Haiti (MNN) — There's never a good time to be sick or
injured because it always comes at a time when you can least afford it.
The stress of getting better is a distraction in
itself.
For Haiti With Love is a small mission
agency working in Cap Haitien in the northern part of Haiti. Ministry founder Eva DeHart says it has been a tough year to stay on track
with their goals because of physical interruptions.
First, DeHart says, there was the issue of her vision.
Cataracts had been causing increasing problems, so she had them both taken care
of this spring, which put her out of commission during the recuperation period.
As a result, she says, "I am mountains of work behind. And just as I'm getting ready to get back into the flow of things and ready to
really hit this stuff and get all caught
up, Roseline [daughter] comes down with a foot problem, so now her instructions are to
stay off of it."
Roseline DeHart is the in-country director. She has an equally large task that is
difficult to complete. Eva DeHart explains,
"We have the roof project started. Roseline gathers things to bring back for
the auction, for our fundraiser on August 13. There are a lot of details to
take care of. We're building a Pilgrim House #21 this summer. The devil has his
fun, doesn't he? He likes to pick our busiest times to put the jabs in and
slow our key people down."
Lest the observations fall into "whining," this is a good
place to note that the work of For Haiti With Love is Kingdom building. Growth means spiritual warfare, and that
comes in the form of discouragement, distraction, and destruction.
Eva agrees. "I think that's one of the things
that we lose in the culture with our busyness and our feeling of self-reliance: we forget who's really in charge." Ministry stress is inevitable. Becoming overwhelmed by ministry stress
is not inevitable.
But it seems that Americans do not know how not to be busy. That's the beauty of For Haiti With Love's
ministry. In Cap Haitien, the clinic,
the feeding program, and other key programs are run by Haitians. That helps them
to be relevant to people's lives. Their
team can identify with the problems because they live in the community, too.
Genuine compassion and the love of Christ, says Eva,
means that "it is 'standing room only' in the churches. They're wholly
reliant on God, and they really recognize that and praise Him for every
blessing."
Even as the deadlines loom, Eva says she's thankful for
her team, for the support from other believers, and for prayer. They're a mom and pop shop in ministry, so
every man (or, in this case, woman) counts.
The struggle against physical limitations has only clarified their
purpose in Haiti: to love the poor to Christ. Although they have a small team
in Haiti, they need more help to get more done. "It would also be nice to
have others start stepping in to really help. It would be nice to have some
volunteers go down, volunteers for the Christmas in August fundraiser. We need
funding."
God taking charge is the way to a grace-filled life. The joy
of the Haitian believers is a constant reminder of that. Stress will be there, says Eva, but dependence
upon God's grace changes how they look at it. And that change makes all the
difference in the world.
