Praying for Haiti

Friends, can you believe it?  In just a few short days, I'm returning to Haiti, one of the poorest countries in the world but one of the dearest to my heart.

This trip will be so different from my last, and I've been praying to enter this adventure with no expectations except that God would be glorified and that I would be changed by His love and this experience into more of the woman He created me to be.

Will you join me in praying for Haiti and specific prayer requests for our trip?  As with my last trip, Delmas Christian Church has wifi at night, once the generator turns on, so I will be able to update everyone via Facebook on most nights.  Now that I've joined the modern world with an iPhone, I'm hoping to also upload pictures and videos during and after the trip.

Here are some specific prayer requests and more information about our trip and our goals. 

---Pray for the preschool teacher our partner ministries, International Therapy Outreach Teams (iTOT) and Connect 2 Ministries is hiring to work with children with special needs in Christian preschools in Haiti.  I am so excited that this trip is about empowering Haitians to care for their own people, to teach them how to do disability ministry, to give these forgotten children a chance of hope in eternity through Jesus.  Pray that the right person is found, that they have a true heart for God and all His children, and that we as a team build strong relational ties with this person.  Pray also for these children, who likely haven't heard about Jesus and will likely not survive to be teenagers unless they can learn to walk (in order to be street beggars).

---Pray for our team, for our relationship building with each other and that we focus on God's plan for this trip and not seeking our own glory.  Two of my teammates, Sara and Greg, were a part of my trip to Haiti in September.  Greg has the biggest heart for Haiti, and Sara is an awesome PT and a spitfire travel companion.  I will meet Dawn, an OT and founder of iTOT, and Lynne, a special education teacher, in the Fort Lauderdale airport for the first time.  I'm so excited to meet them in person and begin this adventure.  Pray for our ability to witness to Haitians, to be God's hands and feet, to love all Haitians as God has already loved them and loved us.

---Pray for continued relationship building with our friends in Haiti.  At Delmas Christian Church we will be staying again with Pastor Eddy, his wife Merlan, and their sweet adopted daughter Thalossa.  I am praying and hoping that my little sister in Christ Rosie will again be our interpreter....we'll see!  As for my other Haitian friends, Jhon Adams is in college now (and rocking it out, I hope and pray) and Stephane and Rochel are in school, but I hope we will see them at least Sunday morning at church.  I'm praying also for new friendships and relationships with Haitians.

---Pray for spiritual strength amidst spiritual oppression.  I cannot fully explain it in words, but there is something spiritually oppressive about Haiti...Voodoo is incredibly prevalent there.  You feel like you could cut it in the air with a knife. The spiritual world in which a war IS going on, that we forget about so easily at home, is clearly just an arm's reach away in Haiti.  Pray for us to stay rooted in the Word and God's truth, to stay strong against temptation and forces that would rather we stay home or epicly fail.  Some of my best spiritual ammunition has been 1 John 1:5 and 4:4.  I've also been reading in Isaiah daily as further preparation, a great book and great reminder that God has already triumphed and uses all things, places, and people for His plan.

---Finally, please please please pray for Haiti.  I think this video says it best.


I love you all!  Thank you so much for your generosity in so many ways for this adventure and all that God is doing in my life through His amazing story.  I can't wait to tell you all about Haiti and our adventures when I get back in March!