Some Photos

Hi everyone! Here are a few pictures from the first couple weeks; more will be coming at some point, although I am not able to upload as many as I might like due to internet restrictions. Enjoy!


Top: Some of the relief supplies in MFI's hangar ready to be shipped out
Bottom: A DC-3 (MFI's workhorse plane)

First: Fabius (choir director at a nearby church who was teaching Kyle and me some Kreyol songs) and one of the foremen working on Fabius' house

Second: At the top of Mt. Pignon, with Becky, John-Robert, and Gabi

Third: Scene from Mt. Pignon on the way up

Fourth: Scene from my window, flying to Haiti on January 28th

Of Ping-Pong and Tozer, etc.

February 18, 2010
Dear Friends and Family,

First of all, I want to say how much I appreciate all of your emails and your prayers. I’m not able to keep up with my responses as much as I would like (and am sorry if I have not been able to reply to many recently), but please know that I love hearing from each of you, and through the encouragement of your emails I feel far from being alone here! Thank you all so much.

The crusade last week (which I mentioned on my blog: http://bonjoufromhaiti.blogspot.com/) was put on entirely by local believers, and seemed to go well. Thank you for all your prayers! Each night, there was worship (singing and dancing) for perhaps an hour and a half, then a message from a pastor, an altar call, and prayer. It seemed to be packed every night—to the point where it was difficult to find a place to sit. Another missionary who works at HAFF said that she had not seen such worship like this before here—such a testimony to God’s grace, especially after such a tragedy as the earthquake. The joy of the Lord is our strength!

The crusade was followed by the national days of prayer, in which it seems there were “Jenns” (times of worship) held from perhaps 8 or 9 in the morning until noon. The one I attended was packed—to the point where we had to sit on the ground outside the worship center, not even able to see the speaker. Please continue to pray for God’s work through such times of worship and preaching; that the gospel would be shared with clarity, boldness, and wisdom, and that the Holy Spirit would be at work in all who hear.

I’ve been settling into more of a routine these past couple weeks, and continuing to acclimate to the schedule. I am teaching four English classes a week, and learning how to do so in an engaging manner with my still elementary grasp of Kreyol. It’s a great challenge, and enjoyable to work with a number of students who enjoy it and want to learn. Also, today was my first time meeting with a conversation group of students who want to continue to improve their English. It went really well, and it will be a privilege to work with and come to better know them in the coming weeks and months.

Other regular weekly activities are soccer practice (I’m working with and co-coaching practices for a girls’ team, and enjoy the chance to play soccer myself, as well as to see the enjoyment they get out of it and to be able to help them improve), meeting with a friend named Phanuel who is my language helper, and semi-regular times with another student named Fredlin (whom I have been helping learn English science terms, and who is helping me with some of the corresponding Kreyol terms). There are also the occasional hospital runs when we get a call, picking up supplies at the airport, etc. It’s also been such a privilege to be able to make friendships here, and we’ve enjoyed other fun times such as playing ping-pong on a makeshift table in my house. None of them have played before, so I explained in Kreyol as best I could, and taught them the rules. Phanuel was even able to keep a rally going for about 35 hits!

Last Saturday, I climbed Mount Pignon with Gabi and Becky (two others who are here at HAFF) and Jean-Robert, another friend. Then, the other day, I went with Phanuel and Enso (a student and friend) to some caves near Bohoc. Inside, there were cave drawings (possibly from pre-Columbian years), giant stalagmites (around 7 feet in diameter), crystals encrusting the rocks, and a good number of bats—right around our heads at one point. Also, there were some objects that the others said were from people who practiced magic/voodoo; apparently witch doctors sometimes use the caves.

