Hi! I'm trying to type on my little phone screen so forgive me for this post being super scattered!! Thursday was long! We flew all night and got into Port Au Prince around 9:30am. We got settled in at the Meadths, took naps, went to the boys home. We woke up Ti- you, Micah's best bud and the boy we sponsor, he was so confused! No one told him we were coming so he wouldn't be disappointed if we didn't make it. So he was super surprised and out of it when he saw us. But quickly snapped out of it and the boys had so much fun playing. We then headed back home had dinner and crashed listening to people worship from our balcony.
We woke up refreshed yesterday morning and had such a great day! I am in heaven and loving every minute here!!! Brittany's husband Rod is the principle of a local private Christian school so he was off to work early in the morning. I did school with Micah and Asher, their oldest joined us. Sue Manessero (whose family started child hope ministry), Brooke (the nurse), Cindy (the boys house mom), and Alicia came over for bible study and I joined in, in between watching Micah, Asher (2) and Isaiah (8 mo). I've really enjoyed those sweet boys and giving Brittany little breaks.Poor Isaiah is teething and having a hard time and not giving Brittany much sleep.
This afternoon Micah and I walked to the boys house and helped with the feeding program. They bring in about 150 street kids, sing worship songs and give them a plate of rice and beans. It's so amazing to see the kids, who live in tent cities, giving away their food to the more hungry kids. I saw a girl who I had remembered from when we were here last time about 8 months ago. She was extremely malnourished and had even lost the color pigment in her hair. This time her hair was a little darker and I was so happy to see her. She was wearing the same dress, and it was still soaked with urine. She loves to be held and cuddle with anyone that will love on her so we sat and played, and cuddled for a while together. Pray for her...it breaks my heart that in the 8 months we were gone her life has stayed the same. Nothing has changed just like most of the kids here. Still each day struggling to survive with not much hope things will change. It's easy to endure hardship with hope, knowing things will get better. But to endure hardship with no end in sight or no hope blows my mind. I don't know how they do it. They need Jesus.
We stayed and skateboarded and played basketball with the boys at the orphanage before heading home. On our walk home a young girl came up to us and told us she was really hungry and wanted food. I was bummed to not have any food on me but we got to pray with her which was better anyway.
Last night we went to dinner with a group of people that work here in a town called Haitianville. It was about 45 min away and the driving here is crazy!!! We rode with Rod's parents Josie and John Meadth. John is a pastor over her and they are from Australia. They are so hilarious and it's been super fun getting to know them and spend time with them. Josie is so funny!
As we were laying in bed falling asleep in started to dump rain and it was so beautiful to fall asleep to. Micah and I are having a bug bite contest. Whoever has the most at the end of the day gets a special treat (protein bars I brought). So far Micah is killing me! His poor little body has 81 bug bites! I have 6. They aren't bothering him too much yet but they are itchy! He's been teary and homesick off and on. We pray and talk and he seems to feel better after that. Just pray that he continues to be open with me about how he is feeling and that I would have discernment on when to help him sacrifice and push through things and when to let him step back and rest and have quiet time. We've been having good "mommy and Micah time" :) thanks for checking in and praying for us! The Lord is being so sweet to us here and really giving us our hearts desire. Oh, yesterday Cindy told us the boys are off school all week next week! How awesome is that, that it worked out for us to be here then! So Cindy was talking about us maybe doing an art class or computer class or something like that with them next week. We'll see!

We're here! Thank you so much for praying! Travel couldn't have gone more smooth.  We even had fun at the airport...we danced to a band playing and the guys who helped us with our bags were really nice and stayed with us until we met up with Brittany.  We ended up tagging along with a group of missionaries through the airport from South Carolina but lost them pretty quick but I had such a peace and was able to chat with a couple people and it was fun.  Brittany just went to the market and I'm here watching the boys so more later....

And we're off...

