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| Our Team at Lake Azuei |
This morning we started our adventure around 8:30 as we
headed out to a village church, which would take about an hour. The traffic was
not nearly as bad on a Sunday and we made good time through the city. The road
we traveled out of the city is the main thoroughfare between Haiti and the
Dominican Republic.
About ¾ of the way to the village we stopped at the
beginning of the country road we were about to take 3 miles up to the village.
Frank wanted to give us a few things to pay attention to as we drove up into
the villages. One very big difference in the rural areas was the absence of
walls. Without the walls around every house we could see a bigger glimpse on
how the people live.
He also told us about the gravesites we would be passing.
Because of the water table in the area we were in, they build gravesites above
ground. Each grave is a family grave. He told us we would see some evidence of
some of the graves being broken into and explained that this happened because
of the influence of Voodoo.
We learned that 80% of Haiti claims to be Catholic, 16%
claims Christianity and the last 4% claim other forms of religion. On top of
that, 50% of the population actively practices Voodoo. In the rural areas
Voodoo is easier to see, again, because there are less walls. On the drive,
Frank slowed down for us to see a house with a bunch of Voodoo dolls and
trinkets hanging in the tree. Because of
the influence of Voodoo, many Haitians are against pictures, for fear you would
capture their soul in the picture.
We arrived at the church, Valley of Hope, in the village of
Chambone. The church was already finishing up their first service, so we pulled
into the joyful sound of believers praising Jesus! They ushered us in and we sat
up front of the service.
It is such a wonderful experience to worship God in a
foreign country with brothers and sisters in Christ. Though the language and
culture divide us greatly, the Holy Spirit brings us together in unity. They
sang a few songs that I believe I recognized the tune to and I hoped the words
I was singing were correct. Regardless, we enjoyed worshiping with them.
Pastor Maceau (pronounced Maxo) welcomed us in English. He
provided an opportunity for us to share anything God laid on our hearts. Kayla
Miller was excited to share, and read from Psalm 96. As she spoke, Pastor
Maceau translated. No body else wanted to speak, so I prayed for boldness and
stepped forward. Thanks for your prayers!
It is super intimidating speaking through a translator! It
very much is the feeling I had the first time I every shared the Gospel, yet I
was convicted that any time I have the opportunity to proclaim the Name of the
Lord I should! So I did. After some thanking them for the opportunity I read:
“For this reason I bow
my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is
named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be
strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ
may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in
love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth
and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses
knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” (Ephesians 3:14-19 ESV)
As a prayer for Valley of Hope Church, for Lakeside
Christian Church and for all believers around the world, this prayer is so
helpful. We, no matter what tribe, nation, language or location, are named by
our Father in Heaven! We are one family, one church and united through His
Spirit. This is also such a powerful prayer as the most important thing we can
have is the understanding of Christ love in our hearts. Whether we are rich or
poor, it is all about Jesus!
Then another pastor preached the sermon and Pastor Maceau
translated for us. It really was a beautiful service.
Hanging out with the
children
After service we headed out into the yard, more of a rocky
plot of land. But there were a couple of soccer goals and we played soccer with
the children. Most of the kids played barefoot and still bested our best
players!
We had a great time with the children blowing bubbles and
coloring books.
I met a young man named, Amchel Dooce. He spoke English very
well. He is a junior in High School and wants to be a medical doctor. He told
me he is a believer in Jesus because, “the
Bible prophecied that Jesus would come, and He came. It prophecied that Jesus
would die, and He died and rose again. It prophecies that Jesus will return,
and He will return. This I believe!” What a joy to hear his testimony!
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| Amchel Dooce and Me |
He also wanted to talk about Obama and if I would like a
woman as president. And he wanted to understand some English Idioms. But the
discussion about the faith was much better!
We then loaded up 13 of the children, those that Frank knows
their parents, and took them to the river for a swim and lunch. These kids are
great and so friendly. I was thankful for our team and how they loved these
kids.
The travel back
Frank took us to a lookout overlooking Lake Azuei, the
largest lake in Haiti. We got some great photos as a team here. On the far side
of the lake is the Dominican Republic. Being this close we began hearing about
the DR’s cleansing of Haitians. They are forcing anyone of Haitian descent out
of the DR. It’s a sad story they, but reveals the harsh reality of what many
deal with here. There are not a lot of jobs and a lot of needs here.
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| My two nieces and I at Lake Azuei |
We also stopped by the Tin Market. These artisans make
crafts out of old oil drums, all by hand. They are incredibly talented. It was
fun to walk through the block of shops and see their craft. Charles, a graduate
of Heartline’s discipleship group, had a shop, which we visited.
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| Meet Jun, Frank and Calipso! |
There are so many other stories to tell from today alone. It
is only day 2 and we are overjoyed with the opportunity to serve.
Prayer Requests
Tomorrow we are heading first thing to a school just outside
of Cite Soliel. We will be spending time with 50 children who have been
sponsored through Heartline. Cite Soliel is a rough city and these kids grow up
in a harsh environment. We have the awesome opportunity to encourage them.
While we are partying with the children, the school is meeting with the
parents. This is Heartline’s new opportunity to impact the parents with the
Gospel.
Pray for the parent meetings.
Pray for Kayla Miller and Abby Reichenbach as they share the
Wordless Book Gospel presentation tomorrow.
Pray for us to have many opportunities to show the love of
Jesus.
As always, please continue to pray for safe travels and good
health.
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