Here's a Cyber Monday Shopping Idea (and it's good all month long)

I bought some gifts online on Black Friday but before I could buy anything today- Cyber Monday- I got distracted.  In a good way.

Instead- I gave to a Cause.

My friend Tom Davis (He's the President of Children's HopeChest and author of a couple of my favorite books like Priceless and Scared), is raising money and awareness through a campaign called "Change Their Story".

The idea is that for the money I would normally spend on someone's Christmas gift I can "Change an Orphans Story".  And by blogging and Facebooking about it I can raise awareness that will also help "Change an Orphans Story".

I know it's a crazy time of year.  We spend money we don't have giving gifts to loved ones that really don't need anything.  On top of that it's a great time to give last-minute gifts to our church and other charities for tax purposes.  We're in a recession; money is tight.

I'm treating my donation like it's gift under the tree.  And for my part...I don't need anything for Christmas.  I'll be WITH my family; that's better than a new shirt or book or CD.  I'd rather have someone who would otherwise spend money to give me a gift give that money towards my $500.00 Goal through CHC; I'd rather you give a gift to protect an Orphan.

Would you consider joining me?  My $500.00 goal is a part of a greater goal of $10000.00 that will help protect Russian girls from being kidnapped and trafficked.  Now that's an awesome gift that can help "Change Their Story".

You can donate via Credit Card on my "Change Their Story" Page.

A nice long blog about Politics and Entitlements and Government Spending and Foreign Aid

At least three friends have re-posted this Facebook "status" in the last month.

Homeless go without eating. Elderly go without needed medicines. Mentally ill go without treatment. Troops go without the proper equipment. Veterans go without benefits that were promised to them!!! Yet we donate millions of dollars to other countries before helping our own first!

I've taken issue in the form of a comment each time I've seen this post and each time I've been shot-down by other commentators. I absolutely respect my friends' right to express their opinion but I feel like they are simply re-posting without really exploring the issue.

Here are some thoughts:

• It's difficult to get real figures which I suppose is typical when dealing with our government.  As best as I can tell in recent years the Total US Budget has been in the neighborhood of $4 Trillion Dollars with about $2.5 Trillion of that earmarked for Mandatory or Entitlement Programs.

• According the the 2003 "Complete Idiot's Guide to Economics" the US spent it's highest percentage of the US Budget (65%) on "Mandatory Spending" programs appropriated by Congress...also known as Entitlement Programs.  In President Clinton's last year in office Congress appropriated the following:

Social Security: 23% 

Medicare: 12% 
Medicaid: 7% 
Other Means-tested entitlements: 6% 
Mandatory payments (pensions, etc.): 6% 
Net interest on debt: 11% 

• I'm not sure how the Budget works.  I'm not sure I get the difference between the Mandated Spending...that appropriated by Congress and the rest of the budget.  I see in the 2010 Budget that the Department of Defense gets about $700 Billion which is slightly less than all other Government Agencies combined.

But how much are we spending overseas and is it so much that Americans are suffering for it?

• Again, it's hard to nail down specifics.  In general though, the total amount of US Foreign Aid (which includes Humanitarian and Food Aid right alongside Military Funding and Political/Development Funding) is less than 1% of our Federal Budget and generally has been for the last 50 years!  

• According to a Washington Post study most Americans think Foreign Aid is one of our top expenditures.  Most think we spend 15%-25% on International Aid.  When asked what we should be spending, the average is 5%.  Remember, the truth is that we spend less than 1%...so you could say most Americans feel we should be spending 5x as much on International Aid!

• A friend referred me to this article which described how President Obama recently promised more than $100 Billion to the UN alone for the fight against Global Warming!  I don't think that money is counted in most figures for Foreign Aid.  That's money the President asks Congress for but it isn't mandated or appropriated ahead of time.  I think.  Which is pretty crazy.

Even so.  Even if you throw in that crazy amount... the amount of money we spend on Foreign Aid is still miniscule compared to what we spend on our own entitlement programs.

• I don't know if you can put a price on goodwill.  Part of our Foreign Aid spending obviously isn't just because we're such Good Samaritans, although that's part of it.  I can tell you first hand about being in countries where people still love America and Americans because of the Aid we've given or because of our intervention in their affairs.  I don't care how Isolationist you are- intervening to prevent Genocide is always the right thing to do no matter where or who it is!  My opinion.

• Finally.  What about those homeless people here in America that go without?  What about our our Vets that aren't taken care of or our Soldiers that are ill-equipped?

If our Vets are getting the shaft then vote out the liars that reneged on their promises to them.  That doesn't have as much to do with money we send overseas as it does with lies and mismanagement in Congress.  Ill equipped Troops?  I would argue we have the best equipped and trained military in the history of the world.  Again... the issue seems to me to be mismanagement on the part of the Civilians (Congress) that are involved in decision-making.  Homelessness and Elderly without medicine?  Maybe as a Church we've abrogated our responsibility by expecting our Government to do everything for us.

I'm not against spending to take care of our own.  I am against waste and corruption and creating dependency.  Americans give more personal funds for "Aid" at home and abroad than probably people in any other country.  We are generous and I think it stems mostly from our Christian heritage.  I wonder how much more we could give if we could get our Government out of our pocket?

I remember memorizing the Preamble to the Constitution back in the 8th Grade.  I remember these legitimate roles of Government according to our Founding Fathers:

Establish Justice (rule of law)

Insure Domestic Tranquility (quell rebellions)

Provide for the Common Defense (a National Army/Navy to defend us)

Promote the General Welfare (Founding Fathers weren't thinking Entitlement Programs as much as...just keep Government from intruding into people's lives so much that it hurts more than helps).

Secure the blessings of Liberty for us and our posterity- (What are the "Blessings of Liberty"?...I think they were enumerated in the Bill of Rights).

