"with" the neighborhood

There are three kinds of churches.  Churches "in" the neighborhood (fortress), churches "to" the neighborhood (savior), and churches "with" the neighborhood (partner).  UCI operates as church with their neighborhood.  It has a parish, neighborhood kind of mentality.  As they worship, disciple, and equip believers through the church, they are also looking right around them in their neighborhood, listening to the community, joining community meetings, discovering the needs of the people, and actively working with the neighborhood as the body of Christ to bring the wholistic Good News of Christ.

Here are some examples of wholistic mission in the area surrounding the church-

*A UCI leader took Lisa C., one of our team members who is a physical therapist, out into the neighborhood to visit neighbors who were crippled and disabled.  Kristie also brought a few neighbors to UCI so that Lisa could work with them to show them exercises and make recommendations to improve their mobility.  

*UCI has a large soccer field, a small soccer field, a gazebo, and a volleyball court for the college students and for people of the neighborhood.  As I played volleyball last Sunday, I looked around at all the action around me...kids playing soccer, other children chanting and singing from the gazebo, people watching and cheering and visiting.  It was a hub of lively recreation for the neighborhood.  

*A nutrition center on the UCI campus feeds dozens of neighborhood children four times a week.  

*UCI built a Christian primary school that has over 150 children from the community attending.  

*Kristie scheduled a time for the local residents to lay out their wares on the soccer field so that our team might buy some Haitian souveniers from them.

*UCI has provided concrete floors for neighbors, a well, an irrigation pump, and has begun agricultural and animal breeding programs to stimulate food production and economic development in their community.  

These are just some of the ways God is working through the Church as she joins "with" the neighborhood to care and share, and to strengthen and stimulate growth.  And as I have mentioned in previous posts, all of this flows from Christ...proclaiming that He alone can restore hearts, lives, and neighborhoods to bring about shalom.    

spiritual warfare

The second impression left upon me from my time in Haiti is the clear reminder that there is a battle going on for the soul.  Two kingdoms at war...the Kingdom of God vs. the kingdom of this world.  Light vs. Dark, Good vs. Evil, God vs. Satan.

All week long in Haiti, I listened to stories of the history of voodoo in the country.  I heard from a former witch doctor who shared stories of curses, death, alcohol, thievery, poisoning people, grave robbing, and enslaving people.  I heard him speak of waving flags over his house that signified to others the dark spirits he served.  I heard him speak of a religion of fear.

On Friday, our group watched a baptism where we witnessed a power encounter between Light and Dark.  The young woman being baptized was immersed and on coming up from the water, she immediately began to thrash about, screaming something in Creole.  The elders prayed over her and held her.  She continued to thrash, then pause, then thrash and splash about, then shout.  The pastors continued to pray.  Finally, after about 5 minutes, JeanJean re-baptized her, and she calmly walked from the river to the shore.

Later, JeanJean explained the words she had been shouting. "I told you not to get baptized!"  "How could you do this to me?!"  A spirit manifested that was opposing her baptism into Christ.  JeanJean told us that her history had been deep in voodoo, and when Christians encounter these manifestations, they pray, and pray, and pray some more.

During our small group time, our team processed these experiences and spoke about our thoughts, our questions, our emotions, our culture, our upbringing.  Though these experiences in Haiti seemed so different, so "out there", we could not deny that the Bible speaks frequently about the "thief who comes to steal and destroy" and the enemy who "prowls around like a lion seeking someone to devour."  We had just never seen the spiritual realm through quite such unfiltered lenses.

I asked the group, "What is the voodoo of our culture?"  What is our religion of fear?  What flags wave above our homes describing the spirits we serve?  Satan isn't just at work to master the people of Haiti and keep the Haitian people's focus off of God.  He's plenty busy in our own backyard deceiving and masquerading as an angel of light.  In fact, with the numbers of people packing the churches in the small community of Bohoc, Haiti, over the past 8 years, compared to the number of people leaving our churches in our own community, I'd say that Satan has some powerfully subtle and effective tactics to wreak confusion and havoc in our own cities.  Flags wave above our homes as we serve spirits of materialism, busyness, division, hate, racism, competition, greed, lust, alcohol and drugs, addictions to money, tv, food, sex, sports, gambling, spirits of pride and selfish ambition, spirits of lukewarm faith and double-mindedness, spirits of pleasure and self-protection with attempts to insulate from pain or want of anything.  Voodoo is a religion of fear.  Perhaps we as a society serve the same religion of fear...though ours is often perhaps a fear of the loss of self-determination.

