Rob Duford, pastor of Orlando North Community Church, and a team of nine others will be traveling to Haiti April 10-17. Check here each day to read about their daily adventures, perspectives and emotions as they seek to serve the hurting and poor of Haiti.
April 16/17: Sorry there haven’t been any posts the past two days. I am writing this blog from 25,000 feet in the air on our final flight from Miami to Orlando. Can’t wait to touch down and see my family.
Just to bring you up to speed yesterday we visited an orphanage where we played with more amazing children in the tumultuous heat. Visited another tent city. Mark Bowman spoke at last night’s service and there were two decisions for Christ. Very rewarding for me to watch our tribe function in a capacity they don’t often have the opportunity to.
Today we said goodbye to some great new friends. Georges, Reynold, Ed, Island, Francois, Monnoge,….. Our hearts have been pierced by their love and servanthood. We truly fell in love with all of them.
I’ll blog more later, but know this trip was the most eye opening seven days of my life as I anticipated it would be.
Now, it’s time to hug my wife and two little ones who are excited to see their daddy. After that, a HOT shower, a quick study for tomorrows service at Orlando North and then my first night’s sleep in over a week without the background noises of goats, fighting dogs, roosters, or tremors.
Thank you for your prayers. Please, please keep praying for the people of Haiti and Ed as he serves them.
I go to bed tonight with a very full heart. Mercie Senor!
April 15: Eye opening day I will never forget. Started the morning off building shelves for the clinic. Taught some of the Haitian guys some construction via Jay Moore’s construction skills. Several of the ladies organized the clinic with relief supplies and medicine. The afternoon gave me a two hour moment that is permanently fixed in my memory. We went to a “tent city” where 450 people now live as a result of the earthquake. The people live under tarps and many use concrete blocks as beds to keep them off the ground when it rains. The poverty is unimaginable. The 450 people live on a plot of land about a quarter of an acre. They have no food. We brought them 600 pounds of rice and beans today that will last them three days. It’s hard to fathom what we just saw.
Jesus, challenge all of us to help them. If you are reading this, know that the donations you send to Haiti goes directly to help these desperate people.
Two more days. I will never be the same. Keep praying.
April 14: Started the day with a wake up call by a 4.2 tremor at midnight last night. All I have to say is WOW. We were all sleeping and it startled most of us awake. It only lasted for a couple seconds but shook big time. Ed told us it was one of the of the bigger ones and that there were actually four tremors last night, three of which we didn’t feel. Honestly, it was kind of neat to experience. Today we continued construction until we ran out of gas on the generator. Ed took most of the group to a “tent city” where our team encountered those most affected by the poverty and earthquake. Our main call here is to hug the kids and love on them. To look past the dirt, the smells, and the sicknesses to just love on these beautiful little ones is such a joy. Tomorrow we head back to the tent city to hand out food and play with the kids.
P.S. To clarify – the showers are working great, but it’s so hot you can’t stay clean for more than five minutes. To the team that built the showers we are eternally grateful! Keep praying.
April 13: Had a great night’s sleep last night under the most beautiful sky. Woke up to have the team begin our work on an exterior wall as well as organizing clinical supplies. Had to have been over 100 degrees. Learning a lot from people and Ed (Lockett). Kim Moore preached on the topic of fear at tonight’s service. Was exactly what needed to be shared. The whole team is doing well. I’m very proud of the whole gang. Just a warning – when we get home, we are going to smell pretty badly. We feel for the people who sit next to us on our flight from Miami to Orlando on Saturday. Keep praying.
April 12: Set up camp at Ed’s school. They are serving over 400 kids with an affordable education plus one meal a day. An incredible luxury here. Part of the team went and ministered to a family in a hut with 39 people living in it. Bandaged a wound. Played with kids. Saw Ed’s school and am amazed at how influential he is in this community. Tomorrow we are continuing work on a wall at the school and organizing medical supplies. Mark Bowman and Kim Moore are speaking at service tomorrow night.
Click here to see pictures from today.
April 11: Wow! What a day. Two services. Lots of singing, dancing and playing with precious children. Jim Reynolds preached this morning and Jay Moore preached this evening. Both did amazing. God is showing us so much. Can’t help but love the people. Poverty is so strong. Never seen anything like it. Got to experience a tremor today, but only one person on our team felt it. Tomorrow we build a security wall around the school. Keep praying.
April 10: Arrived safely after a long morning and a three hour bumpy ride to Petit Goave. The poverty was so apparent as we drove through Port-au-Prince. Drove through the town my dad ministered in just a couple of weeks ago. That was special. Helped work on a well. Hung with the kids at the Happy House. Hugged Islande who is the sweet young lady Orlando North put through school with our Lent offering in 2007. We are all well. Exhausted and ready for bed. Two services tomorrow. Pray for God’s glory to shine through us.
April 9: Ok, here goes. Here is my attempt to put into words the emotions I am feeling 37 hours before I land in Port-au-Prince, Haiti along with nine other Orlando North teammates.
Early, actually very early, Saturday morning the ten of us will head to the airport to begin an adventure of a lifetime by serving the people of Haiti following one of the most devastating earthquakes in history. We’ll be working with our missionary friend, Ed Lockett who was with us at Orlando North just a few weeks ago. He’s been serving the people of Haiti for over 15 years now, and we are honored to be helping him this upcoming week.
My emotions are numerous. I could fib and tell you how confident and strong I am. I am confident that God has called us to this trip and I am confident that He is going to do amazing things while we are there. I’ve been on numerous overseas mission trips including the most impoverished of Jamaica, Peru, Ireland, and even England. Peru was the one that pulled me the furthest out of my comfort zone as we had to travel for several days to a remote village at the base of the Amazon rain forest to minister to people who had just recently been introduced to the outside world.
But Haiti….Where do I begin? My heart has been wrecked for these people since the earthquake of January 12th. I’ve cried for a country I’ve never been to. I’ve been frustrated for a people who have been so impoverished. I’ve been glued to the television as Anderson Cooper fed us horror stories that couldn’t be written by Hollywood’s finest. I’ve downloaded ‘We Are the World’ (Haiti version) and listened to it at least a hundred times. I’ve prayed.
And now it’s my turn to go and be the light for Jesus. I go with no preconceived ideas. I simply want the Holy Spirit to use me and teach me. I want to be taught how to truly love. I want to once again be reminded how much I have and literally have the greed of my heart revealed. I want compassion. I crave to love these people the way Jesus does.
Before I go I want to ask you to commit to prayer for myself, the team, Ed, my family, and all the Haitian people we will connect with. Pray that my kids will be brave while their daddy is away. My son has mentioned his fear that an earthquake will hit while I am there. Even children comprehend what’s happening there. It’s been a great teaching opportunity for daddy to be brave and trust God through all this. There are no guarantees, but there is peace. Pray for the team’s health. Pray that we will rise above the physical struggles (heat, exhaustion, food) and be love.
Rob