The road to Anse-a-foleur

We were very fortunate to be in Haiti at the mission with just a small group.  It made it easier for us to go to the places we want to go and do the things we wanted to do.  All we had to do was let one of the missionaries know what we would like to do that day and they arranged transportation, translator, and body guards!  I was so impressed at the organization of the mission.  I never once felt afraid or uncomfortable, and Haiti is a pretty dangerous place.  

The 2nd day we were there we decided to go to Anse-a-foleur.  This is famous for the voodoo temple.  Voodoo is basically devil worship.  They will say that the worship St. Anne (satan) in order to be under the catholic umbrella.  Most haitians have at least a bit of voodoo belief.  This is believed to be true because they want to be sure and cover all bases.....If I worship Jesus and satan, I won't make anyone mad!  It's very sad.

We took an hour trip to the temple.  Once we got there our guides talked to the guards at the temple and after a few...what seemed to be heated conversations between our guys and theirs, they let us in.  In the past they have tried to charge americans to come in......because they think we have lots of money.

There is what used to be a catholic cross on the top of a mountain.  This cross was struck by lightening and the 2 sides of the cross fell off.  The Haitian people believe that this was satan claiming this land for himself.  After that same lightening storm there was a porcelain doll found at the base of the cross.  They believe that this doll was some how "magical."  They now worship this doll.  It is in a glass case in a room in the temple, where people light candles and worship.  We were able to go into this room.  It's so sad to see these people, waiting, hoping, and praying for this doll to help them.  

We then walked through the temple, lots of hallways and corners.  We were told that they crusify animals in the rooms.  We got to the back of the temple and there are people everywhere.  They come from all over Haiti and rent out rooms, sleep on the floor, and just sit there and wait.  They burn things as offerings to satan.  eg. an I.D. if they are praying to get a visa to leave the country and go to the U.S.  

There is also a puddle of muddy water, no more than a foot deep.  They say that if you lay down in this puddle and don't drowned then you are cleansed of all your sins.  There is no possible way of drowning in this water because it's so shallow.  

It was very sad to see all the people there just hoping for something.  Their eyes were empty, but their hearts were hungry for something.......they just needed to know truth!  I wish we could have spent most of the day there, but our guides were hurrying us through.  I got the feeling that the guys who were with us, who worked at the mission, were a little freaked out about this place.  

The next time we are in Haiti I would love to go back there and spend a day talking to the people.  Sharing Jesus with them.  Finding out what their needs are and helping them in anyway that we can.  We believe that by filling the needs of people, be it hunger, shelter, or medicine it opens a door to show them Jesus!  That is our ultimate goal in life, and I pray that God continues to choose us to do this for his glory.  

God....we are ready!  Please send us!

Heart ache!

I think about Haiti everyday! I think about the kids we left and would gladly take into our home.  I think about my new Haitian Grandma.  I think about the kid who was in the Jail because someone falsely accused him of stealing $60.  I can't help but think about all these things.  I have shed many tears in the past week.  My heart is in Haiti, and home is where the heart is!  Does this mean our new home should be Haiti?  It's a scary thought, moving away from friends and family, having to rely %100 on the support of other people financially.  I take comfort in the fact that if God is calling us to Haiti, the support will come.  I'm going to keep this short, but I want to leave you with these pictures of the precious kids from the orphanage.  

Gran Moun

Gran Moun means "old person" in Creole.  Sounds a bit more sophisticated doesn't it?  I had the amazing opportunity to spend time with the Gran Moun in Haiti.  Once a day the mission would provide a meal for the Gran Moun.  They would make their way to the mission on foot, up a huge hill (the hill of death), in very hot weather.  They would start their time with praise and worship and prayer.  I have never heard anything so beautiful as the singing of haitians!  They were so thankful for this one meal.  It broke my heart watching them.  They would take a couple bites and then pack the rest up in a container that they brought and take it with them.  Most likely to take back and feed whatever children were living with them.  This was not a huge meal, reminded me of a burrito bowl from chipotle.....minus the meat, sour cream and cheese!  Everyday I had tears running down my face as I helped feed these wonderful people.  One day, one of them even offered me their food, because they thought I was crying because I was hungry!  They have nothing and yet they still try to give it away.  I saw Jesus everyday when I spent time with them.  

I also was able to help with the community feeding.  We would pack up these meals and deliver them to homes in the community, to people who could not make it to the mission due to ailments. It was a great time to get out in the community and really see the needs of people.  We would walk through the market where people were trying to sell different foods.  Everything was covered in flies and dirty, but it's the only way these people could make a living.  As we walked through the streets it wasn't long until we had a small entourage of little kids with us!  Haitian parents tell their children to make friends with americans in hopes that we will give them money or food.  The mission has rules against this to protect its missionaries so I just tried to let these kids know that I love them and prayed for them as we walked.  

