I'm going to Haiti...and I have a place to stay!!

For the past few weeks, there was a real possibility that I would not have a place to stay while in Haiti. Last Saturday I received a call from an acquaintance I reached out to who has been to Haiti several times who has been a real blessing to me, not just in assisting me with finding a place to stay, but also in preparing for the trip.. He called to let me know that he had two potential places/people who may have space available for me to stay with them while in Haiti. The first, is an organization called Tytoo Gardens, the other was with a social worker who is working in the mountains in Haiti. After a week of praying for wisdom and waiting to find out whether Tytoo Gardens would have space for me, I finally heard from their director and was told they would be able to house me. As much as the social worker in me wanted to go off on an adventure with this social worker Tausha who is working in Haiti, I felt peace about choosing to go work with Tytoo Gardens.

Tytoo Gardens is located in the village of Simonette which is about 40km from Haiti's main city Port Au Prince. Tytoo Gardens cares for orphans, helps orphans and local children attend school, assists locals in ensuring they have access to basic health care, and provides elders with food and necessities. While Tytoo does have an orphanage they have also developed programs to assist mothers in caring for their children so that they do not have to give them up because they cannot care for them. I am so excited that God has opened this door. I feel that Tytoo Gardens has similar values to mine and cannot wait to meet the children at the orphanage and the families who are a part of their starfish program ( a program that provides support to women so they can care for their families), as well as learn about all the other programs and meet all the other people whom they work with.

As I have been preparing for this trip I have been reminded of the sober realities I will face in a third world county. Yesterday I made an appointment to obtain malaria medication and today I purchased malaria nets and travel insurance. But God is good and I look forward to all that he has in store for me while I am there. I am so thankful that God opened this door and cannot wait to share about all my adventures in Haiti!

  

An Unexpected Journey: Haiti Update

It's been about two years since I've blogged. I thought multiple times about writing another blog post and started writing one several times, never finishing. I know many of you are praying for my upcoming trip to Haiti, here is my attempt to keep you updated.

For those of you who don't know, I was planning to visit a missionary family in Haiti in mid August for two weeks. The family are members of my church and moved to Haiti in April of 2013 to help rebuild a church and work with the people of Haiti. Their youngest daughter Courtney has diabetes and went into diabetic ketoacidosis about two weeks ago. The family sought urgent medical treatment in Haiti and plan on seeking additional medical treatment here in the US. Little Courtney and her mom came back to the US last Saturday with the rest of the family planning to fly back here later this week. It is uncertain when they will be back in Haiti. Please keep them in your prayers as I'm sure this is a very difficult time for them.

This leads me to the update on my current situation. I have plane tickets to Haiti but no clear direction on what I will be doing while I am there. I have been talking to a gentleman who has been on mission trips to Haiti and has a connection with an orphanage down there as well as with my old youth pastor whose in-laws are missionaries with the Baptist Haiti Mission. There are no guarantees that either of these will work out. God is sovereign. Although I can't understand why he has has given me the desire to go to Haiti I know that “his thoughts are higher than my thoughts, his ways higher than my ways.” Wherever He leads me, whatever door he opens and path he leads me down, I know it is for a reason and for His glory.

During this time of waiting and leaning on Him for directions I feel He is reminding me to seek Him more deeply in prayer. I have been rereading a book called Deepening the Soul for Justice by Bethany Hoang. In it she writes that “if our attempts to seek justice do not begin with the work of prayer, we will be worn and weary.” She goes on to further say that “More often than not we are so eager to jump straight into whatever we perceive to be 'action' that we distract ourselves from the very practices that must form, inform, and even transform our action- the very practices that must form us if our action is to be wise, effective, and sustained throughout the inevitable obstacles and distractions to come.” I find that it is easy to dream big dreams but to lose focus of the day to day work that God has for me to do, and the day to day practices that must inform how I live my life, such as prayer. While going to Haiti is good in and of itself, I know that I cannot allow that to distract me from the day to day work God wants me to do here. While I am in this pattern of waiting I look forward to drawing closer to God and seeking His will. Your prayers are coveted as I continue to trust Him and rely on His leading. Thank You!