Last month, I posted an update about how my wife and I are raising a cow for beef. This is a summary of our activity and costs for month 5. First, let’s check Bambi’s growth. Here he is at four months old:



       And here he is today at 5 months old (plus a week):



       It’s clear he’s growing quickly now. He’s much bigger than he was a month ago. I’ve had to switch him from a collar to a halter so I can handle him better. (The collar was getting too small as well.)

Costs & Time

       Again, there haven’t been any huge changes in the amount of time it takes to care for him. It’s pretty easy right now.

       We spent quite a bit more than last month because I stocked up on feed, hay, and straw before we left for Haiti. Here’s what we spent this month:

• Miscellaneous – $6.97 (for his halter)

       

• Calf Feed – $77.85

       

• Hay – $21.00

       

• Straw – $6.00

       

• Total Spent this Month – $111.82

       

• Time – 7 hours

       And here are our total costs over the past five months:

• Cost of Bambi – Free!

       

• Castration & Dehorning – $16.00

       

• Milk Replacer – $45.54

       

• Miscellaneous – $46.87

       

• Calf Feed – $160.35

       

• Hay – $52.00

       

• Straw – $15.00

       

• Total Spent – $335.76

       

• Time – 49 hours

       So after five months we’ve spent a total of $335.76 and 49 hours raising a cow for beef. We won’t need to buy much feed for the next month, and his feed will cost a little less from now on because he’s old enough to go on steer feed (as opposed to calf feed).

       A major hindrance of raising animals (whether as a pet or for food) is the need for someone to be home to feed them. We were in Haiti for a week and a half, but luckily my wife’s mom volunteered to feed Bambi while we were gone. (Or we volunteered her…I’m not sure how that went.) I included her time in my calculations, but you’d have to pay someone if you can’t find anyone to do it for free while you’re gone.

       That’s it for this month. If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below. And make sure you sign up for free updates to Provident Planning if you’re interested in knowing what it takes to raise a cow for beef!

       Bonjou! I’m back from Haiti now. I had planned to share some of my reflections on my short-term mission trip, but I don’t feel like I’ve had quite enough time to process it all yet. I will say I definitely agree with the pros and cons brought up in GotQuestions.org’s article on short-term missions.

       I have a much better understanding of what’s going on at the YWAM base in St. Marc, Haiti (even though they were in earthquake disaster mode while we were there). I also understand the needs a little better and feel even more motivated to give – especially after having developed relationships with some of the Haitians. I also saw God’s power working in Haiti and in our team, and I feel the trip drew me closer to Him. Our plans changed completely but they still glorified God. And that’s only because His hand was upon it all.

       But it was an expensive trip, and I still don’t fully comprehend what’s required of long-term missionaries. I saw a bit of it, but you can’t really know what it’s like in just a week and a half. And while we were able to renovate a rundown building into a hospital for refugees from Port-au-Prince, we probably didn’t have a huge long-term spiritual impact. We couldn’t speak the language (though I did learn some), and we didn’t have enough time to develop meaningful relationships with the local people. I’m sure God will work through what we did while we were there, but the mission field needs long-term people more than short-term.

       That’s all I’m going to share for now. I want to take some time to think about what I experienced and saw in Haiti. I also want to wait to get some pictures from other team members so I can share them with you. I’ll be getting back to regular posting now, but I’m sure I’ll be updating you on what’s going on in Haiti at the YWAM base in St. Marc. One of our team members kept a blog updated about our activities while we were there, so you can check that out if you want to read specifics about what we did. Also, you can find several videos about the earthquake relief efforts in the video gallery of YWAM Haiti’s website. Finally, Emily Troutman of AOL News wrote up an article about the and mentioned the YWAM base and our work. I even made it into a picture at the end of the article.

       Stay tuned for more info, some pictures, and my reflections on the experience. And as always – thanks for reading!

       You won’t see any updates on Provident Planning for the next week and a half because my wife and I will be leaving early Sunday morning for a short-term mission trip in Saint Marc, Haiti. We’re going with a small group from another church to build a duplex in Saint Marc’s 5th Section – the poorest part of that area. The people who live there mostly live in mud houses, which don’t last very long when the hurricanes come through. We’ll be building a concrete block home that will last through the rain.

       This trip was planned well before the earthquake hit Port-au-Prince, but we’ll still be able to make it work with a small change in plans. Instead of flying into Port-au-Prince, we’ll be flying into Santo Domingo (in the Dominican Republic) and driving to Saint Marc. While the people in Port-au-Prince desperately need help right now, the outlying areas may be neglected as the focus goes on to the capital city. Our small team is not experienced enough to deal with the work that needs to be done in Port-au-Prince. But we are ready and able to help with the project planned in Saint Marc, so that’s what we’re doing.

       We’ll be working through the Youth with a Mission base in Saint-Marc and staying there as well. You can check out a tour of the base in this Youtube video:

       Please pray that we’ll be a blessing to the people in Haiti, that they will be a blessing to us, that God will open our hearts to their needs and enable us to share His love, and for the protection of our team. Continue to pray for the people in and around Port-au-Prince as well – the recovery process will be long and difficult.

What Do You Think of Short-term Missions?

       As I was considering this trip, I began to wonder about the effectiveness and efficiency of short-term missions. I found a helpful article at GotQuestions.org that laid out some pros and cons of short-term mission trips. But what do you think? Are such trips a good use of the money God has given us? Are they beneficial for those who go and for those in the areas served? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!