Helping our Community

Everywhere we go in Cyvadier, children call out our names. It would seem that the Lord is preparing us to be able to impact lives for Jesus. The other day one boy came to the Village to ask for Nixon. The little boy explained that he was not being allowed to go to school anymore because he did not have shoes. He showed Nixon his torn shoes and Nixon then shared it with our good friend Michelle who gave the boy shoes. The Lord is opening up all sorts of doors for us to be able to do good in our area and give the Lord all the credit for that.

Lancia is a 15 year old girl in our community. She is the girlfriend of one of our good friends who has gone to the Dominican Republic in search of a good job and steady income. Two months after he left, his mother approached Nixon with a problem, that her son's girlfriend thought she was pregnant. Leann, HCH, gave Nixon a pregnancy test and I did it. Lancia tested positive and has a bad home environment, no money, and no real support. Madam Robert is the mother of our friend Schiller, the baby's father. She really wanted the baby aborted and Nixon convinced her that that was not an option. Danny, Director of HCH, gave us all his support in helping Lancia. Since then, Lancia is now 5 months pregnant and Nixon and I try to find things for her to do and we pay her a little every week. Though our finances are tight, we want to put the "put others ahead of ourselves" into practice. We are grateful that the Lord is giving us opportunities to help those in our community. Blessed be the Lord. May it be for His glory and not our own.

Haiti

Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere though it was once called the Pearl of the Carribean. It began as a French colony and thrived in the 18th century due to importation of large members of African slaves. Slaves revolted and declared their independence in 1804. Since then unrest and political turmoil are common to see. It's poverty is striking, 80% live in poverty. The people are plagued by a lack of education, many times due to not having enough money to pay for tuition, uniforms and the books needed to get an education. There isn't enough work and so many families are starving. Yellow hair on children is common to see. The Haitian people very often are involved in voodoo, looking for that chance to escape misery. It seems like one voodoo holiday after another around here. And yet it is an island in the Carribean. The water is beautiful and (where there isn't deforestation) it is lush. The weather is always warm, too warm and humid for me. The people are friendly and curious when it comes to foreigners(blancs). And Haitians are very hardworking, it always surprises me that even though life is so hard for them (having to haul water daily, cook on coals, and handwash) they still smile so much and often sing as they work. There is nothing like Haiti and I know that the Lord Jesus longs for all His Haitian children to come back to Him. This is why my husband and I are serving in Haiti, to reach the Haitian people for Christ.

The Children of Haiti

They are beautiful! They run and play and yet they are accustomed to work as well. Many of them haul water and the girls handwash at an early age. They are better than I am at the handwashing thing. It is also common to see the children taking care of their siblings. They walk miles and miles to get to school. Sadly, many stop going to school at an early age. And sadly, many eat once or no times a day. Hunger is an epidemic in Haiti. Way too many children are malnourished and have yellow hair as well as bloated tumies, ussually filled with worms. They are very beautiful. Michelle, a fellow missionary friend, and I often talk about these Haitian children being the most beautiful children we've ever seen. Nixon and I both love children. They often come to the gate of the Village and yell out "Monsieur Nixon" in hopes that Nixon will give them candy. No matter what happens, they always seem to be smiling. Nixon and I had the opportunity to work with children when we were working with YWAM Jacmel and since then have had the opportunity to teach them English and we are now taking charge of a Junior church program at the church we attend here in Haiti. We are proud to say that we have 50-80 kids on a weekly basis, who are learning more about who God is. We are assisted with our Junior church program by HCH, Directors, Larry, and the children of HCH. We have a lot of fun with the kids, often doing skits, learning choreographies, and doing little presentations for the church who meets downstairs. Originally we started the program because the church had grown so much and the children no longer fit downstairs. You never know what the Lord has in store. Nixon and I will also be starting a children's Bible hour on Saturday mornings and taking advantage of that love that the children have for us so that we can introduce them to One that is SO MUCH GREATER!! AMEN?!