In a third-world culture such as Haiti, I am still trying to understand how to respond to the needs and the often-present requests. Prayer and a heart of genuine concern are central, but the question gets more difficult with monetary and material claims of need (which may or may not always be reflected with what initially meets the eye). I suppose the first step for each of us in such interactions is to pray for growth in love, and seek to exercise it as seems wise. But love does have a price: in seeing the other missionaries here and their response to recent deaths in the area, one can tell that their investment in the community and Haiti in general makes things more difficult, as they mourn with those who mourn. But this investment is a precious one, and worth its price.

Finally, I wanted to share something that has recently been convicting to me throughout the last few weeks, and that I have been thinking about (and shared during our staff Bible study last night). I have come to see the need to rid my life (and for each of us in our lives) of idols—things which rival or surpass God for our loyalty. One that I have come to see in my own life is greater concern for praise from other people than for the praise that comes from God. We are called to obey God even if we never hear a single word of affirmation from someone else—a terrifying thought at times, but seems a pattern especially in the life of Jeremiah for one. A.W. Tozer, in The Pursuit of God, writes the following words which cut to the heart of the issue (he is speaking of withholding areas of our life from God—related to the topic of idols as these are things to which we don’t want to turn over to His lordship). It is a little long, but fully worth the read:

We are often hindered from giving up our treasures to the Lord out of fear for their safety…but we have no such need of such fears…Everything is safe which we commit to Him, and nothing is really safe which is not so committed…(though this certainly doesn’t mean that God will protect those things such as treasured sins, which are destructive and evil!) The Christian who is alive enough to know himself even slightly will recognize the symptoms of this possession malady, and will grieve to find them in his own heart…Now, what should he do? First of all, he should put away all defense and make no attempt to excuse himself either in his own eyes or before the Lord. Whoever defends himself will have himself for his defense, and he will have no other. But let him come defenseless before the Lord and he will have for his defender no less than God Himself…Let him insist that God accept his all, that He take things out of his heart and Himself reign there in power. (pp. 28-29)

Tozer concludes the chapter with a prayer that we could probably pray every day:

Father, I want to know Thee, but my cowardly heart fears to give up its toys. I cannot part with them without inward bleeding, and I do not try to hide from Thee the terror of the parting. I come trembling, but I do come. Please root from my heart all those things which I have cherished so long and which have become a very part of my living self, so that Thou mayest enter and dwell there without a rival. Then shalt Thou make the place of Thy feet glorious. Then shall my heart have no need of the sun to shine in it, for Thyself wilt be the light of it, and there shall be no night there. In Jesus’ name, amen. (pp. 30-31)

I desire that this truth be applied to my heart and to each of our hearts, and that in coming to an ever-deeper understanding of the grace and gospel of our LORD, we might gladly give up all to His rule. For if God is who Scripture proclaims Him to be, His must be the complete and uncontested lordship of our lives.

I hope you all are doing well. Thanks for taking the time to read my updates!

Jonathan

Observation

It seems there tend to be an abundance of critters around even now - from our turantula who lives near our house, to a wolf spider with a 4-inch legspan that was in our outhouse, to an abundance of cockroaches - and will probably be many more in the rainy season. Earlier, one of the other missionaries here informed me of the difference between missionaries as regards these multitudes of our little friends...

Apparently, you can easily tell the difference between a first-term, second-term, and third-term missionary: The first-term missionary eating his or her soup pulls out the beetles and bugs that fly in; the second-term missionary leaves them in while eating the soup; and the third-term missionary catches them and puts them in the soup. I guess that's just a special, free garnish!

Upcoming Crusade

In my previous update, I didn't mention the upcoming crusade in the Bohoc/HAFF area, and I wanted to write a quick note about it so you all can pray with us for God's work during this time. It seems that local believers have planned a crusade (with worship songs, preaching, etc.) for the next three days right near HAFF in a public venue, so please pray that God works through this in a mighty way to bring many to Him. It will apparently be followed closely by three to five national days of prayer (which people are saying President Preval allowed/planned for from this Friday through next Wednesday). Furthermore, we have heard that there may not even be a national carnival (the Haitian Mardis Gras celebration that apparently has voodoo undertones as well), and so perhaps these national days of prayer have supplanted the carnival this year. Though it is hard to pin down the original sources of this word-of-mouth news, this may be a huge answer to prayer, and possibly a time of deep revival for Haiti. Please pray that God will work miracles throughout and after this time!

