Think For a Moment..

…about all the songs of praise and worship that the Holy Spirit has inspired in the last thirty years. Think how many of them have been like holy doorways to the Throne Room of God’s Presence to you as you have sung them in congregational worship, in your home, in your car, with your family. Think how powerfully God has anointed music from the ancient Old Testament stories until this very moment as an unmatched vehicle of worship in spirit and truth.

What if…

…NONE of the worship music written in the last thirty years was available in your daily spoken language?

Consider these realities in Haiti…

•There is ONE main songbook that is used by churches of all denominations in Haiti! I believe it was originally published in the 1950’s and is currently in the 42^nd edition. Half of the songs are in French (not the everyday language of most Haitians). The songs are mostly traditional hymns and gospel choruses. Hardly any were written after 1960.

•From time to time a missionary or Haitian musician will translate a contemporary worship song, but these are never published or standardized. Because of that, there are about ten different versions of “Lord, I Lift Your Name On High” floating around the country.

•No one (besides this ministry) has undertaken a large-scale project to bring the most beloved songs of worship and praise into the Haitian Creole language.

•Haitian Christians of all denominations hunger for these deep heartfelt expressions of faith. Our translation of Dennis Jernigan’s “You Are My All In All,” was used by the largest denomination in Haiti for their national convention one year, which was broadcast all over the country and on Haitian stations in the US and Canada. Haitians everywhere now know this song, and often weep while singing it in worship.

•Countless conversations with bank tellers, shop owners, customs inspectors, police officers, and people on the street have begun like this: “Are you the one who sings all those worship songs on the radio? I’ve always wanted to meet you just so I could say thank you, and to tell you that God is really with you, because every song you sing touches my heart in such a powerful way and brings me close to the Lord. WHERE can I get CD’s or cassettes of all your songs?”

It’s Been So Long In Preparation!

Pastor Jim’s first trip to Haiti was in 1983. His first music translations began in 1985, with much help from others since he was just learning Creole. For many years now, he has wanted to publish a songbook. Finally, a foundation made the first production possible in 2007, and now the songbook of 325 songs plus 8 CD’s demonstrating all of them are available at radio stations, bookstores, and airport gift shops in Haiti, plus through our website so that Haitian diaspora around the world can purchase them (4 of the CDs are recorded in MP3 format, and hold 60 songs each. One CD contains songs specifically about love and marriage).

Haiti is a country of many serious needs. So many mission dollars have been spent to meet many of these needs, for which we praise the Lord. Churches all over the US and other countries send massive amounts of money and people to build churches, schools, and orphanages, to feed and clothe the poor, and to attend to medical and dental needs. But who will dedicate themselves and their resources to meet the Haitians’ deepest spiritual needs in worship, drawing churches of all denominations in spirit and truth to the very Throne of God? There is simply no other ministry that is attending to this need with a national, every-church purpose! Please hear the Heart of God calling his people out of the various forms of idol and voodoo worship, out of performance-style worship, out of rote religious worship, and into His presence where He could deal with everyone directly and powerfully! God wants to visit Haiti with a nationwide revival, and this is one step in preparing His Bride (the Church) for His coming!

God has displayed such an anointing over this music. Listen to the witness of Pastor Jim as he translates: “The Lord burdens my heart with certain worship songs until I sit down and translate them. I have to change words, and sometimes entire thought patterns, to be comprehensible in a different culture, and then again in order to maintain meter and rhyme. Yet it seems in each situation that words and thoughts are planted directly in my mind by the Holy Spirit and then flow to the paper — sometimes quickly, sometimes laboriously. Another anointing then falls when I record. Normally, my voice fades quickly; I can often become hoarse after leading a single worship service. But more than once I have been able, by God’s grace alone, to record one hundred songs in the space of three days!”

Finally, what wonderful glory goes to God, as evidenced by a radio interview in which the announcer asked, “Pastor Jim, other Christian recording artists in Haiti sing ‘performance’ music. They like to sing in big concert settings, and their goals are so often fame and money. People like to listen to their music, but there’s something so different about the music you bring to us. Your music leads us to worship the Lord and desire Him more. It seems yo know how to choose music to translate that cuts deep into the Haitian soul, and even the way you sing and accompany the music makes it seem that you are a Haitian yourself! We need this music to sing in our churches!” We can only thank the Lord for the great spiritual harvest that we are beginning to reap as we lead His people in worship. Please join us in this great privilege, part of the great battle for a tiny nation that is beloved of God.

READ 2 Chronicles 20:17-29.