Monday, July 28, 2014

Day 1--Monday, July 28-- We Arrived!

We started our venture bright and early meeting at the airport at 3:45 a.m. We shared many similar emotions as we prepared for this journey. We felt excited, anxious, lots of anticipation, but most of all it felt right and God led us together for a common purpose.

Throughout our layover in Miami, we spent time bonding, getting to know each other, and doing fun activities like scavenger hunts in the airport, lots of laughter was spread throughout the day.

The flight from Miami to Haiti helped us begin to learn more about the pride Haitians have of their country and the appreciation they want us to embrace for their culture. They were so open to share about themselves and also wanted to know more about who we are. They spoke with such kindness and love, which showed how important relationships are in their culture.

Around 5:00 p.m. we landed in Haiti and then went to baggage claim to gather our 18 large suitcases filled with donations that family and friends have so graciously contributed. We then got onto the tap-tap (taxi bus) on our way to the guesthouse where we will be staying, we quickly learned the rules of driving in Haiti (which really means there are no rules, except that the bigger the vehicle...the better, and stop signs, if any, are a nice friendly suggestion. On the 20 minute bumpy drive to the guesthouse we were thankful for loud horns, as that is the main way drivers communicate.  :)

Haiti has slowly been rebuilding since the 2010 earthquake and we learned there were less tents that people were living in not even a year ago. There was a lot of hustle and bustle to see on our 20 minute drive. Vendors were selling goods on the corners and cars were motivated to get places.

We were greeted by the Haitian staff with an amazing welcome and settled into our guesthouse. At our devotional team meeting we discussed our goals for the week. We shared that it's important to step out of our comfort zone, be vulnerable, open our hearts completely and be committed to spreading the love of God. Our focus for the week is to understand and demonstrate, "What is Christ's love?" We shared a few words to describe what that will look like for us this week (unconditional, selfless, sacrificial, tangible) and will strive to reflect His love throughout our week.

We are looking forward to being the hands and feet of the Lord and being present where we are needed.

Our favorite quote of the day that brought tears to our eyes when we walked in the guesthouse was, "Thank you God for blessing me with much more than I deserve."

We are so thankful to be part of this wonderful community in Haiti!

Glory to God
Glwa pou Bondye,

Alesia and Shannon

1 comment:

  1. Praying for you all as you do God's work and spread His love this week.

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