There Is A Fountain

Glory to God, that there is a fountain filled with blood!  Where we can lose all of our guilty stains!  Here is one of my favorite hymns:

There is a fountain filled with blood, Drawn from Immanuel's veins, And sinners plunged beneath that flood, Lose all their guilty stains!  And sinners plunged beneath that flood, Lose all their guilty stains!

The dying thief rejoiced to see, that fountain in his day, and there may I, though vile as he, Wash all my sins away!!!!(Glory, Glory to God Almighty!) And their may I, though vile as he, Wash ALL MY SINS AWAY!!

Dear dying Lamb, Thy PRECIOUS BLOOD, Shall never lose its power, Till all the ransomed Church of God, be saved to sin no more!  Till all the ransomed Church of God, Be saved to sin no more!  (What a glorious day that will be when we will be with our Precious Saviour and dwell no more in this vile flesh!!)

E'er since by faith I saw the stream, Thy flowing wounds supply, Redeeming love has been my theme, and shall be till I die!  Redeeming love has been my theme and shall be till I die!

When this poor lisping, stammering tongue, Lies silent in the grave, Then in a nobler, sweeter song, I'll sing Thy power to save!  Then in a nobler, sweeter song, I'll sing Thy power to save!

It is through his precious blood that we can have all of our sins washed away!

Colossians 1:14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

Ephesians 1:7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace; 

1 Peter 1:18-23 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God. Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. 


Have you been washed in the blood of the precious Lamb of God?  

Romans 3:25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; 

Romans 5:8-9 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

Ephesians 2:13 But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.

Thank the Lord today for the blood of the Lamb! 

Why Do Men Love Darkness?

We were having family bible devotions the other night and I went over the subject of why men love darkness rather than light.  We looked at John 3:14-21.  The bible clearly states in these verses that men love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil.

And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.  John 3:19

Men don't want to come to the light, because if they come to the light, they will have to face who they are and what they are before an Holy God.  The other day I saw a website that had an old friend on it.  This old friend had some things that they liked and they are as follows: Bon Jovi, Michael Jackson, Desperate House Wives, American Idol, Silence of the Lambs, and oh, I forgot --the Bible.  Today's so called "Christianity" is a shame and a joke.  Tell me how can you watch and listen to all of these things and yet say that you love the bible?  Today's churches tell you that you can have the world and God too, but the bible says:

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. 1 John 2:15-16

The God that I serve and love is an holy and jealous God.  The Lord requires of us to love him with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength.

JEALOUS:

1. Suspicious; apprehensive of rivalship; uneasy through fear that another has withdrawn or may withdraw from one the affections of a person he loves, or enjoy some good which he desires to obtain; followed by of, and applied both to the object of love and to the rival. We say, a young man is jealous of the woman he loves, or jealous of his rival. A man is jealous of his wife, and the wife of her husband.

Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; 

Exodus 20:5

For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God:  
Exodus 34:14

For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God. Deuteronomy 4:24

Do we not think that God is jealous over us?  Do we not think that God desires our full devotion?  Have you ever been to a wedding?  When the bride walked down the aisle, did she have some old boy friend on one of her arms?  Would the groom, put up with his soon to be wife, coming down the aisle with an old boy friend?  I would think not!  Why then do we treat our Lord and Savior this way? 

Tell me one thing in this world that will give you endless happiness, joy, peace and rest?  There is nothing in this world that will meet all of the things that I have listed.  There is only One that can fulfill all that I have listed, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ.

Happy is that people, that is in such a case: yea, happy is that people, whose God is the LORD.

Psalms 144:15

Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the LORD his God: Psalms 146:5

So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them. John 13:12-17


Are you happy?  If not, why?  What is keeping you back from the happiness that can be found in the Lord?  


But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Galatians 5:22-25


There is joy that can be found in God's word and the Lord Jesus Christ.




But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee. Psalms 5:11

Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. Psalms 16:11

When I remember these things, I pour out my soul in me: for I had gone with the multitude, I went with them to the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise, with a multitude that kept holyday. Psalms 42:4

Then will I go unto the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy: yea, upon the harp will I praise thee, O God my God. Psalms 43:4
And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy: Luke 24:52

These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.

