I was brought to tears the
other night during worship, overwhelmed by how much I love these street kids.
We open the Saturday Night Worship to the community, so that we can all worship
our God together. It is one of my favorite times with the street kids, most who
we have built relationships with during the week at our feeding programs.
Tasha & Luciana
There is a group of tween
girls around the ages of 11 and 12 that we have been able to talk to
consistently. They live in the tent city just around the corner from where I
live. Ray and I got the privilege to go into the tent city with our nurse
Paula, who was taking care of a few sick kids. There’s just really no words to
describe what we saw, and because we are American, we choose to keep a low
profile and not take pictures since we already stand out and are walking
through their homes. So I will include some links to give you a visual, but we
were invited into some tents by the kids and what we saw is heartbreaking. It’s
exactly what we were afraid of.
Siniace, the edge of the tent city across from our home
To paint a picture, the
distance between each tent is just enough to walk through. It is a small
pathway, but its not even enough width for two people to walk side by side.
Some tents are bigger than others, but there is a family of at least 4 or 5 in
each one, most have more, such as a common family of 7. Lucley brought us into
her tent, which consists of a tarp all the way around 4 sticks and another tarp
across the top. Her door was made of tin and had a wooden stick on the inside
to slide it closed to give them some sort of feeling secure, when really there
is nothing safe about it.
Mona, Luciana, Tasha
Tasha is one of the girls I
have gotten to know the most and her sister Jessica has been really sick, so
Paula went to visit her and we went along. Her beautiful and young mother was
at the door greeting us in her broken English with a glowing smile telling us
to please come in and sit down, “chita, chita!!” As we sat down on cement blocks (holding at least 3 neighboring babies
in our laps) and we all started to just drip in sweat, she told Evans, (one of
our older orphanage boys who was translating), “I know its really hot in here
and its hard for you to see this, but I can't thank you enough for coming here
and making sure we are ok. It’s so good to have you here and meet you. Thank
you for coming...."
At that point I was just
trying to process the fact that in this little square of a tent there was one
makeshift cot, one table with all their belongings and a sheet to separate the
room and the sitting area. There are at least 4 people living in that tent,
which probably means they all sleep in the dirt on the floor.
Luciana
I think back to when I was
this age and it is probably the worst as a girl. I can’t imagine what it is
like without people really investing in their lives as they are going through
so many new things at this age. I pray for their purity and protection and that
they would follow so close to God. In worship I had 11 year old Mona in my
arms, we were standing up praising our God that is so good, and she has her arms
wrapped around me like a hug, but her hands are lifted up to God behind me. It
was so powerful to be the affection and comfort for her while worshiping
together. I just pray that their hands stay lifted so high to the Lord who is
reaching down into their lives and pulling them out of where they are. I can
see that they are not rich in material things, but they are rich in ways we
have never grasped.
There is also a pack of
teenage boys that call themselves the street boys and have a secret handshake (that
they so proudly have shared with us). A few of them are Sonson, Peterson,
Jivenson, Jeff, Yvell, Kellens, Dupren, Edlie, Ledell and Jaytwoh, who we see
everyday hanging out in front of our gate. My life just wouldn’t be the same
with out them. They started this saying, “not today, cherie…” just to be funny,
like when we say get over here and give me a big hug, of course their response
is, “not today, cherie…” while all of them laugh, but really they cant wait to
get a big hug from us each day. We were making a joke about how all Haitians
love Sean Paul and Akon and somehow it came out Sean John (Puff Daddy’s
clothing line)… which then it turned into, “not today, Sean John…” Please enjoy
this video of Sonson and then Jivenson and Sonson rapping about who knows what…
We love these boys so much it’s
hard to even begin how to describe them to you. But they have touched our
hearts in ways no other kids can. They wait for us outside our house everyday,
they call us by name and yell from the top of the street, “ME LOVE YOU SO
MUCHHHHHH” in their Creole accents, and they walk us to work in the mornings
telling us that they are our security guards and that they are here to protect
us. As tough as they try to be, we know they are just dying for love. We are
overjoyed to be a vessel for God’s love to them as we continue to teach them
about Jesus and how He is our ultimate comforter. A few of them come to church
with us every Sunday, and some are making jewelry with the pastor’s wife to
make a little extra cash for their family to eat.
