One Hope

"I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit--just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call--one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all." ~Ephesians 4:1-6

Crying and singing have something in common. They are both contagious.

I can't speak Creole. Renet, Jenet, and Analia can't speak English. All four of us, however, cry, pray, and sing to our one Lord.

On the 11th, I was sitting in the toddler-4 room with these three precious nannies. I had three children on my lap and four playing with my hair. Several of the children were crying, so I began to sing. As I reached the third verse of Eternal God for the second time, Jenet picked up the tune and hummed along. I sang As the Deer...Light the Fire...on and on in humble worship of our one Jesus. I then began Amazing Grace, at which point Jenet's eyes lit up. She, Renet, and Analia joined me, singing in Creole, hands raised and hearts upturned toward our one God. We sang it over and over, the peace of the worship putting most of the toddlers to sleep. It was absolutely glorious. Then Analia brought me a dogeared, well-loved, falling-apart hymnal in Creole, and they taught me one of their worship songs. I can't express to you how the "Spirit of the bond of peace" filled that room. 

Oh how I miss these sisters of mine. I ache for them.

They are full to the brim with our one God's peace and hope. They don't see their jobs at Maison as drudgery--far from it! They love the children with tender patience. The nannies bathe the children twice a day--they Always smelled better than me. I had the joy of helping bathe the toddlers several times throughout the week. Most of them would just giggle away, playing in the stream of water I poured over them or hitting my knees with their little fingers in that joyful way only children can. Others would cry because of the (relatively) cold water. Even when the children cried they wouldn't fight me, just patiently let me bathe them. I sang to our one Jesus then too, praying that the truth in the songs would pour blessings and hope into their tiny hearts.

When I had to leave Renet, Jenet, and Analia yesterday morning, we blessed each other in the name of our one Jesus through a fountain of tears and kisses. My heart could hardly bear to leave them. My feet took my away from them in spite of my avid desire to stay. Why should I come home? Why should I have to leave my sisters there to care for our babies alone? Because they're not alone. Although it is true that Christ's body of followers is encouraged and helped greatly when we serve, love, cry, sing, and bathe babies together, Christ's Spirit remains within each of us even when we're apart. 

One of the truths that I have clung to this week is this: our one God is bigger, outside of, completely independent from, and in fact, CREATED, space and time. He is able to (and I believe He did and will) multiply the fruit and blessing from the short time we spent at Maison des Enfants de Dieu for His glory. I can't give up hope as a result of feeling helpless because that means my hope is in myself. My goodness, how glad I am that I don't have to serve, love, and encourage out of myself! There would have been no way for me. I would have given up hope long ago. Each time I lost sight of our one God and my field of vision was obscured by myself, I faltered. I am small and weak and selfish. In myself, I have nothing to offer the beautiful, precious people of God at Maison (or anyone for that matter). Only by God's indelible grace can real meaning and blessing be found or given.

I so aspire to be transparent...to have our one Jesus pour Himself through me onto my sisters and brothers. How I praise Him for choosing to use my small, weak, selfish self to somehow bless some of His children for a short while. Ahh, therein lies another fear! That "short while" bit! I need to remember that Jesus Made time and He is going to accomplish His will. Yes He has given me some time to use as I choose. Oh how I pray that I can return to give more, so much more, time to Renet, Jenet, Analia, Pierre, Philder, Angie, Ruth, Roosebeth, Chrismathe, Wilson, Fabienne, Rickza, Vladimir, Francesca, Jimmencia, Wilda, Lovencia, Orlando, Smith, Caesar, Michelle, Danika, Annsara, Samuel, and EACH of the others....I hate being 1500 miles away from them. But our one God is not bound by distance! He knows the cry of our hearts far before we express it to Him. He cares for my sisters and brothers at Maison even though I had to leave them. Jesus is the "Father of all". Jesus has called each of us to follow Him in healing this broken world, one tiny heart at a time. 

I see Him raising up this generation of Haitian children to fall in love with Him...to bless the nations...to show the way to His grace. So I'll continue to cry and sing, praying that our one, precious Lord will take me back to my sisters and brothers soon, to pour me out again. I'll continue to praise Him for His majesty, and goodness...for knowing and feeling each tear, smile, shout of pain and joy, better than His child who bears it.

~Susanna