Where I Was Meant To Be

Saturday, October 10, 2012. My life changed that day. It was the day my husband and I saw Haiti for the first time on a short-term mission trip with our church. We flew from Miami to Port-au-Prince, which is about a 2 hour flight. As we started our decent, Port-au-Prince came into full view. In a mix of anticipation and apprehension I started to think to myself, "What have we gotten ourselves into?"

The airport was chaotic. It was only two years after the massive earthquake so it was under construction. We met Larry Owen for the first time, and he waited with us for what seemed like eternity (I think it was closer to 5 hours) for our flight to Port-de-Paix on Tortuga Air. It felt like 100 degrees in the airport. There were a few fans, but no air conditioning.

The plane ride was kind of scary, but I was convinced we wouldn't crash because I believed I was supposed to be in Haiti.

We landed on the Port-de-Paix runway about an hour later. The runway is actually just a wide gravel road that functions as a regular road when planes aren't landing or taking off. It was a surprisingly smooth landing.

Once we landed, we made our way to Larry's little white pickup truck. As we walked,  we were bombarded with kids who seemed genuinely happy to see us. I didn't know who these kids were at first, but later learned they were the Waves of Mercy church kids.

We loaded into the back of the truck and headed to Larry and Diana's home a few miles away. That truck ride was like nothing I had ever experienced. All I remember were cars and motorcycles driving in every which direction and lots of horns honking. I later learned that drivers honk to signal passing.

It was a whirlwind ride. I wish I could remember more about it, but it was such an overwhelming experience that my mind really couldn't process it.

When we reached their home, Diana had silent night playing on a CD player. In the midst of what seemed like chaos all around me, this song calmed my soul, and I knew this is where I was meant to be. I wasn't sure why, but I would soon find out.

The photo above is a group picture in front of the Waves of Mercy church in Port-de-Paix.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

I'm Going To Go There Someday

Haiti. The country that has captured my heart in ways I could have never imagined. My journey to Haiti started in 2009. I was sitting in church when the high school youth pastor spoke about their recent trip to Haiti. He told many stories, and showed a video slideshow. While I was watching the slideshow, I said to myself, "I'm going to go there someday."

Fast forward to 2011. I wanted to go on a mission trip. I mentioned Haiti to my husband, Nathan, and he suggested sticking closer to home for our first trip.

So we went on our church's family mission trip to Lynch, Kentucky (Appalachia) to Lonnie and Belinda Riley's Meridzo Ministries. We held a sports camp for the local school kids, and helped with community service projects like painting and cutting grass. I posted a picture to this post of me playing the balloon stomping game with the kids at the sports camp. The kids really enjoyed that game. All in all, it was a great trip.

Lonnie and Belinda, along with their staff, live by faith. Lonnie told fascinating stories about how God had miraculously provided for their ministry over the years, and I was intrigued. I had never heard of the concept, "living by faith." Each story Lonnie told pointed back to God as the great provider. He never took the credit, but instead always gave God the glory.

In fact, Lonnie has so many stories that he actually has a book called, "Miracle in the Mountains" and a video testimony for Henry Blackaby's "Experiencing God" book. I read Lonnie's book cover to cover in about two days. It was the first Christian book I had ever read, and I've read it a few more times over the years. I liked the book so much that I actually purchased a second copy so I could loan it to family and friends.

On the last evening of our trip, we sang, "The Stand." The chorus goes like this,

I'll stand with arms high and heart abandoned In awe of the One who gave it all I'll stand my soul Lord to you surrendered All I am is yours.

"All I am is yours." Those words resonated with me.  And in that moment, I told God I was "all in."

I learned several important things on this trip - the power of prayer, what it means to live by faith, and how God truly is the Great Provider. I'm convinced God used this trip as a foundation for Haiti.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]