The Church On The Rock

Pastor Jay is a wonderful gentleman who first came here from Miami 31 years ago.  He and his wife only had intentions of a few short stints but soon God put it on their heart to move here and help provide resources for Christian leaders including children’s ministries like VBS.  This then morphed into church planting and he has now played a part in starting several churches that reach thousands of people here in Port-au-Prince.  He says that what keeps him going is remembering that “it was just a flick of God’s finger that kept me from being born in the shanty over there.”    The church that he personally leads is huge….and starts EARLY!  The first service was at 6:30 this morning but was actually preferable to go that early to beat the heat.  In a room with 5,000 seat capacity that was pretty much full…it got a tad warm even before the sun rose ;)   The church’s name, “Eglise Sur Le Rocher” which means The Church on the Rock, is fitting as it was built right up against the edge of a gorge.   This is a prime example of a people group that has nothing but in Christ have everything—sold out and on fire—the energy and genuineness of their Love for their Savior was palpable throughout the 2 hour service.  Pastor Jay’s sermon was from 2 Corinthians and my biggest takeaway was that when you experience the blessing of a harvest, you never want to stop planting.  I have only just met him, but this concept was palpably demonstrated in seeing his church and talking with him over breakfast—it is a passionate cycle I desire to emulate!

Musical Chairs

Now let me introduce you to an absolutely amazing woman named Chris.  She and her husband were first introduced to Haiti as part of a social work study and then developed a strong passion to stay and be a part of a actively loving these kids here.  They have been here 15 years now running an orphanage called HIS Home for Orphans and have been powerful players in assisting over 300 kids get adopted into loving homes and have cared for over 500 kids in their time here so far.  They have had a max of 147 at once and currently house 74 split into 4 smaller group homes in the city.  Perhaps the most amazing aspect of their display of love to these kids is their provision of kids with special needs—knowing each and every one of them individually and with a care that seeks to see them thrive in a nation where they would either have been left to die or the parents would otherwise not have the resources to care for them.  The energy and drive that I saw through Chris today and hearing her stories about each and every child we met it is evident that her fuel is from God alone and He is using her in powerful ways!  We got the blessing of coming alongside them today for a few short hours and just loving on some of her kids.