2024

Stronghold of Evil, Part 1

The country of Haiti has faced its share of darkness. Children are routinely traded and sold into slavery, and corruption exists in every corner of human life. Poverty, disease, and oppressive government conspire to create a society more characterized by defeat than hope. As Christians, we know that spiritual realities are inseparable from daily life—which makes Haiti’s long and fraught history with Vodou a source of deep concern. Historical Context You may have heard talk of Haiti's “deal with the devil.” The idea gained momentum after the 2010 earthquake, when some evangelical leaders claimed that the earthquake was divine [...]

2024-06-21T08:45:18-07:00June 7th, 2024|Categories: Ministry Highlights|Tags: , , , |
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After the Earthquake (2010)

When the earthquake happened in Haiti on January 12, 2010, it was a surreal experience for us. We had left Port-au-Prince just a few days earlier, after being there with a team from the US. The effects were devastating, and the aftermath was jarring. People were injured, displaced, and searching for help and answers that always seemed just out of reach. It was to this environment that we returned about three or four weeks later. There were no commercial flights available at the time, and the only way into the country was by providing medical care, humanitarian aid, or going [...]

2024-05-17T13:03:38-07:00May 24th, 2024|Categories: Ministry Highlights|Tags: , , , , |
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What Got the Children’s Homes Started

When we started doing ministry in Haiti, there were no Children’s Homes. We began by helping orphanages following the earthquake, and during that period, there were many needs. Many orphanages lost buildings in the disaster, which meant that many children were suddenly displaced. The first orphanage we started supporting was in the city of Fermathe, and soon after, we began supporting an orphanage for children affected by disabilities in another city. It got to the point where we were supporting three or four orphanages, and we were helping all of them by providing food and whatever else they needed. But [...]

2024-05-13T12:20:05-07:00May 17th, 2024|Categories: Ministry Highlights|Tags: , , , , |
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Diabetes in Haiti

Diabetes is a significant health concern in Haiti. It has been steadily gaining prevalence in the country over the past few decades—many Haitians over the age of fifty now have Type 2 diabetes—which adds to the burden of non-communicable diseases in the nation. Several factors contribute to the high rates of diabetes among Haitians, including poor diet, food scarcity, and limited access to healthcare. There is very little dietary balance among Haitians because fruits, vegetables, and protein are expensive. Their main food staple is rice for one simple reason: it’s cheap. The challenge is that the frontline treatment for diabetes [...]

2024-05-13T12:15:35-07:00May 10th, 2024|Categories: Ministry Highlights|Tags: , , , , |
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Typical Haitian Orphanages, Part 2

We shared recently about the difference between our Children’s Homes and typical Haitian orphanages. What you might not know is that there are hundreds, maybe thousands, of traditional orphanages in Haiti. One startling aspect of these orphanages is that many end up being used as money machines. Haitians will go to the States, plead for support for their kids, then siphon money off the funding they receive before it ever reaches the children. In many cases, orphan care can become a lucrative business. To make matters worse, the kids are often under-fed and under cared for. Frequently, dishonest staff will [...]

2024-04-19T12:08:22-07:00April 26th, 2024|Categories: Ministry Highlights|Tags: , , , , |
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Typical Haitian Orphanages, Part 1

Orphanages in Haiti are different than orphanages in many countries. When we think of an orphanage, we likely imagine a group of children who don’t have families. In Haiti, that’s not usually the case. While some children might have lost their parents, a greater percentage of them have families, but their families are unable to support them. For this reason, one of the challenges with Haitian orphanages is that kids will often go back and forth from the orphanage to their family home. If the father is out of work, then they go to the orphanage—if he gets a job, [...]

2024-04-19T11:54:08-07:00April 19th, 2024|Categories: Ministry Highlights|Tags: , , , , |
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Women in Wartime

WARNING: This blog post contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children or sensitive readers. Haiti has faced varying degrees of civil war since July 2021. When President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated, the thin fabric of law and order in Haiti deteriorated as gangs quickly filled the void left in the chaos of overturned lawful authority. We use the term “war” consciously. The word has strong and violent connotations that describe a severe state of conflict in any nation. What might not be immediately evident, though, is that in times of war, soldiers and adult male agitants don’t [...]

2024-02-29T17:25:14-08:00March 8th, 2024|Categories: Ministry Highlights|Tags: , , , |
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A Darker Pandemic

Child trafficking is everywhere. Every year, an increasing number of children make the news for one terrible reason: that they have been lost. Taken. Kidnapped. It's the darker pandemic that nobody wants to talk about. Like the viruses that touch our lives each year, whether personally or in our broader communities, the reality of child trafficking is equally pervasive. But we don’t discuss it much, and most of the time, we’re quicker to think about the dangers of airborne pathogens than worry about the dangers of child predators. Our comfort makes the difference. Much child trafficking arises from poverty. [...]

2024-02-29T17:12:58-08:00March 1st, 2024|Categories: Ministry Highlights|Tags: , , , |
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The Bible’s View on Trials, Part 4

No one hopes for trials. We want peaceful, good times for ourselves and our loved ones, and we often pursue and reject opportunities based on how “happy” they’ll make us. God’s perspective is different. As Christians, we know that He causes everything to work for our good (Rom 8:28), but sometimes it’s difficult to remember that truth when we face hard times. Today, we’re looking at five things Scripture wants us to know about trials. Trials Show Us Who We Are (And Who God Is) Paul saw trials as proof of God’s work in his life. As he faced trials [...]

2024-02-03T10:09:30-08:00February 23rd, 2024|Categories: Ministry Highlights|Tags: , , , |
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The Bible’s View on Trials, Part 3

There are so many things in life that compete for our attention. Failure affects our minds and hearts as much as success—grief often as strongly as joy. Because of this, it’s important that as Christians we have a strong framework for thinking about all of the experiences we face in life; we need to know how to navigate trials as well as times of peace. Here are five truths from the Bible about trials in the life of a believer. Trials Are an Invitation to Experience God’s Grace One of the most comforting truths in Scripture is that Jesus understands [...]

2024-01-06T15:45:22-08:00February 16th, 2024|Categories: Ministry Highlights|Tags: , , , , , , |
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