Ephesians 4: 2-3
Be completely humble and gentle; be patient bearing with one another in love. Mark every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

Steve and I have worked in hospital and clinics in Haiti since 1983, first commissioned by International Ministries and, since 2005, jointly appointed by IM and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. In addition to caring for the sick, Steve has been involved in teaching and mentoring the staff of rural clinics with his Tropical Medicine/Family Medicine skills, seeking to bring the compassion and love of Jesus to those who come to the clinics.

One of the greatest ministry obstacles in Haiti is the falling out of brothers and sisters in Christ. This has been the reality in some of the hospitals and clinics in which we have worked. We have watched productive clinics and health care centers become places of mistrust and the ineffectiveness when the leaders cannot get along. Tragically, these good and needed ministries deteriorate over time becoming ever less able to give holistic health care to the people they serve.

Steve has been studying for a master’s degree in Servant Leadership/Global Organizational Leadership and has been developing tools that could help to prevent such breakdowns in relationships. It is important how we do ministry together, and not just what we do together.

We have recently been invited by the leadership of the Haitian Baptist Convention Hospital to help develop surgical and emergency services as well as promote and encourage staff leadership development. In the weeks to come, we plan to invite clinic personnel to assess their work environment and consider how they might envision a more effective and collaborative place of ministry. It is important that changes are not dictated from the “top-down,” but developed through a process that includes the entire staff at all levels within the health care institution. Every voice is important and needs to be appreciated and empowered to see effective and lasting change and, in the long run, better health care. Please pray that we would be given wisdom and the love of Christ as we go forward in this effort in the year ahead.

On the home front, Steve graduated in May from the online master’s program at Azusa Pacific University in LA and was able to travel to California to receive his diploma. He used that week to speak at a supporting church and also have a wonderful visit with cousins whom he hadn’t seen since he was a child. Needless to say there was a lot of ground to cover! In August we were able to see my mom and sister in Florida, then spend time with our kids and grandkids in the cool mountains of North Carolina. We also took our youngest son, Micah (21), back to Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem for his final year studying to be an elementary school teacher.

We returned to Haiti this past week feeling refreshed and blessed by our experiences with our family and the worship and fellowship with our beloved church in Burnsville. We are excited about the year ahead and so grateful to you, our prayer partners and generous donors, whose support allows us to continue serving in Haiti. Many, many thanks, or as we say here, “Mèsi bokou!”

Love, in Christ,
Nancy and Steve