Posted in General Posts by Benny V on 7/28/2010
I know it's been awhile since I've given you all a quick update so I figured I'd give you just a few things. I'm hopeful to pick up blogging again in August so stay tuned :)
I'm currently working as the "Crew Sage" at a Christian Camp called Cedar Campus up in the UP. That's a fancy title meaning that I oversee the summer staff in a lot of areas. I've decided to be here at least until October 1st and perhaps longer. You can be praying about that decision as I move closer to that date.
Today I will get picked up on the side of the road on M-75 by a youth group heading into the northern UP. They will be canoeing, two-tracking, swimming and camping and I've been asked to be the speaker for their retreat. Please be praying that God's words would come through me and impact their lives. Pray for their encouragement and refreshment please. I'll be out in the woods with them until Sunday.
Also, it's looking more and more like I'll be leading a group of guys overseas with my buddy Miles this upcoming January. There will be more to come with that but you can also be praying about that!!
OK, I've gotta go pack but I'll be writing more come August hopefully.
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Posted in General Posts by Benny V on 5/25/2010
So I told you I would get some pics up for you from Cedar Campus. Not all of these pics were taken this year but these are all taken from here at some point while I was working here in the past. It's been a restful time so far and my body is finally slowing down a bit. We had a great night of worship and prayer last night which I am thankful for. I'll fill you in on more of my role here and what God is doing soon. However, I just wanted to leave you with some visuals:)
For those of you who wish I had more pictures in my blogs...This is your lucky day!!
 This is a dock that I've spent countless hours on just watching the stars or hanging out with crew.  A Cedar evening with a couple kids debating about going for a dip.  This is a place we call "Narnia" and if you were to come and visit, those reasons would be fairly evident. Sailboats and big sky over water...just a couple reasons why people love it here.   Most nights the sunsets are pretty fantastic...this is just another scenic one.  This is my rock. I'm not sure how many of you know the story but a night on this rock got me through a lot of hard things for a number of years. All creation reflects His glory...  | |
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Posted in General Posts by Benny V on 5/23/2010
2 weeks ago I left Haiti...heat index of 115 degrees
1 week ago I found myself back in the Bering Sea...blizzard for three straight days
This week I find myself back at Cedar Campus in my beloved UP...temp "just right"
Three years ago I had just come back from teaching in Dakar, Senegal and was preparing for a year of teaching middle school on an island in the Bering Sea. The "Deadliest Catch" wasn't quite nearly as popular as it is now and yet St. Paul Island (one of the main islands on the show) was going to be my new home. I was in for a ride!
 (This is a picture of the town of St. Paul on the one clear day I was there.)  The two resounding questions that I got when I arrived back on the island were: 1. Do you REMEMBER me? 2. Do you REMEMBER my NAME? We all want to be known... ...it's universal... You were made to be fully known. There is something in us that longs to fully know others, ourselves...God... "Mr. V, do you remember me" echoed out a number of times while on the island...the obvious answer is that I remembered everyone there. Realistically, a hundred kids (one fourth of the population) made up the school and after a year there it would be difficult to forget them. However, I couldn't remember every single name. It came back quickly but I found my mind jumping to different countries and experiences I've had since I had last been there. I thought about cultures, people groups, temperatures, poor, and those who've overcome much. I thought about the kids in the Ukrainian invalid orphanage that didn't even have names to be remembered by. I thought of how easy it is to think that something is "natural" or even "healthy" just because that's the way it "has always been." Yet, the thing that pulled at my heart was how universal it is to want to know fully and want to be fully known.
