Monday, November 13, 2017
November 2017 Haiti update
Greetings in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ
Something to think about:
If you were put on trial for being a Christian would there be enough evidence to convict you?
October 17th visit to other areas went well.
God is on the move. 2 more groups want to start, one area needs our prayers only 2 out of the many pastors want unity they are so inward focused. God continues to expand our territory.
The ministry needs a motorcycle as soon as possible.
As the groups continue to grow and we send pastors 2x2 to the other groups and to visit areas that don't have groups to help them get started, we put out a lot of money out each month to hire a driver and taxi. To purchase, license and insure will cost $1,700. If you can help with this need, please let us know as soon as possible.Also still have a couple houses needing repairs and some church buildings since Hurricane Matthew in 2017 and some were damaged more from the smaller hurricanes since Matthew.
Pictures below:
Basketball goal UMC Tipton donated for the youth boys that come each week. They usually play soccer but are enjoying learning basketball.Pastor Preference, one of the pastors in our Gold group that was in great need of a house was built in October. Thank you Poplar Baptist Church in Warsaw, Mo for providing the money to make that possible. The family will be able to move in as soon as we get the doors and window on.
Pastor Tim, one of our pastor guests wrote:
Met with pastors of the Gold group one on one then in the afternoon met with all the pastors. Taught on evangelism (how to share the gospel in different ways), leadership, took personal questions. A few days later I had them practice sharing the gospel with each other.Went with them to the local market to evangelize and pass out a cup of water.Witnessed an interesting way of making coffee then what they used for a filter was even more interesting: A wire coat hanger to hold the cloth open and prevent it from falling in out the water. A cloth "sock" in which coffee is placed to filter the water through the cloth into the cup or other container. Then roll the cloth up in the wire to squeeze out the last of the coffee.Some days they need sun to have clothes washed and dry. If they dry to slowly, they get an odor and have to be rinsed again and put back in the sun. Rain is needed for gardens to survive. Daily needs we take for granted.
Another one of our guests pastor Greg wrote the following:
- I had heard the testimony of Routons and I was interested in exactly what they were doing and how the work was progressing so I made a second trip and this is what I found:1. They had intentionally made personal, close relationships with pastors in their area. This was the key for the future of what they would be able to do.2. They had been in each church that the pastor had come to the group, visited individually with each pastor as to how they could be of service, and had made relationships with the people.3. They had started a weekly pastor’s training/fellowship time each Friday, a class for the wives, a children’s program each Wednesday, VBS in the summer, and avenues for helping families when in crisis. (Pastors literally walk forhours to attend the weekly meetings as well as the daily conferences.) There is a booth at the weekly market for the purpose of giving water and giving evangelistic conversations as opportunities come. 4. There were constant knocks at their door each day from people/pastors who needed to talk, people who needed to help, and people who were passing by and just wanted to say “hello”. 5. Pastors were very open to talking to them about family problems, church problems, and struggles in dealing with the false teachings spread from people practicing Voodoo, from other religious groups, from the long traditions of man, and from the larger churches that tried to put unbiblical principles/practices upon the smaller churches. 6. I saw the Routons functioning and practicing the ministries of what Directors of Missions might encounter. Every day was a new day with new encounters and opportunities. 7. As a pastor and knowing the stresses of ministry, I saw them experiencing the same kinds of overwhelming stress, having the same constant concern for people, and doing everything with the resources they had to make provisions in each situation. Like Jesus, there were times they needed to come apart before they came apart. They made sure there were times of refreshing so they could be ready for whatever came their way.
- 8. The Routons truly have a calling to this ministry. They have gone from one pastors group to eight, some of which are hours away. They personally go to these groups to provide training and have trained local pastors to go and train them as well. Training leaders to be leaders.9. Pastors are in contact with each other and keep the Routons informed of important needs. When the Routons are away, some of the lead pastors takecare of issues while they are away.I would encourage anyone who can to make a personal trip to Haiti to see first-hand what ministries are in place there. You will be the one who will come away blessed as you seek to bless the Haitian people.
Psalms 133 Haiti MinistryTerry and Carolyn Routon
November 13, 2017,
Our goal while in the states will be to raise $15,000 by March 1 then will need $2500 a month for the rest of the year.
Needs: Our biggest need is monthly/yearly support which can be every month or a one time yearly support or however someone or a church would want to do it. This is kind of lengthy but maybe will help.
