“If I really believed what you believe, I wouldn’t get up from my knees.”  

Mahatma Gandhi in a talk to Christians

Dear friends,

I have been pondering that thought of Gandhi’s the past few days.  Back in the states I admit that my modus operandi is that of self-sufficiency.  Whenever I have lived in a country such as Haiti for a while, I must relearn that this method of operating does not work.  It may take me a few days-this visit it took two weeks-for me to radically change my modus operandi and recognize that I am weak and helpless but through the power of prayer, all things are possible.

My bodily posture literally changes-from being upright to be driven onto my knees by God in prayer.  

Haiti is beset with many troubles and each church mission has its own unique hurdles.  During my short visit, I have become intimately aware of and directly affected by the many hurdles that Faith In Action International and Tom’s family face daily.  This past week we have been strained with the the breaking down of both of FIAI’s trucks, illnesses of staff, obscure power plays by key people in another Christian mission that significantly affect FIAI, failure of storage batteries which FIAI depends upon for power, failure of propane oven and refrigeration ...to name a few.  

In the states many of these issues could easily be handled as there are resources available.  In Haiti resources are few and, when available, are located often many miles away.  For instance, the nearest fairly complete hardware store is in Port au Prince which is a three-hour drive.

Although I don’t believe that God causes these troubles, God uses them to arrest our attention; to awaken us to a sense of helplessness and weakness.  I think this is why I see more devout Christians in Haiti than I do in the U.S.  Haitians have learned to depend upon their faith in God for power to overcome their many challenges on a 24/7 basis.

God has shown Himself again to be faithful in providing very tangible resources:  An auto mechanic, trained in the United States, appears out of nowhere this week and offers his skills;  the owner of a tow trucking business from a neighboring town arrives last night at our door and offers to tow the disabled truck down from the mountain; a Floridian pastor and his wife, visiting relatives in Verrettes, stop by yesterday to use Tom’s exercise equipment and stay and pray with us; ...and the list of his mercies continues.

I believe that I know a little more now of how the wayward son in the Prodigal Son parable must have felt when he realized--having finally acknowledged his own weakness and rebelliousness--where his true home lay and returned on his knees in total submission to the Father.  I ponder why it takes me so very long to fully acknowledge this truth and to incorporate it into the depth of my being.

Love,

Larry

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

Romans 8:28