Trusting God

Psalm 62:8 trust in him at all times ye people, pour out your heart before him.

During my time in Haiti I learned a little more about what it looks like to trust God in every situation. One Thursday night I read Acts 10 where Peter is called to Cornelis's house. He obeys God, goes and speaks. I felt like Peter. Just go with the flow because God says go. The next morning I was told we are going to church. I still don't know what was special about that day that we decided to have church. 

We sang, someone gave a message and, we read Psalm 104 and 37. In these chapters God says don't fret, trust him, he will provide everything. Later that evening when I was recording in my journal what had happened that day I wrote, "All I did today was worship. I have the best job." 

Around four months of being in Haiti I wrote this, "Because I have surrounded I have peace. I do have worries, but not that you [God] won't work everything out. I worry mostly about the outcome of everything you work out for your plan. But I have no other choice but to obey. It is the best way. And obeying right now means just going with it and trusting you will speak through me. The way you work is amusing to me. It's because it's the craziest way to do it that I know you are the one in control."

Celebrating the New Year

New Year’s Eve there was a night service at church. We arrived around 9pm. We alternated between singing and someone sharing what God did in their life in 2013. At five minutes to midnight we sang and praised God to ring in the New Year. We exchanged hugs and said, “Bonne Année.” Then for two more hours people shared what God did in 2013. It was a good time of remembrance and celebration looking towards the future. I got up and spoke, telling everyone I am thankful God called me to Haiti at this time and thankful to everyone who welcomed me like part of the family.

New Year’s Day is also Haitian Independence Day. There was a slave revolution and in 1804 Haiti became the first black republic. The French settlers and slave owners apparently ate a lot of pumpkin soup. The first thing the slaves did after declaring independence was eat pumpkin soup. Now every year all over Haiti that is what is eaten to celebrate Independence Day. It’s delicious. It is a pumpkin broth with potatoes, carrots, cabbage, and other vegetables.

My first Haitian wedding

This weekend we went to three weddings. Friday we made two potato sides to take to the reception that night. Carline let me borrow one of her dresses and Asmene did my hair. Everyone was running around all day getting ready for the wedding at 3. We arrived just in time to see everyone walk down the aisle. The bride and groom sat down up front along with the best man and maid of honor. The preacher spoke. There was exchanging of vows and then rings. We sang and prayer for the couple. They signed the marriage certificate as a part of the ceremony. The preacher proclaimed them husband and wife, they kissed, and everyone cheered.

We took lots of pictures. The reception was in a banquet hall. It was very beautifully decorated. Members of the wedding party gave toasts. A couple people sang songs for the couple. There was good food. We left before the cutting of the cake. I think they told me it wouldn’t be over until around 1am. My first Haitian wedding was a great experience!

Saturday, there were two weddings, one right after the other. The first one had purple decorations, which were then torn down and gold ribbons put up for the second wedding. The second one was actually a 50^th wedding anniversary. I did learn that if a couple wants to get engaged the man’s parents go to the woman’s house. The woman’s parents call her and ask for these parents are here for her. She will say yes then leave. The parents will then discuss the arrangements for a wedding.

I had a busy weekend and it doesn’t look to be slowing down any with Christmas coming in the next few days.

One month

I can’t believe I have been living in Haiti for a month! School doesn’t start until October so it is still summer break here in Haiti. It has been good to watch and learn before being tossed into a busy schedule. A couple of the guys from the church have stating working with me on my Creole. They say I’m getting better. I can read and pronounce the words but it is still difficult for me to hear and understand when anyone is talking.

I am so thankful for the home that I am in. I am defiantly building the closest relationships with these ladies and kids. We teach each other English and Creole phrases as we cook, clean, and hang out during the day. My favorite times are playing games like hide and seek, London Bride falling down, and hand clapping games; I think because the language barrier disappears and we just laugh.

Every Saturday when the electricity comes on we iron our clothes for church in the next morning. Then on Sundays we leave for church around 7am. I join Carline in children’s church where we pray, sing, memorize verses and have a Bible lesson. There are probably 40-50 kids every Sunday. Then I attend the main service. Either I look over the shoulder of the person next to me or borrow Asmene’s song book to sing along. There is a full band (keyboard, bass, drums) and singers leading the worship. When Pastor Martin speaks I can usually figure out the passage we are in and read it for myself but afterwards he explains to me what he talked about. When church is over everyone shakes hands and says, “God bless you”. I usually get back home around noon to eat and prepare the next meal before youth group at 3.

