I have to tell you that the presents and lights and movies have been lots of fun. Since I was little I have always been about Christmas – celebrating weeks and weeks before Christmas Day. I love seeing the excitement in the eyes of little children. I love creating an environment here in Haiti where children can forget about where they are – if even for just a few hours. I can easily get wrapped up into those things as much as the next person. But my heart really was touched on Christmas Eve as hundreds of children gathered upstairs to hear about Jesus. We knew that we were going to serve a big meal for the kids. Because of that – we could only let in 300-400 children so that everyone would have food. The children were lined up outside the gate nearly two hours early.

I was standing upstairs where the groups eat – looking over the courtyard. When the gates swung open I saw children RUNNING and SCREAMING in excitement. There was a moment when I saw those gates open that I pictured the gates of Heaven and the children running to enter in. Watching them run with such innocent joy and excitement I felt like I got a glimpse of what God sees every day as children enter His Kingdom. Tears immediately filled my eyes and my heart was just overcome with emotion.

When the children sat upstairs Pierre and I began to talk to them about Jesus. When I asked if everyone knew why we celebrated Christmas a few people answered – “Yes – Everyone knows”. So I then asked for them to raise their hand if they knew about Christmas. In the crowd of hundreds maybe 20 kids raised their hands. Yes – they’ve heard of the name of Jesus. How could you live in St. Louis du Nord and not have at least heard His name? But did they really know about His birth? Did they really know what this Jesus guy is about? NO – they didn’t.

I was just planning to show the movie the Nativity and let them learn about Jesus that way but what if they fell asleep during the show? What if they didn’t understand it because it was in French? What if they left tonight and never knew why we were celebrating this special holiday? No – I couldn’t let that happen. So I told them all about Jesus. I told them about His birth and how He came to save little children just like them. I told them this Jesus just isn’t for the Americans or short-term missionaries who come to Haiti but He came for everyone – including all of Haiti.

After sharing the Gospel, we prayed. Then we got ready to start the movie. We decided that half-way through we would stop the movie and serve the food. This way we could also answer any questions they had about what they were seeing on the screen. Before I sat down a little kid  - maybe 10 years old came to me. He said – -” You said that Jesus came for children like us and that He doesn’t like it when we are hungry and we suffer. If that is true – then why doesn’t He stop it. If He can do anything why do I go to bed hungry every night?”

My eyes again filled with tears. How do you answer that? How do we not sometimes wonder that ourselves? Why are some blessed and others aren’t? And those of us who maybe don’t understand but accept it – how do you explain that to a little 10 year old?

My children were getting ready to have a big Christmas that night. All the presents were wrapped and my family was ready to start celebrating this special day. I was showing movies every night, giving snacks, and doing all those “good deeds”. That was enough right? I shouldn’t feel guilty for being so blessed when I was trying to help so many others right? Well that lie got me through 9 nights of movies – but didn’t do much for my soul on the 24th as I had to answer to this little 10 year old, who probably hadn’t had a bath in days, who’s black shirt was full of holes, he had no shoes, and his shorts were 2 sizes too big.

Before I could even come up with an answer -the movie started. The boy excitedly left me and sat down to watch the film. I had been “saved”. I felt relieved that I didn’t have to answer that question. However – since that night – all I can think about is the answer. I know that what doesn’t make sense in this lifetime will make perfect sense in the next – but it’s so hard to really believe that when the reality of the world is all around you. It’s so hard to believe that when the reality is lined outside my door every single morning – when the knocks on my door at night mean serious problems for our employees, women in the birthing center, or children in our programs –  and when death, disaster, and disappointment wait outside the gates every day.

I don’t always understand the chapters in this book – but again – I remember that I’m only playing a role in His story. The honest answer is – these are His people. He holds the pen and with a simple mark on the page can change the entire world. Just because the pages don’t make sense – doesn’t mean that there are any errors in His writings. He continues to show me that this isn’t about me but it’s about Him. He reminds me of that so much – sometimes more than I’d like.

All I know is that on Jesus’ Birthday – hundreds of children got to learn about Him and hundreds of children went to sleep with a full belly. And until He changes the flow on the pages – we all need to remember our role and do what we can to be the face of Jesus to everyone He places on our path.

Don’t think someone else will do it. Last year we could fit everything in one large garbage bag and there’s over a 1000 people that read the blog. SO – As everything goes on sale -if you could buy Christmas square table cloths, all kinds of garland, any indoor decoration decorations, outdoor decorations and LIGHTS! We love solid color strands of lights – any color!

