...and away we go!

We are sitting at the airport, waiting for our flight to board... I am so blessed & honored to be able to share this exciting adventure with 11 other disciples from my church & I am so very excited to see what God has in store for us in Gonaives, Haiti!

Anticipation, excitement, stress - all this I am experiencing before leaving on our mission trip... Trying to remember to breathe - and pray (& not worry!)... GOD IS IN CONTROL!

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose." ~Romans 8:28 

I'll try to continue blogging throughout the week (as wi-fi permits!), but in the meantime please continue to pray for our team - our health/safety, the weather (& the potential tropical storm Dorian) and that God will not only use us to bless the people we encounter in Haiti, but bless us through our work.

Renmen ak benediksyon!
~Laura

Live with Abandon

I am getting soooooo excited! We leave for Haiti in 7 days!!!  It seems like such a long time since I heard God calling me to serve in Haiti... & now it's almost here! I am so glad to share this event with not only 9 other friends from church, but my 2 kids as well. It's actually hard to remember how scared / apprehensive I was when He first "approached" me about going to Haiti... now I can't WAIT to go! 

After our recon trip to Haiti back in February, we chose to serve in Gonaives, Haiti. This town once had an orphanage, but due to financial constraints it recently closed. The church we visited then, Tabernacle of Christ Methodist Church, was able to place some of the orphans at other orphanages, but  then its families opened up their own homes for the remaining orphans. (a beautiful & loving gesture of sharing all that they have with those in need... a true depiction of Mark 12:42-44: "but a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents. Calling His disciples to Him, Jesus said, "Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasure than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything - all she had to live on.") 

Over the course of the last month, our Haiti Serve team has been meeting & planning ways we can serve the orphans & families of Tabernacle of Christ Methodist Church. We've been working on the VBS we are going to hold - the stories we want to share with the orphans & other children of Gonaives (we've been told to expect as many as 175 kids!!!), the games & songs we want to teach them, the crafts & snacks we want to have with them... Each day, after VBS, we will also have a work day. We will be helping the people of Tabernacle put a concrete floor into their church, extend the roofline, & if time permits, maybe even build a latrine... serving God isn't always pretty! ;) It makes my heart nearly burst to know that we will be helping children AND adults in this beautiful, yet impoverished country. Even though they may live in hardship, I so want them to tangibly feel His love through our actions. 

This (appropriately enough) was in a devotional I was reading recently...

Giving to God is a guaranteed investment with a certain return. God wants us to be a channel of blessing to others. When we are, it is we who receive the greatest blessing of all.

"Give & it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together & running over will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." ~ Luke 6:38

...& then the other day, I heard a song, "Live with Abandon" by the Newsboys:

There's gotta be so much more to life than this; a higher calling that I missed.

I want my life to count, every breath...

I wanna live with abandon. Give You all that I am.

Every part of my heart, Jesus, I place in Your hands.

I wanna live with abandon.

Living with abandon means that love & service will just naturally pour out of us because of our love for Him. I want my life to be one of complete abandon to God. I want to serve Him & follow Him and have His love spill out of me! In doing so, I also know that whatever love & grace we extend, that God is going to give us back this love & grace tenfold! I am humbled (& unworthy)...

Dear Lord, 
I DO want to live with abandon... I want to set aside my cautious, controlling nature & let YOU run with it! I know that this trip can be even MORE spectacular than I can even imagine... if You are in control. I place this entire trip in Your hands. Please continue to direct our steps so that we may become the hands, feet & heart of Jesus to those we are serving in Gonaives, Haiti. Please continue to direct us to follow YOUR plan! Help us to live with abandon for You so that those who see us will naturally want to know, follow & love You! In Christ's Holy, precious name I pray. Amen.

Renmen ak benediksyon!

~Laura 

P.S. - We covet your prayers while we are away... safe travels to Haiti & back home, God's protection for our health & safety while we are there, good weather (so that we can accomplish all we've planned), and pray especially for the orphans, pastors and the families we will be serving during our time in Haiti. We want to serve them & love them with the grace and affection of Jesus Christ. We want them to feel God's favor on them through our efforts.

Matthew 14:28-29

Since Jason, Michael & I got back from Haiti in February, we've been planning a return trip for this summer. We've held several planning meetings and have now gathered a group of 9 additional disciples who will accompany us back to Gonaives, Haiti in July to work at Tabernacle of Christ Methodist Church. We are going to hold a VBS (Pastor Guercy has told us to anticipate over 100 kids!) and we are going to have a building project, helping them maintain/update their church facilities.

