Life Transformation

Life Transformation is a phrase we use often at Mission of Hope.  It is in fact written right into the vision statement: "As an organization following Jesus Christ, we seek to bring life transformation to every man, woman, and child in Haiti."  One of the greatest blessings in my life is being able to see the changes and transformation that God is accomplishing in Haiti not just weekly but also from one year to the next.  Those of us who are called to work on the ground day in and day out are sustained by the presence of God and the encouragement that He is doing great works here in Haiti.

One of my favorite stories of life transformation that God is writing here is in the community of Leveque.  Leveque is a village formed from hundreds of families displaced by the earthquake.  Last summer, it was one of the most difficult places for me to visit.  Families crammed in temporary shelters we referred to as blue tarp houses on a dusty stretch of land devoid of trees and without clean water.  It had been a year and a half, and there were many hungry babies and many sad stories.  Kids always seemed rough, dirty, naked, and sick.  Many had the red-tinged hair from malnutrition.  Parents seemed exhausted and crushed, tired of waiting for promises to be broken.

But there was still HOPE.

Rows of empty houses, colorful as candy buttons, dotted the landscape.  We worked day after day to get the houses ready- painting, clearing land with machetes, putting on roofs, planting cactus hedges.  We prayed for clean water while a drill was stuck, broken in the earth.  And everyday, as we worked, we loved the people of Leveque and shared the ultimate story of hope- that God so loved us all that He suffered our fate in order to be with us for eternity.

This summer, I love climbing the hill overlooking Leveque to see the green landscape of gardens and plantain trees that surround the colorful homes.  Families wave to us from their front porches.  Now, there is clean and affordable water in the village.  Every Tuesday afternoon, the community gathers for a soccer game.  The children play first.  Then, the adults from the deaf community play adults from the hearing community with some Americans mixed in.  The players wear real jerseys donated from a middle school basketball team in the States.  Music blares from speakers and people sing and dance along.  Americans and Haitians mingle on the sidelines, cheering on the players, hugging babies, meeting families.  At the end of the game, we all gather in a circle and sing praises and pray to the God who loves us all- we pray in English and Kreyol and Sign Language- a beautiful dance of words and hands.  The Lord hears all of our hearts gathered there on the dust of the soccer field.

There are still many people in Leveque living in blue tarp houses, hoping for a home that they can raise their families in and grow their own food, but transformation has begun.  I pray that God will continue to transform this community and bring hope to the poor.  After all, Christ came so that we might have life and life abundantly (John 10:10) and that promise is meant for the dirty baby living in a tent in Haiti just as much as it is meant for you and me.  Keep praying.