Pastor Jeremy Stephens

Haiti- Day 5

I am currently sitting in one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been, but getting here was miserable. We needed to leave Dame-Marie at 6 in the morning. The road across southern Haiti is under quite a bit of construction, and one section near our destination was going to be closed for blasting for the afternoon.

As we loaded the cars at 5:30, we heard singing from the sanctuary. Every morning people get together to sing and worship at 5:00. How often do you see that at home?

We loaded up the car and made our 8 hour journey across the mountains. Maybe it was our lack of sleep…maybe it was all of the big people crammed in the small pick-ups…but the ride back was exceptionally difficult. We were cramped and many of us got carsick on the way back. When we finally made Zanglais, we fell out of the car exhausted. I walked straight up to the room I was staying in and took a nap!

When I awoke, I had a chance to look around and was stunned by the beauty of where we are staying. It is simply unreal.

Today (a day later) we have the chance to sit and soak up the beauty of our environment. The reason for this stop is to give us a transition point between the work we were involved with in Dame-Marie and our return trip home. It is an opportunity to decompress, share stories, and get a little rest.

I haven’t mentioned this much, but I cannot say enough good things about our team. We represent 4 different churches, and I had only met a few of the people before we left. However, we have become fast friends. Last night, one girl on our team said that this week has felt like a very strange family vacation. I love seeing people connected because of our common love of Christ. That love truly supersedes all other personality differences. I have been blessed this week.