Everything about Haiti was so unfair.  Everywhere we looked we saw things that were not right!  When I first got there I didn't think I would be able to do it, and even asked Ben to get me out of there.  As the days went on, I realized that we were there for a reason and even though we couldn't help everyone, God had put us there as a piece of his puzzle!  We will continue to pray for and serve the Haitian people, because we feel that is what the Lord is calling us to do.  It may seem small, but we know that every relationship with Christ starts as a seed, waiting to be watered and nurtured.  We are happy to be part of the planting and watering, and hope to see the fruits of our labor in heaven!  

Brittany's Haiti Highlights! (Not talking about the ones in my hair caused by the sun!)

Ben has done an amazing job re-telling our stories from Haiti.  He has such a way with words.  Experiencing the miracle of life on my first full day in Haiti was a great way to start out an amazing week!  As we were getting a tour of the mission, we stopped at the birthing center.  Our guide, and new friend Evalin asked the nurses if we could come in and hang out for a bit.  Little did I know, there was a woman in labor.  She had come to the mission a few months before and talked with one of the missionaries.  She was not a christian, but was searching for something. 

 Her husband was killed in April in a school collapsing and she was not doing well.  She was baptized shortly after that visit.  She was now back to give birth to her child and I was there to witness it!  She kept saying she wanted me there......she asked me to pray with her, so I did!  We could not understand each other as she spoke creole, but as I said Amen, she looked up at me and said thank you!  Her labor proceeded another hour or so.  She didn't want me to leave, so I stayed with her and held her hand and told her she was doing a wonderful job.  I was able to be in there as she gave birth and the doctor asked me if I wanted to take the baby after she came out and clean her up and dress her.  

I couldn't refuse such an opportunity.  So I did it!  It was both amazing and gross!  The baby was beautiful, but everything else was a little messy.  The next day this woman was in the court yard and I ran into her as we were getting back from an outing.  She looked at me and smiled and gave me a hug!  She said, "baby up there."  Pointing to the main level of the mission.  So I went up and saw her!  I don't know why this woman wanted me to be with her in this time, but I was honored.  

The haitian people have blessed me way more than I could ever have blessed them!  It's an amazing culture and I'm so thankful for all my new Haitian friends!  I can't wait to see them again soon!  Mesi Jezi!  (Thank you Jesus!)

Out and About in Haiti

God is always up to something.  Being a Christian in never dull.  Our 2nd day in Saint Louis was a beautiful Sunday.  Brittany and I and all the staff from the mission went to church (which is right across the road from the mission).  The church service was three hours long.  About 1/2 way through, very much like in America, all the kids left the service for kids church.  When Brittany understood it was time for kids church she bolted out with all of the kids. Since I know about three words in creole it was hard for me to understand any of the service.  First I prayed that I would have a pentecost like experience and just totally understand what was being said.  After that did not work I just resorted to people watching.  The time really did fly by.  When we got back to the mission Evalin gave Shekinah, Brittany, and myself a tour of the mission.  We met the Gran Moun (old people), went by the orphanage, and went to the birthing center.  Brittany was able to see first hand the miracle of new life, but I will let her post about that!  While she did that I caught up on my sleep and did what I did as a kid - took a Sunday afternoon nap.  

It is hard to recap such an amazing experience.  I will do it in a nutshell and maybe we will expand a little bit on some of the specific events.  We went to Anse-a-Felur on Monday.  We went to see a Voo-Doo temple and monument.  Yeah - like real Voo Doo.  In my spirit I could feel the oppression.  It was the most real that evil has ever felt to me.  The people in the temple had an emptiness in their eyes.  It was somewhat unsettling to be there, the three Haitian security guys with us moved us through pretty quick.  It was an hour away from the mission and the drive was pretty interesting.  One day we went to the House of Hope which is a home where kids with tuberculosis live.  They were so precious.  One afternoon we went down to see the Gran Moun.  There are many kind souls in that group.  Brittany helped with the Gran Moun feeding each day which I know was a special experience for her.  While we were at the mission we spent alot of time in the orphanage.  There were two boys I loved so much - twin brothers Givens and Givensons.  I literally would happily take these boys into our home to live with us.  On Friday when I saw them for the last time I cried.  

On Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday we went with our new friend Melonnie  to the jail to bring the people there some food and some Jesus.  On the first two times we went all three of us prayed (through a translator) and in order to be brief I usually just prayed a couple of sentences.  On our last trip to the jail I heard directly from God which was pretty amazing.  When we got there the guys in the cell started talking to our translator, and they recognized I was a man of God and they wanted me to say a long prayer.  I was so stunned I could barely speak, but I managed to pray with the men.   Melonnie and Brittany just let me pray that day.  After the Amen the men told me how I must come back to Haiti to visit other Haitians and their families and tell them all about Jesus.  I was covered in goose bumps and knew God himself was talking to me.  

The experience in the jail meant  so much to me because I had a tough time being in Haiti.  My natural tendency is to be in the background and do my thing in a quiet unassuming way.  I really questioned what good my being there accomplished.  Though I loved the experience I wondered if it made any difference in the eternal scheme of things.  On Friday morning I wrote alot in my journal and wondered if I was cut out for any type of ministry.  On Friday afternoon in a Haitian jail I felt God gently confirm that my being there was important and a good thing.  

Haiti retrospect: Part One

When I try to quickly sum up our recent experience in Haiti I say it was the hardest yet most amazing thing I have done.  Ever.  In my life.  It will probably take a few posts to tell about Haiti.  

Nothing about getting to Haiti was easy.  We were supposed to fly from KC to Chicago and then catch a flight to Miami on Friday.  Then on Saturday morning catch a flight to Port au Prince Haiti.  It sounded easy!  Instead our flight to Chicago got postponed to the point that it was going to leave KC about 5 minutes before we were scheduled to catch a flight in Chicago.  So, I got on the phone to rebook.  We ended up getting to Miami at 3:30 am Saturday morning.  We did not get any sleep, we were there long enough to take a shower and meet up with Mary Beth.  Mary Beth works for NWHCM and it was certainly good to travel with someone who has been to Haiti before.  We got to Port au Prince, but our bags did not.  We had our carry on bags with a couple of days worth of clothes, our camera, journals, and other important things.  From Port au Prince we took a flight on Tortug Air to Port au Paix.  The 'runway' in Port au Paix was a dirt road.  From there we hopped in a tap tap (truck with some boards around the truck bed to sit on) and took an hour trip to the mission in St Louis du Nord.  The ride was our first real chance to see and feel and smell Haiti.  It is hard to comprehend all that confronts you right away.

We were told, or more accurately warned that the first day or two in Haiti would be the toughest.  They weren't joking!  It is hard to be surrounded by so much need and desperation.  I think it is so hard because you cannot escape it.  Here in the US if you encounter something that bothers you it is easy to turn away and go hide from what bothers you.  In Haiti that is not an option.  It forces you to be face to face with reality.  Nowhere to run to or hide for every time you turn around the reality of it all is there staring you in the face.  It is really hard to be there and not wonder why my life and the lives of the Haitian people are so different.  I did nothing to deserve my life and they, likewise, did nothing to deserve the hardships they face.  

The week started rough.  Arriving at the mission about 24 hours after we left with no sleep was not the ideal way to start out.  One thing that did surprise me was the natural beauty of Haiti.  There was alot of green and great views of the ocean.  In our next post we'll dive into some of our adventures in Haiti, but as I close this post I will leave you at the end of our first day.  In a place where nothing seems fair or right, without our bags, and very tired.  This was only the prelude to an amazing week.

Home again

Well....we made it back to Olathe.  It will take many posts to update everyone on our trip.  We are taking a few days to process everything and then we will blog.  I will leave you with this blog that Ben wrote and posted on the missions blog.  We are glad to be home.....but can't wait to go back!

Being in Haiti has not been easy! I knew going 

in that it wouldn’t be, but I couldn’t comprehend 

all the ways it would be taxing on me until I got

 here. I don’t get to the end of the day and 

lay down for bed and reflect on how the day was 

hard. It hits me many times during the day 

sometimes when I least expect it. My suburban

 Kansas City life could never prepare me for the

 constant need that surrounds me on a daily

 basis here. I have been overwhelmed time and 

again. This morning I wrote in my journal that I 

was not sure what difference me being here made

 in the big scheme of things. I mean really, how

 significant is my time here when I am constantly

 confronted with the unfairness of life and the

 needs that are so evident. Am I really making a difference?

I was standing by the orphanage today and all at 

once a Haitian man was standing next to me. He asked

 my name and I gave it and I asked his and he said

 that I already knew it. I really didn’t and I told him 

so, but he insisted that I did. He thanked me for being

 here and he said I was listening to God by being 

here. He related to me how he came to the mission

 as a young man for food and the mission ended 

up giving him an education up through the university level.

 He told me that this mission did alot and it was 

so successful because the people running the 

mission have listened to God. He welcomed me to his

 country and told me he was glad I was here and 

told me to come again and bring a big group of people.

 To listen and obey God and come back and be here.

 After listening to him I walked away encouraged. 

