Day Six in Haiti – this is my second attempt to write today’s update, I accidentally canceled the last one. Well, that one was never meant to be read anyway.

We are in the waiting place, as Dr. Seuss once wrote, just waiting for our plane to come. We got on our bus to PAP this morning at 5 for a 5 hour drive. It was an uneventful drive by Haiti standards, only had to stop once for motion sickness, so all in all, not bad. We were then “escorted” by a red shirt through check in by a very eager porter, who then was kind enough to “recommend” his $20 tip.
Okay, children, the word for the day is “extortion.”

Yesterday was a good day. We visited the Center for Help, the second and small orphanage that Global Compassion came across 6 months ago. We took them some dresses, games, soccer balls, and spent time playing and singing with the kids. From there, we went back to the Orphanage, where, in the evening, we had a surprise waiting for my mission team. We gathered in the evening under the gazebo for a movie with the girls. It was a great way to say goodbye. We are emotionally and physically exhausted, but to a person, we are glad we came.

I can say that as a Pastor, this has been one of the most rewarding and blessed experiences I’ve had in ministry. Every now and then I’d sit back and watch my team as they asked questions, played with the kids, interacted with the people here, worked hard together, and grew together spiritually and emotionally. This trip was everything I had hoped it would be, and I pray that we will carry this passion and love back home.

I shared a quick message with the children last nite from 1 John 3:1, “Behold, what manner of love the Father has given unto us, that we should be called the children of God, and so we are.” We came to Haiti because of our Father’s love. He loved us so much that He sent His Son, and because of that love, we came to Haiti to share the love of God. What we found, though, is that when we arrived, we were greeted with the love of God in these children. They have loved and blessed us, as we had hoped to love and bless them. And this love that we share, it is the love of our heavenly Father. We love because he first loved us, and the love we share is his love. Though we go home, we will never be far apart, because we are all children of our one Father in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Now that we are returning to Cherokee, a different work begins. We are now called to come home, and to keep sharing the Father’s love. We hope to encourage and fan the flame for God’s glory as we share in our ministry together. We want to share the excitement, the joy, the blessing of serving the Lord in mission, both home and abroad.

For all of those who supported this trip in prayer, with finances, and with your words of encouragement, God bless you! Your support has made a tremendous difference, in the lives of the people of Haiti, and in the lives of our mission team.

Bondye Bene Ou (God Bless You)! Au revoir,

SDG