Haiti Relief Efforts

Hallelujah in Haiti!

Wonderful “God-things” continue to happen in Haiti. Our feeding and food distribution continues at full speed. On an almost daily basis we are sending food supplies or rice, beans, and pasta. You have been wonderful to provide the resources to do this, along with our other state conventions and national agencies.

We have processed over 200,000 pounds of rice, 85,000 pounds of beans, 7,500 pounds of pasta, and according to Terry Ryan, Disaster Relief associate, “tons of tents!”

Hallelujah in Haiti!

We have received or have been notified that churches have filled 113,294 Buckets of Hope. How good is that? Forty containers are on the way from Shreveport, Louisiana. Some churches packed over 1,000 buckets. These buckets will be moved to Haiti and used as demand dictates. We will continue to use our churches as distribution points.

Hallelujah in Haiti!

Our missionaries report a total of 85,377 professions of faith as of April 8, 2010. We have also had 64 new church starts since January 12, 2010. Planning and funding process has begun to being at least 200 new churches by December 31, 2010. Each church will serve as a distribution center for the gospel; a distribution center for counseling and hope; a distribution center for meeting humanitarian needs (feeding, clothing, etc.). Can you get your heart around this and continue to pray for the harvest and for the conservation of the harvest through church planting? Our missionaries tell us we can start a new church for approximately $3,000 per church. This does not include a building. This is for benches, Bibles and materials.

Hallelujah in Haiti!

Only the Father knows the great impact for the gospel that is emerging out of this earthquake. He is allowing us to share in moving a nation from tragedy to triumph.

Continue to pray for the Haiti Relief Efforts of the Florida Baptist Convention, the seven national missionaries serving in Haiti as employees of the Florida Baptist Convention, the Baptist Global Response and other Southern Baptist Convention agencies, the local Baptist churches, the US military and the many other relief workers in Haiti. Pray for the Haitian people, that their immediate needs will be met and that they will receive the assistance they need for the recovery of their lives. Financial contributions to aid in the Haiti Relief Effort are being received to secure food and humanitarian assistance. Florida Baptists and their churches can contribute directly to the Florida Baptist Convention. Gifts can be sent to the Florida Baptist Convention at 1230 Hendricks Ave., Jacksonville, Fl 32207, designated “disaster relief.” Contributions by credit card can be made through the Convention’s website: www.flbaptist.org. Every dollar donated will be used to purchase food and to provide humanitarian resources. All administrative costs are being underwritten by the Cooperative Program and Maguire State Mission Offering. Media Services has produced several video reports on the Southern Baptist relief and recovery effort in Haiti. You can view and download these videos on the Haiti update page of www.flbaptist.org. These videos are also at www.gofbw.com, www.OneMission.tv/Florida, and at www.vimeo.com/flbaptist. For copies of the Haiti video reports on DVD, call Teresa Hineman at extension 3157. Dr. John Sullivan calls upon Florida Baptists to pray and give to support Haiti Earthquake Relief. More details on the response activities will be available on the Convention’s website www.flbaptist.org and on the Florida Baptist Witness website www.gofbw.com.

Continue to pray for our military servicemen and women who are deployed or soon may be deployed; for their families; for President Obama; and for the United States of America. Pray for God's leadership in any and all decisions that are made. Pray that God's will be done and not our own. May God bless America and protect its military men and women.