Coastal Haiti Mission Newsletter
March 2024
Listen
Peter, James, and John were honored. Jesus had invited them to accompany Him to a mountain to pray. In all likelihood they probably tried to hide their pridefulness in being the only ones chosen by the Master to go with Him. I mean, there were nine other disciples not included in the invitation. And it wasn’t the first time the three had been allowed to be with Jesus during a special event (and it wouldn’t be the last). They were also chosen to be with Him when He raised up the daughter of Jairus from the dead.
And now, climbing the mountain with Jesus, they were glad for the opportunity to be alone with Him once again. They were fishermen by trade, and the brothers, James and John, were in business together. Peter was known to be impetuous, aggressive, and daring. Jesus called Zebedee’s sons, James and John, the “Sons of Thunder.”
As they ascended the mountain the three disciples had no idea what awaited them. Something that would shake them to the core and scramble their emotions with both fear and joy.
Arriving at their destination on the mountain, they settled down to pray. Eventually, I suppose because of their strenuous hike up the mountain, the disciples fell asleep. When they finally awakened they saw Jesus, splendid and majestic in appearance. His countenance had changed and His garments, the whitest white they had ever seen, were flashing with the “brilliance of lightning.” (Luke 9:29 TAB) He was speaking with two men – Moses and Elijah! (They must have thought they were dreaming!) The two prophets from the past were conversing with Jesus concerning His impending exit from this life (Luke 9:31 TAB).
Their conversation ended, the two prophets set out to leave when Peter sprang into action. They must not go! They must remain there on the mountain! And so must Jesus! Not realizing the implication of what he was suggesting, he also promised they would build living quarters for each one. They would be safe there.
Suddenly, even as Peter spoke, a cloud appeared and began to overshadow the small group. Now this was no ordinary cloud – it was closing in on them! Peter, James, and John were shaking in their boots, seized with alarm and fear.
And then, the VOICE:
“…This is My Son, My Chosen One, LISTEN TO HIM” (Luke 9:35 ESV).
And then, all was normal again. The disciples saw Jesus only. Probably tried to process all they had just seen. But, one thing they knew: The HOLY FATHER had spoken directly to them!
Soon the four were heading back down the mountain. JESUS THE CHRIST would soon be taken by the Chief Priests,the captains of the temple, and members of the Sanhedrin to be whipped, beaten beyond recognition, and crucified under the rule of Pontius Pilate, a governmental representative of Imperial Rome.
PETER HIS DISCIPLE because of his faith would be crucified upside down in Rome during Nero’s persecution in the mid 60s A.D.
JAMES HIS DISCIPLE because of his faith would be decapitated in about A.D. 44, under the rule of Herod Agrippa I.
JOHN HIS APOSTLE because of his faith and leadership in the Church would be consigned to isolation for 18 months on the island of Patmos, a tiny island lying off the coast of Asia Minor in the Aegean Sea.
According to tradition, John was banished there under the rule of Domitian in A.D. 95. After his confinement on the island he was allowed to return to Ephesus where he later died of natural causes.
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I know that you all are aware that we can hear but not listen. Often, as we speak with one another, whether during an argument or a friendly talk, instead of really listening to the one we are conversing with, we are thinking about what we will say next. Unless we are aware of that, we will continue to do it. (I think it is automatic unless you are a trained counselor, perhaps.) Our opponent or friend will probably do the same thing, and in the end, nothing healing or satisfying will come out of such a useless conversation and both parties will be unsatisfied.
God our Father told Peter, James, and John to LISTEN to His Son, Jesus. We need to learn to truly listen. The words of Jesus and His faithful disciples and apostles who are still speaking through our Old and New Testaments are life giving, life affirming, and the best advice available in this world for a satisfying, and productive life. There are many voices in the world vying for our attention, many dead-end roads to travel, many paths to nowhere. Only one voice will bring us home. That of the Father’s beloved Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. LISTEN to Him!
Foot note
On the night He was betrayed, Jesus settled His disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane and then walked away from them to find a private place to pray. He took only three of His disciples with Him. Yup, you guessed it: Peter, James, and John.
Walking this Way with you,
Connie
The School Lunch Program
Pastor Coty Writes:
With the situation of severe famine in Haiti these days, many may think that our people are all finished. Today, more than ever before, Haiti is facing the biggest challenge of insecurity in many areas. The basic products to survive, like food, medicine and many other items, become more and more difficult to get.
Many people don’t follow the news but those who do, can witness the sad situation of our country in these days. The largest city, which is also the capital, Port-au-Prince, is now being directed by gangsters, and this situation has an impact on the whole country, because everything comes from Port-au-Prince.
Now, considering this sad situation, you would not expect to see smiles on people’s faces. But it’s totally different. The kids are an excellent example. Whenever they get something to eat, it brings joy to them.
The school lunch program solves some of the food insecurity problem for our kids in Cahess.
With the assurance of a plate of rice and beans at school every school day, the parents have peace of mind in sending their kids to school.
Thanks to our supporters in the USA. You care for us, and for that, we are very grateful.
We say God bless you and happy Easter.
Pastor Coty
Food for the Needy
Pastor Coty Writes:
As we celebrated the resurrection day of our Savior Jesus Christ, we made sure that our joy did not come to an end right after the service.
Many times, people lose their joy right after the church service. In these days there are too many things to think about and that can take our joy away. Mostly, the need of food, plays a big part of our daily lives.
