Reflections on Haiti
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Rebuild Restore Revive Haiti. July 2010 Out of the ashes of broken hearts and memories comes the most jubilant worship I have ever experienced. Voices that have cried out over fallen loved ones now cry out “How Great Is Our God.” And they do so with more honesty, more passion, more fierce adherence than most could even imagine. In the States, our idea of a hard time is waiting in traffic, getting a poor meal, or feeling overworked and under-appreciated. Granted, those are not pleasant things. But generally speaking, American’s trials are mere specks in contrast to the daily plight some of these children are forced to reckon with. You cannot choose where you were born, or who you were born to. You cannot choose in what country or class you are created. You have no say about what you will look like: your height or the color of your skin. But you can decide what you do with the life God has assigned you to… and equipped you for. I look into a pair of beautiful 8 year old chocolate-colored smiling eyes, and silently my heart breaks with sadness. It burns with what I can only hope is a righteous anger at the horrors those eyes have seen. At 8 years old, her slate should still be clean. But it isn’t. There is no earthly logic to justify her shining smile. The voices all around me–screaming over soccer and giggling over belly bumpers–possess such strength as I have never known. Their joy is infectious, their passion so raw. I am in awe of God… and of these, His chosen Haitian people. I love them. I do. I admire them. God has used them to change me; to make me better. I went to Haiti to serve and to give. I hope and pray that I have touched even one precious life. I am no better than them. To be sure, I am no stronger. I am no holier, no braver, no more beautiful or skilled. I believe in Haiti. I believe there is hope. I believe that one day the nation of Haiti will be an incredible example of the fact that no one is beyond the loving reach of our Father God. In the quiet of the night, in the peace of one short intimate moment, I was honored with a glimpse into the heart of one of my girls. And I tell you truly, I would walk up that mountain barefoot in the pouring rain five more times just for that moment. I would collapse at the top and take 10 IVs instead of two– just for that moment. My girls have a piece of my heart, and I don’t plan on taking it back. I don’t know what my role is in Haiti. Maybe I have already fulfilled it; maybe it has just begun. But I strongly believe that I have held the hands of future leaders, future builders, future revolutionaries of this beautiful country. Haiti will be Rebuilt. Haiti will be Restored. And Haiti is being Revived. God bless these beautiful people. |
