I was chosen to lead a special Challenge Team to Haiti for a 10 day trip of teaching mentoring and playing. God was present through the entire trip, from putting the team together, to our daily orphanage visits, to a workshop with youth leaders and finally to our flights back to the ship.
Below are our updates sent while we were in Port-au-Prince:
HAITI UPDATE #1
Hello All,
Greetings from Haiti. These past three days have been filled with kids, kids, more kids and truck rides.
Our team has grown in size. Adding to the three of us are 4 locals who join us each day. All four of them work with youth at their church or orphanages and are eager to gain new ideas and strategies about childcare.
It's been a blessing to have them join our team as we get to invest personally in their lives and they can teach us first hand about the culture and the kids.
We have visited 2 orphanages and today ran a day program at a church-ran community center. The kids are adorable and just happy to have attention.
We heard that you prayed for us and Haiti as you sailed by the other day...Thank you. We feel them everyday. God is busy at work here and we are thankful that we can do a small part for the Haitian children.
The Haiti Team,
Jessica, Lucie, Judith
HAITI UPDATE #2
Greetings All,
It's hard to believe we left a week ago. We've seen so much in these past seven days and are constantly reminded how blessed we are to have food, shelter and our heavenly Father. One of the young girls we met at a church was not only orphaned in the quake, but she herself was rescued from the rubble.
On Friday we went on a fieldtrip with a church we've been working with. This church has been acting as a school for the neighborhood kids five days a week. We were excited to join all 80 kids as they "walked to a nearby field" for a day of free play. Our "walk" turned into a "hike up the mountain side" and an hour later we had reached a shaded area near a football field. What a great day to see kids playing, laughing and having fun in an open space free of earthquake reminders.
On Saturday we visited a church plant from an ex-L2, Pastor Marc. We drove to a rural village about 20 km outside the city... and it only took 3 hours to get there! We arrived to a one room hut make of plam mats and over 100 children eager to meet us. We shared the gospel with all of them and some parents, too. Pastor Marc made sure that everyone in attendance got a meal of rice, beans and chicken.
Two more orphanage visits are planned this week, along with a leader's workshop on Wednesday. We have lots to prepare for. We appreciate your prayers and trust God is blessing you in the Bahamas.
The Haiti Team,
Jessica, Lucie, Judith
BACK ON BOARD
Though we left the ship from Jamaica, we returned to the ship in Nassau, Bahamas. All three of us came back to battle a bit of exhaustion. After a few days to recover we were able to share our experience to ship's company and lead them in prayer for Haiti and work that God is doing there.
For the final day in Haiti we led a workshop for almost 40 adults who we had worked with at the visited churches and orphanages. It was a really blessed time to pass on practical kid advice, as well as resources for organizing Bible Clubs once schools start up again.
Pictures and videos to come. Thank you for your prayers. All the glory to God.
