Haiti Updates

Yesterday Tabitha, Jessica, and I painted all morning. The rooms are finally finished enough for Jason and Amanda to move in last night and get settled for the birth of their baby! Chadd and the men work hard every day, finishing after dark. Lillian and Amanda made us all DELICIOUS papaya smoothies for a snack yesterday. Mmmmmm!
Please do not worry about our safety. We unendingly appreciate your prayers that most likely have peaked hearing of the election protests and continued cholera epidemic. But we honestly are in the Lord’s hands and have had minimal exposure to either. The news states that 2000 have died of Cholera since it first broke out. Medically, we are safe because of our hygiene, strong immune systems, and constant hydration. Haitians with these are safe as well. The country gave the results of the primary election yesterday, which all Haitians are not pleased with. They all say that it was rigged by the former president. Yesterday and today people barricaded streets and protested. Our cooks can’t buy food for lunch because no one is selling, so we’re having spaghetti and all the kids are around because the schools are closed. But most of the “action” is in the cities. The rest is as a result of fear. Chadd and I climbed the water tower and could see a smoky haze over PAP from burned tires. But here in our camp at HFM we are secure and happy and work on the new buildings goes on! Last night we played cards and dice the this weeks’ team and laughed the evening away.
Chadd and I feel strongly that we are in a season of learning. We are pursuing our great Lord and the quizzical lessons of His upside down Kingdom. We are learning how to deal with the daily encounters, questions, and conflicts of our Haitian missionary life, serving the Smoker’s and Haiti Family, and studying Creole too! Boy, without Chadd I would be at a complete frustrated, stressed, and lost girl. We crave time together. Praise the Lord for our little haven shed. Every evening I look forward to being with my husband. I love being married!
We’re reading Heidi Baker’s book “Compelled by Love.” These hard and sometimes confusing lessons of the Beatitudes in action have been our Kingdom education. The thing is, Jesus didn’t and doesn’t want us to react the same way for each situation. The attitude of our heart is key. What does it mean exactly to be poor in spirit- craving the truth of the Gospel and time with Jesus- pure in heart, and yet rich in faith? These are the lessons we are learning.