Ashlyn here! It’s been a wonderful day here with lots of sweet moments with the children and people of Haiti. We began the day driving 45 minutes to the outskirts of the Mole to do a VBS with the children in the Savane Mole. When we arrived we walked through the streets with our interpreters, Kenson and Pierre, inviting the children to come to VBS. On our way back towards the place where we were holding the VBS the children started to follow and one sweet girl came running up and grabbed my hand. The other children followed at a distance, but warmed up a bit once we got out the soccer ball.
After sharing God’s big story with the small group of children, we spent a while just playing and laughing. Julie had fun trying to learn a complicated hand clapping game with one of the older girls. At one point I was holding a little girl in the front, had another girl on my back and another holding on to my skirt. We were all just laughing and smiling. It’s been hard not being able to communicate with the people here, but laughter is a universal language. Matthew and Seth had a lot of fun playing with the parachute with the kids and watching the kids laugh so hard they would almost fall over every time the ball flew off the chute! I have also enjoyed hearing the children sing as they are sitting on my lap or working on a craft. There is just so much joy in the voice of a singing child!
On the drive back down I was just amazed at the beauty of this country. Everywhere you looked was just a snapshot of God’s amazing creation. After lunch we spent some time preparing for the Bible studies we would be doing with the men and the women later in the afternoon. I know for Julie and I this was one of the things we were feeling a bit anxious about, just wondering if we really had anything to share with these women who are so incredibly strong. But after a time of prayer, we were really just blessed with the Lord’s peace and felt his strength as we shared how much God valued women and the special place women have in His heart. It was really a beautiful time of community with our sisters in Christ.
Matthew and Seth had planned a study on being a man of God for the men of the community, but when no men showed up they were given an opportunity to just really pour into one of our interpreters and share with him about what a Godly husband and father looks like. Since he is newly married and also expecting his first child, this was just perfect timing and sometimes that’s just how God works! Instead of bringing a large group, he allowed for a time of in depth study with one person who really needed it. He is so good!
We are looking forward to two more really full days and are just excited to see what else the Lord has in store!
Jake, we are praying for you and the kids! We pray that the fevers will go down and good health will return! We also pray the Lord will strengthen you over the next few days!
