Churches Helping Churches

In this clip, Pastor Mike Wilkerson of Mars Hill Church in Seattle talks about how the team prepared to minister and teach Haitian pastors, despite very real language and life experience barriers. Haitian men, especially pastors, are expected to be strong and are not often allowed to be vulnerable; this retreat was one of the first times these men were able to let themselves be ministered to, as Pastor Mike saw.

Pastor Mike, who oversees the Biblical Living department at Mars Hill’s Ballard campus, was one of four biblical counseling experts CHC brought down for the first Churches Helping Pastors retreat in Port-au-Prince, Haiti in May 2010. The goal of the retreat was to support and renew the pastors as they personally recover from the earthquake, and also to build them up as they go back into their communities and support the people in their churches.

In this video, Daniel Ulysse, a Haitian chaplain from Brooklyn, interviews a group of pastors who attended our Churches Helping Pastors retreat in May in Port-au-Prince about their churches, how the earthquake affected them and their communities, and their vision and prayers for the future.

Stay tuned over coming weeks for more videos from Haiti from pastors from this conference and others we’ve held or sponsored in other cities around the country.

Inside a Tent City from Thomas Kim on Vimeo.

Last week, I worshipped in a tent city called Pétionville Club. What was once a golf course is now home to an estimated 50,000 to 80,000 people. Jacques Louis, a Haitian seminary professor and one of CHC’s dear partners, told me they cleared the trees on the course to make more room for people.

At one point in the service, I took a risk. The people were so used to being asked what their problems were and what they needed. Instead, I asked if anyone wanted had a testimony of what God had done since the earthquake.

Immediately, a thin lady jumped to her feet.

“Praise the Lord! God has given us so much. Yes, we’ve lost a lot. We don’t have much. But we believe in Him and we worship Him and we are so happy!”

She went on for a few minutes, filled to the brim with enthusiasm and conviction. Her joy brought smiles to both my interpreter and me. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing and seeing – far more than optimism, but intense God-besotted gratitude.

When taking a step back, it almost looked ridiculous. No home, no job in a crowded makeshift tent, boldly standing in front of other people to declare how thankful she was.

Her testimony was followed by another, which was followed by another. So many people seized the opportunity to share a “what my God has done” story that regretfully, I had to cut it short. Since then, I’ve often wondered how long they would have gone if I wasn’t such a Westerner on a schedule, running late for another meeting.

Those people ministered to me deeply that day. They are amazing Christ-followers who have unshakable joy. I am so privileged to know them and have much to learn from my brothers and sisters in Haiti.

The Pétionville Club I visited was smaller than it once was. A portion of this tent city was relocated due to overcapacity. (To me, it was already bursting, so I had a hard time picturing that in my mind.)

One pastor, Maxi Blanc, has many church members in that tent city. He now feels burdened to plant a church there. The Haitian government has recognized Pastor Maxi as a community leader and subsequently, gave him the land to start a church. Churches Helping Churches is going to build Pastor Maxi a structure for this unique church in mid-September. We can’t wait to see all that the Lord does through Pastor Maxi and this church within their new community. Thank you for your continued prayers and support of Pastor Maxi, the church in Haiti, and this mission we’re on.

–Tom

Churches Helping Churches from Acts 29 Network on Vimeo.

Pastor Scott Thomas of the Acts 29 network interview’s STEP President Jean Dorlus on the state of the Church in Haiti after the earthquake and the need to plant more churches. As Pastor Jamie said, Jean is a “brilliantly gifted man.” And he has an awesome faith in the power of the gospel for Haiti:

Jean: Out of the earthquake, a lot of people have come to know the lord, a lot of people. So some churches are growing … and then there are no buildings for quite a few of them, so ministry is taking place beyond the four walls. … The Lord is moving how we can go out there and partner with the Lord. So basically the Lord is already ahead of us, it’s not that we are seeking–
Scott: This didn’t take him by surprise did it?
Jean: No, no, not at all, not at all. He has all of this planned, he knows what he’s doing. We do not know all of the steps, we only know the next step. But I feel like this is a great time for a great harvest.

CHC is partnering with Acts 29, along with Harvest Bible Fellowship and the Timothy Initiative to consider supporting the church-planting needs in Haiti, particularly in the aftermath of the quake. For more, read this update from Tom Kim.

Tom explains the mission of Churches Helping Churches, why he was initially drawn toward it, and the promise of Jesus that guides that mission.

There were logistical challenges to the retreat. They turned out just to be another awesome time to be reminded of how big our God is. Here, Tom talks about this from the retreat in Port-au-Prince.