I am a "planner". I get so much pleasure & a deep sense of accomplishment from the minutiae of making things run smoothly. I like checking off all the boxes & crossing items off my to-do list. (I know - I'm weird... my family reminds me of this quite often! They laugh, because for me, the planning of a trip is almost as much fun as the actual trip.) But I sometimes bulldoze my way through the job, admittedly NOT always waiting on God's direction. I get so busy making sure every detail is covered, that I sometimes forget that GOD (not me!) is in control. 

Example: I called a travel agency to help us with our plane tickets. She told me (with somewhat of an attitude) that mission trips need to be booked "3-6 months ahead of time - not weeks". She told me there were NO seats on any airline for the dates of our trip. So, I went to the airlines' websites myself (to prove her wrong) & found seats - but they were several hundred dollars higher than our budgeted amount. At this point I panicked. Jason was out of town, so I texted Michael. (his sweet, laid back disposition is such a good balance to my maniacal ways!) His response was simply, "ugh". THAT made me stop & giggle... and remember to give this trip BACK to God. So after a few deep breaths & a prayer, I got online again. THIS time Expedia showed not only availability, but the tickets were a couple of hundred dollars LESS than our budgeted amount! (Thank You, Lord!) At our last team leaders meeting we purchased all our airline tickets - $9200! So now I've got file folders and Word docs and Excel spreadsheets - I'm in the zone! 

...but again, I stop to remember - why are we doing this? What does God want from me in this endeavor? Last Sunday in church, God had a sweet answer. Jason preached from Matthew 14:28-29 and Michael sang a song, "Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)". 

"Lord, if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the water." "Come," He said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. ~Matthew 14:28-29

Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)

You call me out upon the waters

The great unknown where feet may fail

And there I find You in the mystery

In oceans deep

My faith will stand

And I will call upon Your name

And keep my eyes above the waves

When oceans rise

My soul will rest in Your embrace

For I am Yours and You are mine

Your grace abounds in deepest waters

Your sovereign hand

Will be my guide

Where feet may fail and fear surrounds me

You've never failed and You won't start now

So I will call upon Your name

And keep my eyes above the waves

When oceans rise

My soul will rest in Your embrace

For I am Yours and You are mine

Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders

Let me walk upon the waters

Wherever You would call me

Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander

And my faith will be made stronger

In the presence of my Savior

I will call upon Your Name

Keep my eyes above the waves

My soul will rest in Your embrace

I am Yours and You are mine

God doesn't need me to have all the I's dotted & T's crossed... He doesn't need me to plan every second of our days in Haiti. He doesn't even need me to not be afraid. To work with us & through us, all He needs is our faith. He has told us, "Come" and so we go...

Renmen ak benediksyon!

~Laura 

Debrief & re-entry

Day 4: Our last day... I can't believe how quickly the time has gone... Pastor Guercy picks us up at 7:15 -IN THE MORNING!- for our trip to the airport. There is a LOT of traffic. Our "not so far" trip to the airport takes us nearly an hour. Getting checked-in & going through security was (unexpectedly & pleasantly) easy... so we go upstairs to a cafe area and settle in for our flight to be called. We snack & play a couple of VERY competitive games of Bananagrams.  ;)


Our flight is called and we board. This leg of our trip (to Miami) we are not sitting together... & I guess I'm a little relieved that Jason & Michael can't see my cry as we take off. I am surprised at how I hurt to be leaving here. There is so much I want to do... so many I want to help... I cry because I'm leaving a part of my heart here. I -who couldn't conceive of going to Haiti just a few months ago- now cannot wait to go back!

Terrible living conditions - so many tents & huts.

So much trash everywhere - yet people go through it to salvage what they can.

Standing in line for clean water.

The next leg of our journey home... our flight from Miami to Houston. Jason, Michael & I are all sitting together & we use this time to recap all we've seen & done in our short time here. Our reconnaissance mission is done - now, onto the planning phase so we can come back this summer as a church. I pray that we can instill our passion for Haiti into others. I want everyone to experience the glory of God through serving Him. I believe everyone who goes to Haiti & serves God (by helping others), will fall in love with this place - just like we have!