The youth is college-aged people. I’ve enjoyed going and meeting more people my age. The youth group is in transition right now from one president to another. So we are splitting up into groups to plan different parts of the Sunday night service. Every 2^nd Sunday the youth leads. Agenor sits next to me and translates what is going on. The first Sunday that I went they asked me to speak so I talked about what the tattoo on my neck means. In Haitian culture if you are a Christian you don’t have tattoos so I wanted to share why I have some. The word on my neck is makrothumia. It means the spirit which never loses patience with, hope for, or belief in. I explained how in Acts 7 Stephen was being persecuted and stoned but he still shared the story of God. In his last words he doesn’t hate the people but prays God has mercy on them. I shared that I always want to have this spirit of patience hope and belief.

If we aren't Facebook friends I have made my photo album public so you can see more pictures!

Tuesday night is prayer service at the church. When we arrived there were already about 70 people all praying out loud. When it was time for Pastor Martin to speak he introduced me. I came up front and told a little about myself. Then everyone prayed for me. All out loud with their arms stretched towards me. It was powerful and overwhelming.

Another pastor gave the message and Martin interpreted some as he sat beside me. The pastor talked about the will of God. He said it’s the sweetest place you can be. Not the easiest, but you will have joy. It was so confirming in what I am doing here.

Ok more day to day things… I have not eaten any rice or beans yet. I’ve eaten some things that I didn’t know what was in them but everything has been delicious. I live in a house of all women. Martin and his family live across the street. That’s the only place we have walked to so far. We take a car to the church and the store. There is usually electricity during the evening into night. But don’t plan your schedule around it. I was taking a shower and the lights went out. That probably won’t be the last time it happens.

The house is a concrete building with an entryway, dining room, bathroom, and two bedrooms. There is a TV in the entry way. A dining room table, refrigerator, books, and dishes in the dining room. I have a bed, chair, fan, and night stand in my room. On the back patio is where they cook the food on a fire and wash the dishes. My door locks, the front door locks, and the gate locks.

Prayers:

Praise God for bringing me here! For safety, no sickness, and smooth travels!
Pray I ask questions so I can learn more.
Pray that I am seeking the Holy Spirit and staying in the Word every day.
Pray that I go to God first in every situation.

Writing my name on the kids' hands

Learning hand clapping games

Cutting out snowflakes

Drawing pictures

"Where there is no love, put love -- and you will find love."

            

This year for Spring Break we went back to the Smoky Mountains. It was a great time for the students who had gone before as well as the many more that came for the first time. It was a little chillier this year but we still hiked and a group still went white water rafting. I went with a group who started to hike the Appalachian Trail but about a half mile in there was too much ice in the path to keep going. We ended up finding another trail that led to a river we sat and enjoyed our lunch next to.

              On Sunday we went to Crossing in Knoxville for church. One of the pastors there, Caleb, came to teach us every night. The main theme was “Along the way”.  The main quote for the series was from St. John of the Cross "Where there is no love, put love -- and you will find love." It was a really good reminder of wherever you are you should be making disciples and through the Holy Spirit we are empowered to live this way.  It is God who builds God’s kingdom. It needs to be God working through us, not us doing it for Him.
                Caleb taught us some history that we can apply to our lives today. In the 7^th century monks in Europe started a movement to spread God’s Word. First the monk would spend time in a cell; a small, circular hut with a thatched roof.

They would meditate on God. Then they would build a coracle; a round, rudderless two-man wicker boat. The monks would walk down to the river and ask God to send them wherever He desired. Wherever they landed, the monks spread the Word. We need a place of rest and a place of mission. The cell comes first and then the coracle. I learned that I have to spend time first with God before doing things.

Amsterdam.

The last week of October I took a trip to Amsterdam, The Netherlands with my church from back home, Graceway. It was a cultural discovery trip. There were 17 of us that went ranging in age from 14 to 69. We stayed in the Memphis Hotel to the south of the city. From there we could walk or take the tram anywhere we wanted to go.