 This is Joon... She worked at the Radio Station while I was there. I still look forward to hearing her random updates through email. She's one of the most unique people you'll ever meet. She's more real and less judgmental than most people I know.  Stefan is a friend who I've enjoyed getting to know throughout the year I lived there. He's got a pretty laid back personality and tends to just go with the flow quite a bit. He's always up to talking sports and playing ball...which was one of the best things for me while out there.  This is Kianna. She used to always come and give me hugs. I saw her outside of the school and she came up to me and said "I remember you!" She then proceeded to give me like 5 straight hugs. I got a number of hugs throughout the days there and was told multiple times that she was going to keep me there or at least come with me... This is one of the most tender little girls you'll meet. My heart partially breaks thinking about the possibility of her heart getting torn up by the the hardness that is often found on the island...May God be her protection.  (Here are the seniors graduating...These guys have a special place in my heart and it was such a blessing and honor to be asked to speak at their graduation.) For those of you who wanted to see the island, I took some pictures in between blizzardy times...take a look at the following pictures. On a quick sidenote, I went from 115 degrees to like 15 degrees to somewhere "just right." I'm currently in Northern Michigan and I'll get you a blog about my summer soon!   ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Who do you let know you fully? Who do you try to know fully? | |
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Posted in General Posts by Benny V on 5/11/2010
Ktadb
 A couple days before leaving Haiti, I found myself trying to get as much done as possible in a very little time.One of the tasks at hand was to check on Pastor Brevyl Innocent who shepherds a church that will soon be in our church to church program.While sitting in his church chatting, I kept getting distracted by looking out the door. This is what I saw across the street. A week before, one of my translators made a comment about "middle class tent communities." The more I thought about the statement, the more I realized in an odd way it's true. There are higher, middle and lower class tent communities. Under that are Tarp Communities... However, under that there are bed sheet communities. Some of these people live in parks, in street medians, on old garbage dumps or really any where they can find. These communities have "houses" made of sticks and bed sheets. They'll literally rip pieces off of their bed sheets to use as strings to tie the rest of the bed sheet to the sticks that make up their house. They'll peruse through the garbage to find the next best thing to build
 with. You would be surprised at the ingenuity of some through this process. However, the truth of their condition still remains. The winds are coming more frequently and they are bringing the rain...
spreading the diseases...
and bringing the mosquitos...
Those that have found rocks to make a bed find themselves sleeping on ground not completely sopping wet.
 Those lucky enough to find some cardboard, might even have somewhat of a cushion on these rocks or broken pieces of rubble. Then there are those who just have mud or cardboard to work with and hope that they can weather the storm.  The pictures above were taken less than one week ago. The Earthquake that shook the world through Haiti happened on Jan. 12th. That's four months ago! After four months, this community still hasn't received a tarp or help from an organization. I'd like to say this is the last community left without help so far...but I'm positive it isn't. However, God led me to it for a reason and my prayer is that we can get them some help.
Or if you would just like the facts:
There are 3,462 people that live in this community.
They live in 577 "shelters"...not to the tarp or tent level yet.
That means that each of the little shelters above on average houses 6 people.
The name of this community is Ktadb and they need your help.
You can be praying for the leader of the community and the pastor who lives nearby.
  Pastor Brevyl
Innocent
is on the left
Alcindor
Jn.
Samson, the village leader is on the right
OR...If you are led to donate money to get resources and food to this community, or if you would like to go yourself to Haiti to help out, you can click here:
(To get money to Ktadb specifically, you'll have to write "for Ktadb" on the memo of your check or on a note with your payment.)
There's no greater blessing than to be one.
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Posted in General Posts by Benny V on 5/1/2010
Have you ever baptized a person in a tarp before? How about a 40 lb 15 yr old who has been lame since birth? Have you seen a child who doesn't really speak intelligible words start saying things in a foreign language that seem intelligible? Have you seen a child change his complete demeanor in a matter of days? Do you believe prayer is powerful?
Well, one of our teams this past week has...
There was a boy who was sick as a child and taken to a voodoo priest when he was a couple months old. His mom was told to urinate in a bottle with a special leave in it and then massage her child down with it every day for a month to complete his "healing." He's been lame since and people have given the mother shame since...He curls up in a fetus position with legs and arms the size of bamboo...maybe. The Earthquake hit and Evansbord was stuck in a house that collapsed. Everyone assumed he had died. A day later they picked apart rubble and found him curled up and waiting with minor problems considering his frail composition... (I'll try to add a picture to this blog later with his picture)
This was a child who's been neglected by his community and yet loved by his mother...this past week our team saw God transform and deliver this child into a new life with laughter and response unlike anything they had seen from him... The bible says that the prayers of the righteous are powerful...Elijah was just a man...Do you believe in the power of prayer?