Also -don’t forget we’re decorating the baby orphanage as Candy Land all year round. So lighted candy canes, or candy decorations – - gingerbread decorations – - anything that you think goes with the game – pick it up for our little babies!

Have lots of fun!! You can send everything to:

NWHCM/CHRISTMAS DECOR

PO BOX 829

Versailles, KY 40383

OR

UPS:

NWHCM/CHRISTMAS DECOR

150 Laralan

Building E

Frankfort, KY 40601

Our Staff Christmas Party was Saturday night. There were nearly 200 of us all gathered together  - singing, laughing, dancing, and eating! Diane Cornelius has a bridal store that donated dresses for the women to wear to the party! Everyone was so beautiful!

I have never seen so much food. We filled counter after counter and had to add several tables too. We served food throughout the night – however – we didn’t hit the main courses until 10pm. I MC’d the party and tried to add my humor in between all the acts. We had several singers, some told jokes, and some read poems –  but the highlight was the Haitian break-dancers! The employees were going crazy watching them dance and jumping over each other! SO –  I decided to add to the mix and do some of my own stunts like dancing and jumping over Jose! The employees laughed so hard they cried.

It was just such great fellowship. I think for 5 hours that night we got to forget our social status – forget our problems – and really just enjoy each other’s company.We were truly one big family.

Jose and I wanted to do something special for the kids in town. Last year we started showing films a few days before Christmas. This year we decided to show 10 days of Christmas movies and to add a special treat each night. Last night they had hot chocolate and bread. Tonight they had hot chocolate and popcorn. Then when we get to the 24th – we’re having a HUGE meal with rice/beans and chicken! We’re so excited. What a great way to spend Christmas Eve – feeding hungry children and watching the Nativity Movie. Makes it easier for me to enjoy Christmas knowing kids are going to bed with full bellies.

I have to tell you that these last few nights have been so good for my family. I love sitting downstairs with the people – laughing and fellowshipping. I watch the girls share their treats with other children. I watch Gabriel run around and tease other little boys. Last night we made cookies and this morning they were all gone. Last night Mikela, Rosie, and Malaya were sneaking upstairs to get cookies to give to their friends down in the courtyard.

Malaya came to me tonight with one of her barbie dolls. She told me she needs wrapping paper. I asked her what she was doing? She said she met a friend and her friend didn’t have any dolls. So she wanted to wrap up her barbie doll to give to the little girl. As soon as Mikela and Rosie saw what Malaya was doing – they went and got some of their toys to wrap up to give away too. It was just so beautiful for me to see how giving my little girls are. Now Gabriel – not so much! Malaya went to grab one of his toys and he said – NO MINE! MINE MINE! Oh well – can’t win them all!!

Tomorrow night is our Staff Christmas party. All the women got new dresses to wear to the party thanks to Diane Cornelius and her wedding shop! Coming to a party here is like going to a 1970’s prom! They all dress up with fancy dresses from the 70’s and 80’s! I love it!

Here are a few pictures!!

Sleep In Heavenly Peace....

We hope you have a peaceful Christmas and an amazing New Year!

What a wonderful blessing it has been to be able to come along side Jody and Jose and teach their three little girls. Many of you have been inquiring as to how they are doing in class and what they have been learning. Mikela, Rosie and Malaya are very different when it comes to learning styles, listening skills and discipline, but I find it so rewarding to witness how the Lord shapes each of our days with teachable moments in and outside the classroom. God’s Word tells us that we should train our children in the way he should go and I am a firm believer that we need to recognize that each child will not be trained in all things the same way or at the same time and level. Reaching not only their minds, but their hearts. The girls are no exception and the Lord has been so good at leading me to knew ideas to not only reach their hearts, but in how to teach them and challenge them. It is certainly not a normal classroom in the sense that each one is doing the same thing, but each one has something a litlle different to accompish for the day. We do have things that we do together, but then I break it down to their level of learning.

