Just as the message from church yesterday morning spoke about how even when God opens doors, the rooms we walk into may have benches where He wants us to wait, for me today was a day of waiting on the Lord. I woke up with a plan in mind of all of the things I needed to get done today, but now as the day draws to a close I can tell you that I didn't accomplish much today, at least in terms of checking things off of the list of things that need to be taken care of. God has been working on this part of my life for sometime now. I spent years driven by the self-developed need, and obsession, to 'accomplish' things. I would plan everything out and then start checking everything off. The measure of how good my day was had a direct correlation to how many things I was able to accomplish. If at the end of the day I hadn't gotten much done I felt like I had failed. I know that this is certainly not the way God would have me live, and He has been chiseling away at this part of who I have been for some time now.
Today I waited. I spent time reading and studying the Bible. I spent time praying, and just trying to listen. I argued with God, questioning 'why' about some very important parts of my life, seeking His guidance and expressing to Him my anguish and need for help and knowledge on how to move forward. I spent time feeling overwhelmed to the point I could hardly breathe. I felt uncomfortable and wanted to run, to pack up and just go home. I wanted to just sit down and cry feeling lonely and unsure about anything I am doing here. Believe me when I tell you that I went through the full range of emotions today. Ministry is hard. Ministry far away from home is even harder. This is particularly true when 'home' is where your family is and you are far away from them. It often feels like I am living two different lives: one at home with my family and my job, and one here in Haiti. I pray that somewhere there will be some kind of blending of the two, particularly where my family is concerned. But I am trusting that God will work all things out for good. I don't have all of the answers to what is going to happen, who we will serve here and in what specific capacities. I don't know which skills we will be able to teach, which dates we will have teams come to the Center, etc. But God has all of these answers already. Answers to these questions involve a lot of other people who will make decisions to serve God in Haiti, both short-term and long-term. Today He wanted to remind me that I don't have to figure it all out. He's got this and He wants me to learn to trust Him more. Prayer is so very important and I know I need to make more time for prayer, for bringing my concerns and questions before Him and having a conversation with the One who holds all of the answers.
I did work on paperwork for the ministry some today, and I went down to the house and got one of the bathrooms set up the best I could. It is really looking good. I do believe tomorrow I will be able to get some more of the things we need, especially some initial furniture. Tomorrow is my last day here until October 19. Then I will have a team with me and we can dig into the work! I am so excited about that trip!!! After dinner tonight me, Katelyn and Rachel helped Sherrie stuff and prepare envelopes for a mailout to child sponsors. Then Rachel made brownies! I had been craving chocolate all day and getting a brownie was an amazing blessing! What a perfect way to end the day.
Goodnight from Haiti!
Patricia
Monday, September 30, 2013
The house is looking good!
Continuing the blog from last night...
Saturday evening was spent having dinner with the group here at Sherrie's and meeting some more new people who have been doing medical clinics in the area all week. I am always amazed at how many people, with such a variety of gifts and passion for ministry, end up in Haiti. God has certainly orchestrated the body of Christ here. The lady that was in the group doing medical clinics shared with me a couple of things that I want to pass along, to give you an idea of why what we are preparing to do here is so important. This week they had a 2 year old little girl test positive for syphilis, but when they tested her mother she was negative. Abuse happens at such an early age here, and it is heart breaking to the point of anguish over what happens to so many children and women. Then she told me about something her group had seen here just after the earthquake in 2010. Apparently a Haitian lady had gone into labor before the earthquake hit, and was at a hospital where they had cut her open to perform a C-section. Before they were finished the earthquake hit and everyone left the building, leaving the woman open on the table. The woman was able (only God knows how) to craw out from under the rubble and out into the street, still cut open. She passed out somewhere along the way and eventually was seen by this medical team that was on the ground right after the earthquake. There was apparently a good Samaritan somewhere that had attempted to sew the lady up out on the street, but had done a horrible job. This team was able to fix her up, and later she was able to find her baby. Many women here give birth on their own, in their home or wherever they are when they go into labor. For many there is no access to healthcare, for them or their children, and many die from things that could have been prevented. The certainly gives you a perspective on how often we complain in the US about having to wait too long to see a doctor, or the many other complaints we have about medical care. The fact is that we have it. We have access to healthcare that far exceeds anything people here have access to, yet we take it for granted every day.
Sunday morning I went with Sherrie, David, Micah, and Rachel to Port Au Prince Fellowship for church. This was the first time I had been to an American/English-speaking church here in Haiti. The church was full of American missionaries, and some Haitians. It was nice to sing songs that are familiar and in my own language, and to be surrounded by so many others that are also here serving from far away. There are lots of families here with small children that haven given up everything they had back in the US to come here for something far greater. The message for the service was based on Colossians 3:1-10 where Paul told the Colossians that if they are raised with Christ they are to seek those things which are above, not those things here on earth. In verse 8 Paul gives specific things we are to put off, such as anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, and filthy language. The message in the service used an analogy of sailing to discuss how we pursue our walk with the Lord. If we are sailing there are many forces pushing against us such as the wind, the waves, human error, etc. In "trimming the sails" we skillfully adjust to changing conditions. If we are headed in the wrong direction we need to correct our course. Often this happens in small steps we take that over time can take us way off course. It is important to recognize these happenings while they are still small and make corrections needed along the way before we end up too far off course, drifting further and further from God.
The message provided several areas where we can make these wrong steps if we are not careful:
1 Seeking Signs - Matthew 12:38-42
We must be careful to not take coincidental occurrences and automatically assign God's voice to it. We must seek God's voice through our direct relationship with Him.
2 Doors - 1 Corinthians 16:9
Spiritually mature Christians will see a door as an opportunity to pray. Sometimes the rooms we enter have a bench, and we are to wait upon God's timing and direction. In Haiti so many opportunities present themselves because the need is so great. It is easy to get involved in too many things and get burned out or use your resources ineffectively.
Colossians 4:2-4
3 Human Reasoning - Proverbs 14:12
Following our own reasoning without following God's guidance is to lack faith in God, doubt our ability to hear God, or to be afraid that we might not want to hear what He has to say. We may fear what others think about what God is telling us to do, especially if it is life changing. This is particularly difficult when other Christians don't seem to understand that God could ask you to do something radical.
