So I’ve been putting this blog off for all 3 days of debrief so far because I really don’t know how to bring to a close the chapter of this month. There isn’t a way for me to put into words, and accurately describe, what I have experienced spiritually, physically, and emotionally this month.
This month has felt like 2 years. I feel like I’ve been watching the behind the scenes clips of a movie. It’s actually more like when you are watching a movie and while you are sucked in you see where the editor accidently forgot to crop out the camera crew. Then you realize that this is not real but is fiction made to feel real. Yea….I’m not even sure that is it.
So here’s the deal…I mentioned in a previous blog about the difficulty of being still and in that it suddenly became apparent to me that there was an undercurrent building and spilling over onto the surface. There was a battle going on and had been going on and when our team showed up, we stepped right into the thick of it.
Immediately, we were assaulted by a spirit of slumber… a weird tiredness putting us to sleep. It made us content with just relaxing…just kind of coasting.
Then in the safety of our sleep, one night our laptops were stolen. Some people came in quietly and stole our security. Many of us could no longer sleep soundly through the night.
Talk about being jolted awake. Suddenly it was difficult for us to trust the Haitian people around us and to love them as Jesus does. Then we worshipped in the streets and I felt the heart of the Lord speaking into my heart to “get on your knees and battle for this country.”
As we began to feel the freedom of the Lord casting out fear, a girl on our team slips and cuts her hand on a sharp gate and has to get 3 stitches. Doesn’t seem to raise any huge concerns but enough to wonder.
And then 2 people on our teams and more people on other teams start coming down rapidly with fevers of over 100 easily. Then slowly but surely more than half of our teams begin to come down with fevers and no one seems to be getting better.
And just so we don’t have the idea of being upbeat, a hurricane hits and it rains for almost 5 days straight. We can’t leave because the river has overflowed and washed away a bridge on our route to the border along with many other things. Yea…needless to say a smile was a little harder to come by.
(insert transition here)
Let me tell you something…I don’t think I have ever prayed so much and so hard in my life. Wake up praying, go to sleep praying, go to the bathroom praying, praying brushing your teeth…etc.
When we finally drove out of Carrefour and headed to Port-au-Prince, you could visibly see the remnants of battle on us. We were weary, muddy, and ready to get the heck out of dodge.
There is still so much I’m processing and have processed about that month and would love to let you read my journal pages about it when I get home. But the one thing that weighs heavily on my heart about Haiti is the amount of spiritual oppression that exists here.
“…Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things they do in secret. But when anything is exposed by the light it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, ‘Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” Look carefully then how you walk, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.” Ephesians 5:8-16
I’m sorry if this blog comes across a little crazy or jumbled but this is literally what is occurring in me.
“Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” 1 John 4:4
I don’t think I’ve ever been so thankful for this truth and promise.
P.S. Here is a link of some pics I took in Haiti…I purposely didn't take photos of the area we lived in because I didn't want that to be the image of the entire country. Guess you'll just have to come check it out yourself 🙂
http://s58.beta.photobucket.com/user/dupeoguns/library/Haiti