Each month:
*We send presenters into the schools for sexual purity and the gospel. Thousands of young people are exposed to the Truth. $3,000 yr
*We send 10 pastors we have discipled for the past 4 years out to help with other unity pastor groups by helping them get started and disciple them. 9 groups and counting. $6,000 yr.
*We have not taken a salary since we came to Haiti in 2004. Last year we were given a house in Warsaw so we have come to a point we feel led by God it is ok to receive a salary each month, which will also help us get medical insurance. total for both; $15,000 yr.
Need a Motorcycle to go to those groups above and also to go to remote areas that 4 wheels can't get to, to start new groups. $1700 for this ministry project.
Rent for our house and building for our meetings. $3,000/yr
Misc ministry needs (truck expenses, ATV expenses, gas, phone, internet, propane, community help and misc $6,000 yr
Salary for our translator $2,000 to 3000 per year depends on how much we use him.
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Other needs: if someone or a church wants to collect food for us to take back because American type food has gotten so expensive here. and if so I can provide them with a list of items and how many of each.
There are several churches that had extreme damage from hurricane Matthew last year so we would like to help them with cement, iron and tin. $7500 is what is needed for that ministry project.
We would like to help the pastors get started with a home business to help sustain their family. They receive no salary from church. $500 per pastor is what is needed.
About the ministry
Vision:
Build unity among pastors that meet and share regularly, equipping them with the truth, providing teachable biblical lessons in their language to rid the influence of voodoo, false teachings and the traditions of man that go against the Word of God. Psalms 133
Ministry:
*Write and translate teachable lessons in their language
*Discipling a local group of 10 Haitian pastors to help us go disciple the other groups
*Provide Bibles and other materials in their language that teach truth
*Compare the truth of the Scriptures to the lies satan has put in their culture through voodoo and traditions of men
*Compare the truth of the Scriptures to the false teachings that have been in their churches for generations
*Teaching the pastors how to study the Word through the power of the Holy Spirit
*Teaching them from the Word how to have a New Testament Church
*Start unity pastor groups in areas where there are none, which seems to be most of Haiti.
Goal//purpose
*All that we do and say being glory to God
*Disciples making disciples:prepare the pastors we disciple to disciple other pastors plus their leaders and members.
*The pastors will see the truth so they and their churches will go against their cultural traditions that go against the Scriptures and the false teachings and voodoo with the truth of the Scriptures (John 8:32) so the Christians can be set free and the lost can come to Jesus with no strings attached and no fear of voodoo. John 14:6.
*The groups that start will be discipled so they can help start other groups and teach the truth.
About us:
We were lay people that God called out of our comfortable pew. We felt the first call to Haiti in 1999. In 2003 we sold everything we had, took a step of faith and went full time to Haiti to serve God and serve with the Haitian people totally depending on Him. Over the years He has taken us through many doors of ministry in Haiti and Missouri, the present door opened in September 2013. Every door we have walked through helped prepare us for the one described above. We have a home church that takes care of our funds, is our accountability and spiritual and emotional support. They are a small church and cannot provide a salary or all the ministry needs. We visit churches, send out updates each month via email and mail out letters 2 times a year to share what God is doing then trust God to provide for all our needs. He has been faithful and we know you will be blessed if you join in on what God is doing.
October 2017
Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ
Last Friday the evangelist in our group here at the house shared this story, I love it, God is so good. He prayed for God to give him strength to go and work at his garden which he had to walk about an hour to get to. He did not have any food at the house to take with him. As he was working he began to get hungry, so he prayed again that God would help him find something to eat. Not long after he prayed, he saw a piece of fruit that looked like had just fallen from the tree. The Miracle in this was it was a fruit that is only in season July and August. He picked it up and ate it, he said it was very good.
Quote from one of our guests:"The Haitian people are a people with a difficult past, present, and future. Spiritually leading the Haitian people are pastors with a heart for God, a love for the people, and a longing to be better preachers and pastors. Pastors who want to be more equipped to fulfill their calling. Because of lack of opportunity to be further equipped, God opened a door through the Routon's. " Will you go and help equip them?
Quote from another one of our guests:"Took 9.5 hours. We crossed four streams. Could not tell how deep three of them were so we watched some taxi/motorcycles go first to find where best to cross. Women washing themselves and their children and clothes in the streams. Arrived at the Routon's and took a cold shower. Then that night used a fan operated off a car battery from solar panels."
Always an adventure here, won't you come too?
Awesome worship service last Sunday morning. We were worshiping like some cheer at a game when their team scores or wins. We should worship like that all the time because we have won because satan was defeated at the Cross. Wish all of you could come and experience the culture here and the worship.