Proverbs 3:5-8
4 Busyness - Luke 10:38-42
Busyness is wrong when God is there. If God is doing something we need to stop. If we sense God is trying to tell us something we need to wait and listen. Too often we keep moving and do not alter our schedule to be able to hear Him. We cannot expect God to work His way into our schedule.
5 Flesh - 2 Corinthians 10:3
When we are transformed by grace, we start strong with our reliance on God, but as time goes by we try to take back more and more of ourselves, wanting to be in control. Galatians 3:3
Our ministry will move, not because of us, but despite us.
The preacher went on to explain that as leaders we often feel like we have to be strong, that we are supposed to have all of the answers. But we should be willing to let others see us as human, showing our weakness, willing to ask for help. This puts the glory back in God's hand. I know that every step of the way in this ministry I have struggled with not having the answers. I have questioned how in the world I could do any of this, because this is so outside of my comfort zone, but that is when I have seen God in the strongest ways - when I have known without a shadow of a doubt that He is in control. As a very smart lady I know says, 'God doesn't call the equipped, He equips the called'. I am very thankful for that!
After we returned from the service, I headed to the house to meet a lady that was coming to clean. Bless her heart, she started at about 11:30 and worked hard until almost 6 pm. Everything was so dirty and dusty. Today (Monday) she will return to finish the last two rooms. The floors were so shiny when she was finished!
While she was cleaning I was working on cleaning out some of the shelves and putting tin gas away. It was great to see things start going into the house! I am so thankful that this house has so much storage built in!
Mr. Richard, who is just wonderful, came down to the house to help me talk with Madame Bertha. We made arrangements for taking care of the remaining security bar installation on the upstairs doors and windows. We also talked to her about getting a dog and she was very happy about that, telling me that yes she knows that is important. It was a good day and I feel like we got quite a few things accomplished! Now, today I will work on getting some furniture and other supplies so we will be ready for our October 19 trip back down here!
Have a blessed day!
Patricia
Saturday evening was spent having dinner with the group here at Sherrie's and meeting some more new people who have been doing medical clinics in the area all week. I am always amazed at how many people, with such a variety of gifts and passion for ministry, end up in Haiti. God has certainly orchestrated the body of Christ here. The lady that was in the group doing medical clinics shared with me a couple of things that I want to pass along, to give you an idea of why what we are preparing to do here is so important. This week they had a 2 year old little girl test positive for syphilis, but when they tested her mother she was negative. Abuse happens at such an early age here, and it is heart breaking to the point of anguish over what happens to so many children and women. Then she told me about something her group had seen here just after the earthquake in 2010. Apparently a Haitian lady had gone into labor before the earthquake hit, and was at a hospital where they had cut her open to perform a C-section. Before they were finished the earthquake hit and everyone left the building, leaving the woman open on the table. The woman was able (only God knows how) to craw out from under the rubble and out into the street, still cut open. She passed out somewhere along the way and eventually was seen by this medical team that was on the ground right after the earthquake. There was apparently a good Samaritan somewhere that had attempted to sew the lady up out on the street, but had done a horrible job. This team was able to fix her up, and later she was able to find her baby. Many women here give birth on their own, in their home or wherever they are when they go into labor. For many there is no access to healthcare, for them or their children, and many die from things that could have been prevented. The certainly gives you a perspective on how often we complain in the US about having to wait too long to see a doctor, or the many other complaints we have about medical care. The fact is that we have it. We have access to healthcare that far exceeds anything people here have access to, yet we take it for granted every day.
Sunday morning I went with Sherrie, David, Micah, and Rachel to Port Au Prince Fellowship for church. This was the first time I had been to an American/English-speaking church here in Haiti. The church was full of American missionaries, and some Haitians. It was nice to sing songs that are familiar and in my own language, and to be surrounded by so many others that are also here serving from far away. There are lots of families here with small children that haven given up everything they had back in the US to come here for something far greater. The message for the service was based on Colossians 3:1-10 where Paul told the Colossians that if they are raised with Christ they are to seek those things which are above, not those things here on earth. In verse 8 Paul gives specific things we are to put off, such as anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, and filthy language. The message in the service used an analogy of sailing to discuss how we pursue our walk with the Lord. If we are sailing there are many forces pushing against us such as the wind, the waves, human error, etc. In "trimming the sails" we skillfully adjust to changing conditions. If we are headed in the wrong direction we need to correct our course. Often this happens in small steps we take that over time can take us way off course. It is important to recognize these happenings while they are still small and make corrections needed along the way before we end up too far off course, drifting further and further from God.
The message provided several areas where we can make these wrong steps if we are not careful:
1 Seeking Signs - Matthew 12:38-42
We must be careful to not take coincidental occurrences and automatically assign God's voice to it. We must seek God's voice through our direct relationship with Him.
2 Doors - 1 Corinthians 16:9
Spiritually mature Christians will see a door as an opportunity to pray. Sometimes the rooms we enter have a bench, and we are to wait upon God's timing and direction. In Haiti so many opportunities present themselves because the need is so great. It is easy to get involved in too many things and get burned out or use your resources ineffectively.
Colossians 4:2-4
3 Human Reasoning - Proverbs 14:12
Following our own reasoning without following God's guidance is to lack faith in God, doubt our ability to hear God, or to be afraid that we might not want to hear what He has to say. We may fear what others think about what God is telling us to do, especially if it is life changing. This is particularly difficult when other Christians don't seem to understand that God could ask you to do something radical.
Proverbs 3:5-8
4 Busyness - Luke 10:38-42
Busyness is wrong when God is there. If God is doing something we need to stop. If we sense God is trying to tell us something we need to wait and listen. Too often we keep moving and do not alter our schedule to be able to hear Him. We cannot expect God to work His way into our schedule.
5 Flesh - 2 Corinthians 10:3
When we are transformed by grace, we start strong with our reliance on God, but as time goes by we try to take back more and more of ourselves, wanting to be in control. Galatians 3:3
Our ministry will move, not because of us, but despite us.
The preacher went on to explain that as leaders we often feel like we have to be strong, that we are supposed to have all of the answers. But we should be willing to let others see us as human, showing our weakness, willing to ask for help. This puts the glory back in God's hand. I know that every step of the way in this ministry I have struggled with not having the answers. I have questioned how in the world I could do any of this, because this is so outside of my comfort zone, but that is when I have seen God in the strongest ways - when I have known without a shadow of a doubt that He is in control. As a very smart lady I know says, 'God doesn't call the equipped, He equips the called'. I am very thankful for that!
