Baptisms in Haiti!

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Matthew 28:19-20

 

Greetings!

Traffic!

It was pure joy to be able to attend and participate in the baptisms of 11 people in Northwest Haiti. The small church that we help out, when we can, held their baptism a week ago last Sunday. What added to making this event so special is that there are probably only about 50 people that attend this church. So when 11 get baptized, it's a major event!

We tried to combine a food distribution with the baptisms, but the timing was just a little off. We were expecting a container of Kids Against Hunger food (approx 250,000 meals) to be released from customs a day or two before the event, but it was released the Saturday we had to head up North.

The children at the orphanage liked Jerry too.... No, really they did...

We spent one day getting some food to the orphanage in Z'Orange, and to see how they were doing. Thanks to the generosity of an individual, we were able to provide 100 lbs of rice, approx. 30 lbs of beans, and cooking oil. They greatly appreciated it! We pray that we can continue to help them as their needs arise.

Our church group at the beach before the baptisms.

Without the food being release yet, on Saturday Jerry and I drove up to Lemuel Ministries about 4 miles outside of the village of Anse Rouge in order to be at the baptisms on Sunday. As always, we were greeted warmly by the folks that make up that wonderful ministry of Lemuel. You can find out more about them and their ministry here:  http://www.lemuelministries.org/

The bus we rented to get everyone there!

On Sunday morning, we rented the bus owned by Lemuel to take the people to the ocean for the baptisms. Lemuel was gracious in providing the driver! Thanks! So we headed a few miles away to the little church called Philadelphia where they were holding their Sunday morning service. We loaded up the bus and headed for water. There is a relatively nice swimming spot about 10 miles from the church and that is where we ventured off to.

While on the beach, the pastor read numerous scripture passages and we all prayed for the people that were being baptized. I was asked to be with the pastor in the water, something I had never experienced before! After all eleven were baptized, the pastor grabbed my hands, raised them, and said a rather lengthy prayer. I have to admit, I didn't understand most of what he was praying, but I can tell you it was certainly powerful! We then loaded up the bus and headed back to the church where the pastor recognized each person that was baptized. It was certainly an important event!

The pastor speaking to those getting baptized.

Before we left their village, we went to the pastor's mother-in-laws hut so we could pray for her. She's blind and unable to get up. They have some blankets on the floor for her to lay on. No bed. It was a time for us all to reflect on the short lives we have here on earth. We need to stay focused on Jesus, and the preaching of His word.

As of this writing, hurricane Irma is threatening the Caribbean Islands and could bring significant damage to Haiti. Please keep the people of Haiti in your prayers as we continue to pray that it will stay north and cause no harm.



Praying after the baptisms.

 




Jerry and I both spoke at church after the baptisms.

We sincerely thank all of you who help support this ministry. The sacrifices you make in prayers and giving are such a huge blessing to the people our Lord has us serving. You do make a difference! A heartfelt thank you to all of you.

In His Service,

Chuck & Gail

Contact Information
Chuck & Gail Guerber
% Grace Hill Ministries
P.O. Box 171
Ironwood, MI  49938
USA: 906.285.2500
Haiti:  509.4753.0270

Our Lord Provides!

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27

 

Greetings!



Taking the team to the orphanage

After a brief week and a half in the States, I found myself back in Haiti for just under two more weeks. A good friend of mine, Chuck Martindale, has been sick and had a group of 20 people coming in. So I volunteered to help him out. But not only was it a time for me to work with the team, it also gave me opportunities to show the Jesus Movie, talk about our Lord, and build relationships.


I should back up a little and explain how the Lord made it possible for me to even go on this trip. I hesitate to tell this, but it is yet another example of how God provides. Gail and I have a small non profit (501(c)3) organization. When I thought I should make myself available to go back to Haiti to help out, I checked the bank account and we only had $57.34 in there! Well, that's not going to get me very far out of Ironwood (where we live) and certainly not to Haiti and back! I was sharing this with Gail when she stood up, went out of the room and returned with a small plastic bag which had some tin foil in it. She set it in front of me and told me to use it. Upon opening it, I saw a small pile of cash. Gail told me she had been socking a little money away in the event of a 'rainy day'. The Lord provided just enough money in that bag to make the trip with $50.00 left over! Oh, how God provides!

Living conditions at the orphanage 4 years ago.

