First Trinity is different.  I have never seen a tense moment or heard a negative word at any of our meetings.  Today was no exception.  Reports were given, budget presented and votes taken.  It was a wonderful demonstration of God’s people coming together with a common heart and a common vision.  Even when we have big issues, there is still a heart for what God wants and what God is doing.  It is really a very positive, spiritually exciting time.

It seems like people come to these meetings wanting to see what God is doing, and hear how we plan to reach out with His love.  Just another reason I am thankful for this family of believers.

But today, I am truly thankful for the family of First Trinity.  I know I say this often, but this is a great place to be.  People are willing to use their gifts and abilities to serve the Lord and each other.  They are excited about worship.  They are loving.  They are gracious and forgiving and encouraging.   I am truly blessed.

I want you to know I am thankful for you.

“I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always offering prayer with joy in my every prayer for you all in view of your participation in the gospel from teh first day until now.”  Philippians 1:3-5

Now there was another issue; I thought tweeting was simply sending short text.  At the basic level it is.  No one gave me a class on the topic of tweeting.  The problem is, when someone responds to a tweet, I think only I can see it.  I didn’t know that.  I thought everyone saw what I saw.  Evidently that isn’t the case.

The end result is people would respond to my tweets with questions.  I would then answer their questions with my usual witty repertoire.  The problem is people would understand my great wisdom and hilarity because they couldn’t see the original question.  So I ended up sounding like I was giving inside jokes or I was just in my own little world.

Now my shot at tweeting and showing the world I am not as dull as sandpaper and a part of my life is worth tweeting, has come and gone.  I have proven that a little technology can be a dangerous thing in the hands of some.  So instead of sounding adventurous and exciting, I hear responses like, “You are not as good as Sue at tweeting.”  Duh!

I better stop now.  I have to catch up on her tweets.

This was probably our most productive trip yet.  We started with nothing and were able to complete the foundation for a boys’ cabin.  I have never hauled so many buckets of rocks, water, mortar and cement.  Still, it was good work and it was productive.

visiting Ile Vache is always a great trip.  The church is growing and Grace School is helping so many children.  It is exciting to see.

Then we did a two day V.B.S. in Les Cayes.  There were 250 the first day and425 the second.day.  It was a blast, but chaotic.  Singing and drawing and playing are always a joy.  But trying to share snacks and drinks with over 400 hungry children is a learning experience.

We also got to see one of the churches that go with us adopt a church in Haiti.  That was such a huge blessing.  It is in a little town called Maniche. 

Of course, one of the greatest joys of all is visiting with the staff and children at Children of Israel Orphanage.  I love those people. 

Now we are home and it is back to the cold (at least colder than Haiti).  But it is good to be home.

We also practiced our songs in Creole and our skits.  It will be a lot of fun to see how they react to our version of their language.  It will be so good to see everyone again.  I always miss them.

We also have a lot of work to do this trip.  We will start work on two cabins.  There will be a lot of heavy lifting and rock carrying.

If you want to see and hear stories about how hard they are working me, follow our twitter updates.  Just go to our website:  www.firsttrinity.com and click on the Haitian child.  It even says, “Follow our Haitian Teams.”  And lastly, please pray for us.

Then our daughter spun out on the 190 this week.  Yes, she is fine, just a little sore.  Thankfully she didn’t hit another car.  It was probably quite scary.  I am thankful no one was hurt.  Still, I have the question, how can you not hit another vehicle and still manage to total my car?!  Evidently, when you hit something while in a spin, it gives objects a chance to hit the car on every side!   It was our Saturn that was made out of plastic and then some more plastic.

Have you seen those commercials where they build a car around a person and there is just an engine and some seats?  That is what my car now looks like.  Fortunately we just renewed the registration and did some work on it before it was totaled.  When I walked into Carrubba, they said, “Hi Mr. Whited.”  It is not encouraging when the body shop knows your name.  Still, I will give a plug for them.  They have been great to work with.

Now I am back in the market for a car.  I am open to suggestions.

I believe God is going to do something new in my life and in the life of First Trinity this year.  This is going to be a great year.  I really want to focus on the power of worship and service this year.  That means I need to move in that direction.  I can’t just sit and wait for it to happen.  Whatever we believe God is calling us to, we need to move toward that direction.  It becomes the focus of our prayers and planning.

This is a New Year with new beginnings.  It is going to be a great year.  God is going to move in our midst in a great way.  It just makes me want to stop and praise Him now.  Thank You Jesus.  Amen.

Still, there’s no place like home.  There is nothing like our church family.  Being around family and seeing God’s beauty is refreshing.  We all need those times.  But I love this family and I love gathering together in God’s presence with you.  It is just as exciting to return and share in Christ with you.

Then on Saturday, we had a wonderful send off for our youth as they left for Hurricane, West Virginia.  Twenty eight people are serving at work camp.  It is an exciting time.

Sunday evening we had another group serve at Friends of the Night people in downtown Buffalo.

I love all that goes on here, and this is supposed to be the slow month!  I can’t wait to see what God has for us next month.

Then we commissioned our VBS crew and our work camp team of 28.  It was just an exciting time at First Trinity.  But then there was a funeral Sunday evening.  A wonderful man of 88 was called home.  While many were sad, we were very happy that he is now with the Lord.  Ultimately, it was a time of rejoicing.

Now it is VBS.  It is very exciting around here.  I have never seen so many Pandas.  Be sure to follow the excitement on our website:  www.firsttrinity.com