Re-entry into "civilization" is actually a bit difficult... Back home, it's hard to drive without feeling the need to speed, pass & honk at everyone else on the road! ;) It's really hard for me to see waste & entitlement. I find myself getting angry, knowing how much is seemingly taken for granted here. I pray that we will never become numb to the cries of the poor and that we will be moved to a radical compassion at the conditions in which many of these people live. I also pray that we won't limit God to what we can do or imagine... We need to remember that our God is so much bigger than we can ever know!

 "Christ has no body on earth but yours, no hands but yours, no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes through which Christ's compassion for the world is to look out; yours are the feet with which He is to go about doing good; and yours are the hands with which He is to bless us now." ~St. Teresa of Avila Let us be the eyes & hands & feet of Jesus!

Renmen ak benediksyon!
~Laura

Holy Spirit, You are welcome here...

Day 3: Another early morning... Pastor Guercy said he would pick us up at 7am as we had a lot on our agenda today. (He was unfortunately late to pick us up because he had a flat tire on the way... This is apparently a very common occurrence in Haiti - as the roads are terrible.) When we were finally on our way, our 1st stop was his brother's church. It was a Thursday morning - & the church was packed! As we listened to the Creole service, we were getting some of the sweetest smiles from the children on the front row. Then, one little girl comes over & pops herself onto my lap! What a sweet joy to hold this precious, loving child! Pastor Guercy then served as our interpreter while his brother introduced us to his congregation. He asked each of us to say a few words.

Pastor Guercy's brother's church in Gonaives 

We were met with such affection & gratitude. A woman came up from her seat and asked if she could pray for US. We couldn't understand her words, but she was loud & passionate - and the walls shook with the "amens" from the crowd... There was little doubt that the Holy Spirit had been called unto this place! I was moved to tears! The lyrics to the song "Holy Spirit" kept running through my mind...

"Holy Spirit, You are welcome here. Come flood this place & fill the atmosphere. Your glory God is what our hearts long for. To be overcome by Your presence Lord."

When the church service ended, we were suddenly crowded by the children and adults - they were touching us, smiling, hugging... speaking to us (even though we didn't completely understand them). Many of the young women also crowded around... Michael! (We later determined that he was so very popular with the young Haitian women because to them he is "exotic"!) ;) They were begging him to sing...one young woman accompanied Michael - a cappella - in a rendition of "I Surrender All". Their love for God transcends any language barrier!

Michael & his many admirers!

I Surrender All

After visiting the church, we drove to Pastor Guercy's sister's house. The orphanage in Gonaives was recently closed (due to lack of funding). Pastor Guercy moved as many children as he could to other orphanages - but he couldn't find space for 14 orphans. So his sister took them in! (This entire family is so filled with doing God's work!)

All the kids wanted to try on my sunglasses & have their picture taken!

Our next stop was to Gressier (a sort of "suburb" to Port au Prince... to see a plot of land where Pastor Guercy wants to build a church & orphanage. (FYI - Gonaives is about 95 miles north of Port au Prince - and Gressier is about 13 miles west of Port au Prince... so another day of a LOT of miles spent in the car). Jason was "itching" to get behind the wheel of the car (probably to go a bit faster than we had traveled yesterday & get to our destination quicker... we wanted to get to Gressier before sundown so we could see!) Despite my initial reservations, he turned out to be a pro as a Haitian driver! (Dou Dou would be proud!!!) He was zipping along, passing & honking like he'd lived here all his life! We were about 30 minutes into our journey, when we had a blowout... (remember comment about this being a regular occurrence?) Jason navigated us to the side of the road so we could change the tire (the SAME tire that had been "fixed" earlier in the day...) We stopped in an area without heavy traffic, yet 6 or 7 Haitians came running to our aid. (My daughter & I experienced a flat tire at a mall in Austin, TX last year & in the 1 hour it took us to change our tire - NOT ONE PERSON stopped to help us!)

After this "pit stop", we now have to stop in Saint Marc to get a new tire... Even buying a tire is a "haggling" experience... we stopped at several locations before finding a "fair" one... & then they put a different sized tire on our car than we had requested! ...so more haggling - now at a place across the street... This stop is seriously eating into our travel time - we are beginning to wonder if we will get to see Gressier while the sun is still up. We decided to use the time here to have lunch (rather than stopping again in Port au Prince). About a couple of hours later, we are finally back on the road!

