Words and pictures will never be able to describe how our
trip to Haiti was. You go with intentions to plant growing seeds in a nation,
and the nation ends up planting these growing seeds in you. Hundred fold.
Indescribable.
I think God tells us to “GO” for a reason. Go into all the
world. Go and make disciples. Let
them Go. Go in the strength you have. Go, stand and speak. Go for us. Go. 1544
times.
I think one of my biggest prayers for this past week was God, how can I take what I have learned in
Haiti and bring it back home? Last summer when I visited Haiti, my main
realization was not how poor Haiti is, but how poor we are here- in spirit, in
faith, in family, in joy, in love. Our time here is so short and I know that
when we are looking into the eyes of Jesus, financial riches will be nothing
compared to the rich lifestyles of the hearts of those I met this past week
when I returned to the country I love so very much. Poverty takes on a new
definition when you think about it.
We are so very caught up in daily distractions, we don’t
even see the beauty of God’s creation right outside of our front door. Our lenses
are too foggy to go.
I’ve come to realize- I’m overwhelmed.
 |
| (our guest house in Oban, Haiti) |
On our final day in Haiti, we woke up with the sun and had a bumpy drive from our guesthouse in busy Port-Au-Prince to the airport. Perfumed in the sweet smell of bugspray and sweat, we hopped in the bus with tired eyes and waved final “au revoirs” to those outside our windows. We arrived at the Haitian airport, passed slowly through the security lines, and grabbed coffee. After a sleepy two-hour flight, we landed in Miami and proceeded to go through customs and security again. During our four-hour layover in Florida, we grabbed quick lunches and more plane snacks and our whole team napped between the blue cushion seats at our gate.
We hopped on another plane and landed in Atlanta right before dinner time, finally grabbed our luggage and headed to our vehicles. Our team agreed that queso and salsa were the answer to a day of sleepy travels. Exhausted, we decided upon Pancho’s and were greeted with large baskets of salty tortilla chips and what seemed like the longest menu list. So many choices. The tiredness and overwhelming sense of overstimulation set in. Drinks. Appetizers. Small. Medium. Large. Sides. Sauces. Salsas. All the restaurant noise. Lights everywhere. Noises from all angles. And then a three-member mariachi band paraded around our table and played a long, fast tune. Our tired team passed delirious laughs and looks to each other. And the long, loud mariachi tunes just kept on playing. So much noise.
And then boom. It hit me.
This is how we live each day. So
much noise, it’s overwhelming. Everywhere we go here. It’s like a 24-7 mariachi
band circling us from all angles all the time. (which…I have nothing against
mariachi bands….I usually find them quite enjoyable. Just in the moment it was
quite overwhelming.) We wonder why we can’t take our present and focused thoughts
back with us from Haiti and then realize it may because we have 126 new emails,
9 different social media accounts, 12 Netflix shows to-watch cued in our
brains. A preponderance of stores to choose from, hundreds of options for
dinner, 14 text messages, 32 envelopes in our mailbox. 28 pairs of shoes, 22 nail
polish colors, 52 t-shirts.
4 different email accounts, 5 different classes. Tall,
short, grande, venti. Light roast, medium roast, dark roast. So many choices. So
much noise. Overwhelmed.
Even in our quiet time- so much noise. I have six daily
devotional books, five bibles, and so many journals I can’t even count. And I'm lucky if I can find more than 15 minutes of quiet time each day. Why are
we covering simplicity with so many distractions? Jesus gave us His word, told
us to follow him, and love others. So simple, yet, so hard here.
During our week in Haiti, our trip leader Stacy had us write a word on a stone that describes what we learned from the week- just a reminder to take home with us. My friend Amelia wrote the word "Renewal" on her stone, and I think it's a word we can all benefit from and be reminded of.
I've been feeling overwhelmed, but this past week has renewed me, refocused me, and recentered me. How can I take what I learned in Haiti and bring it back here? Well, I know it isn't going to be easy. But I'm hoping to make some simplicity changes mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. We've complexed the most greatest of loves, and instead I want to be overwhelmed by His presence, His grace, His love. I know spending seven days in Haiti isn't going to vastly change that nation. Or our nation. But our God has done big things in seven days before (Genesis 2:1-2) and I think God can plant seeds for growth and change. And this joyfully overwhelms me in a renewed way.