So where does Foreign Aid fit in?  I'm not sure it fits according to those Roles of Government in the Preamble.  But I do think it's money well spent.  I don't think anyone in America is suffering because of what we're sending overseas.  I'm Pro-Military but I read that two B2 Bombers that cost $4.4 Billion Dollars is more than the total budget of The World Food Program ($3.2 Billion Budget and is the largest relief agency in the world) which assists 104 million starving and malnourished people in 81 countries.

What do you think?  You are welcome to disagree with me.  Several folks on Facebook did already.

History

I have a lot of friends involved in the Modern Day Abolitionist Movement.  (Yes friends, Slavery is a greater issue today than it ever was in the 1800's in America!)  That's one thought.  Hang on to it for a minute.

Another thought: One of my classes is Russian Culture and History.  One element I've found fascinating is how much Russia's (and the rest of the former Soviet world's) present is shaped by the past (I guess that's true of all of us.)

For example: The emerging Russian Empire was dominated by the Mongol Horde for more than 200 years.  By all accounts it was a particularly ruthless reign of terror that left a lasting impression on Russian Culture.  Not only did the West (Western Europe at least) fail to aid Russia during the invasion, but in the chaos and vacuum of leadership that followed, the West on different occasions wrestled land and control from the Russians.  One invader actually tried to deceive the Russians into thinking he was a long lost heir to the throne and led an invasion at the head of a Polish Army.  His reign lasted less than a year and when he was found out, he was killed and his ashes loaded into a cannon and shot back to Poland!!

To this day Russians are generally distrustful of the West and they learned well the art of despotic rule, ie, they tend towards authoritarian and/or totalitarian rule.

Here's where my two thoughts collide:  There's a great hour-long video floating around produced by PBS's Frontline (http://freedocumentaries.org/teatro.php?filmID=161&lan=undefined&size=undefined),  It's about the Sex Trade in Eastern Europe and along with any number of articles you can find on the internet, you can see that not only is Eastern Europe (Ukraine in particular) a major source country for trafficking victims...but a  primary destination country is Turkey.

Now read this excerpt from one of my text regarding  the occupation of Ukraine/Russia by the Mongols.  More lasting results of the past bearing on the present??

"Each year they would ride forth from their strongholds in the Crimea through the narrow Isthmus of Perekop in roving bands which had no purpose other than to take captives.  In the summer, when the river beds were dry, they would ride in silently, surround villages and descend on them.  The horsemen carried leather thongs to drag away men prisoners.  On the sides of their horses were slung great baskets made like bakers' panniers to carry away children, for their prized booty were young boys and girls whom they sold to the Turks or other neighbors.  Galloping through the towns, they swept up children in their baskets; a sick child was dashed to the ground or against a tree."


"As late as 1571, the Crimean Tatars reached Moscow.  Accounts of the day say they killed 200,000 people and that the rives were swollen with bodies; 130,000 people were carried off into slavery."  (Land of the Firebird, Massie 39).

Dreams

Sometimes dreams can feel so dang real.  

I drove back to SC from Mississippi on Friday.  I was sick with some kind of bug all day and it was a miserable drive.  I didn't get back to SC until a little after midnight.

At some point in the morning I had this dream:  It was Monday morning and I was back in class.  I was supposed to turn-in my mid-term take-home exam but I hadn't finished it.  I was so ticked off at myself for not doing it.  I had no excuse.

So anyway...I wake up...and I'm just feeling miserable because I didn't do my test over the break.  I mean...it took me several minutes to realize that it was in fact...Saturday morning.  I hadn't returned to class yet.  I still had a couple days to finish my exams.

Crazy real dream!

I Was Born a Travelin' Man (and Thank God for Fall Break!)

I have been "talking" with 2 different Mission Sending Organizations for several months.  One based in Florida and one based in Illinois.  A few weeks ago I clicked on the "submit" button after finally completing the online application for the Chicago based agency.  Apparently they forwarded my application to their Director in Ukraine.  A few days later I received a nice email from the guy and an invitation to get together with him via Skype for a telephone interview.  That ended up happening that very day- a 45 minute conversation.

Later that day or the next day he sent me an email informing me that he would be in the States this week and inviting me to spend a day with him in Chicago (or come to Ukraine the following week...which is a little out-of-the-way).  

So here I am.  It's Tuesday night and my Fall Break begins when I finish class tomorrow afternoon.  I'm headed to Atlanta tomorrow where I'll fly to Chicago tomorrow night.  (And I'll get to visit a couple of friends I worked with in Haiti tomorrow night too).  On Thursday I'll spend the day getting to know Doug- who will be my boss in Ukraine should things work out- and learning more about the ministry.

I'll fly back to Atlanta Friday and then drive to Birmingham where I intend to work on my old Jeep for the weekend while visiting some friends there.  

On Monday or Tuesday I'll head to Mississippi and probably help my buddy Stik do some Land Surveying for a few days.

I'm hoping to go to Mississippi State's Homecoming the following weekend before returning to Columbia for the beginning of Book 2 in my Russian Language studies.

Homework

Want to know what my Homework looks like?  Well, actually this isn't a good representation because most of my homework is Grammar, Writing and Language Listening Exercises.  But one of the elements here in South Carolina that's very different from what I did in Ukraine is our once a week Culture and History Lesson.  I think I could have enjoyed being a History Teacher.  I'd much rather hear a good lecture and engage in discussion and read a book than try to remember a million grammar rules. 

In any case, one of our texts is The Orthodox Church by Timothy Ware.  Below are my answers to 3 questions from the 10th and 11th Chapter of said book.  You may find it boring but what the heck.  I know that both of my regular readers want to know what I'm doing these days.

What do you think about orthodoxy's view of the Holy Tradition?  Does it seem to you that they place the traditions, such as the 7 Ecumenical Councils, the Church Canon, etc., on a par with scripture?

