3.7.16

Hello and greetings from Port au Prince, Haiti! Today was a hectic but great first mission day! Our group of seventeen met at MSP airport at 3am looking haggard and sleep deprived. We shuffled through a long day of checkpoints and flights for our journey, but we are finally safe and sound and settled into the Healing Haiti guesthouse. We were fed a wonderful meal by the cooks at the house and all of the staff has made us feel very welcome and comfortable. It is hot and sticky here, but so beautiful. The houses in our gated compound are very colorful and clean, with blooming flower bushes outside, along with five well-behaved and sweet dogs that guard us. Currently I’m sitting on the top bunk of a bed and hear our group working together to organize our supplies for tomorrow, and the sweet sounds of singing and acoustic guitar drifting in from the patio outside.

Though our time in Haiti so far has been short, we have already witnessed the beauty of the land and its people, the widespread poverty, and most importantly the glory of God who is alive and shining bright in Haiti. On the airplane from Miami to Port au Prince, we met wonderful people with strong faith in God and a beautiful pride in their home country of Haiti. An old woman sitting in front of me sang out songs of joy, praising Jesus as our plane landed safely.  As we waited at the arrival gate, she spoke to us in both French and English with a huge smile on her face and a twinkle in her eye. Another passenger translated a few phrases she said to us: “We are all God’s creatures” and “All that has given us, none can take away.”

Getting through customs was a struggle; we felt intimidated and nervous as many men hollered at us to open our 34 checked bags filled with donations to be checked. Quite a few of our bags were filled with supplies that could easily be taken from us at customs. This did not happen though. God was with us in the customs room in the Haiti airport. Many of our bags were ripped open and checked, but only those which contained food and clothing. None of our goods were taken, and we were very relieved to make it through. I thank God for our strong leaders, who have guided and protected us, and for our great team who has stuck together with enthusiasm and grace. I am very excited for the days to come and to grow closer to God in all we do. “All that God has given us, none can take away.”

-Kelly Potz