We get to Gressier literally minutes before the sun goes down, but we are able to see the plot of land. It is pretty cleared of trees already & the ocean is not far. This could be a great place to build & help some of Port au Prince's neediest.

After a bit of stretching our legs in Gressier, we get back in the car toward Port au Prince. Pastor Guercy has arranged for us to stay tonight at his in-laws' home. They live way up in the mountains - a beautiful, scenic drive with a lot of narrow, winding roads. Our hosts are so generous!!! Dinner is waiting for us & they have offered to boil buckets of water so we can have hot baths. We gratefully accepted dinner & politely declined the hot water - the gesture seemed too extravagant to accept (we've been taking cold showers the entire time we've been here - what's one more night!) They have a beautiful 2nd floor porch that we used for our "rooftop" time. Again, Michael leads us in a couple of songs & now it's my turn to lead us in devotion & prayer. (I wasn't the least bit intimidated about leading devotion for my pastor & our worship leader! Yeah - sure I wasn't!) ;) When I finally "forgot" that I was talking to them, but rather talking to God, my fears calmed...AND them being the kind & Godly men they are - it went well. Our last bead ceremony... we "cheat" a bit & create new colors (red & white beads for pink- "risky service, red & blue beads for purple- "love"...) We love & encourage each other but with a lot of laughter! It's been a good trip! I can't believe we are going back home tomorrow...

Renmen ak benediksyon!
~Laura

With Him at my right hand, I will not be shaken

Day 2 (part 2): After our morning tours, we meet up again with our driver Dou Dou, who was to take us back to Port au Prince to meet up with Pastor Guercy. (Pastor Guercy came to our church to visit a few months ago, & now is eager to show us what he is doing in Haiti).

Les Cayes is so far from Port au Prince - both in distance & character. One is rural, the other urban... one is small, quiet & peaceful, the other large, crowded and rough. Wherever you are in Haiti you can see the financial hardships the entire country endures but the situation is magnified in Port au Prince. One area in particular, just outside Port au Prince, is Cite Soleil. It's harsh environment belies it's "sunny" name. It is much more bleak & seedy than anywhere we'd seen. Our Dou Dou, a large Haitian native told us that even HE wouldn't go here at night.

So many people have asked me if I felt safe going to Haiti... but I believe the better question is, "Is it God's will for me to go to Haiti?" You all know the answer to THAT question is "yes". So, how much safer can I be than in God's will? I know that this doesn't mean no harm will come our way - but that if it does, God is with us - leading us, guiding us & protecting us along the way. Psalm 16:8 tell us, "I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With Him at my right hand, I will not be shaken."

Traffic is crazy in Port au Prince! There are no discernible traffic rules - no lanes, no stop lights... just cars, people & animals EVERYWHERE! There are also "tap taps"- small pickup trucks outfitted with rails & benches that serve as a form of public transportation by cramming more people in, on top of & hanging off of the end - like a clown car at the circus. They stop anywhere in the road to accommodate more passengers. Moto taxis are also big here. This is a motorcycle that carries 2, 3, 4 people (the record we saw was one with SIX people on it!). Their small size allows them to weave in & out of traffic. They don't seem to realize their small size makes them much more prone to accidents / injuries. (Helmets? What are those???) I was so very thankful for Dou Dou's skill & experience. Even while vehicles are whizzing past us & AT us (with sometimes only inches to spare), I wasn't afraid in his capable hands.

tap tap- Haitian public transportation

moto taxi

We were late to our appointed meeting time with Pastor Guercy (Haitian time, remember?), but he was even later... But we are finally off to Gonaive. Pastor Guercy is Haitian, but has lived in Florida & drives like an American... no speeding or crazy passing. Although there's nothing technically wrong with this, our drive seems a bit scarier (as other cars are crazily passing us) and getting to our destination takes much longer. Gonaive is Pastor Guercy's hometown - he knows just about everyone here. We needed to have dinner, but by the time we arrive, everything is closed. So he calls a cousin with a restaurant & they opened just for us and prepared a lovely meal. (Michael & I had conch; Jason had "kabrit" - goat). Again our beverage choices were bottled sodas... (I sure pray God is forgiving me for continuing to break my Lenten sacrifice!) Then Pastor Guercy finds us lodging through another cousin... this cousin is building a nice hotel, but it is not yet ready to open. However, it only took a phone call & suddenly we had 2 fully furnished, made-up rooms and bathrooms. We were locked in securely & guarded though the night. 

