The Christmas carols are playing, the sun is shining and it's 84ºF/29ºC. Not very Christmas-like for my Canadian roots but it still does feel like Christmas. The kids gleefully decorated our little artificial tree the first week of December and have enjoyed putting a decoration a day on our felt Advent calendar (thanks Auntie Christy!). We anticipate the reminder of Jesus' birth and look forward to his coming again!
In some ways, I can't believe the year is already over. When the kids and I returned to Haiti in October, a few Christmas decorations were still up from last year – leftovers that didn't get put away before the earthquake. The January 12th earthquake certainly changed our lives and defined our year. We are so grateful to the Lord for sustaining and protecting us through the quake. It has been etched in our hearts and minds as a turning point in Haitian history. Kind of like what 9/11 is to Americans – we remember exactly where we were and what we were doing during that tragedy as well. Thank you all for your prayers for us. We are so grateful for them! Our prayers do not fall on the ears of a deaf, mute idol but on the ears of the King of the Universe! He answers the cries of his people.
Four days after the quake we were safely evacuated to Fort Pierce, Florida on a Hendrick Motor Sports (NASCAR race team owners) airplane. We had four suitcases and our dog, Thai. Heather was pregnant and we didn't have a place to live. Our faithful God provided in abundance for our family. After staying with friends in Tampa and Palmetto, Florida for a few weeks, we were able to rent a great house. Folks in Orthodox Presbyterian churches in Bradenton and Orlando helped us set up a home. Habitat for Humanity provided all the free furniture we needed that wasn't donated by our wonderful church family. It was a very humbling time for us as we were reminded that ALL that we have comes from the hand of the Lord. A marvelous teaching point for the kids (and us as well). Ben spent half his time in Haiti with all different kinds of teams and half back in Florida planning for the next team. It was a tumultuous time for our family but the Lord graciously sustained us.
We were thrilled to have visits by Ben's parents and Heather's sister and parents during our time in Florida. We spent a wonderful 10 days visiting churches in Wisconsin in May!
The kids homeschooling went along as usual and we made many new friends in our neighborhood. Through all the upheaval, the kids longed to be back home in Haiti. Our prayers were answered for them that they would not be afraid to come back to Haiti. They were so thrilled to finally be able to come home at the beginning of October.
Heather's pregnancy was excellent and the Lord gave grace for each day while Ben was away. Ben helped deliver our precious Esther Mercy on July 19th! An answer to Emma's many prayers for a little sister. What a blessed day that was for our family. Esther has been a very special gift in a very difficult year. We praise the Lord for his wisdom in sending us this sweet bundle of joy. Esther has changed us all for the better and we rejoice in that. We, indeed, have so much to be thankful for this year!
A further blessing-- on December 17th, we closed on a house in Florida. We are now first-time homeowners! This is exciting for us as we now know where we will be spending our furlough times. We are blessed to be close to our home church in Bradenton and our many good friends there.
Not much has changed since the quake and life in Haiti continues to be challenging. Suffering is an everyday occurrence here. The Haitian people are resilient. The need for the Gospel is great here and so our work is not in vain. Since we've been back, the cholera epidemic sprang up, Hurricane Tomas came through and then we had Presidential elections with all the demonstrations. We are learning to walk one day at a time in the safety and care of our risen Savior.
We wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and joyful 2011. May you know the peace that only Christ can give this holiday season and through the new year.
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