The author makes that case.  He goes so far as to fault the Western Church (and those within Orthodoxy) that separate Tradition and Scripture saying that Scripture exists within Tradition.  He says that among the various elements of Tradition that the Bible enjoys pre-eminence…along with the Creed and the Councils.  What kind of pre-eminence is that?  And what of the elements that don’t hold “pre-eminence”?  Writings of the Fathers, Canons, Service Books, Icons, the whole system of Church government, worship, spirituality and art are all elements of Tradition.

 As regards Scripture, the author argues that “if Christians are People of the Book, the Bible is the Book of the People.”  Not something set up over the Church (my interpretation is that he’s saying the Bible has no authority over the Church) because it was the Church in the first place that determined what books would be in the Bible.  “It is from the Church that the Bible ultimately derives its authority” and “it is the Church alone which can interpret Holy Scripture with authority.”

I can agree that the Bible is best understood (interpreted??) in light of Christian community (Church) but there’s something to be said about Scripture being “God breathed and profitable….” (2nd Tim 3:16).

He goes on to say that Tradition is more than a set of abstract propositions- “it is a life, a personal encounter with Christ in the Holy Spirit” and “it is the life of the Holy Spirit in the Church”.  What?  I guess he’s saying that the Holy Spirit works or speaks through all these elements??  I can agree with that but I wouldn’t limit Him to just those elements.

2.       What do you think about Orthodoxy's belief that (in Ware's words) "while we cannot 'merit' salvation, we must certainly work for it, since 'faith without works is dead?' Does this appear to be a contradiction to you?

On the surface, yes there’s definitely a contradiction.   I think the author is mis-using the passage from James.  I don’t think “to work out our Salvation” as Paul says to the Philippians and “faith without works is dead” as in James means that we have to work for our Salvation.  In practice… and in my limited experience,  I feel like most Orthodox Christians hold firmly to a merit-based Salvation…or at least they seem to reject any concept of Eternal Security.  To wit… a Ukrainian Christian friend of mine was recently Baptized.  She grew up in an Orthodox Church but in recent years has embraced a non-denominational Protestant Church.  Her Facebook status on the day she was baptized was something to the effect of  “ Thank God now I know for sure I will go to heaven”…as if her actions in being obedient to follow Christ in Baptism somehow guaranteed her eternal security.  Admittedly I don’t know any Orthodox Christians very well, but my observations is that the devout ones are very concerned with all the outward demonstrations of piety- which to me seems to be an emphasis on “works”.

Towards the end of Chapter 11 the author explains the concept of Deification and in his 3rd point stresses that the process of Deification is simple: go to church, receive the sacraments regularly, pray to God ‘in spirit and in truth’, read the Gospels, and follow the commandments.  That sounds like works-merited Salvation to me.

3.       What do you think of the fact that the Orthodox do not believe that humans were utterly depraved and unable to have good desires after the fall?  Is there any merit to their rejection of Calvin's doctrine of "total depravity" and Augustine's unique concept of "original sin"?

Can we be both utterly depraved and still be capable of some good?  On one hand Scripture says that all our righteousness is as filthy rags and that none of us are good.  I Corinthians 2:14 suggests that we aren’t capable of making spiritual assessments without the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Yet Ware makes a case for what it means to be made in the Image and Likeness of God.  I rather like the way he separates the two.  Spiritually we certainly are fallen and incapable of attaining Salvation on our own.  But as Ware says, we are made in the Image and Likeness of God.  There’s something in us; not in any other creation… that makes us the “Image” of our Father.  It’s like DNA, there’s something of Him in all of us even in our fallen state.  I think we see that when someone who otherwise completely rejects God is does something noble or good.  It’s not because of their innate goodness…but because of the hint of the Creator that’s in all of us.  To be in the “Likeness” of God is to become “like” Him and that’s a process that begins with following God.  Others can argue about Calvin’s view of Irresistible Grace…whether there’s some application of our free will to choose to follow God or whether, like Calvin, we are the Eternal Elect…we don’t automatically “look” like God.  That happens over time as we know Him more and more.  

 Based on the Orthodox understanding of Image and Likeness I at least understand why they reject Calvin’s Total Depravity.  As for Original Sin, the biggest difference I see between Augustine and Orthodoxy is how far “we” had to fall.  In the big scheme of things I don’t know if it makes much difference if you fall from near the top of a cliff or halfway up the cliff.  In both cases, you’re at the bottom at the end of the Fall.  The results- separation from God spiritually- is the same.

Procrastination

Of all the reasons to write a quick blog...doing so to keep from studying or doing homework has to be one of the lamest reasons!

I'm barely treading water on this whole being a student thing.  I do just enough to keep up; to keep from drowning.  I'm lazy here lately...more than usual.

My sleep is completely out of whack.  It's almost like working a night shift.  In Haiti this summer I was good about getting up early, sometimes as early as 5 am and then going to bed before 10 pm.  Since I've been a "student" again, I find myself waking early...at 5 or 6 because I have to in order to finish homework from the day before.  I come home from class at noon and crash on the couch.  Not that there's anything wrong with a good nap...but mine are becoming 3-4 hour long naps.  Then I wake up and cook dinner and watch tv and don't look at homework till midnight.  I go to sleep at 2 and get up again at 5 or 6.  Bad habits!

My only chance of doing homework after class is to go almost straight to Starbucks or Panera.  I'm productive when I do that.

But here it is, 11:55 am and I'm writing a blog and staring at 11 or 12 exercises I need to complete plus some reading.

I'm a student looking forward to Fall Break which begins next week!  (More about that in a few days!)

