Where He leads...

My first two weeks in Haiti

2012-01-19T16:01:00.011-06:00

Yesterday marked two weeks since I arrived back in Haiti. It’s been a busy, challenging, and adventurous time so far. As I mentioned before, my main responsibility this trip is to run the guesthouse for God’s Planet. From January to the end of February there are five teams who have organized a mission trip. The first team of 11 people came on the 9^th for 4 days. They were from Grace Point Baptist Church in Cleveland, TN. It was nice to have some fellow Tennesseans around! In just those few days they had a packed schedule. Their main ministry site was at Sarah’s orphanage, Living Water Haiti. When I came to Haiti in November, I stayed with Sarah and the kids. It has been great having the opportunity to see all that she is doing here and what she hopes for the future. The Grace Point team added two more rows of block to her perimeter wall. This will enhance the safety of the property as some thieves jumped the wall last month, stole her water pump and killed her sweet dog Mia. The team also put a roof over two rooms Sarah is adding in the back yard. One room will be for the gate/grounds keeper, the other room will be used as a much needed storage room. In the afternoons, the group organized a Vacation Bible School at Sarah’s house for her kids and any from the neighborhood who wanted to come. The first day, there were nine kids (five were Sarah’s). By the end of the week there were over 30! One of the men from the group also led a pastor training seminar each day. This is a great ministry to Haitian pastors who have limited resources when it comes to training and materials.

While groups are here I’m in charge of hospitality and making sure they are fed and have what they need. We hired a lady named Josien to help with cooking and cleaning, but NeNe and I pitch in a lot to get everything done. A typical day might look like this:

I wake up around 6am to have breakfast ready at 7am. (Although each group can decide what time they want breakfast.) The sun is rising by then, so there is enough sunlight to start getting things done. But NeNe will start the generator soon after so we have more light in the kitchen and for the groups to get ready for their day. We can use the stove without the generator but the oven needs it. Sometimes we have city power during the night and intermittently throughout the day, but lately we haven’t had it at all. Without city power there is no electricity except from the generator, which is very noisy and is a gas guzzler. When groups are here, we have to buy more gas at least every day and a half. Sometimes Sarah’s husband Yves gets it in his car, but most the time NeNe will take a motorcycle taxi to town and fill up the five gallon jug. During the day time, the generator isn’t really needed. The groups are out at their ministry sites and the house has plenty of light. But it’s important that I keep an eye on the food in the fridge so it doesn’t spoil. Think of power outages at the States and what can happen to the food in your fridge if it’s out for several hours at a time. It would be overkill to run the generator all the time, so I just keep a good eye on the food, especially the meat in the freezer to make sure it stays cold enough.

We usually cook a warm breakfast… pancakes, French toast, oatmeal, eggs, bacon, breakfast casserole, etc. Lunch is typically sandwiches, either cold or grilled. Chips are pretty expensive, but sometimes I’ll splurge or even buy papitas (fried banana chips) which most of the last group loved. Some groups bring their own snacks to eat with lunch or throughout the day. Dinners include a variety of American and Haitian meals… spaghetti, chili, meatloaf and mashed potatoes, grilled chicken and veggies, and Haitian meals like rice and beans and/or chicken or beef with sauce. The groups are typically 15-20 people so a lot goes into preparing the meals and even just the shopping itself.

I do a lot of the shopping at a supermarket called DeliMart. It’s similar to a small supermarket in the States, but with crowded narrow aisles. The prices are similar to the States too, with some exceptions. A dozen eggs is around $4, but you can get a pound of ground beef for less than $2. In some ways you save compared to the States, in some ways you don’t. You can even get meat and cheese sliced in the deli section for sandwiches. Yves and Sarah have gotten to know one of the workers who has now become like family to them. Sometimes he’ll get us a 10% discount, which can add up especially on our bigger trips. The air-conditioning is fierce in that place. A nice welcome probably for many, but it’s almost too much for this cold-natured gal compared to the heat outside. One perk of shopping here, sometimes I’ll spot a fun treat like a Mountain Dew or Baby Ruth. :)

While we do get some fruits and vegetables at DeliMart, we get most of them at an outdoor market. Now this is an experience! Yves will drive the bread truck down ridiculously crowded and narrow streets packed with pedestrians, vendors and their stands, and other vehicles pushing to get though. We park and walk through the dirt or mud streets to find the items we need. From one stand we may by onions, potatoes, and carrots. From another, oil, butter, and vinegar. And so it goes. It’s hot, dirty, and we are all sweating and thirsty by the time the shopping is done. There are vendors selling chickens, live or already cut up. And some areas I struggle to keep my gag reflex in check, like when we went further down the street and I could see puddles of evidence where such vendors had been earlier that day. The smell can be overpowering at times. I hold my breath and walk as quickly as I am able. To us who are used to, shall we say, a cleaner shopping environment, it can be difficult to overlook the appearance of the food and other items. There is no shortage of flies and dirt. But I can attest to the fact that with a proper wash, it all tastes as good, if not better, than fruits and veggies bought anywhere else. And you can get a hefty bag of items for pennies compared to the grocery store.

At some point during the day I will be more than ready for a shower. Most of us are so spoiled in the States with temperature control and a nice shower head. Here, the water is cold to cool depending on the time of day. And while that is refreshing when you are super hot or super disgusting, it would still be nice to turn it up a few degrees most the time. Or at least have the option! Shower heads are pointless here. They only limit the weak water pressure even more than it already is. So you basically have a nickel sized hole and the water comes out like a kinked garden hose. I am thankful for decent bathrooms here. We have toilets and sinks and showers that are comparable to the States. Decent toilet paper is affordable enough at DeliMart, you just don’t flush it down, so bathroom garbage is emptied regularly. And speaking of garbage, everyone burns their garbage. Most homes like this one have a concrete walled area out back for this purpose. NeNe burns the pile regularly. Every once in a while you hear a “BOOM!” as an aerosol can or who knows what explodes.

Josien sweeps and mops the common areas daily. The groups head out after breakfast, return for lunch, and then head back out until dinnertime. The upstairs of the guest house is where the volunteers stay. Josien will mop those bathrooms and take out the trash each day. It’s a rather big house, with the capacity to sleep 40 people, so it’s not feasible for Josien to clean the entire house every day on top of helping prepare the meals. But we strive to keep the main areas downstairs clean throughout the week. Our days are full enough doing everything we are doing. Josien will often finish with her duties mid-afternoon, go home for a while, and come back an hour or more before dinner to get it on the table by 6pm or whenever the group has requested. It’s a long day for her. She works every day but Sunday. Meanwhile, NeNe happily fills in the gaps where I need him, most often with cooking, though some groups are eager and welcome to help in the kitchen as well.

During the day while groups are out, NeNe and I will walk around, visiting with his friends and family. We’ll buy a bottle of coke for around 50 cents or some fried banana and sit around or play with the kids. Most of his family lives a short walk away in a cluster of small homes. These homes are similar to the tiny tin shacks in Katutura, but are made of wood. One or two beds typically take up most of the space, with some minimal storage and a small place for cooking. His niece Maxolyn lives in one home. She calls me her “matant” (aunt). She is 19 years old and has three sons, Jobens, Naiday, and Jeff… the oldest probably 4 or 5 years old. All four of them plus the boyfriend sleep in one bed together in the small home.

At night, I may chat with some of the groups, play cards with NeNe, or enjoy a quiet evening—if the evening grants me that! The guesthouse is next to a bar/store/club, and Haitians seem to love their music! They blare it throughout the week, sometimes as late as 11pm. There’s also a group of young guys who have set up a little party zone down the street, equipped with an unfortunately effective outdoor sound system. Typically sleep comes easily as I’m pretty worn out by the end of the day. But there are so many noises throughout the night… Confused roosters crowing at all hours of the night, voodoo drums and loud singing and chanting, and mosquitoes buzzing around my head. I’m thankful for a night of rest and gear up to do it all over again…

The next four teams are all from Ohio and coming down mostly to help build a new orphanage for a local pastor. His name is also NeNe. Pastor NeNe has over 30 children at his orphanage, and he and his wife have several kids of their own. I visited this orphanage during my last trip and attended his church one Sunday. He is currently renting the place they’re at now, but rent is expensive and the home isn’t well designed for their needs. They’ve had assistance acquiring some land behind the guest house, so the volunteer teams are going to help build a new orphanage there. The first group from Ohio will arrive Friday, and each team will stay for one week. Teams will be departing and arriving on the same day, so needless to say, it will be a busy four weeks.

Thank you for continuing to pray for me as I minister to both the groups and this community. I’ve only been sick once so far, and there’s no telling from what. I don’t shy away from the delicious street food or kissing all over these precious children, so I can’t really complain if I get sick from time to time. But I pray that those times of sickness will be few so that I can have energy to accomplish and enjoy all that I’m here to do.

Me and the lovely ladies from Grace Point

A couple of the guys from Grace Point making necklaces with Makely. Richard (in the middle) was such a sweet man! He loved on the Haitian workers as much as anyone else. When he was in Hondurus, the people had named him "Chocho", so he had all of us calling him that as well. He was dearly loved and will not soon be forgotten!

Sarah's kids showing off some of their new goodies. A family and elementary class in North Carolina put a special package together for me to bring them. They are holding photos of that class. So sweet!

Me and Crystelle, one of NeNe's cousins. She is such a cutie and always happy to see me! The feeling is mutual. :)

Jeff was quite shy at first but he's warming up to me more and more each day.

My friends from Maryville, Josh and Amanda Armstrong, were in Haiti for a few days. Amanda hung out with me at the guest house for a couple days. We had a great time and she loved getting out and about around the community.

Crystelle put herself in charge of rationing out the candy.

