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Lessons from Haiti: Reinforced Lessons and Growing Confidence

by lydiamhill

So I’m back from my most recent trip and it’s time to finish up my lessons from Haiti blog posts. I hope you’ve enjoyed these as much as I have. I only have a few days left to blog about, so I hope you enjoy them.

Day 6: Reinforced Lessons and Growing Confidence

So this was Wednesday. The week was already half over. This day really just reinforced several things I’d already been learning about prayer, unity, relationship, and Christ’s Church. In the end, these reinforced lessons built my confidence in God.

This was another work day, and although I thought I was done with the manual labor part of the trip and could just stick to painting, God had other plans. After breakfast the whole team was called together to help haul rocks up the hill. Now these weren’t little pebbles or hand sized stones, these were big, heavy, rocks. We could only fit two, or maybe three in a large bucket to pass down the line. After several buckets, your arms got tired, and your back might get stiff if you happened to be someone on the stairs, or a steeper part of the hill. But it wasn’t tiring work, because we were working as a team. We helped each other and sent messages of encouragement down the line, along with the rocks. Even my little painting helper and her cousins wanted to be part of the work, so they jumped in the line and tried to help carry rocks too. Like I said, the lessons I had learned already were being reinforced. God has placed us in a body, and with everyone working together, a lot can be achieved.

I was also reminded of the importance of relationship later in the day. After lunch we got to go to the village church for worship, and I decided to bring my little notepad along. I ended up drawing little sketches of animals for all the kids at the church. It was so much fun to see their smiling faces. I was literally surrounded by children who either wanted a drawing, or just wanted to watch the lines connect and become an animal. This was my last interaction with the village kids and it was very precious to me. I know I couldn’t give them much, but what I could give, God used to bring joy. In essence, I relearned that relationships matter a lot, even more than food, or money, or finishing a project.

During the worship time at the church we were able to learn a song in Creole and sing it all together. It was so good to actually know what I was singing and what it meant. We even copied down the words and taught the song to our home congregation in Texas when we got home. That song, at least for me, symbolized the unity of Christ’s church and how we can all worship God, no matter what language we speak.

I also got to see God answer many more prayers this day. Some of them may seem like little things, but they brought so much encouragement to me and our group, that they were significant. We again prayed for the radio transmitter when it stopped working, and God made it start working again. And when my mom and I were trying to stencil in letters for the radio logo, there was a storm. We had waited all day for it to get dark, so we could actually see the projector’s image, and now it was raining. Our group prayed and then offered to hold a tarp over the projector so we could still do the work that night. God stopped the rain, and brought it down to an occasional drizzle and our team faithfully held the projector in place and covered it with a tarp. God provided the right weather, and when we finished we sat back down, under the pavilion. As we began to share more touching testimonies in the group and continue to grow closer to each other, the rain came again. God had provided.

As I read through my journal entry from that day, I noticed one of my prayers to God was expressing a deeper trust in God. Before this trip I’d been worrying a lot about where my life was headed and what job I was supposed to be pursuing. I had a lot of questions, but on this day, I had a lot of trust. I could see how God had provided over and over again on the trip and I realized that I didn’t have to worry on the trip, or at home. Whether it was equipment not working, or bad weather, God could handle it. And He can also handle my problems at home just as easily.

Haiti Stories

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Lessons from Haiti: The Importance of Relationship

by lydiamhill

I hope you’ve enjoyed these lessons from my trip to Haiti. This will actually be my last post for awhile. I’ll be on a trip for a week and won’t have much time for blogging. But when I return, I’ll finish out the Lessons from Haiti series. Thank you for your patience! I feel like I’m leaving out a lot of important details from the week in Haiti, but it’s hard to summarize everything that happened into a short blog post. Maybe I’ll have to do some extra posts later about other things that happened, like climbing the hill next to camp and stargazing.

But enough of that, let’s talk about Tuesday.

Day 5: The Importance of Relationship

This day taught me over and over how important relationship is, not only with other people, but with God. We’ll just start at the beginning. Tuesday morning I began working on my project (the logo of the radio station) or really just priming the walls for the logo. But as I began to work, a little girl who was staying at the camp with her relatives came to watch. It didn’t take long for her to pick up a brush and start mimicking what we were doing. Now keep in mind that it was hard to communicate. I think I’ve said several times that I know little to no Creole. So all I could do was point, nod and say wi, or shake my head and say no. I wasn’t sure how much help the young girl could be to the project, but as we worked her smile reminded me that the reason we were there was not just to finish some project, but to build relationships. And so, to remind me of how much more important relationships are, God gave me a little girl to paint with for the rest of the week.

