Each day adds a bit more to our life here in Haiti. Yesterday I went to the airport with Ray and Vero. We had a team leaving from Ray's mission. With some reported cases of Cholera across the street from them, they felt it best to send the team out. It was a LONG day...the plane went to Port au Prince first to unload supplies for the crisis there, and then came here to get the team. Customs in Port kept them from unloading the plane for over 2 hours. No idea why, but they did. But eventually the plane did get here and headed for the US.
Before we left for the airport, I got some photos of Don working with the 8 guys he hired to help mix and pour the cement for the one pillar for the gate. Thankfully it went very well. Now we wait a couple of days for that cement to dry and then he'll get the next pillar up and going. Then the gate itself. For those of you who have been here before, I thought I'd put a drawing of where the gate will be. And a few pics of them pouring the cement.
As for the Cholera situation...I guess it depends on where you check as to what is happening. We really don't have any more news on this end. We are just waiting to see what the government will do, along with the many, many organizations who are working to control this.
As we know things, we will pass them along. Until then, keep praying. And along with us, remember God IS in control and He knows what is happening here. We are safely in His hands. We simply praise Him for all He has done and is doing in Haiti. I hope you, with us, are keeping your hand firmly grasping His in all situations.
Today will be an ultra busy day for us. Don is working frantically to get our gate up. He has fellows coming today to dig the hole for the main post, and then put up the wooden brackets so he can pour the cement on Monday. We also have a team and he is trying to help as he can with that...and also haul sand and gravel for the cement pour. He is working three ways against each other today and can use some extra prayers.
Against docs order, I will be heading to the airport today. MFI, in conjunction with Samaritans Purse, are sending in a DC-3 load of supplies to help with the Cholera epidemic. We have heard (but not sure if it's just rumors) that there are three places in Port au Prince which have reported an outbreak, also. Another rumor (no way to check it) is that they want to close down the southern half of the country to try and get control of this. Whatever is happening, a HUGE amount of prayers are needed. We will be working with MFI in trying to get things moving on this end for the doctors and hospitals in our area. We know there are many needs now, and with the Lord's help, we hope to help.
Someone said, all they need is water to keep hydrated and they'll be fine. Well, in essence that may be true...but they do need meds too. And as for the water??? Well, all they have is the bad water which led to this situation. So it's imperative that we find a way to get good water to these areas, or to find a way to filter and sanitize the water. We'll be starting to work on that right away.... PRAY, PRAY, PRAY!!!
I just this minute got off the phone with MFI...we will have a plane today and then again tomorrow. Samaritans Purse and MFI are always ready to step up and be there when the needs arise. Keep them in prayer, too, please.
I'll try to keep you all updated on what is happening....
P.S. -- if you want to send support, the fastest way is to make an Online Donation. USA & International credit cards can be processed by our system. Go to www.WorldOutreach.org / click on 'Donate' / and select our names. Or, you can mail your support to: World Outreach, PO Box B, Marietta GA 30061 and designate for Davis. Thank You!
This week has been a bit of a struggle, in many ways. Aside from the constant pains, the internet has been acting up and it's SO frustrating, but I'm wading through all of that, and it seems there is a fellow on the team who can help with this. Pray for that!
Since I'm only allowed at the airport one day a week now, I didn't go in to meet the team on Thursday. And I had totally forgotten that the Hendricks Motor Sports group was flying in a work team, also. I had said I'd try to be there to meet them, but obviously I didn't make it. I am so upset about that.
I guess I need to state that WE ARE NOT IN ANY DANGER HERE!!!
And now for the HUGE prayer request. Haiti seems to be going through a horrible time. First it was the earthquake. Then in the aftermath of that, all of the homeless and starving. We were finally starting to get a grip and helping a lot where we could. Now this new hit has come. So many things to pray for concerning this latest set back. Pray for the doctors, the hospitals and the people themselves. I will put two web sites you can read about this. I think the best is "The Australian". But both give an overview of the situation now. The headline in "The Australian" is: "Cholera brings more misery to Haiti's quake survivors". It seems most of this is occurring in the Artibonite valley area of Haiti. This is quite a ways south and east of us. Please, keep this in prayer and lift it up on prayer chains whenever you can. The Haitians have suffered so much and now more is hitting them. Pray with us that God will step in and put His hand on things and help to overcome this latest tragedy.
