A New Team

Faith is preparing another trip to Haiti this summer and I have been busy with the details for putting together the next team.  Today we finalized a new team that will travel to our partner community of Port Salut in the extreme southwest section of Haiti.  Faith is stepping into a partnering role with a village that has already begun in Port Salut with the Global Orphan Project.  There is a healthy church plant that was started a year and a half ago.  There are also a few orphan homes with 50 orphans that we will be interacting with and ministering to.  I am excited to meet "our" kids and get to know them and bring back their stories to our church at home.  If you want to see what the model of a village looks like, you can click on this link and get a glimpse of the work we, as a church, will be doing now and in the future: Global Orphan Project- Why Orphans?

News from Haiti

Today's trip to the mailbox brought me something that I have been waiting for since January 12, 2010 when the earthquake shook Haiti.  It was a letter from our 13 year-old sponsored child from Port-au-Prince.  I met Shelda when I went to Haiti last October.  She is a cute girl from the Delmas section of Port-au-Prince.  The day I met her is a day I'll never forget.  When our group arrived at the Compassion project in Delmas, the Compassion workers went to locate Shelda so that we could meet.  One of the reasons for our visit to this particular project was to see a reverse-osmosis water system that the project provided as an income generating source for the church/school.  As we were hearing how it worked, Shelda was brought to me and told to follow me.  It was a bit awkward- I really had come to meet Shelda and spend time with her.  I handed the video camera to another member of our group so that I could focus on Shelda.  After I introduced her to my family through pictures, we were taken to the upstairs of the church where I met her mother and grandmother.  That was a surprise and an honor to meet other members of her family.

We spent the rest of the afternoon talking, playing games and walking around a park.  The time was very special and something that I'll always cherish.  When the earthquake hit, my family immediately began to pray for Shelda and her family.  Images of the Delmas area only increased my fear that she may not have survived.  The buildings in that area are very crude at best and literally on top of one another.  The streets resemble narrow alleyways.  So the buildings had nowhere to fall but into the choked streets where people gather.

We received a phone call from Compassion about the first of March- a month and a half after the earthquake- and they informed us that Shelda had survived although she was injured.  Their family lost their home but that was all the information we could get.  What about the rest of her family?  How bad are her injuries?  We were relieved on one hand, but then anxious to get a more complete story.  So we have continued to pray.  And we have sent letters to her.  Compassion encouraged us to ask questions about the earthquake as a way for Shelda to work through the tragedy that she survived.  So we did ask questions.

The letter I received today said thank you for the support that we sent immediately after we heard she survived.  It helped with food and shelter.  She said she lost a brother.  As I read that, my heart paused because in that instant I knew she felt personal pain in losing a family member.  I'm sure she lost some friends, but when you lose a family member, the hurt is that much deeper.  She tells us her house was destroyed and that the Compassion project was damaged.  She asked if we watched the earthquake on the T.V.  She thanks us again for sponsoring her and asks God to bless us.

What I wouldn't do to go down and just hold her and her family.  I realize that even though I have suffered personal tragedy- this was different because of the terror and the incredible devastation.  Feeling useless, I return to praying because that's all I can do for now.  I long to see the big, beautiful smile of a thirteen year old Haitian child.  God, watch over her and her family.  Be their strength, be their light, protect them and provide for their safety.  Amen

God's transforming power is amazing!

Yesterday was a great day. What I witnessed yesterday was God's amazing tranforming power in the lives of two people I have come to know in the last six months. A father and daughter being baptized together as a public affirmation of their trust in Jesus Christ. I had the honor of playing just a small part in the life change of a single mother searching for her purpose in the midst of pain and struggles. As I shared the gospel with her one November evening, her eyes got wide with excitement knowing that this was the day where it clicked for her and that she truly needed Christ more than she needed anything else.

The following week her father was visiting her and his grandchildren. I had the opportunity to share the gospel with him- well almost. About part way through he said- yes, I know, I trust Jesus. Reflecting back on that evening, I see that God was preparing the soil of this grandfather. And yesterday in his testimony he shared that a family crisis brought him to the point where he realized that he needed to trust Christ alone for his salvation! This happened in the last week! So Sunday morning this father and daughter were baptized in front of our forever family. As I teared up, I couldn't help but praise God for the way He shows Himself to be in control in the midst of a family's crisis. It reminds me of the verses in Matthew 11:28-30, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

Back Home

I've been home for a couple of days trying to get caught up with my other responsibilities. I've had some time to reflect and continue asking God to hone my heart in for helping those who need it- and speaking up for those who can't speak for themselves.

Having a chance to sit down with my senior pastor to unpack what God allowed me to see, feel, hear and experience, I came away knowing that God has a tremendous mission for our church in Haiti. By getting a proper perspective on the spiritual battle happening in a dark place like Haiti helps me in the preparation for our future trips there. What it also showed me is how important it will be for our church to encourage, equip and strengthen the local church in Port Salut where we will be partnering.

A couple of days ago I heard one of my favorite songs- "Give Me Your Eyes" by Brandon Heath. I was listening to it anew and was reflecting back the past couple of years. The first time I heard that song made think- yeah, that's what I want. I want to view the world and people through the eyes of Christ. That kind of became my prayer, and my ringback tone.

Give me your eyes for just one second
Give me your eyes so I can see
Everything that I keep missing
Give your love for humanity
Give me your arms for the brokenhearted
The ones that are far beyond my reach
Give me your heart for the one's forgotten
Give me your eyes so I can see


I believe the Lord has been answering this prayer for me by allowing me to experience the things I have experienced and spearheading our church's vision for making a difference in Haiti. And we're just getting started! So, I'll continue praying that prayer, but not just for me, but for our congregation that they may also have the eyes, arms and heart of Christ as we take our next step in Haiti.