New Horizon Home – PaulThompsonBlog

International Church Planting

Posted on April 19, 2018Leave a comment

I’ve just returned from another trip to Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

This trip was a unique opportunity to participate in the ordination of not just one pastor, not two pastors, but seven pastors. Eastside Baptist now has before us one of the most challenging days in her history. Four of these seven pastors are looking to Eastside to prepare and partner in a church planting opportunity.

On this coming Lord’s Day, during one of our monthly shared meals, I’ll give a full report on what is going on at New Horizon Home and our church planting work in Haiti. Join me following our morning gathering on this coming Lord’s Day. We will stream and then archive the report if you are not able to join us in person.

Press On

Posted on January 28, 2017Leave a comment

The following is from my personal journal dated January 28, 2010. Location, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
________________________________________

We have contacted Pastor Jean Sainvil, we are lined up with our three [translators], and we are still working on finalizing documentation. The process seems difficult to understand and situations change the process after clarity has been given [to us.] We have been told that the illegal trafficking of children has increased and need to have documentation from director of the orphanage is of greatest importance. We are all in agreement and now press on to give hope from God to the orphans.

We have received 33 children from Haiti Sharing Jesus Ministries, lead by Pastor Jean Sainvil.
The traffic is slow, as it has been everyday, so we will not [attempt] going to the border tonight.
Our hope of a safe place to park the bus and have the children examined by medical personnel has fallen through so we are forced to sleep on a street of Port-au-Prince. We do so with joy to care for the children. As we are preparing to bed down, I notice the care of the older children for the younger. This is precious. The children have been well fed today and have had plenty of water. It has been a hard day but a blessed day. I won’t assume that the hardship is over but the joy in to and from God. I learned Charisa is a diabetic tonight. She has not had enough food today and is in need of proper nutrition. It is good to have Drew and his knowledge to help get her to stay awake to eat and drink. We pray for hours with her and for her.
The street is more like an alley. It smells of urine, is filled with trash, and the non-stop barking of a dog and crowing of a rooster down the street have been announcing their presence most of the night.
We have [not been] approached by anyone on the street until about 3:00 AM. A police truck pulled up the street; they asked if we were alright. We explained what we were doing and why we were on the street. They were understandable and let us remain with no problems.

Prayer: God protect the children, help Charisa, Thank you that there will be people from our churches waiting for us when we arrive in the DR with the children. I am physically spent. My outer man wants to complain, but my spirit refuses him. I count it a joy to be poured out like a drink offering. Please make that dog quit barking.

(* Photo’s from Nikki. Thank you Nikki)

____________________________________________

The following is not in my journal… they are thoughts and observations I made one year later on January 28, 2011

——–
Here is some information that I think will help in piecing this day together with people and events in the coming days
This day was very exhausting. We had this smaller bus and needed to reserve another bus to handle the number of children now. There is no way we could have driven the larger bus to the orphanage but the larger bus would better handle the number of children. The additional bus eventually created additional confusion as issues of money and security began to pose a threat. With the assistance of the Haitian policeman we had met a few days before, we were able to pay the fee for the second bus and relieve them of any further assistance. This now made the bus very full with 33 children and 12 adults (10 Americans, now one translator and a relative of Pastor Sainvil.)
While meeting with Pastor Sainvil at the Haiti Sharing Jesus Orphanage, I was approached by a young man who introduced himself to me as Alex. He was very kind and thankful to meet me. He spoke English pretty well, I later learned that he is a school teacher.
He asked me if I could walk with him to his neighborhood. I informed Laura that I was going to walk with him to his house while she was working with Pastor Sainvil. I then met a lady name Florance who walked with us to Alex’s house. There Alex explained to me that their neighborhood was taking care of several children. Their parents were all killed during the earthquake. Alex asked me if we could take these children with us. I told him that we were working with the understanding that we could only receive children from an orphanage with authorization from the orphanage director. He understood and was very thankful I had walked with him to see and hear their need for help. I gave him Laura’s phone number and he gave me his so we could communicate in the future about how to help him. He, Florance and another man named Junior walked back with me to the bus. These three individuals will become very important to us in the coming days.
The dog never quit barking.

From Behind the Pulpit (FBP-008)

Posted on January 27, 2017Leave a comment

What Man Intended for Harm, God Intended for Good

Posted on November 16, 2016Leave a comment

It’s difficult to determine the outcome of life circumstances based on circumstances. It’s difficult to see what God is intending for good when difficulty is ruling the day. Then there is the risky task of concluding the finished outcome of something that is still unfolding. That has been the way it has been for the past six years in relationship to a gospel work God has begun, birthed in disaster, bathed in humiliation and seasoned with joy.

