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| Verlyn and Cody Raak and Troy Van De Berg pouring a sidewalk for Lynn's wheelchair...right now it seems to lead to nowhere, but on the other side of that wall is the new orphanage compound...soon a door will be added to connect both properties. |
Day 71 of our Adventure in Haiti!
Just an hour or so ago I said “goodbye” to the team from First Reformed Church, Sioux Center, Iowa. There were also a few other people from two other Reformed churches who came on the team as well. All of them did a great job here with a variety of ministries and projects, from clinics to repair to cement work to VBS programs to english classes to just helping out in any way they could. They left to travel to Port-au-Prince during the day, just in case any political uprisings take place tonight. They will fly out and head home tomorrow.
It was really meaningful for me (Cory) to help lead a team of people from the church where I grew up. Two of the couples were the actual youth leaders who used to take me on mission trips in the summers, so we have really come full-circle. I even joked with the Haitian youth group that, “I thought they were all old back when I was in High School, but they are still going on mission trips!”
I think the overall feeling I will remember from this team is one of them being rock-solid in faith and commitment, which is no surprise. Most teams that come down here go through some pretty dramatic times of emotional adjustment when they are confronted with the poverty and the stark living conditions and the spiritual atmosphere. This group did a great job of wrestling with some of the difficult questions we face, yet they never wavered in their belief that Jesus Christ is the answer.
We did something unique this week. We talked about farming with the youth group each night, because many people on the mission team either farm for a living or grew up farming or at least are very familiar with the basic ideas. The young people here seem to be ashamed of farming and resistant to learning and carrying on the agricultural traditions of Haiti. We talked about that and applied God's Word to the situation. But when it was all said and done, Verlyn Raak probably gave the most impactful testimony of the week when he simply said, “I'm proud to be a farmer.” He and his wife Nancy also talked about how they see their work on the farm as mission work as they feed the people of the world.
Something funny you NW Iowa people will appreciate...Lynn's mom Ardith sent my favorite treat, Almond patties, to the Mission Haiti office about five or six weeks ago inside a care package. At that time Pam was coming a trip, but there was no room for the treats. In Pam's defense, I don't think she knew there was food in the package. Anyway, they finally made it down here on January 13, and they were in perfect shape! I think God did a miracle. Yum.
Alexandra fell on the cement and bruised/scrapred up her face pretty good, but she is fine now. Just yesterday a boy from the mountain came down and showed us his broken arm which he had kept untreated in a sling for weeks...it made Alexandra's injuries seem pretty small. He got an X-ray in the city today, and one of the wrist bones was broken clean in half. He will go back next Monday to get it fixed, hopefully.
In five days we will welcome another team from Sioux Center, from New Life Reformed Church. It should be another great week of ministry. I will try to update the blog several times before they come. We have so much to share because God is working powerfully every day we are here!
We hope you are all doing well and enjoying your adventure with Jesus!
God Bless,
The Grimm Family Adventurers
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