January 2010

“and there was a great earthquake…every island fled away…the mountains were not found.”                    (Revelation 16:18, 20)

Dear Brethren,

Haiti is in the news.  The recent earthquake has killed tens of thousands.  An uncounted number of men, women and children are homeless, hungry and grieving over the loss of family, friends and possessions.  Mignon and I are members of a Haitian Church in Fort Pierce, Florida.  We have had several conversations with our Pastor, Raymond Tattegrain and his wife, Solange.  Their initial report was that their immediate family was safe – seeking shelter because their homes were destroyed, but safe.  No serious injuries.  A few days later, Pastor Raymond and Solange received news that many of their extended family did not survive.  Their church is Haitian, and every member is suffering because of what has suddenly come upon their homeland and its people.  Solange’s elderly father was in Miami watching the continual TV coverage of the tragedy and became so overwhelmed by the endless stream of bad news that he slipped into a coma and was taken to the hospital.

This is a human tragedy not unlike the earthquake caused tsunami that hit Indonesia in December of 2004.  Indonesia has a population of 240 million.  The tsunami left more than 230,000 people dead or missing.  Haiti has a population of 9.7 million.  The death toll in Haiti could exceed 250,000.  The scale of the loss in Haiti is very hard to grasp.  As Christians we must remember that these numbers represent men, women and children made in the image of God.  Indonesia is the largest Muslim nation in the world. Haiti is a small resource poor country overshadowed by Voodoo.

At the time of its war of independence from France, the leaders of the Haitian slave revolt sacrificed a wild pig and asked the gods of Africa to give them victory in their war against the French. Napoleon was fighting a losing war in Europe and did not have the men or resources to put down the slave uprising.  Napoleon lost and the slaves believed that their gods had given them victory.  Haiti has been a hostage to the devil ever since and Voodoo has been its religion.

Haiti, a nation dedicated to the devil by its “founding fathers” in 1804, is in desperate need.  The spiritual need far outweighs the material needs that the world is focusing on at this time.  The majority of the population was unemployed, in poor health and hungry before the earthquake.  That will not change significantly in the future unless there is a widespread move of the Holy Spirit working through the Church as well as the hearts of the believers living there.  The only hope that Haiti has is the Gospel.  The battle for Haiti is spiritual – not material (Ephesians 9:12).  Regardless of what nations and individuals do, it is the responsibility of the Body of Christ to do the Gospel (Matthew 28:19) and share the Truth of Jesus Christ with the survivors in Haiti (Acts 1:8).  Jesus is the Great Physician (Luke 5:31) and He is able to minister Life in the midst of death and destruction.  His desire is that the people of Haiti will turn their hearts towards Him – that they will seek His face – and that they will trust Him to meet their needs.

Jesus warned that in these last days, “there will be earthquakes in various places…” (Mark 13:8)  We are seeing that now.  Yet as bad as this tragedy in Haiti appears to be from the perspective of loss of life and the destruction, the worst is yet to come.  In Revelation the Bible says, “there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth…the moon became like blood…the stars of the sky fell to the earth…and every mountain and island were moved out of their places” (Revelation 6:12-14).  The Book of Revelation records one last earthquake that shakes the whole earth.  “And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since man came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty. And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.” (Revelation 16:18-20)  According to the Scriptures, the mountains of the world will fall and the islands of the seas will disappear.

Haiti, like the rest of the world, has no hope apart from the Gospel.  The men, women and children of the world need to hear the Word of the Lord before it’s too late.  Time is moving quickly – the devil is accelerating his program for Global Governance – spiritual darkness is deepening over the earth. Day after day tens of thousands die without Christ.

Today is the day to win souls to Christ.  This is the day that we as Christians must do all that we can to sow the seed of the Gospel upon the islands of the sea and across the mountains of the world.  Across this planet, men, women and children are struggling to survive, struggling to find their “daily bread” (Luke 11:3), so that they can make it through one more day.  They desperately need to hear that Jesus is the “Bread of Life” (John 6:35), the Savior who came to earth to save sinners (1 Timothy 1:15).

The problem in the world – first world or third world – is sin (Romans 3:23).  It is only faith in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth that can save them from their sins (Luke 19:10).  And it is through the preaching of the Gospel, we might be able “to save some” (1 Corinthians 9:22).  The Lord is only a refuge for those who are saved (Joel 3:16).
      

Please remember to pray:

Haiti – Pray for the believers.  They are the only spiritual source of comfort that can help those who are suffering in the aftermath of the earthquake.  Pray that the material aid flowing into the country will go to help those most in need.  Reports of gangs stealing food from women and children are in the news.  These thieves are sinners – they need to be saved.