This trip also turned out to be a good time to reconnect with a little orphanage Gail and I have worked with in the past. At one time Gail and I even camped in a tent up there so we could work with them! I have to admit, I'm not fond of camping, and camping in Haiti provides an even greater challenge. But hey, we lived. The orphanage was a great host and we lacked nothing. At that time, there were about 10-15 children there. Now, there are about 35 kids running around! I should explain, as with most orphanages in Haiti, most of these children do have family living. But for one reason or another, their families aren't able to provide for them, either in food or in their education. So they send them away. I would rather call this type of living a 'children's home' but they are referred to as orphanages.


New 2 room sleeping area for the girls

The Jonas family started this one in Port au Prince back in 2004. When the earthquake hit in 2010, it completely destroyed their home and the home of the children. With no place for them or the children to live, they moved about one and a half hours outside of Port to the village of Z'Orange where they lived in tents.  Pastor Jonas's wife has family there and it was their only option.

Future building for the boys.

To this day, it hasn't been easy for them. When I met them in February 2013, they were all in tents. I remember bringing duct tape on each trip I made so they could repair the rips in the material. One positive thing is that there is a block church structure (partially built) that they could go into when the weather got bad.

Current kitchen at the orphanage

Forward about four years, and the living conditions are a little better but far from ideal. They received some donations from a couple Haitian churches in the States so they could build a two room building for the girls. It's a fantastic improvement, but the boys are still sleeping on mats on the floor in the partially built church. Their tents have disintegrated over time in the harsh Haitian climate and are unusable. They hope to be able to finish another small building that would house the boys, but they have to rely on outside help to make this happen. They have all they can handle just feeding, clothing, and schooling the children they have.

Girl attending the school for the orphans. They don't have
uniforms, but it would be a huge blessing in the future if they did.

The first of a few trips of taking food up to the children.

As a matter of fact, a few weeks ago when I made a visit to them (I usually go unannounced), I could tell they were pretty hungry. I was told that they hadn't eaten yet that day and were hoping some food from Port au Prince would show up. It was now 4:30 in the afternoon. So a couple Haitian friends and I went to the village and got beans, rice, oil, and spaghetti which will hopefully get them through a month.  We were planning on providing this food all along, but now we were made aware of the  need in person. A special thank you goes to Life Church in Rome GA for providing the funds that made this food purchase possible! God bless you! Gail and I hope to be able to continue providing food for them on a continuous basis. It would be such a relief and a blessing for them. Please think about coming along side us in helping with this need. We would like to provide about $500.00 in food per month, but at this point we just don't have the funds to make this happen. To make clear, this isn't money given to the orphanage. We know better than that! You can't just 'give' cash. We want to actually purchase the food and deliver it. It's the only way we know for sure where the money is going. It's just the way we have to do it.


The next trip to Haiti will hopefully be in mid August. Gail and I have worked with a very small church in the northwest region for the past 3 years. We have established a very good relationship and have come along side them in whatever way we can. Their church, which is called Philadelphia, is having a baptism. Not sure how long it has been since their last one, if in fact they even have ever had one. The pastor asked if I would be with him during this which will take place at the ocean.

The man and lady on both ends are taking care of all these
children. Actually, this picture is missing a few of them!
 

This time will also provide opportunities to show the Jesus movie and share the gospel of salvation to people that may have never heard of Jesus. Most people where we go haven't even seen a movie, let alone one about Jesus. It's a great way to get people that aren't Christian to view it. They want to see a movie!

In August we will also make a stop at the orphanage to provide whatever we can in food to them.


The congregation at Philadelphia church where I hope to help with their
baptism celebration next month!

This is all dependent upon our Lord providing the funding. I sort of used up our rainy day fund on the last trip. As some of you know, for about one and a half years now I have been overhauling wood clarinets and selling them. It's what I use to do and now am doing again in order to help provide funds for our ministry in Haiti. But it's not enough to fully cover all the expenses. I do know, that if the Lord wants us to continue serving Him in Haiti with sharing the gospel, distributing food and helping out the orphanage, He will provide! Please consider being a part of this ministry either through prayer or through your financial gifts. We are a 501(c)3 non profit. Your donations are tax deductible. Thank you!