Mikela progressed quickly thru the writing of her alphabet and I began working more on preparing her to read. Introducing the sounds that each of the letters make. Just this past week we finished on a website that helps her to read and put the different sounds and combo’s of letter sounds together. She started to read a starter book that I brought in with me and to see her face light up when she finishes each page is priceless. She is excited to get started reading the books and looking forward to the stories I will bringing in after Christmas. We are working hard on addition problems and though she forgets how to write 11-19 (she does them backwards), she has just started recognizing she is wrong and fixes it. She is learning to recognize her groups of 10 and 2 and has just learned how to do problems >< and =. I gave her a set of these problems this past week and she returned it back to me with all correct. She asked me if she could do more. Mikela is almost always the first person to raise her hand to answer a question I might have from a story I have read and usually it is more than expected. She does love to tell stories and though this can be a good attribute it can also cause her trouble in knowing if her story is real or if it really happened. I have to do some probing with her to verify truth from fiction. Instilling the importance of truth and helping her see the difference is very much a heart issue. We pray together about this very thing and to hear her pray to God for His help is such a blessing and a joy to hear. I sometimes have her pray upstairs before a meal and to hear her heart blows my socks off. Just the other day she prayed for the little ones in the baby orphanage that they would stay healthy and would know Jesus. Mesi Jezi:>)

Rosie is being challenged everyday in that she is wanting to do what the other girls are doing, but her pace of learning isn’t quite where they are. I have to say God uses her to show not just her sisters, but me as well, how to persevere and not give up. She does have her days when she can get frustrated, but on those days we recall how the Lord has brought her to this point and that He is with her helping her to learn in His time and His way. There is such a huge difference from the time she began class in Sept. to now and I truly believe with continued encouragement and prayer that God has a special plan for her. I am reminded of Helen Keller and the struggles of life that she had to face and how she had such a spirit of perseverence. I see that spirit in Rosie, but I also see how she can turn the other way if the encouragement and prayer is lacking or if she is placed in a certain mold. I told her the other day, when she was struggling to remember what a square is, that I wasn’t going to give up on her and together we were going to tackle the challenges. She knows she has to work hard, but to know she has others cheering her on puts a light in her eyes and heart. It is so fun to watch. Just yesterday I wrote out the ABC’s for her and asked her to copy each one. For the very first time she copied almost every single one and it brought tears to my eyes and an excitement that made Rosie so very proud of herself. Her smile just blessed my heart. She can now recognize almost every letter as well. If you could see where she began and where she is now, it is truly amazing as to what the Lord is doing. She continues to progress in her speech as well as working on areas of balance and body movement. Courtney has found that she picks up sign language fairly easy and may incorporrate that with her as well. She reconizes and writes her numbers 1-10 though she forgets her 9 and 7 at times. She is progressively getting better at making lines and shape. Rosie is usually the first one into class each morning and early at that and much of the time she asks to do her alphabet, number, and shape flashcards. Her heart is so beautiful as well. With everyone gone Rosie has took it upon herself to sit with me at meal time so that I am not alone. She will even go as far as eat dinner at her house and then eat again with me:>) How precious is that? Mesi Jezi:>)

Malaya is my quiet one, but as the weeks have progressed, she has been spreading her wings. She enjoys going down to the Grand Moun to say hello to the folks and at first she would cower behind my skirt. We talked about shaking their hand and saying hello as well as looking at them with her sweet smile. I talked to her about how much they love that and makes them feel cared for. She walks down the stairs and begins her hello’s now before I reach the bottom of the stairs. Malaya will do any work I have for her to do and much of the time she will do more than I ask of her. I may ask her to write her G’s 8 times, but she will write them 20 times. I praise her for such a great job, but I also let her know we are learning how to listen and follow directions. She is to the point now that she will say “Miss Beth I didn’t do the directions” and she will start all over again. Malaya recognizes and writes all of her letters and numbers 1-10 and she can count to 30. Like Mikela she struggles with the teen numbers and writes them backwards as well as the letter S. We are also begining to do addition problems and she is picking up on this pretty well. She enjoys doing papers and enjoys coloring and drawing. We went a period of time where all she would draw was people which were always family and friends. It was basically the same picture all the time until one day I challenged her…I told her know people, but try animals or shapes. She had just a brief moment and then she went at it. She was so proud of herself. Now she is drawing houses. We have also have been working a bit on her speech and the way she makes some of the combo’s of sounds. She is always full of questions for me and with the biggest being “are we doing papers today” and “what are we doing next”. Patience Malaya Patience and she just smiles. You have to love that smile. Mesi Jezi:>)

In the midst of the girls lessons we read Bible stories and there is always a teachable moment to instill and show Christ’s character. From God’s promises to sharing the Gospel to praying for His help and guidance. Our days are filled with those moments and I tell the girls all the time I am watching for those moments in the choices they make and how they interact with each other and those on the Mission. The moments are endless, but the growth I see is a blessing.

“Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” With those words, a young girl living in Israel found her life changed. And with her life – our lives as well.

Our image of Mary prevents us from appreciating the enormity of what transpired in those moments that would lead to a changed world. Mary, without being consulted, without being given a choice, and without any warning or preparation, was told that she would be a mother and would bear a son who would be called Jesus. (Douglas Yeo at Hope Church in Lenox).

