A New Picture

Day SIX

Today has been very different. It is Sunday, the day of rest. We haven’t done any work today. Instead we had the opportunity to be part of a Haitian worship service. We woke up at 6:45am, had pumpkin soup for breakfast, and left the house a little before 9am.

When our team walked in to church I swear every eye turned to watch us. We filed into a long wooden pew with our Bibles in hand. After the first few songs of the service I was able to relax because most of the eyes had stopped staring. I looked around as well, watching the Haitians just as they had been watching me. There were many familiar faces. These were the people we see every day as we drive by on the taptap, the people that work alongside us, the families whose homes we roofed. But they looked different. They were dressed in their best clothes – dresses, heels, skirts with colorful blouses, button-down collared shirts and slacks. Even though those very well may have been the only nice clothes they owned, they were sure to take good care of them and keep them clean so they could look their best at church.

Creol is a beautiful, eloquent language. The only words I could understand the whole service were “God is good” and “Hallelujah”, but I was captivated by every word. It wasn’t so much the words that were being said but the heart behind the words. The passionate expression of their worship was so genuine and heart-felt. The presence of the Holy Spirit saturated the air. Watching someone worship when they are wholly and completely sold out to Christ is seeing a glimpse of who they are underneath, seeing what drives their every action and feeds their soul. Each person I saw was telling their own story. “I’ve lost everything, and Jesus is all I have left.” “God is my rock – never ceasing, never changing, always present.” “The Lord has been faithful to provide. He will not forsake me.” These people I have grown to know over the past days or simply seen in passing were pouring themselves out in worship to God, and it was a beautiful picture of worship I have never seen.

As I lay on my bunk bed writing this, my face is misted with the humidity of the rain as the wind blows in from the open window. I can hear the rain beat down against the roof and spill off on the ground. From my view out the window I can see the where the water has created a muddy river in the road as it rages down the side of the mountain. What damage this storm will do to those who have no sturdy shelter. My heart is heavy for those with no protection from the relentless weather, but I also thank God for the homes built with roofs to provide relief from this rainy season. Once again I feel helpless and insignificant in the face of such vast need, but God is faithful. In Philippians 4, Paul says “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” I am insignificant in my own power so I find myself on my knees in prayer for the people of Haiti. God is the only one who can provide for them. The Lord loves these people boundingly more than I ever could, and He will never leave or forsake His children.