In Haiti, I observed the active and busy nature of Satan in a new way.  It caused me to increase my awareness and reflect about what strategies He uses in my own life to place a wedge between my relationship with Christ and to keep me from full devotion.  Through the week, I began to pray more specifically and remembered these passages in particular:

^{Ephesians 6: 10-20} Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood,but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

¹⁸ And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. ¹⁹ Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰ for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.

1John 4:4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

the well-ordered life of faith

After just returning from Haiti, I'm spending time reflecting on the two greatest impressions left on me.  I'll post them separately, but by far, "the well-ordered life" is my number one takeaway.

All week, my observations and experiences led me to visualizing a three-ring target.  In the first ring, the  bull’s eye, was relationship with Christ.  Everything at UCI pulsated and rippled from this epicenter.  The Kingdom of God, the good news of new life in Christ, was preached, talked about standing up and sitting down, shared all the time.  People were singing all the time, praying all the time, proclaiming the Word of God all the time, giving praise and recognition to God all the time.  It wasn’t added, it wasn’t a side dish, it wasn’t secondary, it wasn't manufactured.  Adoration of God and gratitude to Him is the unmistakeable core and the very essence of UCI.  Jesus was unashamedly, uncompromisingly made known in every movement and activity.  The Word of God was not alluded to or debated; it was spoken plainly and lived out in a very simple, devoted trust and faithful obedience. 

The invitation to faith was an invitation to all out devotion to the Jesus who saves us.  It is unequivocally a call to radical faith and surrendered life.  A very clear call into a life of fully following Jesus and being discipled and trained in the ways and the Word of God.  Love God out of His great love for you.  God first.  A simple, yet profound “Trust and obey.”  There was not a spirit of confusion or complexity.

*I got on a school bus that was jam packed with teenagers and adults, and we drove off to go to a baptism. Before we were 3 minutes down the road, the entire bus broke out in hardy praise songs that were resounding through the village as we traveled.  

*I listened to Lanyo, a 75 year old UCI board member, as he talked about coming to UCI campus each morning at 6 a.m. to prayer walk through the campus.

*I watched JeanJean on the phone as he placed calls all over Haiti looking for mature Haitian Christians with master's degrees who might join Christ's work at UCI.  

*I experienced a power encounter between light and dark, God and Satan, as one young woman was baptized in Christ in the river.

*I listened to three former witchdoctors share their testimonies of how Christ miraculously redeemed them and gave them new life.    

*I watched the community shut down all day Sunday to observe Sabbath.  Worship, meals together, soccer games and volleyball, time to visit in the courtyard.  

*I listened to JeanJean share about the biblical model they use to work through disputes in their community.  

*JeanJean shared a story about a church in the states that hadn’t grown in 8 years.  JeanJean asked them about the church elders' prayer life.  The church leader spoke about doing 2-3 hours of business in their meetings and praying about 30 minutes.  JeanJean suggested that business may be that which is getting in the way, and that they should maybe try 2-3 hours of praying with about 30 minutes of business.  The church took his advice and God has been growing that church ever since.  

-JeanJean repeatedly said, “This is not our doing. There's no way.  This is God at work.  We’re only joining His work.  Prayer and obedience are the key work for us.”

The second ring was an unmistakeable outflow of God’s love toward the love of neighbor and the development of Christian community.  Relationships.  I watched JeanJean be present relationally all week.  At the gate visiting with Haitian neighbors. Sitting drinking coffee with others in the courtyard outside his home.  Playing volleyball.  Playing crazy games in their living room with 18 scrambling, laughing, hysterical college girls.  He was always out amongst the people.  He mentored, he directed, he listened, he played, he prayed, he equipped and empowered, he taught, he helped people hear one another’s stories, he constantly kept people directed toward Christ.  He loved.  He ate meals at the big table and invited university professors, pastors, workers, students around the table. The community that has formed around UCI is one of trust, compassion, and joy, and it is a bright light that is drawing people in to Christ.

*One professor from Port said that he can make more money in Port au Prince and have more conveniences, but he’s drawn to UCI, the university, and this community of hope and joy and power that he is experiencing.

*One college girl gave her life to Christ while we were there because she has never felt so loved by people and wants to know this Jesus.

