THE TRACKING BLOG

Headed Home

Naomie Jules — Sat, 21 May 2016 23:56:07 +0000

We have arrived safely at the Haiti Airport in Port-au-Prince. This mission overall has impacted each and every one of our team members in a powerful way. We can’t wait to come back to In Focus and share our testimonies about the trip.

Personally, I believe that God has worked through me on this mission trip, especially with this being my first one. If you’d like to continue reading about my personal journey after the trip, you can visit: naomieblogz.wordpress.com

If you want to read about the trip from another perspective, you can read up on Richard Deas’ facebook page. He has uploaded pictures and text posts as well throughout the week.
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10153413456321650&id=555491649

Thanks for keeping up with us!

Naomie

Rest and Relationships

Naomie Jules — Sat, 21 May 2016 02:36:41 +0000

Ahhhh, resort day has come and gone. This morning we woke up with a great sense of anticipation as we packed up our beach bags to go to the resort. Mission of Hope has a great setup so that we can see the tourist side of Haiti as well as the missions side of it. We had such a great time bonding with each other. There were several excursions, such as: snorkeling, jet skiing, massages, souvenier shopping, jumping on beach trampolines. We were finally let loose for the first time, so we were able to have some time to ourselves in order to really think about our week here on mission and get to know each other even better. Tonight we go to bed with heavy hearts, but also with a sense of joy to see our families again. Thank you for your continued prayers. Please continue to pray for our hearts to be moved by God and for our safe arrival back in the US.

Kingdom building

Naomie Jules — Fri, 20 May 2016 02:57:20 +0000

Today the medical team went to a village called Fovo to serve. This time, instead of operating out of a church, were were running the clinic outside in the open. We found ourselves taking vital signs, diagnosing, treating, and prescribing medicine all under mango trees! This was a great experience for all of us, because we were able to see that even among the chaos, the Lord is always in the midst. The interesting thing is that we were stationed in an area that is reminiscent of a backyard with houses to the left and right of us. Across from us, on the dirt road that passes through that particular street, there was a voodoo temple. In my mind, I can just see God looking down at his servants and just belting out in laughter. How amazing is it to look the Devil right in his face, and continue to love on the people of Haiti in his midst. God was smiling today. We know that through him, nothing is impossible and that no weapon formed against us shall prosper. In fact, one of our lovely visitors, Eliza was able to diagnose a patient with Testicular Cancer in its early stages. Because of this, God has granted him several more years on his life. Imagine that. The devil and his demons are working on one side of the street, while God and his angels are working on the opposite side. That dividing line is something we see very presently in even our own homes. Will I respond with anger and hostility towards my wife when I am upset? Will I continue to engage in ungodly relationships – whether romantic or platonic? Will I show a stranger love when they show me hatred? I encourage you to remember this: you are either on one side of the road or the other. In every moment, you build one kingdom at the expense of another. Ask yourself. What kingdom will I choose to raise up today?

Beach day tomorrow!

Flag day in Haiti

Naomie Jules — Thu, 19 May 2016 12:21:56 +0000

Good morning! We are all doing fine: quick update & recap from yesterday. Our team had to take the day off of mobile clinic yesterday because May 18 is flag day! The celebration of flag day in Haiti is similar to our 4th of July celebration; they also do not have school or work, so we took the day ‘off’. Instead of going out into the villages, we stayed on campus and cleaned up the warehouse. We organized medicines, took an inventory, and moved medical supplies into safer and more sustainable areas. Mission of Hope has so many donors that give selflessly – so much so, that the two leaders of the medical department simply cannot do this grueling work by themselves. We had a great time team bonding, but the labor was so taxing on our bodies. After that, we took a tour of the in-house clinic where it is fully sustained by the Haitian people. We got to see the prosthetics lab and the OR, as well as the testing lab. When we got back from the warehouse, we all took a nap and then had dinner. After that we had a debrief where we sat and talked about how we were feeling so far on the trip. Sorry if we worried anyone!!! We are doing fine. Today is our last day out in the village, so please pray for our strength!

New friends in Haiti

Naomie Jules — Wed, 18 May 2016 02:02:15 +0000

Today’s blog is going to be a little bit different, because today was a little bit different. We did almost the same exact thing that we did yesterday, but the interesting thing to see is how comfortable we were today. Yesterday was difficult because of the language barrier and the newness of it all. Some of us were having difficulty finding the spot where we felt our capabilities were best served, while others just didn’t know how to interact. With patience, prayer, and great advice from Chris, Dr. B, and Dr. T, we were able to use their wisdom to come back 10 times stronger than yesterday. As a group, we felt more empowered to speak on the gospel and pray with people rather than just taking a medical history with no real interaction. After returning from the mobile clinic, our team was EXHAUSTED. Rice with beans and legume were served for dinner and it was absolutely delicious. We went to church shortly after that and then we had another time of team fellowship. One thing that I have neglected to mention is that there are two amazing visitors in our group. There just so happened to be 2 medical students who arrived on the same day that we did, on Saturday. They joined our team and are shown in multiple photographs. One of them is named Neerjah (she is Hindu) and the other is named Eliza (she is Muslim). It’s already day three, but by the word of the gospel, the power of the Holy Spirit, and the kindness that we’ve shown them, we can all see the change that is happening in their hearts. They mesh so well with our In Focus fam………. we might just have to take them back to AUG with us!

