I will soon be leaving for my 11th trip to Haiti… with this being my 6th trip in about 16 months… We will be taking a team of over 20 people from the UCLA community and I am working diligently to raise up an offering. I wanted to invite you to consider helping. I am working to raise an additional $3,000 to $5,000 in the next week and a half (I leave on June 22nd).

The money will go to help with education for kids in need, help local pastors, buy food for locals, and other various needs of the children’s home and village. Check out the video below to get a snap shot of some of our efforts on a recent trip.

With much blessing comes much responsibility!

“Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” – 2 Cor 9:7-8 NIV

The scripture talks about how God provides us with what we need for every good work. This is definitely a good work and worthy of the kingdom’s resources. If you would like to sow into this and help our friends in need, the best way is to contribute through our Paypal account so we will receive it before we leave. You will recieve tax credit. Click here to be taken to our donation page. No matter how large or how small, God will honor your giving.

Thank you for your consideration!

The graphic above showcases my most recent travels, as well as the travels I have coming up in the next few weeks.

I have been extremely busy the last few months, and if you have been following my blog you would have noticed that I had not updated it as frequently as I have in the past and would prefer… So I’m being really relational and posting this to make up for it.

Before the Europe Haiti Expo Tour, I traversed back and forth between Missouri and Oklahoma doing some ministry with the UCLA Campus Pastor. While we were in Oklahoma, he preached in his hometown of Bartlesville and showed us around. That is where Pastor Winston’s family settled when he came to the United States as a refuge from Vietnam as a kid. It was really great to be able to visit that with him. My brother and my good friend Mitch who is also on staff with the ministry was there for that trip as well.

My return flight from the Springbreak Haiti trip had a layover through New York, where I spent the night at my dad’s cousins place in Manhattan. From New York, I flew to St Louis, MO to pick up my car… and then was able to have a great time with my cousin Jonathan. We are both big believers close to the same age, but we had never really hung out one on one for some reason. After we visited, he invited me to go to a play at his church that he was performing in before I began my huge solo road trip. The play was the Broadway musical “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.” I had never heard of it before… but trust me, it was pretty epic…

From there, I had stopping points in Springfield, MO, to Joplin, MO, Tulsa, OK, Moore, OK, Dallas, TX, and Phoenix, AZ. Along the way I was able to visit some good friends of mine and I especially had a good visit while in Dallas.

I had to do this roadtrip had left my car in the midwest to use for various ministry activities and convenience over the holidays after I drove it there for the Midwest Haiti tour. However, I don’t mind long road trips by myself, I am used to life on the road from my vast experience from touring Christian rock festivals.

There… Now that you know whats going on in my life, what’s going on in your life? Please email me, I’d like to know… You can reach me at bryancitrin@gmail.com… Seriously, I would.

Before I left someone said that Europeans were not very philanthropic… The Lord proved otherwise. I recently returned from my first trip to Europe. A team of us were there for a few weeks to help with the European Haiti Expo Tour. I was really blessed because my brother was able to come as w As you probably know by now, a former student from our ministry named Elisha developed a passion for Haiti while on a mission trip with us a few years ago. She has given so much to the ministry at UCLA when she was a student (and Chi Alpha President) and now gives so much to the people of Haiti. The idea for the European tour came about because Uwe, a fellow staff member of the ministry at UCLA is German. As you remember from previous a newsletters (Click for a refresher), some of us from the UCLA team have been helping Elisha with her economic development and education fundraising initiatives. We have been doing this through helping her host a series of Los Angeles and Midwest Haiti Expos.

While we were in Europe, we had the opportunity to host four Haiti Expos in three different countries! We hosted our first expo in Heidelberg, Germany followed by Maastricht, Netherlands. From there we headed to a college campus near Brussels in Belgium for our third expo. Finally we ended in German at the city of Cologne, Uwe’s home town. Besides the expos we were able to have a both at a local festival in Cologne. This enabled us to pass out 4,000 flyers to promote our final expo. During the festival, I met a local journalist who took an interest in what we were doing. Though he could not make it to our expo due to his wedding anniversary, he sent a colleague of his to our event to write a story on it. If you can read German, you can read the story on their website hear. After the last expo we were very blessed to have the opportunity to drive to Paris and spend two nights there!

