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Land’s December
2007 Newsletter
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“Day by day the Lord takes care of the innocent, as
they will receive an inheritance that lasts forever.” Psalms 37:18
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 Quite
unexpectedly one Sunday afternoon God led us to a man named
Emanuel. He lives high on a hill above the ocean in a collapsing
mud hut. The coconut palm roof that covered his room was partially
gone with the last hurricane and he could have laid in bed
and watched the stars at night. But he also no doubt felt the
chill of the wind and the pelting rain on his body as well.
Emmanuel had spent the last two years in his hut, debilitated
with an illness that left him unable to walk and hardly able
to breathe. He is not an old man, but seemed old. We were able
to help him by covering his hut with a tarp and sending food
and pain medicines. We have prayed for him, and have received
much more from seeing his faith and endurance than we ever
gave to him.
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 Once
again, we are reminded that God is preparing a place so wonderful
for all the Emanuels all over the world. We know that they
are looking forward with great joy for that reunion and the
promises that the Lord gives. We are humbly reminded that we
too should rely more on God to provide all our needs.
In our society, we are “self-made,” or at least
we think we are. Yet, we are also called to be even more responsible
for the world’s poor because we have been so blessed.
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This
month has been one of many blessing for the people in CODEP
and L’Acul. We started the month off with a mission
team led by Bev Fawcett from New Bern NC. It was an all female
group, so the dynamic was definitely different. They painted,
took school photos, toured the  projects,
and sewed costumes for the children’s play. They enjoyed
interacting with 20 women in a sewing class led by Darcy
McKinnon. Tom Smith and George McKay and their friends came
for a day to see CODEP.
One day after the ladies left for home, another team
from Building Goodness Foundation arrived, all male by the
way. They spent several days living in Gro Mon and building
another house for a
deserving CODEP worker.
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Before they left L’Acul,
another team arrived from Peace PC in NC. They came to help
sort gifts for all the school children and workers. Sarah
Lang spent hours playing her violin and
entertaining kids and adults alike. She brought instruments
for the kids to use, and they came every day to practice.
Some of the team went into Gro Mon to install a cistern at
the new CODEP house. All were witness to the progress in
the mountains. Taller forests, more hedgerows, better fish
ponds, and the new APKF building which houses the successful
farm store. The last day of the team’s visit, they helped host a beach picnic
for the L’Acul staff and their families.
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 A few days later, we took a deep breath and did the final prep
for the children’s Christmas play on December 24th. It
went off great! The audience loved the costumes and the drama.
Joubert as Zachariah and Neihmi as the angel Gabriel were the
highlight. These 2 teenagers finally had a place to showcase
their comedy! The donkey (Rubenson) and the cow (Nelson) tied
with the cute little sheep (the 5 little girls) for the funniest,
and little Brianna won everyone over as baby Jesus.
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Pastor Gabriel is pouring the floors of his house today, December
25th, as a wonderful Christmas present to his family. Soon
they will realize their family’s dream of a real house!
Madam Gabriel has worked hard all month in the L’Acul
kitchen, even though her baby is due anytime now. We are hoping
it arrives before we leave on January 1st! She is doing well
and glows with excitement about their house and new child.
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We were able to apply fertilizer to 100,000 new trees this
month, the most important thing we can do to insure the life
of these seedlings. Each bag costs $30 US. April, our intern,
has accomplished so much in just 5 short months. She has
found a new home at Siloe, living in an apartment above Jean
Claude’s family. She has walked many miles of the mountains
in all directions, working alongside almost all of the
animators. The information and knowledge of the CODEP project
that she has accumulated will be quite useful in the
coming months as we plan strategy for the future.
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2007 Results
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Trees planted
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923,000
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Hedgerows
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140 miles
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Cisterns installed
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17
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Houses built
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4
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It is Christmas Day, and we will leave soon to pick up 6
members of our family who will be spending the next week
with us. Late last night they got word that their direct
flight from Indianapolis to Miami was cancelled, but God
had a better plan. Now they will be flying first class via
Dallas to Miami. Isn’t
God good? Just when you get angry at American Airlines they
do something nice!
Our time in the States in January will be
a mix of work and play. When we return to start another year
in CODEP, we have many teams and lots of work ahead of us.
Please pray for our continued health and safety in Haiti
and in travels. Your prayers are the most important thing
you can do for us. Thank you for supporting HFI and CODEP.
It takes us all collectively to make this mission run smoothly
and effectively. Pray about your personal commitment for
this coming year. Remember all the “Emanuels” who count on you.
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Peace be with you all, Rick and Kathy
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