One day I brought a few toys and some blow up balls for the kids to have. They loved throwing and chasing the balls around.

Sarah added a new girl to her orphanage this week. Gerlanda has been living with extended family members after her parents died in the earthquake. She is so sweet but quiet. I'm sure she'll blossom soon being in this new environment and with Sarah's other wonderful kids.

NeNe took me on a walk one day to take a look around the neighborhood. We came to this and he told me to cross it. Umm... right... :) But I did, with his help, and only got a little muddy.

These were some kids who wanted their photo near where people were getting water and bathing.

My little buddy Jobens. This is one of my favorite photos!!

Fried bananas. Yum! And marinad, it's like a fried spicy bread. Also delicious! I love Haitian street food!!!

Adventures at the airport

2012-01-04T05:25:00.001-06:00

Well, I’m halfway to Haiti anyway. Over the past several weeks people have been asking me two questions… “Are you ready to go to Haiti?” and “Are you excited to go to Haiti?” Both of those questions were always answered with, “I will be.” That “I will be” translates to the fact that I knew I wouldn’t be ready up until the time I was driving to the airport... and about that same time is when I’d start to get excited. This past month has been busy to say the least. Everyone already knows how busy the holidays are. Family gatherings, Christmas shopping and preparation, and all of the festivities in between. My dad’s birthday is two days before Christmas. Mine is three days after. My brother’s is the first week of January. And if that weren’t enough to keep me bustling around, I had to move out of my house by December 31^st. Oh, and not to mention packing and preparing for Haiti. With all that going on, I knew that I would be busy up until the very last minute before my departure. And indeed I was! Of course I have been excited and looking forward to heading down for my third trip to Haiti, but I have a hard time truly experiencing that excitement until I clear everything else off my plate. With my bags finally packed and myself heading out the door, I was ready and my excitement was growing.

There was still, however, one pre-Haiti experience I was not looking forward to. The best deal on a flight I could find put me into Miami around midnight, and I wouldn’t fly from there to Port-au-Prince until 8:30am the next morning. Flights with more reasonable layovers were upwards of $200-400 more. With my small budget, I knew it would be best to find a way to spend the night at the airport. I even researched information from other travelers and one thing they all agreed on was that the Miami airport, like most, stays around 60 degrees and is bright and loud with constant announcements. I still needed to give it a shot, dreading it as I was. Then, at the last-minute, Grant offered to cover my stay at a hotel. So that certainly perked me up! Even for a brief time I could sleep in a warm bed and not have to worry about someone messing with me or my belongings. I landed in Miami and was welcomed by… cold! I thought I would have escaped that by now! It was in the low 40s. I headed outside to find the shuttle. There were many hotel shuttles, but none that were what I needed. I called a friend who finally found me the number of the hotel I needed. They don’t have a shuttle. And a taxi would cost around $35 each way. That was out. The whole point was for me to save money, and I wasn’t prepared to pay $70. I thought I found a solution with a private shuttle service. It was closer to $20 each way. A tad more reasonable, though I hated to even pay that. But I started the process and while waiting for the shuttle, I called them to arrange a pick up in the morning. They wouldn’t be able to pick me up in the morning in time for my flight, so alas, I was back to another $35 taxi ride. A bit disappointed, I ended up cancelling the whole idea and went back to try to find a safe place in the airport. I felt bad since Grant had already made my reservation, but it just wasn’t a good option to spend over half the cash I brought with me.

I tried unsuccessfully to find a warm and comfortable spot. Sleeping was not going to be easy even though I was exhausted. I tried a spot for about 45 minutes, then I needed a change. One tip I remembered from my “sleeping in the Miami airport” google search… there is a chapel in an obscure area of the airport. Supposedly, it’s great for women traveling alone because there is a lock on the door. It was in the farthest terminal, but I figured it was worth a shot. I walked by hundreds of sleepy travelers, sprawled out in every place and fashion imaginable. One lady even brought a huge air mattress. I envied her! I finally found the chapel and it was miraculously unlocked and empty. I praised God, locked the door, and tried to get comfy enough on the floor. It was after 1am. I drifted in and out of sleep for a couple hours. And then around 3:15am someone started pounding on the door. It was a stocky man and from behind the glass, I couldn’t convince him to leave. He kept insisting in Spanish that the door shouldn’t be locked. He had an airport badge. I thought to myself, “Great… I’m going to have to let this man in here with me. I’m in the most abandoned part of the airport. And I’ve watched too many episodes of CSI!” I let him in and just prayed he was an honest guy. I tried asking him if he was coming to pray. I certainly didn’t want to keep anyone from that. He didn’t speak English, but I soon learned that he wasn’t there to meet with God, he was there to text loudly and then fall asleep loudly. He snored. “Must be nice to sleep!” I muttered. Because I sure wasn’t going to fall asleep with some stranger in there with me! About 20 minutes later one of his friends came in. Even better. Two men and silly little me. Thankfully, they were simply using it for their nap time as well. I wanted to ask if they were on the clock, but I didn’t. I stayed (sitting up) for another hour or so and then headed out after two more people came in. “A fiesta,” I thought to myself. No thanks!

The rest of the airport was busy again. Most people were out of their zombie state and waiting in check-in lines. I treated myself to Starbucks (the last for a while), and went to get my boarding pass. You can imagine how happy I was to hear that my flight has been delayed from 8:30am to 1pm. So here I sit. Waiting. Wireless internet is $5 for 30 minutes, so I suppose I’ll sit here, listen to some tunes, and fight sleep… maybe allowing myself to give in just a bit…

Haiti will be a breeze compared to this! And… it will be warm! Hallelujah! :)

Looking forward to the new year

2012-01-02T08:22:00.003-06:00

It's hard to believe that another year has come and gone. It's harder still to realize that I've been back from Namibia for that long. It seems like yesterday I was in that unique country, surrounded by so many people I easily grew to love. I hope 2012 will provide an opportunity to return there for a visit. But first, I have another stop to make on my journey...

I leave for Haiti tomorrow. This will be my third trip since I first went down in August. You can read more details what I'll be doing in my previous entry from December. The short of it, I'll be managing the God's Planet guest house outside of Croix des Bouquets, about 10 miles northeast of Port-au-Prince. Currently, there are six groups of volunteers signed up to come down, with more possible after that. I will be managing the logistics to care for these teams, helping organize transportation, doing the grocery shopping, assisting the cook with meals, and so forth. I'm excited for this new challenge and looking forward to reuniting with friends in Haiti and making many new ones throughout the coming weeks.

My trip to Haiti will be a wonderful way to kick off the New Year! I purchased a one-way ticket as I don't know my exact departure date, but plan to return to the States sometime in March. It's crazy to think that this time last year I was in Israel, and now I'm packing my bags once again!

Thank you for your prayers! Please continue to pray for me as I settle into my duties at the guest house. And thanks to many of you who have supported me for this trip. As of today, I only need about $100 more to raise to cover my expenses during these next 2+ months. If you feel led to give, you can send a check to me at P.O. Box 4878, Maryville, TN 37802 and my family will deposit it into an account I can access in Haiti.

I wanted to close with a sweet story. There is a man at my church named Lloyd Baker. He and his wife Eva are two of the nicest people you will ever meet. Before I left for Africa, he was making birdhouses and selling them for $5 each to raise money..."So you can eat over there," he would say. People later told me that after I left he would corner everyone at church to buy one. Some people ended up with several. Others joked that they began going in another entrance to avoid his fabulous sales pitch. All in all, he probably sent me over $250 just from selling those birdhouses alone! Yesterday at church, he told me he had a Christmas, birthday, and New Year's present for me. He handed me a gift bag and inside was a Jif peanut butter jar filled with bills and coins. He had asked me weeks before if I could use pennies, and I said that I can use anything anyone wanted to give. So as he gave me the jar he beamed, "You said you could use pennies!" He said he had found many of the coins in dryers he cleaned out and had been saving up the bills from different small jobs he had done. The total: $129.42! Mr. Baker is 85 years old, and such a constant blessing to my life. :)

Be a Trader

2011-12-06T19:10:00.004-06:00

This is one of the best videos I've seen in a long time. It sums up a lot of what I've been thinking and studying lately. It's also very similar to the principles in the book "Radical" by David Platt that I taught at my church recently. Check this out and be challenged!

My next move

2011-12-05T12:01:00.004-06:00

In less than a month I'll be heading back down to Haiti. This time I'll stay for at least two and a half months. This return to Haiti will be through God's Planet. I wrote about my latest trip through them last month. And I'm happy to report that all of the children from the Christmas project have been sponsored! What a praise! God is so good to provide for these special children. I was blessed to get to meet them all in November. And I am so excited to be able to be there next month when we will deliver all of their goodies. :)

So what will I be doing next with God's Planet?

God's Planet has a guest house near Croix des Bouquets. The guest house exists to be a base of operations for those coming to the country to minister to the Haitian people. Some of the groups partner with God's Planet to assist with the orphanage projects GP is involved in. Other groups come to Haiti independently providing physical and spiritual support through church networking, prison ministry, crusades and other activities. Either way, the guest house provides a wonderful resting and meeting spot, a safe place to stay, great food, and a warm bed to sleep in. (No extra charge for the warm bed... it's a given with Haiti's tropical climate! Ha!)

I will be helping manage this guest house. This will involve everything from hospitality to helping with logistics. We will pick up most groups from the airport. I'll prepare their rooms, help with meals, and even work alongside them at the ministry sites when I'm able. I'm excited about this opportunity as I feel it's sort of a culmination of all the various ministry roles I've had over the last several years. I can draw from my near two years in New Orleans as a ministry site coordinator for volunteer groups. In Namibia, I lived in a house that also functioned as a guest house for missionaries and their families traveling through the capital city. Even my time as a dorm mom for 31 high school girls will be helpful. And every other experience in between. This will be my third and longest trip to Haiti. I've already fallen in love with the people, especially the children, and the culture already feels like home. My African home that is. Haiti has so many parallels with many African countries I've visited and miss so much. It's similar to being on that beautiful continent, without the nearly two days of travel and jet lag to get there!