First Day of School...Again

This will be a short update.  I am in Columbia, SC where I'm studying Russian at Columbia International University- at the Institute of Strategic Languages and Cultures.  Sounds impressive, huh?  First day of class today scared me to death just because I had no clue where they were already and where I am in relation to the rest of the class.  It wasn't a bad day though.  After one day I feel like they are ahead of me conversationally (to be expected as that's a primary focus of this course) and they may have a better grasp of the grammar they've been taught already ( I think they've only covered 4 of the 6 Cases and I've covered all 6 but maybe not in as much detail).  

Columbia is nice; I haven't had time to explore much.  There's a confluence of 3 Rivers here in town and lots of green space.  I have my Kayak and Bike with me.  I'm hoping to go hiking in NC next month when the leaves are changing. I visited 2 different churches last Sunday and might go to a small group meeting this Thursday (What am I thinking?  State and Auburn are on ESPN Thursday night??).  

I'm renting a trailer about a 1/4 mile from the language school.  I'm within 5 miles of any restaurant or store I could want (except an REI Store or Jeep Store).  I know a few people here in town but haven't been able to catch up with them yet.

So that's about it for now.

Decisions....

I've posted stuff like this before.  About how I like when I finally make a decision; reach a conclusion.  There's a sigh of relief that comes with that.

And like a lot of things in my life over the last few years...this isn't etched in stone either...but it's about as close as I get these days.

I've been looking at this Russian Language program at Columbia International University in South Carolina for a few years now...even before I lived in Ukraine.  It's always been an option.

Seems like now is the right time.

I'm still in limboland in regards to affiliating with a ministry/sending agency and getting back to Ukraine.  I think it'll be end of the year/early next year at the earliest before I can do that.  My other option right now is to stay in Mississippi and work a little bit.  I didn't get rich doing that before; I reckon I can not get rich somewhere else just as easily!

In reality I'll have to at least work part-time I think or sell something (Most of my furniture is in an Antique Consignment Shop in Natchez...and I guess if push comes to shove one of the Jeeps could go too).

But I'm excited about a new start.  Again.  I'm looking forward to living in a little trailer or apartment or something and moving my church membership and finding out how much Russian I really know already!  This program is supposed to be very intense!  The program is set-up as a 8-month course they say is equivalent to a 4-year University Degree in Russian!!!  Ideally, I'll do one semester (about half the course) and get affiliated with someone by the end of the year which would put me either in Florida or Illinois (I'm working on applications with 2 sending agencies) for training in the Spring.  Then I'd be ready to deploy to Ukraine as soon as I could complete support raising.

One day at a time though, right?

Lately

Lately.

Staffers are leaving left and right.  We're down to just 6 of us in the Staff House this week.  We have one more week of Participants arriving Monday.  The Lease on the Staff House runs out next month so we are trying to get rid of stuff (we donated our Bunk Beds to an orphanage).  We're probably taking our vehicles back to the Dominican Republic where they were bought.

It's a busy time.

Our Generator gave up the ghost last weekend.  You may remember that we had an electrical problem that necessitated taking ourselves off the City Grid and relying totally on the generator.  Then last weekend the generator threw a rod or something and punched a whole through the cast-iron block.  It's toast. 

The good news is that we had just fixed the electrical panel problem so we're back on the City Grid but it's sporadic at best.

Our Cook is finished after this week so we'll be preparing our own meals next week.  No more Beans and Rice I'm pretty sure.

The Staff that's still here has made the best of the sporadic electricity.  We've had several evenings without power and each time we've ended up sitting on the balcony talking about our time here in Haiti.


We've been recalling our favorite things:  Watching Thunderstorms sweep over the Mountains and stretch across the Bay.  Seeing people hold hands as they cross the streets- regardless of gender or age.  Smiling at children and seeing them light-up in response.  Hearing familiar old hymns from the neighborhood churches and Bible Studies at all hours of the day and night.  Having orphans climb all over you when you visit.  Making new friends from all over the States...and of course, new friends here in Haiti.  The overwhelming sense of joy among some of the most beaten-down people on the planet.

And some things I won't miss:  I'll be ok if I never hear a car horn again.  Traffic without lanes and signals.  A State Dept document says "Haitian Drivers adhere to no known international standards of driving" or something to that effect.  I won't miss spending a day doing something that would take an hour at home.  I won't miss working on a Diesel engine.  I won't miss the pollution/trash.  The overwhelming poverty.

Hate it or love it, I'll never forget what I've seen here.  I've driven from point A to point B almost every day and every day I see people by the thousands that I know have NOTHING.  I pass their "homes"- just tents and I can see inside.  I see NOTHING.  Not all of them mind you.  Some have nice homes...even by American standards.  But most do not.  So many of them lost it all in a matter of minutes.  Most of them are not spending their days cleaning up their lots and rebuilding... their decision every morning is this: "Do I clear the rubble that once was my home or do I find something for my family to eat today?".  Clearly, clearing rubble is a low priority for many of them.

I don't know what's next for me.  But I think I've done what I came here to do.

Waiting....

Things are winding down here.  We had a huge group here last week...about 75 participants on 5 different teams.  It was a surprisingly slow week for me though.  We'll continue to have 30-40 participants every week from now till the 3rd week of August.  There will be NO teams here during my last few days in Haiti.  I suspect I'll be very busy then though.  We are looking for a smaller staff house and if something comes up before the end of the month then I guess since I'll be one of the last staffers here I'll end up doing a LOT of the moving.  I hate moving!

A theme among the staffers this summer has been, "What's next?"  It seems like everyone here is in some sort of transition in their lives.  With one month to go I find myself thinking the same thing.

What I want to do is affiliate with a sending agency- raise support- and go back to Ukraine.  I've been talking with a Florida based organization for a few months now.  I have to make up my mind quickly upon returning home since their next training will begin in October.  The thing is- even though it most definitely is what I want to do- I can't say with any degree of certainty if that's what the Lord wants me to do.

