In just a couple of hours we will start the long journey northward. So many thoughts and memories and lessons will I take with me. Although I can't possibly share them all here, there are a couple that as of right now stand out...
We were unable to obtain the Visa yesterday. Things looked impossible. We didn't even make it through the first checkpoint into the Embassy. Our driver returned and brought us to the bank. It is not like the US. There aren't banks on every corner. This one took us 30 min. to get to. We arrived at 730 AM only to find out they don't open until 830. So we waited "anba pyebwa"... under a tree for shade. We waited until 815, then we walked into the courtyard and found 75 people already standing in line, also waiting to get into the bank. We had to return to the Embassy by 930 in order to get in. Can you imagine how our hearts sank? Without writing a book here, I will tell you that the entire day was like this. One stop after another, waiting outside for hours, looking for shade, from 545 AM until 430 PM. At 2:00 while standing outside of Immigration, not having eaten or drank since 530 AM, I said to myself, I just can't do this anymore. God, please send us help. I looked up and saw a sign on a car: God is my pilot. (more about the significance of this later). Within 2 minutes a man came up to us and told us to go inside and sit down. Thank you God! Once inside a sort of "holding area", another man came to us and asked us where our friends were. He then brought us to them. Angels. Really.
The end of that story is that what seemed impossible is never impossible with God. He is making the way. Once the first major obstacle was overcome, we thought we would never, ever overcome the next two. But God is much bigger than that, and all authority in Heaven and Earth is given by him. Clearing the first obstacle has cleared the last two. Now we just need to wait a little longer, get the new passport, and then return to the Embassy.
God is an amazing, powerful, good good God who loves us with a love we can only partially understand.
Speaking of love, let me share a story with you about the love the Haitian people have shown us these past few weeks. While on the road back from Port Salut, we had a medical emergency. Our tap tap pulled over quickly onto the side of the road. Instantly, there were people around us asking how they could help. One motorcycle gave a ride to one of us to go buy something. Another stood in waiting to see if they could take us to the hospital. They waited until the emergency passed. Others offered whatever help they could give. Total strangers. Love.
Another expression of this love and hospitality came from an elderly woman on the side of the road during our third flat tire of the day on Sunday. Upon seeing us, she motioned for us to quickly come and sit on her bench in the shade of an overhang. She even gave up her seat for us. Then she filled our time with stories of local happenings. During our first flat tire stop, two young men came by and saw the difficulty we were having getting the jack under the car. The two of them lifted the Toyota Roadrunner off the ground enough to get the jack where it needed to be. Once they saw everything was ok, off they went.
How can you measure the love of people who barely have any food, who eat once a day, yet bring you the fruits of the land for you to enjoy? Coconut, kaneps, mangos, cherries, limons... how can you describe that love?
Or how do you explain a love and care from a stranger that takes a hanky and wipes the sweat off your face, neck and arms after seeing your discomfort?
Or the love and care from a group of children when you visit their home who bring you a chair - child sized - for you to sit on under a tree in the shade so that you don't have to sit on the ground... and then climb on top of you... and then seeing how hot you are, begin to make a human fan by altogether blowing on you at once to cool you off?
I always leave here with tears. While I came to share the love of Christ with my Haitian friends - new and old - I can honestly tell you they shared the love of Christ with me. My heart is so full. Thank you Jesus for welcoming me into this place and into this work. Bel Bondye, mwen renmen ou, Bel Bondye, mwen adore ou, Bel Bondye, mwen dwe chante! "Beautiful One, I love; Beautiful One, I adore; Beautiful One, my soul must sing!"
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Monday, August 8, 2011
Sunday, August 7, 2011
sou wout Port au Prince lan
Tet chaje! Twa pann kaotiou! or in other words... oh my head! Three flat tires!