After we returned from the service, I headed to the house to meet a lady that was coming to clean. Bless her heart, she started at about 11:30 and worked hard until almost 6 pm. Everything was so dirty and dusty. Today (Monday) she will return to finish the last two rooms. The floors were so shiny when she was finished!
While she was cleaning I was working on cleaning out some of the shelves and putting tin gas away. It was great to see things start going into the house! I am so thankful that this house has so much storage built in!
Mr. Richard, who is just wonderful, came down to the house to help me talk with Madame Bertha. We made arrangements for taking care of the remaining security bar installation on the upstairs doors and windows. We also talked to her about getting a dog and she was very happy about that, telling me that yes she knows that is important. It was a good day and I feel like we got quite a few things accomplished! Now, today I will work on getting some furniture and other supplies so we will be ready for our October 19 trip back down here!
Have a blessed day!
Patricia
Sunday, September 29, 2013
New friends and opportunities
It has taken me a while to get to this post, but I have a
lot I want to share. I won't be able to get caught up on everything tonight, but at least it is a start!
I arrived in Haiti on Saturday, and Edmond picked me up
at the airport. As soon as I walked in here at Sherrie’s and got my welcome hug
from that amazing lady, I saw David and met two new friends who were visiting
from North Dakota: Travis and John. David asked me if I was hungry, and I thought
it seemed a bit early for dinner. Well the group was going out to dinner at a
restaurant in Petionville just a little later. So I joined them. It was Sherrie,
David, Micah, Rachel, Travis, John, Kaitlyn, and myself. Traffic was crazy, but when we got there we
were amazed at this place. It was in the city, but it looked like we had just
passed over into a completely different place. It looked like a rainforest. It
was beautiful! We had outside seating and they had a live band (which was a
little loud since we were right by one of the speakers). I have always known
that things move slower in Haiti, but this dinner experience brought slow to a
new level. But it was a beautiful place with good food and amazing company!
Then it started raining. Hard. I have never really been here during the rainy
season, but my goodness does it pour! We got wet getting back to the truck, and
speaking of the truck. We had driven the white truck which is a small, 4 door
pickup with no bed cover, and it is a stick shift. So, the 8 of us crammed ourselves
into the truck piled on top of each other. Sherrie somehow managed to take a
picture of us, maybe because she was bent in half with part of her body riding
between the two front seats. It was quite the ride! At least with all of the rain
traffic was almost nonexistent coming home, but the big bumps were interesting,
and sometimes painful. There is no better group to be crammed into a pickup
truck with!
The next day, Saturday, I went with David, Micah, and
Rachel to run some errands. They had to go to Agope Flights and I was able to
arrange for another new friend, Elisabeth, to meet us there. Here is a cool connection - Elisabeth is also a friend of Ryan and Heather Forman! She went to market with us and then came back home with us. She and I walked
down to the new house and I showed her around and told her about what we were
going to be doing. On the ride back home she had told me about the organization
she works with, KOFAEL, which provides micro loans to women who are trying to
get on their feet. They have 42 women in this program now and it operates right
here in Delmas 31! Elisabeth lives in St. Marc, but comes down once a month to
be here for the group’s monthly meeting. The everyday details of working with
this group are taken care of by this amazing Haitian couple I also had the privilege
of meeting that day. Frantz and Julienne. They are engaged to be married this
December and are so on fire for helping women and serving the Lord. Frantz and Julienne walked down to
the house and we showed them around and shared with one another some of the passions we have for
working with women. I was very impressed with them and how much they give of
themselves to help others in their community.
Saturday was also the day for the monthly meeting, so the
four of us walked down Delmas 31 to the location they use for their meetings. I
always enjoy getting out and walking around Port Au Prince. It is so much more
real to get out and walk with Haitians, buy water from someone selling on the
street market, etc. The place that KOFAEL meets was very dark and crowded, and
Elisabeth had mentioned that they were hoping to find a new place to meet. I
told them that they are more than welcome to start using our ministry center
starting in October. They were thrilled and said they had been praying for this
for some time. They announced the change of location to the ladies before the
end of the meeting. So the first scheduled activity in our new center will be a
monthly meeting with 42 beautiful Haitian women who are working to make better
lives for themselves and their families. What a wonderful beginning!!! This
also gives us the opportunity to interact with these ladies to find out what
else we can do to assist them on their journey. I know we are going to need
volunteers to come down and help train Haitian ladies that can then train other
Haitian ladies in a variety of skills that they can put to use in their lives.
Building up these women in a sustainable way will also help them keep their
children, many of which would otherwise have ended up in an orphanage or sent
to live as a restavek. Please keep this partnership in prayer. It is a
wonderful opportunity for two ministries to work together to serve the people by
pooling their resources instead of duplicating efforts. The people working with
KOFAEL often come across women that need assistance but don’t fall into
guidelines for the micro loan program. With Hope for My Sister we will be able
to take referrals of women that KOFAEL feels we can serve but they cannot.
I can't wait to see what God does with these new friendships! More to come soon!
Goodnight from Haiti!
Monday, August 5, 2013
Adventure to the Dominican Republic
Friday, August 2, 2013
Friday morning I got up, got dressed, and went down to
the balcony to work on paperwork/planning until Edmond was able to take me to
the store. I was planning to buy a stove and whatever else I could with the
funds I had available. I wanted to at least do what I could on this trip to get
the house ready. Anyway, I stepped into the kitchen off the balcony so the
ladies could sweep it, and about that time David came to talk to Sherrie about
going to the Dominican Republic to meet up with his brother John and the team
he had over there. He was going to be able to pick up medicine, clothing, and
other items. Sherrie told him I was going with Edmond to get appliances and
David suggested that I might want to go with him and Micah to the DR because
you can buy appliances a lot cheaper there. So the next thing I know I am
packing my backpack for the night and getting into the big blue truck with
Micah and David. Three white people headed across the border. There is always ad adventure when you come to Haiti!