This Sunday, as we celebrated the resurrection day of our Savior Jesus Christ, we were able to share some rice to every family right after the service. What a joy!!!
We did not announce this, but while the people came just to worship, they were surprised to receive more than they expected.
I was thinking of the women who went to visit Jesus’ tomb. They went to see Jesus’ body. However, they were surprised to see that he wasn’t there and to find out that he was alive.
The Food for the Needy Program isn’t for the church’s people only, but for everyone. Today we were happy to celebrate the resurrection of our Savior with the church people in this way.
We did only rice because rice is what Haitian people consider most needed in their diet. When they have the rice, they will find a way of cooking it. Some people will get beans, some will get spinach, and some will get some kind of wild leaves that they know about in the village, that they can put together with rice.
Today is a blessed day in many ways.
Thanks to our supporters.
Pastor Coty Joseph.
A Well for the Garden and the School
Pastor Coty Writes:
We remember when we used to send for water to cook at the school and for the people to drink.
Now, because we have a well on our property, we are blessed to have water available for the school, the church, and the demonstration garden.
In the past, for one school day, 5 buckets of water were not enough for just the kids to drink. Mackendy Blanc, a young man who is a kitchen helper, used to get tired of carrying water to our cooks.
An organization drilled a well for us, but we couldn’t use it because it wasn’t outfitted with a pump and the required equipment to get the water to a storage tank.
When we started the garden project, we were in need of a source of water for the garden.
At this time, Coastal Haiti Mission received a designated gift, which enabled us to complete the system. Now we have water for our demonstration garden, our backyard garden, for our cooks in the kitchen, and for our kids to drink.
The Well is 110 feet deep, and it is sealed at the surface. The submersible pump pumps the water to a tank. The water is then distributed to where we need it.
Our plan is also to give water to the community. Sometimes the hand pumps in the local wells fail. When this happens, the people have a big problem to get water.
Also, our water is safe. It comes from a very deep well.
Thanks to God and our Coastal Haiti Mission family.
Pastor Coty Joseph
Life in the Village
Pastor Coty Writes:
The harvest celebration is a traditional festival we have in the church of Cahess. We celebrate this festival every year on a special Sunday in our church.
With joy, some of the people brought part of what they grew in their gardens, to bless the church.
This year we were overwhelmed to see how the people were happy to participate, even when life is so difficult.
We did not have great expectations, because there was not enough rain in the growing season, but we received more than we expected.
Glory to God.
Our prayer is to see God pour his blessing on the village so everyone will have enough to survive.
Pastor Coty
The Home Lighting Project
Pastor Coty Writes:
We installed a Cyclops rechargeable light in a home. We took a photo of the room where the lamp was to be located, before we installed the lamp. Then we installed the lamp.
The lady who lives in the home was standing by brother Monel when the light was turned on. She looked at the illuminated room and laughed with joy.
The light project is a tool to bring good change to people’s lives.
The room before the light was installed.
A joyous laugh!
Living will be easier now.
The Drought Resistant Garden Project
A report by project leader Daisee Kangas
Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the first-fruits of all your crops,
then your barns will be filled to overflowing,
and your vats will brim over with new wine. Proverbs 3:10
Previously, I mentioned that we were looking to create a niche for the Solidarity Gardeners at the market as they have been blessed with an abundance of vegetables and we would like to utilize every opportunity for them to become self sufficient. It was determined the oranges, limes, and Passion fruit would help to create, at least in part this new niche at the markets. Through the generosity of CHM we were able to purchase 10 orange trees, 10 lime trees, and several sachets of Passion fruit. The plants were distributed among the gardeners based on who had the most appropriate growing conditions for each. We are not finished yet and will continue to look for unique crops to complete or at least compliment their crop diversity.
Presently, Jeff and Yamoutch are working on planting onions, carrots and leeks. They are also testing a new eggplant variety. There are also some drought issues and the gardeners are starting to cover their gardens.
I have been extremely blessed to learn of two recent gifts provided by the gardeners. First, they donated vegetables for the school lunch program and secondly, they tithed to the church. I am amazed at how this simple gardening project seems to be growing beyond the garden. Not just for their own prosperity but for the benefit of the community at large.
Please continue to pray that Father will bless the work of their hand according to His pleasure.
Proverbs 19:17 ESV
Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and He will repay him for his deed.
A blessing for you from the scripture:
2 Thessalonians 3: 16
Now may the Lord of peace himself
give you his peace at all times and in
every situation. The Lord be with you all.
Thank you, Family and Friends of Coastal Haiti Mission, for all that you do to help the people in Cahess, Haiti. You are making a huge difference for these people.
Please remember, that CHM must continue to send our monthly commitment of $1700 to carry on the ongoing CHM ministry in Cahess. This is in addition to the cost of the School Lunch Program.
If you desire to help, please send your tax-deductible check to our address and tell us how you want us to use your donation:
Coastal Haiti Mission
C/O Constance Goddard
3048 Spring Fancy Lane
Indian Trail, NC 28079
Or For tax deductible “online donations”, please use our PayPal service. Also please designate how you want us to use your donation.
<May the Lord our God, who knows your heart and sees your actions, grant you great joy as you serve Him. Connie, Esther, Pastor Coty, Carl, Dan, and Ken are very grateful for your sacrifice. Ken Johansson CHM Newsletter Editor