loving

a random post awaits you :)

twelve of the orphans had previously asked Jesus to save their soul and today they participated in believer's baptism. they came dressed in their sunday best. we felt so honored to be asked to attend. all of us here are sponsors to these kiddos and you feel like you have a little hand in their life. seeing this outward profession of faith was awesome! and the singing! oh the singing! they sing with passion and don't hold back! it was the best rendition of 'this is my story, this is my song...' that i probably will ever hear :)

these kids have to be some of the cutest on the planet. today we played hopscotch, just sat and held them, some went to the market and bought them sunglasses (and lots of orphanage supplies), and we set up a payless shoe store of sorts :) and had each child come one by one to pick out a pair. the men got all the cubicles finished, closets started, and rooms rearranged. and a project for next time is we have decided that we have to get them a concrete pad with basketball goal to take up part of the rock yard :(

last night as i laid in bed, i was so content. and it is a different content than home. here the lighting is very dim. but there is electricity and i thank the Lord for it. here there is no hot water. but there is water to bathe in and i thank the Lord for that and for plenty of bottled water. here there is no air conditioning. but i thank the Lord for the floor fan that blows on my face. here there are no smooth roads anywhere. but i thank the Lord for the Jesus bus that bounces us from place to place.

several of the team have asked how haiti compares to rwanda. that is kinda tough because both places are so so so impoverished, it is just mind-blowing. from a landscape standpoint, there is just no comparison - rwanda hands-down. haiti is barren. dry. the mountains are just giant dirt hills with ginormous ruts from the rain carving rivers into them. the people are friendly. the kids are indescribable. those things are the same.

it is so right to be here. i have always been comfortable being among those less fortunate. i love to serve and being here provides ample opportunity. i hope the Lord allows us to come back here over and over and over. it doesn't even feel far from home :)

and this trip completely confirmed in my heart the need and desire to adopt from ethiopia. all these kids want, need,and crave is love and attention. to withhold that when we are fully capable of providing it to two more would, for us, be sin. plain and simple.

dinner is about ready so i will wrap it up for today. if you have prayed for our physical protection and spiritual growth, your prayers are being answered. thank you so much. i am so proud of ben and sam. they are hard workers and are pros at loving on orphans. today i took from sam a necklace we had bought him (right after falling off the dock into the ocean :), his crocs, and his flashlight. others needed them more. we can replace his and we can't replace the opportunity to be a blessing.

one final thing that struck me on the plane into miami. have you ever looked out a plane window and just been amazed at the amount of people and homes below? and to think that God knows what is going on in every city around the world, in the room of every house, in the heart of every person is just something that makes me realize just how immense HE is! i just can't get my mind or heart around that - not only did HE set the stars in the heavens, HE oversees every little speck on the earth. HE doesn't miss a thing. not one orphan goes unseen. not one kind thing you do goes unseen. HE is that big. i love that about HIM.

xoxoxo to smurf, thomas, abigail, sarah, and phoebe (and chrissy :)