John 15:11

And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you. And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full. John 16:22-24
And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves. John 17:13

And the disciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Ghost. Acts 13:52

But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God. Acts 20:24

One of the reasons I believe that so many don't have joy and happiness is because they have never been truly born from above.  They have never been under Holy Ghost conviction.  They have said some sinner's prayer and are relying upon this to gain them righteousness with God.  One major thing that is missing in our churches today is true Holy Ghost conviction.  I'm not talking about having your emotions stirred by some contemporary christian song and you feeling bad over some sins you have committed.  I'm not saying that it is wrong for your emotions to be stirred in church.  What I am saying, is that all too often it is the music that is doing the stirring of the emotions and not God's word through the witness of the Holy Ghost. There were many times in my life that I had my emotions stirred in church and said the sinner's prayer and was never born again!  The reason why, is that I was never truly willing to give up my life!  I wanted to keep my worldly music, movies, talk, and life.  I wanted to have some of God and some of the world.  It wasn't till I got my nose in a 1611 King James Bible, that I started to see who I truly was before God.  I finally got to a point in my life, glory to God, that I was sick of who I was and only wanted truth!  Thank the Lord, on March 19, 2000, the Holy Ghost dealt with me about sin, righteousness, and judgment to come.

Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me; Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.    

John 16:7-13

I repented of my sin and put my complete faith in what the Lord Jesus Christ did for my on Calvary, 2000 years ago, on an old rugged cross.  Where he shed his blood and became sin, who knew no sin, that I might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. 2 Corinthians 5:17-21

If you are not happy, don't have joy, peace or rest, why not seek the Lord?

Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. 

Isaiah 55:6-7

Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Acts 20:21

For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. Romans 5:6-9

Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. Acts 4:12

For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time. 1 Timothy 2:3-6

Don't let the world draw you away from the one who truly loves you!  Come to the light of the Lord Jesus Christ! 

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9

We love him, because he first loved us. 1 John 4:19

Brother Chris

Visit To Brother Maurice LaPierre

Well here are some pictures of my latest trip to Haiti.  I left last Friday morning at around 7:30am and arrived in Les Cayes at around 10:30pm.  Needless to say it was a long day.  When we arrived at the border it was complete chaos.  There are men, that when they see that you are American, are quick to come and try and "help" you get through immigration and customs.  They told me that I had to pay $25.00 to get my passport stamped to leave the country.  I argued with them for some time, because I had all of the correct paperwork and did not need to pay a dime to leave the country.  I finally told them all to go away and I went up to the window myself and asked the lady behind the glass if my passport was good and up to date.  She just took my passport, stamped it and handed it back to me.  They try to run a scheme between the men and the custom agents.  The men will tell you that you owe $25.00 and then will split the money between them and the customs agent.  Thank the Lord, I was able to make it through both immigration offices without any more problems.

We then got a ride with a "Tap-Tap" into Port-Au-Prince.  This "Tap-Tap" happened to be a 1985-86 Toyota pickup truck.  It was just like the one I used to own in the states, except this one was converted over to a taxi.  They build benches in the back with a colorful covering to protect you from the sun and rain.  Then they try and fit as many people as the can into the back and front of it.  It amazes me what these little trucks can do.

Once we arrived in Port-Au-Prince, we had to find another means of transportation to Les Cayes.  This time we found an old school bus that had been converted to a "Tap-Tap".  They expect to fit at least 3 people in one seat along with your luggage.  Needless to say, you are packed into this thing like sardines in a can.  Not to mention the heat, dust and stench in the air.  Port-Au-Prince is a miserable and depressing city.  Not much has been done since the earthquake last year.  There are still many tent cities and many buildings that are have not been demolished.

When we arrived in Les Cayes, Brother Maurice along with his brother, picked us up and took us to his home.  It was a blessing and honor to be able to spend a few days with this dear brother in the Lord.  He has a wonderful church and he asked me to preach the Sunday morning message.  Please keep this brother and his family in your prayers, as they are facing a lot of difficult issues in Haiti.  He told me that there are three groups that despise what he is trying to do and they are the Catholic Church, Protestants, and Voodoo.  Plus, brother Maurice is trying to bring the French and Kreyol translation of the bible in line with the 1611 King James Version.  Please pray that the Lord will give him wisdom and guidance.  He also told me that the price of things are almost tripling, due to the United Nations being in the country.  I believe that the U.N. is nothing more than the physical army for the Catholic church.  They were all through the city and had there guns out to keep the peace.  China, Japan, Bolivia, Korea, Germany, and many other countries are working for the U.N. in Haiti.  Brother Maurice told me that the U.N. will come in front of the Catholic church and will set up there radios and start to party and dance with the congregation of the church.  He also said the U.N. is raping and molesting young girls and there is nothing anybody can do because they are the "U.N.".  There are some horrible things going on and it is only by the word of God that this country can get any help.

