But to say it was great would be an understatement! It was an awesome day!
Whenever we have the opportunity to go into the countryside of Haiti I am always in awe of God and the beauty of His creation that surrounds me. Haiti is breathtaking!
I love watching our kids hike this mountain and joining in their excitement as they experience new and exciting things here in Haiti… seeing God in fresh ways, being immersed into a new culture, exploring His beauty in a different country than what they have known. I am so thankful that God has called, not only Phil and me, but our children too… and I KNOW that God is using each moment to shape them into the vessels He desires to use.
Because of the rain, the path was especially muddy and slippery this time (which is truly a blessing! we have NEEDED rain!)… As I stopped to wash the caked up mud off my shoes I noticed huge blisters on my feet from the walk. And as the water watched my feet clean I could feel the sting as it washed the mud off my feet too…
But as soon as I caught a glimpse of this beautiful church I was re-reminded of why it is worth every blister or scrape or slip in the mud! Coup A David is an amazing church, filled with God's Spirit and so many who have been delivered from darkness!
Steve Macinnis preached a powerful message, using the story of David and Bathsheba. He made three key points in his message.
When we become followers of Christ we are agreeing to 3 things.
Take me (Pran 'm in Creole)
For Christ to take over our lives! A relationship with Jesus is to yield our plans and our desires to His plans and desires for our lives. We must allow Him to have complete control trusting that what He wants to do in our lives is always for good.
Break me (Kraze 'm)
Second, we must let Christ break us. There are habits, sins, hang-ups that keep us from following Him wholeheartedly. Entering into a life-giving relationship with Christ is to allow Him to break down our selfish walls, to shatter our sinful desires and then to pick up the brokenness of our lives and to
Make me (Fè 'm)
Thirdly, we must give His Spirit permission to make us into who He wants us to be. To mold us and form us into the people of character that can be most effective for His Kingdom.
And this is the order He MUST do it in. Until we make the decision to allow Him to take our lives, He cannot make us into His vessels. And until He breaks us of our own plans, we cannot be made into the people He desires us to be in order to fulfill His plans.
It was a beautiful and powerful message. A beautiful and powerful word for MY life and for MY heart. I need CONSTANT reminders that my life is not my own. Those selfish desires sneak up on me so quickly… the desire to do it all on my own in order to "control"things.
Even the journey up to Coup A David was a great example of this truth in my life. I made the conscious decision to take that hike up to church that morning. And along the way, I experienced difficulties- slippery paths, blistered feet, hot sun, thorns catching my clothes… hard times that help to break me of my own will and dependance on my own strength… and sitting in that church service gave me a renewed desire to allow Christ to truly make me into a person that is wholly HIS.
All that in one morning. God is so good!
And I can think of no better way to end a service than to have communion together with our brothers and sisters in Christ. To be reminded that Jesus Himself was broken so that God's purposes could be done on this earth. And that because of His brokenness, I can be in right standing with a Holy God.
Powerful.
I love to see the pure joy on Enick's face as he minsters to the people in his congregation. Watching him pour out his life for them is so humbling and empowering. (Enick is the one in the brown suit, smiling from ear to ear :)
On the hike back, a child from the church led us a different way back…
on the new road that is being built to the church. The progress is unbelievable!
(In the picture above, you may be able to see a team of guys working on the road… they are so empowered by this project, it is SO cool!)
Seeing the amount of rock and dirt that has been dug out is amazing! The picture above shows how deep they had to dig to get a level path… crazy.
The road project is almost complete. And what a blessing it already is to the people of Coup A David!!!
On the hike back, Jake and Alaina Bundy joined us- which was great for the kids. They had a blast with them, as always! Isn't that background absolutely beautiful?!
Seeing all of this, and experiencing all that I experienced on Sunday reminds me, once again, of the mission that God has called ALL of us too.
His desire is to take us, break us, and make us into people who are living sacrifices for Him. Giving God permission to take our lives can be so difficult, being broken certainly doesn't "feel" good, being made, formed and shaped, into something new can be uncomfortable… but it IS what is best for us and we can trust that it is, most importantly, what is best for His Kingdom.
It is a journey that Jesus desires to take all of us on if we are willing. And the joy that comes when we are in fellowship with Him makes everything that we experience worthwhile. It is a joy and a peace that surpasses all human understanding.
As we approach Easter week, may we be reminded of the life that Christ lived for us and the death that He experienced for us. May we not get so caught up in OUR plans that we miss out on HIS.
Remembering His words in the garden….
"Not my will, but Yours be done."
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