Jose Morelos

The rancid political climate of recent days, and the reaction of many toward the possible building of a mosque in a particular place in New York city, has made me wonder whether we are growing into a nation of cognitive dissonant Christians. Cognitive dissonance is the state of having two conflicting beliefs and attempting to live by each of them. In this case the conflict derives in trying to live like Christ followers, while shielding America from the influence of foreign persuasions. The fact is that we cannot do both. They are mutually exclusive. Attempting to be reconciled with both, a cognitive dissonant condition, results in attitudes and actions contrary to Christ's teachings: frustration, anxiety and then violent behavior; instead of charity, love and peace. Even more important, attempting to live by these two conflicting beliefs neutralizes the only reason for our existence on this earth: being the salt of the earth and sharing the message of Christ to the world.  A world that is coming now into our neighborhoods and which is at our doorsteps.

The United States accepts more refugees from needy, war torn areas of the world than any other country in the world.  In 2008, over 60,000 refugees were accepted to be resettled in cities all across the country.  That number increased to 80,000 in 2009.   Canada is the country that accepts the second largest number of refugees.  The U.S. government also accepts over one million legal foreign immigrants every year.  And, over 600,000 International students come to study in the U.S. each year.   All these are strangers in our midst of foreign persuasion. The last ten years have seen one of the greatest migrations of people in history.  It is when people are displaced that they are the most open and receptive to the gospel.  Many of these refugees and immigrants come from areas of the world where we cannot send missionaries and there are very few Christians.   (Could it be that in God's plan, He is bringing all these foreigners to our shores? Not to see this as God's plan could make us very uncomfortable.)

And life is getting more dissonant for many of us.  Not only do we have to consider the thunderous  voices of commentators on the right of the political spectrum,  but also the recent public opinion of well known religious leaders. The former are doing what they are supposed to do, but as for the latter, they should know better.

Let me state clearly: I believe that there is one, and only one, way to salvation: Jesus  Christ. (Romans 6:23). There is no other way. I believe that only those who appropriate His sacrifice on the cross as their own will go to heaven. (Romans 4:25) I believe that there is no other name under heaven by which any man or women can be saved other than through Jesus Christ. (Acts 4:12).  I believe that we are saved by His grace, not because of our actions or our merits. (Romans 11;6). I believe that if any man or women go to Jesus they will be saved. (John 14:6). That is what Jesus said. That is what the Bible says. I think all of us who claim to be followers of Christ agree on that.  But we also must agree in other parts of the Bible as well. To not do it is to live in a state of perpetual anxiety and angst: a state of cognitive dissonance.

Together with the above passages, the Bible also says that:

• We will be unappreciated and hated: "If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you."  John 15:19.
• We ought to know that this is not our world: "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place." John 18:36.
• We don't fight this world the way the world does:  "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does." 2 Corinthians 10:3
• We use different type of weapons. "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds."  2 Corinthians 10:4.
• We have nothing to defend here: "For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it". 1 Timothy 6:7
• We are not from here:  "For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ" Philippians 3:20

So, what are the followers of Christ supposed to do instead?

• We are to "Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.  And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret.... See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit...." Ephesians 5:8-18

I am not saying that we can't have our own opinions, only that as ambassadors we need to keep them to ourselves and "deal with it"; because we can only represent the views of the One who is sending us. The One whom we represent. That is, if we are followers of Christ, because we really have no other choice. This doesn't make us perfect or better than anybody else, because we are not; we are just different. We are not from here. This is not our place. We cannot expect "them" to conform to "us". We are only guests, passing through. "We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God." 2 Cor 5:20. Otherwise we are dissonant.

A study from Feeding America, the nation's largest food bank operator, shows that the number of Americans in need of food aid has jumped 46 percent in three years. There has been a 50 percent jump in the number of children needing food assistance, and a 64 percent increase in hunger in senior citizens' homes. The study shows that a growing number of people have to make difficult choices about what to spend their diminishing dollars on, with the rising cost of health care a major contributing factor to hunger. More than 46 percent of people helped by Feeding America report having to choose between paying for utilities or heating fuel and food; 39 percent said they had to choose between paying for rent or a mortgage and food; 34 percent report having to choose between paying for medical bills and food.


