Bye Bye

The team is safe at the airport waiting on their flight back to the USA. Stacey and I are ready for a rest and for staff retreat. Thanks for all your prayers- they were felt and answered for sure! 

Photos- Day 7

James & Johny at the beach

Carrying food at the orphanage on Tuesday

Rylan and Julia at the beach

The team is exhausted tonight. 

Josh getting a shave from a Haitian barber. 

Rylan carrying maccaroni into the orphanage on Tuesday. 

Emily's Blog

Bonswa!!! Today was our beach day and it was refreshing to relax with the team and debrief the entire week. The water was incredibly clear and beautiful and the weather could not be any more perfect. Last night we had our community outreach at the center where we had worship, showed a snippet of VBS songs, a few teens shared their testimonies (Good job Jonathan, Dustin, and Julia!!) and Josh shared a message. At the end we had an alter call where we invited people to come and be prayed over for their needs. It was a very powerful night and God’s presence was felt throughout the center, I was truly blessed to have been a part of it. Tomorrow we are headed to Pastor Robbie’s church again and Josh has been invited to preach in Pastor Robbie’s absence and then we head to the airport to head home. While I will miss being here in this beautiful country, I am excited to be home and see my friends and family and my fur baby, Argo. God Bless you all!

Love,
Emily

P.S. See you in about 28 hours my handsome prince!!!!

Photos- Day 6

The team doing VBS songs on the street in front of the Center. 

Gary - our neighbor on the mountain who gave his testimony for his neighbors (at our community outreach service)

Children's service- this was the puppet show. 

Julia gave her testimony. (as did others from the group)

Annette's Blog

Hi All,
I first want to let you all know that everyone is healthy and I feel that we are really bonding well as a team.  God has done some amazing things this week.  Haiti is a beautiful country and the people are all so friendly.  Tonight we had a worship and prayer service planned at the community center, so this morning some of the group went up the mountain to play soccer and the rest of us went out on a prayer walk in the community to invite everyone to our event at the center.  When we go on prayer walks I always feel as though I am out of my comfort zone, but the response that we received from the community was amazing.  Everyone that we stopped to talk to actually took the time to talk to us.  A few people weren’t interested but they did listen to what we had to say.  Some of the team members said that they felt revived after doing the prayer walk.
People were a little slow in coming so we decided to bring the CD player out and sing a VBS song out on the street to attract more people.  I actually thought it was fun but some of our team felt out of their comfort zone.  We did some worship songs and we had people give their testimony.  Crystal’s friend Gary had volunteered to give his testimony first.  How amazing is that?  Dustin, Jonathan and Julie all gave their testimonies, and it was awesome.  I am so proud of all of them.  They were confident and their stories just flowed from them.  I really felt like the Holy Spirit was working in all of them as they told their stories. Gary shared with me that he thought all of their stories were beautiful.  We had a children’s service for the smaller children, which went very well. After the testimonies Josh gave a powerful service about how we and the Haitian people are alike.  We are all just looking for love, peace and joy.  And that can be found in Jesus. It was awesome.  At the end of the service James talked to the people about what they would like to see at the center and the English classes that will be coming up,  After that we had a couple of men from the community come up to the front and thank us for having the service and asking them what they thought. They said that is shows that we care about the community and we want the community to succeed together.           I pray that we were able to bring some attention to the center and that the community lets everyone know how best to use the center. Tomorrow is beach day!
     
       Love to all of you, Annette.

Photos- Day 5

We don't have many photos from today to share right now, but will post more later. 

There is a puppy downstairs at the mission base so the team introduced her to Sassy and Sparky. She is really cute and may find her way into a suitcase on Sunday. 

Emily's hair post braids. 

Becky & Molly played with the cook's son. 

Team time

Josh leading worship each night. 

Josh (and his friends) writing on the blog. 

Dustin's Blog

           We went up to an overlook on the mountain. It was by far the most beautiful view I have ever seen. The breeze out of the sun beaming directly on us with how cold it felt was like God touching all of us while we looked at something so amazing he created. Just looking down from the mountain was truly breathtaking. Going on our prayer walk and seeing how many of the people we talked to were Christians was so amazing to hear. Although when I actually had to pray over two people, I started and froze, it was a bit out of my comfort zone. Seeing how and where God has worked this week was unforgettable, everybody here is so incredibly grateful.

With CHRIST’S LOVE,
Dustin

Josh's blog

          Thursday was our first day of community outreach & ministry. After a fantastic conclusion to VBS at “Life is Wealth” orphanage on Wednesday, we embarked on an entirely different sort of ministry. We started our morning by climbing to the ‘overlook’ (in the ……community) – taking time to enjoy the incredible breeze & view, reflect, pray and worship. It was an incredible view! And it was such a refreshing breeze! But….what was God asking us to do? Where was God asking us to focus our efforts? Who was God calling us to talk to? We sought answers, and then eagerly went to work; trusting that God would lead & direct us. Talk about getting outside of our comfort zones!
We divided into groups & set out to prayer walk around …(community)… Each group had unique and amazing experiences! God is soooo good! I was in awe of how many people Crystal knew and how many connections she had in the community. It was a blessing to be able to meet them, see how they were doing since the last time Crystal connected with them, and to pray with them. It’s incredible how people from such vastly different cultures can connect through prayer. I also saw a lot of Haitians getting a good laugh at the size of my beard, haha.
Our team is doing incredible things and I’m in awe of how far they’re willing to be stretched! It’s such a joy to partner with Hearts United With Haiti….to take a small part in their larger ongoing work. Praise God!