I want to share a brief moment from a recent trip to Haiti with pictures. Anyone wanting more details of the ongoing ministry of New Horizon Home/School/Church in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, I’m more than willing to share more details either in print or in speaking with your church or mission/ministry groups of our ongoing, unfolding, unfinished, developing work in international gospel work.

Here are a few moments from the most recent trip.

Response to Disaster

Posted on October 6, 2016Leave a comment

As hurricane Matthew begins to assault the East coast of the US, it has already left a path of disaster in the Caribbean. By the grace of God, as hurricane Matthew swiped Haiti, our girls home was virtually untouched even as flooding and worse was wide spread.

Disasters like this remind us of the plight of humanity in the wake of tragedy.

What can be done?
What should be done?

There are few things that I weigh when I begin to assess and check my emotions as the news begins to spread of the hardships many are in in days like today.

First; it is right to respond. There are two things here:

Americans (not just Christians) are generous people. It is our way.
More than being Americans, as a born again follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, as described by the Holy Bible, our new DNA is to behave toward others the way we would want to be treated. I wouldn’t use the parable teaching of the “Good Samaritan” be my instructional text on kindness toward strangers. As good of a story as that is I think it is best applied to the Gospel. One might get more people motivated to help with a good story like the “Good Samaritan”, but does one need to muster up motivation from a story to move God’s people to respond? Well, that’s a topic for another day. It’s who we are. It’s what we do. But we are not simply humanitarians. We have a Gospel mandate to the nations.

Second; how do we respond? There are at least four primary ways for Christians to respond.

Pray. This is not the easy way out. This is not to simply ease the conscience. We pray. We pray alone. We pray together. We ask God to help.
Gather helpful items. This can get complicated. Usually along the way we will hear of physical things that are needed. When we hear of things it is vitally important that we give what is actually being asked for. I’ve seen the rooms packed with winter coats, snow tires, ski gloves, and other useless items in tropical islands. It’s not a question of the genuine desire to help by those who send things, it’s a matter of helpful help.
Give. There will raise up a great out pouring of financial ways to help. Saints of the Lord, we love to give. I say to you, be disciplined in who you give to. There are “good” things that nearly every charitable organization can do. But the reality is that many charitable organizations are pilfering the common goodness of humanity for financial gain. I wouldn’t forbid anyone from giving to any organization but let me caution you to investigate any organization you give to before you give. There is one organization I don’t hesitate to warn you of: the United Nations, UNICEF. Yes, they will help in some ways that you will be thankful for, but largely, UNICEF is no friend of the Christian work around the world. I highly recommend the Disaster Relief Ministry of the North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. Any designated contribution given through a local church to Disaster Relief will go to the location and immediate needs of the current disaster. Paid staff of Disaster Relief get their funding through local churches, associations, networks, and state conventions. Money given to Disaster relief is not stopped and pilfered through at administrative levels before going to the need, It’s not needed because Baptists have already put a mechanism in place before disasters even arrive. Check with your local church on how you can do this.
Go. This gets as complicated as any in the response. There is need for many to go. It will be required. Recovery in days of disaster are extremely difficult. The long work of clean up is no glamorized work. But help will be needed. Again, the best is to check with your local church and find out what you can do and how to get prepared to go. Some of you would be ready today, others would need time to prepare, both will be needed.

*edited because of a few grammar issues.

Better to Love God

Posted on August 3, 2015Leave a comment

I was recently in Haiti to visit the New Horizon Home of Eastside Baptist Church. While there we made plans to take the girls (all 43 of them) to a Baptist church in the community where we have moved. I visited the church on a previous visit and met the pastor but this was the first visit with the girls.

I already knew I was in a special place because on the front wall, behind the preacher, was this statement from 2 Timothy 3:1-5

But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these.

I was very pleased to discover the girls have a very good church in their neighborhood that will boldly preach the bible. It will seem strange to many, that in a place like Haiti, there is a great mixture of a worldly message of prosperity attached to the preaching of the Bible. It is tragic that what is considered “successful” in an American church is imitated by anyone wanting to be rich rather than obedient.

As we walked into the church house we expected that we may have a hard time finding a place for all 43 of the girls and 9 Americans to sit together. After finding no place on the main floor we made our way to the balcony, there we were able to get all the girls together.

