Happy New Year, everyone! Rena and I stayed up last night to greet the new year. We don’t always do that, but we wanted to make sure that 2020 really left the building. We wanted to lock the door behind it then look out the windows to make sure the old year wasn’t hiding in the bushes trying to get back in. “I’m back!”

Like you, we’re looking forward to this new year! Yes, the pandemic is still with us. Yes, churches and businesses still struggle. Yes, hordes of cicadas likely will invade the United States this summer. (Have you heard about Brood X?!) But we have good news. God the Son visited our planet to reconcile all things to himself (Colossians 1:19-20). He gave His own life to make that happen, then rose again to demonstrate His absolute power over all the effects of the Fall – including pandemics, economic downturn, and nature gone wacko.

Most importantly, Jesus died and rose again to rescue and restore you and me, who apart from Christ’s saving work would live without God and without hope. He now leads His church in the world to do all that He began to do and teach (Acts 1:1). He sent the Holy Spirit to reside within us and empower us to live out His mission. He is coming again to take us Home to live with him forever. Now that’s good news!

Our forgiveness, our joy, our hope are found in Christ alone. Martin Luther, who faced his fair share of upheaval in life, wrote:

Though this world, with devils filled, 
Should threaten to undo us,
We will not fear, for God hath willed
His truth to triumph through us.

God hath willed His truth to triumph through us. And in us. The truth of the gospel, the good news.

Let’s focus on the good news of Jesus in 2021. There’s enough bad news around to frighten and frustrate us every day. Hear me: In light of eternity, it’s background noise. We can’t let bad news distract or discourage us. We have a higher calling – to live out and shout out the good news of forgiveness and hope in the only Savior Jesus Christ. That’s the calling of every Christian. It’s your calling and my calling. 

And it’s our joy! God continues to grow Partnership of Pastors International and to give us opportunities to encourage and train pastors in the good news of Jesus. Through your prayers and generous giving, the Lord gave us an amazing first year of ministry. And we anticipate even more Kingdom fruit and greater impact for eternity in 2021!

We are convinced that the good news of Jesus, well lived and rightly proclaimed by godly church leaders, is the real hope of Haiti. The gospel of Jesus brings about heart change, which leads to life change then family change then neighborhood change then city change then nation change. That’s the hope of Haiti – and the hope of the United States. That’s why we do what we do as Partnership of Pastors International.

Thank you for standing with us! We invite you to continue to invest with us in 2021 as we encourage, train and resource church leaders in the good news of Jesus Christ. 

Invest with us HERE.

A Typical American Pastor

I’m a typical American pastor. In an average week, I pray, study the Bible and write a sermon for Sunday. I meet and work with church leaders and members. I get together with a few guys or with a group of young adults. I respond to questions by email and phone. I may ZOOM with an engaged couple or lead a funeral.

And I use A LOT of ministry resources – study Bibles, lexicons, commentaries, websites, Bible apps, Google Drive and wireless printers. The typical American pastor has all these resources at his fingertips. I can’t imagine trying to pastor effectively without them. Could you do your job well without good resources?

Lack of Training and Few Resources

The typical Haitian pastor faces very different circumstances. Church leaders in Haiti and other developing  nations suffer from two serious deprivations. They lack access to ministry training, and they lack good resources. We are committed to doing something about that!

Our ministry, Partnership of Pastors International, provides ministry resources, and – importantly – we train church leaders to use them well. The Thompson Chain Reference Bible (in French) is the foundational resource we train to and provide to every church leader completing our courses. At each training conference, we also provide Creole Bibles, church/theology books, gospel tracts and other ministry tools, such as the Evangicube. Your giving helps us provide Bibles and other ministry resources to church leaders in Haiti. DONATE HERE

God-Pleasing Worship Book

I’m excited about a new resource that we will give to over 300 Haitian pastors in 2021. The book, God-Pleasing Worship, is based on my friend, Joe Talone’s, excellent sermon series. Joe gave me permission to edit this message series for print not long before he unexpectedly went home to Heaven last May. Joe loved Haiti and served there many times with his church. This resource will continue Joe’s legacy of building up the church in Haiti.

Next Conference in February

In February, Lord willing, we will train 110 church leaders in a new city in Haiti. Gonaives is a city of over 300,000 people, situated on the west coast of the country. We are working hard on the details of this conference. Will you pray for us as we prepare for this next training conference?

His Greatest Gift

Rena and I look forward to celebrating our Savior’s birth with our kids in Memphis this year. We pray for His joy and peace to fill your hearts and holidays, too. Let’s thank our Father for His greatest gift – the gift of His Son. We are thankful for each of you!

It’s official! We will offer pastors training in our next new city – Gonaives – this February. Over 300,000 people live in this city situated on the west coast of Haiti. Gonaives is a 90-mile drive north from Port-au-Prince, a 60-mile trek southwest from Cap Haitien, or a three-day sail from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (I don’t think many people make the boat trip!)

We will fly into Port-au-Prince then catch a charter flight with Missionary Aviation Fellowship (MAF) from Port-au-Prince to Gonaives. Flights to/from and within Haiti have become more expensive and more complicated because of COVID-19 and recent unrest in Haiti. For example, U.S. airlines now fly only to/from Port-au-Prince – no other Haitian cities.