We hosted the expos in the evenings, and on two of the mornings Pastor Winston had the opportunity to preach. I had the chance to testify at one of them, which was my first time to speak in front of a German church. Alongside testifying at the German church, I was able to share about the cycle of poverty many Haitians face at three of the expos. Many haitians can barely afford to feed their families, much less send their children to school. Education is not free in Haiti and with an unemployment rate of 40%, the few jobs that are available are highly selective. You must have an education to even qualify for the few jobs that are available. The problem is that you need money to get an education… and an education to get a job… but you need a job to even have the money for an education. A simple job… a privilege many haitians don’t have.

The purpose of the Haiti Expo European tour was to help provide jobs by selling local artisan goods, solicit donations for education, and find investors for economic development. My primary role was raising donations. There were 35 youth that we were praying would get sponsored during the tour. It was a long shot and I didn’t know if we would be able to raise the money. I was the only one working the donation table and I had to have a translator at each event (though some people spoke english). By the last event, we still needed 17 youth sponsored, including most of the college students. It was looking more and more like my friend David was going to have to drop out of college early and just settle for his Associates degree.

The Lord worked a miracle in the hearts of the people of Cologne, Germany. Though there was only around 60 people in attendance, after our presentation my donation table was flooded with inquiries. I was so overwhelmed I was calling for additional translators! 

Never judge a person by their looks! During this process, and elderly lady approached me and said she wanted to sponsor David for next year’s college tuition. I was wondering if she realized what she was doing, because David’s education was $3,000! That was a huge win if it was real, but we still had a long ways to go in terms of unsponsored youth. This woman returned later and said she wanted to sponsor some more of the youth. By the end of the evening, she said that any of the youth on the board who were not sponsored, her and her roommate would cover! We later learned she recently received an inheritance and was praying to the Lord to reveal to her what she was to do with it. Due to her generosity and the generosity of others, the remaining 17 youth were sponsored by the end of the night!

Every Youth Sponsored, including some University Students!

Now I recognize there are a lot of needs for the people of Haiti, and there are many more friends of ours we could not highlight for the European tour. There are many different economic development projects that I would still like to see funded… but during this tour I made a push for the education of these kids instead. During the Midwest tour, I pushed for economic development in a bigger way… which helped result in the investment of a local bakery for Gregory, a young adult from Fond Doux. This Bakery has helped produce much needed jobs as well as enabled him to take care of his grandmother and ,other, see the doctor, pay for medicine, and put his sister through school. God honored all the hard work the team and I put in during the tour and the sponsorship of 35 youth’s tuition, books, and uniforms for next year is helping set a generation free!

I leave for my 11^th trip to Haiti on June 22^nd. While I am back in the states, I am doing a big push to raise additional funds to help with those other projects and with some of the children who were’t on the donation board. Additionally, we need more resources to help provide offerings to local pastors, to invest in local job creation, and have to have the means to help local families in need.

I will be sending out another newsletter sometime next week with more details and want to encourage you to consider being a part of this 11th trip if you haven’t already. By faith, I am hoping to raise an additional $3,000 – $5,000 before I leave. I know this can be tricky because many of you who have given in the past are stretched thin as it is, with this being my 6th trip in approximately 15 months. Details for partnership with this trip can be found here.

     “That was one of the best nights of my life,” a student texted Rachelle, a fellow Staff members at UCLA. That student was Ricky, an athiest international student from China. We hosted an event that evening that took place in the courtyard outside my house. You have probably seen the lip-syncing sensation that has been all the rage the last few months featuring celebrities lip syncing to popular songs. Our event planning team thought that this would be a creative way to draw in college students, providing a safe Friday night atmosphere away from partying. I was very impressed by all the performances and how big of a hit the event was.

