Dear family and friends,
July 20, 2009
I'm very excited to tell you what God did during our recent trip to Haiti. First, I thank God for the generous support and prayers you offered me. He’s so faithful.
Last Sunday, we returned safely from 10 days in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The purpose of the trip was to run a weeklong, Bible-focused, summer camp for a group of approximately 50 orphans and street children. These kids live in a home called the House of Light, run by a dear missionary couple through Child Hope International. Boy, is that a house of light for His gospel!
In a country whose people are desperate for the love of Christ, Haiti is overrun with corruption, poverty, and voodoo mysticism. Sadly, 12 of the boys now at the orphanage used to be cared for by an American who was a pedophile! It’s so hard to hear about the lives of these Haitian children and imagine the suffering they've endured.
I, and 35 missionary friends from 15 Southern Californian churches, went to Port-au-Prince to pour our love onto these kids, tell them they’re beautiful, and teach them the important promises from God’s Word that will transform their lives, hopefully their country. In the United States, hope is something we take for granted. In Haiti, hope is dead. Seeing that reality, we wanted to instill Christ’s hope into their lives, giving them something for which to live.
Some of our trip’s highlights for me:
- Going on a prayer-and-worship walk, through the neighborhood surrounding the orphanages, where we sang in Creole and asked God to transform that neighborhood
- Sleeping one night in the girls’ home, as they laid mattresses on the floor and slept almost on top of one another
- Getting to know, pray, and read the Bible with the girls in our cabin group: Phara, Love-Mita, Chabine, Adeline, and Erta (our translator)
- Worshiping together: singing in Creole as traditional drums were played, while clapping hands and moving feet as we sang together “Praise the Living God”
- Seeing the kids, one evening, respond to God’s Word, as we all kneeled and prayed together — the camp's theme was "Taking God At His Word"
- Helping the kids memorize and recite the camp's theme verse; Isaiah 4:8 The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the Word of our God stands forever
(Isaiah 40:8). - Teaching 10 students hand-sewing while we sewed camp bags and hair-scrunches for them
- Enjoying God’s creation while playing and swimming together under the hot Haitian sun
What an amazing mission trip this was! I thank you very much for your encouragement and your support for me on this trip.
Please continue to pray for the missionaries who serve in Haiti full time. Also pray for the kids who likely will talk about our summer camp all year long!
May God bless you and supply all of your needs, according to his riches and mercy.
Love and thanks,
