I recently spent a week in Haiti serving with a medical missions team from Long Hollow. The men and women on this team served our children in Jeremie, Haiti with such love and kindness. It was an honor to be with a group that truly gave up themselves and became the hands and feet of Jesus.
Stephanie Passons, a Physician Assistant at Long Hollow Family Practice, was a last minute addition to the team. When she heard about the cholera affecting the Jeremie area she signed up for her second trip to Haiti. The following is an excerpt from the blog post she wrote upon her return.
“…once our eyes are open, we cannot pretend we don’t know what to do. God who weighs our hearts and keeps our souls, knows what we know and holds us responsible to act.”
Proverbs 24:12
On the heels of my last trip to Haiti I have been struggling with putting into words how I felt, what I saw, and how God moved in that place. All I know is that He did… Being called to go back to Haiti was another life changing experience. Everything fell into place beautifully and within a week of the call I was headed back to a place I fell in love with last November. I heard someone say tonight, “I can guarantee you that there is a zero percent chance that God does not reside in that place…” After being there for a week I can testify that God does indeed reside in that place. Acclimating back to reality in America is hard because I question whether God resides in a lot of the places to which I accustom my daily living. Not that they are bad places in and of themselves, I just had a feeling in Haiti that I don’t experience here. Almost like a “God shaped hole” in your heart that is only filled by going there. The best part of missions and especially this trip is that not only does it transform those we go to serve but it transforms us. You finally begin to experience life because you die to yourself which goes along with many of the things Jesus taught us… you are first when you become last, you are great when you become the least, and you truly live when you die. A beautiful quote from Jen Hatmaker who wrote a study I just finished tonight said it better than I could ever explain:
“Missional living cures apathy better than any sermon, promotes healing quicker than any counseling, deepens discipleship more than Bible studies and creates converts more effectively than any other event.”
It transforms both the slave and its master… and it indeed transformed me yet again…
What a powerful message from Stephanie! I love that woman – my sister in Christ! – Cindy Emerson