[serialposts]Sometimes you just never know what God is up to.
On our final full day on the ground in Haiti we had plans to head out of the Port-au-Prince area to visit a village called Drouin. When we were planning this trip, our visit to Drouin seemed mission critical. This small rice farming community was economically devastated by the huge influx of rice that came into the country as a relief effort after the earthquake. With massive amounts of free rice available, there was no need for locally grown rice.
Disease has been a big issue in this community as well. In the months after the earthquake, the community’s main water source (a small river/creek) became contaminated. This resulted in a major cholera outbreak. The first of the deaths for that epidemic was reported was in Drouin.
So while most of the children in Drouin are not orphans yet, it’s apparent that they’ll become orphans soon if conditions don’t change quickly. That’s why getting our team out there to tell their story was so important.
But when we hit some unexpected obstacles, we were forced to reassess our plans.
What should have been a 15-20 minute sprint down the mountain to the airport (to drop off a couple team members with early flights) turned into a massive 2+ hour trek. The brakes on one of our vehicles started overheating to the point where the driver had to stop and pour water on them for 5-10 minutes to get them to cool enough for us to continue. We still had another 2½ hours to go once we got to the airport, and it didn’t make sense to try to push on, especially with one of our vans already having mechanical issues.
So we asked, “What are you up to God?”
As a result, we cancelled our trip out to Drouin for the day, and decided to head back to Yahve Shamma. Our team cherished the opportunity to return to the orphanage and spend more time with those precious kids, and the leaders who’ve inspired each of us in so many ways.
When we arrived, the children were in school. It’s a tent school on the property that serves the 30 orphans who are cared for by Pastor Gaetan and his wife, plus another 120 kids in the community around the orphanage.
Our team promptly gathered for a meeting inside the main house, and we talked about how we wanted to leave our mark through this trip. I can’t spill all the details of that yet, but I will say that this was one of the proudest moments for me with the Help One Now Bloggers team in Haiti.
Our experience has been so rich in Haiti, and we wanted to leave a legacy. We wanted to leave something that was worthy of what these incredible people have given us.
I’ve talked about how messy (and beautiful) the work can be in Haiti, and I’ve experienced the importance of dedication and commitment to the people we serve. But today it’s all about following the leading of the Lord.
Sometimes our best laid plans don’t work out the way we hoped. But following the voice of the Lord will always be the best way to go.
I can’t wait to share more about our #help1haiti team’s “legacy project.” It’s gonna be huge! How do I know that? Because I believe it’s exactly what the Lord had in mind for us this day.
Traveling mercies as you all return . . . I can’t wait to hear about the legacy.
Sheila… the legacy project this team will be taking on is going to be incredible! I can’t wait to reveal it!
In which I fistbump The Peal
LOL… well played!
Can’t wait to hear more! Well, not about The Pearl. 🙂
LOL! yeah… you’re probably right on all accounts.
FAB. Can’t wait to hear more about it all. Bless you, Dan, and YOUR GIGANTIC FIST-BUMPING HEART for making this happen and for choosing your team so very well.
Thanks! This trip was (and will continue to be) one of the most significant things that I’ve ever done. I’m in awe of the work this team is doing…
#fistbump
So cool! God is good! 🙂
Oops! Hit the post button too early… Can’t wait to read more about the trip.
Thanks! It was an incredible experience… You can catch up on all of the posts from the team here…
http://www.helponenow.org/haiti-bloggers/
can’t wait to hear more!
i can’t wait to spill the beans!
first bump
#fistbumpexplosion
I’m all ears. And heart.
you’re gonna like this. a lot.
🙂 Hurry.
#pearlbump !!!
oh no you didn’t!
I’d heard about that problem with the rice. So often we want to do the right thing (send food) and end up doing the wrong thing (bankrupting local farmers).
yeah, this is the thing that drives me crazy when we’re there on the ground in Haiti. you’d think we’d think things through a little bit before we act. but apparently we get more concerned about BEING generous, than we are about using WISDOM in our generosity. the extra food MAY be needed… we just need to think it through and leverage what we can locally first. imagine what it would be like if we used that aid money to buy local rice from farmers in Haiti… their economy would be boomin’! but i know there’s more to it than that… it’s definitely a complex situation.