I imagine that night in the stable. Mary being 9 months pregnant was surely very miserable. I can only imagine the stench that overtook the stable where she was housed with the barn animals. No power, no running water, no fan to cool her down, or a bed to rest her head.  I can see a small wooden shack with straw covering the roof and a dirt ground  -maybe a lantern providing the only light that would help bring Jesus into this world.

This picture I have in my mind – the stable – is probably not that much different than the huts that surround the northwest part of Haiti.  I imagine Christmas night here for our Haitian brothers and sisters. Much like Mary did – they too spend their nights with no power -on a muddy floor they sleep – wooden sticks to hold up their straw roofs – and maybe a lantern as the only source of light.

There is however one big difference in the two stories above. The difference being – despite Mary’s poverty at that time – she got to touch and feel the face of Jesus. She knew right away what role she would play in His story.

Friends, our Haitian brothers and sisters spend their nights just like Mary did. What a tragedy if they never get to experience the face of Jesus. We might not be able to put a present in every home across Haiti – but we can give them a gift to unwrap – a gift that will sustain them long after the batteries have died and the toys are broken.

Can you imagine the excitement in the eyes of the families when they get to see Jesus – to be able to reach the parents who feel like there’s no hope? We have this beautiful face of Jesus – His majestic – magnificent – full of mercy  – full of peace – full of compassion – King that is Jesus – to share with every single person in the northwest part of Haiti. We can give them a chance to feel the wrinkles in His forehead, to see His brows of mercy, the softness in His cheeks, and the compassion in His eyes.

Those who’ve been here you know exactly what I’m talking about.  Time after time short-term missionaries come to Haiti – some every single year. They see the huts where children huddle together – on dirty blankets they lay and rain pours down on their faces.  They see the mothers with children who are dying – their skin swollen and bursting open from wet malnutrition. They see the special-needs children who were abandoned and shunned and told they had no value.

With their own eyes they experience the things we see every single day.  Some people do come back and respond to their heart’s call to help. I think sometimes though most of us go back home – get caught up in our day to day and we begin to forget the things that we knew would change our lives forever. Our clothes are washed and thrown back in the suitcase – the suitcase thrown in the back of the closet –  and we resume our lives until it’s time to come back to Haiti the next year.

Forgive me if I offend you. But folks – this isn’t just a playground where you come every year and you see your friends and do a few good deeds. This is the battlefield. The line outside my office continues to grow and yet the faces I see – most will only cross my path once – then they’re gone. How do I know this? Because today we buried one of the very children I wrote about last Monday.

We can unwrap hope for every child, every family, every village, and every zone in this entire Nation. In fact – God has called us to do this very thing. But I am telling you that we cannot do this alone. I do not believe it is okay to see with our eyes the sufferings in front of us and stand-by and do nothing.

I am making a plea to you – to those who love this mission – to those who read missionary blogs every week – to those who’s heart cannot take the sufferings of those in need – to those who come here every year – to those who think they have nothing yet know they have 100 times more than over half the world – - – it’s time. It’s time to put our money where our faith is. To believe in our Creator and to step out and give a life-time guarantee to someone who’s days are numbered and might leave this world without ever knowing the face of Jesus. It’s time.

Jose and I had Bible study with Beth (our homeschool teacher) a few days ago. Having felt defeated for the past several days it was a wonderful time of fellowship and prayer. I don’t know about you – but I often get the voices mixed up in my head. I wanted to share with you what Beth shared with us. I’m not sure what thoughts are roaming through your head right now but maybe this might clarify who’s really speaking into you.

It’s 3am and I have spent the last two hours in tears – praying for strength and for understanding. I have known since I was little that I was called to Haiti. I never realized the position I would hold or the kind of influence I would have in our small community but today was one of those days where I was reminded.

Before I put my key in my office door I had been stopped by 3 people. Innocent is one of our security guards. A few days ago he asked me if I had a tarp or something I could use to help cover his house. He said his children are getting wet at night and starting to catch a cold. It had been a while since I had seen him and he looked skinner than I remembered. Yet I had nothing to offer him – I didn’t own a tarp. It poured down rain Sunday night. My mind immediately drifted to his family. I looked at Gigi, Mikela, Rosie, Malaya, Gabriel, Levi, and Asher – - all asleep – - all dry — all in their own bed. I could only imagine what their night was like. This morning Innocent in his frustrations asked me – how can I let him suffer like this? If his children get sick – I need to remember that I did nothing.