We left Christian Light at 11 am. A little more than an
hour into the trip, we came to a Haitian police checkpoint. A male officer
stopped us, and if you know anything about what can happen at a police
checkpoint in Haiti, you would expect me to tell you about some bribe they
wanted or something else negative. But not this time. Officer Markel asked us a
couple of questions (Where are you going? Are you American?) and then said he needed a job. He was looking for another
job that he could do when he wasn’t policing. David (who was driving) looked at
me and asked if he could tell him. I said sure. So David told Officer Markel
that I was opening a women’s center and would be looking for a security guard
in a couple of months. He seemed very interested and he wrote down his name and
phone number. Then he asked us if we were Christians, if we knew Jesus. He
said, “because if you don’t I would like to tell you about him”. Wow. How many
Haitian police officers have you seen that try to witness to people at a
checkpoint? We assured him that we were indeed Christians, and soon we were off
again. David said, “That might have been the reason for this trip – that you
would find your security guard.” What a rare and amazing opportunity, to get a
security guard for the women’s center that is a trained police officer, has connections to the police and
has his own gun! OK God, you are riding with us. Thank you!!!
Sure we had just had our first divine appointment of the
trip, we kept heading for the border. Once we got out of Port Au Prince the
drive was beautiful and interesting. As we approached the border, there was a
large lake that came right up to the road, sometimes on both sides of the road.
The water was so blue and the huge, magnificent mountains in the background
were breathtaking. David explained that prior to the earthquake the water
wasn’t as high as it was now. The earthquake caused a crack in the rock bed and
some of the ocean had come through. This was evident in the fact that you could
see the roofs of several houses just under the top of the water.
And we ventured on until we came to the border. The first
gate was to exit Haiti.
We were able to go in and take care of immigration
smoothly and David inquired about the taxes on appliances coming back into
Haiti. They told him $20 per appliance (which may or may not have ended up
being the correct amount). Then we were off to the second gate, entering the
DR. This one was more frustrating and took us more than an hour to get through.
There were people in street clothes with clipboards trying to get you to show
them your papers so they could get money from you, but we knew better thanks to
David. Then we were met by two young men, one of which was wearing a khaki Boy
Scout shirt trying to look ‘official’, but we knew better J. We went and took care
of immigration and then we had to take care of the paperwork to take the truck
across the border. David took care of the paperwork and then we were on our
way, or so we thought. We were stopped as we started driving out. This time by
a man with a rifle. The man with him took our passports (at which time I texted
church with a prayer request), and David got out of the truck to go with them. We
got the passports back, thank you God, and finally we were off. Santo Domingo
here we come!
It was very interesting to see the differences between
Haiti and the DR even though the two countries share the same small island. And
bye bye Creole, hello Spanish, which none of us knew much of. The DR is a
beautiful country, and even in the very poor neighborhoods the streets,
sidewalks, and yards were clean.
The people were friendly as well. I know that between
David and Micah we had to have stopped and asked “Santo Domingo?” about 20
times to groups of people sitting around. And sometimes we would stop at an
intersection and not even have to ask, the people would just point. We did mind
of stand out in our very ‘Haitian’ truck with three white people. And all along
the highways were these little concrete ‘shrine’ structures where you would
expect to see Mary, but as we drove by we looked in each one we passed and Mary
was nowhere to be found. It became kind of funny and gave us something to do.
You know, ‘Mission Haiti’ could be an interesting reality show, just sayin…
So on we went toward Santo Domingo. Even though we didn’t
find Mary, we saw a little bit of everything along the way. People were selling
lots of things alongside the road, including lizards on leashes, fruit,
furniture, onion rings, and fish and crabs on a stick. We even saw a few other
things we could have done without, but I digress…
We finally made it to Santo Domingo after dark. There
were road signs, interstates, lots of exit ramps, one-way streets, and loud
music. After driving around for a while trying to get close to the hotel where
David’s brother John was at with his team, David called John and we ended
up going to a large mall area where we found a decent looking taxi and paid the
driver to lead us to the Aquarium hotel. We got to the hotel around 9:30 pm (10
1\2 hours after we left). We started meeting some of the team members, who
showed us to the rooms we would be in for the night. I roomed with a very nice
lady named Charlotte, her granddaughter, and a young lady named Esther from the Dominican. I hadn't been in the room five minutes when a lady came to bring me a cold bottle of water. After we dropped our stuff off in our rooms, we joined John’s team for
devotion and prayer. He had 28 people from Alabama on his team and he gave the
three of us the opportunity to tell the group what we are doing in Haiti. It
was wonderful to share with other Christians what God is doing in Haiti. The team had been reading "Follow Me" by David Platt and this was the book they were basing their devotion on. Very cool considering myself and two others are leading a Bible study on Follow Me at our church this fall. They discussed what is means to make disciples. That we are called to make an intentional investment in people; called to see the urgency in eternity; to rest in the sufficiency of Christ; and to no longer be 'spectators', but active 'doers'. What a great message as 31 of us sat in the room together in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. We represented three states of the US. We were all from different walks of life, with different gifts and abilities. We came from different denominations. Among us were individuals of different races and ages. But we were all there with a common purpose and a common heart. This is a picture of what the body of Christ was meant to be.
After
devotion we headed to our rooms for the night. Not long after getting to the
room, another lady from John’s team knocked on the door and gave me a gift
package. She said she wasn’t sure what was in it, but the group wanted me to
have it. That was very thoughtful of them. I placed the package in my backpack
and went to take a shower.
Saturday, August 3, 2013
Saturday morning we got up and had breakfast at the hotel
with the other team, at which time one of the team members gave me $200 from
his church to help with purchasing appliances for the women’s center. Thank you Lord! I was
also able to pass out some business cards for Hope for My Sister, and I had
several people from the other team express interest in staying connected to the
ministry. You never know what God will do with that opportunity in the future.
We joined the team again for their morning devotional and prayer. They focused on Psalm 46:10, "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!". And, Ephesians 6:10, "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might." They discussed Chapter 9 of Follow Me, which is entitled, "Born to Reproduce". This chapter of the book is the application chapter. It causes you to reflect on what you have read throughout the book and asks you to make a personal disciple-making plan. In developing your plan you are given six (6) questions to consider. These include: (1) How will I fill my mind with truth? (2) How will I fuel my affections for God? (3) How will I share God's love as a witness in the world? (4) How will I show God's love as a member of a church? (5) How will I spread God's glory among all peoples? and (6) How will I make disciple makers among a few people? I love the end of the 9th chapter, where David makes two profound statements that each of us should seriously consider as we walk with Christ: This is a call worth dying for. This is a king worth living for.
