Blessings

Today has been an emotional day for this team because around every corner, at each orphanage, through every child's smile, through every challenging task, we have seen and felt God's love and mercy. We have experienced what it means to live your life and give your life for others through Joe and Val his dad, at the amazing orphanage they operate at Cobba.  Can I just say that our nurses must be angels!  And could we be any more blessed to be able to serve along side such great missionaries as Jason and Jennifer Carroll.  Please join us in praying that God would allow them to serve many, many years here in Haiti at Children's Lifeline.  We have only a short time left and much to do and it is our privilege and pleasure to serve every moment loving God and loving this village. 

Hawk Creek Church team

Once Again He Came Like Rain

Our morning began with a devotion about trust led by Rebecca Rollins. Soon afterwards everyone got busy...the women worked in the clinic and the men worked on projects in the compound and then made a repair to the well pump at the new orphanage which worked wonderfully. We were able to visit another orphanage today and it was great to see happy, healthy children, interact with them, share a story about how Jesus provides for his children, and make small puppets with them. Pam Harms was able to see a little boy she has sponsored for three years which was very exciting for us all. Tonight our team, along with the missionaries and interns processed our day, sharing stories, dreaming about the future of Lifeline, and praying for greatness for this wonderful people group. 

Tonight the heavy rains came once again and the water pumps had to be shut off so there is no water to use. No one had had a shower so we all grabbed swimwear and showered outside in pouring down rain. It was amazing and even in that moment we found ourselves praising our amazing and wonderful Creator who never fails to provide all that we need.

Hawk Creek Church team

I Will Come To You Like Rain

Today is day two in Haiti for this Kentucky team of seven from Hawk Creek Church. This trip we have with us two registered nurses, a financial specialist, a real estate agent, a plumber, a state building inspector, and a professional counselor. Last evening there was truly a downpour. As we sat listening to the power of this downpour we were reminded of the scripture Hosea 6:3. "He will come to us like rain...". God has not only come to us through the last few days of preparation for this trip, he has literally poured out his favor on us. It all made sense to us today as we viewed all of the great things going on here at Lifeline...the agriculture being taught and expanded and the beautiful gardens, the many patients treated at the clinic, the tiny child whose mother died three weeks ago being cared for by the missionaries, the hundreds of children lined up outside their school this morning singing in Creole "This is the day that The Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it", and countless happy children strolling the dirt road hand in hand with us this evening. God has been and continues to do a great work here at Children's Lifeline and we are so happy to be here. Tonight, the rain came once again to remind us just how alive our God is and of the life he gives us. Until tomorrow evening, blessings to you all.       

Hawk Creek Church Team

Baby Diuline

Pray for Diuline. She is a 6 and 1/2 month old baby, weighing a mere 6 pounds. She was found by an orphanage, after being severely neglected by her sick mother. She is now being treated for malnourishment. So grateful she was taken into loving arms. It has only been a few days but she now has the strength to squeeze her fingers together. Prayers that she will continue down her road to recovery! This is why we do what we do! Please keep her in your prayers!

The miracle of life

I have been coming to Lifeline for 4 years now first as a nursing student and now as a critical care nurse.  Each year I think to myself this has got to be as good as it gets and each year Haiti throws some surprise in the mix to prove me wrong.  During nursing school I was unfortunately unable to see the miracle of childbirth.  Haiti changed all of that today for me.  I will be forever grateful to Dr. Carmel and all of the nurses willing to let me help... They even let me cut the cord!  God bless that Momma, she gave birth to a 9.7 pound baby boy with no pain medicine and she didn't even scream! I am very proud of the medical team at Lifeline today who did an exceptional job birthing a healthy baby boy and taking such good care of the mother all while seeing tons of other expecting mothers in the clinic.  When the baby was first born he did not cry and the look on Madam Markson's face made me believe something was wrong.  I closed my eyes as the beads of sweat streamed down my forehead and began to pray then I heard that wonderful sound... the cry of a newborn baby! Please pray for the mother that she continues to heal and is able to produce milk for the baby and also that the baby remain healthy. God bless both of them and God bless Haiti.
~Jade Campbell

Update from the Mission

Genesis 9
¹² And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: ¹³ I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. ¹⁴ Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, ¹⁵ I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. ¹⁶ Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”

We have arrived here at the mission and settling in quite nicely. It took us some time to arrive between the traffic and a couple of accidents that had to be cleared out of way. But with the promise of God’s rainbow guiding our way I knew He was with us and right where we needed to be.