Really?
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We've said hello and good bye to another 37 participants...you know what, I don't particularly love the word "participant" unless you're just saying they were participating with what God is already doing...Participants to me sounds like a part of a program and this is not a program. Anyway, I'm moving on!
We've got 3 people from last week that are staying an extra week. For a mother and daughter, this was planned. For Carlos, it wasn't! However, this young man is going to be a huge blessing with helping us this upcoming week. God has been providing just enough staff to get whatever we need done and I'm thankful for His provision! Pray for favor and blessing over Carlos as he helps serve with us down here.
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Riley, a man of God, came down to disciple many of these pastors. I've enjoyed having him here fully and look forward to hearing about his return in the coming weeks. Fishermans Inc. is legit! Check them out online or I can give you a couple of their emails. Seriously though, that's a group that you can put your time, money and heart into empowering and God will bless you back while also blessing them and many others through them.
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One of the participants asked me how it felt to have 6 days left...It took me back to realize that this was my last Saturday here. I am not quite sure I've really had time to let that thought hit me. I feel like I haven't been down here all that long and days are so full that you just don't have the time to really think fully about home. Crazy...
Upcoming plans:
May 7th I fly back home to Michigan. I will be back up on St. Paul Island where I taught for a year a couple years back on May 14th to speak at their graduation. There's been a few setbacks as far as funding the trip up there so please pray that God will just work out all those details. Thanks. I've also recently accepted a position at Cedar Campus in Michigan as "Crew Sage." This is a Christian camp that I worked near the start of college and then again the summer before going on my world race. I'm hopeful for refreshment and to see His Spirit move mightily through that camp. I have to show up for work by May 20th...I'll be there through the end of August and then we'll see from there.
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Prayer points:
-everything to work out for the Bering Sea graduation
-safety in travel for teams flying out and flying in
-smooth transition as we're changing authorities and responsibilities both amongst our staff as well as over to Haitian guys.
-God continues to lead the groups down here to where He wants them to do what He wants them to and to BE who He's called them to be.
-provision, protection, favor over all that He's doing here with staff and participants
-Pastors and churches would continue coming together past denominational barriers
-People who flooded into church initially will find the one who's been pursuing them and walk with Him all their days
-The body would come together and get healthy
-The American part of His bride would wake up and be filled with His Spirit and His life
-The peace of Israel
-That Jesus would come back!
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Posted in General Posts by Benny V on 4/27/2010
Misconception #5
There's something wrong with you if you go to Haiti for ENJOYMENT...
For some of you this might sound like a stretch.
Haiti???
Enjoyment???
I can almost hear some of you say "benny, you do realize they are mourning the losses of family and friends after years of poverty in one of the poorest nations in the world. Many of them don't have food or water and you're talking about enjoyment? How insensitive could you be? Don't you know what they're going through?"
Well...no, I don't know what they're going through. I can't or don't want to fully ever realize the trauma that they've gone through to be honest. However, I also don't understand some of the joy that they've had through the midst of it. I can understand that God does the most unlikely of things in the most unlikely of places.
God put a word in me for one of the groups the other night and it kind of jumped out at even me. It was basically that He had brought them down here to invite them into His presence to enjoy Him...to enjoy HIM? yup! I thought about it and it actually makes sense. This is why...
As Christians, we sometimes think we're the ones who are bringing Him everywhere...He is already everywhere and His kingdom is advancing forcefully with us or without us. He's invited us to come into His presence and reveal with physical eyes what He's already doing in the spiritual realm. We then just become a manifestation of His character in action.
