Still On My Mind And In My Heart

Dear Haiti,

It's been 4 months since we were in your mind boggling land, and I still think about you regularly. When I'm quick to complain about the rain and dropping temperatures, I think back to your dry land and fruitless crops, and I quickly silence my complaints. 

It's getting cooler here. Sometimes, Adam wants to turn the heat on, but I work really hard to convince him otherwise. After all, the inside of our house does not look like this:

When I flip through my pictures, I'm reminded of just how rich my life is. I'm reminded that by God's grace alone I grew up with parents that loved the Lord and loved each other. I've always had food to eat and schools to go to. And Christian schools, at that! I've never lacked for water, much less clean water. My husband and I have excess money every. month. We live in a world of abundance.

But you don't. 

And I haven't forgotten. I haven't forgotten the stories I heard. Or the people I met. Some of your names are starting to slip from my memory, but your faces are sealed in my heart and in my mind. 

But mostly, my mind goes to you every time I mention the word, "hope." Because, let me tell you, my 1 week visit kind of did a number on my understanding of hope. I had never been in such a hopeless place. My little brain could only dub this place, "impossible." But I know, with confidence, there is hope for you, Haiti. 

Your hope, my hope, can be found in nothing less than Jesus Christ. Because Jesus' story is one of redemption. Of turning ashes into something beautiful. Of bringing a glorious Kingdom out of desolate ruins. And we get to be part of Jesus' story. He uses the broken to bring His glory.

I'm still praying for you, and I'm ready to come back. Hopefully in the spring! 

- Marissa