new places was replaced today with the joy of worshipping with Haitians in three separate services in two locations. The evening service tonight was mostly with the children of Cambry as many adults were at Mardi Gras (4 miles away in Cayes, but the lights and music can be seen and heard from the compound).  Here’s a picture of two of the kids in worship with one of our team members.

The afternoon was spent organizing the supplies – a mammoth task and critical to the smooth workings of the days coming up. Having two veteran Haiti travelers who are pediatricians on the team this time really aided the work; the team leader thinks it’s the best organization job he’s seen yet! The second attachment is a picture of some of the task, but without a panoramic lens a picture can’t do it justice... twenty four hundred pounds of medicines and clothes to unpack!

Another highlight of the day was being serenaded by some of the kids from the Cambry orphanage. About 20 of them walked up the hill to the compound/guest house and sang for our team. Just the beginning of these precious little people completely stealing the hearts of our team members!

The team is eager to start! Early tomorrow morning, most will go to Savannes, the poorest of the poor suburbs of Cayes until mid-afternoon, where the focus will be medical and children’s ministry. At that point they will rejoin the small team left at Cambry and work for the rest of the day in similar fashion. As of now, that is the plan for Tuesday as well.

The first “wildlife” adventure of the trip involved a teenage team member finding a spider in the bathroom at the guesthouse – and very understandably leaving with haste and a startled scream. Her teammate dad was summoned, who in best “dad” mode gathered some tissues to dispatch the offending creature. A sharp “Whoa!” was heard from the bathroom, with said team member retreating for a more appropriate mode of disposal. The spider was as large as a full grown tarantula! No damage done in the encounter…except to the spider.

Tonight’s prayer requests:

• For good rest; please pray that air conditioning can be restored soon (and certainly that electricity would continue tonight to keep fans on)
• For wise use of resources in packing for the day tomorrow
• For good teamwork tomorrow in both locations, and effective ministry
• For smooth organization and crowd control in both locations
• For continued good health; that heat would not be a hindrance

Haiti Mission Team Update - Feb 18

The team arrived safely in Haiti today and made it through customs with all bags intact and accounted for. They were met upon arrival by Dou Dou, a familiar face and trusted ESMI friend, who drove the bus to Cambry, a 6 hour trek made longer than usual by heavy traffic in Port au Prince and along the route to Cambry due to it being carnival season in Haiti. The Haitian version of “Mardi Gras” is even more wild and crazy that that in New Orleans, and the crowds and the atmosphere it engenders will require that some of the team’s days be shortened in order to be back in the compound before streets become impassable and unruly. Our hosts are familiar with this event and are confident they can ensure the teams usefulness AND their safety.

It is hotter there today than is usual for February  - 100 degrees when they stepped off the plane, but not the same high humidity as is common in the summer.  Unfortunately, not all of the sleeping rooms have air conditioning tonight at the compound, but there is hope that it can be repaired tomorrow.

The team is settled in for the night, looking forward to worship tomorrow morning at 7:00 and 10:00 in Cayes; in the evening they may go to Bon Berger if the Mardi Gras crowd situation allows. They will meet as a team again (as they do every night) to debrief, have a devotional, pray, and make a plan for the next day. These team meetings allow all to decompress and enjoy each other’s company after a long day, as well as refocus spiritually and deal with practical matters.

Please pray for their ability to work this week as Mardi Gras goes on; for the air conditioning to be repaired, and for all to acclimate to the weather, the food, the surroundings, and the rhythm of work for the week. Monday and Tuesday they are slated to be in a poor suburb of Cayes, called Savannes, as well as in Cambry. Medical teams will set up stations, and children’s ministry will use drama and other means to share the gospel with children as they wait to be seen by the medical folks.  It will seem chaotic. It will be hot. And it will be awesome to see how God uses them!

Speaking of the food…here’s a picture of tomorrow’s Sunday lunch all trussed up and ready for the cooking pot. You never know what the menu will be in Haiti!

Haiti Mission Team Update - Feb 17

Twenty two people met in Miami tonight (two will join them in the morning) for a preliminary team meeting in which they were able to meet each other (finally!), pray together, and work out logistics for the day of travel tomorrow.

It will start early, with a shuttle to the airport with a lot of luggage - 44 duffel bags filled with medical supplies and clothes in addition to their personal belongings in a small carry on bag. Each bag weighs 50 pounds and will come back home empty.  Following a relatively short flight to Port au Prince comes a relatively long bus ride to their base of operations in Cambry. The airport in Port au Prince is a modern facility built in the middle of the third world city that is Port au Prince. It is noisy and crowded, and will be their first "culture shock" of the trip as they go through customs with their bags. The bus ride will solidify the feeling that they are in a different place, as the see some of the still-ravaged and always chaotic Port au Prince and the countryside of Haiti.

At Cambry, they'll settle into accommodations that are luxurious by Haitian standards, where water mostly flows and electricity is usually available. They will appreciate both this week! The staff will feed them and provide safety in the compound. They will begin the task of unpacking those duffel bags and organizing their week's supplies.

Please pray that all the bags would make it through customs and get safely tucked on the bus for transport to Cambry. Pray for safety in travel by air and by bus, and for health. And pray that as they travel and work together tomorrow that they would quickly knit together into a close and smoothly working team. The week ahead will be wonderful and difficult and their support of each other will be key. Above all, pray that God will be glorified as they use hands, feet, hearts, and abilities to meet needs "nan nom Jesi" (creole for "in Jesus' name").

They will covet your prayers.

40th General Assembly of the PCA

Registration is open for the 40th General Assembly in Louisville, KY. 
You can find all the registration materials here

Organization Service for Lincoln Square Presbyterian Church

Please join us for the organization service for Lincoln Square Presbyterian Church:

Sunday, March 4 at 4:30 pm

Waters Elementary School

4540 North Campbell Avenue

Chicago, IL [Map it]

LSPC website: http://www.lincolnsquarepres.org/