And it’s not just people that we need relationships with; God is our heavenly Father and we need to be in a relationship with Him. As more frustrations arose that day and we cried to Him in prayer, I saw God’s loving fatherly response. For example, one of my teammates came up to me and told me that the radio station was not transmitting and they couldn’t figure out what the problem was. So we stopped and prayed that God would fix it. Not five minutes later the radio station was broadcasting! I felt so overwhelmed with God’s love and how He will take care of our needs right away and not delay.

That evening we went to another revival meeting at the village church and God broke down the barriers that had been separating us from the Haitian believers. I saw this most clearly through a young woman sitting a few rows in front of me. She noticed that me and a friend were trying to sing along with the music and she started mouthing the words to us and making little hand motions so we could understand what the song meant.

Then one of our team members got up and shared his testimony with the congregation. He told everyone that he felt like he’s coming home when he goes on mission trips because his ‘family’ is in these small remote churches. The pastor said he was trying to teach his congregation the same thing and God was using us to reinforce the idea that we are a family in Christ.

And lastly, we ended the day by sitting in a circle on the pavilion and listening to more testimonies from the group. It was such a good bonding experience that really forced the relationships within the group to go deeper. And the night ended with one team member praying a prayer of thanksgiving for each team member on the trip. He summarized so perfectly what each person brought to the group and encouraged us all that we were meant to be there and our presence was making a difference.

God was growing relationships within the team, within the community, and with Himself. This day was a beautiful lesson in the value God puts on relationship.

Haiti Stories

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Lessons from Haiti: The Body of Christ at Work

by lydiamhill

Hello blog readers, I’m still reviewing my trip to Haiti, and all the lessons God taught me while I was there. We’ve made it through the first few days of the trip and are currently on Monday, the first workday of the trip. Hope you enjoy!

Day 4: The Body of Christ at Work

So far on my journey, I’d felt that I was mostly receiving things. I was given delicious food, time with people, joy, even several valuable lessons from God about prayer and the unity of His church. And, I’m a little embarrassed to admit this, but our team had spent the previous afternoon at the beach. But it was a Sunday, a day of rest, and we were recovering from all the traveling. Still it didn’t feel quite right.

Thus Monday morning started with a new kind of energy; finally we would be able to work, to do something productive or beneficial, to give something back. In a sense, this is what you go into a mission trip expecting to do, and it felt odd that it wasn’t until Day 4 of our adventure, that the “real work” was starting.

Eagerly we awoke at 5:30am to begin helping with the soccer ministry in the village. We all carried bags stuffed full of soccer balls, cleats, and uniforms to the wide field outside the church. However, once we had handed out the equipment, most of us ended up standing around with not much to do. I’ve never played soccer, so I felt a bit useless as I watched the training begin. I ended up trying to interact with a few of the children from the village along with a few other girls from our group. We couldn’t say much, but we were still able to laugh with the kids.

Soon the training ended and we packed everything back up and headed back to the camp, which is called Jacob’s Well. (I’m tired of calling it the camp, so we’ll refer to it as Jacob’s Well from now on). We ate some breakfast and then began on a fencing project. I didn’t feel like I was doing a lot of work. I mean I carried a few cement blocks, or passed some buckets full of cement down the line, but mostly I was standing around, not knowing what to do, or taking a water break. The most beneficial thing I did was remind other people to drink water so no one got overheated.

So far I had felt pretty inadequate, like I wasn’t very useful for any of the projects going on in Haiti. But as we took a break for lunch, I looked at what the team as a whole had accomplished and realized just how much God can do with very little. I didn’t feel like I had contributed much to the fence, but there it was getting longer and put together. It was a lesson in God’s provision. Even if I didn’t know the first thing about building a fence, God had provided other team members that did, and he used the whole team’s effort to accomplish something I couldn’t have done alone.

Thankfully after lunch, I was able to start work on a painting project that is more in my field of expertise. But I’ll never forget that God uses a body, of different people, with different skills to accomplish His work. We all have purpose, we all have value, and we all can be used by God.

Haiti Stories

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Lessons from Haiti: United in Worship

by lydiamhill

Hopefully you’ve been reading my recent posts about Haiti, but just in case you’re new, I’ve been writing a blog post for each day of my recent trip to Haiti. I am now on Day 3!