After devotion we
loaded the truck with the medicine and supplies from John's team, which also included toiletry bags (this will be important to know later) Then we were off to go shopping. John had arranged for Kevin to go with us since he
spoke Spanish. He was very helpful. The first place we went to look for items
we needed was IKEA!It was nice to see a familiar store.
We found a few things there. I was able to get two desks
and garbage cans for the three bathrooms. Then we were off to an appliance store. We
went to a large supercenter store where we found what we were looking for. I
was able to get a refrigerator, a gas stove, a microwave, a water cooler, and 3
mirrors for the bathrooms for $1,100! Thank you Lord!!! David and Micah also
found some things. It took a little while to load everything up, but once we
did we were off heading back to Haiti. David drove all day the day before, so Micah drove back. They both did a great job of driving in crazy traffic!
The drive back to the border was beautiful, especially as the sun began to set.
Unfortunately, despite a great effort, we did not make it
to the border before it closed for the night. So, we were stuck in the DR until
the border opened this morning at 8 am. We found a hotel in Jiramie, which is close to the border. The
rooms had decent beds, ceiling fan, and air conditioning. The toilets in the
DR, however, do not have any seats…not sure why…and the bathroom in the hotel room did have a door...But, we found Mary! A
sculpture of her was on the wall just before we got to our rooms in the hallway
of the hotel.
After we put our stuff in our rooms we walked down the
street to a local street restaurant where we had burritos and quesadillas. It was a little wooden building on the corner with a large window/hole cut out for you to order and get your food. The young men working there were very nice. The
food was very good. And where we were we could hear music and see dancing in a
local outdoor place down the street. What an amazing sense of community they
have there. We don’t see this in the US, and it truly is sad. Everywhere you
looked you saw families and neighbors sitting around talking. It was a
beautiful thing to see a culture where life is slower and being together is
more important than going places or buying things. But back to the story at
hand…After we got back to our rooms I contemplated what I was going to wear the
next day since I had only packed one change of clothes. The shorts I had been
wearing that day were awful by this time, but the skirt I had worn the day before was a
possibility, but it had been in a bag with a wet washcloth all day and was pretty
nasty too. About this time I was looking through my backpack and came across
the package the lady had given me the night before. In that bag was a t-shirt,
body wash and lotion. So I had a clean shirt to wear, and I used some of the
body wash to wash my skirt by hand in the sink and then hung it up to dry for
the night. Thank you Lord for the little things! I called Sam and had him check
on other flights for Monday because the chances of us getting back in time to
get me to the airport for my 1 pm flight were looking very slim. The options
weren’t good and they were expensive. But, we put it in the Lord’s hands.
Sunday, August 4, 2013
This morning we were up and on the road about 7:20 am,
headed for the border, which was scheduled to open at 8 am. We got to the
Dominican border at 7:30 and knew we would have to wait a little bit.
 |
| At the Dominican Republic border |
A
Dominican man approached our truck and wanted to see the papers for it. Not
knowing much Spanish, it was a challenging conversation, but we were encouraged
by the man’s patience and pleasantness. David stated telling the man we were
missionaries and opened his iPad to show the man pictures of the children from
the orphanage. Then David got into the back of truck and got out a toiletry bag
that John’s team had given us and gave it to the man. He seemed pleased, at
which point he personally walked us to the window in the building and we were
able to get our passports taken care of by 7:55 am. Then he motioned for us to
follow him toward the gate. Just before the gate another man stopped us, but
our new little friend came over with him. He wanted to see our paperwork for
the truck. David got out and gave him a toiletry bag as well and he let us go
through the gate.
At the next gate, a man in uniform with a gun stopped us
and wanted to see our passports. Them he asked if we were missionaries. We said
yes, and David showed him a picture. And he gave back our passports and told us
to go on. Thank you Lord for ‘favor’.
The next area was to get our passports taken care of for
re-entry into Haiti. As we walked into the building there was a long line, at which time I took a deep breath and thought that we were going to be there a long time. But the line was for those people leaving Haiti. The line for those coming in only had about 3 people in it! This process went very smoothly and the man we dealt with
in immigration was very nice. Then we were on our way, waiting for the next
person to stop us for the appliances we had in the back of the truck…but no one
did. We went through the last checkpoint without anyone stopping us. What could
have cost us a good chunk of money cost us nothing. God was in the details
today! Then as we got into the part of Haiti where traffic is usually in total
gridlock, Micah hardly even had to slow down! On the way we discussed the possible need to just drop me at the airport and leave my other belongings at Sherrie's since changing my flight was going to be difficult and very expensive. I dreaded the idea, because I had really hoped to change clothes and get my other things. To our great surprise, we got to Sherries at 10 am - only 2 hours after going through the first check point in the DR! Thank you Lord!!! I was able to clean up, change clothes, pack my stuff, and talk to Sherrie a little before heading to the airport.
At the airport I went upstairs to get some lunch before my flight and was able to get on the WIFI and put a post on Facebook. My friend Ryan from Tennessee responded and told me his friend Katie was there at the airport as well on her way back to the states. He said I should try to find her. There aren't a lot of white people in the Haiti airport on most days, but I didn't see her. I went downstairs when I was finished eating and stood in the back of the room because there weren't any seats open. I had been in that spot maybe 2 minutes when a white lady came back to the same area to stand. I immediately recognized her from her picture on Facebook. I had found Katie! We talked for a bit. She and her husband are adopting from Haiti as well. She has gone down with Ryan and worked with Pastor Odvin at his orphanage. One of the boys from there had been transferred to another orphanage, by Ryan and Katie, and this was the little boy she and her husband were adopting. Such a sweet lady, and a new friend!
Three flights later, and some delays in Cincinnati, and I made it home just before 1 am this morning (Monday). I am so thankful for the opportunity to have gone back to Haiti, and for the adventure to the DR. Each time you see God work in the details your faith grows deeper. You get better and better at stepping out into the unknown because you have stronger trust in Him to lead you and take care of you. And the people that are serving in Haiti are the nicest people you will ever meet. It is truly like having a large family where everyone helps one another and watches out for one another. Thank you Lord for the many, many blessings you gave me this week! Words cannot do justice to your mercy and grace, but thank you Father that you know what is in our hearts!
