Yep yep- the "team" arrives in two days and I couldn't be more excited....God is doing amazing things in Haiti and I am so blessed to share in that work with Him and with those He has sent to Hearts United with Haiti. Saturday we get our first participants - three coming from North Carolina. Kim, Landon and Zoe. Kim is the founder/director (with her hubbie Rob) of U R Missions- an organization which organizes short term mission trips to areas of the US and Mexico as well as backyard mission trips in your own town for your church. We first met in the summer of 2006 when they were "base directors" in Mississippi at the place where I stayed with Bear Creek (still one of my favorite trips ever) youth group from Texas. We have kept in touch over the past 5 years. They feel God is leading them to find locations to send teams to Haiti starting later this year or next summer. So... they are coming to check out our ministry in Chaveneau and to serve wherever God leads us all this week. Kim has been such an encouragement and blessing to me -- I have caught her excitement as she has gotten closer and closer to this trip. She is bringing 150 pillowcase dresses (you cut and sew the pillowcase into a beautiful dress with ribbons and bows- the photos are adorable) to donate to the girls in Chaveneau. She has also prepared a bunch of coloring books which present the gospel message to the children... we have crayons and each family should have received a box in June when we had a team there. I can not wait to get there and serve with her and her son (Landon) and their guest (Zoe).
Sunday we get our other participant. Her name is Lilliana and she is a teacher (Spanish and ESL) friend of mine from Garden Spot Middle/High School. Lil too is excited to come and has been sending me e-mails talking of the funds she has raised to donate to the ministry as well as the donations she will be bringing. It is her first mission trip to Haiti and though she is from Columbia (I think- trying to remember now) originally she will certainly see a VERY different lifestyle/level of poverty here in Haiti. I pray she can really help me with English classes (which I started this past Monday- it went very well).
Yesterday we took a bunch of supplies out to Chaveneau and showed the facilities to Emily so she knows (since she is on the board of directors) what the place looks like. She loved it there as much as Ron and I do and is soooo excited about the future of the area as well. The car made the trip but I am (frankly) very scared about driving it there on Tuesday with the team. We needed to add a little transmission fluid when we got there, but it had no other problems running. BUT the road into Chaveneau was all mud... the hill into the last "river" is solid mud and ruts from all the rain they have been having... I used to go 4 wheeling with Ron when we were dating but this takes it to a whole new level. I was so glad Michael was driving but I will have to do it next week.
Yes, that's right- Michael will not be working with me next week. He has a team returning (they stayed at his house last fall) and they would like to see him again. So, he decided to work with them all week instead of with us. It makes me sad but he has to follow where God is leading him and so do I... this will give me a chance to work with a new translator and one of the friends I have made down here- Alfritzo. I have not worked with him before- in fact he has not translated before for me, but I have gotten to know him over the past months and he is a good man who desires to serve God...so we will give him this chance. BUT, that leaves me without a driver. So... pray for me please as we travel on Tuesday and again on Friday (to/from Chaveneau).
Pray also for me as I saw the ideal site on the way into Chaveneau to house teams, etc. ... The building looked to be vacant and the lot in a bit of "disrepair" but it is a place I have seen before but never noticed. It looks like it used to be a school and seems (from the outside) to be a great location to make into a base for Ron and I to move to. Yes, we are seriously praying about moving to Haiti within the next year to house teams and those coming to work in Chaveneau. This place is about 3/4 mile from the school/church site and is in the valley but it seems to have a lot of potential. I will inquire next week when living there about it. I want to see if it is vacant, if it is for sale and how much work would need to be done to get it ready to house teams. This is a HUGE endeavor, but God is amazing and He is in control. If this is what He has for us, it will become clear. And if not, then He has something even better- that's always a hard one to believe. Cause this place looks PERFECT by Haitian standards. We will see.
Thanks again for your interest in what we are doing, thanks for your support and prayers- they mean so much. As I sit here in Haiti I am humbled that God would use ME to do His work here- or at least to help direct those who desire to do His work here in Haiti. Thank you Lord- I pray I continue to seek You in all I do. Amen!
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