The Fervent Effective Prayers of Haitian Pastors

Two students with their teacher, excited to receive an education!

I entered the classroom and Pastor P. was on his knees in the corner calling out to God in fervent prayer.  He didn't  know I had entered, and didn't stop.  Why do I mention this, because I believe that the help the Haitian pastors are receiving is directly related to the prayers they are making. Pastor P. told me without prayer he could not live.  The truth is, most of these pastors earn less than $200.00 US a month, even if they have some outside support.  Yet Pastor P. pays for a tiny
house that accommodates his family, and also rents a rough building that will accommodate his congregation of 60 people. Needless to say, he and his wife are very thin.

Pastor F is ready to move to a new area where he has seen much fruit.  The majority of his current congregation is already living in this area.  He and his congregation have been praying for a miracle to purchase an abandoned church building.  Within two weeks of learning of this opportunity 60% of the funds needed for the purchase have been provided. These needs seem to have caught the attention of their caring Father in heaven.

Pastor A, almost in tears, told me about how he and his congregation would have to leave the church and the school building they were using.  Their school program had already been moved out, and



the church needed to find a location to meet.   For four months they met under hot thick plastic tents on a vacant lot.   Then a temporary place opened up for the school.  This rented house though, was woefully inadequate for the congregation.  After an eight month search for land, finally they have a place where their church will be built.  It will serve for the school also.  Today we poured the foundation for this church.  It was a struggle, but the pastor never doubted.  Why?   Because he and his congregation were making fervent prayer to God. We believe within two months the building will be finished.

Pastor I is so happy now.   He has a new sponsor for his Haitian schools.  He has a morning program in one location, and an afternoon school program at a church in another location.  He doesn't have a church yet, but he has gathered together a number of adults and is ministering to them. He started by faith with nothing and now almost $1600.00 a month is coming in to take care of the salaries of the staff and the needs of the children for these two programs.  Prayers continue to be answered. An unseen hand is providing for these children.

These school programs are vital to help give these Haitian children a future.  They are immigrants in a country with a different language.  Usually they have no legal papers from Haiti with them.   No birth certificates, no visas or passports.  Often the public schools are limited in space in how many students they can accept and it becomes easy to leave these undocumented children at the end of the waiting list.  Without these Haitian school programs one of three things usually happen to these children.
          1)  They stay at home by themselves while their parents work.
          2) They are roaming the streets and at-risk while their parents work.
          3)Their parents take them to work in the fields with them where they are put to work.

So they receive no education, or very little at home.  If they return to Haiti and try to return to school, they fall behind based on how many years of schooling they have lost.  If they go to public school in the Dominican Republic they also find gaps in their learning.  That is why we are committed to helping to develop these programs.  We are matching needy programs with generous donors to change the future of these children.  Please continue to pray for these programs. estimates are as high as 1.5 million Haitians in the Dominican Republic.  To find out how you can help,  call Debbie Martinez at 863-248-1119 (US Vonage no#), or email her at lavegaschool@gmail.com  .