Few words could truly describe today’s experience. We saw miracles and answers to prayers. Though the driving was very bumpy, we were in high spirits to and from our destinations. We had been praying that Jean would be able to visit his family while in Haiti. He hadn’t seen them in two years and in faith, he had gathered many donations to take to them. Hear from Jean, in his own words…
Today, I, Jean Dorisca, had the opportunity to go to my hometown to bless my family and friends with all kinds of donations received from neighbors, my church and my fellow disciples from Richmond, Virginia. The name of our Lord was glorified through the joy and the elation that I observed on the faces of my cousin, his children, and my stepfather and his children. I gave away my laptop and my camera, and was thus unable to take pictures of the desolation and the destruction that I saw. Television cannot truly do justice to the devastation that ravaged the town of Leogane where my cousin lives. He lives in a tent. The inside temperature was about 125 degrees, and yet they keep trusting in the goodness of the Lord to provide.
Russ praying for Jean before he left to visit his family.
The rest of our team headed out for a day of adventure, prayer walking, and God appointments. We first made a stop at a craft market for ten minutes, before realizing that we were short on time. Rolande had arranged for us to go into the Presidential Palace through her friend, Dr. Salomon, who works with the President of Haiti and is a civil engineer. Our plan was to simply get on the grounds and prayer walk. But God had a better plan! Upon arriving at the Presidential Palace we discovered that our names were listed on a security clearance list. We were issued our visitor passes, walked across a parking lot and saw the President of Haiti! He greeted each of us and we had our picture taken with him.
Our names on the Security List
Our team with President Rene Preval
Soon after, the president requested to speak with Rolande some more. Meanwhile, we went into a trailer and met with a government official named Michelle. She pulled out a chart and spent the next hour explaining to us the strategy the government had developed in response to the earthquake. We learned that 1.3 million people are displaced and living in tent cities. She also explained that 15,000 of these people are top priority: they need to be removed from their areas because they are at the highest risk for flooding in the current hurricane season. While the government has made many plans to restore their country, they do not have the resources necessary to put them into effect. While many NGOs and nonprofits are doing work in Haiti, they do not have to report to the Haitian government and the government itself lacks financial capability. We surrounded Dr. Salomon and Michelle, some of the top leaders of Haiti, and prayed for them. It was beautiful.
We ended our time at the palace by taking a tour of what had once been a magnificent building. Standing on the palace lawn and looking forward, you could see a large tent city; looking behind you, you could see the ruined palace. It was a tragic picture of the city after the earthquake. Upon leaving the Palace we met the Secretary of the General Assembly who was the former Minister of Foreign Affairs, another of Rolande’s friends! We surrounded him and prayed for him. It was powerful to be able to pray for the leaders of Haiti on site with insight. We believe God had this as a divine plan for us and perhaps, as Rolande believes, our primary purpose for being here.
Prayerwalking at the Palace. God give the leaders wisdom and resources to rebuild their country for Your glory!
After spending the morning at the Presidential Palace, we left and travelled to a school that Rolande supports. The school was wonderful. When we arrived, the children sang us a song of welcome and prayed over us. We prayed over them as well and handed out tons of stickers. The kids loved all the colorful stickers places on their shirts, hands, arms, and foreheads. We also gave them kites, Frisbees, and balls. Playing with the children was another highlight of the day!
Finally, we went to an orphanage. Rolande donated her house (the house she raised Norlande in) and the land for this orphanage. This was so refreshing to see – a orphanage where all the children were well dressed, well loved, and well cared for, especially after seeing many poorly run orphanages. The house was beautiful and the pastor of the orphanage was such a kind man. Though we didn’t get to spend a lot of time there, the orphanage was a hopeful, beautiful place to visit.
Norlande and friend!
The grand finale of the day was eating delicious food at a Haitian restaurant. Upon exiting the restaurant a woman came up to Norlande and said she looked exactly like her niece who had been killed in the earthquake. Norlande prayed for the woman and brought several of us to tears. We got home late! Tomorrow we are leaving early to go to Rolande’s house for worship and homemade Haitian food before we head to the airport.
This mission has been an amazing experience. God has revealed His glory in us and through us this week. We have made some great relationships and met some wonderful people with incredible hearts for the Lord.
Thank you for your prayers. You have been a very significant part of this mission. Please keep praying. We are scheduled to arrive in Houston at midnight Saturday. Check back later because we are posting more photos!