How can you help?

1) Prayer. As always, you can pray for me and the ministry of God's Planet. There are so many behind-the-scenes activities that exist within any non-profit organization. If there is anything Grant and Eva have learned, it's that God is in the details. Even when it looks like things are not going to fall in place, God still makes a way. Sometimes things will come together in a different way than planned, but it is incredible to hear stories of how God has been moving and working in Haiti through their ministry since Grant's first trip almost 20 years ago. You can pray for all of the details to come together for the upcoming projects. And you can also pray that I will serve well in this role. It will require a lot of energy and patience in a country that can sometimes drain you (both due to the hot climate and to all of the other aspects of living in a third-world country).

2) Financial support. While this role will not require as much financial support as my time in Namibia, I still need some help. This is a volunteer position, though my living expenses in Haiti will be few. Mostly, I will need help with monthly obligations, such as my health insurance and other payments such as cell phone and internet access while in Haiti. My family always finds it easier to send me off to these places when they know they can contact me when they need or want to. :) Again, these expenses will be minor, and I'm budgeting a need for $300 per month to cover these expenses, including any food, transportation, or other expenses I'll have outside of the regular guest house provisions. So $300 per month and also my round-trip plane ticket are what I need to raise for my 2-3 months in Haiti. My departure date will be sometime during the first week of January.

I hope you will join my in prayer as I prepare and leave for Haiti. And if you would like to support my ministry financially, you can do so in one of two ways:

If you do not wish your gift to be tax-deductible, you can send a check directly to me at my mom's address or to:

Hannah Sterling

P.O. Box 4878

Maryville, TN 37802-4878

Or if you would like to receive a tax-deductible receipt from God's Planet, you can send your donation through them* to:

God's Planet

P.O. Box 235

Rockford, TN, 37853

*Be sure and include my name in the memo line. All but a small percentage for overhead will come directly towards my budget for my time in Haiti.

Thank you for your prayers, support, and encouragement! I could not continue with my ministry without so many of you backing me through prayer and otherwise. And if any of you are interested in serving in Haiti while I am there, contact me or email Grant Rimback at Gods.Planet@yahoo.com for more details on bringing down a group.

Many blessings this Christmas Season and always!

You can bless a child in Haiti this Christmas

2011-11-25T11:00:00.005-06:00

I mentioned in my last blog entry that I went to Haiti this month to help God's Planet gather information for their Christmas project. God's Planet partners with several orphanages in Haiti and one of the big projects each year is matching the children at these orphanages with sponsors to provide them with personalized Christmas gifts. This year, we have nearly 150 children on the list. I took photos of the children and recorded their information (i.e. age, shoe and clothing sizes, etc).

After compiling all of the information, all we need is YOU! Sponsoring a child for Christmas is easy. God's Planet will provide you with a reusable shopping bag and information about your child. You simply fill the bag with unique gifts for that child and turn it back into God's Planet by December 18th. Volunteer teams will take the bags to Haiti and we will deliver them to each orphanage.

Here are some gift ideas:

Girls - hair bows, Barbie dolls, summer tops and dresses, jump ropes, lip gloss

Boys - toy cars, football, action figures, dress shirts, shorts, combs

Both - playing cards, school supplies, stickers, candy, socks and underwear, shoes, sandals

We also encourage you to put a card and/or photos of you and your family to personalize your gift.

If you are interested in spreading a little joy this Christmas to a child in Haiti, contact me and I can give you more details. If you live in the Maryville area, I can give you a bag and the child's information. If you live elsewhere but would still like to participate, let me know and we can arrange that. You would need to mail the items to us by December 18th.

Here are some of the children who are still in need of a sponsor.

Offlie is 9 years old. When she grows up, she wants to be a nurse.

Robens is 7 years old. When he grows up, he wants to be a pastor.

Medjine is 6 years old. When she grows up, she wants to be a lollipop seller.

Vlajimmy is 12 years old. When he grows up, he wants to be a driver.

To find out if these children are still available to sponsor for the Christmas project or to sponsor another child, email me at hannahsterling@live.com.

However you spend this Christmas holiday, I pray it will be filled with joy and that you will be filled with thanksgiving for the many blessings you have been given this Christmas season and throughout the year.

My latest trip to Haiti

2011-11-24T12:48:00.003-06:00

Earlier this month I spent 9 days in Haiti. This time, I went to Haiti through an organization called God's Planet. Grant and Eva Rimback are from here in Blount County and started this non-profit years ago after his first trip to Haiti in 1993. I met Eva's sister Michelle in September and she got us connected. Next thing I know, I'm at their house planning a trip!

God's Planet partners with orphanages in Haiti to support them in whatever way they can. For years, God's Planet has organized a Christmas project which matches children in the orphanages with sponsors who fill personalized bags with Christmas goodies. My primary purpose for this trip was to organize the information for the Christmas project. I stayed with Sarah Fagg, who is the founder of Living Water Haiti. After taking several trips to Haiti throughout the years, she moved there two years ago and recently started an orphanage. So far, she cares for 5 children and has a desire to have an orphanage one day with up to 30 children. Sarah is from Maryville and it was great getting to know her, chatting about Tennessee, and sharing our heart for orphans and vulnerable children. Sarah even got married while I was down there. It was a small wedding and I volunteered to be her photographer. I would post some photos, but she hasn't posted any (because I haven't given her the CD yet) so I will have to wait. :) It was wonderful to be there for that special occasion!

During this trip I visited four orphanages not including Sarah's. My job was to take photos of all of the children. Sarah helped write down the names and her dad (who was visiting and there for the wedding) helped measure each child's foot so I could record shoe sizes. We also tried to record clothing sizes for each child. If they didn't have a tag in the clothes they were wearing, we would eyeball their size. Though even if they had a tag, it wasn't always helpful. It was common to see 8 or 9 year olds squeezed into a 3T or 4T shirt. At the end of our info gathering, we would bring all the children together and ask them what they wanted to be when they grew up. It was neat to hear the wide variety of answers. Even some of the littlest ones contributed, most of them wanting to be banana, mango or lollipop sellers. :) Many of the 139 children want to be nurses or doctors. Some lawyers, architects, or builders. One a helicopter pilot. A couple want to be cosmetologists or chefs. And perhaps my favorite, the 7 year old boy who wants to be a ninja. :)

I'll write more in an upcoming blog entry about how you can sponsor a child for the Christmas project. Meanwhile, here are some photos from a few of the orphanages.

Kids' House Orphanage has 17 children at an orphanage on a mountain outside of Port-au-Prince. They have a lovely view but their living conditions are less than basic. They have no running water or electricity.

Agape Orphanage has 41 children. These photos are taken on the top floor of their building where many of them have school. Most of the older children attend a secondary school in town.

This is Pastor Nae Nae's orphanage. There were 34 children at this orphanage, including his own 5 kids and a baby on the way.

Here are Sarah's kids... Love, Mirlandia, Jimmy, Regina, and Dajna. Many of you gave money to make this trip possible for me. The money I had left after my airfare, transportation, and housing costs went to purchasing clothes and supplies for the children and workers. I bought the new outfits above for each of Sarah's kids. They were thrilled!

It was such a neat experience living at Sarah's orphanage and being so closely involved with her kids. They are so sweet and lively! I look forward to seeing them again and meeting the many other children Sarah hopes to have in the future.

This house belongs to the mother of Sarah's three youngest kids. It is located by the orphanage I mentioned earlier up on the mountain with no water or electricity. Their mother was unable to care for them and hopes that Sarah can provide a future for them that she cannot. As I've mentioned before, not all children in an orphanage have lost both parents. Families living in such poverty-ridden societies have difficulties caring for children that don't always involve the death of parents.

On our way down the mountain, we stopped by to visit a family Sarah knew. If you look behind those trees and bushes in the middle, you can see some of the tents they live in. This was a bit of a hike on a hot day, something that family must do often to go and buy food and bring water. Their living conditions are something most of us could never even imagine. They have two babies under one year old.

The majority of my trip was spent right outside of Croix des Bouquets, less than 10 miles from Port au Prince. But there was one particular day I was really looking forward to. I had asked to be driven to Leogane, which is where I was before with Samaritan's Purse. I wanted to say hi to my friends with SP and I also wanted to visit all of my precious friends at the Lamb Center. Pulling into the driveway I felt like a kid on Christmas! I was SO excited!! Kalebe called out to the kids that "Ana's here!" and they came running. It was a beautiful reunion!! They sang for us and were hanging on to me the entire time like they always do. I was calling out their names and was a bit surprised myself with all of the names I remembered. There are nearly 70 children there now.

We stopped by the building site for the new Lamb Center orphanage. It was busy with activity and it's amazing to see how much has been done since I left.

I'm always amazed by how the Haitian people can carry things on their heads. And it can also be very interested to see what they are carrying at times. This lady had who knows how many chickens. I think they were all alive...

We stopped at a market to get some vegetables. It was a typical busy day for shopping. I spotted some okra and bought it for next to nothing. We fried it up for dinner. Yum! At the back of this photo you can see an above-ground cemetery. Reminds me of New Orleans. The beautiful mountains are also in the background.

Another shot of the market. The white and blue wall is part of the jail. Notice all of the trash driven into the ground. Mostly plastic bottles.

