‘Haiti is a beautiful place.’

  Originally published August 14, 2014 The old school bus rattled along the highway too fast, it seemed, especially considering the frequency of vehicles approaching at similar speeds from the other direction on our side of the two-lane road. To be fair, we spent nearly as much time on their side of the road, as speed limits in Haiti seem to be determined by the speed at which one’s vehicle can move. So you’re always passing or being passed, and about half the time, if you have the courage to look down the road through the front window of your … Continue reading ‘Haiti is a beautiful place.’

Suffer the Little Children

  Originally published August 18, 2014 The children seem to come from nowhere and everywhere. Even before one of the team members took the first soccer ball from his pack, there were curious children coming through the gate into the scrub-covered field outside of the health clinic where we were set up for the morning. First there were two or three and then four or five. When the first soccer ball — covered in scripture written in the Creole language — came out of the pack, it was as if the Pied Piper had sounded his flute, and soon we … Continue reading Suffer the Little Children

Five loaves, two fish and 27 gardeners

  Originally published August 13, 2014 In a little more than 24 hours, 27 people from Virginia, North Carolina and Illinois will board two different aircraft bound for Miami and then Port-au-Prince, Haiti, for a seven-day mission trip to the small town of Montrouis, 47 miles from the nation’s capital. Mission trips are not about numbers. They’re about showing the love of Christ, with the goal of planting seeds in fertile soil and harvesting the fruits of those who have planted before. The Holy Spirit ultimately brings the increase, as the seeds of the Gospel of Jesus Christ are watered … Continue reading Five loaves, two fish and 27 gardeners

A Ring for Haiti

  Originally published August 11, 2014 This has been a week fraught with emotion for the group headed to Haiti on a mission trip on Thursday. Each passing day brings the reality of the trip that lies ahead into sharper focus. I’m excited about it, nervous, joyful and — a word I can’t seem to stop using the past couple of days — overwhelmed. On Wednesday, many of the members of our group headed to Upper Room Assembly of God in Gates, N.C., to worship and pray with team members from that church. Sunday morning, many of us were at … Continue reading A Ring for Haiti

Carmalie’s Story

  Originally published August 9, 2014 Carmalie is a pretty, 9-year-old girl with a wide, toothy grin that just begs for a camera to catch it. She loves to dance, and her friends describe her as the happiest girl in her neighborhood. Sometime in the early morning hours of Aug. 8, in a broken-down shack in a dusty, rubble-filled little town in Haiti, her grandmother, who cared for Carmalie and three other orphans, died. The children all called her “Grams.” Grams had taken them all in, provided shelter for them and what meager food she could find with the help … Continue reading Carmalie’s Story

Why Haiti?

Originally published August 4, 2014 Since I started this blog as a way to document a mission trip to Haiti in August 2014, it’s appropriate for my first real post to describe the point of this trip. Why Haiti? It’s a fair question. I never considered myself a missionary. I never had a connection to anyone there, other than the same kind of connection every American has had who has watched the news during the past several decades. I might have said something like, “Those poor people” as I watched news coverage of the devastating earthquake or a hurricane that … Continue reading Why Haiti?

My shepherd loves me and keeps me from fear

The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul; He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me … Continue reading My shepherd loves me and keeps me from fear

The Amazing Transformative Power of Grace

(Message delivered July 12, 2015 at Open Hands Christian Fellowship, Suffolk, VA) You’ve seen these images of Haiti. Maybe you’re wondering now, like I did, how we can possibly fix all that’s broken in that poor nation. Where does one start on a project so large? The United Nations hasn’t figured the answer to that question. The American government hasn’t figured the answer. The Haitian government has botched it at every turn and in every different configuration. Money hasn’t solved the problems. Well-meaning people who have set up orphanages, started economic development programs, sent aid and comfort to the people … Continue reading The Amazing Transformative Power of Grace