In His Service,

Chuck & Gail

Contact Information

Chuck & Gail Guerber

% Grace Hill Ministries

P.O. Box 171

Ironwood, MI  49938

USA: 906.285.2500

Haiti:  509.4753.0270

 

 

    

Back to the Gospel!

Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.

Romans 10:17

Greetings Friends and Family,

It use to take 3 guys just to carry all the equipment
to show the Jesus Movie

I just returned from Haiti where it had been about 3 1/2 months since I was last there. Way too long! In the past 6+ years of going, this has been the longest stretch away I have ever had. But we all have times when we need to step back and work with what God puts in our path. Some things challenging. So it turned into a bit longer time away from Haiti then I would have liked. But this trip was also very fruitful! Let me explain.


All that's needed for the movie in one small backpack.
Plus 2 rain ponchos just incase!

When I first started going to Haiti, I would take the Jesus movie around to different places and show it. We did see some fruit from doing this but not a lot. Unfortunately, the past few years I have gotten away from it and have spent a lot of time on other 'stuff'. Don't get me wrong, this other 'stuff' was and still is good stuff, but there developed a certain need inside me to 'go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation'. It is time that I start not only showing the movie about the life of Jesus, but to sit and talk about it after the showing. Asking questions and talking things through more thoroughly with small groups of people. Not just show a movie and leave!


Showing the Jesus movie for children inside a school room

First of all, the equipment we used in the past was pretty bulky. It required a generator, gas, a big screen, DVD players, electric powered speakers, and people to lug it around! I was blessed with a couple willing Haitian friends of mine to help. Now, thanks to technology, things have gotten much simpler. We purchased all battery powered equipment and a white shower curtain! All of which fits in a small back pack. So much more mobile!

Girl in tears when Jesus was killed

Secondly, we would try and gather as many people as possible inside a church to show the movie. That kept a lot of people away. There is a large number of folks that won't even set foot in a church. So we have switched our focus to a more individual/family type of viewing. It gives us a better chance to talk with them after the movie and discuss the many questions that can come up. People are much more comfortable asking questions when there is not a large group of people around. On this past trip, it proved to be the direction we want to go in showing the movie and sharing God's Word!

My friend Osenie (Can't spell his name) who
use to be a voodoo priest

We started it off by showing it to a handful of children inside a school. Even though it was light outside, the projector worked pretty well. The pictures of it here on the blog don't show the actual brightness of the projectors picture. It was pretty good! The children were glued to the story which is based on the book of Luke and narrated by children. Thus, it's call 'The Jesus Movie For Children', but adults enjoy it just as well. It's translated in Haitian Creole so everyone could understand it. The children were pretty sad when Jesus died, and we spent a significant amount of time talking about it after the movie. It surprised me how moved they were by it.

Watching the Jesus movie inside
what use to be a voodoo temple

On another occasion, we found ourselves at the home of what use to be a voodoo priest that I knew. He had a stroke a couple years back which has made it impossible for him to be a practicing voodoo priest any longer. He says he now goes to church. I pray he does. I asked if we could show the movie about Jesus Christ in what use to be his voodoo temple. He said "yes! yes"! So we set up our little system while he gathered his children. They were very captivated by the movie. Even a couple neighbors came by to watch. At the end, we sat and talked with them about what they just saw. They asked a number of great questions!

One of Osenie's children

There  were many opportunities to show the movie and many stories to tell, but I hope you get the idea of this new direction of showing the movie on a small scale. One or two families at a time. Our Lord is showing me that it's about personal relationships with individuals and families which is almost impossible to create in a large setting.

There are so many more people and families that need to witness the life of Christ and have someone to talk about it with. I pray that the Lord uses me as He wills. There's much more that needs to be done!

Gail and I thank you for your support. It is only by your willingness to prayerfully and financially support this ministry that we are able to "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation". If you haven't supported us in the past, we ask that you prayerfully consider joining us on the journey He has laid out before us. May God bless each and every one of you!

In His Service,

Chuck & Gail

Contact Information

Chuck & Gail Guerber

Friends that use to haul the big equipment
now help set it up and tear it down. Very simple!

% Grace Hill Ministries

P.O. Box 171

Ironwood, MI  49938

USA: 906.285.2500

Haiti:  509.4753.0270

 



Rice, Beans, and the Gospel Delivered!

A generous man will prosper;

he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.

Proverbs 11:25

Greetings!