Helene, Samoan, and Madam Pastor, were here to welcome us and had prepared us dinner, mac and cheese, plantains and breadfruit. It was delicious!    

Our second day was mostly spent trouble shooting things that were in need of repair and doing some unpacking. It was nice to wake up with the children arriving for school. Some playing on the playground, others singing and laughing with the chickens, goats, and geckos chiming in.

Today has been really quiet. It is a Haitian holiday here so the schools are out and all the workers or off. The people in the village started with singing and prayer at church early this morning then everyone loaded up on the bus and went to visit the shut-ins and the ones that were sick.

Looking forward to meeting our team that will be arriving here in just a few short weeks.
 Until then blessing to all, Teressa

Powerful things Happening

Thanks again for a great week. We were all changed. I'm still praying for your family's future. I know God will use you well. 

For all 21 of us, it was our first time to Haiti. For some, it was the first time out of the United States. Others had been on a variety of international trips and experienced various cultures. Our training attempted to prepare us for what we were to experience. But learning about poverty through text and video is no substitute for experiencing it.

We came to Haiti to minister to orphans. We planned on teaching them about the armor of God - especially the helmet of salvation and sword of the Spirit. We brought jump ropes, soccer balls, coloring pages and other toys and games. We also brought water-purifying units to give to those without clean water. We got to do so much more.

I could tell right away that this trip would be much more than what we planned. We got a tour of La Digue right away, experiencing the everyday lives of the Haitian people. The children welcomed us with open arms, wanting to hold us and know our names. The plan was to ease into the culture and get acclimated to our task…then the trucks came. Four big trucks pulled into the Lifeline compound, loaded with unique care full of Kids Against Hunger meals, love bundles and other aide sent from the States. It was rigorous work helping the local staff unload the cargo. We were amazed to see the storehouse fill up.

On Monday we witnessed where all this food would go. At the feeding site we visited hundreds of hungry boys and girls who ate=[ what was probably their only meal since the feeding the Friday before. Dishes were washed as children finished then refilled and handed out to other hungry little ones. Our girls witnessed this daily as they painted the classrooms on that site.

The boys were given a different task. The playset on the Lifeline campus was deemed unsafe to play on. We were asked if we might be able to reinforce it so it could be used again. After looking it over and discussing it a few times, we decided it was not practical. Given the go ahead, we ordered some supplies. God in his wisdom provided just what we needed, even the things we didn’t request. It seemed like we had just enough time and supplies to put together a playset worthy of replacing the old one.

A couple of our women also experienced the medical clinic and widow ministry – both very valuable and powerful ministries. We take simple cuts/lesions for granted in the United States. In Haiti, they can be life-threatening - if for no other reason than the difficulty of keeping them clean. 

It was awesome to see God work through our team. High Schoolers stepped up to present the gospel using evangicubes, Jesus bracelets and large-group talks. Each one was unique as they allowed God to speak through their own personality and experiences.

The pastors we partnered with were elated to have a device to purify water for their children. They shared with us their remaining major needs: having food to give their children and money to pay the teachers. Education is valuable in Haiti. Those who can afford it get to learn. The rest survive other ways.

Of course, we got to experience much of the culture: dangerous bus rides, mountain hikes, market, bartering, tarantulas, rats, lizards and other creepers, delicious food, beach time, grilled goat and warm friendships. We were encouraged by the Lifeline staff and other mission teams. God is doing some powerful things in the lives of the people here. 

Thanks again, 

Andrew Wiese