Posted March 2 -

Greetings from haiti yet again!

Things are going well, but the mission ashore is slowing tremendously. Much of our work there has ceased and we are turning it over to the local groups and relief organizations. Keeping that in mind, we are hoping to return home as soon as possible. My ministry has shifted almost entirely to the Sailors, Marines, Seabess, and Beach Masters that we have onboard. As the ship's Chaplain, I facilitate religious services for all denominations  to the best of my ability. Sunday I was able to send seven personnel by small boat to one of the other ships in the area where the Rabbi there was able to provide services in observance of the Jewish holiday, Purim. Today we are fortunate to have a Catholic Priest aborad providing confessions and Catholic Mass. We held regular services this past Saturday due to operations taking place on Sunday. Services went extremely well thanks to some music that Christ helped me with. I am also leading a Bible study using the purpose driven Life which is just a fascinating book to read and an amzing study to be part of. My weekly newly-married and engaged class is doing well with a weekly attendance of approximately 10-15 Marines and Sailors. Please pray for all the people serving aboard the FORT MAC as they are under considerable stress culminating from a very arduous couple of years. The strength of the Lord is evident in the lives of these young men and women and it is a blessing to serve.

Blessings to all of you for your love and continued support.

In His service,

Chaplain Mike Howard

- Posted Feb 18th

Hi all,

Just wanted to share a few more experiences and some pics with you. We just got back from a project ashore. We traveled by small boat to the beach where I met up with a local Pastor friend, Isaiah, who had scoped out some work for us over the last couple of days. We borrowed some sludge hammers and shovels and shovels from the Seabees (in addition to two sludge hammers I borrowed from our Bosn on the ship). The details about the sludge hammers will become important in a minute. We walked about 3 miles or so to the outskirts of a town called Biwie. It was here that Isaiah had arranged for us to clear rubble off of two cement slabs. It was a fairly tough job as most of the rubble hand to be moved by hand. We became really sophisticated when we were able to eventually utilize our shovels and a wheel barrel that one of the villagers brought to speed things up. We worked hard, had a great time, and the home owners were extremely appreciative of the help. We even got in some soccer with the kids. They really enjoyed having us around and were a joy to play with.

It was the trip back that got very interesting. By the time we made our way back to the compound at the beach, the tide was covering most of the area (this is up several hundred feet from last week). The seas were rough and the small landing craft coming to get us was having a significant problem even reaching shore. They missed on the first approach and the beach master told me that due to the seas, if they missed on the next approach, we would have to spend the night. Not good…I started praying and a combination of divine intervention and skilled sailors resulted in success on the second pass and we eventually made our way to the ship. The seas were rough with water coming over the sides all the way out to the ship. It was a great ride (one you would have to pay for anywhere else). So now the story on the sludge hammers. Although we returned all of the tools belonging to the Seabees, we broke one of Bosn’s sludge hammers and were in such a hurry to make the boat back to the ship (unexpected due to the sea conditions), that the second got left in the compound. Bosn isn’t going to be a happy man.

While I am rambling, let me also mention Ash Wednesday services last night. They went extremely well. We had a full house and thanks to the Supply Officer who let me borrow her MP3 player, we were able to worship in music and word. The spirit was incredibly strong. Many people had tears streaming down their face as I spoke of the love of God, and the atonement of our Savior. The skipper attended as well and told me privately that the service had deeply impacted him and that it was “life-changing” for him. It is humbling to be able to preach the word of God, knowing that the Holy Spirit can touch hearts in such a powerful way.

Blessings,
Chaplain Mike Howard

 - Posted Feb. 14th

Greetings once again from Haiti! Things are going pretty well. We spent most of yesterday in Cuba getting some supplies. We are now back in the Haiti area and are currently involved in a roof replacement operation. Unfortunately, one of our helicopters created the job by flying over the home and blowing the roof off. I am planning on going ashore Thursday to clear rubble off of concrete slabs so that new shelters and eventually, houses can be built. We held services this morning. It was the last Sunday for the Chaplain (Stephen Warne) I am replacing on the FORT MAC as he is flying to another ship soon. We only had about 10 people, but we sang about 6-7 different praise songs and Chaplain Warne delivered a wonderful message on love. It was great to worship God in song, word, and prayer. The spirit was strong, but I am a little worried since Chaplain Warne plays his guitar at all the services and he will be leaving soon. I need Chris, Reta, and the rest of the choir out here! I am doing an Ash Wednesday service this coming Wednesday and am starting a weekly class for Sailors and Marines that have been married less than three years or who are engaged. I am really excited about that as there are many couples struggling right now. I am also going to be starting a study at the end of this week on the book, Purpose Driven Life. It Should be a great way to help people grow while also witnessing for Christ at every opportunity. God is great and I see miracles happening. Please pray for all the military and civilians working here. Many of these individuals have literally spent less than three months at home in almost two years. We need prayer and we need God to continue to bless these individuals, to lift them up, and to provide strength and comfort.
Blessings to all of you. Thank-you for the continued support, prayers, and e-mails. All my love, your Brother in Christ, Chaplain Mike Howard