*Our team felt it.  This love in community.  Working together.  Playing together.  Praying and sharing together.  Offering your gifts in community for the good of the whole.  Being accepted unconditionally. 

The third ring is outreach together into the needs of their community.  Listening to the community.  Addressing problems wholistically just as Jesus did.  Collectively feeding people, clothing people, housing people, educating people, teaching people skills, creating jobs, caring for people’s body, soul, mind.  UCI is developing disciples and indigenous servant leaders.  In 8 years, God, through UCI, has built 8 churches, poured 289 concrete floors, built 25 homes, started 8 nutrition centers to feed 300 children,  dug 9 wells, provided 11 irrigation pumps, built a primary school, built a college/university, a cassava mill, an agricultural program and an animal breeding program.  The vision and prayer is to start a medical clinic, to make progress on an agricultural and farming program for the university, and to build a housing development just around the corner that has 45 homes/apartments.  It is clear that God is moving in ways far greater than one can imagine.  It is also clear that though these efforts are demanding, they do not usurp #1 or #2.  There is this purity in the ordered life of this ministry that is attractive and clear.  It is clear that this community development is not the vision but that God is the very vision.  It’s clear that the third ring is community development that flows out of love for God and love for neighbor.   Programs are happening, church services are happening, but excessive time is not given to these in order to make it appealing to seekers or those far from God.  The attraction comes from the Word of God, testimony of God's power and grace, and the community of love and compassion that is radiating through the neighborhood.  

All week long I considered the powerful earthquake of 2010 in Haiti and the waves that shook the ground for miles in every direction from the epicenter.  This is our God, the epicenter who is shaking the ground, moving through this Haitian community, and altering the landscape of life after life as He redeems people for good in His grace and power through Christ.  

UCI in a few pictures

Kristie Mompremier shows us one of the agricultural initiatives of  UCI.  A cabbage garden growing nice looking heads of cabbage in previously barren soil.  Gardening and sustainable growing techniques are being taught through UCI. unitedchristiansinternational.org 

The primary school is booming.  UCI has added a second floor this past year.  Currently they have 65 pre-K students and about 30 students each in K, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grades.  

Ruth bags nutrient rich soil.  35,000 coffee trees will be started in these bags and are part of an economic development plan for the community.

This university at UCI is in its first year.  They are currently expanding  by constructing a second story, hiring more professors, and creating a science lab for hands-on learning.

UCI has provided 289 concrete floors for family homes in the community as it reaches out in wholistic mission with the Good News of Jesus. 

UCI is committed to empowering people and raising up indigenous leaders.

Pastors gather weekly for encouragement and training.  UCI is a Christ-centered, Church-based ministry .

God's redemption through Jesus Christ is preached and proclaimed  at UCI.  Here , JeanJean baptizes one of seven  new brothers and sisters in Christ.

The need for solid housing is also a part of UCI's work in the community.

JeanJean took us on an ag vision tour.  UCI has purchased land  behind the university that will be farmed  and will provide training for students, food for students, and exports that can be sold to help support the university.  

UCI's worship center.  Receiving God's love and responding to that love in Christ is the central heartbeat from which everything else flows at UCI.

JeanJean and others often seen visiting at the gate.  Relationships are central  in the ministry  at  UCI.

Cassava bread is made and sold through the cassava mill at UCI.

Mango trees have been planted and in this area around the university.

Developing Christian community...Love for Neighbor...flows out of  love for God and  draws people  to this God we serve.  Here, college students and our team gather for song and prayer.

Listening to the community is key for UCI.  A great need is a solid, Christ-centered education for children.  UCI's primary school was started 2 years ago.

Jesus does indeed love the little children.

Another view of the university.

The computer lab at UCCC.

UCI runs 8 nutrition centers.  

After the pastor gathering, pastors were given a gift to encourage them and affirm them in their calling. 

Darwin stands by rows of small, growing coffee trees.

Teaching the Word of God is central at UCI.

JeanJean, Kristie, and their children, Tana and Kerri, were called as founders of UCI eight years ago.  God is at work through their faith and obedience in amazing and wondrous ways.

289 concrete floors in homes, 25 homes built, 8 nutrition centers started, 8 churches planted, 9 wells dug, 11 irrigation pumps installed, primary school built, university built, 380 families a part of the animal breeding program, cassava mill in operation, 35,000 coffee tree seedlings, thousands of trees being graphed and planted.  New land being developed into 45 housing units and an acreage being developed into agricultural program for university students that will feed college students and help financially support the university, prayers for a medical clinic in the future.  