The web sites are:
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/cholera-brings-more-misery-to-haitis-quake-survivors/story-e6frg6so-1225942424279
http://www.hearldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/cholera-epidemic-hits-haiti-135-dead/story-e6frf7jx-1225942060829
If you have a problem getting to the sites (I hope I typed them right), simply go to either The Australian.com.au or to Hearldsun.com and find the stories.
Please keep praying for Haiti!!
Just wanted to put a couple of photos of the welding Don has been doing. Each of the pieces (which were cut ahead of time, most by a team) had to welded into place. Then each of the legs had to be welded together and THEN the braces had to welded into place, and then the bigger braces to hold it once the cement is poured around it. Now you can see why it took him days to do it. And when I wasn't out there, he had to keep stopping for all the people that came in.
We have this ONE part of the gate done. (WE is a collective term, meaning HE did the work and I watched.) You can see how big it is. It is 12 feet long (or high when it is upright). Four feet will be in the ground. He thinks he has enough forms to do this, at least we pray he does. Then he can start cutting and welding for the next column. That one won't be quite as involved as it will be anchored to a wall. This one is free standing.
Now you have a little look into what is going on with this gate. It's a huge project and he's working hard on it.
We've had some more rains, but at least not the deluge we have been having. Just good soaking rains. So, at this point no need to order gopher wood for a boat...but we'll see.
Don was checking something out on the internet yesterday and found a bit of news that isn't the greatest. The earthquake we had was bad...but the two plates didn't separate like they usually do. One of the plates is caught on a small (relative word) section of the other one. So, experts are saying another quake is certain...just don't know when, and it could be worse than the first one. Not something we look forward to at all. So, prayers are needed for Haiti again.
Again, we have to depend on the Lord and we know He knows all about this and can see us through it all. Psalm 28: 7a "the Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped." Again, Psalms found the right place when needed. We truly serve an awesome and powerful God!! Have a wonderful and blessed day!!
I have often wondered if you all get tired of me telling you of our days here in Haiti. Most are never the same...there is ALWAYS something different going on, but not a whole lot exciting. I guess my "ramblings" are just that...our day to day unexciting things. But if you are checking in, you can't be TOO bored, yet!
Don has been working so hard to get this gate going. He has spend DAYS welding the interior for just ONE post to hold the gates. He has another post to weld the interior for and then he can start on the actual GATE. He came in today and said, "Well, THAT welding job is done." Now he has to go and get sand, gravel and cement to get this post into the ground. That will happen, I think, on Monday.
Stan and Gloria arrived on Tuesday and have been busy. They have gone all over the place and seen a lot of different people. They have also gotten a lot of work done. The team from Pittsburgh comes in this coming Thursday and I think he is ready for them.
I have spent a couple of days working with Remy and Vero on setting up a blog. I was sure they would have no problem once it was set up. I was right. Remy LOVES it and is so excited to get it going. He wants to keep everyone informed on all that is happening at IDADEE. So, if you are interested in seeing what is happening, go to: www.IDADEEchildrenshome.blogspot.com There are already several posts on it.
Still need prayers for my right arm, shoulder and neck. Since the "flying trip", it just doesn't want to get better. I'm not real sure where "pushing too much", or "not enough pushing" is with this thing. It hurts either way, but doing the exercises hasn't made any difference. I'll keep doing them, simply because I don't want that arm to atrophy.
Had to also include an "Abbisim" in here. Over the last couple of years she has had some major problems with ant bites. Yesterday she got one little bite, and was furious with the ants in general. She didn't know anyone was around and she sat on the kitchen floor by the door, with a scissors. She was trying to cut the ants in half. She kept saying, "Want a piece of me?" And then snip, snip. Wish I had a video when she pulls some of this stuff.
I've been rereading the Psalms again. Why is it that every time I sit down with the Bible, there is always something I desperately need at that time? Gee...some might call it a coincident... I call it God intervening. He always knows what I need when I need it. It's another example of our AWESOME God.
For tonight, I pray you are all walking in the light of the Lord!!! Let His light shine forth from you to others!!! Blessings!
I guess we are really moving into the "electronic age". I mean, I felt pretty smart when I could type, then came the basic computers...we had a Commodore 64...and then WOW, up to the "real" stuff, a full fledged computer. A lot of what I know about computers, I taught myself (so you see why I'm slow on things). But then when the WEB come into our lives...another big WOW!! The web page didn't work out too well, I couldn't figure out how to get into it to change things! But now...BLOGGING, this I can handle. Oh yes, I've ordered things on line, too, so I'm feeling pretty "up to date" on computers/web/blogs...(for an older lady this isn't bad, right?)
