22jan11 – “Not a Fan”
Watched a movie/message tonight called “Not a Fan”
The whole point was the thought that we are called to be more than fans of Jesus Christ; We are called to be his followers.
We are called to an absolute dedication, making glorifying the Name of Jesus Christ our first and foremost prioirity.
This emphasis is huge, especially with the realization that most people only pay lip service to Christ, and do not follow through with their lifestyle. In the U.S., it seems that many times we specifically only mention the best parts of following Christ, the Grace, the freedom, the forgiveness, but fail to mention the hardships, the sacrifice, and ultimately, the cross.
We are called to take up our cross daily.
Or, as referenced by our ministry back home, we are called to be “crucified with Christ” so that we “no longer live, but Christ lives within [us]”. -Galatians 2:20
Good words for the night.
We also watched the movie “Walking on Water”, which is a movie about surfing and the ministry impact it is having. Specifically, it detailed a trip around the world, undertaken by 1 pro and the 2 teenagers he chose to mentor in this way. It was a great reminder of the joy and “child-like” faith that we should exhibit as His followers.
In another lesson, we also had church on the beach tonight, and it was great to reconnect with my friends here in Jacmel.
Nick and Gwen Mangine (Joy in Hope), Sarah, Gayly, Patrick, and Melinda (Olive Tree Project), and Tommy and Joy (Children’s Hope) were all here, and it was a great time of worship together.
I’m staying at Dr. Ken’s at the moment, along with Tamara, Amber, and Chad who are all here to help out with SurfHaiti and HaitiBaby.
Since I got back to Haiti last Tuesday, here’s a breif timeline:
-Tuesday night, crashed at Militon (Grand Goave, Mission of Hope Guest House)
-Wednesday, found out some more issues with the batteries at MOHI, fixed a small electrical problem, then traveled to Jacmel with Tamara and Amber. Reunited with my truck, always a helpful thing. Fixed a small electrical problem at Dr. Ken’s and spend the night there.
-Thursday, traveled back to Militon, then organized my truck a bit (quite a large project). Found my brake pads, oil filters, and other car care products. I need to perform some maintenance soon.
Also, pretty sure I have a warped brake rotor. Less sure about what to do about it, but I get a pretty good wobble under significant braking. Not enough to endanger anyone, but enough that it alerted me to the maintenance need.
-Friday, Reconnected the batteries/inverter at MOHI school, tried to fix a broken concrete vibrator (failed, but then rigged it up with an old drill so it passes as a emergency backup now), then helped with several projects for MOHI school. They are making very good headway now on the foundation of the school. I was learning a bit about forming concrete and all. Still wish I knew more about rebar sizing and the thickness required of slabs.
-Saturday, Still in Grand Goave. Ran wires to fix the lack of electrical work at the school. Finished the job (so I thought) with Delvar, but will call him tomorrow to get him to fully finish the job since he failed at this point.
-Sunday, went to church at MOHI, and played one song with the band on guitar. Had lunch at Militon with some people from Samaritan’s Purse, then headed back to Jacmel. Church on the beach tonight was awesome.
Now I’ve got a list of work in Jacmel:
-taking Sister Bonite’s inverter in for repair
-fixing a lighting issue at Dr. Ken’s
-installing solar panels at Dr. Ken’s house
-installing batteries and inverter at the SurfHaiti guest house
Then I’ll head up to Children’s Lifeline to look at this welding machine again. I’m hoping we can do something useful. Kim will head up with me again for this trip. Either I missed something last time, or she can help explain the generator system better, but we’ll see when we get there.
Tomorrow night (Monday), I will also head over to hang out with Nick and Gwen Mangine. They offered food, plus we have some ideas to kick around for small engineering projects down here. I’m also going to head over to Children’s Hope with Tommy and Joy to get an idea of how much solar they need (not much) and what they think of container houses like I am trying to build since they already have an orphanage made of them.
Finally, I’m super excited cause Dan and Cherith Kennedy, and Megan Ellis, are coming to Haiti near my birthday. They are some of my absolute favorite people in the world, so I am eagerly anticipating their trip, and wish it was sooner than it really is.
God Bless,
Travis
P.S. My prayers are with Becca Hoffman for her speedy recovery, and with the Paterno Family greiving their loss.
