Daily Archives: October 23, 2012

October 23, 2012 · 10:00 pm

Exciting Newsletter from Stan Buckley

Some of you may already be subscribed to the But God Ministries newsletter, but for those who are not, I wanted to share today’s newsletter from Stan Buckley with all of my blog followers as well. It is so encouraging to see what all is going on at Hope Center every day. If you want to subscribe, there is a link on the right hand side of the page that will help you do that.

 logo header
Sharing the love of Jesus Christ through building sustainable communities around the world . . .
October 23, 2012

Life on the Hill

The location where we have built the first 20 houses is called the Hill. Twelve families have moved to the Hill from a tent city and life has dramatically improved for these families. I was in Haiti the first of this month and saw some wonderful developments:

Dale Kennon of FBC Jackson, MS on the steps
of one of the houses on the Hill. The people have done a great job with their landscaping.

Last month, I shared with you how the families have been growing gardens. These gardens are continuing to develop.  I am standing with Gina in front of her family’s garden.

Another resident on the hill in front of his garden.

Two happy little girls grabbed me and gave me a friendly hug while I was walking on the Hill.

While there a few weeks ago, a mission team from Jackson, MS held our first Ladies Conference for the women living on the hill. They also held a VBS for the children on the Hill as well as Family Night for all who wanted to come.

Pictured are some of the ladies on the first day of the Bible Study. Since we were operating on “Haitian time,” only about half the ladies had shown up when it was scheduled to start! Before the week was over, about 8 of the ladies professed faith in Christ!!

After the Bible Study, the ladies did a craft. Each one made a beautiful purse. They loved those purses!

Lots of children at the afternoon VBS

VBS was too much for this little fella!

Family night was a great time of fun and laughter. As I watched, I thought how much better this was than just a few weeks earlier when these people were living in the filth and heat and hopelessness of the tent city.

Paddle ball and other games were enjoyed by all during Family Night. Looking on is Lillian Brown of Madison, MS. She planned and led the Ladies Bible Study, the VBS, and Family Night.
The last night we were there a few weeks ago, the ladies from the Hill all walked down to The Hope Center. They knew we were leaving the next morning. They told us they wanted to pray for us! I couldn’t believe it. We pray for them. We try to bless them. And now, they were wanting to pray for us.

They formed a circle and invited us into the circle. Then, before praying for us, they began to sing. I still don’t speak Creole, but I immediately recognized the tune. They were singing that old hymn, “He hideth my soul in the cleft off the rock.” Then they prayed for us. They thanked God for our work and asked Him to provide us wisdom, strength, and protection. Overwhelming joy is the only way I can describe how it felt to be prayed for by these ladies. What a blessing!

Scholarships, School, and Supplies

We ended up with scholarships and supplies for over 200 children. I went to Port-au-Prince with one of the leaders of the school to purchase paper, pens, pencils, and workbooks for many of the children.

Salomon and me holding samples of some of the supplies we bought for the school children

Salomon and me standing in front of a chalkboard at the school. Notice the old wooden benches, the dirt floor, and the tin roof. Not exactly an ideal learning setting. They have poured the footings for a new school but do not have the funds to complete it. We hope that one day we may be able to help them complete it.
The Joy of a Job

Mickie West, the wife of our on-site, American nurse, sent me the following email two weeks ago. My heart was greatly encouraged:

 

“Stan, Mackil (one of the men on the Hill) pulled me aside and said that he is very concerned about finding a job. He explained to me that he is a very hard worker and loves to work and wants to work, but he doesn’t know how or where to find a job since he is not from that area. This touched my heart deeply. I told him that I would pray for God to provide work for him.

 

“That evening, I was talking to Doug (of the Pensacola team) and I told him about the conversation I had with Mackil. The next morning, Doug came to me and said he wanted to hire Mackil and two other men from the Hill to work at the orphanage while he is here. We went up on the hill to get Mackil and he was sitting on his porch having his breakfast. We introduced him to Doug and told him that Doug wanted him to work for him at the orphanage for a couple of weeks.