Well, now our mission, World Outreach Ministries, has taken us a step further!! This is another step up into the future for us. They have gone totally modern or computerized, or however you want to say it...we now have on line donations available. Now, I'm not real sure how all of this works, but I know it does. And it's SO easy....here's all you do:
Go to: www.WorldOutreach.org click on Donate and then select our name (Don and Karen Davis, Fund code #10). It's really pretty simple and awesome. I enjoy reading about all the things World Outreach does, anyway. Yes, they help us, but they are helping so many others spread the Word of God, worldwide!!
Time is short and we, as Christians, need to keep the lost in prayer. And we need to pray for the missionaries around the world, as World Outreach (WOM) does!! We praise God that they keep US in prayer constantly...and we can feel it. They not only channel our funds, they pray for us and keep us informed on important things. Jason Peebles is a very gifted evangelist and has traveled the world for missions. He has first hand knowledge of how important it is to reach the lost. And he set this agency up to help those of us doing what God has called us to do. Pray for WOM, and it's staff, and pray for the missionaries under their covering. We have been with WOM since 1986, and they have blessed us abundantly!
Thank you for praying for US.
It seems every day has something else in store for us. But that is life all over the world, isn't it? Years ago I had thought life was a bit boring...well, never again. When we first received the Lord as our Savior, we learned a short little ditty. It went: "When you walk with the Lord, you don't get bored! Sing Alleluia, Amen!" Well, that is SO true. Now I KNOW the Lord has sense of humor...I'm living evidence of that!! I have to admit that this week has been hard on me, I've been down and feeling totally useless. Then Don came in and was so frustrated. He's been working, welding the ironwork for the posts for the gate in our driveway. He said there were so many people coming, he couldn't even weld. So, I took a chair, my book, and went out to sit by him. For some reason, when I'm there, the people scatter. So, I sat quite a bit of 2 days, while Don welded. Since I couldn't do much else, this was fine. BUT...at least I WAS doing something. Today was another of those days. I'm feeling a lot better and want to get back to work...but know I'm still a bit limited. This time Abbie came out to "help" grandpa and grandma...and she did. Got grandpa tools and things and felt pretty useful. My job was keeping people away and watching Abbie. She also took some time and went in the garage and put grandpa's tools away....we hope he can find them when he needs them!!
Another problem arose. Our new roof is leaking bad in several places. Shannon got up on the roof to put some caulking in the holes, but it wasn't the right kind. So, we are praying the rains we've had the last few nights will quit until we can get some of the right caulking for the roof, and some of the repair tape we need.
Yes, we've had rains...and lots of them. We get to points where we want to order some gopher wood from MFI. We know God said he wouldn't flood the EARTH again, but He didn't say he wouldn't take Haiti out with a flood. It's been some pretty wicked rains and flooding here this last week. But we didn't order the wood, we waited for the rains to stop. And we pray they have for now.
Vero is really excited about starting to help out at the airport with MFI. She knows what they do and how much they are helping everyone, and she wants to be a part of that. She is really keeping busy with different ministries already. Pray with us for her support.
And Shannon is on the go constantly ministering in so many areas. I know the three groups of girls she is meeting and sharing with at the orphanage are benefiting a LOT. And she is working in a lot of other areas as well.
I was going over some of the emails I had missed while stateside. I so enjoy Papa Roy's devotionals. The first one I typed here, I needed to hear, but the second one I think we all need to hear. He has such insight into things!!
1) Have faith in God. Be bold. Be persistent. If, for His own mysterious reasons, God does not heal your illness, you can be sure He will answer your prayer for supernatural strength to endure it.
2) We need to be a bit more tenacious as believers. Is there something you feel God is calling you to do but others have been less than encouraging? Go for it!! Be bold!! Don't let others dictate what you should or shouldn't be doing - leave that to the Lord!
So, with that, I'll close and send God's blessings your way!! He IS your strength!!
As for the Cholera situation...I guess it depends on where you check as to what is happening. We really don't have any more news on this end. We are just waiting to see what the government will do, along with the many, many organizations who are working to control this.