Day 3: United in Worship

So, I was finally in Haiti, and I awoke Sunday morning excited to see God at work. After a delicious breakfast of pancakes and guava juice, our group gathered to go down to the village. We were going to our first Haitian church service!

Now I was excited about this. I’ve been to a lot of different churches, and each one is different. Even the ones in America can vary drastically from each other. I’ve been to Lutheran and Nondenominational, mega churches, and small cowboy churches. I’ve even been to churches in other countries like Mexico and Germany. I’ve heard sermons and songs in English and Spanish, German, and Latin. But I’d never been to a church service in this little Haitian village.

I went into this knowing that Haiti is different. This wasn’t going to be some grand cathedral or well manicured building. It would probably be pretty small and basic. And indeed, when we had walked the five minutes to the church we found a small wooden building with no AC, and a lighting/sound system that was supported by a finicky generator. Services didn’t start exactly on time, or have a specific ending point. But it was still a church, still a gathering of Christ-followers, and still a place of worship.

We stepped inside and quietly found some seats on wooden benches. Now I don’t speak Creole and even the few words or phrases I had learned before the trip weren’t very helpful, but immediately I started to engage with the service. God provided a visiting pastor that also spoke English to communicate the basics of what was happening in the service. I was able to follow along in Philippians as the pastor taught, and even though I couldn’t tell what he was saying specifically, I knew it was true.

Then the church began to sing, and it was amazing. I knew it was worship; beautiful worship that pleased God. I was amazed at how beautiful and loud the worship was, without all the fancy equipment we use in America. I didn’t know the words, though sometimes I recognized the tune, but I was able to join in with their worship. I longed to sing with them, even though there was no projector or hymn book to lead me. Eventually I even tried to sing along by following the girl who was leading the songs. She would sometimes sing the next word or phrase and I tried to mimic the sound with the congregation.

But whether I sang or not, I was still worshiping God in my heart. I was so in awe of God and how His love reaches to every corner of the globe. I think I got a glimpse of what heaven will be like; there are no barriers, no walls of prejudice or pride, and people from every tongue and nation will just worship Jesus together.

And I happen to have a video of some of the songs that were sung. So feel free to watch, and join in worshiping God too.

So what did I learn from all this? Well I learned that there is a unity in God’s church that cannot be broken. No matter if we are white or dark skinned, speak Creole, Spanish, or English, rich or poor, we all belong to God and the greatest thing we can do is worship Him. As I took part in the communion, I remembered that people all around the world were doing the same thing; remembering what Jesus Christ has done for us. He really is the one who unifies us.

Haiti Stories

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Lessons from Haiti: The Hidden Joy in Waiting

by lydiamhill

In case this is new for you, I am currently posting a series of blogs that detail my recent trip to Haiti and the lessons I learned from going there.

Day 2: The Hidden Joy in Waiting

Building on the lesson I learned from traveling on the previous day, I awoke Saturday morning prepared to meet every obstacle with prayer. I was also bubbling with excitement that today we would finally make it to our destination. We arrived at the Florida airport without a problem, then found our way to an empty check-in station. We discovered that we couldn’t check in till the plane from Haiti landed, since the people who were on the plane, were the same ones who would check us in. This began one time of waiting, which would be repeated throughout the day, and in actuality, throughout the trip.

However, during this time of waiting, or delay, I was pleasantly surprised to find a source of joy. You see, in the present day culture of America, there is a lot of emphasis on instant gratification. Google, texts, YouTube, Hulu; they all let you get what you want now. Whether it’s the answer to a question, or a missed episode of a TV series, there is not a lot of value in waiting. But waiting in the airport, I found how nice it is to not be in constant motion. On this trip I purposefully left my cell phone at home, so I could engage with what was going on in the moment. And during this time of waiting, things began to happen.

Other passengers, also taking plane to Haiti, were gathering in the airport, and we began to strike up a conversation about why they were going to Haiti. We found out one family was hoping to adopt a child from the country and that they were going to visit the orphanage where the child lived. And we were also able to share with them about our purpose in going; setting up a radio station for the area, and running a soccer camp. We even prayed together, even though we had just met these people. It was a beautiful moment.

Once the plane landed, we began to move again, proceeding from check-in, through security. However, God wasn’t done with our time of waiting. He soon provided another opportunity to be still. You see, we were planning on taking this huge 80 pound box with us to Haiti. It had equipment for the radio station we were setting up. However, the airline wouldn’t allow such a heavy, and cumbersome box aboard. So a few team members stayed behind, in the check in area, to wait for a friend in Florida to pick up the box. The rest of us proceeded through security and to a Burger King for a hurried lunch.

