Pray for Haiti on Sunday, April 7, 2013

Lectionary Selection: John 20:19-31

Prayers for Haiti:
Lord God, we delight in this new day and in the knowledge that Jesus has risen! We are filled with joy because in your Son, Jesus Christ, we can know genuine peace, truth and the fulfillment of all you have promised from the beginning of Creation.
Thank you for meeting us with love and not with frustration when we are fearful and when we doubt. Such love invites us to come with the confidence of little children before a generous, compassionate and caring parent.

We bring to you prayers for the nation of Haiti and her people; hope-filled prayers like those of Thomas when he believed the truth of Christ’s resurrection.

In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Prayer Requests from CONASPEH, the National Spiritual Council of Churches in Haiti. Please pray:

for Bishop Patrick Villier and Rev. Francoise Villier, leaders of CONASPEH, whose 12 year old son, Demetress, as kidnapped and murdered last week
for the political situation in Haiti
for better relationships with the Immigration departments of the United States, Canada and France; especially in the areas of granting visas and treating Haitians with dignity
for the churches in Haiti as both pastors and congregations struggle to face everyday challenges such as the shortage of food, lack of construction, health care and jobs
for CONASPEH as they would like to begin to lay the foundation for the Ferdinand Garcia Transformational Center (which will house mission teams as well as pastors who are only able to attend seminary once a month as they travel great distances to Port-au-Prince; and which will also serve as a conference center)

Mission Stewardship Moment from Haiti:

We first met Jean Luc when we were stopped at a traffic light and he jumped in front of our truck with a grin as big as can be and started to dance. His demeanor was so sweet and heart-warming we simply could not say “no” when he offered to wipe the dust from our truck’s windshield and body. That was months ago and since then Jean Luc always wipes down the truck whenever we come to that intersection and will even generously share the task and earned money with another young person who is working on the street with him.

There is recognition of each other’s humanity in this routine transaction and when completed we each go our different ways and trust we will see each other on another day. However, a few weeks ago Jean Luc did not approach us with his usual smiling face and cleaning cloth in hand but, instead, told us he was hungry. Thankfully, we keep a supply of peanut butter and cheese crackers with us and were able to offer them to him and his “working buddy” but our hearts remain saddened by this daily reminder of children going hungry.

That incident made us think of the feeding program that is part of the daily schedule at our partner organization, CONASPEH, which is supported by various Global Ministries’ partners who see their ministry as raising funds for the food that is prepared for the children at the school. The program is not cheap since much of the food in Haiti is now imported but staff members work hard to stretch every gourdes (Haitian currency) to buy food that is both filling and nutritious.

While food needs are still tremendous we are encouraged by the old adage that, “a drop of water at a time will ultimately fill the bucket.” We do not take lightly our call to serve in Haiti and know we are privileged to be a part of a ministry that is truly making a difference in the lives of families and, hopefully, the future of Haiti.

(Prayer and Mission Moment by Diane and Tim Fonderlin)

Mission Partners in Haiti:

Video Resources about Haiti:
http://globalministries.org/resources/multimedia-resources/videos/video-mission-moments/watching-hope-form-conaspeh.html

More information on Haiti:
http://globalministries.org/lac/countries/haiti/

Global Ministries Missionaries in Haiti:
Diane and Tim Fonderlin, members of First Christian Church, Girard, Ohio, are serving a 4-year term with the National Spiritual Council of Churches of Haiti (CONASPEH). Diane serves as a Sustainable Community Development and Micro-credit Consultant, and Tim is serving as a reconstruction consultant with CONASPEH.