Another option would be to enroll in an Intensive Russian Language Program at Columbia International University.  I relish the idea of being a student- renting an off-campus trailer and just enjoying the change of scenery.  But that doesn't really get me any closer to Ukraine does it?

I can go back to Mississippi and work.  And wait.  I don't like waiting.  I've told my Haiti Family several times this summer that my love language is "Leaving on Time" (I get that from my Dad I think).  I'm tired of waiting.

Words of Wisdom from Dr Seuss:
You won't lag behind, because you'll have the speed.
You'll pass the whole gang and you'll soon take the lead.
Wherever you fly, you'll be best of the best.
Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.

Except when you don't.
Because, sometimes, you won't.

I'm sorry to say so
but, sadly, it's true
that Bang-ups
and Hang-ups
can happen to you.

You can get all hung up
in a prickle-ly perch.
And your gang will fly on.
You'll be left in a Lurch.

You'll come down from the Lurch
with an unpleasant bump.
And the chances are, then,
that you'll be in a Slump.

And when you're in a Slump,
you're not in for much fun.
Un-slumping yourself
is not easily done.

You will come to a place where the streets are not marked.
Some windows are lighted. But mostly they're darked.
A place you could sprain both your elbow and chin!
Do you dare to stay out? Do you dare to go in?
How much can you lose? How much can you win?

And IF you go in, should you turn left or right...
or right-and-three-quarters? Or, maybe, not quite?
Or go around back and sneak in from behind?
Simple it's not, I'm afraid you will find,
for a mind-maker-upper to make up his mind.

You can get so confused
that you'll start in to race
down long wiggled roads at a break-necking pace
and grind on for miles cross weirdish wild space,
headed, I fear, toward a most useless place.
The Waiting Place...

...for people just waiting.
Waiting for a train to go
or a bus to come, or a plane to go
or the mail to come, or the rain to go
or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow
or the waiting around for a Yes or No
or waiting for their hair to grow.
Everyone is just waiting.

Waiting for the fish to bite
or waiting for the wind to fly a kite
or waiting around for Friday night
or waiting, perhaps, for their Uncle Jake
or a pot to boil, or a Better Break
or a string of pearls, or a pair of pants
or a wig with curls, or Another Chance.
Everyone is just waiting.

NO!
That's not for you!

Short of Cash. It's a statement, not a question. Can you help?

So...I'm a little short of cash.

When I left for Haiti I thought I left enough money in the bank to cover my Car Insurance, Health Insurance, Child Support (take a breath...I sponsor a child through Compassion), and a Credit Card Payment.

Alas, I spent too much money buying new gear (lightweight clothing from REI, Water Filter, etc) before coming down here.

As you probably know, even though I'm serving with AIM this summer I'm not really on Staff and so I cannot offer you a way to receive a tax-deduction.

If you want to help me cover my bills over the next two months (July and August- I'll return to Mississippi August 25th), then really the only way to do that is to send money in care of my Dad who will deposit said money into my Hancock Bank Account from which I can pay my bills online.

You can send a Check to: Clinton White, in care of John White- Post Office Box 601, Mize, Mississippi 39116.

We're talking about $121.00 per month for Car Insurance and $38.00 for Compassion.  My Credit Card payment is about $30.00...so I need about $200.00 a month for 2 months...I left money with my Dad to cover Health Insurance for the summer.  I should get reimbursed at some point for my airline ticket to Haiti and that will knock the credit card back down.

How's Haiti?

A buddy of mine asked this profound question today, via Facebook..."How's Haiti?"

It's crazy.  I don't think I've ever been anywhere where I'm more affected by "the tyranny of the urgent"- those things that pop up that demand your attention and keep you from doing more important things.  When something pops up here it quickly becomes a major ordeal.  I suppose a lot of that is spiritual warfare.  The enemy can't be pleased with what's happening here.  It's hard and frustrating but being here seems very significant most of the time.

I could cite a lot of examples.  A day of important shopping is planned.  We have responsibilities to pick-up ministry supplies like food or lumber or concrete or whatever.  Then spur of the moment a vehicle won't start, or is overheating, or someone forgot to tell me they need a truck for some other purpose.  Suddenly the whole schedule is thrown off.

A kid gets sick on one of the sites and necessitates dropping everything to go to a hospital, which is an all day affair at best and often an overnight affair.

The Generator's Air Filter gets grossly clogged-up to the point where it won't run.  That necessitates a night without power and half a day of searching for the right part.

All that stuff is actually important.  It's of utmost importance that we take care of participants...that we get them to a doctor if they need to go.  It's really important to get parts to make the generator run or keeps the trucks going.  It's important to respond to a team that's running low on bread or water.  But anything that isn't planned for nearly shuts us down elsewhere.  The urgent knocks out the planned every time.

It's not that we aren't flexible- a word that anyone who's been on a Mission Trip is familiar with.  We're beyond flexible here.  We're Fluid.  We roll with the punches.  But the planned-for stuff is what we want to be about.  We want to be about serving our teams and serving our Haitian Church Partners.  We want to honor our meeting times with them.  We want to be timely in delivering ministry supplies.  We want to pick-up participants and deliver them at appointed times.  We want to be safe and smart.

AND we want to have some "margin" built in and the discernment to be able to be "Fluid" when we know the Holy Spirit is directing us beyond our "planned-for" stuff.  But when the Urgent comes, the margin is wasted and maybe too often so is the opportunity to join God in what He is doing.

I'm not one to see a demon behind every discordant note.  But you can't deny the spiritual warfare here.  I remember hearing somewhere this axiom: "If the devil can't make you sin, then he'll make you busy"!  It's a good thing to be busy with the "work" of ministry, but sometimes busy is the enemy of productivity and fruitfulness and intimacy with God.