 

“Stan, that whole family began to rejoice. His wife, Emmanuella, began to cry and praise God with her face against the wall of their house. It was a very joyful sight. Then I said, ‘Okay, well, let’s get ready to get to work!’ and Emmanuella went into the house and got his work shoes and ball cap, he quickly drank the rest of his coffee, and called over to two of the other men to come work with him. He was rushing around with such excitement!! Tears began to spill down my face as I watched the urgent activity going on around his house as the entire family helped him get ready for work. Oh my, how exciting it was. Doug says Mackil is a very hard worker and he works without complaining. Of course, I wasn’t surprised about that.”

 

If you have a job, thank God for it and please pray that all the Haitians in and near our community will get jobs. 

Orphanage Update

The two churches from Pensacola who are building the orphanage have spent the last two weeks finishing some of the outside of the four buildings as well as working on the inside.

The kitchen in the new orphanage
Medical Care

Through Tony West and visiting medical teams, we continue to provide ongoing medical care. Not only are we hosting clinics at The Hope Center, but one day a week we are taking the clinic to more remote locations where people rarely get medical care.

Two weeks ago we had two pediatricians, two pediatric nurses, and a Physician’s Assistant hosting a clinic. Last week we had several nurses helping with a clinic. Next week we will have two Emergency Room doctors hosting a clinic. All three of these groups are from Pensacola, FL.

The little girl is Abigalle. She is being held by Kirsten who is a member of the Pensacola medical team. Abigalle is a 4 year old that came in with horrible wheezing and fast breathing. She had been sick for a week. Our medical team gave her 3 nebulizer treatments, steroids, and antibiotics on Tuesday and asked her to come back on Friday. She came back and was doing much, much better!

One of the Pensacola medical teams preparing to go on their first mobile clinic to the mountain village of Thoman
Update on Matching Gift
We are well on our way to reaching the $50,000 goal for the matching gift from the Christian businessman. As of last weekend, we had received $41,890 (not counting some designated gifts such as school scholarships). That leaves us $8,110 to go between now and the end of this month (8 days).

And Finally

Our work and ministry continue to grow and expand. Many new things are on the horizon. Countless people will be blessed as we go about making a difference in a thoughtful, systematic way.  Our sustainable community is developing right before our eyes.

 

However, it takes resources to do this kind of work. Last month, I announced that we have a feature on our website that allows someone to automatically give each month. All you have to do is sign up one time. Just click here to give each month ($25, $50, $100, $200, or any amount you choose) or to give a one-time contribution. You can also mail your gift to: But God Ministries, 1440 North State Street, Jackson, MS, 39202.

 

 

Can’t Wait To See What God Does Next,
Stan Buckley
Executive Director
But God Ministries
Contact Us

Stan Buckley
Executive Director
601-481-4078
Barbara Gladney
Project Coordinator
601-825-5764
Visit Website

Leave a comment

Filed under Haiti

October 23, 2012 · 3:10 pm

God Confirms our Path

It never fails to amaze me how God sends a Word to us at just the right time when we cry out to Him and ask for His perfect peace. As you can imagine, the struggle and turmoil I have dealt with in my spirit as we have made this move back to the states has been excruciating. I have fought it in my spirit every step of the way.

First of all, I did not want to leave my husband in Haiti. Although the place where we live is not a dangerous place, and we have most of the comforts of home, it is still not easy to live there. The hardest part I think is the language barrier. For Tony, having to depend on a translator day in and day out in order to diagnose and treat the hundreds of people he sees each week is exhausting both mentally and physically. There seem to be constant misunderstandings and confusion around every corner just because of the lack of the ability to communicate freely. That is actually getting better as he is learning the language more and more, but I just wish I could be there by his side to help him through it. Secondly, I have argued and argued with God over this because I can’t understand why He would call us all to Haiti, then have me and Jacob return to the states after just 3 months! When we committed to go, we committed to GO AND STAY! So why bring me and Jacob back here when we had worked so hard to build a good relationship with the families on the hill and the families in the village? I just couldn’t understand. I cried out to God asking for the soccer opportunities to happen there in Haiti, but all I got was silence. I was getting so very frustrated because I wanted to be able to continue the ministry I had begun, but I knew I needed to make the right decision for Jacob’s future as well. I needed reassurance that going back to the US was indeed what GOD wanted us to do and not just us giving in and not being patient. Well, today I received my confirmation that we are indeed where he wants us to be.

