(July 30, 2012)
This morning I woke up around 11:00 a.m. to say goodbye to my Abuela and Abuelo (Josiah had spent the week with them during our trip.) I went back to bed, but had to get up again because of an upset stomach.
I finally stayed up because I kept feeling sick. Around noon, Mom took Roma to the ER because she had thrown up 12 times already. She stayed there for 5 hours while they gave her an IV. She saw several doctors and nurses before she was finally released. She was diagnosed with acute gastroenteritis; basically stomach flu. After talking with Dad and Mr. B (our team leader), we think we had food poisoning from the pizza we ate in the Miami airport. How ironic is that? We go all week in Haiti without getting sick and then get sick on “safe” American food!
Tonight with dinner we looked at pictures from the trip together. It was good being all together again!
(August 1, 2012)
Getting up to run this morning was difficult because I was so tired. During our run, I could feel a cry coming on. I lost it when I got home. I just felt so depressed. Everything felt so shallow, empty, and meaningless. I feel like I don’t belong here. I want to be back in Haiti so badly. I cried and talked with Mom for awhile.
She reminded me that God has me here for a reason. I need to get over the hump of missing Haiti, and start working to HELP the people there.
I feel really burdened to see an orphanage built in Haiti on the mountain. But I’m so afraid. So many doubts and fears have been going through my mind. What if it costs too much? What if it’s too big of a project for me? What if everyone gets their hopes up and I fail?
As I was mulling over these thoughts, I read a post on a friend’s blog. She hadn’t posted in almost 6 months. Her post was about fear. It hit me right between the eyes. I can’t fear man. I can’t fear failure. If God has placed this burden on my heart, and it is truly His will, then He will make it happen. I need to choose to be a willing vessel for His use.
This trip to Haiti has radically changed my life. I will never be the same; I would never want to go back to the way I lived before this trip.
God has blessed me in many ways. As much as I want to be in Haiti, He has placed me here for a reason. I need to seek out that reason and His will for my life. I need to trust in His plans and know that they are the best.
I can’t wait to see what God has in store for my future! Praise God for all He does!
(August 11, 2012)
Hopefully you’ve had the opportunity to “experience” our trip to Haiti through these posts. Although our trip has come to an end, it’s really only the beginning. Our entire team really feels burdened for the people of La Montagne. We had a team get-together this past week to talk about our ideas and how we can put them in motion.
One of the ladies on our team really wants to help several of the children we met get medical attention. The baby with hydrocephalus needs treatment soon or she will eventually die from the disease. So she is working on the necessary procedures to bring a couple of the children to the states to receive treatment.
Our team leader really feels burdened to provide food for the children on a regular basis. He will be approaching other churches and youth groups to start a regular feeding program.
Several other members of our team want to send a sea crate of clothes, toys, and especially shoes to Haiti. I think that everyone on our team would love to return to Haiti. I have already talked with Mr. A about Ben and I coming back next summer. God willing, that will happen!
And as I already mentioned, God has laid this burden on my heart to see an orphanage built on the mountain. Right now I’m swimming in the deep waters of logistics, planning, fundraising, etc. I know that if this is truly God’s will, He will be the One to make it happen. I’m choosing not to go into detail on the project right now because there are so many unknowns. But I know I will need the help of scores of people to make this happen, and I know I’ll be sharing more about this in the future. There may even be another blog created just to tell that story!
We are all so thankful to have had the opportunity to go on this trip! God has really used it to change our lives. To God alone be the glory, for He is doing great things in Haiti!
I really enjoyed reading about your trip to Haiti. Thank you for sharing it with us.
ReplyDeleteUgh! What a way to end a trip.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you enjoyed the posts on Haiti, Leah! I loved thinking over the trip as I wrote the posts. It's definitely a subject that I love sharing about! :-)
ReplyDelete~Bianca
It wasn't the most pleasant way to end a trip, Amy. But what breaks my heart even more is that children die from the same type of illness. Realizing that was a real wake-up call to me.
ReplyDelete~Bianca
Bianca, thank you so much for sharing all of your struggles and insight from your missions trip! I loved reading it!
ReplyDeleteKimber :)
Thank you for your comment, Kimber! I'm glad that you enjoyed reading about the trip, as missions is something I love to share about!
ReplyDeleteI really hope that our families can meet someday. I think we'd all become very good friends!
~Bianca