Then, it happened; a security threat. There was a suspicious bag left at the check in area, and all of the people there, including our team members who had stayed behind, were forced to evacuate. Now our team was separated, and our flight was supposed to leave in 15 minutes! Remembering what I had learned yesterday, we all stopped to pray that God would take care of us, and bring our team together again.

We went to the gate for our plane, and were quite relieved to hear that our plane would not be taking off without our other team members. In fact, the people from Haiti who were running the check in were also stuck with everyone else who had been evacuated. So we had another large chunk of time to just sit and wait. It was another delay. But also another opportunity. And so we began to share testimonies in our group. We shared stories of how we had started following Jesus and gotten to the point that we were now at in our lives. It was a real time of team bonding. And part way through, the few team members who we had left at check-in, appeared! God had provided a way through the airport, even with all the security block offs.

Eventually we were able to board the plane, and fly to Haiti. I had been to Haiti before, so the 3rd world country was not surprising to me. The biggest lesson I had learned that day was: God can turn times of delay and waiting into times of joy as community and relationships grow.

Haiti Stories

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Lessons from Haiti: A day of frustrations

by lydiamhill

So I’ve decided to do a series of blog posts about my mission trip to Haiti. I know it’s not what I usually write about on this blog, but I figure I can tell some fun stories, and who knows, it may turn into a novel or book someday. I’m going to break up each day of the trip into a blog post and hopefully come up with one lesson that I learned on each day of the trip.

So feel free to leave comments, suggestions, or any of your own stories or lessons you’ve learned from your own adventures.

Day 1: A Day of Frustrations

Early Friday morning I set off to the airport to meet the group of 15 people headed for Haiti. But right off the bat, I was hit with distractions, or frustrations really. I hadn’t slept well the night before the trip, or really the whole week leading up to it. In addition, my sister had woken me up, due to a panic attack in the middle of the night. So I was… not rested. In addition, I’m a very time-oriented person, so when I was unable to get to the airport at 8:00 am, and in fact was the last of the group to arrive, I found my attitude about the trip as a whole taking a turn for the worse.

After hugging loved ones goodbye, we set off to check in at the baggage check. And then another unforeseen event occurred, our connecting flight to Florida, leaving from Dallas, was said to be delayed and we were told we would have to take a later flight. This would mean that instead of getting into Florida in time for some dinner and chill time, we wouldn’t get in till 9:30, and probably wouldn’t get to our hotel till after 10pm.

This frustrating stream of events was getting under my skin, but I took a minute to relax and reminded myself that none of this should be unexpected. Mission trips are rarely a smooth process. I released my anger to God and went on with the group, passing through security and making it safely to Dallas for our connecting flight.

When we landed in Dallas, I was surprised and excited to find out that the original flight we were supposed to take was not delayed after all and that our group was in the process of being transferred back to our original flight. Things were looking up, but I wasn’t taking any chances. I grabbed some girls from our group and just stopped to pray. In the middle of the airport we gave the whole situation into the Lord’s hands, and asked Him to show up.

After that moment, I stopped worrying. And God did show up! Our flight was switched without any more hassle, and our whole group made it to Florida in good spirits.

However, the day was not over, and God provided one more lesson in providence before it came to an end. I know it sounds a little weird for a group on a “mission trip” to go out to a fancy restaurant, but we did. We went to the Cheesecake Factory of all places. I’d only been once before in my life, so this was a big treat. However, going to any restaurant on a Friday night with 15 people means a long wait. And I mean a LONG wait. We were told it would take about an hour, but when that hour turned into two hours, all of us were experiencing some impatience.

Now I know this is a mission trip, and I should be expecting the unexpected, but we were still in America. We weren’t in Haiti at all, and this was difficult. We were all starving by this point, one team member even said he was close to “angry bear mode.” But still we were waiting. I started getting anxious thoughts about not getting enough rest for the morning, or maybe even the restaurant closing before we could get something to eat.

And that’s when we did it, finally… it really shouldn’t have taken us this long. We prayed. We asked God to open up the tables so we could eat. It’s amazing what God will do, once you actually stop to ask Him for something. Within minutes the tables were clear and we were being seated.

And that’s the lesson I learned from day 1: Come to God with your problems, and don’t try to handle them alone. Suddenly you’ll find that your frustrations will become glimpses of God at work.

Haiti Stories

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