Haiti through the senses

While spending a week in Haiti, some friends and I kept a running record of the unique sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and touches of Haiti while we were there.  A short sampling of our list...

Sounds
-singing.  So much boisterous praise on bus rides, in the streets, in church, during meetings!  Rich and deep, memorized, harmonic, adults and children all knew a multitude of songs and sang from their hearts.
-roosters and chickens
-UCI dogs barking
-children at the primary school playing, reciting lessons, laughing
-new puppies whining
-birds singing
- the electric saw going as cabinets were being made for the university kitchen
-hard rain on a tin roof
-the clink of rock as a farmer chipped away to dig through soft limestone
-the church gong at 4:50 a.m.
-bad jokes told by Mike Brost
-the dinner bell
-JeanJean's laugh
-people praying

Smells
-citrus from the orange tree behind the primary school
-bat guano
-pancakes for breakfast
-diesel exhaust
-sawdust as the cabinets were made out front of the dorms through the week
-cooking fires
-BO
-the unique smell of Haiti
-Haitian coffee

Tastes
-rice and beans
-Haitian coffee
-garlic
-Legeme- a vegetable mash eaten with rice
-Coke and Sprite, replenished daily in the dorm fridge
-Herbal citrus tea made by Tana
-fresh mango and pineapple and beets
-fresh bread from the Bohoc bakery

Touch
-cactus
-coffee tree soil
-concrete grit
-coarse little heads of hair
-lots of hands held and bodies hugged
-the air/dust of Port au Prince
-spider crawling on Larry in the night

Sights
-colorful taptap taxis in Port au Prince
-traffic in Port au Prince
-laundry drying on cactus fences that line properties
-taptaps packed with people
-women walking with buckets and baskets on their heads
-people riding bikes, walking, and on motorcycles or donkeys in the streets
-Haitian art
-the marketplace in Bohoc
-people gathering at church to worship God
-children scurrying around during an Easter Egg hunt
-thin and hungry people
-thin and hungry animals
-tin-roofed homes made of concrete, wood, or canvas
-children playing

heading to Haiti

I am heading to Haiti with my dad, my daughter, and 19 other friends on Tuesday to spend a week alongside our ministry partners at UCI (www.unitedchristiansinternational.org).

The map above depicts the growing campus of UCI and clicking here will take you to their most current newsletter.

At this point, I am most excited about the following:

1. Sharing this experience with my daughter, Sara, and my dad, Larry.

2.  Seeing the transforming power and grace of Jesus Christ at work through the Christian community at UCI.  For the past seven years, God has been doing awesome Christian community development through this ministry.  

3.  I am looking forward to "throwing off all that hinders me" in my culture and to experience Christ in a different environment, learning and being challenged by the Haitian friends I am about to meet.  

The Word on Wednesday

Ezra 3:7 “Then they gave money to the masons and carpenters, and gave food and drink and oil to the people of Sidon and Tyre, so that they would bring cedar logs by sea from Lebanon to Joppa, as authorized by Cyrus, King of Persia." 

Collaboration, gifts and passions, partnerships, community organizing!  Rebuilding the temple was a big project and would take big organizing and big resources.  There are big projects that need to happen here in the restoration of our local community.  One of my favorite things to see is the diversity in gifts and passions that God instills in the various individuals making up the community.  And what's even cooler is when I watch God call a leader who inspires, organizes, and mobilizes people to build community and use those gifts, passions, and resources for the glory of God and the work of bringing the Kingdom of God to earth!

Ezra 3:8b “…began to work, appointing Levites twenty years of age and older to supervise the building of the house of the Lord.  Vs. 9..”Jeshua and his sons and brothers and Kdadmiel and his sons and the sons of Henadad and their sons and brothers- all Levites- joined together in supervising those working on the house of God.  

Leadership development; next generations; modeling and teaching!  This passage is such a great example of mentoring, apprenticing, raising up leadership from among the young in our families and community.  I need passages like this one to remind me to slow down, look around, and ask myself, "who am I pouring into, who am I taking with me around town to meetings and appointments?, who am I mentoring in faith and leadership?"  It's often easier and more efficient to do things by myself, but this passage reminds me to sow into the next generation!