Yep, that's how I would describe "Haiti Home of Hope." After spending about 3 travel days and 7 days on mission in Pignon, Haiti, I find myself struggling to even try to write about it. It is impossible to put into words. Many of the children in this picture would have died if not for Haiti Home of Hope, a Christian-missionary-run orphanage. Not all of the 50 or so children at HHH are pictured here. Missionaries, Bill and Jennifer Campbell have at least one jewel in their heavenly crown for each of these children. I learned many of their names while I was there. They are truly precious. They are very healthy and loved to sing with me every time I picked up my guitar. Some of them just preferred to climb all over me like a jungle gym. Although this made me uncomfortable at first, I now greatly miss it as a tear comes to my eye.
Of course, we also had our "real" work to do. Many of the folks on our team worked on cement block laying, but I had the privilege of working like Jesus did... as a carpenter. I was part of a smaller group which built, from start to finish, the very large roof for the new girls dorm. It was quite a feeling of accomplishment to see it completed.
The stories that are represented by the children at Haiti Home of Hope are made more powerful when you start to get to know some of the children. Three precious little girls especially stuck in my heart (Alina, Chrissy and Benji) as I was around them more. Each of these came to the orphanage malnourished to the point of death, one weighing just 9 lbs. at the age of 1, another weighing 20 pounds at the age of 7, and yet now they are so healthy and full of life that it is unbelievable. They also all know Jesus, when without HHH, they would probably be stuck in the trap of Voodoo. Their precious little healthy Jesus-empowered smiles are something that will stick with me forever.
Another older girl (15), Madilyn (pictured here) came to the orphanage fairly recently after losing her leg in the earthquake. She is a real hero, having saved a baby at the cost of her leg. She had gotten out of the building safely, but returned to save the baby, which she did. Unfortunately, in the process something fell on her and they couldn't save her leg. The family she was serving no longer wanted her, even though it was their baby she had saved. They turned her out on the street. However, Elroi (the God who sees) had better plans for Madilyn. Now, she is very happy and well taken care of at Haiti Home of Hope. She is also a great singer and helps take care of the younger children.
What else can I say? Well, I could say a lot more. But it has been difficult to even write what I have written. Some things are just too meaningful for words. If I were to try to sum up what I experienced in Haiti with one word, I would have to use the word, "Revolutionary." How amazing, then, that this was my topic for the week with the mission team of 20 or so people, who I had been asked to lead in worship and devotionals each night. How poignant it was to talk about becoming God's revolutionaries even as we experienced a week of what that could be like. It feels like 3 years of ministry was packed into 10 days. What a God-rush!
Pray for Bill and Jennifer Campbell and Haiti Home of Hope. Also check out their website at www.haitihomeofhope.org May God bless them greatly!!!
