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- JUL 14
Update From Haiti Team!
Here is a recent update from our Haiti Team Leaders, Katia and Miguel, who have led 7 teams since the earthquake and will be doing several more before the end of the summer:
"It’s the first week we spend every work day in the same community, and it was for sure a learning experience!
We spent every day helping build the foundation for the church walls, moving lots of rocks (heavy ones!), water, concrete, and dirt. It’s the kind of work that’s impossible to do with a couple of people, but awesome to see God’s people working together for a purpose. There were seven in the team, plus both of us and many church members. Every day was filled with conversations with the workers and people from the community, playing with the kids, singing lots of songs, and a lot of excitement over the world cup games. Each day we had a time for the kids, singing, making crafts and sharing a story from the Bible. The last day we talked about God’s love and prayed individually for each kid (and the adults that were close by). It was such a sweet time and we pray that God will continue to work in their hearts and draw them closer to Him!
On Sunday we went to Fellowship Church, and were able to share in worship and also gave hygiene bags to the church members. We sang in English, Creole, and Spanish and it was fun to feel part of the family and love into our God in the different languages. It was indeed a good day of rest!
Some background info: Trousable is a community built on two hills, and because of the building conditions, most houses collapsed in that place. It looks like a war zone, and because of the hills, it’s easier to see the destruction from one side to the other. The church is located in the middle of a steep hill, and everyone that walks by has to pass the church entrance –especially now that the stairs are full of debris. People walk up and down the hill all day, since the main roads are after you go up and down both hills. They have to carry water for everyday, not an easy life. Right after the earthquake, all the people from the community moved to a couple of tent camps, which were built on school ground. Our very first team did a medical clinic right inside one of those camps, and even though the needs were overwhelming, they were safe and had a place to stay. But that only lasted a couple of months. By May everyone had to be gone because the schools wanted to open again. It was a hard time for the community, most people having no place to go. This whole time the pastor was praying, and looking for another place to re-build the collapsed church. And God answered –although it wasn’t the way he imagined. Even if they build a building somewhere else, the community was still there, the church was still there. So they were called to re-build in the same area not really understanding why. When the people realized the church started to clear the area and placed a tarp for shade, they all realized hope wasn’t all gone. It inspired them to clear areas near their home and start building small tarp houses. It was incredible. A couple of weeks after that, what was a ghost town became once again a joyful community, with people coming up and down the steep stairs, selling their things, talking to each other. And the church is being rebuilt. The walls aren’t up yet, and it already feels like it would be too small to hold all the people around, that’s undoubtedly the hand of God.
The schools are up and running, and even thought the debris is still everyone, there’s hope that one day it will all be cleared, even if it’s just one rock at a time.
Continue to pray for us, as we need renewed strength every day, we know it’s God who keeps us.
Miguel + Katya"
