My group went to do construction today. We dug up trenches to prepare for the laying of the foundation of the abuse clinic the Northwest Haiti Christian Mission (NWHCM - the mission we worked with) will be building. It was wonderful to see my group without one complaint, serving with the joy of the Lord. "Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men" (Ephesians 6:7). God was showing me through the digging that he must take a pick ax to our hardened, dry hearts and dig up softer soil to nurture, and eventually plant the seed of the gospel, water it, and grow us into disciples.
There were two kids who came outside the fence of the construction area. Ryan and Abby (two of my lovely team members) started coloring with them, then Ryan called me over there and went back to construction. While I was coloring with them Abby came back out and said, "We should wash their feet." I was so excited she thought of that. She got her water bottle, and we washed their feet as she told them (through the translators - Haitians speak Creole) the story of when Jesus washed the disciples' feet. We told the two little boys how God is their Father, He is fighting for their hearts, He loves them, and He wants them. It was a precious thing for to me to serve the children in such a way as intimate as washing their feet. Cheryl brought up the point that we get to love on the kids for a week then leave them, which sucks. Although that is true, I hope if I could leave them with anything lasting, it is the truth of God and the love of Christ.
Later that day, Hailey and Dylan spoke on the consequences of having identity in the world rather than God. During an upbeat song in the Creole worship, everyone was dancing around with the kids, and it was such a joyful time. All over the room was silly dancing, smiles, and laughter; the room was filled with the joy of the Lord. It was so cool. I personally love worshiping God through dance; it brings me so much joy, so I loved this time of worship through dance even though we couldn't sing along.
The small group with girls was frustrating today because the girls were really closed off, and the translator would talk to the girls without telling us their full responses.
We end every night with a devotional by someone in the group or Jody (the missionary). I did the devotional for this night and shared on the importance of scripture; it was something God had laid on my heart to share for the devotion about 30 minutes before I was supposed to speak. I rebuked the team and myself for not using enough Scripture when talking to people about God. The verse I shared was 2 Timothy 3:16-17, which says, "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work." We are not equipped for good works or sharing about the truth of God if we aren't basing everything off Scripture. Stories are great, testimonies are great, but the importance of incorporating Scripture, or rather having that be the base of your story or testimony, is vital. The Word is lasting truth. These are the words of God. The most loving thing I can do for the Haitians and for all people is to point them to the never-shaking truth that is the Word of God. My words are nothing; they are just words. God's words are everything. They carry so much weight and power. Using Scripture for everything is not a "crutch", but rather the most loving thing you can do. It makes much of God and little of man. "He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3:30). I rebuke any pastor who speaks eloquently, but does not use Scripture as the very foundation of every word that comes out His mouth. I rebuke myself if I ever stray from the use of Scripture when speaking with people about the truths of God.
After the devotion, we broke up into our three groups. In our group, we process the day and hand out beads of encouragement to our group members. The white bead is for compassion, the blue for leadership, the green for service, and the yellow for boldness. I received many blue beads tonight, which is just a testimony to the heart of a leader God is creating in me. I am humbled that He would use such a broken 18-year-old girl to be a leader in the body of Christ for His glory.
My closing thoughts: My prayer is that God may continue to break the soil of the unsaved and saved Haitians and Americans. Also that He would increase my compassion and give me heart that breaks for His people. That He would enrich the soils of our hearts in order to be receiving of His word and of the gospel. That He may water, and the seeds may grow into something that glorifies Him.
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