Of course I showed my team spirit and performed as well… For those of you familiar with my fast speaking and vast summer travel schedule touring Christian rock festivals, I felt my song choice was very relevant. You can watch the video below:

Note: I did not know the lyrics to this song before I made the decision to lip-sync it… and memorizing random obscure unrelated cities spoken at an insanely fast rate is much more difficult than you might think.

I would like to turn this article spiritual. Because of this event, Ricky went on to attend every gathering we had for the rest of the school year. Like many international students, he may have never attended a Christian church service before coming to UCLA. The impact from the seeds of the gospel and the love events will follow him far after he leaves UCLA.

We had our last church service of the school year last week and I was honored with the opportunity to preach. I recognized that for some of the graduating students, this may have been their opportunity to attend a service at UCLA. It was critical that I hear from the Lord and deliver a timely message! The topic the Lord placed on my heart was “Overcoming Fear.”

God has an amazing plan for each of our lives… A plan that will require complete faith in Him and a willingness to step into the unknown to accomplish His purpose. One of my mentors would say “If you can achieve your dream on your own, you’re not dreaming big enough.” God is calling each of us into a plan greater than ourselves. At the same time, the enemy is bombarding our thought life with fear and uncertainty about stepping out in faith. Through fear of failure, rejection, uncertainty, and past hurts, the enemy continually attempts to quench the vast plans of God for our lives.

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” – 1 Peter 5:6-10 NIV

As paraphrased from my sermon, in the midst of the battle we must:

1. Recognize (There is a spiritual battle going on.)
2. Resist (Do not dwell on the lies of the enemy that are bombarding your thoughts)
3. Rebuke (Take authority and pray against the thoughts in the name of Jesus)
4. Reflect (Show gratitude and remember on the past victories. God’s done so much for us that we don’t even remember it all!)

If you would like to hear this message in its entirely, you can click the link below to stream it. You can also right click the icon and save the file to your computer.

     They had already met and it was advised that they shut down the school. They didn’t have the money to keep it open, and because of this 220 kids were going to loose their chance at an education… and a future. The school was 5 months behind in paying it’s teachers and it could no longer support itself. Our funds had been stretched thin trying to help as many individuals and projects as possible, and it didn’t look like we would have the ability to pay the amount of money needed to keep the school afloat.

We prayed… Trusted God… and and then took up an offering. In the middle of the jungle we trusted the Lord to somehow make a way through our team. When it doesn’t seem like there is a way, God will make a way. When the situation looks hopeless, God is hopeful. Through offerings of our team and the UCLA French Club we were able to come up with the whole amount needed to bring the school current and keep it’s doors opened.

On my most recent trip, the Haitians were so excited to meet Americans who knew their language! Four members of the UCLA French Club joined us in Fond Doux, Haiti. They came just few days after we arrived and were there to help with Bingo night, pass out rice and beans, amongst many other things. Though the club is a non religious group at UCLA, they wanted to come and make a difference in the lives of the people of Haiti. Two of the students even started attending some of our events on the UCLA campus and even attended some of our services after returning to the United States!

The generator we had purchased last trip sat wrapped with a tarp in the open air of an unfinished room. They run our of money in the building process and did not have the means to wire the generator to the children’s home. During this trip we were able to provide the funds to finish the building and complete the wiring.

 Click Photos to Enlarge

We fed hungry children with our evening feeding programs and our Bingo night is still one of the most anticipated nights of the year for the children of the village. Simple toys from the dollar store in the United States instantly become some of the most prized possessions these children who literally have nothing. We must never take for granted the blessings we have here… and with much blessing comes much responsibility.

“If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.” −1 John 3:17-18 NIV

Click Photos to Enlarge

Click for Photos

     Imagine spending Christmas over 6,000 miles away from your family in a foreign land that doesn’t recognize the holiday and speaks a language you barely know! You may have just arrived and are there alone. The friends you have made are not locals and you have known them for only a few months at best.