Disciples making disciples; leaders making leaders. God continues to move, we have a total of 10 groups now including the gold group. Over 100 pastors. The gold group continues to help Terry go out to the other groups.
We recently showed the movie Courageous to a small group of pastors. It was in french so Pastor Rousier helped them to understand some parts. They really liked it. Proverbs 16:3 Commit your works to the Lord and your thoughts will be established. Proverbs 16:9 A man's heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps. As God continues to enlarge our territory, we trust and know He will continue to equip others to help.
The picture below is one of the Pastor groups Terry visited on Saturday to deliver New Testaments and encourage them.
Pastor Rousier and Pastor Paul are going to another area where there is no evangelical church October 17.
At one of the schools a young lady asked to have a Bible like we teach from. She said that at her church they don't teach what she heard about salvation that day.
Prayer requests and needs:
- Pray for their trip on October 17 that God will move on the hearts of those in that area.
- Pray for the pastors as they hear truth, they will replace the false teachings and disciple others to do the same.
- Pray for the young people in the schools as they hear the gospel they will accept it as truth and receive it into their hearts.
- Need a used phone that is unlocked so we can use it in Haiti. Old I-phones work, actually any phone that is unlocked and has a place for a sim card should be useable.
- Pray God will make a way for a young lady we have known for several years here in Haiti. She loves the Lord and desires to serve Him. She would like to go to nursing school.
- Pray God will provide for all the needs we have here in the ministry He has given us and our personal needs also.
It saddens me to think that many people will not accept the gift of salvation. They have no hope for their eternal future. God offers that free gift to everyone. But it is up to the individual to accept the gift of eternal life with Him. So many here in Haiti fear voodoo because they don't understand who they are in Christ and the power that they have through the Holy Spirit to overcome the darkness.
Blessings
Terry and Carolyn
Psalm 133 Haiti ministry
September 2017
Greetings in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ
Praise the Lord! The hand of God moved in a mighty way this month. As we prayed for Hurricane Irma to go north, God answered that prayer. Then Hurricane Jose started on the same path and as we prayed again it went north of us. Everyone we talked to here were so thankful God spared Haiti from another hurricane.
We did get some much needed rain for the gardens as they will be planting this month.
Some lost animals and fruit trees and some tin roofs had to be repaired but it would have been a lot worse if they had not gone north.
We have another pastor group this month, number 9. These groups are keeping Terry and the gold group of pastors that are helping him go to these groups very busy.
Now that we have a copy machine, Pastor Rousier and I, Carolyn are keeping busy translating lessons then making copies to send to the different groups.
The school presentations of sexual purity and the gospel have begun this month. Many of these students don't attend church or if they do they most likely don't hear the truth of the gospel and staying sexually pure. This gives them the opportunity to hear and respond. In this culture the men are taught, even in the churches sometimes, to get the woman pregnant before you marry them to make sure she can have children. The main Bible here in Haiti does not have the words sexual immorality in it so they have taken that to the point it is a false teaching, that sexual immorality is not part of the sin of immorality.
The time while we were in the States was very rewarding, a new granddaughter, Josey and spending time with our friends and family. The daughter and family that are in China are making plans to return mid-December. It will be great to see them at that time.
When we returned to Haiti we were excited to see how all the pastors and the groups did in our absence. As missionaries you want to see them carry on while away and also teach them to do what they see us do. Disciples making disciples.
The enemy never likes it when God is on the move and he has tried to show his evil ways by using others to try to distract us from what God has called us to do. There have been a couple of people here in Haiti that are saying false things about the pastors and us. One of them even called a couple churches the States doing the same thing. We are thankful that "No weapon formed against us shall prosper and the battle belongs to the Lord"!
Thank you for your continued prayers, encouragement and support.
Prayer needs:
1. Those that the enemy is using will get discouraged and leave us and the pastors alone.
2. That the students in the schools will hear the truth of the gospel and accept Jesus and see the importance of staying sexually pure until marriage.
3. That the false teachings in the church here will all be brought to light as the pastors learn the truth and share that with their congregations.
4. Those in the market ministry that hear the gospel will receive it.
5. That our monthly/yearly support will increase to meet the needs as our territory enlarges and by January 2018 we can receive a salary from the donations. We have not taken a salary since we came to Haiti in 2004 but now that we have been blessed with a house in the States, we need to draw a small salary to care for the house God has given us through His people and to be able to have health insurance.
Blessings
Terry and Carolyn
Psalms 133 ministry
Christians in Unity
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