Before we went to sleep, we again climbed up to the roof for our nightly devotion. We debrief from the day & then Michael leads us in a few worship songs. He taught us the Haitian version of the songs we'd sung with the children at the orphanages. (Michael's Creole is getting stronger each time he comes to Haiti. He has been a great interpreter & Creole teacher for us during our trip!) Jason led our devotion & prayer time and then we closed with our "bead" ceremony. We are tired (and frankly, getting a bit giddy & silly), but it's been a long and wonderful day! Amen!

Renmen ak benediksyon!
~Laura

"You make beautiful things..."

Day 2 (part 1): (Our days are SO jam-packed... I'm going to divide my blogs for your sake - so you won't have to read for hours on end...)


What a day! Again, our gracious host (Pastor Louis) had a wonderful breakfast prepared for us...

Our breakfast consisted of eggs, sliced cucumbers, bananas,
bread & peanut butter, juice and some of the best coffee
I've ever had!

Jason, Michael & I were tugged on & pulled on & hugged by more kids than we could hold. Jason (ever the sweet, loving Daddy) had 2 small children in his arms & 2 or 3 others hanging on to his shirt or a pocket. They went giddy with excitement when he began playing soccer with them... running across their dusty playground with laughter ringing through the air. 

Jason & the kids playing soccer

The girls seemed so intrigued with my curly hair - & they were dying to comb it & braid it. Almost all of the kids knew the word "foto" & LOVED seeing themselves on our camera screens. They begged us to take just "1 more foto" where they could smile, giggle & ham it up. The real transformation came when all the children gathered in the chapel & Michael pulled out his guitar. No longer shy, they belted out "How Great is Our God" & "Beautiful Things". (On previous trips Michael had taught them to sing these songs in English & Creole! They still knew & remembered them.)

Michael & the kids singing & praising God!

Next stop - Darivage. This is a smaller school & orphanage and calmer / less rambunctious. Although the children were loving & excited to see us, they didn't immediately jump up to see us, but remained at their desks until they got the OK from their teacher. The teachers looked so young, but I was impressed with the work we saw on the chalkboard & in their notebooks.

Although most of the kids seemed eager to sit with us, there was one little boy that sat alone, at the back of the chapel... He had no shoes... Jason quietly knelt by him and tried & tried until he finally coaxed a little smile from him. ...there goes another piece of my heart...

"You make beautiful things. You make beautiful things out of the dust."

Pastor Louis & his lovely wife then proceeded to drive us around to the churches/ schools/ orphanages in their area. We saw Big House, Darivage & Cambry - each unique in their "personality" but teeming with beautiful children & filled with God's love.

Michael with Pastor Louis & his wife

When we walked into the 1st classroom at Big House, the children beamed & began yelling Michael's name. So many of them remembered him from his prior trips. They talked excitedly about the songs he sang with them & playing soccer with him. When Pastor Louis asked the class if anyone remembered the songs Michael had taught them, a few of them (suddenly shy) quietly began singing.


We had allotted 1 1/2 hours at each of the 2 orphanages we were visiting that day, but 2+ hours later it was still so very hard to leave them! That caused us to quickly get off schedule. (That, & everything is done in "Haitian time" so schedules get thrown out the window...)

The kids became less reserved when we all went into the chapel to sing - their sweet voices lifted in song was so touching... I can feel a piece of my heart remaining here.

Our last stop was at Cambry, where we had stayed the previous night. Since we had arrived in the dark, it was difficult to see the scope of this place. But now... in addition to the church, school & orphanage, they have their own water well that is put through an assortment of filters to make (& provide) clean water not just to the kids, but to the community as well. We saw a windmill they had installed to help provide electricity. They also have a medical clinic. It is its own little town... As Pastor Louis took us to each of the classroom to see the children, he was greeted with loud cries of "Bonjou Papi". This familiar, loving term for father showed how much they loved him & how loved they feel here.

One of the classrooms... Pastor Louis is at the front

One last stop before we leave Pastor Louis was to see his church in town. It is HUGE! He told us they regularly have about 1500 in attendance! (& at Easter could go as high as 4000!!!) His services are also televised to reach an even larger audience.

(Our day isn't over yet - I'll blog more tomorrow!)
Renmen ak benediksyon!
~Laura