The First Week, and Thoughts on Grace

Dear Friends and Family,
February 7, 2010

Thank you all for your responses to my initial email from HAFF! It is always so encouraging to hear from each of you, and know that I am so blessed to have the prayers of so many family and friends. I love reading your emails, and it is good to be able to stay connected with home even through my time here! I have now been here for ten days, and am settling in more.

The first couple days did not really involve any particularly ordered schedule. Mostly, I spent time settling in, meeting several of the workers around HAFF (and enjoyed speaking some Kreyol with them), helped out working with some work on the campus, joined some of the community leaders in distributing relief supplies to local families who are housing refugees from Port-au-Prince (PAP). If I remember correctly, there are over a thousand refugees in our area already, so some households have expanded in size beyond what they can provide. HAFF’s benevolence committee (made up entirely of Haitians) then seeks to provide for those with the greatest needs in the community.

Some other random highlights from the past week: Kyle (a really neat guy who is here for a couple months, who is staying in the same house as I am) and I were invited over to a nearby church, where we participated in a choir practice. A rather amusing time—though enjoyable—for me, as I am not particularly blessed with the ability to hold a tune! Everyone was happy to have us though, and was extremely welcoming. Then, a couple times since then, Fabius (the choir director) actually came over to our house to tutor us in some of the Kreyol worship songs. Such a privilege, and enjoyable to learn a Haitian song. And in addition, our cook—another really fun and friendly lady—also taught us another song in Kreyol as well. As she doesn’t speak much of any English, it is always fun communicating as best we can in Kreyol, with lots of laughs throughout.

We went to church on Sunday, and the pastor preached a good sermon (one of the other missionaries—Connie—translated for me) on Romans 8, after which we went with some others to a prayer/worship service for a woman who it seems has Typhoid. There are many strong believers in the area, with both established churches and newer church plants. One evidence of their faith are the nearly daily, 3:30am-5am worship services right across the street!

By Monday, I was able to begin with more of my regular schedule. I am observing and helping Barb (one of the missionaries) with teaching four English classes a week, and actually was able to teach one on my own last Friday. That went well; and at the students’ request, I actually ended up teaching a song to them. Rather amusing for me—but hopefully through my time in this culture that loves singing, some of their skill will rub off on me by the time I leave! I also will be helping with a girls’ soccer team, which met last Wednesday. That was a great time, and I also was able to later join the head “coach” a couple days after to play with a number of other guys in the community. One of my other regular roles will be to tutor one of the missionary’s daughters in a couple subjects, to help free up her mother’s time; however, this is currently on standstill as they are in the States for a week or two.

Finally, I wanted to mention that I received an email from HAFF’s treasurer, and she said that I have surpassed my goal for support! Thank you all so much for your amazing generosity!! Those at HAFF will also be very grateful to be able to use that which exceeds my own support, I would believe towards aiding with relief efforts and/or investing in their ministries and equipping work in the area.

In lieu of your gifts towards ministry here, as well as these past couple weeks in the Florida area, God has really been teaching me about what it means to receive grace. I have come to realize that we should not and cannot earn those gifts we are given. I realized that I too often try to earn gifts that I am given, whether by trying to reciprocate or by thinking back to something that I did to deserve it. This, however, is antithetical to our faith as Christians. The very foundation of the gospel is the belief that we can never earn or deserve the grace given to us, and that it is given to us despite our undeservedness. In experiencing the amazing generosity of so many this past month (from staying at friends’ houses in Florida, to your gifts that have allowed me to be here, to the grace I have been given in so many good friendships throughout my life), I have begun to learn how to better receive grace. May we all come to see, day by day, how this is true for every one of us: every bite we eat, every moment of rest, every breath we breathe, is given to us from the hand of God, and we can but respond in gratitude and obedience for these ever-present graces. So I thank you for your graciousness, and may we each better see God’s grace every day Also, I wanted to mention that I will soon be posting past emails, as well as perhaps other notes, on a blog from now on, as well as sending out weekly or bi-weekly emails. Here's the address: http://bonjoufromhaiti.blogspot.com/

