What an amazing week it has been here in Haiti. This past week has been the very reason why I love doing what I do, and serving in full time missions. I encountered God this past week in ways that blow my mind, and cause me to reflect on how big He truly is and how deep His love truly goes.
I had a team of 6 people from Canton, Ohio. I was initially hesitant about such a small group and was debating whether or not I should combine this small team with another team that was also here for the same week. I decided to keep them separate and I am so grateful that I did because God showed up intimately for each of these participants, and through that, showed up for me as well. My team consisted of 3 high school girls, the youth pastor, a father of one of the girls, and a female chaperone. Each of these people was struggling with something deep, and had wounds that needed healing. Over the course of the week I watched as God brought healing to the wounds, confidence to the insecure, and boldness to the timid. Watching these 6 people transform right before my eyes was a miracle in itself! I was able to connect personally with each team member and help to reveal their identity in Christ. The quiet shy girl suddenly had a voice to speak and lead others. The wounded and starving for affection girl was given love and hope in ways she had never experienced. The angry and disappointed girl was given freedom and restoration from her anger, and became overwhelmed with joy! The father who struggled to accept grace and forgiveness for himself, heard God’s voice telling him it is okay and that His love is greater than he could imagine. The youth pastor became confident and encouraged in his role as a leader and shepherd. Lastly, the quiet and intimidated female chaperone found a boldness in leadership and confidence to step out and lead others. Watching all of this unfold was truly a blessing to me, and something I will not forget. I am so proud of this team and captivated by their pure passion to live for Him! This is why I do what I do. This is why I am pursuing work in missions. I saw the kingdom of God revealed this week!
As we were wrapping up the week, we took all the teams that were here to the beach for the afternoon to worship and spend some time relaxing and processing the week. While there, I was blessed to baptize a Haitian woman that we had befriended a couple weeks ago. She came to the beach with us and asked me to baptize her. As I finished up with her baptism, the 3 high school students from my team came forward and also asked to be baptized!! I fought back tears as I welcomed them into the family of God. As soon as I finished those 3 baptisms, another 7 people came forward one by one wanting to be baptized in the ocean! In all, I baptized 11 people that afternoon. What a perfect ending to a perfect week!
My life was touched this week by the presence of God. I encountered Him in a way that seemed so new and revealing…but at the same time there was something so familiar about it. I saw God appear this week for these 3 girls just as He did for me this time last year when I too found myself being baptized in the waters of Haiti. I end this week simply in awe of His love for us. I am in awe of the lengths He will go to in order to seek a relationship with us!