Until the next adventure!
Patricia
Friday, August 2, 2013
Day 2 and some of 3
Well, yesterday was day 2 for this trip. As always, you never know what will happen from one day to the next in Haiti. I wasn't able to get a lot done yesterday, but did buy cleaning supplies, garbage cans, a can, and some basics like toilet paper, paper towels and soap. I started cleaning the upstairs kitchen so I could put away the dishes I brought, and my new friend Esther came by and I showed her the house. My first 'visitor'! What a beautiful lady, inside and out. After we talked she prayer walked through the house, going from room to room praying out loud for God to bless the house and the work of the ministry. She named off specific needs and prayed for His blessing. While we were talking it began pouring the rain, but the sun was still shining. Then Sherrie called to tell me dinner was ready. When I got back everyone else was still gone from their various activities of the day. So, Sherrie said the blessing and we sat down together for dinner. I always enjoy our conversations, no matter how long or short. I am thankful that God placed this beautiful lady in my life. Her faith inspires me everyday. When I feel defeated she always has something to say that lifts me up and keeps me going.
After dinner I was able to spend some time working on job descriptions for long term volunteer needs and read through and practice some of my "Haitian language skills". It was a good day, with a slower pace. Sometimes we have to step back and take a deep breath so we can hear God's voice. I know I am guilty of often being in a hurry to accomplish something that I miss out on the small, beautiful things around me that are far more important. Thank you Lord for the reminder!
Today is another beautiful day here in Haiti. I came out to the balcony to work on paperwork and make a list of things to be done. Edmond was going to take me to the store to buy a stove for the house. Then David and Micah were talking to Sherrie about going to the Dominican Republic to visit David's brother who wants David to come and talk to his team about what he is doing in Haiti. They suggested that I might want to come along since I need to buy appliances and they are much cheaper in the DR. So, I have packed my backpack with basic needs for the night and am ready to go. It is always an adventure when you are in Haiti! I have never been to he DR, so it will be a new experience for me. Tomorrow will be a day of cleaning and putting away what we have so far. I wish I had more time here this trip, but I know I will be back soon with more supplies. So, I will be heading off for today's adventure soon so I will go for now. Praying you all have a blessed day!
In Christ,
Patricia
After dinner I was able to spend some time working on job descriptions for long term volunteer needs and read through and practice some of my "Haitian language skills". It was a good day, with a slower pace. Sometimes we have to step back and take a deep breath so we can hear God's voice. I know I am guilty of often being in a hurry to accomplish something that I miss out on the small, beautiful things around me that are far more important. Thank you Lord for the reminder!
Today is another beautiful day here in Haiti. I came out to the balcony to work on paperwork and make a list of things to be done. Edmond was going to take me to the store to buy a stove for the house. Then David and Micah were talking to Sherrie about going to the Dominican Republic to visit David's brother who wants David to come and talk to his team about what he is doing in Haiti. They suggested that I might want to come along since I need to buy appliances and they are much cheaper in the DR. So, I have packed my backpack with basic needs for the night and am ready to go. It is always an adventure when you are in Haiti! I have never been to he DR, so it will be a new experience for me. Tomorrow will be a day of cleaning and putting away what we have so far. I wish I had more time here this trip, but I know I will be back soon with more supplies. So, I will be heading off for today's adventure soon so I will go for now. Praying you all have a blessed day!
In Christ,
Patricia
Thursday, August 1, 2013
Anxiety and small but mighty blessings
I wasn't able to get this posted last night, so here is the post from yesterday.
Wednesday, July 31,
2013
Today has been a very long day, but one full of so many
perfectly placed blessings. My God is an awesome, faithful God!
When the alarm went off at 3:00 am, I was not too overly
excited. And, let me tell you with humble honesty that even as I opened my eyes
and put my feet on the floor so very early this morning, I did not want to come
on this trip. I had every negative, ‘what if’, and ‘why’ thought imaginable. I
again argued with the Lord that He should find someone else, that I am not the
right person for this work. I have had spiritual battles before, but none this
intense in such a condensed period of time. With each flight I wanted to run, I
wanted to give up and go back home. Traveling alone today didn’t make it any
easier, and that just fueled the fire of the battle. But while I was being
pelted with a thousand reasons to turn and run, I could only find one reason to
keep going – but that one reason trumped all of my reasons for why giving up
was a good idea. God had sent me. For whatever reason He picked me for this
journey. I know that every day I have to decide if I am going to follow Him or
if I am going to turn and walk away. If I only follow Him when it is easy I am
not depending on Him, but am instead depending on myself. I have seen enough of
God’s hand at work on this journey that I am getting pulled in deeper and
deeper, seeking to get closer to Him. Once you experience the presence of God
in such a profound way, you never want to be apart from it. But back to the events
of the day...
God gave me reminders throughout the day of how faithful He
is and of how close He stays to those who seek Him. My first flight took off at
6 am, and it wasn’t very full so I was fortunate to have my little row to
myself. After we had taken off and been in the sky for a little while, and
while I was struggling with the anxiety of wanting to run, I looked out the
window…I have flown a lot, but I have never seen anything like what I saw this
morning. The clouds were indescribable! It was like we were soaring over a
whole world that laid below. The variations and colors in the clouds were
magnificent, and the shapes of the clouds in the distance looked like
mountains. Everything around us was clear and you could see the sun rising as
the dark blue night sky faded into an amber horizon at the edge of the clouds,
as far out as you could see. There were large areas where the clouds had pulled
away so that the space between them, with the color of the early morning sky,
looked like large bodies of water. What a breathtaking picture of the beauty
God gives us to behold. I sat and wondered as I gazed out at that window, if
anyone else was looking. I love the connection you feel with God when you are
admiring and taking in His wonderful creation. He knew I needed to see that
this morning. I needed a reminder that He is so much bigger than my small
struggles.
