Merry Christmas 2018

“…I have come so that they may have life and may have it abundantly.”  John 10:10b

This is the very personal message of Christmas:  from the most unlikely place--a virgin’s womb, a no-where town, a newborn baby—came the source of abundant life.  Emmanuel.  God with us.  A gap-closer.  A bridge-builder.  The life-giver.  The death defeater. 

In our house, we know this life.  We have seen it, experienced it, and understood it this year more than ever before.  But we’ve also learned that before we can truly appreciate this gift of abundant life, we must often experience the sting of death.   Would we ever be so grateful for the brilliant sunrise if we had not first endured the blackness of night?  For our family and ministry, 2018 has been marked by pain and loss.  The kind of grief that drove us to the feet of Jesus.  The ending of a valued ministry relationship.  The discovery of tiny malnourished twin girls,their very sick mother, and later, her death.  The serious wreck and injury of a friend and co-worker.   The traumatic loss of beloved pet goats.   Nationwide riots.   Constant, legitimate needs outside our gate that we can’t meet.  Deep sorrow for hurting friends.   Parents enduring sickness while we were not there to help.  Other sadness still so fresh that I can’t yet share.   And we are closing this year trying to help another set of malnourished twin boys and their desperate father in dire living conditions.   

Jesus’ warning in John 10 has never been more real to us:  “the thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy.”   We have watched the enemy make a playground out of relationships, families, cities, and an entire country. 

But because of Christmas, this is not the story we have to tell.  Instead, this is our testimony from 2018:  Because of Jesus, life DOES come from unexpected places and in the most unpredictable ways.    Death CAN become life.  Darkness CAN become light.  Grief CAN become joy.  Mourning CAN turn to dancing.  Bondage CAN become freedom.   We have seen it with our own eyes! 

From confusion over a lost ministry relationship, Jesus has placed a new song in our heart.  New vision.   Fresh passion.  Fruitful work.   Forgiveness. 

From an unhealthy and unsafe home, the twin girls are now happy and chubby and cherished by a loving foster family. 

From a devastating car wreck, we have witnessed a man miraculously restored to life.

From the painful loss of her pets, we have seen our young daughter realize God’s purpose for her life.  She says, “I think God is telling me to…” and our heart soars.

From the bondage of voodoo, we have watched Jesus save the woman who washes our clothes. 

From the despair of chronic illness, we have observed family members restored to hope.  And we have been given precious time together. 

From a hurting group of missionary friends, we are watching Jesus raise up a mighty army for the Kingdom of God.

Life HAS come from deep sorrow.   But still, not all is calm or bright.  In some situations, the pain is still completely real, and not all hurts are bound up in neat little packages quite yet.  We are still waiting and watching for tiny sprouts of life to appear in these dry places.

This Christmas, I wonder if you can relate?   No one really signs up for this kind of sorrow, you know?  No one ever hopes for this kind of grief.  What situations in your life seem so dry and dead that you can’t imagine hope returning?   Where do you need Jesus to enter in with life abundantly? 

We are there with you, friends.  We all desperately need to hear Jesus’ truth:  “I have come so that they may have life and may have it abundantly.”  Hold on to this like an anchor in the fiercest storm.  When Jesus enters in, life comes in surprising ways.  From the virgin’s womb came life abundantly.  From the sealed tomb came life eternally.  And from every valley of dry bones we may walk through, we learn that God can still breathe life into closed up, dead spaces.  Though there is pain in life, through it, we can experience firsthand Jesus' beautiful way of binding up broken hearts.

Life in unlikely places—this is the message of Christmas!  Can you hear the baby cry?  With His very first breath outside His mother’s womb, God was breathing new life back into this broken world.  Because of this, we can find hope in the message of Christmas.  Let every heart prepare Him room! Invite Him in! 

No matter what may come your way in 2019, our prayer for you is that you can rest in this truth:  God is in the business of restoring life!  Have hope.  He is Emmanuel, God with us.

Much Love,

The Beehn Family

Jeremy, Katie, Jared, Julie, Lizzy, Sam, Leah and Elena

Jared is a Senior this year, and will be graduating in the spring from the Abeka homeschool co-op in Leogane, Haiti, as well as the dual enrollment online program at Liberty University.   We are thrilled that he will be pursuing a double major in Business and Christian Studies at Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia, Arkansas in the fall.  Jared gained valuable knowledge over the summer through an internship at the OneEgg farm.   

Julie is a sophomore, and has continued to excel in her artistic skills—even having the privilege of being hired to paint several murals for local missionary groups.  Over the summer, her dream of opening a library in Haiti was realized, and she taught English as a Second Language classes to children who live at an orphanage.  She also worked closely with our summer intern to author and illustrate an English/Creole children’s book.   Her faithful companion, Randy the pug, is still attached at her hip.

Lizzy is in 8^th grade, and is thriving at school and in her group of friends.  Her musical skill is developing beautifully, and has expanded to the love of opera this year.   She enjoyed singing a beautiful ballad titled “Pie Jesu” at her grandparents' church over the holidays.  Lizzy loves Jesus and loves people—passions she has used faithfully to lead a small Bible study for young missionary kids in our community.   She is crazy in love with her new kitty named Snickers, who joined our family in the spring.

Sam is in 7^th grade and lives and breathes Fortnite (does any preteen boy NOT live to play this game?!).  He is excelling at school and has grown nearly a foot in height—now passing his mother and sisters!  Sam played soccer in a Haitian league in the spring with two of his best friends at his school, Hope Rising.

Leah is in 5^th grade and has chosen the vegetarian life because of her deep love for animals.  (One exception:  Chick-fil-A!) This year, she adopted 3 delightful goats, which brought a lot of joy to our family, including a dream wedding and the hope of kids.  Even after the loss of her babies, Leah still feels passionately about helping provide the people of Haiti with goats.  She has a strategy to try again with goats in the New Year, and plans to make goat soap, lotion, butter and cheese—and we are still hoping for babies! 

Elena is in 4^th grade and is known for her crazy contortion skills and potential for making it to American Ninja Warrior one day.   Being the 6^th kid has taught her some strong survival skills!  She has a great group of sweet friends, whom she adores.   She is also planning on adopting a pig in the coming year (which would probably officially qualify our place as a zoo with four dogs, a cat, goats and pigs!). 

Jeremy has stayed very busy through his responsibilities at the OneEgg farm in Leogane, and Taino Aqua Ferme tilapia farm in Fond Parisien, Haiti.  Additionally, he continues to provide on the ground support for JoyHouse Coffee Company.  Katie loves caring for the medical and nutrition needs of patients in our community, and remains the Awana missionary for the country of Haiti. 

We are deeply grateful for all those who have supported our family through prayer, encouragement and financial donations to Leve Kanpe this year.  It is a great privilege and responsibility for us to represent our Savior and His church in this country that we love.  We are entering this New Year with tremendous hope and a fresh vision for the future.  You can keep track of our work on the Leve Kanpe page on Facebook or our webpage www.levekanpe.com.