This is one of many tent cities. Most of the tent cities I saw did not have these military style tents. You can see regular tents all around the outside. This January will mark two years since the earthquakes and people seem like they are there to stay. I heard a rumor that the people think the government will eventually buy them a house and they are staying until that happens. I hate to say it, but if that's the case, they're going to be there for a while...

A closer shot inside a tent city.

The photos below are at the location where Sarah and Yves got married. It was a simple but beautiful ceremony. We celebrated with a delicious lunch and swim in the Caribbean!

Sarah and Yves got married by the pool to the left of the palm tree.

What you need to know about Human Trafficking

2011-11-14T09:30:00.003-06:00

Warning: Some parts of this post are graphic, as human trafficking is a real and often horrific issue.

Last night I attended an event put on by the Blount County Global Women to raise awareness leading to action in the fight against human trafficking. The stories and information presented were a bit overwhelming. Human trafficking is a huge and terrible problem in our world today. And it is not just something happening "over there". It is happening in our own communities as well.

Here are some facts you need to know about human trafficking:

More than 30 million people are enslaved today. This is more than the number of slaves during the entire trans-Atlantic Africa slave trade.
As many as 4,000,000 persons, mostly women and girls are sexually trafficked worldwide each year.
Trafficking of humans is the second largest criminal industry in the world after drug dealing, and it is the fastest growing with a profit of over $32 billion a year.
An estimated 17,500 foreign nationals are trafficked annually in the United States.

You can find these and other statistics at www.polarisproject.org.

Last night we heard from three women who had been on a mission trip to Moldova, the poorest country in Europe and the source of much of Europe's human trafficking. More than 30,000 girls and women have disappeared in Moldova without a trace. Beginning of Life is an organization committed to the fight against human trafficking in Moldova. Click here for more information about Beginning of Life. And click here to read a story of one young woman who was a victim of human sex trafficking.

We also heard from Senator Doug Overbey about the issue of human trafficking here in East Tennessee. In the past 2 years, 85% of Tennessee counties have reported at least one sex trafficking case. 4% of TN counties have reported over 100 sex trafficking cases! You can google "sex trafficking in Tennessee" to find a number of articles written about this issue. Thankfully, more people are learning about this global issue and how it is affecting women, children, and even men here in our own backyard. One man was recently arrested after it was discovered that over the past 4 years he has trafficked 400 women for commercial sex in Knox, Blount, Loudon, and Sevier counties. Another man in Knoxville was arrested after trafficking a number of girls under the age of 14. He would brand or tattoo these girls with his nickname, "T-Rex". This branding is common so traffickers can keep track of their victims.

Finally, we heard from Brittney Thomas who is the Regional Director for the Kentucky Chapter of Not For Sale Campaign. She shared stories of her own experiences in countries where human trafficking is a huge problem. In one of these countries, she was on a moto-taxi when the driver asked, "How old?" She found out that he was asking how old of a child she wanted to have sex with. Her translator explained that the local people assume that white people only come to that country to have sex with minors. If you want to have sex with a 4 or 5 year old, the driver will send you down this road. If you want an older girl, say 8 or 9, they would send you that way, and if you wanted a young woman, 14 or 15, they would send you another. In that same country, she was sitting outside of a restaurant when an American man exited the restaurant with two five year old girls. He was boasting to someone about how he had bought them for $25 for the weekend. I think of all the children I recently met in Haiti, and how I view them as beautiful and precious gifts of God. I do not understand how someone else can view them as objects of sadistic pleasure. It is sickening and absolutely heart-breaking.

Near the end of Brittney's presentation she said that we must go past awareness. If all the event last night did was make us more aware, then it was meaningless. Brittney urged us to go past awareness and create a movement. And in order to create a movement we have to move! Yes, the issue of human trafficking can be overwhelming, but Brittney encouraged each of us to find our gift and do that to enhance someone else's life. And that is the mission of Not For Sale.

So how can we take action in the fight against human trafficking? Here are some options to get you started:

Pray! Pray for those who are victims of human trafficking here in our country and abroad. Pray also for those most vulnerable who could soon be victimized.
Join the prayer initiative to stop human trafficking on Interstate-10. I-10 has been named as the #1 corridor for human trafficking in the US by the FBI. Go to traffickstop.org for more information.
Encourage your church to take action and raise awareness about human trafficking by organizing a Freedom Sunday event at your church. Go to freedomsunday.org for more information.
Be a conscious consumer! Learn how your favorite brands relate to trafficking and other labor abuses. Download the Free2Work app for scanning barcodes or go to free2work.org to receive information on forced and child labor for the brands and products you purchase. Nike changed their corporate policy to prevent forced labor after their consumers demanded it. Other companies, like Hershey's have yet to follow suit.
Are you a student, business professional, artist, educator, or athlete? Go to notforsalecampaign.org and click on "Take Action" to find out how you can use your gifts, talents, and resources to get involved in the fight against human trafficking.
Educate yourself about this issue and pray about how you can be involved. Two books I recommend: Not for Sale: The Return of the Global Slave Trade--and How We Can Fight It and Terrify No More.
If you think someone is a victim of human trafficking, call the National Human Trafficking Resources Center at 1-888-373-7888 to obtain information and to access supportive services for the victim. In Tennessee, call 855-558-6484.

Tomorrow Night: The fight against human trafficking

2011-11-12T19:24:00.002-06:00

If you're in the Maryville area, come out tomorrow night for a great event to learn more about how you can get involved in the fight against human trafficking. It is from 6pm-8pm at Foothills Church. Doors will open at 5pm for shopping at their fair trade booths to support women and children in crisis. I hope to see you there!!

A lovely bright spot

2011-11-02T23:04:00.004-05:00

During my last trip to Haiti, I received terrible news. A good friend of mine, Linda Cooper, passed away. She had been fighting a battle with ovarian cancer, though by looking at her, you would have thought she was strong and healthy. And that's how she looked the last time I saw her. I can't describe how crushed I was at that news. Several days before I had received word that she was in the hospital due to fluid build-up on her lungs. I prayed and pleaded for her healing as I have many times before. The day before I heard she was in the hospital, I emailed to let her know I was thinking about and praying for her. I was very surprised and delighted to find a response from her the next evening! She told me it was good to hear from me and that she had been praying for me every day. She mentioned briefly that she had been sick and in the hospital. (She was never one to dwell on her condition and always tried to focus on the positives.) She finished the email by saying, "I am glad you emailed me. It is such a blessing to my heart to hear what God is doing. It is like a lovely bright spot in my day. Take care and I look forward to seeing you when you return." When I first read her email, I was so touched by her saying that my email was "a lovely bright spot in [her] day." I responded to let her know that her email was a lovely bright spot in mine! Indeed it was. After realizing all she had gone through that week with her illness, I was so blessed that she had taken the time to write me back. And now, it is difficult for me to read the last line of her email without getting very emotional. She was looking forward to seeing me when I returned. It crushes my heart that that reunion never occurred. Though I am thankful that one day it will!

I have been so blessed this past year to have had the opportunity to spend more time with Linda. If you read my blog back in June, I told about going to Children's Hospital with some ladies from church. I mentioned that Linda was the inspiration for that event. We were able to go a second time in July. Again, Linda came up with the craft and brought all of the supplies for us to help the children make colorful and funky bird feeders. The children loved it! I also spent an afternoon with her one day at her house, just sitting around like old friends talking about life, faith, our families, and so on. She encouraged me. I encouraged her. It was such a sweet time together that I will always cherish. Linda was also in my Sunday School class. I always hung on every word she said. She spoke about the faith I believe in, but there is something about listening to someone who is dealing with such a hardship, yet still remains faithful, that can teach, challenge, and encourage you like no one else can.

Perhaps some of the most meaningful times with Linda were during the Radical class I taught. We studied the book Radical by David Platt. Linda heard I was going to teach the class and told me she really wanted to come. With her cancer, some days were better than others, but she told me she would be there whenever she could. And thankfully she was able to come to most of the time. She would share with me outside of class how much the study meant to her and how much it was challenging her. She shared with me her struggles, such as how sometimes she didn't want to ask for prayer requests for herself because she felt selfish when there were so many others needs in this world. She didn't like to be the center of attention. I encouraged her to tell us her requests anytime and that it was our privilege to pray with her about any need or desire she had. But it was incredible to hear her testimony, to see how strong her faith was despite her illness, and she was a huge encouragement to me, constantly challenging me in my own faith! She was always looking to do more for others. It always impressed me how she would share about how the study was challenging her to want to serve in new ways. Here she was, dealing with so much, yet she was constantly thinking about what more she could do to spend more time with God and help others. After her death, I shared with her husband Raymond how I have met so many incredible people throughout my life, but Linda's testimony shines above all the rest as someone who has forever changed my life. Knowing what she was going through and yet hearing her praise God through it all has caused me to examine my own life in many ways. I don't think words could ever express how much Linda meant to me and the impact she had and will continue to have on my life. But I wanted to put some of it in writing for all of you because her story needs to be told. Especially what I'm about to share...

Linda wrote me that email on Friday. On Wednesday, she was gone. On Saturday, I was flying home, but unfortunately I would still miss her service. The night she died, I received an email from Tony Servies, a friend and member of my church. He and my family had been giving me information about Linda being in the hospital, passing away, and upcoming arrangements. The following email came about four hours after I heard of her passing away. It was the greatest gift anyone could have given me during those beginning hours of grieving. I will let you read it in Tony's words:

Those of you who were in church this past Sunday got to see one of the best examples of a testimony that I think you will ever see. As Mrs. JoAn was playing "Our God Is An Awesome God" Linda rose to her feet and lifted holy hands to the Lord. Her obedience in praising Him seemed to give our church a certain "liberty" and I saw a lot of teary eyes. It was an amazing moment to watch this person who had been brought into the sanctuary in a wheelchair, stand to her feet and confirm that our God is awesome!

