Haiti Day 3

Sunday was one of the better days I had on the trip. We started the day off by going to church at Port-Au-Prince Fellowship, an English speaking church that sort of started as a place for missionaries to worship. Ironically, there were a lot more Haitians than white people crammed in the tiny church, yearning to worship with the body of Christ and hear His word. Some may have just been there to learn English. ha. It was one of those days when you are like okay God, could this sermon have been more directed at me? This is what I wrote in my journal....

The worship this morning was so refreshing and I am thankful that they have this place here. What a blessing! I usually hate singing cheesy 80's Christian songs but "Lord, I life Your Name on high" does not suck when over 300 people are crowded in a tiny church in the middle of Haiti screaming it at the top of their lungs like it truly is water to their soul!

The pastor spoke on obedience to Your call on our lives and the importance of being led by the Spirit. He told the story of all the people who had told him they wanted to visit Haiti and asked "Is it safe there?" He said he answers the same everytime, "Did God tell you to come? Because if He did, then it is the safest place you could be" Like a brick upside the head, it hit me so hard today. I realized that the most dangerous place I could ever be is walking outside of Your will for my life. God, I fear the day that I am walking away from Your calling. Holy Spirit, please keep me in check. You know my every need Lord, and You work everything together for the good of those who love you. I love you, Lord.

Here are some pictures from church




After church we went up to Petionville (may sound familiar because that is where the school collapsed killing hundreds of children a few months ago). Up there, we visited the Baptist Mission that has been serving the people for over 60 years. That is where, by random chance, we got to meet the great Wallace and Eleanor Turnbull. They have lived in Haiti and worked for the mission for over 50 years, and in the few minutes we got to talk with them they were incredibly inspiring and shared their deep passion to see God's Kingdom come in Haiti. (fun fact: she was the person who translated the prayers that I have been sharing from God is No Stranger, and her son took all the photos!) God, I pray that I would be that on fire for you when I am this woman's age!

I got this picture from the Livesay's blog



This was the chapel at the mission.


Just down the road from the BM is Wings of Hope, an orphanage who rescues and takes care of children with disabilities. In Haiti, people with disabilities are seen as demon-possessed and therefore serve no purpose in society. A popular phrase has come to be; "face them to the wall" and most are literally left to die. The people of Wings of Hope see things differently, from the eye of the Jesus who created us all in His own image. The are committed to raising these children and focusing rather, on their abilities. They even offer speech, physical, and occupational therapy to help these children reach their full potential. What a picture of the hands and feet of Jesus these people were. Most of the children suffer from variations of Cerebral Palsy or Autism.

We spent several hours loving on these kids and just holding them to give them a chance to play outside of their wheelchairs. This precious girl Josephine (she has CP) was so full of joy and was definitely the ham of the group. Click here to watch a sweet video of me and her singing!



Here is the whole group on the balcony at Wings of Hope. Isn't that a gorgeous view of the mountains?


All my life I have been
just a weed;
but the other day
You pulled me up,
planted me in Your garden, and I
became a flower.
I am young and I want to grow
and be cultivated so I can become beautiful.

Lord, our skin is black,
but our sins were blacker.
You have delivered us from sin,
and made us white.