Restore Haiti

In my previous post, "Haiti's Community" I talked about how beautiful the community of Jacmel Haiti was and how it inspired me. I mentioned how amazed that I was to see people who were so poor, yet so giving and so in love with God. I came across many people who were truly living a Christ centered life and I couldn't help but be in awe of God while I was there. However there is of course a heartbreaking side of their community and this is the reason why we went.

There are many starving families and orphans in Haiti. These families are so poor that they cannot afford to provide a decent shelter for themselves. Most cannot afford to feed their family everyday, to put shoes on their children's feet, or to send their children to school. You will find many families of 10 or more living in a small one room home or tent. Parents are being intimate with each other in the same room as the children. You will find diaperless babies sleeping on dirt floors, children begging for food, children barefoot on grounds covered in trash and broken glass, and in some instances teenage girls are prostituting themselves just to go to school. Unlike America, school is not free and children are actually desperate for an education. To see or hear of any of this will break you, but hopefully inspire you to help. Isn't it just amazing that even with all of these trials you still see them praising God and doing His work?! How can we with so much more not lend a helping hand? I don't mean to guilt anyone by telling you these things, but after seeing them first hand I cannot help but be passionate and desperate for them, even if all we can do is to put a band aid here or there on their community.

Many projects were worked on while over there. We brought over cases and cases of shoes donated by the people of our church LifeSong Church, to pass out to adults and children. We sanded and painted a house for a family who was living in a one room tent, but who is now able to live in a 3 room house. We fed and loved on many starving children who were desperate for both food and attention. We played soccer and we painted finger nails, but my most important task is my return home task to get people inspired to help. You can help by sponsoring a child. Sponsoring a child will feed a child a meal a day, for most that is their only meal, your sponsorship will also pay their way through school, and provide their family with a chicken or a goat a month. This sponsorship will be life changing. If you are not ready to make a monthly commitment, you can also make a one time donation, those donations will help build houses for the homeless, provide beds for those in need and other related projects. 

For more information on sponsorship please visit Restore Haiti. You can be a huge difference in a child's life. 

"The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.' Matthew 25:40