Students from across the world gathered in an auditorium on the corner of UCLA for what might have been their first Chinese New Year away from their family. Also known as Spring Festival, for students from China this is their Christmas equivalent. It is a week long festival when families comes together for fellowship, eating, and giving hongbao which are red envelops filled with money for the children.

 Click for Photos

We were able to host this celebration to honor international students studying abroad and make them feel more at home and loved. Most of them are missing the festivities of back home and missing their families. Chi Alpha strives its best to be there family in the United States. Festivities included…:

With the help of some of our Chinese friends, we were able to provide buffet style authentic Chinese food for everyone who attended. Many Chinese students love Ping Pong so we made sure to have a tournament for those who were passionate about that to showcase their skills. I was able to give it my best short at the Karaoke with Chinese subtitles, and we even had a marble picking up contest with chop sticks. It’s avenues like this that we are able to truly deepen our relationships with international students. This opens up great opportunities to invite them to our church services on campus and get them involved in a Bible Study.

Around 350 people from across the West Coast gathered in Southern California for our annual Chi Alpha SALT conference over Martin Luther King weekend. Stanford, Berkley, UCLA, USC, Hawaii, and ASU are just some of the universities that were represented.  We hosted the conference because Pastor Winston has been overseeing the entire West Coast for Chi Alpha as the Area Director the fast few years.

This was the largest West Coast SALT conference that we have ever hosted. Our guest speaker was Curt Harlow, teaching pastor of Bayside Church, a Mega Church in Sacramento of 15,000+. We were very honored to have such an anointed speaker for our conference.

Students were greatly encouraged with the word of God during the 5 main services that we provides along with the breakout sessions on Saturday morning.

Missions in the Marketplace

I was excited to have my friend Landon fly in and led a breakout session on business in the marketplace. We were friends from college and he was very qualified to speak on the topic. Since college, he has pioneered multiple dealership style businesses including Jumpsix Marketing, a very successful advertising agency.  Many students are called to influence the business world and be entrepreneurs to help fund the gospel. Landon’s session focused on that and encouraged students to elevate their expectations in the way God could use them in the secular marketplace.

“A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children,
But the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.” – Proverbs 13:22 NKJV

If we truly believe the creator of the heavens and the earth dwells inside us, what couldn’t we accomplish in business if God could trust us with success? Spirit-led Christians should be running the stock markets, media empires, real estate development groups, and every other ethical areas of commerce! The world isn’t going to fund the gospel, so God needs obedient business leaders who are willing to hear God’s voice and act on it.

Imagine being in a business meeting and then having the opportunity to pray for a client you sense is struggling at home… Or share your testimony of how God has greatly impacted your life. It may not be politically correct to talk about Christ in the business world, but Jesus was not politically correct. Landon has reached out many times to clients and business associates to share his testimony and pray with them… and God has been able to transform the business world with powerful testimonies because of that!

Healing Testimony

Before I close up this post, I want to share a healing testimony that took place at SALT. During one of our services, Landon received a Word of Knowledge regarding healing for someone’s knee. Here is the video of that student sharing how God healed him.

     I just wanted to take the time out to wish you and your family an incredible Christmas! I’m excited to be spending my Christmas in St Louis, Missouri with family. Both of my parents are from the area, and it acts as a hub for both sides for family gatherings.

It’s hard to believe that I was on the Island of Haiti just a few days ago. It was great to be able to take my 9th trip to Haiti and for my brother David to be there with me!

One of the many highlights of the village we visited was to be able to host a huge Christmas celebration for those closest to our children’s home. We were able to serve our friends in Haiti an all you can eat feast, followed by gift giving. We made sure everyone was able to unwrap 3 gifts. For some of the Haitians, this was their first time to unwrap a present and receive something new!

Just as some of the Haitians were able to unwrap something new for the first time, I believe God wants you to receive something new from Him heading into 2015.

