Most Friday afternoons the teens gather to learn more about the Bible. During this time the teens take time to pray together, orally read God’s Word, ask questions and challenge each other. This year Pastor Octavius is working through the Ten Commandments. He is taking time to explain each command and how to observe it. There has been some good discussions amongst the teens as he challenges them with observing all that God has commanded in His Word. Please pray that God continues to use Pastor Octavius to open the eyes and the hearts of those that come to Bible study. Please pray that through His Word many may come to know our LORD and Saviour Jesus Christ even more.
The students came to school today not as happy as they usually do. And rightly so! It is once again exam time for them. All the listening, all the hard work they have been doing in class comes down to one paper that they need to write. That is right, there is one exam for each subject and the mark they get on this exam will be the mark they get for the subject. A totally different way of monitoring the progress of students like we have in North America. So for today and the first four days of next week they are writing their exams to see how they are doing. We wish you all the best students of Adoration Christian Centre. Hope you remember a lot of the concepts, facts and ideas that have been taught to you.
Working hard!
Writing in the correct answer, hopefully!
Reading over the exams.
Concentration!
The students participated in a Bible Trivia Challenge on Friday, March 9th. The school was divided into four sections: Special Needs, Kindergarten, Grades 1 – 3 and Grades 4 – 6. Each section picked five students to represent their class. Throughout the morning the students got more and more excited and the cheering got louder and louder. The students enjoyed the competition as much as the teachers did. Here are some pictures of this mornings Bible Trivia Challenge.
Pastor Joseph has worked as gatekeeper at Adoration since June 1, 2010. Before Adoration he worked for big t-shirt factory as a supervisor/inspector. He also is a local Pastor at The International First Church of God (L’eglise Internationale Primitive de Dieu), with 30-50 regular members. Most pastors here in Haiti, have other occupations to support their families.
Pastor Joseph has been married for 7 years, and has one daughter, Hadassah, who is 5 years old and attends Adoration school.
So, what is a gatekeeper? Not a typical Canadian job, but here in Haiti it is very important. Every home and workplace here is surrounded by a wall, usually with barbed wire or glass on top to keep out intruders. There are gates to get in and out of each property, and Pastor Joseph acts as a security guard/monitor to know who is coming into and leaving the Adoration property.
On a typical day, he leaves his home around 5:30 a.m. and arrives at the school around 6:15 (he walks to work, or takes a tap-tap). When he arrives, there are often people already waiting out front for the medical clinic, so he takes their names and gives them a numbered waiting card. (Dr. Ed will see the first 50 people who come, so this is an important job.) After that, he unlocks the doors, and oils the gate if needed. By then, teachers and students start arriving and he lets them into the school and courtyard. After school opening (8:00), if students are late, Pastor Joseph escorts them to the office, so they can explain why they were late, before being admitted to class. (Attendance and lateness are recorde
d diligently, and it is an honour at graduation to have had no late or absent days.) During the school day, Pastor Joseph manages who is coming in and out of the property for the school as well as the medical clinic. He takes names of any visitors, who they are here to see, and records when they arrived and when they leave. He will escort visitors to the office/class they need to get to.
Having Pastor Joseph is a great blessing, and assists with security and
maintenance of our supplies and property, although, Pastor Joseph was adamant, that he does not give security, only God can give security. He read me Psalm 4:8 ” In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, LORD, make me dwell in safety.”
Pastor Joseph would like prayers for himself and his family, for continuing to grow in their spiritual life, for his ministry, and to open doors to help his family have a better life.
This past Friday the Secondary Students met for their regular Bible Study at 3:00. However this Friday afternoon was going to be different then most Friday afternoons. The students had a surprise waiting for them. They were going to be participating in a Bible Trivia Challenge. The month of February was dedicated as Bible reading month for the Adoration Christian Centre. The Secondary Students read part of Joshua on Friday afternoons and the book of Matthew at home. So anything from those books was fair game. Pastor Octavius and Cornelius spent some time during the day coming up with some questions. After the initial shock that they were going to be tested the students formed groups and were ready to go. Throughout the afternoon, the competition was fierce. But in the end the there was a winning team. They won only by one point! A job well done and an excellent time had by all.
After spending part of Thursday and most of Saturday, the secondary students, Daniel, Randy and myself finished up some of the projects and got the school ready for the children to start again this past Monday.
So to the eight who travelled from Ontario, Canada for 10 days to help with the renovations at Adoration Christian Centre here are some pictures of the finished project.
Much thanks for your hard work. Much thanks for your mentorship and leadership. Much thanks for everything that you could do. May God continue to bless you and keep you back in Ontario, as you spend time time with your families and as go to work. You have touched many lives here in Haiti and for that we are most thankful for.