But that is only part of the story. I was very blessed to have been by her bedside on Tuesday evening to have prayer with her. While I was visiting with Linda, I remarked to her sister-in-law, Debbie, about how this past Sunday Linda had given our church a liberty to praise by her actions. Linda told me that God challenged her with "if you think I am so awesome, then show me". That is what prompted Linda to rise up and praise Him. She overcame any hesitation and simply praised him in the best way she knew how.

Wow! And let me repeat from before, Linda never liked to be the center of attention. So when I read this email, I knew that this was no small thing. I can close my eyes and envision this entire scene playing out in my mind, and sensing how significant it was for her to act out this seemingly simple gesture. For her, it was a big deal. And I know that everyone in the sanctuary recognized that as well. She and I have had enough conversations about her faith and personality for me to know how huge this was, and how meaningful it was as an act of worship. And couple that with the fact that Raymond shared just how sick she was that very weekend as he had been constantly holding the "sick bucket". He said she had zero strength on that Saturday and told him she didn't think she would be able to go to church. But Sunday morning came, and she was up and ready to go. Exhausted and I'm sure still not feeling well, they wheeled her in. And what a testimony! After I read the email I was so thankful. I was thankful that she was used by God up until her last breaths as such a powerful witness to everyone around her. I'm thankful that despite her quiet nature, she displayed such bold faith and courage. To me, she displayed that boldness every day, but to hear about such a stand during her final days was just one more incredible story to add to hundreds more.

Earlier this year I had made a CD for Linda with a variety of Christian songs that have encouraged me. She seemed happy to receive it. A couple weeks after her death, I received a message from her oldest daughter Brittany. Brittany said she was driving Linda's car one day and nothing was on the radio, so she checked the CD player to see if anything was in it. On the CD was written "Our Hope Endures", the title of one of the songs. As she listened to the songs she said she could imagine her mom listening to them too. Brittany said the songs have given her peace and I pray they brought peace to Linda as well. It meant a lot to me to know that Linda had been listening to that CD up until she died. I know how powerful and worshipful those songs are and can imagine how they encouraged her and helped her to worship. And it meant a lot to me to hear about Brittany finding it and being so touched. I had also made a similar CD for her, but she hadn't found it yet. When she did, and realized I had made them both, she sent me that message to thank me. I give that thanks back to God for being a blessing to all of us, each in a special way.

I could go on and on about Linda's life and how it touched mine so, but I will close by asking you to remember her family and to pray for them. Aside from her husband and Brittany, she leaves behind another daughter, a son-in-law, two grandbabies, and many others who love and miss her so much. I thank God for the blessing of knowing Linda. And I know she is now shining brighter than ever!

Operation Christmas Child

2011-11-02T11:46:00.006-05:00

On Saturday our church packed 300 shoe boxes for Operation Christmas Child! If you don't know what OCC is, it is a ministry of Samaritan's Purse, a Christian relief and evangelism organization led by Franklin Graham. OCC connects giving hearts here in the States with children all over the globe. From their website: "The mission of Operation Christmas Child is to demonstrate God's love in a tangible way to needy children around the world, and together with the local church worldwide, to share the Good News of Jesus Christ." And indeed, that is just what it does!

I have had a couple opportunities to help with OCC. I first did a couple on my own years ago. And then back when I worked for The King's Academy in Seymour, TN, my Bible students helped me pack and send nearly 30 shoe boxes. We had a wonderful time and students really enjoyed giving to children around the world in such a tangible way.

My church, Friendsville First Baptist Church, used to participate in OCC years ago, but hadn't done it for some time. My stepmom Kelly and our friend Shirley serve with the Women's Ministry at church. Last year they had both been praying about a project for the Women's Ministry. Kelly received a brochure about OCC and she and Shirley instantly knew that was their answer. They organized everything for the church to participate, and last year several people packed their own boxes in addition to having an "assembly line" of donations and a packing/fellowship day to finish them up. A dear friend of ours and like a grandmother to so many of us, Kathleen Grubb, was always seeking out ways to serve and bless others. After getting a difficult health diagnosis, she and her daughter Faye still packed up a box to send for OCC. She passed away shortly before packing day at church. Our church named our OCC ministry, The Granny Grubb Shoebox Ministry in honor of Kathleen. I was blessed to be able to visit with Kathleen during my brief visit to the U.S. last fall. She passed away a year ago today.

Last year our church packed around 150 shoe boxes. This year they made a goal of 300 shoe boxes. Throughout the year, everyone gathers up supplies and goodies for the big event. On Saturday, they had the tables lined up and all of the gifts sorted out for easy packing. There was a great turnout of people of all ages to help and we knocked it out in less than an hour! I enjoyed listening to everyone as they carefully picked out the items for each shoebox. I can tell you that they were put together with love, care, and prayer!

Here are some photos to give you an idea of the fun we had! And of course we prayed for the children and communities who would receive these boxes. We pray that they would experience God's love through this ministry and would have the opportunity to hear the gospel to receive God's most precious gift!

The quilters and crafters -- with the help of some volunteers -- made 300 pairs of shorts. One for each box!
Each box is for a specific gender and age range.

We put all the boxes on the altar for everyone to see Sunday morning. Several children from our church each carried one out and we prayed again for those who would be receiving them.

Now, let me share something really neat! My dear friend Linda Macdonald, who served with me in Namibia, was on the receiving end of the shoe boxes! When she served in Grootfontein before coming to FHS, a group of children she worked with received the boxes. She got to witness the joy and excitement of receiving such a special gift! She remarked how it was so interesting to see what the children got most excited about. One thing in particular was a little blue blanket. The children who received it were so thrilled to have a blanket of their own!

And finally, here is a video from OCC about one child and his story. It's not too late to pack a box! National Collection Week is November 14-21, but you can send in boxes year-round to SP's headquarters. Click here for more information.

Haiti Video

2011-10-28T15:26:00.004-05:00

It's taken me a while to get this video together, but I finally made it and it's ready for you to watch! I was in Haiti from August 13-September 10 with Samaritan's Purse. I put together some of the videos and photos from that trip to make this. As with all my videos, they are pretty amateur as I've never claimed to have any videography skills. But I hope it helps give you an idea of the people and places I visited there.

Meanwhile, I leave in less than a week for my next trip to Haiti. Thanks to each of you who have given towards that trip. God is faithful. :) I hope you will all join me in praying for a safe and productive journey!

Enjoy the video!

My Trip to Haiti from Hannah Sterling on Vimeo.

Thankful

2011-10-27T10:14:00.002-05:00

I wrote a blog entry earlier this month about my granddaddy's condition. It's been a long 14 months after his stroke last August. After he got sick the beginning of October, we were finally able to bring him to Maryville from West TN. He probably would have preferred to stay in Dyersburg, but we knew that the move would provide him with the best care... namely, that we would be able to keep a better eye on him and his care. We were all very curious to see how he would do here. He was still pretty sick the first week he arrived, but since then he has really seemed to strive here. He was able to start physical therapy again, and with that and increased interaction all around, he seems to be doing really great. I have been very impressed this last week as his communication has improved so much. He is talking about a broader range of things and remembering a lot more than usual. It has been such an encouragement in all of us to see this change. He is getting back to his funny self, even laughing with and at us from time to time. My sister Rebekah just came in town from California. We've been telling him she's coming. He had a visitor yesterday morning and told him, "My oldest granddaughter is coming to see me today." That may not seem like much, but to us, it was incredible! The stroke caused a lot of memory issues, and he doesn't typically remember and express such details. We cherish every little detail like that at this point. It is always a blessing to leave his room encouraged that he is doing so much better. I'm thankful to see these improvements. For however long God continues to bless us with Granddaddy, I hope they are majority great days, that Granddaddy is as happy as he can be, and is able to still enjoy life and the company of his loved ones despite his condition. Thank you all for your prayers and support throughout this journey!

I haven't posted any photos after his stroke because he looked so frail and wouldn't have wanted anyone to see them. But he is looking a lot more like his old self again even though he's lost a lot of weight.

George's Angels! :) Bek had the idea for this photo. We told him to make a gun with his fingers and he happily agreed. He's so cute!! LOVE this picture! I know he thinks we are crazy sometimes, but honestly, we get it from him!

Change of plans... for now

2011-10-17T15:58:00.005-05:00

I'm returning to Haiti.

If you read my blog a couple weeks ago, I wrote about possibly returning to Namibia. I was hoping to raise some money for a return trip in November. I soon found out that God had other plans.

A couple weeks ago when I set up my jewelry booth for the Townsend craft fair, I met a lady who was interested in all my travels. After telling her I had recently served in Haiti, she told me about her sister and brother-in-law who have been working in and out of Haiti since 1993. She took my information and gave it to her brother-in-law. Grant and Eva Rimback are from the Maryville area and started an organization called God's Planet, which seeks to bring the love of Christ to Haiti and partners with orphanages, many of which have been struggling even more than usual after the January 2010 earthquake. A couple of days after receiving my information, Grant contacted me and since then we've had some great conversations about their ministry in Haiti. Turns out, they have been looking for someone to help them with a couple of projects coming up soon--the first of which is to help them gather information for their Christmas project.

I'll be heading down to Croix de Boquet, Haiti the first week in November for about a week. I'll be taking photos and gathering information for some 150-200 children that God's Planet will find sponsors for here in the States to provide Christmas presents. They've done this every year for several years. I also hope to be able to visit some of my Samaritan's Purse friends while I'm down there and of course try to visit those precious children at the Lamb Center!

How you can help:

I need to raise at least $500 for the plane ticket. God's Planet has graciously offered to provide my room and board for this trip. If you feel led to contribute, you can do so in a few ways...

