Uneasy Heart

So we arrived back home on Tuesday, and there is a certain uneasiness stirring within my heart.  Question after question is pummeling my mind:

What is God trying to teach me?

Why does God compel me to go to Haiti?

Why does God call me to lead?

Are we helping Haiti?

Are we hurting Haiti?

What does change look like in Haiti?

Do Christians really care about Haiti?

Does my local church really care about Haiti?

Do I really care about Haiti?

Is there any hope for Haiti?

What does it mean to be the hands and feet of Jesus?

Am I doing this for God's glory or to pacify my own guilty conscience?

Many of these questions may come as a surprise.  They are difficult questions.  They're on my heart.  They're real.  But if we don't force ourselves to answer the tough questions we can and likely will become numb to the things we see in Haiti.

What I know is this - despite my questions, God calls me to go anyway.  He calls me to serve Him.  He gives me a heart to love.  He breaks my heart for the things that break His.  He speaks to me through beauty and darkness.  He answers prayers and works miracles.  He teaches me.  He loves me.

So I will continue to go.  I will continue to serve God who knew me before I was even born.  I will continue to share the love of Jesus in Haiti.  I will continue to be the hands and feet of Jesus (whatever that means!) until He tells me to stop.

So looking back, God has given me at least a few answers to the questions above:

1.  I love God and my desire is to serve God for His glory alone.

2.  I deeply care for and love the people of Haiti.

3.  My desire is to serve the people of Haiti for God's glory.

Yes - I am thankful for the uneasiness in my heart.  God is at work and I pray that I listen well.

Hello Grace Village!

On Thursday we spent the day at Grace Village, the orphanage built by Healing Haiti.  It was a beautiful day, and we were excited as we traveled towards the
village located on the hillside in the city of Titanyen, about 12-15 miles outside of Port-au-Prince (a 45 minute drive).  "There it is!" shouted our ever quiet Jessica.
The terra cotta wall surrounding Grace Village could be seen from afar.  After our tap tap climbed a steep winding rocky road a violet gated door was opened for
our entry.  A modern playground, and colorful terra cotta buildings with yellow and violet trim lay before us.  To us it seemed as if we'd entered Disney World.
There was separate housing for the girls and boys, the cafeteria/church (on Sunday mornings), and the pastorial home for the Ammermanns.

Pastor Rob and Jennifer, Ben and Morgan warmly invited us in for a quick history of how Grace Village came to be and the future direction.  The foundation for a
nursing station was present. A guest house will be added by the new year where Jessica and Kathy will reside. The aquaponic structure is ready for fish to arrive
this coming week.  Next to it is the school that will open October 1, the date all Haiti schools open. One steps down into the school as it follows the natural lay of
the hill.  The scene out the vented windows is the low lying mountains of Haiti.  Serenity!  Plans for a resident seniors home are in place.  A future church will also
be added outside of the village gates.  Currently about 400 attend Grace Village's services in a building which only holds 300. The future church will be built for a
targeted size of 800, but expected to grow to possibly 10,000.  These people love their Lord and worshipping Him.

Putting on the Armor of God

I was at the table with acrylic paint filled sponges galore, 6-8 children grabbing from plate to plate to get the exact shape and color of Christian symbols they
needed to stamp onto their t-shirt.  Then there was me amidst the chaos trying to maintain some sense of order stating, "Only 3-4 should be at this table.  You need
to wait until others finish!"  Of course it didn't help that I was speaking English and they were fluently chatting in Creole.   As I stepped to motion for another body
to move away I looked down.  There was a small quiet and ever so polite little girl standing with her Belt of Truth on and her sword tucked behind it looking ever
so eager and proud.   My heart melted, and I made room for her and yet another t-shirt at the already crowded table. 

We began this Thursday morning telling the children at Grace Village that they would be creating their armor of God, based upon Ephesians 6: 10-18.  I presented
with Wesley, the children's spirtual leader, who translated the Bible lesson to the 61 totally focused children.  They learned about the helmet of salvation, the
breastplate of righteousness (t-shirt), the toolbelt of truth, the sword of the spirit (word of God ) and the shield of faith (a self decorated frisbee).  The Bible reading
was read in English and Creole.  Children were divided into five random groups, the fifth being guitar music and singing. 