 The thing is, He's here and revealing Himself in some pretty cool ways. He's transforming a nation before our eyes and to be honest that's something to be excited about. That's something to get joy from. We are indeed supposed to mourn with those who mourn and rejoice with those who rejoice. We as Americans often assume that the Haitians would only be mourning because of their situation. We look at their circumstances and say to ourselves that if we were in the same circumstances, we would probably..(fill in the blank) However, do we ever stop to think that maybe they would react differently than we would?
My point is that many of these people have much to grieve about. Yet, there's been a joy and a refreshment in some of these people and churches that I haven't been a part of in a long time. So for those of you that toil day and night in cubicles or jobs you don't like and have a cycle of living where you're not quite satisfied and you're living the independent life...alone...wouldn't you want to be a part of something raw and real with life and hope and joy spilling forth in the midst of some terrible tragedy? All I know is that I see people alive and I enjoy that.
It comes down to this:
If you believe that they don't have anything to have joy about, shouldn't you come down to enjoy them and hope it spreads?
If you believe that they do have something to have joy about, shouldn't you come down to enjoy it with them and hope it spreads?
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Is enjoyment a choice?
can I choose it with what's going on in my life?
can you choose it with what's going on in your life?
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Posted in General Posts by Benny V on 4/26/2010
Anyway, look at this picture and tell me which one is God...For the first time in my life, my answer changed this morning.
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Posted in General Posts by Benny V on 4/25/2010
Haiti Misconception #4
Haiti is too DANGEROUS to go to...
One of the re-occurring trends that I've seen since being down here is that the number of males who have come down to help has outnumbered the women who have come down. Praise God!! Seriously, if you think about it, that's pretty cool. in the U.S. we have churches filled with women and children. Here not only are most of our Haitian staff quality men, we're drawing quality men to come and participate with what God is doing. You could say that it's because men like to be hands on/get dirty and there's plenty to get dirty with down here. You could also point to the fact that men just like to fix things in general and there is more than enough to fix here for years to come. However, I think an added draw to men and reluctance to some women may be the element of "danger."
We've had plenty of participants who have taken considerable flack from friends, family, coworkers and churches for coming down into such a dangerous area. Parents coming down have been told they are irresponsible. Men and women both have been chastised for leaving spouses and children. Churches have put resistance up for multiple participants including youth pastors. Ultimately there are a number of reasons why all of these things have been said but a huge part of it comes down to fear and misconceptions. One of the largest misconception is that it's just too risky and too dangerous !!!
For those of you jumping up to check the stats and what so and so has reported or what the official reports on the dangers of Haiti are, I ask you to just chill out for a second. First of all, those are secular reports dealing with just the physical realm. You might say that "yes, benny, BUT we need to be careful of our physical safety too...especially if we're to bring our son or daughter here." Yup, I agree with you. Safety is a concern and we're not ignoring it. Believe me, we will attempt to take precautions to keep everyone safe. We have a guard by day, dogs and another guy by night that are on our side of our locked gate. We're tucked away in a Christian community that's completely civil and hard to find. We've got barbed wire on the tops of our high walls. There's a second gate at the bottom of our drive. We go everywhere with translators who are more than translators. We plan on having everyone in by dark. My point is that we will try to put every participant in a place where they will be safe at all times...
BUT...sometimes things happen.
AND...God has ALWAYS been faithful to provide.
I gaurantee you that we could spend months devising "what if" plans and the next day run up to a situation no one has ever even considered as a possibility. This is Haiti. It happens! I want to let you know that the physical danger of Haiti is not what you think.
 After being in all the places I have been to in the past year or so in my life, I can tell you numerous places that were far more dangerous than where I am now. I pulled up a few facts from the World's most dangerous cities and haven't found anything on Port au Prince quite yet. However, I did find places like Cape Town, Detroit, New Orleans, Los Angelas, Moscow, Caracas, Bagdad, Juarez and Beirut.