The words of Christ rang loud and clear, my strength

 is perfect in your weakness. When I hit the wall

 over and over as I am spent spiritually and emotionally

 Christ’s strength is made perfect.

I realized today it is not really all about what I have done today.

 It really is all about hearing God and obeying. He said Haiti

 and we said OK. I would offer the same encouragement

 to anyone else who may wonder what God they are doing. 

Obey Christ. If he calls you to go to Haiti go, if He calls you 

to invite a homeless man at your local McDonald’s in for

 a bite to eat, do it. Obey Christ. His strength will be made

 perfect in your human weakness.

Ben Garber

The Glorious Unknown

It is Haiti trip eve, and honestly it is about as exciting to me as Christmas eve was when I was a kid.  I feel the same things - I am excited about what tomorrow will bring, my mind won't quit running. and I am having a hard time going to sleep (hence why I am blogging!).  Brittany and I have neither been to Haiti before, so I really don't know what to expect.  Though the unknown can be scary there is also something great about it.  The unknown holds many firsts and it is exciting to experience each of them.  I guess I expect to be challenged in many ways - challenged about what I think the world is like and challenged in my thoughts of what is truly important.  I expect to learn many things, things about myself, about my wonderful wife, and about God.  We'll be out of reach while in Haiti, so I'd say to check out www.nwhcm.org and look at the trip pictures tab, maybe you will see us!  We covet your prayers while we are in Haiti and we look forward to sharing all about the experience when we get back.  Haiti, here we come! 

Snakes on the Fan

For the past few weeks I have been having some trouble sleeping, and staying asleep.  I thought maybe because of my surgery I had goofed up my sleep pattern.  So I've been trying really hard to get back on a healthy sleep pattern.  I've been waking up in the middle of the night for at least an hour, not being able to get back to sleep.  So I get up....check the computer, see what's on tv, think about all the things I need to be getting ready for our Haiti trip.  After an hour or two of those things, I decide it's time to try again.  So I sneak back to bed, careful not to wake the sleeping bear...I mean Ben.  Lay myself down and pray that I fall asleep.  Most night I do eventually.  

This Lack of sleep has really started to wear on me.  I was at the dr. today and told her of my problem, it may be related to the malaria meds we are taking.  My dr. prescribed me lunesta for my insomnia.  So I took that tonight.  I went to bed.  Then I started seeing things, snakes on the ceiling fan, spiders swinging through the air.  All of which I know are not real, but there are certain light in our bedroom that could resemble these things.  My eyes were just playing tricks on me!  Ben suggested, "JUST CLOSE YOUR EYES"  Then I wouldn't see them I suppose.  So I decided to get up and wait until I feel tired.  Then hopefully this new med I am on will help me get a full 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep!  

I think it's time to head back to the snakes on the ceiling.  I'm getting pretty tired!  Wish me Luck!

PS.  That is not our ceiling fan....just a picture I found on the internet for a visual effect of what I was seeing.  We don't hang weird snake like things on our ceiling fans around here!

Haiti bound!

Friday we leave for Haiti!  We fly out of KCI around 4pm.  We fly to chicago and then to miami.  We will be spending the night in Miami, and then catching a 6am flight to Port au Prince, the capital city of Haiti.  From there we take a small plane to port-de-paux.  That is where we will be spending our week.  I have posted this map to give everyone an idea of the trip we are taking.  Most people don't realize that Haiti is an hour flight from Miami and it is on the same island as the Dominican Republic.  Yet it is the poorest county in this hemisphere.  It is below third world!  

It blows my mind that some place so close can be such a different world.  I can't even imagine what it will be like.  We are very excited to go, but know that it will not be easy.  I just pray that the Lord uses us and our gifts to help the Haitian people.  It doesn't seem real yet, it doesn't feel like in less than a week we will be in a third world country.  I'm not sure when it will hit me.  Maybe when I get off that plane and see it for myself.  We would appreciate all the prayers of anyone who is offering.  It's hurricane season and that is one thing in life I don't think we want to experience.  I'm sure my mom will be reading this soon and start to worry.  MOM!  Don't worry, I'm just on loan to you from God and he'll take me when he wants!  I think I still have some time left here.....we'll be back soon enough.  We can't wait to show everyone our pictures and videos we plan to take while there.  I'll try and update everyone right before we leave!  

PS.  I got a job.... a wonderful job!  One worth the wait.  God has perfect timing and I'm thankful for that.  I will be working in the bluevalley school district as an autism therapist.  I'll be working school days, and hours.  Get paid time off and paid holidays, and the pay is more than I was looking for!  I will be starting August 10th.  I'm working with 3 little boys for the summer so that will keep me busy until then!