Jean and Lily from City University of New York were kind enough to give Youry, Resline and I a ride to the city from Faugasse. We got underway about 11:30 and hoped to arrive in PAP by 3:30. Well, we all know that things don't always go according to plan. After the first flat tire, Jean was smart enough to find a tire repair shop along the way because the spare was terribly unbalanced. Thank God he did, because Stop #3 was to change the next flat tire... and then once again try to find a tire shop. On and on it went, until our final stop God gave us a rainbow. As I stood there watching it, a man came up to me and asked what I was looking at. He was quite friendly, but couldn't quite understand why this white girl was standing on the side of the road seemingly looking up at nothing. Then along came a family, and I encouraged the little girl to venture out from under the tree to look up at the rainbow. She did so and gave a big smile, telling me that it was only the second rainbow she had ever seen. That was pretty cool...
So off we went with no more troubles save a very bumpy path up the side of a mountain to drop off Lily and her aunt to their destination. After a few stops to ask directions, we have arrived safely at the Guest House. It is quite lovely here with plenty of fans... and internet!
Please pray for us tomorrow. We will be at the Embassy, and only God can overcome the obstacles that are now in our path. But just this very week we shared with the kids the story of Jesus' birth, and how the angel told Mary, "Nothing is impossible with God.' So we are standing on that promise!!
Jean and Lily from City University of New York were kind enough to give Youry, Resline and I a ride to the city from Faugasse. We got underway about 11:30 and hoped to arrive in PAP by 3:30. Well, we all know that things don't always go according to plan. After the first flat tire, Jean was smart enough to find a tire repair shop along the way because the spare was terribly unbalanced. Thank God he did, because Stop #3 was to change the next flat tire... and then once again try to find a tire shop. On and on it went, until our final stop God gave us a rainbow. As I stood there watching it, a man came up to me and asked what I was looking at. He was quite friendly, but couldn't quite understand why this white girl was standing on the side of the road seemingly looking up at nothing. Then along came a family, and I encouraged the little girl to venture out from under the tree to look up at the rainbow. She did so and gave a big smile, telling me that it was only the second rainbow she had ever seen. That was pretty cool...
So off we went with no more troubles save a very bumpy path up the side of a mountain to drop off Lily and her aunt to their destination. After a few stops to ask directions, we have arrived safely at the Guest House. It is quite lovely here with plenty of fans... and internet!
Please pray for us tomorrow. We will be at the Embassy, and only God can overcome the obstacles that are now in our path. But just this very week we shared with the kids the story of Jesus' birth, and how the angel told Mary, "Nothing is impossible with God.' So we are standing on that promise!!
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Friday, August 5, 2011
After a stormy day yesterday, "Klub" ended today with 140 kids participating and hearing about how Jesus loved to serve others, and wants us to serve others too.
We canceled the morning session yesterday due to the deluge of rain and wind that began around 3 AM. However, when I arrived at the school just after 10 AM, I found the Haitian team waiting there for us! How tremendous that they would walk on those slippery pathways, in the rain, to serve their community. We had our work cut out for us and even enlisted the help of the few kids who came too. The tarp covering the courtyard was just about destroyed so we had to piece it back together. We also wanted to prepare the backpacks that kids from Orchard Fellowship made. We stuffed them with goodies left over from the week. After a brief rest and meal, we all returned to the school to try to get the afternoon session in. It started off OK, but about 5 minutes into the main part of the program, the skies opened up and another deluge began. Becca and David got soaked - and I mean soaked - out in the courtyard. They quickly improvised and changed the game to Hangman inside one of the classrooms. A little tough to explain in Kreyol, but after a few tries they got it and really enjoyed it!
Anyway, the rain continued; the road turned into a river; and we prayed like crazy it would stop before it was time to go home. Well, it almost did - but we were all pretty drenched by the time we walked back to the Retreat Center.
So today was sad... I hate saying goodbye to all the kids. This year is especially tough because I can actually hold conversations with them now, so I know them even more. I left them with Ephesians 3:14-21... a fitting prayer for the message this week. God's love is what saves us... and it is a deep, long, wide love that nothing else can compare to.
