Lessons from Haiti

If my frequency of posting items to this website was any indication of my response time to other life events then I would be in big time trouble. Thankfully I am able to be more proficient and efficient in other areas of my life. Sorry for the long delays here

A few weeks ago I got back from Haiti and I can say without any hesitation that I would go back in a second if the opportunity came up again. I was challenged, stretched, broken, strengthened, encouraged, and smacked right in the face with my materialism, pride, and selfishness. Many of you followed us on Facebook at the Alexandria Youth Haiti Trip group and your prayers were definitely felt.

I think we have all heard someone say “Thank you for your prayers. They helped me a lot” and thought to yourself “Do my prayers really do anything?” I have wondered that many times. During my trip to Haiti I realized why that thought comes to my mind. It is because I don’t pray with expectation or for specific things given to me by the prompting of the Holy Spirit.

Several times on our trip we had times called “ATL” (Ask The Lord) where we would pray for people in our group or for ourselves and ask God to reveal what to pray for that person. We didn’t ask them “What can I pray about for you?”, instead we started praying and asked God to reveal what to pray for that person. It is amazing what happens when we ask our Father for the right words to pray. We know that the Spirit intercedes for us when we don’t know what to say or how to say it, but do we ever give the Spirit an opportunity to actually do that? Typically I make sure I know what I’m going to say before starting to pray for someone. I don’t want to look bad or stumble around with my words. But is that what prayer is all about? At its core, is it about speaking clearly and knowing what to say? I used to think that way but now I know differently.

When I pray it is to an Almighty Creator who has made everything around me, including me (Act. 17). When I go before God’s throne and enter His presence in prayer for someone else I believe God already knows what is going on in that persons life. If I truly believe that then why shouldn’t I ask God to show me what to pray for that person. Is it easy? No. Is it kind of scary to take that step of faith? Yes. It is especially scary if you don’t know what the voice of God sounds like. If you don’t know your Shepherds voice then you won’t know what He’s saying. We can either hear God’s voice, our own voice distracting us, the world’s voice, or Satan’s distracting voice. There are options and deciphering which voice we’re hearing is a learned skill through discipline in God’s Word and in His presence. It takes a heart that is willing to be humble and open to His voice to be able to actually hear His voice. Ps. 46:10 says “Be still and know that I am God.” That’s not a suggestion, it’s a command. Quietness is essential to hearing the voice of God. Silence is a part of prayer. I don’t always have to be saying something to be praying.

Here is my challenge for you. Take some time today to ATL what He wants you to do with the rest of your day. As a Christian it is so easy to say we trust and follow God but are we willing to actually put that into practice and ask Him to lead us today? Go ahead and try it and I guarantee you will be blessed and encouraged more than you can ever imagine. In 2 Kings 4:1-7 God blesses a widow beyond her wildest dreams by not only giving her enough oil to sell and pay off her debts but enough to sell it and live off the profit!!! When we come to God with an open heart and truly seek His face He will meet us where we are and answer our prayers. The answer may not always be “Yes” but He will answer us. Try it and see what He does today!

Below is a link for some pictures from my Haiti trip. If you are on Facebook you can check out more videos and pics there too.

Haiti Pictures