“Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring
for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world
corrupt you.” -James 1:27A man came to know the Lord this week, and needed an English Bible
rather than Creole, because he spent many years in the U.S. and speaks
English better than Creole. So I gave him mine. No hesitation. This week
I realized that I am rich…I may not have a job, I may feel poor, but I
am rich…and I have 4-5 Bibles of my own, and this man had none…Our team was able to prayerfully decide how to bless our community with a
budget of $2,000, and we decided to give rice and beans to the Pastor
to distribute, as well as to buy wood and other roofing supplies so that
they could put a roof on their cinder-block and tarp church. The food
was delivered under the cover of darkness (we felt like it was a mafia
deal, LOL) for safety reasons, and the building supplies were delivered
to the church to their complete surprise. It was SO awesome to be able
to give to them! They only had two tarps covering their church when we
came that week, and we added more to that (picture below) before
deciding to give them the supplies to build a real roof.Friday night, Pastor Theodore’s church wanted to have a “thank you”
service for us…and it was so amazing. They worshiped, a choir sang for
us, they prayed for us, and a few of us shared how this week had
impacted us. The love between believers is astounding, and surpasses
even language barriers! It was so hard to say goodbye…My life has been changed by this week, in ways that I probably don’t
even realize yet. We experienced so much, saw so much…The song by Sara Groves, “I Saw What I Saw” has even more meaning now…
I saw what I saw and I can’t forget it
I heard what I heard and I can’t go back
I know what I know and I can’t deny itSomething on the road, cut me to the soul
Your pain has changed me
your dream inspires
your face a memory
your hope a fire
your courage asks me what I’m afraid of
(what I am made of)
and what I know of love
Haiti is a country filled with joy, hope, love, determination, and
peace…despite the media’s portrayal. And I am encouraged, inspired, and
ready to advocate for them! 🙂
