This month the twenty of us girls here have gotten wonderfully talented at the art of preparing and teaching lessons at a moment’s notice. While we’ve been here, every Monday morning we’ve been given a schedule for the week. The schedule has all kinds of different ministry opportunities per day. Anything from school yard playtime and bible lesson to evangelism near or far to having lunch at the elderly home to leading Alex’s Bible Clubs on either Thursday or Friday night to helping the caretakers at Ann’s Children’s Home to beach time with the little ones…and so on and so on. We get about two hours after breakfast on Monday mornings for each of the three different teams of girls that are all living here together to plan for what their own team is responsible for.
For example, the schedule for the next few days is lighter because we’re about to leave, but it looks like this:
9:30: Journey Markers (a weekly devotion that walks us through the life of Jesus/ has discussion questions for processing and such, I’ve been really liking it a lot honestly)
10:30-12: CLEAN &PACK/ plan how to bless ministry hosts before we leave!! 2:00: Ann’s Children’s Home (Vessel)
5:00: Women’s Group at the church(Semper Fortis)
7:00: All Girls Worship
TUESDAY:
9:30: Evangelism
12:30: Lunch with granmouns at the Matthew 25 House
2:00: Swimming in the ocean with the timoun
7:00: reflection/processing month (rough stuff; nearly impossible; lots to miss and love around here)
WEDNESDAY:
4:00(YES! AM!!): RISE AND SHINE/load bus
4:30: WE OUT! AFRICA, HERE WE COME!
The reason why I’m sitting here, sharing with you about our weekly schedule situation is this: we as teams have gotten the chance to unite, to wake up on Mondays to a brand new week full of the makings for life change. We have a couple hours to sit together, think about our audiences, ask the Lord what He has in store for whatever it is that we’ve been given, and creatively show Christ to others. The amount of skits we’ve done this month is insane- we started from scratch and threw costumes and props together- we got resourceful and we would pray to stay as inspired as possible. I have been forced to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit- evangelism honestly looks like this: the twenty of us separate into several small groups with one translator per group, we walk up to house/first person(s) in sight, whichever INCREDIBLE translator I’m with introduces themselves/us & asks if they have time to talk (no one has ever said no; crazy how inviting and accepting people are of new people and new ideas around here; truly beautiful), asks them what their name(s) is/are, asks what God means to them (this answer determines where the conversation goes- they could say something about being a Christian, they could say they have no idea who God is or something along the lines of having questions and wanting to know more, or they could mention something about voodoo and/or other religions)…while all of this is happening, I stand and I pray. I internally ask the Holy Spirit what it is that is needed for whoever it is that is before me. I’ll stand and I’ll open up my bible and I’ll be reminded of different encouraging scriptures, or powerful parables throughout the gospels, or truths found in Romans, or the freedom in Christ explained in Galations, or I’ll realize how simple it is to explain what the Bible is and why on earth I would be here in Haiti holding one in front of their home and begin to explain God and Jesus and the Holy Spirit all the way to eternity. I’m learning the art of spontinuity- not in a wild, reckless way, but rather a comfort so deep in the Lord that I am able to do all sorts of different ministries and never run out of words to speak- words that are relevant and powerful. It’s been a joy to experience life in this way for this month. Something I’m realizing; a thought; a feeling: The world race: a time and space to think. to dream. to meet and explore the world, God, and Lillabea. Breathing room. Diving board. And, when the race is at its full potential, it’s everything that I’m conciously aware that I’ve ever wanted.
three new prayers i’ve been praying:
1. God, dream with me. Give me visions and words, I want more!
2. May the Spirit in me greet the Spirit in others before Lillabea greets them; may the Spirit in me lift and ignite the Spirit in others.
3. God, may You make my joy complete!
Some fragmented memories: singing in the Haitian choir. swayed to the same rhythm. can only dream of the choir of Heaven. to worship in the fullness of the presence of God, I can only imagine. an honor to learn a couple lyrics worth of a new language to expand the ways I can praise God. those twins at the beach. those two year old cutie twins. the way they already know how to do laundry and braid hair and look after one another. sweetly astounds me. home visits in the past two weeks. the way that God seems to highlight scriptures for each of the homes we visit. the way they are wildly applicable to men and women and children. Cut up avocado and market fresh bread for breakfast. Ann’s Children’s Home. Ms. Rose’s sunbeam of a smile. The way Robertini and Lawrence communicate regardless of the fact that neither of them can speak a word; absolutely epic. Distractions during Bible Club: chicken. The way that granmoun Elizian dances with her one leg and makes her beats and laughs with her gummy mouth. “Bonjous” on the Sunday morning walk to church. Diana’s (one of our beautiful AND brilliant translators) dance moves. The sound of kids screaming “LEELOBEE!” down the streets. The waves at sunset- a little extra violent, a little extra golden.
I guess I could come up with a lot more to say, but I’ll settle with the words above. Haiti has been good to us. The Caribbean has been good to us. These days are ones I’ll miss.
