Mission to Haiti – November 28, 2010
Where does one start to describe the events of the past week. The cholera epidemic continues unabated, but it is difficult to find out much about what is happening in this regard. Earlier this week we heard it was over 1,400 dead and 60,000 infected, but the number of dead was thought to be too low when it was reported because of the lack of communication and infrastructure to determine what was actually happening outside major population centres. We do know that only 12% of the Haitian population of 9.8 million received treated tap water and only 17% had access to adequate sanitiation before the earthquake. The Centre for Disease Control in Atlanta, Georgia, was quoted as saying that even before the earthquake water safety and sanitation systems in Haiti were weak so conditions are now even more of a problem and ripe for the further spread of cholera.
The staff and students here at the Emmaus Biblical Seminary, while not immune should someone carry the cholera parasite onto the campus, have so far been very fortunate. With the exception of the mother of the night watchman who died over two weeks ago down in the Port-au-Prince area the remainder of the staff and students have not yet been touched nor have their families. Our water continues to be safe and everyone is taking precautions to make sure that proper sanitation is being practiced.
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| Street in Cap Haitien |
The major problem now seems to be the manifestations (demonstrations) and where or when they may break out again. Whether they are politically motivated or are a spontaneous reaction to the cholera epidemic is open to speculation. So far this week things appear to be back to something approaching normal although there are rumours galore and we don’t know whether to leave the EBS compound or stay put. A work team from Hamilton left a day early because they did not know what the situation was going to be like the scheduled day of departure and another team from Hamilton that was scheduled to arrive cancelled rather than find themselves trapped, unable to work and unable to leave when they planned. One of our Haitian professors who has a heavy teaching load this semester has moved himself and his wife onto campus so that he will be able to teach his classes without the possibility of not being able to make it home or back because of roadblocks as was the case last week. We are all praying that after the election on November 28th things will quieten down at least until the runoff elections on January 17th.
We attended the EBF (English Bible Fellowship) service this past Sunday and were once again reminded that God is very much in control. It seemed like everything from our prayers of thanksgiving to the message delivered by Dr. Bill Cooper were of similar themes, and it seems the more difficult the situation the more God is with us and will protect us. Dr. Bill cited three instances from the Old Testament where God was in control and was with those who believed and trusted in Him. In Exodus he spoke of the Israelites who were trapped between the Red Sea and and Egyptians, and in the book of Daniel he spoke of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who faced a fiery death because of their faith, and then later it was Daniel who was thrown into the lion’s den only to survive because of his faith.
Two of the missionaries who attend EBF this past week found themselves in a difficult situation while travelling from Vaudreuil, very near the OMS compound, to their mission near Limbe, a distance of perhaps 15 miles. They found themselves and their vehicle trapped between two roadblocks in the dark of night. For over an hour they did not know whether they would be allowed to go on their way or what would happen. All they could do was pray for God’s protection. After what must have seemed like forever a Haitian on a motorbike came over and told the missionaries to follow him. They did, and after a rather adverturesome trip that they would never have undertaken in daylight they found themselves safely on the road to their mission compound. For them this was very much a case of answered prayer and they have been thanking God ever since for the stranger who lead them to safety. For them God was very much in control.
That is very much how we feel. We don’t worry about the situation we find ourselves in. We know that we have many people who know us and many people we have never met praying for our safety and that of our fellow missionaries. We know that there is little we can do beyond prayer to address the situation we find ourselves in. We are not in danger, just surrounded by a sea of uncertainty that will calm itself given time. No one ever said that serving in the mission field was going to be all smooth sailing. All we can do is put our faith in God knowing he will see us through. Psalm 32:6 says You are my hiding place; you protect me from trouble. You surround me with songs of victory.
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| Lily blowing out Stacey's candles |
This past week we celebrated the birthday of fellow missionary Stacey Ayars Her husband (along with the help of their almost 2 year old, Lily) lovingly made her supper and we also shared in that feast along with Dr. Bill and Ruth Cooper who are finishing their last week of teaching. It has been nearly a month now since they arrived. They have purchased bus tickets for Saturday to Santiago in the Dominican Republic and from there are to fly home to Colorado. At time of writing it is still uncertain whether the bus is going to be leaving because of the election on Sunday or may be hampered by roadblocks. All we can do is pray.
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| Evangela (It means The Good News) |
We are also celebrating the birth of Evangela, daughter of Pastor Vilmer & Sarah Paul. Vilmer is the pastor of Heavenly Light Church as well as a Dean here at the Emmaus Biblical Seminary. We had been hoping to get to Pastor Vilmer’s school prior to our departure for Canada but with all the troubles, while the school is open, very few of the children are attendingl which is understandable. No one wants to have a child hurt or injured.
primary schools St. Andrew’s supports so it would be remiss not to mention the HEARTS Christmas Gift Giving program where you can give a gift to someone at Christmas of tuition for a Haitian child or a daily meal to a child attending one of our schools, or one of the other gift selections. Contact Sandra Woods in the office or call Sandra at (519) 843-3565 to make a donation or to learn more about how you can be a part of this terrific way to celebrate Christmas.
Please visit our new blog site http://www.jdmhaiti.blogspot.com/. It has taken us a while to get the site up. We are now caught up with postings some of which you may have already read. What you have not seen are the pictures that go along with some of the stories. We hope to publish a little more regularly from now on.
Please pray for peace this Sunday during the Haitian election.