Please hold a particular young boy in your prayers. F. is 8 years old and is homeless. He literally had the clothes on his back, and one spare set in a ripped plastic bag that he was carrying around. He came to the program each day hoping for some help. I hope he took away more than just a meal and some new clothes (thanks Karen!).
You should be very proud of the team that served this week. Each one faced at least some sort of adversity - none of which was fun nor pleasant! But they held onto their Father, relied on Him for strength, and "ran the good race". Many lives were touched because of them!
Everyone is excited about beach day tomorrow, especially the Haitian team. None have been there so it is particularly exciting. You should see the joy on their faces - they were literally doing the "Happy Dance" today as they were talking about it. I love it! We'll be traveling in the back of a tap tap for about an hour to get there; will enjoy the sand and surf - even have some frisbees and a soccer ball to take; and then enjoy a fresh meal of fish (ok, so most of us will enjoy the fish).
That's it for now... Peace!
We canceled the morning session yesterday due to the deluge of rain and wind that began around 3 AM. However, when I arrived at the school just after 10 AM, I found the Haitian team waiting there for us! How tremendous that they would walk on those slippery pathways, in the rain, to serve their community. We had our work cut out for us and even enlisted the help of the few kids who came too. The tarp covering the courtyard was just about destroyed so we had to piece it back together. We also wanted to prepare the backpacks that kids from Orchard Fellowship made. We stuffed them with goodies left over from the week. After a brief rest and meal, we all returned to the school to try to get the afternoon session in. It started off OK, but about 5 minutes into the main part of the program, the skies opened up and another deluge began. Becca and David got soaked - and I mean soaked - out in the courtyard. They quickly improvised and changed the game to Hangman inside one of the classrooms. A little tough to explain in Kreyol, but after a few tries they got it and really enjoyed it!
Anyway, the rain continued; the road turned into a river; and we prayed like crazy it would stop before it was time to go home. Well, it almost did - but we were all pretty drenched by the time we walked back to the Retreat Center.
So today was sad... I hate saying goodbye to all the kids. This year is especially tough because I can actually hold conversations with them now, so I know them even more. I left them with Ephesians 3:14-21... a fitting prayer for the message this week. God's love is what saves us... and it is a deep, long, wide love that nothing else can compare to.
Please hold a particular young boy in your prayers. F. is 8 years old and is homeless. He literally had the clothes on his back, and one spare set in a ripped plastic bag that he was carrying around. He came to the program each day hoping for some help. I hope he took away more than just a meal and some new clothes (thanks Karen!).
You should be very proud of the team that served this week. Each one faced at least some sort of adversity - none of which was fun nor pleasant! But they held onto their Father, relied on Him for strength, and "ran the good race". Many lives were touched because of them!
Everyone is excited about beach day tomorrow, especially the Haitian team. None have been there so it is particularly exciting. You should see the joy on their faces - they were literally doing the "Happy Dance" today as they were talking about it. I love it! We'll be traveling in the back of a tap tap for about an hour to get there; will enjoy the sand and surf - even have some frisbees and a soccer ball to take; and then enjoy a fresh meal of fish (ok, so most of us will enjoy the fish).
That's it for now... Peace!
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
OK, this is a continuation... I just didn't want to get half way through all this and lose power and thus lose everything I typed... like the day Youry and I spent an hour typing and translating the lessons for the afternoon session - only to have the power go out and lose the entire thing. Or the time it took an hour to print something; or rather NOT print something b/c we couldn't get the connection to work. So we had to wait for the next time the power came on to try again. Painful!
Today Youry killed a huge tarantula for us that was hiding in our craft supplies. I didn't tell the kids that the strange spots on their projects were the spider's remains! Gross...
