1/31/10 Haiti Update from Jan Milton

Dear Friends of ORH,

In Matthew chapter 9, we learn so much about Christ’s compassion for the multitudes:
“But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd. Then saith He unto His disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He will send forth labourers into his harvest.” (Matt 9:36-38)

Please pray for the hearts of the people throughout Haiti. Those laboring with ORH seek to give a Gospel witness, even as we do the “good works” of distributing emergency food and water.

From your comments, question and appeals, it is clear that the Lord has stirred up His compassion in the hearts of Christians. How we thank the Lord for the many contacts and offers of help we have received in the ORH project, Haiti Hope! We are praying for the Lord’s rich blessings upon you as you seek to help these island people. We are delighted to be “your servants, for Jesus’ sake” in this endeavor.

We are attempting to give you the most accurate picture possible of the work going on. We hope that you understand that the situation there is changing constantly. What I am reporting in this update has come from very reliable sources.

The government of Haiti has declared that 150,000 people have perished in the devastating earthquake and aftershocks. We received a call from someone who told us that 70,000 hungry refugees were descending upon their village and they had nothing to offer them! Use your imagination to put yourself into a situation such as this, and you can begin to see their desperate plight.

We have received heartbreaking stories from pastors who know that the bodies of church members lie under the rubble of their church buildings. Please pray for these men, that they would know the “sufficient grace “of God for the trials ahead. At the end of this letter, we would like to appeal to you about the urgent need for tents for the survivors.

ORH has been primarily working with a national pastor and two missionaries in Haiti. Pastor Dieupie Cherubin is the pastor of the Hosanna Baptist Church in Jacmel, Haiti and the leader of a regional association of Gospel-preaching Haitian pastors. Connie Anderson leads the Macedonia Baptist World Missions children’s home and missionary. Tim Bower (serving with Open Door Baptist Mission in Greenville, SC) serves in northern Haiti. These leaders have made contact with churches associated with their ministries both in the quake zone and at the edge of the disaster field.

We have flown 20-25 missions into Haiti in this last week. You will remember that our original plan was to fly 20 missions, but the Lord has enlarged our ability to minister! Through the help of assistant pastor Yadin Rodriguez and the believers of Iglesia Bautista Christianaa in Santo Domingo, DR, the Lord has “multiplied our days!” With their help, we have been able to acquire food in Santo Domingo and make shorter flights into Haiti. These flights have carried approximately 20,000 to 23,000 lbs. of food from Santo Domingo and additional food from Florida. The free food reported available last report turned out to be less than originally reported, but we were able to still get a large portion of it. We have about 10,000 lbs of the free food left.

As of Friday, January 29, we had flown 5,000 – 6,000 lbs. to Pastor Cherubin’s associated ministries in and around Jacmel. We have also been able to distribute food to Score Ministries who are helping the general population. The rest of the food this week was transferred to children’s homes in the outlying areas. More flights are en route even as you read this.

Please take a moment to pray for our pilots. They are flying into a dangerous region, carrying emergency relief supplies. Once on the ground, they are sometimes confronted by some people who are demanding access to their supplies. By God’s grace, these pilots have been able to get these supplies to the intended missionaries and pastors. Please pray for a certain man at one of our drop sites, who apparently removed two loads of food destined for a children’s home. We are attempting to confirm the incident so as to prevent any future problems.

The Canadian military is in charge of the airport at Jacmel, and both Pastor Cherubin and Connie Anderson have access to this airport to obtain the supplies. It appears that Jacmel will be our main base of operation for many weeks to come.

Mr. Greg Rife was able to visit the churches and ministries associated with Connie Anderson’s children’s home and the ministry of Pastor Cherubin. As you know, many of their ministry buildings were destroyed in the quake. Would you pray about partnering with one of these churches to help them rebuild their buildings? We hope to make pictures from this week, in some format, available to you very soon.

Four of the pilots will be flying back to Florida for maintenance and rest. Three others will continue to make flights from Santo Domingo to Jacmel. Please pray for these pilots by name: Dave Spangler, Dave Crispell, Dennis Conn, Jack Hunt, Kelley Hein and Mike Coupe.

Iglesia Bautist Christiana and affiliated churches from in and around Santo Domingo have made contact with churches throughout Haiti. With their guidance, Air Hope will be flying missions to more airfields this week. This is dangerous work, but the needs are great. Pray for these ministries. We are thrilled to be able to aid these churches in the Dominican Republic as they reach out to their brethren in Haiti.

On February 15, larger planes from the Wings as Eagles ministry will fly for Operation Renewed Hope. In their first task, they will transport 15 “circus tents” from Kansas City, MO to Jacmel, Haiti. Pastor Cherubin has indicated that these tents are crucial for the work ahead.

Our contacts in Haiti have told us that sheltering survivors is one of the most urgent needs in Haiti in the days ahead. Because of the aftershocks, it is dangerous for survivors to sleep within many of the buildings. They have asked us to send as many small tents as possible. Ideally, these would be “family” tents, that could hold 4 or 5 people.

Please pray with us about the following urgent needs:

Funds to purchase fuel for flights. We hope to continue to fly needed food and water into the region as our supplies hold out. We have received large donations of food, ready to fly from Santo Domingo.

Funds to purchase small tents, large tarps or tent material in the U.S. to send to Haiti.
If you have contact with someone who could sell these smaller tents at a wholesale price, please contact me immediately. We want to be good stewards of every penny we are given.

Please pray with us as we look at “the big picture” for the days ahead. The U.S. military has reported that much of the port equipment in Port au Prince is under water, and blocking access to the port. We are looking for ways to send smaller ships into the other undamaged ports in Haiti. We will need wisdom (James 1:5) to ship some of the largest tents and heavier equipment needed for these areas.

Thank you so much for your interest and support for Operation Renewed Hope.

Jan Milton
Operation Renewed Hope
4928 Necessary Ct.
Blue Springs, MO 64015