Any Electrical Help Out There?

Attention All Electricians Out There!  I need some help here!

What you see to the left is the junction box for our Staff House?  If I have it right, the Main Power comes in on the Right Side.

We also have a Generator.  Somehow or another, there's a safety built in so that when the Main Power comes on (a few hours a day at random times) it doesn't affect our generator.

Ok..When the generator comes on, (I think the contraption on the Left), the little button on the contraption goes in and the contraption on the Right...that's a switch of some sort...a bridge-like thingy that closes the circuit and provides power for the house from the generator.

Now notice the next picture and my problem:

There should be a really heavy gauge wire from the top-right of the Left contraption to the top-left of the Switch on the Right.  Someone used wire that was way too small.  I suspect that as that wire got hot it eventually burned up the connection on the top-left post on the Switch.

Here's the Question:  What the heck kind of switch is this?  Could some other kind of switch work?

Can someone find something that will work and send it to us?  We have teams coming down every week and someone could bring us what we need.

Right now, we have disconnected the Main Power- we are completely off the Grid to avoid a conflict with our generator and the main power source...which means we are completely dependent on our generator.  That's gonna get expensive and it's a heck of a strain to run the whole house on it.

Let me know if you can help: email me at Clinton@clintonwhite.net

Happy 4th of July

This is my 2nd 4th of July overseas.  In 2007 we had Hamburgers and Hotdogs in Swaziland, Africa.  Last year of course I was at the Camp in Lugansk, Ukraine where we had an "American Breakfast" which was a fried egg on top of a bowl of Chili with a hotdog in it!

Over the last few years I've had the great privilege to meet and know people all over the world.  Today I've seen Facebook Statuses (Stati??) from friends celebrating the Fourth of July in Ukraine, Russian, South Africa, Korea, Peru, Guatemala and Cambodia.  That's crazy!

Today has been pretty low key so far.  We had an early morning Airport pick-up.  Later today I'll go with a local bus driver to pick-up 2 groups totaling 27 people.  Once we get them settled then I can enjoy the rest of the 4th of July with my fellow staffers.  I think we have Hotdogs and Watermelon.

BUT the big surprise for today was a special lunch.  One of our staffers, Toya, definitely has a "Momma/Cook" Gene and she cooked me a Steak with Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Fried Okra.  The steak was pretty tough but it was spicy and very tasty the way she cooked it (which was quite a fete by the way...she was basically cooking over an electric hot plate!)  

Mmmm

Saturday- Pizza Day

Another Saturday.

We've had "Pizza Night" every Saturday that I've been here.

The first 3 or 4 weeks we had Domino's.  Yes.  Domino's Pizza.  You know those Portable Trailer thingy's you might see at some sort of festival or carnival??  Well, some enterprising genius brought a Domino's Pizza Trailer over from the Dominican Republic (I assume this because the writing on the trailer is in Spanish) and parked it pretty much right next to the US Embassy and across the street from a UN Compound.  I said genius, right?

Anyway, for a mere $18.00 a pizza you too can eat like a youth group in Haiti.

Alas, a large contingent of US troops have left Haiti so the Dominoes packed it up and moved to a new location.

But we had Pizza anyway- we bought it from the Quebec Hotel here in Port Au Prince...cheaper and just as good.

So...Saturday...after dropping off all our teams at the Airport, we enjoyed Pizza Night...and Worship Night while the entire team is in the house.

One Month Down

Time does fly.  I've been in Haiti for a month already.  Right now I'm enjoying a day off- after waking early to get our transportation needs in order for the day and taking part in our daily morning devotions- I went back to sleep until lunch!  I'm trying to get in some reading and guitar playing and maybe watching a movie.  I was pretty whipped coming out of the weekend!

We continue to have daily vehicle problems.  We've had a van without a transmission ever since before I arrived.  We finally got it going last week but cranking it and driving it only revealed other problems.  I think the initial cause of the most of the problems is bad fuel combined with poor maintenance like changing filters, etc.  But now the problems are greater- likely fouled up injectors and sensors and the like.  We need a really good Diesel mechanic and maybe a portable code reader to get everything back in order.

Everyday is a juggling game in terms of who gets which vehicle.  We have a team that conducts Discipleship among local Pastors and they also coordinate a partnership between Haitian and non-Haitian Churches....this requires local travel 2-3 days a week.  Our Set-Up Team is constantly evaluating Ministry sites and homes where our teams live during the week...they need transportation to do that.  We have airport pick-ups and drop-offs as well as "lost-luggage" runs a few times a week.  We generally need to resupply our short-term teams with perishable food on Wednesdays.  If we provide any other supplies to the teams- like Food for a church or Building supplies- then we do that on Wednesday and Thursday.  Also Wednesday-Friday, we start planning for the next week so we make massive shopping runs.  Our Directors here need to visit local orphanages about once a week.  If a vehicle needs a part, we usually have to take the part we need off and then take it into the city to find a replacement, thus using 2 vehicles!  Finally, on Saturdays we have to make multiple airport runs for departing teams and on Sunday we make multiple airport pick-ups as well transport our Project Leadership teams and all the supplies they'll need for a week to their sites.

Having a "down" vehicle complicates the heck out of everything!

If we have more than 15 or so people departing or arriving then we usually hire a local bus-driver- here's what one of our airport pick-ups looked like yesterday morning with a team of 21 people:

Weekend

It's late Saturday night.  A little past my bedtime really.  Here's what my weekend looks like.

First a couple of definitions:
Project Leadership Team-A Project Leader and a few Support Staff that live at a Ministry Site with one of the Short Term Mission Teams.
Mission Team- usually a church group

Teams depart on Saturdays.  We had a small group of teenagers from Indianapolis with us all week in the Staff House.  They were great, I really enjoyed having them around.  They had to leave at 6 am this morning so I was up in time to see them off.