We left out of Les Cayes on Sunday afternoon and had to spend the night in Port-Au-Prince.  Brother Nathan has family in Port-Au-Prince and they allowed us to spend the night in their home.  I'm thankful for the food and shelter they provided for the evening.

Brother Nathan and I arrived back home on Monday.  I'm grateful that the Lord gave us a safe journey and that I was able to visit Brother Maurice. Here are some photos that I took:

Here is the converted Toyota Pick-up truck.

On the streets in Port-Au-Prince.

Brother Nathan and I trying to find some bottled water.

They throw all of their trash and will often urinate into this drainage system.  Needless to say this area does not smell very well.

Making our way through the crowds.

One of the many traffic jams in the city.

These are the converted school buses.  I'm thankful that we did not have to take these back from Bro. Maurice's house.  He found us some nicer transportation for a journey back, which I was very grateful for.

 

There are many piles of trash through out the city.

The Haitian Police station in Port-Au-Prince.

Another traffic jam!

I believe this is a car that was smashed during the earthquake.

Brother Maurice in the Sunday morning service.

The church started to fill up around 7:45 in the morning.  Brother Maurice starts the services at 8:00am sharp.  If any of his members are late, he makes them stand till he says they can sit down.  Some may think this is ridiculous, but I think it is wonderful.  There are reason's why Brother Maurice does this and one is to teach the people responsibility.  If he doesn't do this, the people will be showing up at all times during the service and will be a distraction to the preaching that is taking place.  Let me ask you a question, how often could you be late for your job, before your boss would say something?  And how often would your boss allow this before there where consequences?  If you were in the military, could you be late for muster?  Would you not be punished by your superiors for being late?  Why then can we be late for church and think it is no big deal?  I believe the Lord takes note of this and God forbid we cause a distraction while the Holy Spirit is dealing with someone about salvation.  Let's be on time for the Lord's day!

 

The church is on the side of Brother Maurice's house.  When he first moved in this area was nothing but dirt.  They did a wonderful job converting this area.

Brother Maurice with Brother Nathan.

Brother Maurice and myself.

Brother Maurice's brother and Bro. Nathan.

Constantine wire on top of his walls.  He has had a lot of problems with the people of this area.  He has had death threats and has been held at gun point on two separate occasions.

The front of the house.

His garden that he is working on.

This was the place where he used to get water for the house.  He has since put in another well with a pump.

Brother Maurice and his family.

This is his oldest son, Paul.

A little girl in the city of Port-Au-Prince.

A view from the front porch of the home I stayed in.

This all I have for now.  I hope and pray you all have a wonderful week.  Thank you again for all that you have done for us.

Brother Chris and Family

Thank you!

I just want to thank everyone who prayed for Melanie while she was sick.  Thank the Lord, she is doing a lot better this morning.  Yesterday, she was able to get up and move around a little and even ate a few things.  I thank the Lord for his goodness.  Lets just say that I'm not ready to become the cook of the house and I look forward to my wife's return (LOL)!

I have one more prayer request.  Tomorrow, I am going to try and go see Bro. Maurice La Pierre in Haiti.  This will be around a 6 to 7 hour trip, using public transportation (25 people to one truck).  Bro. Nathan from the church here in La Lanza is going to be going with me.  He don't speak English and I don't speak Kreyol or Spanish that well yet.  Pray that we will have a safe journey and the we will be able to visit Bro. Maurice.

Thank you again for all that you do!
Brother Chris

Prayer Request Update

Hello all,

I first want to thank everyone who has written, it is a blessing and encouragement.  As of this morning, Melanie is still not doing very well.  Thank the Lord, the fever has gone down, but she is still sick.  I would have to say that she spent most of last night in the bathroom and is now sleeping.  Pray that she would be able to eat something today and that we will be able to get some more fluids in her. 