Jeff and his beautiful cousin
Jeff was one who stole our
hearts back in November when he stood crying at the gate as we departed from
Haiti in a big white truck. That image was forever burnt in my mind. He shared
with me the other day that his dad was murdered and he now lives with his mom
and 5 other brothers and sisters in one tent and they go two days without
eating often, so he is thankful for the feeding program, but he still doesn’t
know how to get food for his mom. Sonson’s dad was also murdered, but by his
own brother, Sonson’s uncle, so his family is very torn and he is tossed around
sometimes between aunts and other family. He also lost his older brother to
what probably was another violent act. Peterson also lives with an aunt and his
brothers and sisters are spread out among other family.
These boys roam the streets
night and day because they don’t have money to barely eat so they definitely
don’t have any to go to school, so they joined together and are the street
boys. They desperately need prayer because these streets are rough. They think
they are tough and they are all prone to get in fights growing up and seeing so
much crime. We pray that the love of God transforms their minds and their past’s
wont shape who they are, but Jesus will. I am sure their situations seem
hopeless at times, but we pray that Jesus would be their hope in this desperate
time. God loves each one of them so deeply and we just pray He leads us in
ways of showing them just how full Gods love is for them. A few of them have
now been sponsored to go to school, which is a huge blessing but a long road
starting school in their early/mid teens.
Open the front gate... and this is what you find! Sonson, Peterson, Jivenson, Ledell
Jeff
Then there are the babies. I
will have to write another post about his one, but all I can say is the babies
who call out our names while RUNNING full force towards you just to leap into
your arms… well…. It just melts your heart. It’s the best feeling in the world,
really. They get smothered with kisses, and they know just what’s coming when
they jump in these arms.
“Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in
the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised
to those who love him?” – James 2:5
Junior is a seventeen-year-old young man with a heart of gold. Most who have had the privilege of meeting him, know within a few minutes that God has placed a special calling on his life. His heart for the Lord inspires both his peers and the spiritually mature. Many of the kids nicknamed him "Pastor Junior" because of his dedication and diligence to studying and preaching God's Word.
Although it is difficult to imagine, Junior used to beg on the streets of Delmas Blvd. in Port-au-Prince with many other young kids. He was ushered from the streets into living in the MDL Boys' Home through a friend’s street ministry. Shortly after coming into the safely of MDL, his mother was murdered in Cite Soleil and then his father later passed away in the countryside. Today, Junior, this once timid child, boldly preaches the Gospel, having put his faith and hope in Christ more than four years ago. He often teaches at devotionals and even partnered with other children from MDL two summers ago in doing an evangelistic outreach for their extended family members and community in the village where they grew up.
Junior has long expressed his hope of becoming an evangelist. Ranch Church in SantaYnez, California has expressed a desire to come alongside Junior’s calling and financially support him at Calvary Chapel Bible College in Murrieta, California. Needing an American high-school equivalent education to apply, Junior is currently enrolled in an American school in Haiti called Morning Star Christian Academy. We are praying that more people would come alongside to support his tuition fees until he finishes in 2014. To help Junior to continue to prepare for the work God is calling him to do we need to raise $475.00 a month for tuition and lunch money. Please prayerfully consider whether you would like to become involved in helping Junior by committing to financially sponsor him for half a month's tuition, one month, or multiple months of school.
As interns, working with him for the past three months has been truly a blessing. He is one of the most respectful kids and we really see so many attributes in him that prove he will be one to rise up and make a difference in his home, community and generation. He is one of the leaders in our Transition Program helping teach and oversea the silk screening business, and demonstrating a great deal of knowledge of business in our classes. We are so encouraged each time he raised his hand in class to share his thoughts and ideas for his future businesses. We know he is more than capable of running all the businesses that he dreams of one day and we are praying over his steps in getting there.
If you would like to sponsor him in a different amount, follow this link to the main donation page, then specify your contribution is for Junior's school fund:
These boys roam the streets
night and day because they don’t have money to barely eat so they definitely
don’t have any to go to school, so they joined together and are the street
boys. They desperately need prayer because these streets are rough. They think
they are tough and they are all prone to get in fights growing up and seeing so
much crime. We pray that the love of God transforms their minds and their past’s
wont shape who they are, but Jesus will. I am sure their situations seem
hopeless at times, but we pray that Jesus would be their hope in this desperate
time. God loves each one of them so deeply and we just pray He leads us in
ways of showing them just how full Gods love is for them. A few of them have
now been sponsored to go to school, which is a huge blessing but a long road
starting school in their early/mid teens.
