We Are Finally Ready…Again, Part 2

The picture here is from the first time we went down to Haiti in May 2016.  Sophie is so little, and we were just trying to figure out how to live in Haiti with a baby.  As you know, from yesterday’s blog, we will be heading back down very soon to Haiti and this time with 2 babies!  At this point, in fact, it just comes down to how quickly Elijah’s passport is mailed back to us.  Yesterday I wrote a list of 5 reasons we are excited and 5 reasons we are nervous, as a family, to move back down to Haiti.  The list was really of a personal nature rather than from the standpoint of All Things New, so today I am going to make that same list from ATN’s perspective:

  Why We Are Excited:

1. Decisions can be made on the ground more easily and in person.
2. The kids, in general, do better with Matt and Jess around.
3. School is starting soon and, for a variety of reasons, this is the most important time of the year for us to be in Haiti.
4. The ATN Team system is coming into place and it is time for us (Matt and Jess) to allow some of our new leadership to take over.
5. We can start praying over and thinking through our new areas of ministry (Discipleship and Job Creation) in the same place where these ministries will take place.

Why We Are Nervous:

1. It is a transition for all of our kids and employees as Matt and Jess are able to spend more time in Haiti.  As good as this is, transitions always bring with them uneasiness on some level.
2. We are sending our missionaries back down to a 3rd world country, and this time with 2 babies.
3. August and September ( with school expenses and leading up to our LaGrange Fundraiser) are always our most difficult financial months, and financial difficulties are more difficult and stressful when we are in Haiti.
4. We are hoping to begin the process of starting 2 new and difficult ministries (job creation and discipleship as mentioned above).
5. As much as our work in Haiti is important, there is still a lot of work to be done in America too (i.e. finding new support churches, fundraising, Team Development, etc.)

It is funny, but one of the really difficult things about starting a ministry and an organization that we are passionate about and that has such a personal aspect to it is that sometimes it is hard to distinguish between ourselves and All Things New.  That can be a very positive or a very negative thing depending on the circumstance.  In fact, yesterday, we made a rule starting at 8 am that we would not talk about All Things New for the next hour (I had a meeting last night at 6, so we were trying to take the morning off) and I (Matt) broke the rule within about 7 minutes of putting it into place.  This is one of the reasons that a strong board, hard working ATN Teams, and a great group of volunteers are so important because you help us stay grounded and you help us make good business and ministry decisions.  Thank you for everything that you do to help All Things New as we work together to accomplish the vision that GOD has given us.