Thank you again for all of your prayers and support.

Brother Chris

Prayer Request

Hello all,

I am writing to ask you all to keep my wife Melanie in your prayers.  As of today she is still not doing well, we were up most of the night and she still has a fever.  She has not eaten now in almost two days and has only drank very little.  Please pray that the Lord would intervene and help her with this sickness.  Also, please pray that no one else would get sick.  Thank you for all of your prayers and support.

Brother Chris

Our Week With Courtney

We've been having electric at more convenient times during the past few days, so I pray you enjoy the pictures from our week with Courtney Gregory that we were able to load to the blog.

We met Courtney in December of last year at Faith Baptist Church in Smyrna, Deleware, where Brother Allen Ryman is the pastor.  She expressed interest in coming to visit once we were on the field.  We kept in touch through email and she planned her visit during her Spring Break from her college classes. 

Over the past couple months, we have been "doing" less and spending more time studying the language.  With Courtney arriving, we took a break from language study and Melanie and the children took a break from school, to be able to give her a taste of what life is like in the Dominican Republic.  We had some fun adventures and we hope you enjoy the pictures from "Our Week With Courtney".

Dominican houses built into the side of the mountain on the outskirts of Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic.

Another view of the houses built on the mountainside.

Coconut and banana trees dot the landscape.

We stopped at a colmado to grab a few things once back at home.  Courtney wanted to snap a few pictures of the inside of the store.  The storekeeper was so happy to have his picture taken and encouraged us to take more.  We gave him copies of the pictures. Many people here in Polo are too poor to own a camera, so having a picture is a novelty.

Another picture of the inside of the colmado.  It's amazing what they can fit inside of a small building.  The large, burlap sacks in the bag contain rice and beans - staples of the Dominican diet here. 

We purchased two chickens at the colmado.  Courtney got a kick out of the head and feet still attached.  The Dominicans don't waste any parts of the chicken - everything is put to good use.  :o)

On Saturday evening, we went to Prayer Meeting at Bro. Darren Truel's church in Polo.  There are always many children playing in the streets who live nearby to the church.

Some Dominican girls sitting in the back of Brother Moises' truck and enjoying getting their photo snapped.

As soon as we arrive at the church in Polo, there are always a group of two or three boys fighting over the opportunity to "Limpia Zapatos" or clean shoes.  They make their own little wooden boxes and then carry them around to clean the shoes of the church men in the town.  If you look closely, you can see Dowsey (sp) applying the stain with a toothbrush.  Sometimes your socks get ruined, ughh, I mean cleaned, too!

This little fellow was with the children in the back of the truck.  It's not uncommon here to find children still in diapers (or completely naked) toddling around in the streets!

Courtney holding the same little fella.

I told the little boy in the blue shirt (Alhenny) that we had a gift for him at my house.  The next day, bright and early, he showed up at the front door with a few friends.  He had walked several miles from near the church in Polo to come get his gift.  This little child always wants to give you everything he has.  It's not uncommon for him to clean my shoes and then want to give the money to our children.  If he has a pack of crackers, he'll always offer one to you.   

On Sunday morning, we drove down to Barahona for services at Monte Calvario Baptist Church, where Brother Roger Jewell is the pastor.  They have converted a building in downtown Barahona into a church. 

A few of the church members. 

Brother Roger talking with a few of the church members after services.  Levi's not so sure if he wants his picture taken.

Brother Roger owns a Toyota bus which they use as a personal vehicle, but it also doubles at the church bus.  Many people here do not have transportation, or only own a motorbike and cannot transport their entire families to church services. 

After morning worship service, they have a service for children.

Sister Jewell keeping the troops in order during the service.

Brother Jewell's daughter's (Amber, left, Hannah, right) teaching the children "Jesus Loves Me".

More singing with the girls and two other ladies from the church.

This is Brother Jewell's Assistant Pastor, Brother Paul (pronounced Pah-Eewll).  He teaches the children a Bible lesson, using the chalkboard to illustrate.  Brother Paul is known as being one of the best basketball players in Barahona and people recognize him when he's out and about.  He got saved under Brother Jewell's ministry and is now serving the Lord fulltime.  Move over Kobe, Brother Paul's in town!

They learn a verse and play a game before the service dismisses. 