Re-packaging rice & beans

We recently returned from Northwest Haiti where my wife and I took a group consisting of 4 people from the Ironwood, MI/Hurley, WI area, two guys from St. Charles, MO., one guy from the Chicago area and Dr. LeaAnn's sister from Southern Wisconsin.  Ten in all. There was a lot on our plate to accomplish, and with the Lord's help, we got through it unscathed!

Walking hut to hut and praying for the sick and elderly

Thanks to generous donations from the groups listed below, we were able to purchase just under 4 tons (yes, tons) of rice, over 2 tons of beans, 15 cases of cooking oil and 4 cases of cookies and distribute them in the remote regions of Northwest Haiti.

Individuals from Range Community Bible Church, http://www.rangebible.org/

Life Church in Rome, GA.,  http://lcrome.com/home

Multi community meeting at Lemuel

A special thanks to the team over at Hitch Exclusives where they make custom-made kayak racks.

We also want to thank an anonymous donor from the St Louis, MO area.

Jerry and Karl from Global Compassion Ministries (St Charles, MO) not only had 2 trucks for us to use, they also paid for the box truck to take all the food up to the northwest! Praise God!


Children at 'Miriam's'

With this food, we were able to bless a total of 9 different ministries, churches,  and schools that we visited. It was needed and greatly appreciated by all that received it. We were also able to leave a large portion of food at Lemuel (I believe it's pronounced: Lem-u-el ) for their Food-for-Work program. We were able to attend a multi community meeting where they discussed the Food-for-Work program, along with the Pay-for-Work program. It was great to see how this ministry is working with so many different people and communities.

Gail and one of the children at 'Miriam's'

LeaAnn's sister Jan, spent the week working with very needy children at New Life Children's Home in Port au Prince, which we commonly call 'Miriam's'. Much of her time was filled working with handicapped children that are in the orphanage there. Anyone that spends time at Miriam's will be changed when they come back. It's an amazing facility for those that can't help themselves.

Karl leading a bible study at Miriam's before
 heading to the Northwest

Dr LeaAnn was able to see over 40 children at the Lemuel school and approximately 40+ people up in the village of Boukan Patryio. While in BK, Ken along with a Haitian boss, determined what will be needed in order to put the roof on the clinic. We have the 2x4's, 2x6's, and tin to put the roof on, but we also need to make the roof a hurricane proof roof which involves cement and block work on the walls. This also means we need to truck sand and rock up to the location. We are just waiting on the estimate from the local Haitian contractor to see where we stand financially for it.


The village of Ti Paradis was wiped out by the flash flood.

Marilyn and Emily were such great servants for the Lord! No matter what needed to be done, they were always willing to take it on. They gave a little clinic on sanitation and made a simple, yet very effective, place to wash your hands in between the two out houses at Boukan Patriyo.

Karl was constantly preaching the gospel! If not during our morning and most evening's devotions, he was at a couple little churches in the early evenings. The people really enjoyed his teachings (and antics!)

A school in the city of Gonaives we delivered food to

Personally, I was extremely blessed to have my wife, Gail, along on this trip. We were able to catch up with many old friends and reconnect. We were also asked to participate in the festivities that a little church we know as Philadelphia is having this coming August. I'm not sure what they call it, but it's an annual church get-together that has many surrounding churches joining in on the one day event. It's a great event.They will also be having a baptism ceremony for a number of members and that will be held at the ocean. With the help of Lemuel's bus, (which I haven't really asked them yet if we can rent it for a day) we hope to get everyone from their church to the ocean for the baptism.

We thank our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for each and every one of you! We rely totally on your prayers and support. Thank you and God bless!

In His Service,

Chuck & Gail

Contact Information

Chuck & Gail Guerber

% Grace Hill Ministries

P.O. Box 171

Ironwood, MI  49938

USA: 906.285.2500

Haiti: 509.4753.0270

Our 'Team' along with Krischelle (from Lemuel), Ani and our two interpreters, and a 'bunch of Brunsches'!
 The Brunsch family, consisting of 7, recently moved to live at the Lemuel campus. They are originally
from Rhinelander, WI.



Yellow hair is a sign of malnutrition

Emily handling 50 pound rice bags...
With a Smile!

  

Food for the school in Gonaives

Dr LeaAnn looking at a badly infected leg. We had
medicine along to give him!