The sense of joy came as others told tales of watching the children play with their "armor," as I was still on t-shirt duty.  They could be seen running to the slides
with tool belts flapping in a warm breeze.  I believe a sword fight or two may have occurred in fun. I was told the children were just learning to work in stations. 
Kathy and Jessica, their full time supervisors, said it was the longest they had ever seen the entire group so focused.  My favorite story is one told by teammate,
Gloria, that as we left, three soliders stood guard at the gate, in full armor attire, and so proudly sent us off.  Our team theme was a hit, and I slept very well that
night!
                    Sandy Rogness - Healing Haiti

School

A foreword to this post:  This trip is so incredibly packed with experiences that it takes quite a bit of time and energy to process.  We are doing our best to keep everybody updated, but a number of our blog posts will probably come after the trip is over.  We are excited to share many things!

We visited a school in Port au Prince, one which pretty well embodies the paradigm of the local school system.  There were no students and very little staff present at this day.  The current school year has not yet begun.  The grade range is approximately K-8.  This is typical for many schools in the area.  Like many structures in the city, the construction is mostly concrete with a gated entry in a stone wall topped with razor wire that encloses the building with little space to spare.

Above is a picture taken in one of the classrooms.  There is no electricity or climate control; the rooms are lit by holes in the cement block walls, so the rooms are essentially directly exposed to weather.  The students sit at benches that are arranged in various ways so as to accommodate about 60 students per classroom.  The back row must be at least 40 feet from the chalkboard, and the front row within a couple feet.  You can see the rooms are very crowded.

As grim as that may seem as an educational environment, the students are very passionate about learning and are very proud to be able to afford school, because many children cannot afford the opportunity.  They freely work much harder than many American students, and seem to excel in this simplified environment that is devoid of many distractions that Americans may have grown accustomed to.

On the third floor, we were greeted by a chalkboard that had not been erased from the previous lesson.   I was ecstatic and surprised to find that the students were studying chemistry.  In the picture above, I was explaining a bit of the lesson to our team.  In this lesson, they were learning how to figure out how many liters of hydrogen are needed to convert a given amount of copper ore into pure copper metal.  Keep in mind that the students in this lesson were probably 6-8th graders.  Chemistry at this level is normally taught at 11th grade through freshman year in college.

The experience was amazing, seeing how students thrive in a very simplified learning environment.  The space is cramped and the staff is loaded with students well beyond the limits deemed acceptable in American schooling.  But the sheer desire of the students to learn overcomes these obstacles, and they study material far advanced for their grade level compared to the American system.

Welcoming Spirit

We spent Wednesday visiting two different orphanages.  The first was a home for sick and dying children.  The orphanage was not sad and depressing as the name might suggest, but rather it was beautiful, light and airy.  The orphange, which was heavily damaged in the earthquake, was recently rebuilt on the same ground.  It was a beautiful, two-story building with a courtyard and veranda where the kids' laundry was blowing in the warm, Haitian breeze.  Inside, it had cool tile floors, windows on all sides and sunshine pouring in the windows.  There were three great rooms - each with approximately 25-30 cribs.  The children reached out for us the minute we entered the room.  We were able to hold the children, sing with them, play with them, feed them and change them.  We brought donations for the children, including a suitcase full of new shoes.  I was able to see a group of little boys and girls fitted for shoes.  They were so proud of their new shoes.  We danced, and danced and sang and laughed.  I will not forget the children I met there. 

Next we traveled to Gertrude's, an orphanage with a mix of disabled, able-bodied and special needs children.  As we entered the gate, the children greeted us in the courtyard.  They were joyous and jubilant.  There was an old truck parked in the middle of the courtyard.  The children loved to race their many vehicles (handbikes and modified wheelchairs) around the truck in a circle.  We had fun piling several kids into each "vehicle" and racing fast.  We also sang with the children.  Most of them knew several worship songs in English including Jesus Loves Me, Glory to God and Open the Eyes of My Heart Lord.  One child in particular there stood out to me because he was fluent in English so it was easy to converse with him.  He also spoke fluent French and Creole of course.  It really took me by surprise.  He was very inquisitive.  He asked about "Minnesota" and if we were from "St. Paul?"  I told him I was from Minneapolis.  It astounded me that he was so smart and mature for his age.  He and the other children there captured my heart.

