Community, Child Sponsorship, On-going projects
Steeve Derard
Why Child Sponsorship Matters at Haiti Awake

“Sponsoring a child at Haiti Awake is believing in authenticity. Why? Because at Haiti Awake we are who we say we are, and we do what we say we’re doing.” Pastor Steeve

Why Child Sponsorship Matters at Haiti Awake
Child Sponsorship, On-going projects, Long-term planning, Prayer Requests, short-term missions, The Children's Home
Becky Graves
Thoughts on a Sunday afternoon

Why not let the heart grow big with a love large enough that it breaks your heart and gives bits of you away?

Thoughts on a Sunday afternoon
Child Sponsorship
Becky Graves
When God Speaks to Your Heart


Because God uses people just like you and me to change little people's lives in a big way . . . 

When God Speaks to Your Heart

handy

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A week of rest and renewal

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Months of planning came together last week as we spent nearly a week together in Cap-Haïtien. This was a week of firsts for Handy and Davensky - going on an airplane, staying in a guesthouse, visiting the Citadelle, and a beach day at Labadee.

Davensky and Handy were exceptionally thrilled to receive the surprise of MacBooks from a dear friend and sponsor who wanted to equip them with technology to help them grow and be ready for the next stage of life.

Friday was the big day for us all. We went to the Citadelle. Though Steeve, Vorb, and I had been before, this was the first time Scheska, Handy, and Kiki were able to experience the majesty and history found both at the Citadelle and at Sans Souci.

Saturday we went to Labadee where we enjoyed time on the water, searching for shells, eating locally-prepared seafood taken fresh from the ocean, and just relaxing.

Sunday we were blessed to participate in worship with some dear friends who have relocated from Port-au-Prince to Cap Haitien, and we walked along the waterfront and had a late lunch at a local restaurant.

Monday we reluctantly packed up, headed to the CAP airport, and returned to Port au Prince. The memories we made in Okap will stay with us for many years to come, and we adults were especially happy to know that Davensky and Handy will have stories to tell when they return to school in the fall.

Individual faces, individual stories

I've watched this video over and over again.

While the world talks about prison breaks in Haiti, my prayers this week have been with those incarcerated at CERMICOL, those whose names we know, those whose faces I hold dear.

This young man's story is the story of so many.

This teenager was 11 years old when he started working for a gang. He was homeless and hungry, he told CNN, and the gang offered him food.

Now, when other members of the gang kill people, they make him burn the bodies, says the teen, who is now 14.

He would like to get out – but he doesn’t know how. His mother lives outside of Port-au-Prince; he’s not sure how to reach her and couldn’t afford such a trip anyway."

“I wish she could come get me,” he told CNN. “I’d like her to take me out of this place.”

Haiti isn't 11.5 million people. Haiti is individual people with individual stories.

From the comfort of our US existence, it's impossible to comprehend living in conditions where one truly does not see a way out, one does not believe there are choices, one is only looking to survive.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus.

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Stories We Have Heard and Known

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I am in Arkansas for a couple weeks, helping my son and his soon-to-be bride prepare for their big day. Being here brings a pause from the normal and extra time for morning reflection.

This morning’s readings took me to Psalm 78:

“I will teach you hidden lessons from our past—
stories we have heard and known,
stories our ancestors handed down to us.
We will not hide these truths from our children;
we will tell the next generation
about the glorious deeds of the Lord,
about his power and his mighty wonders.”
— verses 3 and 4
A fun time for Handy at his 9th birthday party yesterday. Oh, how God is redeeming his story.

A fun time for Handy at his 9th birthday party yesterday. Oh, how God is redeeming his story.

May we always remember what God has done at Haiti Awake through the years, and may we never fail to remind the next generation of all we ourselves have seen and experienced.

“So the next generation might know them—
even the children not yet born—
and they in turn will teach their own children.
So each generation should set its hope anew on God,
not forgetting his glorious miracles
and obeying his commands.”
— verses 6 and 7





All I have needed Thy hand hath provided. Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto me.


Thomas Chisholm

The Clarity of Compassion

And if we take the risk of personally touching and being touched by a suffering person, the miracle of sight can break into our own darkness.

When the clarity of compassion illuminates our vision, we can visualize healing that goes far deeper than physical cure. Through eyes of faith we recognize that this could be an opportunity for tragedy to be transformed into celebration so that the power of God may be seen at work in him and in her.

And even more amazing , when we stoop to personally touch one of these “undesirables” with hands-on care, we are touching the very heart of God :

“I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers [and sisters] of mine, you did for me”
— Matthew 25:40

                                                                                               ---Thoughts from Bob Lupton.