My dear brother, Alex, sat next to me and translated the sermon for me. The sermon on July 12 was from a visiting preacher and his text was Acts 28:1-5. I only have short bits of the sermon written down, but very convicting and encouraging that the church our girls will attend will preach the bible. This is a top priority for me.

Title: A Bite but A Blessing

Some come preaching: ‘come to God and be blessed’, but at this church we preach, ‘come to God and suffer.’
Paul did not think when he was in jail that something bad had happened to him.
When he was shipwrecked on the island of Malta he did not think that God had abandoned him because of the hardship.
When he was bit by a snake while getting wood for the fire, he did not assume he was being punished by God.
Paul was in the work of God; if you want to serve God you must be prepared to suffer.
There are two things we learn from Acts 28:1-5
- Better to love and obey God than to just be busy in the work of God
- First love and obey God – then – take pleasure in the work of God. If this is not understood you will think that you deserve blessings from God because you are busy in the work of God and deserve prosperity.
- If you do not first love and obey God you will not be prepared to suffer.
- It is better to love God and obey Him than to love the work of God without loving Him.
When Paul was in jail, he continued the work of God because he loved God and loved being with God
When you come to church, come to church to be with God and give glory to God because you love him.
- If anyone wants to follow Christ he must pick up His cross (and suffer)
- When you come to follow Christ, expect that you will face hard times.
When you are in a hard situation;
- ask, is this the discipline of God?
- ask, is this the result of following God?
If all things are going good you may want to ask God if everything is alright.
If all things are difficult, and you a sure it is not the discipline of God, you will want to bless the Lord for your suffering. He has asked of you to display his glory in your humility.

Acts 28:1-6 (NASB)
When they had been brought safely through, then we found out that the island was called Malta. The natives showed us extraordinary kindness; for because of the rain that had set in and because of the cold, they kindled a fire and received us all. But when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat and fastened itself on his hand. When the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they began saying to one another, “Undoubtedly this man is a murderer, and though he has been saved from the sea, justice has not allowed him to live.” However he shook the creature off into the fire and suffered no harm. But they were expecting that he was about to swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But after they had waited a long time and had seen nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and began to say that he was a god.

This would be a good sermon for all.

Saturated with the Gospel

Posted on July 16, 2015Leave a comment

Photos of our recent visit of New Horizon Home, a home saturated with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

English class at Light Language Institute

IMG_20150713_152511 — Well digger coming up for a lunch break

IMG_20150712_105427-1 — Walking home from church

IMG_20150712_103805 — Sunday morning sermon

IMG_20150712_103728 — Casey helping the girls during church

IMG_20150712_103736 — Phillip, Whitney, Micah, Cody, and Jacob sitting with the girls during the sermon

Logan speaking with a student after class

Jaxson speaking to the English speaking students

IMG_20150713_170618 — On our way to the beach

Jaxson leading an evening devotion at New Horizon Home

Springs of Salvation

Posted on July 15, 2015Leave a comment

You will joyfully draw water from the springs of salvation, and on that day you will say: “Give thanks to Yahweh; proclaim His name! Celebrate His works among the peoples. Declare that His name is exalted. Sing to Yahweh, for He has done glorious things. Let this be known throughout the earth. Cry out and sing, citizen of Zion , for the Holy One of Israel is among you in His greatness.”

I’ve just returned from a trip to New Horizon Home in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The visit is always filled with anticipation of seeing family in Christ and time at New Horizon Home.

I’ll post some photos and a bit of explanation of all we were able to participate in; but first, let me introduce you to Foundation College ministry of Boise State University and the College of Western Idaho. Utah/Idaho Southern Baptist have a humble director of ministry to college students from across the state convention, under the direction of Phillip Grant. Phillip traveled with me and a group from my church last January to explore the possibility of bringing students back this summer.

Last week Phillip and his wife, Casey, brought 6 students from Boise State and the College of Western Idaho to our girls home. I was very pleased with the partnership of all who visited the ministry this past week. (Phillip and Casey Grant, Cody and Whitney Thornton, Jacob Ewing, Logan McDonald, Micah Liston, Jaxson Fanta)

The most important thing we do at New Horizon Home is build a home for at risk girls (orphaned, abandoned, rescued) in Port-au-prince where the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is the center piece of everything attempted. This is a faith-based ministry, meaning, we are committed to asking God to provide for everything and we wait until God provides before we do anything. If God doesn’t provide it one way we look and wait for His answer another way. This causes us to be a praying people, a patient people, a risk taking people, a humbling people, a weeping people and a joyful people.

Here is a collect of pictures from the past week of the work being accomplished on the well at New Horizon Home.