I ended the day thinking about how welcoming the Haitian people have been to us.  From the staff here at Healing Haiti, to the people of Cite Soleil, to the people on the street shouting "Hey You" (a friendly greeting here in Haiti) to the children at the orphanages, we have been blessed to take this journey, see this country and meet these beautiful people.  All Glory to God!    

Nicki McCain - Healing Haiti Team Member

Cite Soleil

Went into Cite Soleil with the team Tuesday, rode out in the “tap tap” our caged in vehicle.  When we met up with the water truck Gloria and I were allowed to ride in the front seat. It took a bit of squeezing and sucking in but we manage to fit in the small space.  Holding on tight the truck made it way to the first water stop.  The ride was “fun”  and very bumpy.  The roads here are rough, rocky, and eroded…well, except for a few short strips that were paved by wealthier residents.

When we finally reached our first water stop, Gloria and I spotted a small child we guessed probably around the age of 2.  The young child was jumping up for joy and clapping that we were finally here to deliver the water.  Teary eye Gloria and I couldn’t wait to get out of the truck.

 Each child here longs to be touched and held.  When we exited the truck we were immediately swarmed by small children touching, reaching and asking to be picked up. Later Gloria came up to me saying “I found her”, when I looked up she was holding that small little child we first saw.  I can’t even describe the emotion I felt. 

Delivering the water was shocking yet expected.  Cite soleil is filled with so much waste, and destruction.  A line was already formed of Haitian people with their buckets waiting to be filled.  We did out best to manage the line.  People were trying to budge and some successful others sent to the end of the line.  It was surprising to me that those waiting in line stood patiently without fighting for their turn to reach the front.  Each time the water truck runs dry there still stand a line of people with empty buckets who didn’t receive any water for the day.  At the end of the day we returned home filthy and tired.  

 

Travel Day: Safe Arrival!

I am pleased to report that our team has safely arrived in Haiti.  We are currently winding down from a long, adventurous, abundant day of travels.  We are at the Healing Haiti guesthouse in Port-au-Prince.  Tomorrow, we look forward to a moving experience delivering clean water to several locations in Cite Soleil.

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Our team at the Miami Airport during our layover

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Travel went quite smoothly.  We had about 30 minutes of shuffling donations between checked bags and carry-ons to get all of them within the 50 pound limit (it must have been low tide or something, because their scales were running higher than ours).

During the first flight, our pilot competently climbed over several 'small' thunderstorms over the Gulf of Mexico off the West Florida coast - I believe these were among the remnants of Hurricane Isaac.  We were humbled to receive generous donations from passengers on board the flight.

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During a Climb over a Thunderstorm over the Gulf

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The flight from Miami to Port-au-Prince was completely full.  Most of our carry-ons had to be surprise checked as we boarded.  The guitar I brought had been previously checked because there were already 5 guitars ahead of mine.  Having these items be checked was a bit more uncomfortable than one might assume based on the baggage return logistics at American Airports.  Arrival at the Port-au-Prince airport was a real eye-opener for me.  There are only four gates at one small terminal.  Upon arrival, you board a shuttle bus and are taken to a pole building and wait in a long line to get through customs.  In the same large space behind customs, all of the bags are piled onto a single carousel and some even heaped out onto the floor.  As people go through customs, they are free to grab bags and leave the airport.  Any fancy bags, and guitars in particular are therefore hot items.  It is an incredible frenzy to behold, and it took almost 45 minutes for us to locate all of our bags after getting off the shuttle - but we found all of them successfully.

People there speak a fast mix of French, English, and Creole.  I have been studying Creole during the past few months; a clerk came by immediately after I cleared customs and I was blessed with the ability to describe the guitar to him in Creole and he ran into the frenzy and brought it to me.  I pray that our whole team would be blessed with the ability to really connect with the people of Cite Soleil tomorrow,  through all forms of communication the Lord sees fit, so that the residents can truly feel the love of Christ as we serve them.  Thank you for your continued prayers!