In the mornings we met in the conference room and Jeff taught us about different cultures and how we can better relate. I wish I could retell all his stories and share all the knowledge he gave but here are a few things that stood all to me this past week.

·         There are 180 different cultures of peoples in Amsterdam compared to 150 in New York City. Jeff challenged us to listen to the different languages we heard during the day. I did this and found myself disappointed that I listened to the many languages put didn’t know what they were. I could pick out the major ones like Spanish and French but nothing else.

·         We all tend to be ethnocentric. This means we tend to see the world through our own cultural lens, whether that be American culture and/or Christian culture. God did not call us to plant American churches in every nation, he says to make disciples of every ethnic group. The only way to establish the Gospel among a people is through their culture.

·         New ideas in society can be traced:

                First with the intellectuals

                The educated –ideas get passed down through the school systems

                The workers

                And finally the middle class

·         Thomas Aquinas sought balance between Grace (God the Creator, heaven, heavenly, invisible) and Nature (the created, earth, earthly, visible). Catholicism rejected nature from the 5^th-15^th century. The Renaissance brought nature back but rejected God’s truth. People didn’t change what they were thinking, they started to change the way they were thinking.

·         We have formed a Christian culture that is so inward focused we have lost connection with the viewers. Post Modern thinking means wanting to participate. They don’t want a show a church.

·         “Expect great things from God, attempt great things for God.” William Carey.

In the afternoons we were free to explore the city. It is so quaint. The gardens I walked through were beautiful and tranquil. I could have sat there for hours reflecting on God’s creation.

I went to the art museums and saw Rembrandt’s, Van Gough’s, Vermeer’s, Gauguin’s, Cezanne’s and many others. It is so surreal to see this works of art in person that I have seen hundreds of times in my art books.

My favorite part was visiting the churches. I saw the Old Church, the New Church, Zuiderkerk, St. Bavo’s, St. Nicolas, and Begijnhof Chapel. I love seeing the grander and majesty of the old churches built to glorify God.

You can go to my Facebook to see pictures from the trip.

Right in my own backyard

Last week was really great! I had Spirit led conversations with the girls I meet with weekly. I can tell the difference of when I am just doing things because it is on my schedule to do and doing things with intentionality. Ashlen and I went to the Johnson County Cares meeting. It is a collaboration of the different organizations focusing on poverty and homelessness in Warrensburg. They just reopened the homeless shelter for the winter. Ashlen and I had an awesome opportunity to see how the different organizations in Warrensburg are working together and how we can be a part of it.

Yesterday I had the opportunity to go to First Haitian Baptist Church in Kansas City. I went with Anna, who has been to Haiti four times now, and Dia, Anna’s roommate who went for the first time at the beginning of January. We had a great time! The service was in French and English. When they asked for the visitors to stand, Anna introduced us in Creole and I think everyone was impressed. We went out to lunch after church with a couple and their three kids to a Haitian restaurant around the corner. It was delicious and the conversation was great! It was amazing to be welcomed into the Haitian community, while still being in America.

Repeat that one more time please

When I went to Haiti last January one of the lessons God taught me was that I can’t do it alone. I just saw things I wanted to fix in the Haitians’ lives and I couldn’t. But I also saw the love and passion growing inside my group members for the Haitians and I was encouraged. With our different talents and resources we could make a difference.

This last Sunday God reminded me AGAIN of this lesson. I went to Graceway in Kansas City. They are doing a series called Why Church? They are answering this question by studying through the book of Acts. This past week in Acts 9 the answer to the question Why Church? was Because together we can impact the world.

You can listen to the entire message here

Paul could not have done what he did without the church. (I need to stop and point out that the church here is not one specific church but is referring to all believers) After Saul has an encounter with God and his name changed to Paul he spent the rest of his life telling people about Jesus. He didn’t do this by himself. Some men and women went with him while others stayed behind to invest more where they were at. When Paul was writing to the Philippians he thanked them for providing for him without him asking, because they were praying for him they knew he was in need.

None of us can reach the world by ourselves but all of us have a part in God’s mission for Him to be loved, served, and worshiped by all peoples.