I don’t know if you remember or not, but in my story about how we were called into this ministry, I spoke about how God led me into a study of the book of Nehemiah right after Tony was called to go to Haiti for the first time. This was two years ago. God showed me through this study that He was going to involve us in a HUGE rebuilding of an area of Haiti that would involve the efforts of many people and a great deal of organization. I took notes as I studied and then shared them with Tony. All Tony could say was, “Well, that’s big!” We had no idea what BIG thing God was going to do with us, but He eventually led us to But God Ministries, and He led us to surrender to full time missions to go to Haiti as a part of a HUGE plan that was just as He had shown us through my study of Nehemiah.

Well today, God led me back into the book of Nehemiah. In Nehemiah 11, verses 1-2, it says, “Now the leaders of the people lived in Jerusalem. and the rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of ten to live in Jerusalem the holy city, while nine out of ten remained in the other towns. and the people blessed all the men who willingly offered to live in Jerusalem.” When I read this, I immediately began to apply it to our situation and thought about the fact that right now, our family has decided that what is best for all of us is to let Tony remain in Haiti, and the rest of us live in the US for school for a season. (I still have a hard time even typing this, but I know now that God is definitely behind this plan.) As I usually do, I began looking at some commentary on these verses and this is what I found: “Being a true leader isn’t always glamorous. There are not always hundreds of people lining up, wanting to be just like you. This can be witnessed in the book of Nehemiah. We read that the leaders lived in Jerusalem and the rest drew lots. Nehemiah is the account of the rebuilding of Jerusalem. During the restoration, enemies threatened to attack it as the wall and gates were rebuilt; it wasn’t necessarily the safest place. That is one reason the average Joe didn’t immediately sign up to live there. Jerusalem living also meant leaving a previous place of residence, which had one’s farm and livelihood. At this point, Jerusalem was not yet finished and life there would have been difficult. These leaders made a sacrifice. Someone had to live there and start the process of creating a once again bustling city. Could this be what leadership is often about? Not asking people to take a risk for you, but rather taking one for them? Jesus even said that He came to serve and to not be served (Matthew 20:28). That is what leading is. We learn how to do this in its purest of forms through Jesus and his substitutionary death on the cross. He calls us to lay down our lives for others, because He has laid down His for us (John 15:13).”

Oh my! As I read this, my heart began to beat faster and I began to cry as I realized that God was indeed confirming that the sacrifice that my family is making to live separately for a little while is exactly what God wants us to do! It was His plan all along! When I wrote my last blog post to explain to everyone what we had decided to do, I entitled it “Making Sacrifices.” I have come to realize now that this sacrifice we are making is part of what God has called us to do! As with every other trial we walk through, Jesus has gone before us. He knows how it feels! He sacrificed His place with the Father to come here and make a way for us! He knows what it’s like to leave a place where He felt He was supposed to be in order to provide for His children and do what was best for them….us! In showing me this scripture today, and leading me to this commentary, God was telling me that He DOES go before us, and He IS in this! We ARE doing what He wants us to do, and He WILL bless our sacrifice. That’s all I needed to know. Today I have a refreshed vision and a clear purpose. Whatever He wants to accomplish in this move and separation period, He WILL accomplish, and we HONOR Him when we obey – even when that obedience is very difficult.

I don’t know what God has in store for our family in the coming days and months, but I do know that we are still in His hands. Jacob and I have started having a Bible study together over breakfast every day, and today I was able to share with him this amazing confirmation from God that we are doing the right thing. He too was relieved to hear it. We talked yesterday about how strange it felt to register for school and know that he will be back in the classroom and playing soccer this week. We talked about how we wish we knew for sure that we had made the right decision. Today God answered that plea to know. We have a peace now, and we are growing closer to our Father as we cling to Him for guidance and strength.

Thank you all so much for the encouragement and prayers you send our way. Your obedience to share that encouragement is a constant reminder to us of God’s love and protection. God is good…..ALL THE TIME!

Walking in HIS steps….

Mickie

Leave a comment

Filed under Haiti