A Destitute Family and Village Events

Bill called me early one morning.  He was hiking up the hill to take some food to a family

Destitute family’s home

who lives not far from Yvrose’.  This picture is where they “live”.  This is not uncommon and it is heart breaking.  I asked him for details about the family.  He sent the following:

You wanted to know more about this family. What can I say?! They came down from the mountains to find a ”better” life! 4 little ones. She recently lost two babies (not sure about the details).  The father showed up at church a couple of weeks ago and told us how blessed he was for being there. He said he had been up with his wife most of the night and was not sure if she would live till morning! We have been to visit a couple of times taking them some provisions (rice, beans, cornmeal and flour). We think the mother has congestive heart failure.  Not an easy place to celebrate so “we weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice”.  And, we remember that “sorrow endures for a night but joy comes in the morning”!!

A young man from the states, Chevo, arrived last week to help Bill for a couple of weeks.  He has been working in the village to rebuild a widow’s twig and mud hut with rock walls.  An update from Bill:

Chevo and helper working on widow’s home

Chevo’s first morning!  As you can see this house needs some T.L.C. I don’t know how good he is at T.L.C. but as the photo shows he sure can demolish stuff!

The people in this village are in such need. Do the roofs leak? Yep! They might shed 80% of the rain! The kids get wet and the rats bite them at night!! So we are building this house back with stone. I hope Chevo is blessed. I know he is a blessing!!!!

Twice now JUST MERCY has provided food to have a meal for the village next door.  We

Cooking the meal at the village

may try to make it a weekly event.  Before the first, Bill wrote:

We will cook our fellowship meal at the village today. I think everyone knows my name now and my knock on the door always brings a shout of joy. How do we measure success? I was thinking of the words

“They will remember almost nothing of what you say, only slightly more of what you do, but they will remember for the rest of there lives how you made them feel”.

When I think about being with Jesus as He journeyed through this world, being there when He said, “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone”, or on the road with the blind man or the leper.  How about in the boat when He said “Peace, be still!” or sitting at His feet when He fed the five thousand. I can hear the murmur of the crowds. I can feel the wind and spray of the sea on my face but I don’t think so much of the miracles themselves as I think of how He makes me feel!! So today……..

“I’ll pause at Your gates once more

As my heart and my spirit soar

And I wish I could love You more

My God and my King”!

After the second time, Bill wrote:

The fellowship dinner went well. This time we cooked 50#s of rice, 10#s of beans, and made fish sauce out of canned mackerel!  Believe it or not, YUMMYYY! We had food for everyone, although there were so many there, at the beginning, it was not a foregone conclusion. You can imagine, in Haiti, what a mass of confusion such an undertaking can precipitate!

We were able to get the younger ones fed first, then the pregnant and nursing mothers followed by the rest of the women, then the men! No easy task! All the noise, the clamor of voices of people, all wanting to be next!  However, it was fairly orderly by Haitian standards!! After a while I made my way out of the melee of a couple of hundred people or so and as I reached the outer edges, I heard singing. I looked up and saw Yvrose’s children standing by their van and singing with such joy and conviction…

God will make a way

When there seams to be no way

He works in ways we cannot see

He will make a way for me

They were the last to eat and there was plenty!!  “And the last shall be first and the first last”

Thank you so much for your prayers and support.  We covet your prayers as we seek to share God’s love in Haiti.  We are so grateful for those who are helping make it possible for us to stay.  May God bless you all.