Haiti - Dominican Republic
Pastor's Conference in the Dominican Republic
I left for Haiti on February 22 and arrived there
the following morning for the national three-day
pastors’ and Christian leader’ conference which is held each year during the Mardi Gras season. Since the
Christians don’t participate in the Carnival-time celebrations although they have the holidays off
from their work and school responsibilities, it is an
ideal time for them to travel to the capital city of
Port au Prince for the training conference. This
year, approximately one hundred pastors plus an additional three hundred church workers and
leaders and a
horde of kids (because the pastors
had to bring their children with them) participated in the conference.
The theme of the conference was “Qualities of
People Who Make a Difference.” One of the major points that was emphasized is that people who make a real difference in their society are those people who are filled with and manifesting the power of the Holy Spirit. After the message, about seventy to eighty of the delegates came forward to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit. What a blessing! I am looking forward to seeing a difference in the country on my next visit because the nation now has people scattered through its regions who are informed and empowered to make that difference.
Following the conference in Haiti, I left for the Dominican Republic on the other side of the island. After an all-day bus trip, I arrived in Santiago
where I was greeted by Tim and Trena Johnson,
the missionary family who run La Casa Grande Mission. Although I only had two days of ministry with them it was a power-packed time. When we
had made the arrangements to come to the DR, I
did not realize that we were scheduling my visit
over their Independence Day holiday week. When
I learned that news, my first response was that maybe it was not such a good idea to come
exactly then because of so many possible conflicts.
Actually, we did find out that the timing did pose a problem with some conflicting schedules; however,
a powerful testimony came out of the matter. One church canceled a planned leadership seminar so that their leaders could attend our pastors’ meeting. Another group of pastors came directly to the meeting from a four-day ministerial conference which their denomination was sponsoring. It was so humbling to hear how they were willing to sacrifice and adjust in order to be present for the teaching. It was also an honor to be there at this particular time since I was the first speaker to minister in the new ministry facility that is being built on the mission compound. In fact, some of the finishing touches were still underway as we were setting up the chairs for the meeting! Approximately four hundred pastors and their wives rejoiced at the opening of the new facility and enjoyed a condensed version of the message on being men and women who make a difference. I know that these pastors will definitely make a difference in their nation because they have already been greatly impacting their neighborhoods, city, and country.
On Sunday, I ministered in two different churches and witnessed a great move of the Spirit in each congregation. In the morning service, the pastor of the congregation had been out of the pulpit for months due to health problems and a church split from his having been falsely accused of certain wrongdoings. When I gave the altar call, I turned to him because he was seated on the front row and asked him to take the microphone and lead the people in the sinner’s prayer in Spanish. When the people saw him step back up in front for the first time after so long a period, there was an immediate spirit of jubilation that swept through the building--not only for the dozen new members of the Body of Christ, but also that their pastor was being restored! Between six and seven hundred people packed the church were I ministered on Sunday night. Sixteen came forward for salvation at the close of the service, followed by a “cast of thousands” who came up for healing and prayer. Just as we were ready to close the service, the pastor called me forward and blessed me with kind remarks, saying that he is always encouraged when I come to the Dominican Republic to minister because he always feels that every time I bring a word directly from God and that the attitude of humility displayed in my ministry mirrors the very nature of God.
Of course, I was humbled by his kindheartedness toward me, but couldn’t help but think of all the kind friends who make it possible for me to go out on such mission trips to bring the word and love of God to these hungry hearts. Anything I have been able to bring to him and all the other pastors around the world is nothing more than a delivery of the love and prayers of all our partners. Thank you so much for your ministry to the pastors and leaders in Haiti and the Dominican Republic!