(left: picture of Detroit and Bottom: picture of New Orleans)
Would you take your kids to New Orleans? Would you let your husband go to Detroit? Would you be  willing to travel to Cape Town with your family? How about if you had an organization that was known for fostering safety? What if you knew they had a place with a guard and gates and barbed wire? What if you knew that you would have a local with you at all times in case of emergency? Doesn't that sound silly?
(Side thought: Just because we reacted to Katrina with increased looting, stealing, violence doesn't necessarily mean a "third world nation would react any better. In fact we often think they would react with increased violence. However, the truth is that God has poured out His Spirit here to the point where there is so much peace that the UN has already dropped off the radar essentially except for making more messes with traffic.)
Yet isn't that where the fear that comes in of the unknown? Isn't that the fear that has put pressure on so many of our participants already? Haiti is unsafe!!! Where does that fear come from?
Have you heard of chaos breaking out here?
Have you heard of massive attacks on people coming down?
Have you heard of violence breaking out?
Then why are you afraid?
"Fear not, for I am with you..."
Do you know that Jesus says to not fear more than any other phrase? Ponder that for a second. Fear is one of the biggest things that holds us back in almost every area of our life and yet it's not coming from Him.
In all honesty, the question really comes down to control. As humans we like to be in control. Americans especially tend to have an even unhealthier desire to control everything in our lives. We want to have back up plan after back up plan for every possible scenario so that we know how WE will handle the situation that probably will never come. We focus on the fear of the possibilities because if something happens where we don't have a back-up then it might just show that we really don't have control. We're control freaks.
We live in a way where we have to have answers for how we will take care of all of our needs and the needs of those that are in our life and under our responsibility. We become slaves to jobs to support houses too large and cars to oexpensive. We toil for our children's education and for our own retirement (for the Christians reading this, where in the bible does it talk about saving up for the future?) We even save more and more on the side for the "just in case" fund IF we've been frugal enough or blessed enough to get over that perverbial hump where we're just trying to catch up on all of the bills. Our control comes out in our preferences, relationships, lifestyles, giving, receiving, jobs and families. Don't believe me? Check your heart and ask God what He has to say about it.
If you stop and listen you might just here Him saying...
"Be still and know that I AM...and I am in control"
"I will never leave you...never forsake you"
"I will be with you always."
"I am your protector and provider."
"Let me have your burdens...I know what to do with them."
"I'll lead you in paths that are righteous."
"I'm your strength. I'm your fortress against the foe."
"I am your defender."
"I made you and know you.'
" I formed you before you were. I thought you up and said to myself 'This is good...real good'. I was the one who made you on purpose and with a purpose. I knew all of your days before I put my breath in you. I formed you to transform you. I want you to carry my life. Don't worry about tomorrow. It has enough worries without you adding any. Do you trust me? I am trustworthy. I am faithful, I am kind. I am full of goodness and my steadfast love for you will be your shelter. I love you more than you know how to love. I am love. My presence will go with you. DO NOT BE AFRAID!!!
-If you have any illusion that you're in control of your life, you need to let that go. It will only anchor your progress in life.
-If you have any illusion that you are safe on your own strength, you need to wake up.
-If you have pressured someone or been pressured by someone to not come down here because of "safety", check your fear! Would you do the same about going to Detroit? If so, you really need to check your fear.
He did not give you a Spirit of Fear, but one of Boldness, Love and Self Control.
If you are afraid to come down here because of the physical things, I will tell you that He's got it all under control regardless of our contingencies. If your trust is in man, you'll never be secure.
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The only thing worth truly fearing is God Almighty and I promise you that His presence is an all consuming fire. That will strip you, refine you and kill you more than anything that can come against you on this Earth...His pursuit is a terribly, dreadful beauty. He's real and He's not tame..but He is good. (narnia)
As a friend of mine once said: "Jesus did not come to make bad people good...He came to make dead people live..."
If your fear of coming down here comes from a self preservation or for your own protection, there is a good possibility He's provoking you because He wants to kill you...because there has to be a season of death for anything to truly fully live.
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