We took a trip on the bus through Barahona to take the children back to their houses. 

A trash-littered piece of property in Barahona in a rough neighborhood.

A home in the outskirts of Barahona along the bus route.

The weekend that Courtney arrived  is known as Holy Week (the week before the Catholic holiday of Easter).  Through the streets, it was a common site to see children dressed up in costumes and cracking whips.  It reminded us much of the Roman soldiers and what they did to the Lord Jesus Christ.  To the children, it's just a tradition although there is a meaning behind it.  We tried to look up the meaning and found that they are trying to symbolize "El Diablo" (the devil) and the torment he brings. 

The Dominicans weren't the only ones celebrating...we snapped a photo of this Voodoo Ceremony on the streets of Polo.  It's hard to see, but the men were holding their machetes up and chanting war music, while some played on drums.  What's strange is how the music you hear coming from the Pentecostal churches here sounds much like what we heard during the Voodoo Ceremony going on here!  It is a tradition for Voodoo Ceremonies to be held on Easter at the border of Haiti.

On Sunday afternoon, we headed up to La Lanza for the Haitian church services there.  Here's a picture of a few homes along the way.

Outside the church in La Lanza.  Notice the head coverings on a few of the Haitian women.  They often wear head coverings because they are not able to grow long hair. 

Here's our adopoted dog, Noemi.  We also have a Pointer that lives here named Pinto.  He is quite the escape artist and broke through his fence to get to his lady dog!   Much to Pinto's dismay, Noemi went through a false pregnancy.  We thought she'd have puppies, but her time came and went and no puppies.  She still looks very pregnant though!

This billboard was just repainted to advertise the Coffee Festival, which is an international event held right here on the baseball fields in Polo.  We are looking forward to having dear friends from our home church, The Bassano Family, come in during this week and hand out tracts at the event.  The site where this billboard sits is called "Polo Magnetico".  It is a place where the landscape makes it look as if you would roll downhill, but your vehicle rolls mysteriously uphill.  It is considered a tourist attraction and you will often find children begging for money from the tourists that visit.  This site is only a few miles from El Rancho Lembert. 

On Monday, we drove into Barahona to grocery shop.  We went to the outdoor market, which they have everyday in Barahona.  The temperature difference from the cool, humid mountains in Polo is felt immediately when driving into Barahona.  The vendors are offering mangoes, pigeon peas and other fruits while enjoying the shade of their umbrellas.

We practiced some of our Kreyol when buying some vegetables from this Haitian lady.  However, most Haitians living around the Dominicans speak Spanish as well as Kreyol.

These little peppers are called aji (ahhh-hee).  They are a staple seasoning used in most Dominican recipes.  You pile (pee-lay), or pound to death, the aji (little peppers), ajo (garlic), pollo y tomate sopitas (chicken and tomato bouillon cubes), Sazon Completo, and cebolla (onions).  

More pictures from the market in Barahona.  If you don't keep your eyes peeled at all times, you are liable to get run over by a motorbike.  This road is quite wide compared to most of the narrow alleyways and walkways in the market.

I thought about doing a Little League here for the boys in the village, but the Lord didn't lead that way.  However, we did order some used baseball gloves and I try to take the boys from our neighborhood over to the fields in Polo to play once or twice a week in the evenings.  These children have too much idle time, and it's good to get them off the streets, even if it's for one evening.  The boys who come out to play range in ages from teens through around six. 

Line up guys!

The boys often play in barefeet or Dominican-style flip-flops.  Who needs cleats?

Bile, on the left, is a boy from our neighborhood who lives very close to the house.

Ellie with Dowsey and another friend.

Courtney on the sidelines! 

On Tuesday, we drove up to a village nearby called Los Charquitos.  The drive up the mountain is beautiful.

This was a Haitian family we stopped to visit in Los Charquitos.  Our home church, King James Bible Baptist Church, in Summerville, South Carolina, put together bags filled with candy and toys for the children, and soap, toothpaste, dishrags and other goodies for the ladies.  We were blessed to be able to hand out some of the bags to this family, who was in need.  Thank you to the Kennedy family also, who sent a large amount of flip-flops down.  We were able to give out shoes to this family who were in great need of clothing and shoes.   Along with the goody bags, we handed out tracts in Kreyol and Spanish to those we met along the way.