Pase bon joune! (Have a good day)

Jonathan

P.S. Thank you for your prayers for Pastor Eric. He seems to be feeling better now after his hospital stay, and may fly back to the states sometime within the next week!

Prayer Request

Hi Everyone,

February 4, 2010

I just wanted to shoot out a quick prayer request to you all...For the past few days, the parents of my roommate here at HAFF have been visiting, and his dad (who is a pastor in Tennessee) has been visiting and praying with pople in the community for the past few days. Just last night, he got really sick, and developed reallyintense abdominal pains. They were supposed to fly out today, but were instead admitted to the hospital in Pignon (as the doctors weren't sure if he could fly). It may be diverticulitis, but they are still waiting on results. Please keep him (Pastor Eric) in prayer, and for complete healing--whatever the cause is. Thank you all!

Jonathan

Hello From Haiti!

Hello everyone!
January 28, 2010

I am finally in Haiti, and safely arrived at HAFF! Thank you all for your prayers--my flight was enjoyable and went smoothly. I unfortunately just wrote a longer email, and then due to some internet issues lost it, so this will be a little shorter. Anyway, I landed at the grass air strip in Pignon early this afternoon, and then met some of the HAFF missionaries there (with a flood of new names--so doing my best to remember as many as I can!). We then went into town to do some shopping, where it was a completely different world from anything I have experienced ever before. I will write more of what it is like at some later point, but some images: buying ice for our refrigeration from someone in a small, old wooden shack, in which it has been kept cool by burying it under shredded sugar cane; meeting many adults and children--both friends of the missionaries' as well as random children; and "roads" in which the average speed is 5 miles per hour due to ubiquitous potholes. I am now settling in at the HAFF campus, (very good to finally be here!) and the next few weeks will probably involve settling into some level of a routine. I probably also will not be online nearly as often, and so apologize in advance for not being able to respond to all the wonderful and encouraging emails you send me. I lovehearing from everyone and reading your emails, but may have to be sporadic in my replies.

I hope you all are doing well, and "Bondye bene ou!" ("God bless you" in Kreyol)

Jonathan

Update from Fort Pierce, FL and MFI

Dear friends and family,
January 27, 2010

As I am scheduled to fly out to Haiti tomorrow (it's finally arrived, barring any more unforeseen circumstances!), I wanted to send a recap of my time in Florida. First, thank you all for your prayers and support--it has been encouraging to hear of your prayers for me, for Haiti in general, and for those at HAFF during this time.

These last two weeks obviously came with their share of stress and frustration, as we dealt with the shock and sorrow over the earthquake, as well as trying to figure out how my trip might change in lieu of it. However, though at times I have felt like I'm simply in a "limbo/waiting period" it has been really neat to see how God has used this time as way more.
As I mentioned in a previous email, my flight from Miami to Port-au-Prince was initially set to arrive in Haiti at 8:50am on the 13th, but was obviously pushed way back after the earthquake. Then, church friends who had heard about my flight situation and are living near Miami picked me up from the airport, and I stayed with them until I figured out how I would be getting to Haiti. They and their entire church were incredibly welcoming, and some even had connections to Haiti and/or were planning trips to Haiti.

