JUST MERCY
Servant Hearts in Haiti
12th Haiti Trip – Vol. II
The day our daughter Hannah and I returned to the US in late January, Yvrose left Haiti also to visit her mother in Boston who was ill. She intended to stay several weeks but had to cut her visit short to return to Haiti when Gabriella, the healthy one of the twin babies in her family, suddenly became ill and died within 24 hours on Feb. 8th. It was a heartbreaking time for the family and Yvrose returned to Haiti to be with them.
Nellie and Molly
Molly W., Nellie W., and Hannah H. are three young ladies who answered our request for help for Yvrose with her family. They are all staying at our home in Haiti and have daily been involved seeking to bless Yvrose’ family.
Hannah H. who is spending a year in Haiti with various ministries wrote the following about her time with Yvrose’ family so far.
“I have been around many children in Haiti and have never been able to figure out how people who have so little can still take so much for granted. Yvrose has truly shown these children not only how to be respectful and gracious, but how to be great followers and examples of Christ. I find great pleasure working among these beautiful people. It’s like a breath of fresh air. Some may see the struggles and aggravation of everyday living in Haiti, and immediately shun the idea of ever allowing themselves to have such an experience. However, I’m forever grateful I’ve taken the leap out of my comfort zone. Not only have I been able to teach and mentor these children, but I’ve also experienced their true love for the Lord and how the little problems in life always seem to diminish. That right there has taught me so much about the person I need to be. I will always cherish this journey in my heart, and strongly advise anyone else needing an extra little boost of the Spirit in their lives to come spend some time with these kiddos. All it takes is one welcoming smile, a sweet kiss on the cheek, helping them with homework, reading a story to them, ANYTHING, and you won’t go home the same person you were before. These children are so blessed. God’s got a strong grip on them, yet they continue to strive towards being better believers and better followers.
The night before sweet Gabriela passed away, these children prayed for her for HOURS before going to bed. The next morning when I found out the terrible news, all I could think about was how let down they must feel. They were heartbroken of course, but to my surprise, they still had this immense peace and understanding of God’s overall plan. They were not angry, in fact they were very calm and happy that they had the opportunity to spend the time they could with this darling baby. We can only pray and hope for the blessings and peace that God has given them. It’s people and experiences like this that mold your inner core and make you the person you’re supposed to be. I am forever blessed to have shared in their great journey through life.”
Molly wrote the following about her experience.
“This is an amazing, heartbreaking, difficult, beautiful place. It is hard for an American to understand the spiritual walls that have been built up throughout long generations. My constant prayer is that the Spirit would come in power on these people to awaken their understanding, or at least their hunger, for truth, for God, for life. The kids we are working with are absolutely AMAZING!!! I love them all soooo much!!! They are so beautiful and joyful. THEY are the hope and future for this country. I know they will be shining lights in their community.
It is so awesome to step into a world where you have not one iota of control and you are forced to fall completely on Christ to fulfill His promises in you and through you. That is when you truly start living. Moment by moment. You start praying without ceasing subconsciously because you have no other recourse. Faith stops being something you talk about and creeps into your very core. This is life as we were made to live it, but we are (or at least I am) held back by our culture of comfort and security. Living fully is not a safe thing to do. I feel highly privileged to have been a part of this even for a short time. What a privilege to step into someone’s life even for a moment to offer them a cup of cold water in the name of the Savior!”
Molly and Hannah were able to write the above even though both of them came down with malaria and have been dealing with that off and on the last few weeks. They have been amazing!!!
Nellie with Gabriella
Here are a few words from Nellie:
“Watching the people and living it with them I kept coming back to, they are content… Now contentment in a bad system, way of living is not really good. But content with the little things in life, content with what you have and not being oh so envious… being content in Christ is something we all need to practice and my time away helped reveal that to me more. In a way I feel like I had my own little sabbatical and it was awesome!
While in Haiti I experienced heat, sleeping on the roof ( the rain in the middle of the night ;), mosquitoes, rocky terrain, mountains, beaches, filth, rubble, smells, illnesses, people….. People, no matter where you went, who were hungry for attention. People who yes, had needs, physical needs….but mostly spiritual needs.”
Haiti doesn’t need just a god, but THE God. Pray for these people.
We are so grateful to these wonderful young women who love the Lord and came to Haiti to share that love with Yvrose’ children.
Before Bill returned to the states near the end of Feb., he and the girls took another trip to the mountains to visit the schools where we had started the Christian Character classes in February with the first characteristic being RESPECT. They found that the children up there were responding well to the lessons and seemed to be excited about it. The teachers were even saying they were noticing a difference in their attitudes! We are excited to be starting lessons on HONESTY in March at all our schools.
God sent us another helper, Brett, a young man who came to Haiti to help with the work of JUST MERCY for a couple of months. He has taken several trips to the mountains helping with various things, especially the project of repairing the water collection system for the school in Pelerin which was all cracked and broken. He’s also been busy helping at Yvrose’s.
Last week, Molly, who had been battling malaria off and on was advised to go to the hospital in PAP for some tests so she and Nellie went the next day. After being examined by American doctors, she was told she needed to leave Haiti immediately for medical care in the US. She had not brought her passport to the hospital and after arriving that morning, a “manifestation” or demonstration had started in Fonds-Parisien which blocked roads and stopped traffic. We sent out a prayer request for her as we did not believe there was any way for her to leave Haiti that day. But Fegens, one of our Haitian helpers, managed to make the journey from Fonds-Parisien to PAP on a motorcycle, going back ways, and getting the girls’ passports to the airport in time for them to board the last plane out of Haiti that day! She arrived in Miami and received the care she desperately needed. We are so grateful that God orchestrated everything for her to be able to leave Haiti and, as the doctors thought in Miami, save her life. Praise the Lord!
Please continue to pray for the work in Haiti, particularly with the children in the mountains. We are grateful that God has given us this opportunity to be His hands and feet there. We are only able to continue because of your prayers and support. Thank you. May God bless you all.