Help for Haiti

Want to find out how you can be a part of lending a hand to the hurting people of Haiti?

Here's a2's response to the tragedy in Haiti:

1. We are praying. Your prayers can really make a difference...

2. We have sought organizations who are larger than us who have some indigenous roots in Haiti to partner with. We found one (although there are many).

3. Today I'm writing to inform you that a2 Church and a2 Student Ministries are partnering together and want to inform you of supplies you can bring to a2 Church to assist with the relief efforts. We are partnering with Celebration Church in Georgetown to fill a shipping container full of the following supplies that will be shipped to Ft. Lauderdale next week, and then on to Haiti...here are the supplies that are desperately needed:

• Aspirin
• Motrin
• Benadryl
• Antiobiotic Cream (Neosporin)
• Cough Medication
• Gauze
• Latex Gloves
• Cardboard Boxes
• Thermometers
• Rubbing Alcohol
• Scissors
• Band-Aids
• Multi-vitamins

As you can see, the list predominantly relates to medical supplies....If you want to do something tangible this will help. These supplies are ultimately being distributed through Samaritan's Purse (Franklin Graham). They have already begun distributing supplies. (You can click here to learn more about the ministry of Samaritan's Purse in Haiti.)

If you can bring your tangible donations to a2 Church tomorrow morning, Sunday, January 17, that would be tremendous! a2 Student Ministries will also be collecting supplies on Wednesday evening, January 20. The supplies will be shipped on Thursday, January 18. When bringing your supplies, please place them in a2's Student Ministries Room.

If you would like to donate financially to a credible organization, there are many good choices out there. The organization we have decided to partner with is called RREACH (Ramesh Richard Evangelism and Church Health).

My good friend, Jeremy Self, lead pastor of Free Chapel in Austin, Texas, worked with RREACH while he was in Dallas Theological Seminary. They are a lean, mean, pastor-training machine... They have trained hundreds of pastors in Haiti in the last several years, most of whom are in the Port Au Prince area.

Here's what their goal is:

"Immediate financial relief for the personal needs of 4 key pastors (3 GPA grads and 1 referee): RREACH sustains active relationship with the graduates and referees of our Global Proclamation Academy. They are men of character and competence, and the future of the evangelical Faith in their country. They are leaders among pastors and churches. We have been looking for them for the last 24 hours and just received word that they are alive and safe and we praise God for this report. If they have identifiable personal financial needs as a result of this tragedy, RReach would like to give each of them a one-time gift of not less than $2,500 within the next 30 days. This makes for about $10,000 . . . The health of the church depends on the health of the pastor . . . Our pastors do not have satellite phones to reach us, but they do possess soft hearts to reach their people. So let's do some thing for our Family worldwide..."

Should you like to contribute, you may do so directly at www.rreach.org or give on Sunday with the designation, RREACH. My friend, Pastor Jeremy Self believes in this organization and says that he can assure you that after working with the organization personally they are of the highest integrity and fiscal responsibility. Dr. Ramesh Richard has also written an EXCELLENT article entitled, "Divine Meaning in Natural Disaster" available on the RREACH website you can access byclicking here.

I can't help but believe that God wants to use the Church worldwide to SHINE brightly during this time of prayer and fasting!

Isaiah 58 is one of my favorite scriptures to meditate on during a season of fasting...it prescribes justice and care for the poor...that's what we are doing when we partner with the relief efforts to Haiti!

I love and appreciate you.

Chris Goins