I finally was able to book a seat on an MFI (Missionary Flights International) flight to Pignon, Haiti (near HAFF), and will be flying through Cap Haitian rather than Port-au-Prince. Then, as it was still a week until that flight was scheduled to leave, I took a bus up to Fort Pierce (where MFI is located) to volunteer with them and make sure my spot was secure until I left. As it turned out, a family in the area had heard that I was looking for a place to stay in the area, found me at MFI, and offered that I could stay with them until I flew out! It seems that they know a friend of a pastor whom I know in Grand Rapids, and it has been such a privilege and blessing to stay with and get to know them and others at their church this past week. I would love to write so much more about this, and about how amazing it is to see and experience the hospitality and unity within the Church, but I am already rambling...

It has also been a great experience to be able to volunteer at MFI this past week and see more of their ministry. At times there were perhaps 100 volunteers helping with everything from organization to packing to shipping, and since the earthquake MFI has shipped around 500,000 pounds of supplies and 1,100 nurses and medical personnel. Furthermore, it seems that they are able to be extremely efficient at distributing aid once it reaches Haiti, as they already have many contacts and established relationships on the ground. And unlike the gridlock that seems may be the case for many planes trying to land in Port-au-Prince, MFI is able to land on a smaller strip and thus has no problem getting their supplies to the ground. It seems they are even serving as a distribution center on other levels, as the US army even came by to pick up supplies at MFI, which they will then fly down. In case you are interested in reading more about them, here is their website: http://missionaryflights.org/home (which, incidentally, they had to rework when the number of internet hits jumped from 50/day before the earthquake, to thousands/day, and have recently upgraded their servers to allow for 500,000-1,000,000 hits/day.)
So much more I could write, but I'll stop for now. Please pray for safe travel tomorrow, and I will try to send out a quick email once I arrive at HAFF tomorrow (when I can get online).

M'a ekri nan ou anko tale! (I will write to you again soon!)

Jonathan

New Schedule

Hello Everyone,

I finally secured a seat on an MFI (Missionary Flights International) plane, so I will be leaving from Fort Pierce, FL for Pignon, Haiti next Thursday, Jan. 28th and expect to arrive at HAFF by sometime that afternoon. I am currently still in the Miami area, and looking into heading up to the Fort Pierce area within the next couple days. Then, from that point until I fly out on the 28th, I hope to volunteer with MFI, helping out in whatever ways they need me (i.e. loading planes, helping in the office, etc.) (it seems that things there have been extremely hectic there since the earthquake, and so they are using many volunteers to help manage the increased workload and demands).

Thank you all so much for all your prayers and encouraging words. I hope that I will soon be able to send an update from Haiti with a better conception of what the next few months may look like. Currently, the length of my stay may be up in the air due to the recent change in circumstances and need, but I will update you all when there are any further, more certain developments in that regard.

As I will hopefully be heading up to Fort Pierce within the next couple days (specifically, MFI's address is 3170 Airmans Drive, Ft. Pierce, FL 34946), I am looking into hotel options for the week I will volunteer prior to flying out. But, if anyone knows of other options for lodging in the nearby area, please feel free to let me know!

I hope you are all doing well,

Jonathan

Miami Airport

Dear Friends and Family,
Januray 13, 2010

In view of the recent earthquake in Haiti, I just wanted to send out a quick update. First, thank you for all your prayers and concern--I am actually still in the miami airport, as my flight to Haiti (Port-au-Prince is where I was scheduled to fly into) was cancelled/rescheduled due to the earthquake. I am still working out travel options with my supervisors in Haiti once we know the situation better. Please keep all of those in Port-au-Prince and all others affected in your prayers, as the damage (of which it seems the extent is still unknown) is definitely a huge blow, especially in light of conditions and infrastructure already being to fragile there.

Jonathan

Introductory Letter

Dear Friends and Family,
December 24, 2009

I hope you are all doing well! As you may already know, I have gotten the opportunity to go to Haiti’s Central Plateau area as an intern for a missions organization called Haitian American Friendship Foundation (HAFF). I will be leaving from New York on January 12th, 2010, and returning on July 29th, 2010. I wanted to tell you some about what went into this trip, but if you have any more questions at all, please feel free to give me a call or shoot me an email. (And hopefully I will see many of you soon anyway!)

