Doing a New Thing: A Devotion 

By Connie M. Smith

"Remember not the former things,nor consider the things of old.

Behold, I am doing a new thing;now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?"

                                --Isaiah 43:18-19a

While on a walk in our back pasture this winter, I found myself on frozen ground, crossing a creek covered with ice and snow. During warmer seasons the pasture is teaming with obvious life--prairie grasses, wildflowers, birds and insects and the sound and sight of water flowing over rocks in the brook. On this particular cold day in December, that life seemed distant. Winter is a challenging time of transition, and yet there is beauty in that frozen landscape, and it holds such promise. Transitions often are difficult but sometimes God calls us to go through them in order to experience the new life just under the surface and ready to spring forth. Do you not perceive it?

A Time of Transition: Opening New Doors 

By Rick Jost, Director, Solar Oven Partners and Dakotas Conference Missionary

Connie Smith’s devotion seems an appropriate starting point to share the story of the new and exciting things that are happening at Solar Oven Partners (SOP). God seems to be in the midst of a transition that is occurring--taking us from the old and familiar to the stuff of long-held visions and dreams that have been held in check for the right opportunity to broaden our mission horizons.

This summer, SOP will forgo its usual summer mission trip to Haiti to implement two pilot projects in order to assess opportunities for partnership with missionaries of the General Board of Global Ministries. The first pilot will take place in July in Mexico, the second in August in a Caribbean country to be announced at a later date.

That means taking a break in Haiti after 15 intensive years of work. That break provides a practical way to discern God's leading to work together in other communities and among other persons who can derive great benefits from harnessing the free energy of the sun for their cooking, baking, and water pasteurization needs.

The obvious question: "Why now?"

There are a number of reasons why this seems to be the right time to step into new territory with our ministry. First, as SOP director, I am not comfortable shipping our solar ovens at this time into Haiti. As many of you are aware, complications in Haiti are nothing new, and we've experienced other times when shipping a storage container of ovens took a leap of faith, but the challenges currently require an even more cautious approach.

At the same time, doors to new opportunities are opening--opportunities that would link us more closely into the United Methodist connectional system, enabling us to better carry out our mission in unity and strength with recognized and established United Methodist mission projects.

Doors are opening into other areas where people are in desperate need, where environments are challenged with the cutting of wood for fuel, and where the sun shines brightly. In other words, cooking with solar ovens can have a huge impact for other peoples in other places. And, because of the very generous and ongoing financial gifts of our many supporters, SOP is financially and organizationally strong and capable of taking on new challenges.

What does this mean for ministry to Haiti?

Solar Oven Partners and the people involved in and supporting our ministry for years understandably have deep ties to the people of Haiti. We are not giving up on this place or its people, and we will continue to watch for changing conditions and opportunities that allow us to continue our work in Haiti while honoring the trust and generosity of our donors who invest in our ministry.

In the meantime, we feel God's nudge to open the new doors before us and explore the possibilities. We also want you to understand that we will continue to train, demonstrate and put solar oven kits into the hands of people in desperate need, but they might not be people in Haiti. They may be people who need the hope and sustainable resource of solar ovens, but who live somewhere else in God's world.

Solar Oven Partners has been blessed throughout the years with unbelievable supporters--giving of their funds and time volunteering in countless ways. We now ask for your thoughts and prayers as we embark on this 'new thing.' New life is ready to spring forth. Do you not perceive it?