A snap shot of their outhouse.

One of the young girls was wearing a Halloween-type costume as a dress.  None of the children had shoes.

A baby boy getting a stuffed toy.  We were also able to hand out some diapers to this family.

Clothing is often a needed item among the Haitians.

On Tuesday evening, after taking Courtney up to Los Charquitos, we stopped in to visit with the Truel family.  It's not uncommon to find one or several of their daughters in the kitchen whipping up a Dominican meal, and Tuesday was no different.  Mary and Elisabeth were working on making Moro, a Dominican dish with pigeon peas, coconut milk and rice.  Mary was also frying up chicken feet! 

Eliana enjoying her chicken foot!

On Wednesday evening, we headed back down to Barahona for church services with the Jewell family.  On the way, we snapped a picture of a herd of cows walking down the road.   The hamburger meat here has a very different taste and texture due to the muscle content of the cows.  Walking up a mountain is no easy feat!

Amber Jewell, Courtney Gregory, and Hannah Jewell

Sister Kathy Jewell (left) and my wife, Melanie (right) enjoying chatting after services.

Much to Courtney's delight (haha) we spotted some tarantulas on the way home.  This big guy was out on the road when we were coming home from church Wednesday evening.  Despite being told how slow these critters move, this guy had turbo speed! 

 

A trip to the Dominican Republic wouldn't be complete without a trip to see the beautiful beaches of the Caribbean.  We got up bright and early Thursday morning and headed down to Barahona once again to enjoy the shore before anyone else hit the beach that day.

Coconut trees along the shore.  Although it make look sandy, the shore in Barahona is very rocky.

A beautiful shot that Courtney snapped.  Looks like a post card, doesn't it?

On Thursday evening, a group of boys came up to the house and wanted to play football. 

Since baseball is more their sport, we've had to teach them how to play American football, but it still ends up being more like rugby!

A pile of boys!

On Friday, we decided to take Courtney on a feeding project.  Hours of work go into preparing the food.  Here's Courtney and Eliana peeling garlic and cutting aji the morning of the feeding. 

We made 15 lbs. of rice with carrots and pinto beans and of course lots of lots of aji, ajo, cebolla, sopitas y Sazon Completo (glorified MSG).  Courtney was our chef for the day and did a wonderful job.

Here's the Locrio all ready to go.  The rice gets it color from annatto seeds from the "Lipstick Trees", which are called "bija" (bee-hah) here.  You open the pods and beat the seeds in water to expel the rich color. 

"Eske ou vle manje?"  That's "Do you want food?" in Kreyol.  When we were first learning Kreyol, we got confused between the words diri (rice) and di wi (say yes), as they sounded almost identical to our ears.  It's become a joke between our Kreyol teacher and us to say "Di Wi pou diri!" Translated, it means, "Say Yes for rice!"

Each person got a portion of rice and beans along with a tract in their native language.  It's quite amazing how you can be in the middle of two languages and two people groups within minutes. 

 A Dominican family along the way.

A Haitian mother whose child needed shoes.  We were able to give her a tract, rice, and shoes for her baby.

A Dominican home in the area where we did the feeding.

We ended up going down a road that seemed to go to nowhere!  We 4x4'd for  miles on very rough and rocky terrain to find a remote farming community of Dominicans and Haitians on the mountainside. 

These little Dominican girls were walking along the road and were happy to get some rice, a goody bag and a tract.

While we were working on preparing the food for a feeding, Alhenny was having fun with our camera.  He took hundreds of pictures of everything in and around our house, including our groundskeeper.  Nalo is the caretaker for El Rancho Lembert.    He helps us out with any problems we may have with the house. 

Joey handing out some food.

This is the cow obstacle course!

We thank the Lord for allowing Courtney to visit with us and giving us safe travels to and from the capital, as well as to all the places we visited during the week. 

Please keep Bro. Darren Truel in your prayers as he travels back to the United States to bring his family back to the island.  Also keep me in your prayers as I am trying to plan a trip to Haiti to visit Bro. Maurice LaPierre (who is from Courtney's home church in DE) the weekend of Friday, May 13th if the Lord wills.  Pray for traveling mercies as we will be taking taxis through the country.

In closing, we thank everyone for their continued support. 

Brother Chris and Family