July

God is able to make all grace abound to you, that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed.
II Corinthians 9:8

Dear Friends in Christ,

Our Heavenly Father is full of love, grace and mercy for us, His children. We have much to thank Him for every day, week and month!

What a wonderful weekend and conference Pastor Bertho, Ernest and Kaloulou were able to have with the men and fathers of the school children! Over 50 men came and participated, which were many more than we thought would come. The men were very grateful and said they had never had a weekend devoted to teach-ing them. Our plan is to make this an annual event for the people in the school area.

The Lord gave us a great opportunity to speak into the lives of these men, many of them fathers of our school children. Along with preaching and teaching, the men were able to break in-to smaller groups and talk with each other. The leaders could answer questions and encourage the men. They ate a nice meal together, sang, fellowshipped, and prayed for one another. Most of these men have never heard or been taught about their roles as husbands and fathers, and they were moved and blessed by this teaching. Please pray that the Holy Spirit will continue to work in them and draw their hearts closer to His.

Praise the Lord, the teachers now have another motorcycle. Thanks to your kind love, 5 teachers are now sharing 2 motor-cycles for about a 45-minute drive, one way. On that same subject, Edgard is healing and getting stronger each day, since his motorcycle accident. He is in physical therapy now and hopes to get back out to the school soon.

Another answered prayer is happening as well. The water that is used at the school is carried up from the river by 5 gallon buckets every day. This is a lot of heavy and labor-intensive work. One man, Frè Sepam, carries most of the water up from the river for the school. The water comes out of the river then goes straight up a mountain for about a 30-minute hike. This has been going on for a few years now and though we have tried in the past to get a well driller out to the school, no trucks can get there, especially trucks with the heavy equipment needed to drill a well. After years of frustration, Edgard and the church deacons have another solution. It will be a temporary “fix”, but still very helpful. We are hiring a man to over-see a crew to hand dig a well which will give us access to water. It will have to be filtered for it to be used as drinking water. This should be a great help. They plan to begin digging now and we will see how far they must dig to find water.
One of the men, Hudson, who helps OSM with some of our projects has been working on pric-es for playground equipment. We are excited at this idea. He is a skilled engineer and builder, so he will build these himself. A seesaw is $275 and a 4 seat swing set is $800. These prices may sound high but remember that all materials are taken into Haiti on a ship. The metal there is very expensive now. We think we will start with these but also have other ideas for later.

Woodsaiedmie’s progress has been very slow, however she is progressing. Her attempts to walk are disappointing and hard to watch. Though her Mom has been shown what to do, it just hasn’t happened. She seems to lack the skill or motivation to help Woodsaiedmie with the daily physical therapy that is necessary for her to learn to walk. Talking to Pastor Etienne, we have come up with a plan to help Woodsaiedmie. We have hired a nurse who will go to her home 5 days a week for 2 hours each visit to give her physical therapy. After some therapy has been done, we will reevaluate how she is doing. Please pray that Woodsaiedmie does well with the this and ultimately learns to walk.

Pastor Santos and Sister Fini continue to work in Nava area with the children and their church. The heat has been intense this summer, but they faithfully re-main in the ministry God has given them. Please continue to pray for their health, they both have minor medical issues which can hinder their ministry and work.

For several years, OSM has facilitated getting funds to a pastor in Central Mexico. Pastor Salatiel’s home and church are located in El Pensil, MX and he works in the surrounding towns like Ocampo and Corrales MX. His ministry is very much in line with OSM’s heart. Thanks to you, when possible, we add extra money to his allotment to help with his work.

We are blessed and grateful for the love and care, prayers, encouragement and support you have shown for these dear Brothers and Sisters in Haiti and Mexico. Please pray for the Lord’s direction for us as we endeavor to show His love as He enables us. May He pour out His deep and amazing love over each of you, your homes and businesses and your families.

In Christ, Ken & Debbi