Governor Bob McDonnell said: "Too often, hunger is an issue we believe exists only in “other” places. But any official at one of the many Food Banks in Virginia will tell you hunger can be found “everywhere.” There is not a zip code in this Commonwealth where someone doesn’t need help to get a full, balanced meal."


It is a daunting task which can intimidate us to the point of paralysis. But, in eliminating hunger in America, we can start with small steps and make an all out effort to reduce it first in our neighborhoods. In the case of Point Harbor Community Church, we can start by working to get rid of hunger within zip code 23321 and then 23701, 23702, 23704…. 

We started our small steps during March's Second Saturday. 62 people gathered at Point Harbor to sort out food and put together grocery boxes for families in Chesapeake, Norfolk and Virginia Beach. After working for 90 minutes in the foyer of the church filling boxes with groceries, the gathered group departed to make 28 deliveries for 44 families in need. 

Over 40 youth and adults got together during 2nd Saturday's mission activity at Union Mission in Norfolk, VA.

I don’t condone the supposed child abduction by the Baptist group, which has been in the news recently from Haiti, but I can understand their motivation. During my trip to Haiti last week there were numerous times in which the thought crossed my mind of helping children I encountered, who were in very bad shape, and to rescue them from such horrific conditions.

I saw a little boy who could not have been more than 6 years old. He had been pinned under the rubble and his arm was badly injured. Under "normal" circumstances, in the United States, or even in Haiti, he would have had surgery to repair the badly torn arm. But in the aftermath of an earthquake with the devastating damaging effects equivalent to seven megatons of TNT or about 7000 times as powerful as the bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima, "normality" was also shattered. No water and food was accessible for days. No medical supplies or doctors were readily available. No emergency first aid attention was on hand. So, an arm that in other circumstances could have resulted to be, at worst badly scarred but functional, became infected and gangrenous, and needed to be amputated. My heart flinched when I saw him. (I thought about my own Nicholas and Annie. What wouldn't I do for them?) When his eyes met mine I almost started crying. At that moment, if someone would have said to me: "…sign here and he is yours. He is your responsibility; you take care of him…" I know I would have signed that paper.

So, laws and regulations for adoption are in place, especially, for times like this. In spite of the terrible situation, we all must be protected from reflexive good intentions, which may have unintended long term consequences. 

• Did this little boy have relatives? 
• What would be the psychological impact of snatching him out of his environment? 
• What would be in the best interest for him, long term?  

These and many other questions require thoughtful and unselfish consideration, for the sake of this child.

Nevertheless, I still think about that little boy. No child should have to live through what he may be going through right now.  And for certain, please Lord, no child should have to endure this alone. I hope he is not.

His name was Noe and he hadn’t seen his mother for 10 days. He was nearly 1 year old. When the earthquake hit he was with his aunt. The house they were staying in collapsed, killing his aunt. Somebody rescued Noe and he ended up at a hospital in Jimani, a city in the Dominican Republic. On Sunday he was reunited with his mother. It was striking how unemotional Noe was, when he saw his mother.  What an incredible trauma he must have endured. Maybe the trauma had sapped him, hopefully temporarily, of outward emotions.

Yesterday began the construction of a 40,000 gallon water containment system. It will serve the Hospital Buen Samaritano (Good Samaritan Hopsital) in the city of Jimani, on the border with Haiti. The hospital is located on the Dominican Republic side, but 99% of its patients are Hatians. The system will pump filtered water to the hospital.

Here are a few pictures from the travels into Haiti. Many more to show when I return. You can click on them for a larger view.

I have worked with Luis Cruz for 5 years. He is an engineer who supervised the construction of 42 churches built under the umbrella of ICM. Being responsible for ICM´s ministry operations in Latin America, I worked very closely with Luis. Luis has a ministry called Centro Familiar Cristiano (Christian Family Center.) Through this ministry he has helped many families and communities, providing them food, clothing and giving them small loans to start family businesses. Luis is well respected throughout the community and is a man of impeccable integrity.