“But forget all that—
it is nothing compared to what I am going to do.
For I am about to do something new.
See, I have already begun! Do you not see it?
I will make a pathway through the wilderness.
    I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.” -Isaiah 43:18-19 NLT

Don’t dwell on the discouragements of 2014, but live with expectation of healing, open doors, and fresh opportunity heading into the new year! I’m expecting this new year to be the greatest year of my life and yours too! I desire that God use you in a greater measure, and that it is filled with peace, joy, and many fond memories.

PS – Expect another email with more details and pictures from my trip. I just got back and haven’t had time to sort through them yet.

Last night was our annual Chi Alpha Christmas party.  Tons of students packed into the campus pastors house last time for a much needed study break. I posted the links to both of the albums.  You can check them out below if you’re interested.

General Pictures from the Event

Photo Booth Pictures

     “My teeth hurt… Can you help me go to the dentist?” Wilson asked through a translator on a recent trip. His four front teeth were rotten and he was in excruciating pain. “How much will it cost to get this taken care of?” I asked. His response… “Fifty US dollars.” This may not seem like a lot of money to us, but it is a lot for a society in which many families live off of less than two dollars a day (if they even had a job)…

(Click Here to Help)

     Next week I am leaving for my 9^th trip to Haiti, and my 4^th one this year. While we are there, we plan to buy the children’s home a generator, provide for educational expenses, feed local families, preach at churches, put on soccer outreaches for the kids, have a Christmas celebration, and so much more! We are heading down there to help real people with real needs… who look to the same God we look to for help.

Here is a video from some of the girls from our children’s home worshiping God one afternoon.

Watch the video below or click HERE

Click Here to Donate to Haiti

     I remember giving Wilson the money for his teeth and he came and visited me the next day to show his gratitude. His four front teeth were missing…! He we was extremely grateful for this and all his friends were shocked that he somehow had the money to have them all removed at once. In that moment, I remember frantically thinking “What have I done!” The rotten teeth had to be removed or he could have gotten seriously sick… But now I am looking at Wilson knowing that apart from a miracle he would probably never have four front teeth again. I didn’t have the money to pay for implants (or know of anyplace to go to get them)…

     I remember praying with all my faith that God would somehow intervene in his situation… Whether through supernaturally growing him new teeth or though some other means. I was still distraught back in the states and had asked a student from my Bible study (who happened to be in the Dental Program at UCLA) what the solution was. He told me that he would probably loose the rest of his teeth if he didn’t get dentures or implants. I continued to pray for Wilson, not knowing the solution to the problem but trusting the LORD to intervene. We did not have a dental team to take down there to help.

     On my next trip to Haiti, Wilson came again to visit us. It was a miracle! Because Wilson had been able to come up with the original $50 to have the teeth removed, the dentist had somehow agreed to provide him implants as well. The Haitian dentist did such a good job that many of the American’s without dental insurance were thinking they needed to give him a visit!

     God provided… God used me and the dentist to help Wilson. God has used our team in such a powerful way on previous trips. I would like to invite you to be someone who God can use on this trip to help people like Wilson… If I had not given Wilson the money, he would still have 4 rotten front teeth, be in excruciating pain, and have a very serious health risk. There are times when our Haitian friends have approached me with important needs and I had to say no.

     We are still raising more money for an offering for the village and I would like to invite you to be a part of it. Just as God stretched how far the money went for Wilson, I pray that God stretches how far your money will go… to be able to take care of your needs during this Christmas season, but also to help take care of the needs of the people of Fond Doux.

     As we finish up Thanksgiving season, we are so blessed to live here and have an “all you can eat” experience with our loved ones last Thursday. Unfortunately, the closest my friends in Haiti will ever come to experiencing that is when we visit.

I want to encourage you to consider stretching your heart and your pocket a little further so we can help bring hope and a smile to the people of this village.

If you would like to send a check, be sure to make it out to Chi Alpha.

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To mail in donations, please send them to:
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Chi Alpha – Attn: Bryan Citrin
2865 1/2 Reynier Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90034
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If you would like to donate online, you can do so HERE.

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All donations are tax deductible for the 2014 year.

I leave next week so please send something today, or click HERE.

Thank you so much for your thoughts, prayers, and assistance.