the mountain in pictures

 the team in the tap tap

the very beginning and very easy part of the climb

 our bathroom, pretty awesome right?

 me putting together benches

 we made it up first!!!!!

The climb of my life

The morning started early. And it started how it should have, we prayed. Standing in the warmth of the early morning, I gathered with my fellow team member and 2 two ladies who would become my close friends. We prayed asking the Lord's wisdom and protection, as the words flowed from our heart a verse come to my mind " who knows but that you were called here for such a time as this." I was ready, we grabbed the packs and headed down stairs, my heart was beating strongly, I had my best hiking shoe snuggly in place and water bottles filled. Lets roll.  We ate and loaded up in the tap tap that would become very very familiar over the next few days.  Gathering up the luggage and supplies and another team took longer than planned but we were finally able to get on the roads such as they were.  In the tap tap between Hannah and the team leader from the other team we all made the introductions and began to learn about each other. I am quiet, looking taking it in, I am aware of what is around me, what the roads look like, who is the tap tap, which direction we are heading. To add the ambiance an armed personnel carried from the UN pulled in behind us. There were at least 6 machine guns, 8 guys and who know how much more fire power there was on board. Being the great, sensitive, culturally adept team we were people, much to my chagin,  started taking pictures of them. They have guns, we have cameras, who will win in a fight? Fortunatey the UN found us funny and began taking pictures of us and waving back. whew.

After about 4 hours of driving over bumpy roads, while sitting on a broken 2x12 we pulled into the trail head. The greeting was true to Haitian Style, they were reserved but there to help. They quickly and quietly pulled down the benches we were packing up, and loaded our supplies onto their head and took off. I made sure I had my two team mates in tow and we started up the hill with our guide. Our guide was a girl about 12 years old who had one of our benches on her head, and broken flip flops on her feet. This little girl is one of my heroes. I hiked up this mountain in good shoes, carrying a pack a little over half the time, drinking tons of water and eating energy rich food wilting under the 110 degree heat. This girl, undernourished, dehydrated, and in broken flip flops easily would have beat us up the hill but waited for us each time we needed to stop. Showing the Love and kindness of the Lord with out words. I will admit that toward the end of the hike she was frustrated with our slowness.

We hiked for 1 hour and 15 mins, and to my joy and relief Hannah, this girl and myself were the first ones up the mountain! Praise God!!!!  My shirt was Soaked with sweat, I was literally able to wring it out, I don't want to think about how I smelled, and I know from pictures I looked like something the dog dragged in and ate. But you know what? I didn't care, I still don't care. This hike, this trip, these muscles burning and aching,  the smell of sweat and dirt all pale in comparison to the stunned gratitude of the pastor and church members who know had something to sit on to worship the same Jesus I worship. Would I do it again? I plan on it.

I was there

Cité Soleil (Kreyol: Site Solèy, English: Sun City) is an extremely impoverished and densely populated commune located in the Port-au-Princemetropolitan area in Haiti. Cité Soleil originally developed as a shanty town and grew to an estimated 200,000 to 400,000 residents, the majority of whom live in extreme poverty. The area is generally regarded as one of the poorest and most dangerous areas of the Western Hemisphere and it is one of the biggestslums in the Northern Hemisphere. The area has virtually no sewers, stores, electricity, health care facilities or schools. For several years until 2007, the area was ruled by a number of gangs, each controlling their own sectors. But government control was reestablished after a series of operations in early 2007 by the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH). 

The neighborhood, originally designed to house manual laborers for a local Export Processing Zone (EPZ) in the 1960s, quickly became home to squattersfrom around the countryside looking for work in the newly constructed factories. However, after a 1991 coup d'état deposed President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, a boycott of Haitian products closed the EPZ. Cité Soleil was then thrust into extreme poverty and persistent unemployment, with high rates of illiteracy.

Armed gangs roamed the streets and terrorized the neighborhood. Every few blocks was controlled by one of more than 30 armed factions. Though the gangs no longer rule, murder, rape, kidnapping, looting, and shootings are still common. The area has been called a "microcosm of all the ills in Haitian society: endemic unemployment, illiteracy, non-existent public services, insanitary conditions, rampant crime and armed violence".

After the 2010 Haiti earthquake, it took nearly two weeks for relief aid to arrive in Cité-Soleil. Although the US military had willingly accepted their new role, their relief efforts have been criticized by some as insufficient.

