January 2016 Trip

Day 1

The January 2016 trip started as all others, very early in the morning! We were grateful not to arrive at the airport through a snowstorm. Everyone made it to the airport safely and onto the plane with all our bags. The transfer at JFK was fast and no one was able to eat breakfast and we all missed lunch.

Z greeted us at the airport and all of our bags and supplies made it through. Part of the team had their first experience riding in a tap-tap. We had a discussion on the house and neighborhood before we unpacked and walked to the Clay Cafe for smoothies! Z prepared us a hearty meal for dinner and we discussed day 28 from 40 Days Before You Go. At 7pm we walked to the Child Hope worship service and met with Lori Tugwell. Packing had to be done for the Sunday mobile clinic. We all later went to bed after a good shower and some fresh mango.

Day 2

We were mostly up at 6am. 

Romans 15:13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit

Isaiah 58:11 The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.

We traveled by tap-tap to La Tramblere for church with Boss Petit. The pastor of the church recently died of a brain tumor and his widow had her house burned down. LIFT recently built a school next to the church and they built the back room into a home for Madame’ Pastor. Boss has sponsored another young man, Lucas yn Wensor, to go to bible training and become the new pastor. 4 different people preached during the service in Creole while Boss translated for us.

The general message of the service was John 3:1-9 and about how God receives our “worship” based on the condition of our heart. I was asked and gladly introduced who we were and why we were there.

It may seem strange to hold a medical clinic in a church or following a church service but we do it for 3 reasons. 1. Jesus healed on the Sabbath 2. people travel many miles to attend a sunday church service 3. many Haitians do not work on Sundays and otherwise find it difficult to get medical care.

The group had a quick packed lunch after church and set up for the clinic in the 3 room school house. Clinic went very quickly. The team saw over 130 patients in the few hours of the afternoon. We then made a brief stop at one of the Tin City shops on the way home.

The team was exhausted and in bed by 11pm. I reflected on Matthew 9:12 On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.

I then studied Prov 13:12, Heb 11:1, Col 1:27 and Prov 11:30 to complete the thought process.

Up at 5:50am to roosters and barking dogs. Some of the team has been up for a while.

Numbers 6:21 The Lord bless you and give you peace.

We head out to the “Mango Tree” village of Dumay for our second mobile clinic. We had visited there 6 months prior and saw a lot of cases of Zika and mumps. We had to drive through the flowing water from the mountains after the rain there the evening before.

The clinic went well and was much more organized as they knew what to expect with us there. We saw 130 patients in the hot humid old growth mango village. Many prayers went out from patients and one sister added to the body of believers. A 30yo woman named Jasmine invited the Lord into her heart and life.

The clinic was over by 2:30 and we were home in an hour. Z met us there and we went to the Montana for dinner and a swim in the unusually cold pool.  The meals were great but the prices went up.

That night the group was exhausted and in bed by 10pm. I walked to the Clay Cafe to catch the first half of the Clemson football game and ran into 7 men from South Carolina there. Small world!

Started with some coffee and Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Today was a first day of clinic at the guest house. We saw approximately 90 patients and 2 brought ID cards from July! It was a slow day but we were glad after 3 long days of travel and mobile clinics. We ran out of heartburn medication and went to a local pharmacy. 24 pills was $10 US, so wedid not buy it.

Lisa taught CPR at the Clay Cafe while the team rested. Some of the group lounged whileothers played pool, foosball, and chess.

Many deep conversations were had that night.

Everyone slept well. The morning air was refreshing. Some of the team had been going for early morning hikes and today was no different.

 John 16:33b. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.

God does not give us overcoming life- he gives us life as we overcome. The strain of life is what builds us strength. If there is no strain, there will be no strength. Oswald Chambers.

Clinic was slower than usual again. Some of the team did assessments on the children at the AP worker daycare before clinic. We again saw 90 patients in all.

The group broke up and walked the neighborhood after clinic. I walked through the AP shop and the workers stated that they did not know we were in town and asked to come after work on our final day of clinic.

I was able to speak with Shelley Clay, a hotel owner and Carmel on my walk. I learned that 4 of the old women from the neighborhood who relocated to the senior group home have since passed away.

I made a house stop to drop off some prednisone for a friend with Zika before heading back for dinner.

1 Corinthians 10:31 Whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.

Beach day! We spent 2 hours driving to the beach in the tap-tap after stopping for gas, air in a tire, and then to fix 2 flats. It is time I figure out how to secure our own vehicle.

The beach was awesome. A picture perfect day. The ocean and pool were a perfect temperature and there were no jellyfish! We stayed long enough to see the sun set behind Gonâve Island. We then set out for home without any flat tires.

We prepared for the Friday clinic and most of the team went to bed while some stayed up and played dominos.

Our final day of clinic at the guest house.

People were outside the house at 6am for our clinic to open at 9am. Some of the group visited Peace Hospital 5 minutes away at 8am. The hospital had recently been rebuilt with the help of Lumiere Medical Ministries. The top floor collapsed in the 2010 earthquake. The surgeon who runs it currently does general medical clinics there. He hopes to have his operating room fully functional soon and be able to provide full medical services.

The clinic went great. We had seen a lot of people before 3pm but had to turn a few away as the AP staff were to show up after work. They arrived on time and we worked until after 6pm. A few procedures were done but many will have to wait until we return.

The evening was spent unwinding and packing. The entire pharmacy had to be reorganized and packed away. Some supplies were set aside for the AP and some travel medications were dispensed to the mission team.

Day 8

We had a long day of traveling home. One of our team members was to have left on Spirit airlines hourse before us but his flight was canceled for 6 days! He had to spend $1500 to secure a flight on JetBlue to get home.

I went through the patient prayer request cards and quickly realized it will be a long task to make the requests ready to share.

I did sum them up for now:

4 Prayers for God’s Salvation

15 Prayers for God’s Direction

9 Prayers for Spritual Integrity

12 Prayers for God’s Blessing

3 Prayers for Joy in their life

7 Prayers for a safe Pregnancy

64 Prayers for Health

4 Prayers for God’s Protection

8 Prayers for Wisdom

2 Prayers for a Spouse

19 Prayers for Education/Mentoring

11 Prayers for Work

1 Prayer for Food

1 Prayer for God to look after a Widow

1 Prayer for Rest

2 Prayers for a Home