Salt & Light

 13″You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot…14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill can not be hidden.” Mathew 5:13-14

Friday we had a special friend head out to go back to the states. I think she said this was her 22nd trip into Haiti and it is always a blessing to have her with us. She taught Home Ec. before she retired and now the Lord uses her to teach and pass down the beautiful wisdom He has taught her to the Haitian people.

Usually when we have groups come in, each night there is someone who blogs about the day. She doesn’t like to blog so I thought I would share with you what Kathie has been up to these past 2 weeks;)

Each time she comes in she so lovingly pours into our kitchen staff and teaches them new recipes and ways to plan for each day and for the groups that we host. This trip was no exception. Being that my room is right by the kitchen it is always a joy to hear the ladies laughing and learning together. From learning how to make different types of bread  to experimenting with new sauces for rice and new ways to fix chicken… it is we who are blessed with the outcomes of these dishes. What I love most about it, though, is that the ladies get to learn something new and they are so eager to learn. Besides the ladies I believe Pierre is learning a thing or two about cooking as well, as he interprets for her:>)

It is beautiful to see the sense of pride that they have when we compliment them on the meal or when I tell the ladies how much I appreciate the way they take care of the kitchen. Kathie teaches them the value of keeping things clean and in Haiti this is really a huge deal. Selfishly I am grateful for the way they keep things clean, because like I said…I live right down the hall from the kitchen. I let them know on a continual basis how grateful I am to them because if they don’t keep it clean I see the effects by way of critters. I expect a few to slide through and you have read about some of them, but really I don’t battle the critters much…Praise the Lord!!I believe it is because of the way Kathie has taught them, encouraged them and loved on them. She has been the “salt and light” for these ladies.

She has also had her part in teaching and mentoring our mamma’s and workers at the orphanage. I’ve captured these ladies on several occasions using the tools that Kathie has passed on to them. Today was one of those days as I went to go play with the kiddos. One of the momma’s had made their version of hopscotch and the kids were in line waiting for their turn at it. Naomi grabbed me and said, “you go Miss Beth”. It has been way to long since I’ve played this, but after I did my jumping, the hoots and hollers went up and the clapping was all around. It was too funny. We gathered in a circle and also played their version of duck-duck-goose. We sang and clapped, made a human train and choo-choo danced around the room. With the momma’s in full participation…either clapping, laughing, singing or jumping on the train. I have loved seeing these ladies learn and grow and Kathie has been a great help and encouragement to them all.

This past Monday for our Ladies Bible Study Kathie brought the message to these precious ladies. She spoke from the above scriptures. She encouraged them to be the light and salt in their home, church and community. She used her lamp and a container of salt to illustrate God’s message. It was a beautiful object lesson for them to grab on to. We passed out a container of salt and a little flashlight to each lady to help them to remember. Momma Gigi followed up with encouragement to the ladies from this message to help bring it home. Love it when she does this!!

Before Kathie headed out she also taught Madame NeNe and Momma Gigi….as well as Pierre:>) how to make communion bread. If you could see the interaction between these ladies it is priceless. Whether it is the Church Ladies, the Momma’s or staff we are so grateful for Kathie’s service to the Lord. She is a treasure to us all.

THANK YOU KATHIE AND MAY THE LORD BLESS YOU AS YOU HAVE BLESSED US.

WE LOVE YOU. THANK YOU FOR BEING SALT AND LIGHT TO US ALL!!!