For dinner tonight we had hot chocolate and bread. Yum! It was dark with a touch of cinnamon. That was a new one for me - I loved it and so did the others.
We attended a rousing church service on Sunday night in Bambou. We were invited by one of the teens in our program who was singing. Unfortunately, we were such a distraction to the little kids that we felt we should leave after a short period of time! They were much more interested in our hair and sitting on/with us than they were in the program! On the way home we managed to get all the kids to leave except for three. Two were under 6 years old. Turns out they lived way, way back up the mountain where we had just come from!! We sent them home with the third older child who had followed us as well (Hannah - remember Gena? It was her!). Lesson learned: never believe a 5 year old who tells you they live where you do! haha
The team from GSV is really doing a great job - and our newest member, Kathleen, is doing very well adjusting to the country and the people and the food and the sleeping conditions. She has really jumped in with both feet!! These guys put everything they have out there on the "court" - sweating it all out, learning the language, interacting with the kids, singing and teaching and serving food. May they be blessed in huge abundance for their sacrifices!
So glad to have the new blackboards and repaired benches via Tim, DAna, Taylor and Ray. And Ray - the toilet is working just fine :0) Miss you guys and glad you made it home safely.
Russell - the prayers for the digestive system worked a little too well. Can you pray a little in the other direction now? Please? Thanks!
Waking up at 4 AM each day has its advantages: I get to witness the dawning of the day, the rising of the dogs and roosters and traffic and people; and I get to enjoy the most amazing sunrises I've ever seen. OK, let's face it - I've seen very, very few sunrises in my life. OK, almost none. But now I know what I am missing!
Can't say enough about these people here that I've come to love so very much. They have such a difficult life... most are hungry all the time; they labor in the hot, hot sun; struggle to have clean water; and if they are lucky, they have electricity some of the time. But they are incredibly welcoming and loving and have accepted us into their community with open arms. It is difficult for some to truly believe that God can and will care for them; or that He really sees their struggles. We are praying and actively working to make sure they don't see US as their saviors, but that they know the Almighty - who knows their names, who places them in families, who has a Big/Big house... the Almighty cares for them and will never abandon them. We encourage them to place their trust in Him; since we know that man will always fall short of meeting our needs, but He never will. Please pray for this with us... and finally, my deepest desire for this village is that they will (as it says in Ephesians) know the depth and height and breadth of the Lord's love for them... that it will pass understanding. Amen!!
Today Youry killed a huge tarantula for us that was hiding in our craft supplies. I didn't tell the kids that the strange spots on their projects were the spider's remains! Gross...
For dinner tonight we had hot chocolate and bread. Yum! It was dark with a touch of cinnamon. That was a new one for me - I loved it and so did the others.
We attended a rousing church service on Sunday night in Bambou. We were invited by one of the teens in our program who was singing. Unfortunately, we were such a distraction to the little kids that we felt we should leave after a short period of time! They were much more interested in our hair and sitting on/with us than they were in the program! On the way home we managed to get all the kids to leave except for three. Two were under 6 years old. Turns out they lived way, way back up the mountain where we had just come from!! We sent them home with the third older child who had followed us as well (Hannah - remember Gena? It was her!). Lesson learned: never believe a 5 year old who tells you they live where you do! haha
The team from GSV is really doing a great job - and our newest member, Kathleen, is doing very well adjusting to the country and the people and the food and the sleeping conditions. She has really jumped in with both feet!! These guys put everything they have out there on the "court" - sweating it all out, learning the language, interacting with the kids, singing and teaching and serving food. May they be blessed in huge abundance for their sacrifices!
So glad to have the new blackboards and repaired benches via Tim, DAna, Taylor and Ray. And Ray - the toilet is working just fine :0) Miss you guys and glad you made it home safely.
Russell - the prayers for the digestive system worked a little too well. Can you pray a little in the other direction now? Please? Thanks!
