Rehearsal

One of the wonderful joys on our visits to Haiti happens on Sunday morning. We get to hear several of the singing groups from the church perform. And they can sing. They meet at least one to two times a week for practice for an hour or two at a time. They work the whole time on one song, they pray over their performance. They write out the music and words on sheets of paper as they don't have even the simple sheet music. Their diligence and labor are stunning and so is their ministry. I rarely understand a word of their songs, but how the Spirit comes though. Most of the songs are sung acapella, as they don't have the luxury of live instruments. I am struck by their allegiance to giving their best to God. I confess I try to do my best for God all the time, but these people have made me re-evaluate my "best" clause. To often we fail to really do our best for God. Our "best" is reserved for a paycheck, or to impress for stature or status. What is it to truly give God our best. The poor woman with two mites in the Bible Jesus said gave more that all the rest that day. She gave her best, she gave the most, because she gave her all. These lovely people don't have coffers of money to bring to God, so they bring something God loves even more, they bring themselves. They offer up to Him the "best" of what they have. They plunge the depths of their hearts, they turn out the purest form of sacrifice, they give of themselves, and God honors it. I rejoice, and feel a check in my own life. I do have more to give, and by God's help and through their example, I mean to give more. The Haitians have taught me more about the "sacrifice of praise" in one Sunday morning, than I have gleaned in years of worship here in the States. Unleash your talents for God, see what He can do with full surrender. Blessings in Worship!

Technology

When I went into Haiti this time my computer had a problem. I took a risk and took it hoping it would work the whole time, and that I would get it into the shop for repair before the warranty expired on November 14th. God worked and so did the plan! So I have been without it the last couple of days while they replaced the logic board and heat sink. I must confess I have felt a little lost. So much of what I do is assisted by this little machine. As I pass my time in Haiti, at times it occurs to me odd that in a land of poverty and such desolation that I can walk a couple of blocks from the parsonage and surf the world wide web in St. Marc! There were several issues this time with the service, but still, every day I was able to get off a post and sometimes a picture or two. I think nothing of sinking down on my sofa at the house and flipping open the lid of my computer and almost instantly being online. So much we have come to take for granted. Such a different life But if the power goes down? Well now, there's a thought. It goes down all the time in Haiti. They pretty much live without it. If it comes on, okay, if not, okay. I would be blowing a gasket, but it is a normal routine for them. Who turns the power on, for how long? Who decides who gets it, who doesn't? As I ask Robinson my barrage of questions, he shrugs his shoulders and says to me, it's just the way it is, it's Haiti! We are Americans, we get informed on this stuff, we know the numbers to call to complain. But what have we gained at the end of the day? Frustration, maybe we get our way, but what of it. Might we be better off sometimes without all our technology. Sometimes our texting, facebooking, web surfing, cell phones, digital camera's, etc. get in the way of what is most important. I am very grateful as I have arrived back in the States for all my technology, heaven knows how it helps me through my days. But I have a new view of it, and am working to manage a more practical balance of my needs for my gadgets. After all, I know what happens now when the plug gets pulled! Try unplugging for a while and see what happens in your life, you might be in for a pleasant surprise. Blessings from a bright screen and a live cursor!

Potential

As I ready for church back here in America this morning, I am reflecting on the week gone by. A week swept away by the ever flowing present. It is now tucked neatly away in the corridors of history. What did I learn, experience, how did I change, what impact did my life have. I review the many pictures of our journey, and see again the ravaging of a country. Someone asked me yesterday, "what's the answer?" That is a big question that lots of people have asked, and scores more have tried to figure out. Many are doing something, 'difference makers' I call them. But then the pictures beg the question, is it really making a difference? The picture in this blog post today represents potential. I don't dabble too much in what was, God doesn't seem to either. I am well acquainted with potential though. This amazing tree seen here in this photo was once a little seed that fell upon this rough ground, a dry and barren soil, ravaged by erosion, stripped of all its supposed potential to grow anything, but behold the tree. It reminds me never to count anything out. That the smallest seed of good can find a foothold in the climate of the forsaken and touched by God can grow into something magnificent. Yes there is great potential for Haiti. The climb is steep and the setbacks enormous, but plant that breaks the surface of the ground after having gone through the labor of germination where life breaks forth to the surface brings hope that our labors are not in vain. Pray that hope springs anew in this forsaken land, that hope continues to be borne on the wings fo the faithful, that each of our journey's in provides more nutrients for the seeds that are sown, and that God give the increase! Blessings today!