When we, at Point Harbor, began to sense the need to help Haiti, I immediately thought about Luis and his ministry. His close proximity to the border would make it easy for any help to be channeled thru his ministry to help Haiti. I knew that he would be thorough in the evaluation of the needs and would demand proper accountability. We will be joining Centro Familiar Cristiano in a partnership to help Haiti.

On our way to City Sole, a community in Port-au-Prince, we were stopped by a man waving.  He told us that none had come to help his community of a few thousand. At least 30 had died there and there were some still missing. There were many injured. He begged us to come and see. A crowd soon followed us. We saw several houses that had collapsed. You could not conceive anybody surviving after the crumbling of all the structures.

According to some of the people following us some of the collapsed structures still had bodies in them. Many were living on makeshift tents in what was the community park. The tents were made of plastic bags held together by pieces of wood from pallets. We saw several injured. One was a women laying under a tent in a back yard. She had wounds on her back and hips that seemed infected. We saw babies sleeping on sheets on the ground. The people were angry that nobody had come to help.

As we get ready to travel to the Dominican Republic (DR) we continue to adjust our plans to the changing conditions on the ground.

Our contacts in the DR tell us that Elias Piñas is crowded with many volunteers wanting to help, but who do not know the language, the culture or are without needed skills. They arrive wanting to drive trucks, to cook or move rubble created by the earthquake. This is something that is not needed or is done by experienced volunteers. We do not want to contribute to this growing problem. Our plan is still to travel to Elias Piña, but we may shift to Jimani.  Unless something changes we plan to purchase supplies in Sto. Domingo and drive it to Elias Piña or Jimani. We are told that crutches for adults and children are becoming a priority.

We are not surprised also to start hearing of scammers disguised as ministries and stealing supplies. This is another reason for our fact-finding mission to identify the needs and to work with trusted partners to channel any future support. We intend to do proper diligence in order to channel the generosity of our congregation through the right channels.

I have ministered throughout the Central, Caribbean and South America for almost 20 years. The last 10 years with International Cooperating Ministries (ICM). During that time I have developed close and lasting relationships with pastors and evangelical leaders in those areas. In partnership with these leaders and ICM we have built over 30 churches in the Dominican Republic and over 20 in Haiti.

When the earthquake hit Haiti, my thoughts went immediately to the pastors in that nation and to those in neighboring Dominican Republic. I knew that while the earthquake hit in Port-a-Prince its affects would be felt all across the country and into the Dominican Republic, especially in border towns, such as Elias Pinas.

Our church members at Point Harbor Community Church (PHCC), sensing the terrible nature of the disaster, have been moved and want to help. Therefore, we immediately contacted those leaders in the Dominican Republic for which I have known for years. As I have talked to them during the last few days it is clear that the biggest needs are medical. PHCC and other churches in VA are responding to those needs. Next week Tom Tuttle, Executive Pastor of Point Harbor, and perhaps others, will be traveling to the Dominican Republic carrying resources to purchase medical supplies in Santo Domingo. I will travel ahead of them to get a closer look at the needs and to prepare for their arrival.

The plan is to load up a truck with medical supplies and to take the supplies to the border towns, or maybe across the border into Haiti. Some of the churches will be used as medical centers and ease the load on some of the overburdened hospitals. But we have no illusions. We know that any assistance we bring is miniscule to the overwhelming needs. We also know that the problems will be there for years, well after the media crews have left town. Therefore, part of our trip will be to establish the basis for a continuing partnership. We wish to show the love of Christ to those in need by working through churches in the area. By establishing a partnership with them we will strengthen their presence in their communities and open doors for their life of witness to their people. We wish to support them, remembering that they are the ones who will toil day in and day out, for many years to come.

I heard something from my friend David that made me think. He received a letter from a friend asking for help so that he can "share the Gospel with believers." Sharing the Gospel with believers, what a radical notion!