While sitting in an airport waiting for another flight, I
had a brief texting conversation with a very dear friend who reminded me that
Jonah tried to run too, and that while God may not have a big fish waiting for
me, He does have plans for my life and that He has already placed so many
people, from all over the world, in my life to carry out His plan. I was
thankful for this piece of counsel, and it reminded me of the trip our team
took to Haiti earlier this month. Arnie delivered a message on Jonah to
children at Black Mountain. I immediately remembered what he had said that
night about not being able to run from God. What are the chances of the connections
between these messages? Ok God, I get it. Keep going and do not run.
On my flight from Fort Lauderdale to Port Au Prince I had a
challenge with my seat, which also happened on another flight I had recently
from Port Au Prince. Other Haitians, who did not speak English, were sitting in
the wrong seats. I attempted to help them figure it out, but it was easier to
just sit in one of the seats that they were supposed to be in. This change in
my seat placed me beside of an older Haitian gentleman. He was very pleasant,
and sat there by the window doing word search puzzles in English for most of
the flight. After the flight attendant passed out the snacks and we began
eating, this nice man picked up my garbage for me and put it together with his
garbage to give to the flight attendant. Again, very pleasant. We didn’t speak
much on the trip, but I learned that he was a US citizen now and was coming
back home. As we began flying over Haiti, he quickly got my attention and had
me look out the window as he pointed, and with the excitement of a child, said,
“Look! It’s Haiti!” Yes it was, and it was beautiful. Thank you Lord.
After I arrived, it took quite a while for the bags to get
to baggage claim, but thankfully I was not approached by someone who wanted to
‘help’ me find them. I got my bags and headed outside, at which time I was
greeted by a red shirt who I let take my bags – often much easier than fighting
to try to do it yourself. To my surprise it wasn’t Edmond that picked me up,
but instead Sherrie, Micah, and Rachel were there! Micah has really done a good
job of learning to drive here in a relatively short period of time.
We arrived back at Christian Light and got my bags placed in
room. The new rooms on the 3rd floor are great! And Ms. Jacqueline did a great
job of setting up the room. All of the people here are so wonderful! Three of
the little boys here grabbed one of my bags and together carried it up two
flights of stairs. They are always so helpful! After quickly getting things
inside, Sherrie and I walked down to see Madame Bertha about paying the rent on
the house. I had typed up a receipt for us to sign showing the payment was
made. Well, while going over the receipt with her, there was more confusion
around the three months being covered by the initial payment. The original
contact stated that I would pay an initial payment of $3,000 to cover the
months of August 2013, June 2014, and July 2014. I know it is odd, but this is
sometimes the kind of thing that happens when you are negotiating and setting
terms through interpreters and some of those things are hard to understand. One
of my worries has been that we need to raise funds to cover September rent by
the end of August. Well, I give the Lord credit and praise again. The confusion
of the contract when we were trying to pay the rent led to an addendum to the
contract. The revised terms are that the $3,000 payment made today is for the
months of August, September, and October 2013, so we are paid up through the
end of October! Thank you Lord!!!
I have to give credit to Mr. Richard here at Sherrie’s who
helped with translation in talking with Madame Bertha. We were also able to
figure out how the electricity payments will work. Bertha will receive the bill
and she will then give it to me to pay. This means I don’t have to worry about
setting up any kind of account or establishing service! Praise the Lord again!
We will, however, need to get an inverter and have it installed so we have more
stable electricity. Otherwise the majority of the time we will have none. That
will be about $5,000 and we have that on our list lf needs for the near future.
We also talked about ordering water and have that pretty much figured out. We
will help pay the cost of a water truck since Madame Bertha’s cistern only
holds ½ of a truck, she outs the other half in our cistern.
On one of our walks back to Sherrie’s we ran across a young,
white, man walking down the road with a couple of plastic bags from a store.
His name was Gabriel and he is from Germany. He is in Haiti (for the first
time) working on his thesis, studying the roads/transportation infrastructure
here. You never know who you are going to meet in Haiti!
We had a wonderful dinner of spaghetti and salad and fresh
mango. Then I sorted through my luggage to get out the items I brought for the
house and to settle in to my room. Then as I began writing this post, I found
something in my Bible that was the perfect sign for the end of the day. On our
last trip to Haiti, Susan Forman had put together and gave out tiny ziplock
bags to each of us that contained a message and a tiny mustard seed. The
message was Matthew 17:20 – He replied, “Because you have so little faith.
Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to
this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’, and it will move. Nothing will be
impossible for you.” Thank you Susan! You had no idea when you made up this bag
that tonight it would give me reassurance on a day of spiritual highs and
challenges. We never know how our acts of kindness will ripple beyond our
original intentions. Sometimes we aren’t intended to, but sometimes God gives
us a glimpse! (Here is a picture that sums up today: my Bible, keys to the house, and my mustard seed):
I brought along a book to read on my flights, and it is one
that I have read and used a lot lately. The name of the book is “Lead Me Holy
Spirit” by Stormie Omartian. This is an amazing book that talks about the
different ways we are/can be led by the Holy Spirit. One of the sections about
being led to see purpose in God’s call on your life is fitting for today and I
want to share it with you. In this chapter she writes:
When God calls you, He will put a
dream in your heart of what needs to be accomplished. When God puts a dream in
your heart and gives you a vision for the future, He doesn’t want you to try to
realize that dream or fulfill that vision in your own strength. He wants you to
surrender to Him completely, and then He will bless you with an anointing of
His Spirit and a new release of His presence and power in you. God will equip
you for what He has for you to do. But you must seek Him for it…God wants us to
have high expectations of Him too. What He gives us to do is always far more
than we can accomplish on our own, and He will make certain we are convinced of
that. He will bring us to a place in our loves where we recognize that there is
no way on earth we can do it without Him, but we can expect that with God, all
things are possible. And because of that, He can enable us to fulfill our
calling.
As the hard rain pelts the tin roof over my head and the
wind blows a cool breeze through the room, and as I hear laughter from two
beautiful young ladies next door, I am humbled and thankful for a day of
blessings beyond anything I deserve. Goodnight from Haiti!
Friday, July 12, 2013
Seeing the face of Jesus in the hard places
It is hard to believe, but we leave for the airport in a couple of hours. The week has gone by so fast. We are so thankful for the opportunity we had to come and serve here this week. Yesterday after breakfast we headed into three different directions. Five members of the team (Abby, Lindsey, Natalie, Susan, and Keith) headed out to join another team to work on a medical clinic all day. Arnie, Kim, and Leonora headed out to work on music ministry at Pastor Odvin's church, and I headed back to Sherrie's to find a quiet place to work on planning for the house and ministry. Once Arnie, Leonora, and Kim were finished they joined the others at the medical clinic.
