Newsletter

I just sent out the following email to our mailing list. If you did not receive the email and would like for us to put you on the list please email me at: perkins.luke@gmail.com

Hey Everyone!

Just a quick note to say thanks so much for your support of us and our ministry in Haiti. We truly couldn't do what we have been able to do with out you! We put out a last minute call for support and you responded so generously, thank you!

We've just finished putting together our latest newsletter that talks about some of the things we were involved in helping with while I was in Haiti after the quake. You can find that newsletter here: www.perkinsfamilyonline.com/Newsletters

As you can imagine, Haiti has been devastated. Please keep Haiti in your prayers in these next months and years while the rebuilding continues. There is a lot of work ahead.

We also ask that you pray for us as we begin conversations with missions agencies in preparation for full-time ministry there after seminary.

In Christ,
Luke and Becca Perkins

quick summary of the past couple of days

Sorry for the lack of posts over the past few days. I've been too busy during the days to get near a computer and the internet has not worked the past couple of nights.

I began Saturday with a neighborhood meeting at the Chapel. Several of the missionaries living in this neighborhood got together to share what we're each doing and to share ideas with each other. One of the reasons for this is to ensure that we're not doubling up on things. We're trying to avoid things like having two separate medical clinics right down the street from each other and instead we're trying to combine resources as much as possible so we can serve this community more efficiently. So we have one organization doing medical clinics, we're distributing food and water at the church, another organization is addressing shelter, etc, etc. The meeting went well and was productive. Shortly after the meeting began we were joined by the group of police officers that are responsible for this zone. We're able to share with them some of our security concerns and also work out specific times for them to patrol or provide a presence. At the end of our meeting with them we gathered around them and prayed for God to protect them and provide for their needs.

Yesterday was Sunday and we had a great time together at church in the morning. I've never seen Quisqueya Chapel as full as it was yesterday morning. As Pastor Bobby began the service, the workers and I went all over the campus to get every chair we could so that as many as possible could sit. Many had to stand outside at the entrance because we simply could not fit another person in the building. We prepared extra communion cups in anticipation of a large crowd but there were still maybe 50 or so that did not get a cup because we ran out. I know there is a lot of debate going on both in the States and here about whether the quake is judgement from God or not, but one thing it has done is driven many people to seek God and the forgiveness that He offers. The word on the street (I heard it again today from a trusted friend) is that President Preval has called for three days of prayer and fasting around the time that would normally be carnival (kind of like mardi gras). Interesting.

Today we had a successful food distribution at the church. I say successful because these don't always go well. I asked a friend that lives in another part of the city if he has been able to get food and he says that whenever people go to a food distribution they have to fight with the crowd to get anything. He doesn't want to fight so he doesn't go. He did wait in line, in the sun, for an hour this morning for a 20oz bottle of water.

I was also able to get a battery for the car I'm using today. I had to go to 5 places before I found someone that sold the right battery, but I got one. Traffic is much worse than the normal bad traffic here so errands like this are tiring.

We're planning on having a memorial service at the Chapel this Friday, which is the one month anniversary. The service will begin at 4 and at 4:53 we'll have a period of silence (Psalm 46). We're also going to have those who have lost someone come up and read the name and age of the person they lost. Over 200,000 killed and there have been very few funerals. We're hoping to provide an opportunity for the church as a community to grieve together. I know this community has been affected in a big way because there is a mass grave just up the street. The grief is so apparent in people's eyes. Grief is everywhere in this city.

the way it's supposed to be

It was an interesting and exciting sight this morning at the Chapel during the first worship set. Leading us in song was a Haitian at the piano, a Cuban (flew in just a few days ago) alternating between the flute and the sax, a helicopter pilot with the Chilean army (here with the UN) at the keyboard, a Guatemalan (also here with the UN) at the drums, another Cuban on bass, an American as lead vocal and four Haitians as backup vocals. In the congregation was a general from the Dominican army (who would be preaching at the spanish service that resumed today) and people from the US, Canada, Europe and South America representing several evangelical denominations, missions and organizations. As I was standing there singing, I looked up at our worship team that was caught up in what they were singing and then around at the congregation who was also caught up in the music - it was amazing. No one was concerned with the incredible cultural differences that were present this morning, we were all united around the one thing that transcends nationality, profession, economic status, and every other division that man has constructed - the Almighty God who has revealed Himself and made Himself accessible to us through His Son. It wasn't perfect this morning, but it was definitely a taste of what Church is supposed to be. What a privilege it was to preach Ephesians 1 to a congregation like that this morning.

who needs power

Most of you who are somewhat familiar with the situation here know that electricity is not something to be counted on.  There is a government run electric company know here as EDH which is a french acronym for Electricity of Haiti.  It is the only company here and it does not have the capability of supplying electricity for everyone all the time, so we take turns.  Here in Port-au-Prince, the city is divided into zones and certain zones get electricity at certain times during the day.  Now, this wouldn't be too bad if there was a schedule that we could count on, then we could plan our chores that involve electricity around the EDH schedule.  Instead the power comes when it wants and goes when it wants.  Since we've been here, we've been getting it at our house beginning roughly at 8:30pm and ending sometime between 3am-6am.

There are ways of getting electricity when EDH is not on.  Some people have generators which are extremely expensive to buy and expensive to run as regular gas is somewhere between 5 and 6 dollars a gallon here.  Some people have a bank of batteries that are connected to an inverter system.  This is nice because the batteries automatically charge when EDH is on and then when it is gone, they are able to run the lights, fans, fridge and power outlets throughout the house for a day or so.  Others have solar panels, some have windmills, and many simply do without power.

We're lucky in the house we're staying in to have a good inverter system that is able to carry the house along with a backup generator.

Here at the Chapel, we have two large generators that can run the whole compound and an inverter system for the office.

We require a little more power at the Chapel on Sunday mornings as there are about 20 ceiling fans to run, along with a sound system and lights.  So, we run the big generator.

Yesterday morning all was going as usual, the generator was humming away and everything was working.  Then, about 15 minutes into the service, in the middle of a song, our power was gone. 

In a normal Haitian church, this would be no big deal and the service would go on.  In fact, I can remember one time I was sitting in an evening service at a Haitian church while a choir was presenting a special song and suddenly, mid song, the power went out.  The choir however did not miss a beat.  They just kept on singing away, and people took out their cell phones and opened them so we could have a little light.

Well, when you pack a few hundred people into the Chapel when it's 95 degrees out and then turn the fans off, it gets hot pretty quick.

So, the worship leader kept the congregation going, singing acapella, and since she had a few more songs to go before I needed to preach, I headed out to the generator house to see what was going on.

When I got there, Calixte, one of the chapel employee's, was pouring water into the radiator and there was a puddle of water underneath him that had spewed out of the generator.  He put the cap on and fired it up.  It ran, but there was water coming out and I realized as I got closer that it was spraying dirty, oily water on to my shirt.  Not the best thing to have happen when I was supposed to begin my sermon in about 10 minutes.  Luckily it didn't get me too bad.

So I went back to the Chapel and asked one of the elders if he could go check it out as I was about to preach.  He was able to fire up the older, smaller generator and it gave us enough power to run the fans and sound for the rest of the service.

It turned out that the water pump on the big generator was shot and is going to need to be replaced or rebuilt.  After the water pump quit, the generator began to overheat and shut itself off and that is when we lost our power.

So, hopefully we can get the pump fixed this week as we have a rental group using the facilities everyday next week, and they've paid for use of the generator.

So, just another Sunday morning here in Haiti.  Who needs power anyway?