Two other people followed behind him with small little children who were weak and sick. They were hungry and wanted me to feed them. I found Wisley and gave them a ziplock bag of rice. I didn’t have any beans. Of course as soon as I did 10 more people came with a story and I had to tell them I couldn’t help them all.

One after another they came to me today. I had more people lined outside my door than I could count. I had a worker tell me that her daughter is sick. She needs money for medicine –  that our pharmacy doesn’t have what she needs. I truly had no money to give. In her frustration she yelled at me. She said the Bible says when you turn your back on the poor you are turning your back on Him. When she buries her child – I need to remember that I did nothing.

I watched as Angeline (the lady who lost her husband last week) at church on Sunday. This woman sold everything she has – her bed, her table, and anything else she had to pay for medicine to save her husband. She sleeps on a blanket on the floor of her home with her two children. Her home is empty in so many ways and yet on Sunday I saw her with her arms in the air – her eyes closed – and she was praising her Savior.

She walked past my office to greet me and thanked me for visiting her the other day. She didn’t ask me for anything but just told me she loved me. She walked out of my office and I put my head on my desk and I wept.

Magdala went and got Wisley and they both came into my office to talk to me. I told them – is it not a sin that I cannot help these people? There are things happening all over this community and we are watching people suffer right infront of us. It’s like watching your child get too close to the road and you see him do it everyday and the next thing you know he gets hit by a car. We watched the whole thing unfold before us and we never empowered ourselves to stop it.

I listened to a sermon on Sunday. The preacher threw out 2 $1.00 bills into the audience. No one even bothered to pick them up. It’s like what would we Americans do with $2.00? Yet 54% of the world lives off of $2.00 a day. We talk about how poor we are and yet do we realize that the average American makes 100 times what the average person in the world makes?

I think about the times when I don’t know how my family is going to make it and I think about the Haitian who would dare hear me say that. If I make 100 times what they make  - do you think they have any sympathy for me? It’s like Donald Trump saying – things are tight – I had to sell one of my airplanes. We would laugh at that and yet to 54% of the world – they could look at us the same way we look at Trump.

I’m thinking about Angeline who truly has nothing – and yet she praises her Creator. The preacher in the sermon said that the hardest people to get to Heaven are the rich. We have everything and therefore we don’t rely on God. The poor people – they count on God for every need. So even when they have so little – they are so thankful. There is a general contentment here in a country where the people have nothing. Yet we have everything and are never satisfied.

I have felt so helpless today. Wisley told me it’s one thing when you have something and you choose not to give. But it’s another thing when you have nothing to begin with. I realize that’s true and it’s a great excuse – but yet I know in my heart when I say I have nothing – - I still have 100 times more than they do.

I remind myself constantly that these are His people. This is HIS story. I don’t understand the chapters in the book but I pray daily to make the decisions He would want me to make. I pray that I never turn my back on someone if there is a way to really help them. I know that we make life and death decisions every day. It’s a reality here. I know God holds the pencil – but we have the eraser. I don’t ever want to erase something that God has laid out before me….

We’ve had so much fun the last several days cooking, laughing, and joking around with our mission family. When Jose and I decided we would start doing our Thanksgivings in Haiti – we really wanted to make it special. In the states you have all your extended family. When you live in a 3rd world country – not many people want to fly in for the Holidays! So we thought what better way to begin our Thanksgivings here than to have our mission family gather in our home and create a new tradition. Four years ago we started with 16 people and this year we had 38! Jose and I gave up our seats so a few more people could join.

Oh what fun! We all stood and said what we were thankful for. I have to tell you something that Angeline said that totally blew me away. Angeline’s husband died last week with TB. She stood up and said – Thank you Lord for giving me a husband that I could love here on earth. Then she broke down and cried. Can you imagine? I don’t know that I’d be “thanking” God for anything so shortly after someone I loved died – and yet here she is still giving God glory!

Every year someone at the party ends up announcing their pregnancy. The first year it was me. The 2nd year it was Ginnete. The third year it was me again. This year the lady who watches our kids – Immadel – announced she was expecting! Every time a lady spoke to say what she was thankful for – we all would say SURPRISE – waiting to see who would be the lucky one!

It was just so good to sit together and laugh. It was nice to have some Americans with us this year too. Beth, Matt, and Courtney were a wonderful addition!  In a country where there is such heart-ache on a daily basis – we all got to “forget” for just a little bit. There was so much food – I mean the line went on for forever! People made 2 and 3 trips to the buffet. I am just SO THANKFUL for my family in the states and my family here in Haiti. There is no other place I would rather be.