When I arrived at Sherrie's one of the American ladies staying there was holding a baby. This baby had been there with his mother for several days as workers there tried to help the mother with medical care for the baby. The baby was hydrocephalic (water on the brain). He was so precious, and when you looked at him you could clearly see Jesus in his face. The mother wanted to leave the baby there but they are not staffed to be able to care for a child so such extensive on-going medical needs. So we watched the mother leave with her precious son, knowing that if he does not receive the care he needs he will not have a very long life. Also knowing that if she was willing to leave him there she may vey well leave him somewhere else. We stood there and cried, silently praying for this precious child. May God place His loving hands on that child and his mother.
At the music session, there were 12 Haitian men that play a role in leading worship in their churches. The team taught the group a range of topics such as theory of music, chords, focusing on the meaning of the words in the worship songs, and tuning and caring for their instruments.
At the medical clinic, more than 325 prescriptions were filled with more than 500 people coming through the clinic. The team spent time playing with the children and handing out candy. It was a wonderful day of more than 20 American's and Haitians working side-by-side to serve the people.
I was able to accomplish some initial planning for the house and the ministry so that when I return in two weeks I can accomplish the top priorities so we can get the house up and running. I was also able to sit down and talk with Sherrie about how to do some things we need to do for initial set up, such as utilities, etc. That was an interesting conversation as well. The garbage is picked up by a man with a wheelbarrow, you have to provide your blood type (among other things) to open a bank account, and Haitian minimum wage is just over $5 per day.
We arrived back at the guest house just before dinner and it was nice to hang out here for a while. This morning we slept in a bit, or at least tried with the rooster that woke us up quite early. We had breakfast and finished sorting out and packing our stuff. Then we headed up to Delmas 75 to visit the Apparent Project. What an awesome business! They employ Haitians to make handmade jewelry, pottery, art, and other items that provides tremendous opportunity for economic development. The jewelry is now available at a variety of locations in the US. The journey to the Apparent Project was interesting as they driver had to keep asking for directions, where some gave us correct directions and others did not. We finally made it and spent some time looking around. Then we headed back toward the guest house and the driver stopped and had a lady walking along the road with a watermelon and a butcher knife get on the bus and cut the watermelon up into wedges and they passed it out to us on the bus. What a nice gesture and a surprising treat! Our bus driver has been great. He is so funny and has such a sweet heart.
Now we are hanging out at the guest house waiting to go to the airport. Tonight we will spend the night in Miami and head home tomorrow morning. Haiti is such an amazing place, where God's heart is so evident. While driving around in some of the roughest looking places, you will see a beautiful tree full of brightly colored blooms, or some other creation of God that just jumps out at you. There is a beauty here that words cannot explain. Every time you leave here you truly do leave a piece of your heart here and take some of Haiti with you. I have no doubt that God is going to continue to do amazing things in the lives of each member of this team. Most, if not all, will come back and other new people will join future teams. God will certainly continue the work He has begun in this beautiful country. May we always be willing servants, open to whatever He places in front of us.
So long from Haiti!
God bless,
Patricia
When I arrived at Sherrie's one of the American ladies staying there was holding a baby. This baby had been there with his mother for several days as workers there tried to help the mother with medical care for the baby. The baby was hydrocephalic (water on the brain). He was so precious, and when you looked at him you could clearly see Jesus in his face. The mother wanted to leave the baby there but they are not staffed to be able to care for a child so such extensive on-going medical needs. So we watched the mother leave with her precious son, knowing that if he does not receive the care he needs he will not have a very long life. Also knowing that if she was willing to leave him there she may vey well leave him somewhere else. We stood there and cried, silently praying for this precious child. May God place His loving hands on that child and his mother.
At the music session, there were 12 Haitian men that play a role in leading worship in their churches. The team taught the group a range of topics such as theory of music, chords, focusing on the meaning of the words in the worship songs, and tuning and caring for their instruments.
At the medical clinic, more than 325 prescriptions were filled with more than 500 people coming through the clinic. The team spent time playing with the children and handing out candy. It was a wonderful day of more than 20 American's and Haitians working side-by-side to serve the people.
I was able to accomplish some initial planning for the house and the ministry so that when I return in two weeks I can accomplish the top priorities so we can get the house up and running. I was also able to sit down and talk with Sherrie about how to do some things we need to do for initial set up, such as utilities, etc. That was an interesting conversation as well. The garbage is picked up by a man with a wheelbarrow, you have to provide your blood type (among other things) to open a bank account, and Haitian minimum wage is just over $5 per day.
We arrived back at the guest house just before dinner and it was nice to hang out here for a while. This morning we slept in a bit, or at least tried with the rooster that woke us up quite early. We had breakfast and finished sorting out and packing our stuff. Then we headed up to Delmas 75 to visit the Apparent Project. What an awesome business! They employ Haitians to make handmade jewelry, pottery, art, and other items that provides tremendous opportunity for economic development. The jewelry is now available at a variety of locations in the US. The journey to the Apparent Project was interesting as they driver had to keep asking for directions, where some gave us correct directions and others did not. We finally made it and spent some time looking around. Then we headed back toward the guest house and the driver stopped and had a lady walking along the road with a watermelon and a butcher knife get on the bus and cut the watermelon up into wedges and they passed it out to us on the bus. What a nice gesture and a surprising treat! Our bus driver has been great. He is so funny and has such a sweet heart.
Now we are hanging out at the guest house waiting to go to the airport. Tonight we will spend the night in Miami and head home tomorrow morning. Haiti is such an amazing place, where God's heart is so evident. While driving around in some of the roughest looking places, you will see a beautiful tree full of brightly colored blooms, or some other creation of God that just jumps out at you. There is a beauty here that words cannot explain. Every time you leave here you truly do leave a piece of your heart here and take some of Haiti with you. I have no doubt that God is going to continue to do amazing things in the lives of each member of this team. Most, if not all, will come back and other new people will join future teams. God will certainly continue the work He has begun in this beautiful country. May we always be willing servants, open to whatever He places in front of us.
So long from Haiti!
God bless,
Patricia
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