But the Lord is good! Over a year ago, we formally affiliated with Missionary Flights International (MFI), an aviation ministry based in Florida. To date, we have used MFI to ship our training materials and medicines to Haiti. Going forward, we will use them for our U.S. mission team flights as well. We also can fly with MAF in Haiti, which we’ll do in February. Both MFI and MAF are fantastic mission organizations with a long history of facilitating the Lord’s harvest. They’re a joy to work with!

Our partner pastors in Haiti tell us that church leaders in Gonaives are waiting eagerly for our training in their city. We had a few pastors from Gonaives at our training conference a year ago. They had traveled for many hours over rough, dangerous roads. They were one of several groups of pastors who asked us to bring PPI training to their city. We thank the Lord that we can do that beginning in February!

ACCESS to training is a huge problem in Haiti and other developing countries. For so many front-line church leaders in places like Haiti, the financial, family and geographical barriers are insurmountable.  But with the Lord’s strength and your partnership, we’re doing something about that! Partnership of Pastors International offers short-term, high-impact ministry training in accessible locations. Our courses are “traveling Bible college” or “circuit-riding seminary” in cities like Gonaives.

Training 110 church leaders in this new city will cost PPI about $100 per person, or around $11,000 total. That’s over and above our U.S. mission team fees and expenses. The cost of Thompson Chain Bibles in French make up half of our per-pastor cost – $50 per Thompson Bible for purchase and shipping. Would you invest in training pastors in Gonaives? You can donate HERE.

Rena and I just got back from a ministry retreat in the Colorado mountains. We had a full summer and an especially full three weeks before the retreat. Honestly, we were tired and frazzled. I was ready to bail out of the retreat – and said so to Rena –  but the Lord had good plans!

The Sonscape Ministry Retreat in Divide, Colorado, was just that – a retreat. Our leader couple focused on our personal walks with God and our rest in Him. I arrived ready to get feedback on our plans for the next two years of developing PPI. Instead we talked with the Lord and each other, walked the foothills of the Pikes Peak range, and rested.

It was just what we needed after these past 16 months of change and new Kingdom adventures. I read this week:

“If you will take care of the depth of your life and ministry, God will take care of the breadth. If you will stay focused on the root, He will produce the fruit.” (The God Ask by Steve Shadrach)

Jesus said it simply: “Abide in me . . . . Without me you can do nothing” (John 15:4-5). It’s easy for any of us to get so caught up in the opportunities and responsibilities of life that we miss our Savior’s invitation to lead our lives and give us rest along the way. He says to us, “Come away and rest awhile.” That’s what this past week was for us, and we are grateful!

Now we are back home in Michigan, and have resumed climbing the mountains before us here! It’s an exciting, joyful trek and our steps are lighter. Will you pray for us as we:

• Work toward our next pastors training in Gonaives, Haiti in February
• Contact and meet with churches and individuals to develop partnerships with PPI
• Continuing pastoring First Baptist Church and assist in the church’s search for its next permanent pastor

We don’t want to lose what the Lord reminded us of on the mountain!

How are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? Romans 10:14-15

PPI completed its first year of Kingdom work on September 15. And what a year it has been – thanks to our Haitian partners, all of you, and a global pandemic!

A Great Start

We officially launched Partnership of Pastors International on September 15, 2019, by mailing our first ministry newsletter, unveiling our ministry website and Facebook page (welcome to the 21st century), and organizing a U.S. mission team for our training conference in February 2020.

You have encouraged us so much – praying and giving to get PPI off the ground! Thanks!

Our First New City 

In February 2020, we took our first step of growth by offering training in a new city in Haiti. We equipped over 100 pastors in Cap Haitien, Haiti, a strategic city of 250,000 people on the north coast of Haiti. Lord willing, we will lead another training course there in July 2021. CLICK HERE to support our next training conferences.

Responding to COVID-19

We had to cancel our training conference in Haiti in July because of COVID 19. Instead God led us to provide food, medicines and Creole Bibles to Haitian believers in our “home base” city of Ouanaminthe. With the hard work of PPI friends -you! – and our partner pastors in Haiti, we put together over 500 food packages and 2500 medicine packets over the last four months. We also provided 234 Creole Bibles to pastors there. God continues to use these resources to save lives, invite people to Jesus, and strengthen churches. CLICK HERE for more on COVID-19 in Haiti

Looking Ahead to Year Two

We have hit the ground running in Year Two! Rena and I will take part in a pastors/missionaries conference in Colorado in early October. We are praying that God uses this retreat time to prepare us for fruitful, Spirit-led ministry this year and beyond.

We are focusing on developing church and individual partnerships this year. To do that we are sending PPI info packets to 30 churches each month, then following up with each church to set up in-person conversations. We have started with churches in Michigan so that I can continue as interim pastor at First Baptist Church in Bad Axe for the next several months. CLICK HERE to learn more about partnering financially with PPI.

We are also working toward training conferences in Haiti in February and July. Although COVID-19 has complicated travel to Haiti (and elsewhere), the Lord is opening doors for us to provide training courses in Haiti in 2021. Please pray with us for these Kingdom efforts.

Thank you for standing with us. We praise God for a good first year of Kingdom ministry, and we are trusting Him for greater impact for Christ in Year Two!