Final Trip Update: Their Own Words

Our team has made its way home…leaving our hearts in Haiti. As we return to our cul-de-sacs and lattes, it will be hard to find the words to explain what we have witnessed. Many of us are well-traveled in indigenous countries, but to see the poorest of the poor loose all the little they had is difficult to comprehend.  Amidst this devastation, the faith of the Haitian people surpasses all human understanding. Without the Haitian Christian church, thousands more children would be dying now. The pastors we met cannot hold on to hope or life for these children for long without the outstretched arms of sisters and brothers in Christ.

All told, HORT visited more than 50 churches, a dozen orphanages and spoke to 170 pastors.  But of all the words of all those visits, a few scribbled words of a child may have touched me the most.

One day as we were leaving a small, primitive church, the orphans who had gathered there for shelter and care stuffed these little notes in my pockets.

I asked the pastor what these were…he said they are the children’s prayer requests.

On these tiny scraps, these children had written their hopes and dreams for help from America. Tearfully, I tucked them into my pocket, intending to have them translated later. But somehow I could never bring myself to do it. The specifics of their words matter little compared to the faith that they represent. Just knowing that these little prayers went up to heaven by way of my pocket was overwhelming.

God can meet these requests…through you. In the upcoming weeks we will be posting profiles here of some of these churches that are caring for children in Haiti. Pray for your church to come alongside a Haitian church so that these children, and their prayerful words, can be redeemed to God’s glory.  Contact HORT today.

Jodi Tucker for HORT