-visiting the children in the General Hospital in Port au Prince and seeing two in particular who were abandoned there. One is a 15 year old young man who is afraid to let them know he is not sick because at least there he is getting fed/a bed/some care. Who knows where he will go upon his release so he pretends to be ill- laying in a bed all day, thinking about who knows what! I can't get his image out of my head and pray to be able to visit him again before I come home. This made me realize how blessed I am to be able to be here and be used by God to let people like Raphael (this young man) know he is loved by God and not forgotten, that God has a plan and that he need not be afraid. (I was also encouraged to find that a friend of mine visited that same ward with a mission team on Saturday and also met/talked with Raphael)
-watching as God redirected our steps over and over with this group but then listening to testimony at the end of the day as the team reflected and realized "it's a good plan, but not necessarily God's plan" when we put a schedule together. HIS plans are best and I am glad we followed His lead.
-spending my 31st wedding anniversary here with the group away from Ron was tough. I sooooo long for the day(s) when we can both be down here ministering together. Who knows when that time will be, but we are trusting in His direction
-reading the posts all week as people donate items to load on the bus and ship in a few weeks. (and hearing how the details of the bus donation have been coming together) We are getting excited to have the bus here to be used by teams so we don't all have to squeeze into tap taps and the Montero. Speaking of the Montero..... TODAY it will be sold (paperwork completed)... I can't describe the emotions as Redgi drove away from here on Saturday with it for the last time. God provided it to us and it served us well. We pray it will do the same for the missionary who bought it. It's a good SUV but we have had another (smaller) one donated that is newer so it was time to upgrade.
-talking to Ron as he helped our youngest (Danika) move to North Carolina this past weekend. Her husband comes home Friday from Japan where he has been stationed the past two years. Our home in Pennsylvania will quiet and it will be strange to return without her there. This is the last of the three to leave home..... more tears.
-seeing the dedication of our ministry staff has brought me to tears three times this past week. Once when we had a mix-up with one of our translators, David. I had asked him to translate for us but we had no room to transport him and the team to the orphanage in PAP. I texted and asked if it was a problem for him to take public transportation to/from the orphanage if I paid for it in addition to paying his wages for the day of translating. He texted back, "yes, it is a problem" so I figured we would just have to do ministry with one less translator because that meant he could not come. We got to the orphanage and here came David about 10 min. later- drenched in sweat from walking in the heat up the final hill to the orphanage. I said, "I thought it was a problem for you to come today?" He looked confused and replied....."NO! I said it was a problem for you to PAY for my transportation. I will not accept that. Your ministry is a blessing to me and the people of Haiti. If you need me to translate, it is my pleasure to travel to where the need is and to serve with your team." Yep! The water flowed freely when I realized just how blessed we are with the men/women who serve with our teams.
The second was when James felt he had to go to the airport with the luggage from this last group (they were in the Montero- luggage in a tap tap). They still don't know it, but two men jumped into the tap tap and tried to get money from James. He and Peterson scared them off before there was any trouble or anything stolen. On our way home after dropping off the team Redgi and I got a text from him saying, "I know now why I was to go with the luggage" and then he told us the story.
And finally, one participant leaving on Saturday had his flight cancelled. He managed to get an e-mail out to me but then I didn't get another one for hours so we didn't know where he was- stuck at the airport unable to speak Creole? Safe? We didn't know. I was at the base alone and Redgi was off until Tuesday afternoon (after taking me home from the airport Sat.) and exhausted. I tried and tried to reach the participant with no luck so...... (without me asking or my knowledge he had done so) Redgi drove to the airport and asked around until he found out that all passengers had been sent home (the Haitians) or to various hotels (the foreigners). He tracked down the participant (just as I finally got an e-mail) to make sure he was settled into his hotel and everything was OK. Redgi could have just gone home "off duty" as many would have, but he wouldn't rest until he knew all members of the departing team were safe. WOW!
I know this is long, but I just wanted to share a LITTLE into the life we lead down here and how God is blessing me and Hearts United. We have a very big God who cares about so much of the details in our lives, cares about the ministry we are doing as we serve Him and His people here in Haiti, and cares about YOU too! If you have any doubts about that, I would love to talk to you because there is no doubt your prayers are heard and God is answering them! So, emotional as I am this morning, I am encouraged too. I am anxious to get home (for 5 weeks this time) to see Ron, to begin to clean and organize our newly "emptied nest" and to see what God has for us! AMEN! -Crystal
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| Bye bye buddy! Behave for the next owners! You will be missed for sure! (this was taken the last day at Redgi's house) |
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| My buddies at Redgi's house- they are getting so big! (his neighbors) |
David's story brought tears to my eyes! He has such a selflessness and an amazing heart for the Lord. God has definitely blessed HUWH with some awesome translators and I am so excited to see you all again soon. Katie
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