Why Haiti?

I have been looking into spending some time abroad on and off over the past year, and as I hope to attend seminary when I return (I am currently applying to several for the Fall 2010 semester), I believe this time between college graduation and seminary is the best time to spend learning and serving abroad. Although I have considered several areas and organizations, I pursued the opportunity to work in Haiti for several reasons. First, one of the missionaries who has been working with HAFF in Haiti for the past 23 years is a good family friend, and so I have been blessed with hearing about their ministry throughout my life. Second, Haiti has a very different spiritual “climate” and culture—and thus the Church there has its own unique challenges, strengths, and weaknesses—and so could be a special place to learn about God’s work in a very different area of the world. Also, the geographical proximity (while still a very different culture) of Haiti allows for easier travel from the States, and the opportunity to get involved in HAFF’s ministries as well as the local churches was attractive.

What will I be doing in Haiti?

As I will be the general intern at HAFF’s campus, I will participate in and learn about a number of different areas of their ministry (HAFF’s website tells about them and their ministry: www.haff.org). Some of the possible areas of my work there will involve tutoring one of the missionary’s children, assisting students in learning English (in the classroom and in conversation workshops), leading a Bible study, learning Kreyòl (one of the official languages spoken in Haiti), helping with short-term missions groups from North America, helping with orders for the base’s pharmacy, coaching soccer, and accompanying one of the missionaries to other towns to show the Jesus Film. As well as these more formal opportunities, I will have the chance to visit and hopefully get plugged into and involved with one or more of the local churches, and as I learn more Kreyòl, to build relationships with those in the village and hopefully participate in hospitality ministry. Through this medley of service and learning opportunities, I hope to both be able to help with HAFF’s ministry in Haiti, as well as grow in my understanding of God’s work in Haiti.

Support

First, Haiti is a country with a history of spiritual darkness, and so I ask for your prayers for my faith and strength as I serve with HAFF. The battle is real, but our God is infinitely stronger, and I pray that I will walk every day in the knowledge of this truth. Please also pray for God’s work in and through the other HAFF missionaries, and for Him to reveal Himself to those in Haiti who do not yet believe. Second, as HAFF does not provide for the financial needs of interns from their own funds, I will also be relying upon the support of those of you who may wish to give financially.

I will be sending out regular email updates during my time in Haiti, and so if you would like to receive these updates in order to better know how to pray for me and hear about my trip, please reply to this email. Also, I would be very grateful for any financial support you are able to give, as it looks like I will have to raise $6700 for my six-month stay and airfare—I am hoping to raise most of it by the time I leave in January (NOTE on 2-2010: the amount of support I was aiming for has been surpassed! Thank you all, and praise God!) If you have any questions about my support or how much more I still need at any point, please let me know. If you would like to contribute financially, please send a check made out to “HAFF,” with an enclosed note that clearly says “Support for Jonathan Fischer” to the address below (contributions are tax-deductible and HAFF will send a receipt for your donation):

HAFF
P.O. Box 3421
North Ft. Myers, FL 33918

What do I hope to be the “fruit” of this trip?

Through the time I will be interning with HAFF in Haiti, as well as serving HAFF as I'm able and aiding the missionaries in their work, I hope to gain a better appreciation and knowledge of missions in general, and specifically of God’s work through HAFF in Haiti. As I also hope to serve in the local church in the U.S. after seminary (I am currently applying to seminaries for their Master of Divinity programs), I want to bring to that church some understanding of and sensitivity to God’s work in areas outside the States—and thus better communicate the universal reach of the gospel. Furthermore, I look forward to learning how to better support missionaries serving abroad, as well as to learn from our brothers and sisters in Christ throughout the world. I look forward to seeing more of God’s work and provision through your prayers, financial support, and your encouragement during these next few months! I know I will be needing lots of prayer, and the encouragement I have already received means a lot. Thank you so much!