Our flight leaves at 9:35pm tonight but with the arrival of President Obama at LAX we're going to have a get there early!  We'll be getting into Miami around 2:30am, have about a 2 hr layover and then we'll be off to Port Au Prince, Haiti!! We'll be landing in PAP 6:20am (9:20am Haiti time).  The most nerve racking part of the whole trip last time for me was the airport.  Please be praying that the Lord gives us favor through customs, that Micah would stay close with me and be extra obedient and aware, and that everything would just go smoothly.  We are also praying that there would be a group we could attach ourselves with on the flight from Miami to PAP or at least a guy we trust that we could walk through the airport with.  Thank you!!!!! We are SO EXCITED!!!!

My friend Shea asked me to write a little blurb and description of why I will be going to Haiti so they could be pray for me at Perspectives...this is what I wrote: 
I will be going to Haiti for 3 weeks and Micah will be coming with me for 2.  I knew the Lord had been calling me for some time and after going this summer when I walked off the plane I felt like "Ok this is where I belong, these are my people," and I immediately had an overwhelming love for all things Haitian! He confirmed that Micah and I take this journey together through Jeremiah 1:4-12. 

     My love first began to grow for Haiti as I became close with Brittany Meadth and her mom Joy. Hearing the huge need there and their love for the nation of Haiti stirred my heart.  The Lord has called me to love, support and pray for Brittany, the Meath family and the Child Hope ministry.  Life is very hard in Haiti and I'm unsure of the specifics of exactly what I will be doing but my heart is just to come along side and serve in whatever way needed. And to also come along side the leaders of the ministry and orphanages to serve them too so that they can continue to be faithful to the Lord call of serving the country of Haiti.  The Lord has so redeemed my life and although that nation of Haiti has been dedicated to Voodoo, I have hope that the Lord can and will redeem it for His glory! 

"I have redeemed you, I have called you by name, you are mine." Isaiah 43:1b

Brittany Meadth and Me

Word from the Lord

Last spring when we were preparing for our trip to Haiti, I had a few people ask about why I would take Micah to such a dangerous place.  Well...because I wanted him exposed to life outside of America; specifically our beautiful, wealthy beach town in southern California.  For him to know how blessed we are.  That we have been blessed for a reason and are mandated to proclaim the gospel.  I wanted to cultivate in him at a young age a love for people and to be excited about the opportunity we get to fulfill the Great Commission. To understand that when God calls us to make disciples of ALL nations that includes the poorest of the poor: Haiti.  And I needed to see and experience it all too. But I began to question myself and if the Lord was really calling me to bring my sweet 4 year old to such a horrific place.  Would he even get it? Would he remember? What will he even do there? And the Lord spoke so clearly it was undeniable His will for the trip.

Jeremiah 1: ⁴ The word of the LORD came to me, saying,

 ⁵ “Before I formed you in the womb I knew^[a] you,
   before you were born I set you apart;
   I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

 ⁶ “Alas, Sovereign LORD,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.”

 ⁷ But the LORD said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. ⁸ Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the LORD.

 ⁹ Then the LORD reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth. ¹⁰ See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.”

So, that was it, he was coming with me. We get there and on the 3rd day I took this picture of the boys getting almonds off the almond tree at the boys home.

So we come home a week later and I am preparing to share about our trip at my bible study.  I went back to Jeremiah 1 to read it over and this time I kept reading and read: ¹¹ The word of the LORD came to me: “What do you see, Jeremiah?” “I see the branch of an almond tree,” I replied.

 ¹² The LORD said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I am watching^[b] to see that my word is fulfilled.”

What?!! So crazy right?! Anyway,  by the grace of God, Micah totally thrived there.  I couldn't believe the transformation in my little boys heart.  God chose to use my rascally, spoiled, southern Californian 4 year old to glorify Himself. By the end of the trip Micah was laying hands and praying for other kids. His worldview has changed.  He says his "bestfriends" are in Haiti and wants to talk about the country and people there daily and feels called to pray for them.  Man, the Lord blows my mind...Glory to God.