Water, one of the most important physical needs of any people any where is no easy work at New Horizon Home. Over the past two years the water has been supplied by generous

Micah, drawing water from a neighbors cistern.

neighbors and hard work of faithful workers at NHH.

Water for the bathrooms is hauled in, by hand, in 5 gallon buckets to each bathroom to use for bathing and flushing.

Recently, the complicated work on digging a well of our own began. Work on the well was not completed during the recent trip due to some complications with the pump. But very soon, there will be running water to the house.

Where water is critical. And make no mistake it is. The springs of salvation are of utmost importance. May all who live at New Horizon Home soon drink from the springs of salvation.

“Give thanks to Yahweh; proclaim His name! Celebrate His works among the peoples. Declare that His name is exalted. Sing to Yahweh, for He has done glorious things. Let this be known throughout the earth. Cry out and sing, citizen of Zion , for the Holy One of Israel is among you in His greatness.”

I will let the pictures tell you the story of the struggle for water.

IMG_20150713_104226 — fitting the pump and piping

An Update About New Horizon Home

Posted on June 25, 2015Leave a comment

It is past time for an update on the ministry of Eastside Baptist Church in Port-au-Prince, Haiti at our girls home. A lot of things have been happening. Let me give a brief update with short testimony and a few pictures.

The faithful at Eastside Baptist Church continue steadfastly praying for all the needs to be met. We don’t put out pleas for help from others (we don’t oppose those who do). We take all of our request to God and trust Him to provide as He moves His people. We never turn down an opportunity to share about the work with those who ask and we don’t shy away from informing organization offering support upon requests nor from sharing with our church family how God answers our plea.

Here are some recent ways God answers those prayers:

First of all: Meet Jean Alexander Veillard, born Tuesday morning to Alex and Johanne Veillard. Alex is the director of New Horizon Home in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
There is not a week that goes by that God does not prompt someone to give to the ongoing ministry work of New Horizon International. Faithful giving of people every week at Eastside Baptist Church. Faithful giving of strangers we’ve never met. Faithful giving of churches from around the country. Faithful giving of children collecting pocket change. Faithful giving of widows on fixed income. Faithful giving of businessmen, labor workers, work-from-home moms, etc. The mail man has little idea of the kind of blessings from God he delivers regularly. May the Lord bless His people at the following churches… Second Baptist Church, Amarillo, TX. The Church at Quail Creek, Amarillo, TX. Bear River Valley Baptist Church, Tremonton, UT. Eastside Baptist Church, Twin Falls, ID. Berean Baptist Church, Wendell, ID. Magic Valley Baptist Association. Treasure Valley Baptist Association. The River, Twin Falls, ID.
In a few weeks a group of 8 college students from Boise State University will travel with me to do some bed construction (funds for the beds are provided by The Church at Quail Creek in Amarillo, TX), general care to the home, ministry in a local hospital, English school, and local Baptist Church. Work on our own water well has been going on since my last visit back in January. Until now we did not have our own water source. By the grace of God, we are nearing completion of our water well at New Horizon Home. Alex, our director at the home, is very careful with all money and understands that we can only buy and pay the workers with what God gives us. New Horizon Home continues to receive high inspection marks and Alex is told by officials that New Horizon Home is unlike most homes in the city; clean, efficient, happy. We count this a blessing from God.
We have received word that we now have about 10 acres of agriculture land to begin using. I don’t know how we received it, who gave it to us, or anything about it. On my upcoming trip I will discover all these details and bring report back to the Lord’s people at Eastside. Wow.
About one year ago I was asked to preach in Tremonton, UT at Bear River Valley Baptist Church on a Sunday morning. By the kindness of Eastside Baptist Church, Renee and I left early one hot July Sunday morning and drove to Tremonton to gather with the Lord’s people. We shared at the Lord’s Table together, sang and opened the word of God together. Through conversation with Nancy Nicholas after the service and later at lunch with Jim and Annette Williams I was able to share some of our gospel work God has called Eastside Baptist to in Haiti, they asked if they could begin collecting school supplies for our school.
Yesterday, I received a phone call from Jim, an elder at Bear River Valley Baptist Church, asking if they could bring me the supplies they have for our upcoming trip. Of course I said “sure, thank you.”

Here is a picture of Jim, his wife Annette, and a deacon Jerry today (June 25, 2015). Jim called me at about 11:30am this morning asking if we could meet them at the airport for lunch. I picked Renee up for lunch and to get the supplies. May the Lord bless His kind people at Bear River Valley Baptist Church.

Annette, Jim, Jerry