-Purchase some of my jewelry and crafts through my website: www.thepaperbagboutique.com or in person this Saturday (Oct 22) at the Maryville College Harvest Crafts Festival from 9am-3:30pm.

-Give directly towards my plane ticket by mailing a check made out to me to P.O. Box 4878, Maryville, TN 37802.

-Pray for safe travels, for this new relationship with God's Planet, and for the children and community leaders I will get to meet and encourage.

Thanks for following along with my journey, for praying about how you can help, and for all your kind words and encouragement! I look forward to sharing with you about this trip and a possible opportunity for a longer time in Haiti after Christmas.

Remembering Ouma

2011-10-13T12:50:00.007-05:00

Family of Hope Services recently lost a great member of the team. Ouma Cecilia, simply known as "Ouma" (meaning grandmother in Oshiwombo), passed away on Tuesday. She would have celebrated her 65th birthday next week.

Just last week I mentioned Ouma in my blog about possibly returning for a visit to Namibia. Anytime I envision myself returning to that country, Ouma is in that picture. She was always so filled with joy and so happy to see each of us. Out of respect culturally, Ouma (as the oldest) was always the first one to be greeted when you enter the center. I have been looking forward to going back to FHS for a visit, walking through the door, and running up to Ouma to give her a big hug with a "Walelepo, Meme!" lovingly to follow.

I can only imagine how the children, staff, and volunteers at FHS are grieving this loss. Ouma was a faithful member of the team. She was also the grandmother of Petrus, a special boy at FHS who could be considered the FHS greeter. Anyone, new or old, who comes to the center will likely be greeted first by him with a big smile and and even bigger hug. My heart breaks for Petrus and his loss. Ouma has played a huge role in his upbringing.

I know that all who knew Ouma were indeed blessed to have done so. And we will all hold onto the wonderful memories that we have of her. She epitomized the words "love" and "sacrifice". We will all be better people if we will live by her example. Thank you, Ouma, for your friendship, your kindness, love, and support for myself and all at FHS! Words can't describe how much you will be missed!

This is a memorial posted about her on the Facebook page for FHS:

Family of Hope Services pays tribute to a grandmother who earned the respect and love of all who worked alongside her at FHS for the past 6 years, both local and international. She passed on yesterday the 11th of October. With FHS, she will always be remembered for her works of love. She had undying passion and love to serve others, especially the orphans and vulnerable children in her community.

The lines that criss-cross her face read like a road map marking out the journey she has taken since her birth more than 64 years ago. Cecilia Mukefina David, better known as Ouma (Grandmother), will always be remembered as an icon at Family of Hope Services (FHS). She came every day to cook, offer meals to over 250 children in the feeding programme and cleaned the Center. Her impact on young and old alike was much farther reaching.

Born at Ongenga village located in Owamboland, Ouma lived a typical village life. She had seven siblings, three of which died as adults. She recalled her childhood years as lean ones - clothing that only covered the bare essen-tials, going barefoot, and eating traditional foods such as spinach, mahangu, beans and onjove (marula oil). Though she never allowed her personal struggles to limit her efforts to bring a smile, joy to many around her.

I went through my Namibia videos to find some of Ouma. I knew that if nothing else, I definitely had a couple of her dancing. Anytime we had a celebration at FHS, Ouma was always in the circle with the rest of the women, ready to sing and dance. We all loved it! The kids would laugh as she would break it down, dancing the energetic Ovambo dances. I put together a couple of those clips in the video below. I also found a short clip of her helping me and Kaiti out when we were up to our antics at the center. You can see the look on my face, thinking she was probably going to be annoyed with our silly games, but instead, she didn't miss a beat to move the table out of the way for us to continue. Meme Esther, Kaita's grandmother and a dear friend of Ouma's, is laughing in the background. Finally, the video ends with a clip from Linda's farewell video. Before Linda left Namibia last November, I put together some clips of the teachers and staff of FHS telling her goodbye. Ouma doesn't speak much English, so I told her to say her farewell in Oshiwambo. I know that most of us won't know the words Ouma is saying, but I think we can all understand the heart of her message. That was Ouma. Language was never a barrier when it came to love and sincerity. She and I exchanged few words over the near year and a half I knew her. In fact, we exchanged so much more, and I would choose that over words any day!

Returning to Namibia

2011-10-05T11:03:00.004-05:00

Yesterday marked 10 months since I left Namibia. Not a day goes by that I haven't thought of that beautiful country and the precious relationships I built there. I have photos throughout my house from my time there, including three big collages that hang in the hallway. For 18 months, Namibia was my home and it will forever remain a part of me. I made friends there who are now like family. I consider them my Namibia mothers, sisters, brothers, and so many children!

When I left Namibia, I promised them that I would try my best to return within one year. As December is right around the corner, my deadline is quickly approaching. I have been able to keep in touch with some of them through email, but many do not have access to a computer. And I haven't been able to speak with any of the children at FHS, aside from Teacher Elizabeth's kids who I contacted via Skype several months ago. Maintaining those relationships is so important, and it would be wonderful to be able reconnect with my dear friends face to face.

Soon after I returned from Namibia, I set aside half of the money needed to purchase a return plane ticket. I have held onto that money, optimistic that I could find a way to pay for the other half. Tickets are between $1700-1900. So many months have passed and I've resigned to the fact that on my own, I do not have enough funds for the journey. I'm asking that some of you would prayerfully consider giving towards this trip. It would be short, probably around two weeks in November, but would be filled with sweet reunions and rekindling those relationships.

If you would like to give towards my trip, you can send a check made out to "Hannah Sterling" to my mom's address or the address below:

Hannah Sterling

P.O. Box 4878

Maryville, TN 37802-4878

I have also launched my new website with my jewelry and crafts, and I've been putting a lot of effort into trying to sell as much as I can to help pay for this trip. You can check it out here: www.thepaperbagboutique.com. Or if you live in the area and would like to take a box of jewelry to your work to sell for me, let me know. That's always fun for the ladies in your office, especially with Christmas approaching!

Thank you for keeping up with my journey! It has been wonderful being back in the States, spending time with my family and friends, and praying through what's next for me. But I often stop and reflect on my time in Namibia, and each time I do, I miss it more and more.

Kaita is turning 6 on October 10th! And to think he was only 3 when I first met him. I've already got some goodies set aside to take to him when I visit.

Gift and Nessy are Teacher Elizabeth's twins. They turned 4 this year and I'm sure they are sassy as ever!! I talked with them on the phone a while back. They still play "school" and fight over who gets to be "Teacher Hannah". :)

Ouma is one of many of my precious friends at FHS who I am so looking forward to reconnecting with! I still remember how to greet in Oshiwamba and I can already picture her face lighting up when she hears me greet her in her language.

Remember baby Matthew? I was there for his birth in July last year. This is from his one year birthday party. Some other missionaries emailed me this photo. I wish I could have been there with him and Nova to celebrate!! He's getting so big!

Life

2011-10-04T10:35:00.000-05:00

I’m sitting on the edge of the bed of a man who is imprisoned there. I look into his wrinkled face. He is on oxygen after a long day of traveling. When his eyes are opened, he looks settled yet discontented. When closed, he seems more at rest though I can hear his labored breaths. I fight back the tears as I realize how upset I am with all of this. I don’t like it. I’m sad, heartbroken, frustrated, and powerless. I want to change the situation but there is nothing I can do.

The man in the bed is my granddaddy. He suffered a stroke on August 9, 2010. That stroke should have carried him to his death, but a surprisingly successful surgery brought him back to life, though one drastically different than what he had lived the 83 years prior.

My whole life my granddaddy has been strong, full of life, and as goofy as they come! Now he is weak, barely living, and quiet. It hurts my heart. The last time I saw him healthy was before I left for Africa in June 2009. So many wonderful memories. A week before the stroke, he won a bronze medal in the Senior Olympics. He was always active, playing golf, meeting his friends for breakfast at McDonald’s, traveling around with my granny and after she died, his second wife… who he married at 81! J

Today, Mom was finally able to arrange for him to be transferred from the nursing home in west Tennessee to one here in town. We are excited to have him here and to be able to check on him regularly, but it doesn’t ease the pain of remembering how things used to be. The man who used to walk on his hands, have all of the grandkids walk on his back, and dole out great shoulder massages, is now paralyzed on his right side and can hardly do anything for himself. He told great stories (usually on himself) and would easily have us all in stitches. Now, it is difficult to understand the words coming out of his mouth. Since I was around 10 years old, he and I have had a running joke including a special nickname we have for each other… but I’m not sure if he remembers or understands it anymore.

I think what hurts us all the most is that if Granddaddy were in his right mind, he would be absolutely miserable in that bed. Aside from his narcoleptic tendencies, which we as grandchildren always got a kick out of, Granddaddy was the epitome of energy. He could dance circles around me! The thought of staying in bed all day would be so out of character for him. Maybe it’s a blessing that his mind was also affected by the stroke. We look for blessings to try to bring some peace to the situation for ourselves. But most importantly, I worry about him and his happiness and contentment. Is he happy? How could he be content in that state? Which leads me to conclude that mentally, he isn’t capable of fully processing everything like he used to. And again, that is probably a blessing.