An Ode to best friendship

There are many people in the world. Each one unique, each one special, each one great in their own ways.
One might love fashion, one the woods, one might love dogs, another llamas. One might wear heels and skirts, the other Carharts and boots. One person might be tall and the other short, one might drive a muscle truck and one a little bitty bug of a car. One might be a writer, one a reader. One might be afraid of spiders and one scared of snakes. Each person so different. So unique. So opposite.
Out of all these people what makes a best friend?   Here are a few thoughts from me.
Some one who will refrain from saying what they think because it will hurt the other person but will find a way to be supportive.
Some one who out of love will do something they don't like, or fear to help the other one out.
Some one who will stand by the other in think and thin expecting nothing from them.
Some one who will offer advise in the tough times and encourage at all times.
Some one who guard for you when others are attacking.
Some one who will warn you of danger, real or imagined.
Some one who you can call to help you through a fear in the middle of the night
Some one who will rescue you when you locked you keys to the office in the office by taking you out to dinner
Some one who is patient with you when you are cranky and need to eat
Some one who can make you laugh when all you want to do is fight or cry
Some one who don't have to clean your house for when they come over because they don't care
Some one who thinks its funny when you giant dog wants to ride in their laps in the car....and lets him
Some one who will say the same thing you would at the same time you would with the same tone you would whether you are there or not
Some one who thinks your wierd quirks are amazing and has some of their own
Some one who doesn't hold you scaring the wits out of them against you
Some one who will help you carry a sewing machine upstairs and down when you have no good reason to do so
Some one who save you from a snail
Some one who causes rainbows to sing and breezes to carry flowers and music. Some one who no matter how far away they are, and how scary things might be will always find time to talk with you. Not to you, or at you, but with you.

Thank you best friend. You are and always be very very special in my heart.

fa!

Haiti in words

I have returned from Haiti and am now back into a state where I can put my thoughts into some semblance of order.  So I will begin blogging about all the things that happened while I was there. I hope you find it of some interest and I will try to be coherent though words still fail me in some areas.

I must first and foremost start at the beginning of what the whole trip was about. What the people were about, what the mission was all about and what laid the ground work for going. So me of you have heard me say it before, its all about relationships. God provided and gave me a way to have $1100 to go on this trip. Thats a lot of money, and quite a few people wonder, wouldn't it just be better to send the money?

The answer is no. There is a team of 4 people living at the Foursquare compound everyday teaching and reaching and building. But how can 4 people teach and care for thousands? even with our team of 18 more people we were all strapped for time and the work load was far far beyond what we could accomplish. But we made a difference. To the clinic that had a mess of medications everywhere, we built shelves and cabinets that will save lives by organizing things so they won't go bad. To the church that was sitting on benches that were breaking, in the scrapped together hut that was their church, we provided benches that will last, that are amazing benches that will draw people to the Lord. Yes they will, because these people don't have things that nice and it is a draw when there is something so nice. People will come for the benches, and stay for the Lord.  To the team that will be there for 3 months we cleaned and prepared a room for them to stay and be dry and safe. To the English class we helped the teachers and the students practice their English to get jobs.

Those of us building benches, it seemed so simple, so easy, so unimportant. But it wasn't. The Haitians we worked with, side by side had families. They had kids to feed, they lived in tents and huts patched together with what ever they could find. Working with us and learning how to use the tools not only gave them skills but a pay check for working with us. The going rate is $3/day. We paid them $10/day. They were able to buy food and clothes and school for their kids. That is so awesome. They didn't know how to build benches and had our team not gone they wouldn't have known. We taught them, we showed them, worked with them. Now someone is hiring them to build 100 benches, that will provide food and shelter for many people for some time. All because a few American's took some time out of their "important" lives to teach someone how to use a paint brush. Because of that paint brush, a child will not go to sleep starving tonight.

Thank you for being a part of the prayer team it took to make that happen.

Its real

It is all feeling real today.  I am leaving for Haiti. I am leaving one person and returning another. I know God will do great things. I want to share and strengthen you before I go. I have been asked many times "is it dangerous?" the short answer is yes. Our guides know what they are doing and are there to keep us safe. The media feeds on the negative. they feed on stories that will terrify us, why? Because its what we want to hear.

I am not going for a vacation, this will be some of the hardest work of my life. And Lord knows I have worked hard. I will be mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually taxed. But I go with the attitude to recieve from the Lord what he has to give me, and to be poured into by His strength. Then in turn to pour that strength out to many people.

Another Question that comes up a great deal is "isn't better just to send the money it costs for you go?" The short answer is no.  With out relationship you can't help anyone. With out knowing, and meeting, and loving on the Haitians how can we ever help them? How do you like having to do things alone? Knowing that no one is coming. They are so disconnected that they have no idea what you go through. No one understands. Humans need understanding, contact, love. Not everyone is called to go, not everyone will get on a plane and fly into a torn and hurting land. And they don't need to. Some are called to be senders, to help those who are called to go. Some are called to be givers, to help the projects and places. Some are called to be goers. I am so blessed that the Lord has seen me worthy to be a goer. Has made me to be a goer and has surrounded me with a great mix of the rest.

As my bag sits mostly packed on the table I ask for you to pray. Pray. Please. I am leaving a few points below could you please please pray these everyday?

