Welcome to Canaan

    We have been here for a week now and it is been a full and eventful week.  We got here late last Monday night and we hit the ground running on Tuesday.  Both Team BLING and Team Koininia are staying here at Canaan.  I spent my first day painting a building that will become a vocational school for young adults here at Canaan.  It felt good to do some manual labor for once.  I loved being able to see what we had accomplished in the completely painted rooms.  On Wednesday and Thursday I was in the school helping to teach.  I was in what they call the preschool, which is equivalent to kindergarten.  The kids at Canaan do all of the schooling in English, so it makes it really easy for us to help teach and to communicate.  On Wednesday I assisted both the teachers in the classroom I was in.  On Thursday I was one of the teachers because the other one could not be there.  So I became a Kindergarten teacher for four 5-6 years olds.  Let’s just say, I have a great appreciation for my friends who teach this age.  
    I spent Friday in bed with a very upset stomach.  I was upset that I was not able to go out with the Medical Mumba group.  This is a program that provides medically enhanced peanut butter to malnourished children and helps get the kids to a healthy weight.  Hopefully I will get to go next time.  I was finally able to eat something at dinner and keep it in my body.  I was determined to get well because we were going hiking in the mountains on Saturday and I was not going to miss out on that.
    Saturday morning came and I was feeling somewhat better and was able to eat some breakfast.  I decided to go on the hike, which may not have been the wisest decision…This was a 2 hour hike up the mountain to a cold water spring and then 2 hours back down.  I was feeling the weakness in my body about 20 minutes in the hike, but I did not want to miss out on seeing the beauty of the mountains.  God decided to use this time to teach me a lesson on working in his strength instead of mine.  We finally got about half way up the trail when it began to be all up hill.  I was done, I had nothing left to give; I was barely able to put one foot in front of the other.  I couldn’t turn around and go back by myself, so I had to go on.  I spent the next hour praying that God would give me his strength and keep me from passing out from exhaustion.  I had to make many stops but God got me up to the springs and that water felt marvelous.  I truly got to experience being strengthened by God.  I began to understand the verse in 2 Corinthians 12:9 “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” God does not need me to be strong, he needs me to be weak and allow his strength and power work through me.  It took a mountain for me to truly understand and experience this.  It was much easier coming down then going up.  
    Today (Sunday) we went to the town of Saint Marc and visited the hospital there.  We pulled in and my jaw dropped…this was not like any hospital I’ve ever seen.  I wish I could put into words what it was like.  Even the worst hospital in America would be 10 billion times better than this one.  There was on big wards with ill people on beds.  There is no air conditioning and flies everywhere.  Patients are cared for mostly by family members bringing them food and swatting flies away from them.  After standing in the room with the 10 or so patients, my heart begin to break and my eyes began to fill with tears.  I had no idea how to even pray for these people.  I was so overwhelmed by the illness, discomfort, pain, and hopelessness I was feeling overcome me.  Finally God lead me to just begin praying for healing, peace, and comfort for those I encountered.  Some of our team mates began to sing and play the guitar for the different patients, and they seemed to really enjoy the music and gained comfort in it.  This was a real stretching experience for me.  I’ve always been uncomfortable in hospitals and around sick people, but God had a plan to use us to minister at this hospital.  
    Well, until next time….Continue to pray for us here in Haiti.  Pray for good health and for God to truly use us to impact the people here at Canaan and in Haiti.