• At 7:30ish I made a "Water Run"- a trip to a local store to buy drinking water- about 130 gallons.
• At 8:30ish I picked up one of our Project Leadership Teams and a few Mission Team Members from  their ministry site.
• At 9:30ish I made another Water Run- stocking up...we need about 600 gallons for the Staff House and the two team houses this week.
• At noon I took the last two participants to the airport...and picked up Pizza at the Domino's trailer near the US Embassy.

Tonight one of the World Race Teams joined us for our weekly worship time which was preceded by Pizza and followed by Ice Cream!  After the party died down I talked Sarah into cutting my hair.  Pictures later.

In the morning I'll make an Airport run to pick up 8 incoming participants.  At the same time, two Project Leadership Teams will go to their ministry sites.  21 more participants will arrive after lunch and 2 more later in the day.  After my first airport run I'll continue to make Water Runs and disperse supplies and participants to the two Leadership Teams before making a final airport run.

All this assuming all the vehicles keep running and I don't get lost going to or from the airport!

Connections

Here's a couple of nice "Hey what are you doing here?" moments so far in Haiti.

When I arrived the first night I ran into Stacy.  Stacy was on my World Race Squad and I think this was the first time I had seen her since Nov 19, 2007.

She's here leading a World Race Relief Team for the month.

It was awesome running into her!

This story will take a few minutes but it's a good one. This is Debbie from Tupelo.  A few minutes after her arrival today we figured out that we share the obvious Mississippi Connection.

In the course of getting to know one another she mentioned one of her daughters whose name is Shannon...and a slight bell went off.

At some point she mentioned her daughter went to Ole Miss...a big bell went off.

Then she mentioned that her daughter is currently on The World Race because some guy spoke at the BSU about it.  The lights, the bells, the whistle's all went off.

That's when I asked her if she would believe that I was that guy that spoke back in Nov 08.  Shannon applied for The World Race less than a week after I spoke.

It was almost like a little family reunion.

Debbie and another World Race Parent are in town for the week which is a pretty awesome thing for a parent to do.

First Blog from Haiti

First blog from Haiti.  But where to begin?

Should I write about my first impressions?  About how the daily thundershower began right after I stepped out of the airport and I stood underneath a tarp roof for over an hour waiting on someone to pick me up.  Should I mention there were hundreds of us packed -in that stifling, confined space?

Should I write about what I saw and smelled riding in the back of the already beat-up Nissan Caravan on the way to the Staff House?  I saw the Tent Cities.  I saw crumbled buildings.  I saw tin-shacks seemingly stacked upon one another on a hillside- probably the worst living conditions I’ve ever seen.  And they didn’t pop up since the Earthquake… they pre-dated the Earthquake.  People were living like that well before the Earthquake.

I could write about NGO World.  Behind a fence near the airport are, I guess, thousands of workers with Non-Govt Organizations.  A lot of the NGO’s have really nice Mercedes trucks or Land Rovers or Pathfinders…and we’re struggling to keep our used Nissan Vans and Chevy Truck running. I could write about how the US Embassy appears to be the nicest building around and how there’s a Domino’s Pizza trailer just down the street from it. 

Should I write about the trash that is everywhere?    I don’t think there’s been any trash pick-up since January (and maybe not before then either!).  And when it rains (as it does every day), the roads coming down the hill onto the flat plain surrounding the port become rivers and gulleys washing down even more debris.  There seemed to be so much flotsam and jetsam that you could have walked on it across the flooded streets.  Today I drove for the first time- going up one of those hills felt more like driving up a riverbed- it was that rocky and water was flowing down all the way.

I could write about how it took 3 hours to drive 10 miles yesterday because of the rain, the traffic and the messed-up roads.

Or I could write about how this one lady in a neighborhood we’ve been ministering in this week (alongside a local Pastor) has turned her home into a school- taking in a dozen or so neighborhood kids!  About how appreciative they were for a small donation of crayons and stuff. 

I could write about the girl and her baby one of our Project Leaders took to the hospital yesterday.

I could write about running into some Southern Baptist Disaster Relief guys from Oklahoma today while buying 120 gallons of drinking water.

I could write about running into World Race friends down here or about the World Race Relief Team that arrived yesterday- 50 of them for one month- many who have never been on a mission trip before!

I could write about how awesome this week’s team is- a group from a church in Wisconsin along with 4 individuals working with them.

I could write about an amazing Staff here- about how diverse we are but about how much it seems everyone really desires this communal living arrangement.

I could write about Rice and Beans.  I could write A LOT about rice and beans!

I could write about the apparent stoicism of the Haitian people.  They can talk so matter-of-factly about losing loved ones in the Earthquake.

I could write about the way the Haitian believers have responded to the Earthquake- in repentance and dependence upon God- and about how, in the long run, all of these well-meaning Americans and the American Church (I’m one of them) may be here to learn something from them in preparation for times to come in America!

I could write about our Haitian Translators who are being discipled and who are discipling us too.  They are men-of-God bringing Kingdom to the Republic!

I could write about the beauty amidst the destruction- the port city of Port Au Prince is surrounded by the Caribbean Ocean and Mountains!

I just don’t know where to start.

Haiti Bound

I've been enjoying a full weekend with family in Vicksburg.  My youngest niece from Atlanta is here (her birthday was a few days ago) and my Dad has a birthday next week... and of course, this is Memorial Day weekend.  Pretty much all the immediate family except one nephew is here.  All the rug-rats are here too (I have 6 great-nephews and 2 great-nieces all under age 9)!  It's been fun.

And...I guess it's my going-away party too.  I'm leaving.  On a jet plane.  Don't know when I'll be back again.... the John Denver tune breaks down at this point because in fact, I don't "hate" to go.  I'm ready to go.  And I do know when I'll be back again (Lord willing) because I have a return ticket for the end of August.