Dear Lord be with the Foursquare team in Haiti. Lord let you will be done, and let their lives be completely in your hands. Let them be safe, have divine encounters, and be led by  your spirit. Let the leadership be wise and the team ready to be led. Lord protect them, teach them, and bring them home safely and completely in Love with you. Lord give them new vision, strengthen the Foursquare Missions International people who will remain there through this team. Let you will be done. Thank you, Amen

The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.

Me

Life is good, Go with God

Watching that’s the fun if it, it’s all about the people. Some are funny, some only smell funny, and others look funny. This town, it seems to breed odd people. There are the ‘GO GREEN’ people, the hemp-y people, the ones here for candy. Watching them just makes life fun. The one across the way is tired, I like to think that at home there are three dogs, two cats and a couple kids. When he gets home he’ll probably crash on the couch with a tea or scotch in his hand and pat the dogs head, then flick on the TV and escape the real world headaches. Next to me, to my right is a work-aholic. He’ll go home with a cup of coffee, sit at the dining room table, and finish the plans before clicking on the tv and in the background listening to the big game. Just down from us are the scary people. Not that anyone is scared but let’s try unfriendly, they’re not really talking to us pretty sure they don’t want to be here. 

Ever stop and wonder about people? they are so cool. Everyone is different uniquely different just like everyone else. Stop and think about it, no one is like you, but everyone tries to figure you out. But if they aren’t like you how can they understand you. I don’t think it’s possible. No one understands me, and I doubt I understand even my closest of friends. Yes the circle is the same always starting and ending in the same place, yet never the same. Can this be from chance? Is it because things keep changing? Why?

So the philosophy is to be yourself, find different ways of looking at the world, create your space, don’t worry about people, just be conscience of integrity and there ya go.

Life is good, Go with God 

all in the view

Ah coming in, coming down. Dancing across field of flowers. I guess that depends on how you view flowers. Some I suppose would see weeds, dandelions, vetch, mustard, and of course a multitude of daisies. That’s the way life is though isn’t it? It all is how you view it. Is that warm sphere in the sky blessed warmth providing life for things to grow or is it simply seen as something that causes more work? What are those blessed drops that fall from the sky in winter and spring? Do they kiss the earth with each morsel of God given water or do they cause mud and create gloom? Do you let yourself absorb each moment of life? Do you let yourself see each moment as it should be or do you wait for moments to come to you? You must seek them out! Seek the opportunity, find the vision! Take it for what it is! How do you see the fields? Flowers or weeds?

A request

I am blogging today for a request. I am traveling to Haiti for a mission trip 2 weeks from today. I am traveling with a team of 19 other people from 3 different churches.  We will be spending time in Port Au Prince, building a skills center, clearing rubble, giving medical help and supplies, and spending time with people on the ground who have been there since before day one.  We get to spend a day in an orphanage loving on kids and giving the leaders a little break to get stuff done.

Here is what I am asking,

I need prayer. I need a crew of 5-10 people who are committed to saying every day "Jesus, be with Chris while in Haiti" I will be gone from the 19th-27th. We are in a fairly safe environment, but it is a fourth world country and there are lots of things there you don't encounter here.

So if you are able to pray, just for 5 seconds a day, please comment back, I would like to send you all an update and story when I return.

Thank you so much.

In Him,

Others Glimpses into my head

Today on our episode of others glimpses into my head we are featuring my mom.

Senario: Going to a town with more shopping (by witch I mean more than 4 stores). Leaving with 3 other girls, one is a missionary home for a bit, one is an intern at my church, and one is a married person  (because married people never get in trouble)

9:31 Am on Thurs
me "ok Mom I am out, I'll be back by 5:00 to go to work"
Mom *hug "Ok be safe (pause) Don't do anything stupid"
Me: Mom its me (thinking secretly  not my brother....hehehehehe)
Mom: I know (said like "that was my point. does YOUR mom ever do that?)
ME: wait what? great this is going as my face book status, 'don't do anything stupid because its you'"
Mom: thats not What I meant, I meant like pretend your an airplane and fly around the store with something on your head.
Me: *Laughing thinking "you really do know me"


So this is a glimpse of what other people think of me. Strangely enough I have done something similar to this. Its true.

I leave you with this note,
Llamas lunching on lemons

18 days till Haiti

Think of this as the welcome mat

Good day to you!

I am Chris the Great. Actually have you ever been to a party where you have paper cups and you have to write your name on it? I like to write Chris the Great.

So I am starting this blog so that you can travel along with me. See what I see, hear the silly things I hear, feel the atmosphere in the areas I go.

I am traveling to Haiti in 19 days, I will be there with a team of 20 people for 8 days. Our team consists of our 2 Pastors, a worship leader, a hair dresser, a plumber (there is not a lot of plumbing in Haiti), a wood worker and his son, a pharmacist, an RN, a Pastors wife and several more that I am not familiar with.

Would you like to travel to wonder world with me? I have a unique point of view, if variety is the spice of life I would be Cayenne pepper, so grab a cup of your favorite coffee, a breakfast brownie and lets travel together!

See you soon