Clowns

I mentioned we had kids day, and we did that on Saturday afternoon. One of the big highlights was that we recruited, (or should I say Robinson recruited) two wonderful young men from the church to be clowns. One was Manius and the other Parnel. As this is a no frills, no thrills society, I was not sure how this would go over. And at first it was a struggle. The smaller children were actually afraid! That has a way of taking the wind out of one's sails, because they especially were the ones we wanted to have a good time. But these guys were naturals, and it didn't take them long to warm the children up. Nor to learn the clowning ropes! How many times it sweeps through my mind how blessed the children are in our country. I walked through Best Buy and Sam's tonight with a sense of being overwhelmed. So much stuff, our hoarding ego presses us for more. Our kids pull at our pant legs, their cravings for more are manifested through begging. And how easily we often cave. At least I know I have at times. As we head into the Christmas season, let us put in place some cautionary thoughts and measures, perhaps be a little more frugal, maybe even help a child in Haiti to experience their first Christmas. Kids can do with less, they often do much better with less. Actually don't we all do much better with less. I think God knows us well and I think He limits us according to what He knows we can handle, what is best for us. In just the right season He will send along a couple of clowns to help brighten our day, to fill our mouths with laughter, to shed light on a darkened path, a sorrowful day. Remember that as you head of to bed tonight. Many blessings from a thankful heart!

Mirror

Remember the saying "Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who's the fairest of them all?" In Haiti there are not many mirrors. Most of what you see are small pieces. And yet most of the women had hair always done up. The way that happens most of the time is because they do each others hair. In their culture, almost all women are hair dressers who work for free. And doing each others hair is not a small feat! One evening as we were taking a break waiting on supper to be cooked, I was sitting across the street and happened to look up and see two of the girls in Rob's house sitting on the roof, Junie was doing Kimberly's hair. As the evening shadow crept over the sky, and the night descended, she continued to work by the light of a cell phone. I could hear them chatting when I could no longer make out their heads against the black night sky. I remember thinking again about all the ways we have made ourselves independent of each other. How we enter our homes that have almost become recluses from the rest of the world, and can't help but think that somehow we are not the better for it. Isolation is a terrible foe in our culture. Poverty is a nasty enemy, but loneliness is a killer. People die in Haiti all the time, but they are not suicidal, and as I have said before, they rarely die alone. While here, we have to have suicide hotlines because we are unwilling to hear each other out! I was usually one of the last to get cleaned up in the day, and there was so much to do, that I often didn't get to it until quite late. As Rob and I were flying around one day, we came into a store and made a quick purchase. As I stepped to the glass to pay for our goods, I saw my reflection in it and noticed that I looked pretty bad. I said to Rob, "I look awful." He said to me; "Who told you this?" Then he continued his chiding; "It seems you are listening to the glass!" It gave me pause. How many Americans live by what the glass mirror says. We rated ourselves because we do a comparative study of ourselves against someone's picture. Our beauty is something unique to each of us. God made and formed each one of us for a reason, a divine purpose, a beauty compared to no other, yet we lock ourselves away from the world in front of the mirror waiting for it's approval. It's lying to you, robbing you of relationship, and it is wreaking havoc in our culture. I am not advocating we be tramps, that we neglect ourselves, but that we be cautious of what we let the mirror tell us. I am thankful for the mirror, it has saved me a few embarrassing moments, but I too have fallen prey to it's lies. And I was reminded of the character hiding behind that little glass! It could be healthy for our lives if we had to depend on each other a little more. Independence is not all it's cracked up to be, we have taken a good concept a little too far! Mom's be thankful for the opportunity to do your daughters hair, utilize those moments to forge relationship. Someday it will come back to pay you big dividends. And warn those young daughters of the tale of the mirror. It will always tell its little lies! The Haitian people I have said again and again, are a beautiful people. So are we, let us love one another, for we all are the fairest of them all. God did not make anyone we could compare ourselves to. He did that for a reason!! He gave us the mirror of His word to look into, that is where you should place your trust! These Haitian people are doing that all the time, their choices are much narrower than ours! Blessings from the dining room table, away from the mirror!

Home

Finally home! These trips go by so slowly and yet so quickly. When you first hit the ground in Port Au Prince and start the journey northward to St. Marc, about the halfway point, depending on how you are doing at the time you begin to think; "What am I doing?" "What have I done?" "Will this ever end?" Eight more days of this seems like an eternity away, and yet here we are. Back home again. The trip home was uneventful, the reuniting of family members was delightful, but my bones are weary, and my body says rest. So that is what I am going to do. But just to let you in on a new development, the men managed to drill down to 75' today for the new well. If all goes well... no pun intended... we could have a well by tomorrow afternoon! Keep this in your prayers, and I will update as soon as I hear. This proves the faithfulness of God, working on our behalf. As we are faithful to Him, He takes care of us. Pray for the team members, that they recover their strength quickly as all gave much over the last 9 days. They performed amazingly well together, despite our different personalities. I am proud of each one. I will try to also get a few more pictures up tomorrow, and am planning to fill in a little more info on our trip in over the next few days, so stay tuned and check back frequently. Blessings always.

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