Josh & the gang (I’m reppin’ them Jakob, Jordyn & Johanna!!)

Photos- Day 4

Aksidan!!!!  (she spilled water- she wanted me to take a photo cause we all tease each other when we spill) 

Leading songs (Becky)

Song leading

Johny with Angie

Stacey- what a gift she has been!! 

Molly helping at crafts

Game time again

The children ready for VBS

James trying cotton candy! 

The orphans with their gift bags

Serving food

Each child got a HUGE plate of food. 

Back at the mission base for the night for our own dinner. 

A Poem from Stacey

Sweat

          Drips

               Falling down our backs

                       

                            Stinging our eyes

                                                 

                                      Melting

   Melting our hearts

           As we grow to know people

  Melting our hearts

          As we experience their joy

   Melting our hearts

        As we learn from the people of Haiti

                                                                              

                                                                                          

Zach's Blog

What a beautiful day today! Today we sadly had the last day of Vacation Bible School, and we also got to celebrate all of the orphans’ birthdays! We had 5 stations for the birthday party; which were a temporary tattoo station, games/sports, cotton candy, crazy pictures and at the last station they got to pick their own clothing. It was very funny to watch the orphans try cotton candy for the first time. After the stations we got to treat the orphans to a huge meal and some birthday cake. It was so uplifting watching how happy the orphans were, going through their presents and eating their food. It’s so amazing how happy they can be with so little compared to what we have. I can’t wait to see what else God has in store for us this week!

Zachary Christie

Photos- Day 3

Buying a LOT of food for the party on Wednesday! 

The children got a cube puzzle at craft time. Really tough but fun to do. 

Once Zach taught one the solution, they taught one another. 

At sports time we used the new parachute. 

And, of course, there was lots more singing and dancing. 

Rylan's Blog

     The exhaustion is real ya’ll!! It’s hot, it’s humid, it’s uncomfortable, and it is very foreign.  Beyond all that there are some things that are familiar.  This comes down to the people.  I have not met a single person who does not think or feel the same things we do at home. They have the same fears, doubts, questions, comforts, desires, hopes, dreams, reactions and basic functions of life.  For example I got to opportunity to be a part of a conversation one of the pastors Hearts United works with. In that conversation he asked Josh (our pastor) what denomination he was and Josh answered, “I’m a follower of Jesus.” The translator with us explained that denominations are very big in Haiti and that what denomination you belong to means something.  We experience the same core desire and outward manifestation of it in the States.  The core desire being, wanting to belong to something that matters, and the outward manifestation being that the denomination you belong to matters to make you someone.  We in the States fight the same battle that the Haitian pastors are fighting to help people understand that only belonging that really matters is belonging to the Kingdom of God.  Your denomination doesn’t save you and won’t ever give you a true feeling of purpose.  No, only Jesus and his sacrifice can do so the only true belonging that is belonging to is being a Child of God.  Your pastor, denomination, family, spouse, school, church building, car, friends or short-term missions trip can give you True Belonging like Jesus can.
           - Rylan

Julia's Blog

        Today was the second day of VBS at Life is Wealth Orphanage and it was awesome!! The orphanage sits on the top of a very steep hill, and today a tap-tap truck broke down on the road, blocking our bus from driving into the orphanage.  Our team hopped off the bus and trekked up to the entrance. The walk was only about 100 yards long, but the road was so steep that I ended up all sweaty and out of breath by the time I saw the girls. I realized a few things in that short time: Haitians are the strongest people I’ve ever met(!!!!) and also that we are so lucky to have Johnny as our driver. He is so skilled. Even though the walk wore me out, I was re-energized by the excited chatter of the girls. I don’t think I can accurately describe in words the warm feeling in my heart that came with the girls wanting to spend time with us. God especially laid one of the girls, Francesca on my heart. She introduced herself to me in English and rarely left my side. Francesca taught me how to count to 10 in French and a new hand game. She’s a really patient girl because it took me a really long time to catch on. I asked Stephana, one of our translators to come over and help me hold a conversation with Francesca. I asked her what her favorite part of the day was, and she replied that the Bible study was her favorite part! YES!! The love of God is so strong and so attractive for everyone, everywhere, in any situation. God is good all the time.
     -Julia

Photos-Day 2

VBS opening songs

Lesson time

Crafts

Glasses out of pipe cleaners. 

Closing songs

Hand games are always fun

Jon's Blog

         Today was our second day at the orphanage but our first day of VBS. It was a lot easier to interact with the children because I knew what to expect. I was helping with the Craft station, and it was amazing for me to see how creative they could get with nothing but three pipe cleaners. Glasses were a very popular choice among all the age groups. All of the translators did an amazing job during VBS, and it was interesting for me to here where some of them learned English. It was humbling for me to see how happy and content the children could be with not having many possessions, and I feel guilty that I’m sometimes not happy back home even with all of my luxuries.
      - Jon

Molly's Blog

            Today was the first official day of VBS and the kids were super receptive and the turnout was over 60!! Praise the Lord. It was neat to meet Mama (one of the orphans sponsored by my family) and Jesula (4 days post op). Meeting the girls that I have prayed for for weeks was truly amazing. It was better than meeting celebrities to see their smiles and play games with them. Praying for continued blessings over each of the children and that God will work through the team and I. Please pray for strength and sleep for each of us as it is only Monday and we are all feeling it.

Love & Blessings to All!  - Molly