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| At Abraham's village in Titanyen, Haiti. A very impoverished village. |
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| Beautiful, sweet girl! Her eyes stole all of our hearts!! |
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| This little boy had such a faith and passion about him! His joy was beautiful! |
Pictures say a thousand words. As I entered a small village in Haiti this little girl above came running out from her house and almost knocked me down as she jumped into my arms and held her hands so tightly around my neck. She was filthy, pant-less, malnourished, and dehydrated but her huge smile covered all. In the midst of her impoverished circumstances, he had so much joy. She was so excited to see someone, someone that would take the time to hold her and love on her. I held onto her tightly as I began to walk down through the village with my team. We came to her house and her mother was there with the biggest smile on her face. I spoke a little creole to her (the tiny bit I know) and she invited us in. She welcomed us with open arms and wanted us to feel completely at home. I sat down on the front porch with this little girl in my lap. This little family didn't have much at all; but what they had, they were so grateful. I peaked inside her little house and on the floor laid two babies sleeping and another lady (I believe was the grandmother). My thoughts went to "How do they sleep on the concrete floor like that with no pillow or blanket and disease filled mosquitos hovering all around them." My heart broke but I saw such a beauty. The little they had didn't define them; they knew that the only thing that mattered in their life was Jesus. To them, they had enough. No, they didn't have running water or a bed to sleep on but they had Jesus in their hearts. Their FAITH amazes me!! I began to play with this little girl and through her joy, my life was changed forever. She was so humble and sincere and trusting by nature. She was so full of faith. Whatever I told her or asked her, she believed. I was reminded of scripture through this little girl. The bible tells us in Matthew 18 "unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. So anyone who becomes as humble as a little child is greatest in the kingdom of heaven." Jesus used this reference to help his disciples understand a point. They were so preoccupied and self-centered with the organization of Jesus's earthly kingdom and losing sight of it's divine purpose. They were wrapped up in positions of "advantage" rather than "positions of service." We live in an attention-seeking world where our view becomes clouded and we lose sight of God's ultimate purpose on this earth. He calls us to be meek and humble as a child. He wants us to identify with children rather than our self-centered desires and attitudes. If you think about it , a child is weak and dependent with no status or influence. We need to take on this attitude everyday of our lives. God is first and foremost and we need to live our lives with a dependence on him rather than on ourselves and what we can do or achieve. All we need is a simple faith in Jesus, just like that of a child. Think of what God can do if you come to him in childlike faith! By our standards, this little family had nothing, they were "physically" lacking, but by God's standards and the standards of the little girl I held, they had everything they needed, more than enough. God loves and cares so deeply about his people. He is calling us to walk in faith, trusting that He will provide no matter what.
"Reality may tell you otherwise but that doesn't matter because our HOPE and FAITH is in something more real than we can perceive with our five senses."