PS: Today is Neerjah’s birthday, so please wish her a happy birthday!

Not your typical Monday…

Naomie Jules — Tue, 17 May 2016 03:50:37 +0000

Today was a great day! We woke up before sunrise once again, and they served us boiled eggs, watermelon, bananas, and coffee of course for breakfast. The team shortly moved down to the clinic on the Mission of Hope Titayen campus to load up the truck with medical supplies. We had so much! It was a mix of our donations and donations of other teams who have previously come before us. The clinic day was definitely a lot of hard labor, but by the time we were finished, we didn’t even notice that we had been on our feet for 5+ hours! The stations were set up with registration at the beginning, height and weight next, and then triage with 4 of our medical professionals (Adam, Richard, Rachel, Naomie, Sarah, and Melissa) taking vital signs and patient histories. After this, the patients waited in line to see the physicians who diagnosed and treated them. We were so grateful to have a Haitian doctor with us, who was familiar with a lot of the common illnesses that Haitians suffer from. At the end, the patients were given a prescription that was filled by our wonderful support staff-turned Pharmacists! (Shante, Melissa, Chris). Later, we came back to campus and had packed medicine, then had dinner which was rice and peas with chicken, and Haitian rice crispies treats. Of course, the In Focus medical team was responsible for the dishes tonight. We had a GREAT time just doing dishes and enjoying each others’ company. You can really tell that God is working through our team and bringing us closer together with the work that we are doing for his Kingdom. We then met for a team debrief time in which Richard Deas blessed us with his testimony. God is moving deeply in our group!

Sunday in Haiti

Naomie Jules — Mon, 16 May 2016 01:58:52 +0000

Today was our first real day on the ground in Haiti. We woke up, had breakfast and had fellowship again. There were several options for breakfast: oatmeal and peanut butter & jelly sandwiches, coffee, and watermelon! For my coffee lovers who are wondering, the coffee was amazing! Black coffee with no cream, just sugar. Today was somewhat of a transition day. After breakfast, we went to church which was beautiful. The language barrier was difficult, but we managed. There was a praise and worship session that was great, because it was made of American music with Haitian and English words. The melodies and rhythm matched perfectly, so the team was excited to worship. We went on a tour to 2 different local Haitian villages and then toured the sister campus in Berci. The villages are called Leveque and Source-Matlas. This was a great way to integrate with the Haitian people and to start learning a few words of hospitality, like “Alo!” Which means “Hello!”. After the tours we headed back and had a traditional Haitian dinner of rice with beans, chicken, picklies, and fried plantains. Afterwards the group had some more fellowship time and prayer as well as a short orientation to prepare us for tomorrow. Tomorrow is our first actual day with boots on the ground, and we couldn’t be more excited and thankful to be seeving the Haitian people!

Arrived Safely

Naomie Jules — Sun, 15 May 2016 19:08:27 +0000

Hey everyone,

This is Melissa Brocato posting from Augusta on behalf of the team. We got word through email that the team arrived safely to Mission of Hope where they will serve for the next week. Hopefully they will be able to post later tonight, but we at least wanted to get a post up to let you know all is well and all are safe.

Melissa

Day 1:

Naomie Jules — Sat, 14 May 2016 14:45:16 +0000

It’s 4:00 am. 7 team members are departing from Augusta, and 2 from Metro-Atlanta. The skies are dark, and even the birds are still sleeping! I’m excited though, because we have a God who never sleeps, and who is with us this morning! Praying for safe travels & no lost/stolen luggage

Flight is going well, and everyone is resting on the plane. We have about 45 minutes until we reach Miami. Guys and gals already begining to bond and our fellowship is great!

Landed safely in Miami. We’re getting some food really quickly, then — to Port-Au-Prince we go. Check back for an update tonight!

Mission of Hope Haiti – Medical Mission trip

Naomie Jules — Fri, 13 May 2016 16:20:33 +0000

So here we are, one day away from departing for Haiti. In Focus Church is sending a team of 9 life-changers to do God’s work in what is labeled as a 4th world country, among the most underdeveloped and destitute countries in the world. But isn’t that what we see in the Bible? God has not called us to make disciples of many nations, but of ALL nations. All, meaning every single one; the greatest possible number; without missing any. We are more than happy to obey His call in this way, by serving the people of Haiti. Our team is led by Dr. Akers and is made up of 9 members whose names are (from L to R) : Richard Deas, Shante Jackson, Adam Deem, Mary and Keith Blevins, Sarah Freeman, Melissa Freeman, Troy Akers, and Naomie Jules. We are excited to see where God will take us, and how the Holy Spirit will work through us. His word tells us that: “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.”(1 Peter 4:10). Our mission is to heal and serve the Haitian people – using our medical tools to heal their physical bodies, and the Gospel to heal their spiritual ones. We do not know what lies before us, but we do know that God’s work is never finished, and that we are only a vessel by which his Kingdom is built.

Please continue to pray for our Team’s safety, and for the open hearts of the Haitians to receive God’s word.