I'm headed to Haiti first thing tomorrow morning.  After a circuitous route from Jackson, MS to Charlotte, NC to Miami, FL...I should arrive in Port Au Prince, Haiti tomorrow afternoon.  I'll be there 3 months serving with my friends from Adventures in Missions.

We have a full summer ahead.  Mostly, I'll live in a rented house (formerly a small hotel) with a weekly-variable number of other AIM Staff.  My work will probably focus primarily on pastoring and supporting the staff.  Together we will host and serve upwards of 800 volunteers throughout the summer.  Hey?  Want to come to Haiti...you can join a team or come as in individual...not just with a group from your church!

Want to know more?  Check out these resources:

Adventures in Missions-Haiti
Adventures in Missions- Haiti/Blog
Church to Church on Facebook-
Seth Barnes' blog about Church to Church-

In short- part of the big-picture vision AIM has for serving in Haiti is for Haitian Pastors to Spiritually Re-Father the Nation in the wake of the massive earthquake that shook Haiti's physical and spiritual foundations. Now it's time to rebuild- physically and spiritually.  Your Church could be a huge part of that re-building process.  It's not about an American church dumping cash in Haiti- it's about real partnership where long-term Discipleship is more important than anything we can build with hammers and nails.

Is that something you want to be a part of?

Top Character Strengths....

My sweet friend Thuy got this from her sister- a free survey that ranks your character strengths.  You can check yours out at this site:  http://www.viasurvey.org/Account/Register/

Here's mine:

Your Top Character Strength

Spirituality, sense of purpose, and faith
You have strong and coherent beliefs about the higher purpose and meaning of the universe. You know where you fit in the larger scheme. Your beliefs shape your actions and are a source of comfort to you.

Your Second Character Strength

Honesty, authenticity, and genuineness
You are an honest person, not only by speaking the truth but by living your life in a genuine and authentic way. You are down to earth and without pretense; you are a "real" person.

Your Third Character Strength

Judgment, critical thinking, and open-mindedness
Thinking things through and examining them from all sides are important aspects of who you are. You do not jump to conclusions, and you rely only on solid evidence to make your decisions. You are able to change your mind.

Your Fourth Character Strength

Citizenship, teamwork, and loyalty
You excel as a member of a group. You are a loyal and dedicated teammate, you always do your share, and you work hard for the success of your group.

Your Fifth Character Strength

Forgiveness and mercy
You forgive those who have done you wrong. You always give people a second chance. Your guiding principle is mercy and not revenge.

Character Strength #6

Modesty and humility
You do not seek the spotlight, preferring to let your accomplishments speak for themselves. You do not regard yourself as special, and others recognize and value your modesty.

Character Strength #7

Perspective (wisdom)
Although you may not think of yourself as wise, your friends hold this view of you. They value your perspective on matters and turn to you for advice. You have a way of looking at the world that makes sense to others and to yourself.

Character Strength #8

Fairness, equity, and justice
Treating all people fairly is one of your abiding principles. You do not let your personal feelings bias your decisions about other people. You give everyone a chance.

Character Strength #9

Leadership
You excel at the tasks of leadership: encouraging a group to get things done and preserving harmony within the group by making everyone feel included. You do a good job organizing activities and seeing that they happen.

Character Strength #10

Kindness and generosity
You are kind and generous to others, and you are never too busy to do a favor. You enjoy doing good deeds for others, even if you do not know them well.

Character Strength #11

Bravery and valor
You are a courageous person who does not shrink from threat, challenge, difficulty, or pain. You speak up for what is right even if there is opposition. You act on your convictions.

Character Strength #12

Curiosity and interest in the world
You are curious about everything. You are always asking questions, and you find all subjects and topics fascinating. You like exploration and discovery.

Character Strength #13

Social intelligence
You are aware of the motives and feelings of other people. You know what to do to fit in to different social situations, and you know what to do to put others at ease.

Character Strength #14

Capacity to love and be loved
You value close relations with others, in particular those in which sharing and caring are reciprocated. The people to whom you feel most close are the same people who feel most close to you.

Character Strength #15

Industry, diligence, and perseverance
You work hard to finish what you start. No matter the project, you "get it out the door" in timely fashion. You do not get distracted when you work, and you take satisfaction in completing tasks.

Character Strength #16

Appreciation of beauty and excellence
You notice and appreciate beauty, excellence, and/or skilled performance in all domains of life, from nature to art to mathematics to science to everyday experience.

Character Strength #17

Creativity, ingenuity, and originality
Thinking of new ways to do things is a crucial part of who you are. You are never content with doing something the conventional way if a better way is possible.

Character Strength #18

Love of learning
You love learning new things, whether in a class or on your own. You have always loved school, reading, and museums-anywhere and everywhere there is an opportunity to learn.

Character Strength #19

Caution, prudence, and discretion
You are a careful person, and your choices are consistently prudent ones. You do not say or do things that you might later regret.

Character Strength #20

Gratitude
You are aware of the good things that happen to you, and you never take them for granted. Your friends and family members know that you are a grateful person because you always take the time to express your thanks.

Character Strength #21

Hope, optimism, and future-mindedness
You expect the best in the future, and you work to achieve it. You believe that the future is something that you can control.

Character Strength #22

Self-control and self-regulation
You self-consciously regulate what you feel and what you do. You are a disciplined person. You are in control of your appetites and your emotions, not vice versa.

Character Strength #23

Zest, enthusiasm, and energy
Regardless of what you do, you approach it with excitement and energy. You never do anything halfway or halfheartedly. For you, life is an adventure.

Character Strength #24

Humor and playfulness
You like to laugh and tease. Bringing smiles to other people is important to you. You try to see the light side of all situations.