Of Prayer Partners and a Philippians Passage

March 31, 2010
Dear Friends and Family,

It’s hard to believe that two months have already passed since I arrived in Haiti, and that my time here is a third over! I am still trying to find a good balance of work and rest—as well as when to tell people I’m just not available when they come over to hang out or for requests. I have found it a blessing and a haven to have found a more secluded area out of sight of my house to do my devotions in the morning and just get some time to be by myself.

These past few weeks have been nearly as full as most. One of the newer and exciting developments has been the privilege of working with some others (Gabi—one of the missionary family’s daughters—and three graduates of HAFF’s school) on planning a prayer partner program at for the students at HAFF’s school (Bohoc Training Institute, or BTI). We wanted to pair up students with prayer partners, and then encourage them to meet regularly to pray together and encourage each other—something we saw as a need especially for the many students who recently came from Port-au-Prince, as well as a potential blessing to all the students. We hope that through this time with students who have already attended BTI for some time, the newer students will be able to better integrate into and feel welcomed into the school and community, and will experience the comfort and encouragement that can come from such times of prayer.

We invited all the students to participate in the program, and after introducing it in devotions a couple weeks ago, we left a sign-up sheet in the teachers’ office. After 3 days we had 26 students—not a bad turn-out. Then, after the principle made another announcement the next day, over 40 more signed up! We now have about 87 students signed up—such a blessing and answer to prayer. We are planning a kick-off celebration for Saturday, April 10th, so please keep that and the program in general in your prayers. Pray that in their meetings, the students would continue to meet faithfully, really understand the value of prayer together, genuinely open up to and encourage one another, and form quality friendships resulting in mutual growth in the Lord. And please pray that the kick-off day (with some corporate worship, a short talk, fair-type games and a movie) would be a fun and God-glorifying time as well, helping the students start building stronger friendships with one another as well. Also, the planning is coming along, but please pray that everything necessary would get done in time—it definitely is stressful at times to plan for a big activity like this.

Last Sunday afternoon, the girls’ soccer team I’m working with had a game with a nearby team, and won 1-0. That was exciting for the girls, and it’s neat to see how they are improving and learning better skills. At the first game, it seemed like the audience was viewing the game more as a joke that was to be laughed at than a serious game. However, that seems to have been changing as the audience’s reaction seems to have moved more away from just laughing at mistakes and in the direction of genuine cheering (which compliments the girls’ skill and hard work). It’s satisfying to see them developing skills and play better as a team, and have the support of those watching.

On another subject, as I’ve been seeing how constant the requests for help are in this area (perhaps especially because we are Americans), I’ve been thinking about how such requests really test how tightly we hold to those things we consider “ours.” Of course, there are wise and unwise ways to give, and it is not necessarily the most loving thing to always give someone what they ask for (i.e. choosing between buying an ipod for someone you hardly know who asks, and food for someone who really needs it—or giving in the form of employment instead of just handouts). These are different kinds of giving, and in each request, the person being asked needs both wisdom and love. But it is convicting when, after a time, it becomes obvious that all too often it is my selfish nature that is keeping me from giving—rather than the knowledge that some requests may not warrant as much of a response. In general, this becomes evident in how readily I/we share our things, food, money, when it seems the loving thing to do—how loosely we cling to those things as “ours” versus resources to be used for God’s glory. He does give us things we need, but He also often blesses us with much more, with which things or resources we may be called to express His love to others in such forms as giving or hospitality (which gifts I have been privileged to see practiced in amazing ways by friends and family as well).

In Luke 14, Jesus teaches about not choosing the places of honor at a wedding feast (verse 8), but rather humbling ourselves—and that those who humble themselves will be exalted. This seems to be a small reflection of Jesus’ perfect example highlighted in Philippians 2:5-11: though being “in very nature” God (or “in the form of” God), he “did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing…he humbled himself and became obedient to death…on a cross!” And as verses 9-11 show, he was exalted.

I find this word in the passage—to grasp—especially convicting. In my life, it seems to hearken of other words such as “entitlement” and “control.” When I perpetually hold back my resources, my food, my money from others, I am seeking to grasp them—believing the lie that they are actually my resources, my food, my money, rather than the Lord’s. In reality, I am coming to think that we are called to not grasp any of those (something related to Jesus’ words on worry about what we will eat, drink, or wear), but rather trust that God will provide what we need. When we release “our” resources to their true Owner and Giver, we are free to trust in Him, and He is far better at providing what we need than we are. I don’t think this means that we will necessarily always have as much of these things for ourselves (though it may well at times—we know He is a God who infinitely out-gives us, and this is sometimes expressed in temporal blessings as well as eternal), but He will provide for us what He knows is best and what is to His glory.

The same principle also seems to apply to something I mentioned earlier—seeking the praise of others above the praise of God. When we seek to earn the praise of others, we are trying to grasp glory and honor. We are not trusting in God or seeking Him; we are seeking to provide for ourselves reputation and honor. However, when we trust in God and do not fear the insults or bad opinion of others, we are free to serve Him and to trust that He will defend our cause when He deems it time. So perhaps one of the central solutions to this epidemic “grasping” at things or honor is to simply commit ourselves to Him in repentance and trust—trust that He can provide for our needs infinitely better than we can, and commit our hearts to seek His kingdom instead of the comforts of this world. Furthermore, He gives comfort and He gives food and He gives honor at times, and these things are far sweeter when they come from the open hand of God than when we seek grasp them on our own. Perhaps we could say that, likewise, it is better to wait until after dinner to be given a cookie, than to rob the cookie jar before dinner and feel sick as a result.

…Something that seems simple to think about and write about; but it involves that part of us that still wants to control our own lives and revel in our own comforts being destroyed. Simple, but not easy. May the Lord show us the joy of trusting Him to provide, and may we learn the joy of releasing our resources and our very lives to Him.

Again, I cannot thank you enough for your prayers and support. It is such a privilege to know that I am not alone here, and to get each of your notes. I hope you all have a wonderful Easter weekend!

Jonathan