So here he lies. I pray that our visits will do him good. At least now we can see him so much more, without a six-hour drive between us. His smile is still so pleasant. That is about all the emotion he can muster, and it means the world to me. He’ll kiss me goodbye and tell me he loves me. I’m thankful for that. And I’m thankful for all of the sweet and hilarious memories. But I still don’t like this. I have never really minded personally getting older, even with the big 3-0 quickly approaching. But I don’t like the wrinkles that I see time putting on those I love. My granddaddy is my last living grandparent by blood. If I have kids one day, chances are they will never meet a great-grandparent. And I certainly don’t even want to think about my own parents getting old. I can’t even imagine what it is like for my mom to have to care for her father in this way. I suppose it is just difficult for me to reconcile all of this in my mind—especially when I’m sitting at his bedside, thinking that this is all wrong. Yes, I know this is life. But sometimes, I have to admit, I don’t like it. And yes, I know that one day I will find myself in a place where there is no sadness or suffering. What a glorious day that will be. For now, God give me the strength, wisdom, and peace I need for each new day.

The shoes millionaires wear

2011-09-21T22:13:00.004-05:00

Tonight I was browsing through one of my friend's photo albums on Facebook. My friend Nat first served in Haiti through Baptist Global Response and now is serving with Samaritan's Purse. He started a photo album called "Haiti one picture at a time". Nearly every day, he makes a conscious effort to snap a photo of the day. He'll then include a lengthy caption to explain the photo or what the scene captures for him. On his Day 155, he posted a special photo that I wanted to share with all of you. His day 155 (Sunday) would have been my Day 30, but I left on Saturday, Day 29.

On Sundays, the volunteers often go to church with the children from the Lamb Center. The first Sunday I did this, we took the 15 passenger van and Nathan (another SP friend) and I made 3 trips back and forth to pick the kids up and drop them at the church. The second Sunday I did this, Nathan and I decided to walk with the children, probably the more appropriate option. The church is on the same street not far from the Lamb Center--though it feels much farther with 63 kids in tow on a hot Haitian morning!

I would have loved to have stayed in Haiti for one more Sunday. The children all shuffle up to the front and spread out along the stage wherever they can find a spot. Most sit in a line, feet dangling below, others cram behind the pulpit facing the back wall. When it's time to worship through singing, I can pick out their little voices and see some of them bobbing their heads, lifting their hands, some even making some room to dance. And all throughout our morning worshiping together, I swap smiles with them, even a funny face or two!

But back to Nat's photo of the day...

This was his first Sunday going to church with the children at the Lamb Center, so it was a great setting for his photo of the day. He writes in the caption, "It was so cute seeing them all dressed up and wearing these new dress shoes that someone had just bought for them." That "someone" was so many of you!! (Thank you again!) But I love what Nat recounts next...

One of the little boys came up to me and said [in Creole] "Sa se soulye millionaire." Translation: "These are the shoes millionaires wear."

That makes my heart smile! I was so blessed to be able to be there and witness their excitement in person as I helped many of them find the perfect pair of shoes to fit their bare feet. But hearing that they are still talking about and thankful for this special gift blesses me all over again! An orphan who feels like a millionaire... now THAT is a joyful day! And as children of the Almighty Father and Provider, I pray that they will have many more days just like it. Not simply from material things, but from the best gift of all--eternal life, love, and hope secured through Jesus Christ!

A servant's heart

2011-09-21T07:18:00.003-05:00

A few days ago I received a survey from Samaritan's Purse that they asked me to fill out after my trip with them to Haiti. At the end it gave the option to share a "God story". The story below is what I shared. I'm not sure I'd specifically label it a "God story", but it was a moment I will never forget. I was humbled, blessed, and challenged by this remarkable little girl.

After a difficult day at the market helping Nathan and Kalebe purchase food for the Lamb Center, we returned to the homes where the children are currently staying. This day was probably not very difficult for Kalebe, the director of the Lamb Center, as he is a Haitian and is used to shopping in the market. But for Nathan and myself, it was a bit trying. There were deep puddles throughout the narrow muddy roads. The traffic was less than civil. And when we started off on foot to help with the shopping, our feet (mine only in sandals--not wise) were quickly covered in mud and whatever else might be mixed in. I said a prayer that God would protect my body, as parasites can live in mud puddles and enter through bare skin.

Back at the children's home, I sat down to rest for a bit. Of course, sitting down means that you will instantly have at least five children hovering over you, pulling your hair, jumping on your lap, and all speaking to you at once in Creole. Even still, I was glad to be with the kids and away from the busy market. One of the older girls, Verlie--who's 11, pointed at my feet and asked if she could wash them. For two weeks, I had observed the hospitality of the Haitian people. They would give up their seats at church so we could sit up front. They are constantly bring chairs, offering a drink, and helping in any way that they can. I usually respond by telling them that I'm fine, I don't need a chair and they don't need to go out of their way to get me a drink. I've never been the type to want people to go out of their way, especially for something that I can easily do without. But this time, the idea of having that brown mess washed off my feet sounded wonderful. So I followed Verlie around to the side of the boys' house, watched as she drew water from the deep well, and stood as she carefully and lovingly washed my feet, one by one, followed by my sandals. I gave her a big hug and many thank yous. I suppose I was struck in that moment with a feeling of being loved and served in a place where I came to love and serve. Oh, we have so much to learn from the Verlies of this world! I'm thankful that God gave me an example of a pure servant's heart that day and I pray that I will always be challenged to serve in such a way.

"The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." Matthew 20:28

New shoes and smiling faces!

2011-09-08T21:14:00.004-05:00

Let me start with a huge THANK YOU to all of you who donated money to purchase shoes for these orphans! Less than two weeks ago, God put it on my heart to let you all know about the children at The Lamb Center here in Haiti and their need for shoes. I should have taken some photos to show you the "shoes" many of them wear everyday. If they wear any, they are typically cheap flip flops that break after a few wears or shoes with chunks missing or bits and pieces flapping around. I talked with Kalebe (the director) about what kind of shoes to buy for them. He said that dress shoes would be wonderful. They could wear them to church and to school. He also mentioned sandals... more about that later.

Within days of getting the word out about this need, so many of you responded! I didn't really have an expected amount of money to raise in my head, but had I tried to anticipate an amount from the beginning I would have way underestimated what God was about to do! (Isn't it funny how that happens?) I don't even have the total figure raised yet because the money is still trickling in! I realized early last week that there would definitely be enough money for every child at the orphanage (63 in total) to receive a new pair of shoes. How wonderful! And there is still money left over! As I mentioned at the beginning of this fundraiser, any remaining money after purchasing the shoes could be used to buy clothing--the second biggest need for the children as they often share clothes and don't have many back-ups if something is dirty. Though I'm leaving in less than two days, I've organized a way for those purchases to be made and they'll keep me updated on what the children receive. I think there is enough money left over for each child to get a new outfit and maybe even the sandals that Kalebe mentioned for everyday use.

I did get to participate in the great adventure shopping for the shoes. Last Saturday I headed to the market with Nathan (the Program Manager for SP's project at The Lamb Center) and we did our best to negotiate reasonable prices for each pair of shoes. It was all the more interesting since neither one of us is super great at speaking French or Creole! We came away with over 40 pairs of shoes and were excited to take them to the kids. I finished up with the rest of the purchasing on Tuesday, this time with a Haitian friend who works for Samaritan's Purse. I was happy to observe that I paid around the same price with him negotiating as Nathan and I paid on Saturday.

The kids beamed as they tried on their new shoes. One of them named Kervens, seated on the steps in one of the pictures below, even did a little dance to show how excited he was. I don't think many of us can grasp what it means to these children to receive a gift like this. Most of us don't even know how many pairs of shoes we have in our closet. Many of us would be embarrassed to admit how many we haven't even worn in the last year. Just last week I met a man who is the country director for another NGO here in Haiti. He was an orphan in Angola and shared with me how up until he was 10 years old he never owned a pair of shoes. Hearing his testimony of how significant a pair of shoes can be for a child made me all the more thankful for God's provision through each of you! Thank you for caring for these precious children whom you have never met, but whose day (and days ahead) became a little brighter because of your generosity and kindness! I know they would love to give you all a big hug if they could!

Some photos...

This girl called me over to proudly show me a bag she had already found for storing her shoes.

Psalm 46

2011-09-07T08:50:00.006-05:00

"Be still and know that I am God."

Psalm 46:10

Lately I have felt a little overwhelmed, confused, and uncertain. My mind has been racing as I think about decisions I need to make in the coming weeks and months. I've been trying to figure out all my options, weigh the pros and cons, and properly navigate through the decision-making process. In addition to that, serving in a place like Haiti is overwhelming in itself. Trying to help these communities and care for these children in the best possible way is a complicated process. There are multiple projects going on simultaneously, all with their own needs and priorities. And while I've been in Haiti, I have learned about several situations at home that are burdening my heart. People I love are hurting. They have been faced with difficult situations at work, at home, and with their health. A dear friend of mine is fighting the battle of her life with cancer. Some of my own family members are in the midst of personal struggles. Another friend of mine needs peace and direction during a trying time in her life.

My mind has been overloaded thinking about all of these decisions and situations. Part of me has felt anxious to get home so I can help, encourage, and do whatever else is needed to comfort and assist my friends and family at home. I have felt unsettled about my own future as I think about all the decisions that need to be made and feel pressured to know and make the best ones. I have been praying for God to speak to me and grant me wisdom and peace.

Last night as my mind was flooded once again with all of these things, I was reminded of a psalm that I've heard a few times since I have been in Haiti. In a couple of the church services here the congregation has recited some of the psalms from memory. One is Psalm 23 and the other is Psalm 46. Psalm 46 speaks of events such as the earth giving way, the mountains falling into the sea, and the waters roaring. As I sit here at this base, often looking out across the sea, I can imagine that if those events really started happening, we would tend to be fearful. But in verse 2 the author says "we will not fear" though these events are happening around us. "We will not fear" because (from the first verse) "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble." I read slowly through the rest of the psalm, letting the truth of God's word really sink in. And then I got down to one of my favorite verses in the Bible, Psalm 46:10: "Be still and know that I am God."