Through the years I have heard experts talk about differences between discipleship and outreach. But it may be that, in reality, there is none. One is sharing the Gospel with non-believers; the other is sharing it with believers. It is the same Gospel, but with different emphasis. For example: a non believer must hear the section of the Gospel that speaks about a God who:

"…so loved the world, that He gave His only Son so that they may have everlasting life"
 or
 "…everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst…the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life"
or
"…Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God…"

The believers must get familiar with the part of the Gospel that says:

"…I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing…"
or
"…therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

Same Gospel but different emphasis for different spiritual status.

One is outreach, the other is discipleship.

Point Harbor Community Church has established a link with leaders of the evangelical churches in the city of San Juan, in the western part of the Dominican Republic. They tell us that after the first 72 hours, the most urgent need will be medical supplies. The Dominican army is straining to contain a deluge of refugees. They are only allowing into the country those crossing the border from Haiti needing medical attention. Our current plans are to meet the brothers from San Juan in Santo Domingo. We will acquire there all kinds of medical supplies, load them into a truck, and drive them 150 miles southwest, to the city of Jimani. Once there we will determine how to distribute them. Option one will be to drive the supplies across the border. If this is not possible then we will distribute supplies in the border cities of Jimani and Elias Pinas.

@pointharbor: PHCC Haiti Earthquake Relief Fund started: http://bit.ly/5F5aa9. More details at www.pointharbor.net.

Why is it that some religious leaders, when catastrophes hit us, (9-11, Katrina, Tsunamis, earthquake in Haiti, etc.), are quick to point out the "the wrath of God", (Jonathan Edwards's Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God come to mind), instead of God's love? To be sure, the wrath of God is real. The Bible speaks directly about it: 

• Rom 1:18: "The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness." 

• Ephesians 5:6 he says: "Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God's wrath comes on those who are disobedient."

But the Bible also says:

• 1 John 4:9-10 "This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins."
  
  
• 2 Peter 3:9 "The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."  

In my opinion, it is better to make emphasis on the Love of God.  Because, if we believe the Bible, anybody without Christ is already condemned, (John 3:18 "Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son), better to show them an alternative. (John 3:17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. )

As we move forward with our calling to missions at Point Harbor, these are the principles that will guide our decisions:

1.To worship and glorify God. "May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you". Psalm 67:3.  Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.  Matthew 5:16  "Mission is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is." (John Piper).  Any mission initiative, program or activities must, at its core, reflect glory to God. Every participant should know, directly or indirectly, that our actions are not just a result of good citizenship or enlightened social responsibility, but are an expression of worship to God.


2.To maximize PHCC involvement. "… these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.…" (Eph. 4:11-12)  We will select programs and activities, to fulfill each initiative, only from those which will get the most members from our PHCC family involved. The more we serve the more we are blessed; therefore, we will seek the most involvement for our fellowship to grow and to be blessed. Our task will be to educate, equip and provide opportunities for mission involvement.

3.To leverage partnering efforts. "…striving together for the faith of the gospel…" Phil 1:27. We will execute programs in a partnering cooperative effort with inspired leaders. We will provide support to ministry partners only when it is reciprocated with an equivalent investment from them.  Our aim is to be ministering working partner and not just a funding entity.

4.To have a focused lasting change."… Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead."  Phil 3:13. We will concentrate our efforts and resources in fewer opportunities with maximum impact. Our mission work will be concentrated rather than diffused and diluted.

5.To promote spiritual and emotional maturity.  "… these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. 12 Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. 13 This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.  14 Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. 15 Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church." Ephesians 4:11-15 (NLT). Life Mission will seek to promote healthy spiritual and emotional maturity. This means Christians who, among other characteristics, demonstrate love for the right reasons, practice humility without manipulation and who do not see vulnerability and transparency as signs of weakness.

6.To achieve measurable and reportable results.  "… When the seventy-two disciples returned, they joyfully reported to him, “Lord, even the demons obey us when we use your name! " Luke 10:17. That which is measured improves; that which is measured and reported improves dramatically and produces joy.

7.To pursue lifetime relationships. "… But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin." 1 John 1:7.  We will seek relationships, not just points of contacts. We seek lasting covenants, not just temporary agreements.