Waking up at 4 AM each day has its advantages: I get to witness the dawning of the day, the rising of the dogs and roosters and traffic and people; and I get to enjoy the most amazing sunrises I've ever seen. OK, let's face it - I've seen very, very few sunrises in my life. OK, almost none. But now I know what I am missing!
Can't say enough about these people here that I've come to love so very much. They have such a difficult life... most are hungry all the time; they labor in the hot, hot sun; struggle to have clean water; and if they are lucky, they have electricity some of the time. But they are incredibly welcoming and loving and have accepted us into their community with open arms. It is difficult for some to truly believe that God can and will care for them; or that He really sees their struggles. We are praying and actively working to make sure they don't see US as their saviors, but that they know the Almighty - who knows their names, who places them in families, who has a Big/Big house... the Almighty cares for them and will never abandon them. We encourage them to place their trust in Him; since we know that man will always fall short of meeting our needs, but He never will. Please pray for this with us... and finally, my deepest desire for this village is that they will (as it says in Ephesians) know the depth and height and breadth of the Lord's love for them... that it will pass understanding. Amen!!
Great story for today:
We have been taking public tap taps in the afternoon (because it is so hot, and we need to save ourselves for the afternoon session with the older kids - requires LOTS of energy!!!). The first few times we've been lucky enough to get ones that are fairly empty. Today we had to take one that was full all around the edges of the truck bed. So we had to stand in the middle. That means there is nothing to hold onto... and the road is very bumpy and curvy. So here we are standing in the middle of all these people in the truck bed, falling into the people behind us. An older man near me grabs my hand and puts it on his arm and says, "Ou dwe kenbe!" (You must hold on!). What a great place - it is expected, and perfectly acceptable, that you hold onto perfect strangers in order to stand upright in the back of a tap tap! I love this place!
In other news... had 150 kids today. The afternoon session with the older kids is really growing. They are challenging - no surprise, they are almost all over 14 years old! They love the games and the lessons, but they sure give us a run for our money. They are pretty crafty at getting around the rules - haha. Sounds like American teenagers too :0) Anyway, they keep us on our toes and we love them.
I got to watch a neighborhood soccer game today after our final session. It was 3 v 3; the ref had a whistle and the line judge had a branch to use as a flag. The two goals were about 2 feet high (maybe 3) and 3 feet across, held in place by large rocks. These kids played so hard! And they proudly wore the jerseys that Ray had brought. The whole neighborhood came out to watch and cheer for these 6 teens. They played in the empty space between their houses... it was fabulous.
We have been taking public tap taps in the afternoon (because it is so hot, and we need to save ourselves for the afternoon session with the older kids - requires LOTS of energy!!!). The first few times we've been lucky enough to get ones that are fairly empty. Today we had to take one that was full all around the edges of the truck bed. So we had to stand in the middle. That means there is nothing to hold onto... and the road is very bumpy and curvy. So here we are standing in the middle of all these people in the truck bed, falling into the people behind us. An older man near me grabs my hand and puts it on his arm and says, "Ou dwe kenbe!" (You must hold on!). What a great place - it is expected, and perfectly acceptable, that you hold onto perfect strangers in order to stand upright in the back of a tap tap! I love this place!
In other news... had 150 kids today. The afternoon session with the older kids is really growing. They are challenging - no surprise, they are almost all over 14 years old! They love the games and the lessons, but they sure give us a run for our money. They are pretty crafty at getting around the rules - haha. Sounds like American teenagers too :0) Anyway, they keep us on our toes and we love them.
I got to watch a neighborhood soccer game today after our final session. It was 3 v 3; the ref had a whistle and the line judge had a branch to use as a flag. The two goals were about 2 feet high (maybe 3) and 3 feet across, held in place by large rocks. These kids played so hard! And they proudly wore the jerseys that Ray had brought. The whole neighborhood came out to watch and cheer for these 6 teens. They played in the empty space between their houses... it was fabulous.
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