Two commands. First, be still. Second, know that I am God. It is interesting that the command to be still comes before the command to know that He is God. The verse does not read: Know that I am God and be still. It reads: Be still and know that I am God. Perhaps this is because sometimes we need to stop... physically, mentally, and in every way in order to fully process and accept our knowledge of God--remembering and realizing once again who He is. He is God. Creator of all. Sustainer of life. Furthermore, if He is God it means I am not. He desires and deserves complete control over my life. And that includes not only my actions but my thoughts as well. I need to first be still. Stop thinking. Stop worrying. Let go and lay down. All of this busyness inside of my head is stealing my joy and unsettling my peace. God desires neither of those to happen. He sent His Son that my joy would be made complete (Phil 2:2). The joy of the Lord is my strength (Ps 28:7). And He blesses His people with peace (Ps 29:11). Peace that surpasses understanding (Phil 4:7). If I don't have joy and peace it is because of something I am doing or not doing and nothing to do with God.

Going back to verse 1... God is ever-present. He is always with us. Emmanuel. God is my refuge. I paused at that word "refuge" to define it. What does God as my refuge mean for me? When a refugee is running for his life, what does a refuge mean for him? Safety. A place to get food, shelter and rest. God is my refuge. My safe haven. My nourishment. My rest. He is my strength. And if He is the source my strength, I am not. So if I am empty... it's ok! Let Him fill me. Let Him be strong when I am weak (2 Cor 12:9-10).

Be still. And know. He is God. He is in control. He has a plan. Let go of the reins. Lay down your concerns, your fears, your own plans and desires. Jesus says, "My yoke is easy and my burden is light," (Mt 11:30). Believe Him. Rest in Him. Let Him restore you (Ps 23:2-3). Be still and know that He is God.

MissionLab in Haiti

2011-09-07T08:34:00.004-05:00

To continue the theme from the last photo I posted...

On Saturday I went to the market to begin purchasing the shoes for the children at The Lamb Center. I had to laugh to myself when I looked over at the guy on the motorcycle beside us. He had on a MissionLab New Orleans shirt! After we parked, I snapped this photo. I tried to explain to my friend how I used to work for MissionLab, and why I was so amused by seeing this shirt, but no one could really share in my excitement so I figured I would post it for all of you!

A little piece of home

2011-09-01T13:29:00.003-05:00

Anytime you find yourself miles away from home, you learn to delight in the small things. Your favorite snack, a phone call to your family, a conversation with someone who has been to your hometown. Yesterday a simple t-shirt brought joy to my heart. As I reached down to pick up Israel, one of my little buddies from The Lamb Center, I noticed something familiar on his shirt... the Great Smoky Mountains! :) I was the only American there, so I just smiled to myself and tucked it away in my memory of God's special blessings here in Haiti.

Shoes for orphans in Haiti

2011-08-28T22:38:00.003-05:00

If you've read some of my previous blog entries from Haiti, you'll know that I've been working with Samaritan's Purse on an orphanage project called The Lamb Center. There are 60 children currently at this orphanage. And they are so precious! :) Of course they've all already stolen my heart!

About half of them are in need of sturdy shoes. We walked with them to church this morning, and two of them had their cheap flipflops break on the quarter-mile trek. We kept trying to fix them every time they came apart. The girl eventually took hers off to walk barefoot and the boy (pictured above), barely 4, I ended up carrying the rest of the way.

I would love to help buy shoes for the ones who need them most. I brought some money along that some of you gave me, but it will not be enough to cover them all. I should be able to get a good pair of shoes for around $7 each down here. So for 30 shoes, I'll need $210. Any remaining money I can use to buy them clothes, which they also need. Some of them this morning didn't go to church because they didn't have clothes without holes or big tears in them. Some of us may say that it doesn't matter what you wear to church. And of course we know that is true. But, the people of Haiti have just as much dignity as you and I do, and want to be presentable, especially when they go to worship in God's house. And I certainly believe they deserve that option. Most of us have dozens of outfits to choose from. These children are lucky if they have one good outfit on any given day.

If you would like to contribute towards the purchase of the shoes or clothing, send me an email (hannahsterling@live.com) and I will give you my mailing address. My mom can deposit the check and I can withdraw it from here. I've still got this week and next to purchase the items, so there is time if you would like to mail it this week. Just write "Shoes for Haiti" in the memo so we'll know what it's for.

Thanks for praying for these children and helping where you are able!

More photos from Haiti

2011-08-28T21:33:00.009-05:00

I thought I would take some time to post some more photos from my time here. There is so much to say and so many photos to show! I went through and picked out some that I thought give you a good overall picture of what I've seen and experienced here so far.

These first ones I took while riding around. We are staying right outside of Léogâne which is at least a two hour drive from Port-au-Prince. Some of these were taken closer to where I am staying and some were taken while driving through bigger cities.

Traffic in Haiti is an experience for sure!

Many of the temporary shelters that SP set up can still be spotted throughout the country

Remains from the earthquake

A big problem everywhere, and especially in the larger cities

A family pulling in the catch of the day near our base outside of Léogâne

A storm coming in... those tents are where we sleep

Not cool. And each of Aaron's fingers are about two inches longer than mine, so that tells you how ginormous this tarantula is. Yikes!

But... since Aaron seemed to have the situation under control, I used it as a photo op... sweaty and gross or not!

Guess what we're making?? CAKE BALLS! :) I wanted to treat the staff and volunteers with my signature dessert. They were the ugliest cake balls I've ever made, but they still tasted great and were a big hit. Marie Michell enjoyed helping me make them. And yes, I'm once again drenched in sweat. Lovely, huh?

Our friend Charles cutting open some coconuts for us from a tree that randomly fell down while we were working. The milk was so refreshing after working so hard out in the heat.

The kiddos that live next door to the building site

One of the many absolutely amazing sunsets we witness each night from the base! (This is when you realize why I really chose to stay two more weeks! Jk...)

The latest from Haiti

2011-08-28T11:38:00.015-05:00

I suppose the biggest news to report is that I am writing this blog entry from Haiti. Why is that significant? Because as many of you know, originally I was supposed to hop on a plane home yesterday.

First, let me catch up with what has been happening these past couple of weeks and then I will share with you why I am still here. Before arriving in Haiti, I knew little about what our team was going to be doing. As I mentioned previously, we had been told that more than likely we would be working on some groundwork for an orphanage called The Lamb Center. It took a few days for that to be ready for us, so we started with painting the rental homes where the kids are currently living. In a little over a week, we finished painting both the girls' and the boys' homes. It's incredible what a little paint can do to make concrete walls come alive and a place feel like a home! We painted the ceilings white which also made a big improvement and helps brighten things up when there is no electricity.

Before

After

In addition to the painting, we also split up throughout our time here and worked on various projects. There is a volunteer trailer we have been trying to get ready that will stay at the construction site and be stocked with tools, water, lunches, and a place to take a break. Most of the painting on the interior is finished, and they are working on completing the electricity and plumbing. It will be great for future volunteers to have that on site as they work throughout the day under the hot Haitian sun! There is also a volunteer house that SP is renting. Hopefully it will be up and running in the next few weeks so future teams can stay there and be closer to the project site. The house itself was built after the earthquake and looks to be in great shape. It just needs a perimeter fence for security, a more complete kitchen, and additional furniture before its ready to house volunteers.

Perhaps the "project" our team enjoyed most was a party we threw for the children. My mom had given me money to use for any needs here, and I thought a party for the kids would be a great way to spend some of that. We made a list of treats we thought the kids would enjoy and any other supplies we needed for the games and activities. Our final team member, Jerry, arrived a week after the rest of us. I told him about the party and he brought some funky sunglasses, whistles, candy, and balloons. We each came up with a game or activity. Allen and the guys filled up water balloons and made a target for us to hold while the kids launched water balloons at us. Katrina had a coloring station with paper and crayons for the kids to draw pictures. Nadege had a Haitian story book and sat under a tree reading that to some of the kids. I made balloon animals, which eventually turned into balloon swords because the demand got pretty high for them and the dogs were taking too long! And probably the most popular of all was Celeste's dance party. She had been dancing with the kids almost every day and they loved listening to the music and learning her crazy moves. We also made up some kool-aid for them to have with their lunch. At the end of the party, we gave them each a bag of treats. We packed in each bag some cookies, candy, a pencil, sunglasses, a whistle, and 2 silly bands. And we gave them each a notebook and a bag of chips. It was so wonderful to see their faces light up when they received their bag. Everyone instantly put on their sunglasses and started munching on the candy. It was a great success!

Jerry coaching one of the little squirts on how to throw a water balloon

Dance party with Celeste!

Aside from the painting, prepping, and partying, we did begin some of the groundwork for the new building. We started setting up the batter boards. Before this trip, I didn't know what those were--and I probably still can't really explain them to you--but I know the process. Cut 4' pieces of wood. Dig holes. Lots of holes. Mix up some concrete. Put the wood in the hole and pour in the concrete. The ground here is so rocky. You have to use a pickaxe to break up the ground, shovel that out, use the pickaxe, shovel, and so forth. It's hard work. Especially in this heat and humidity. But our team did an incredible job and we got a lot done in the short time we worked on that project. As we set up the batter boards, I helped with quality control. We strung a line down each end of the site and I helped keep all of our boards perfectly in line and perfectly vertical. We've got a few more to finish and a few of us will do that this week before the next volunteer team arrives on Saturday.

Construction site with the batter boards set up

So why am I still here? The obvious answer to that is that God is not done with me in Haiti. If he were, I would have left yesterday. Another answer to that question might be that two weeks serving in a place like this is never enough time for me. I should have known that coming in, but I signed up recognizing that this was a great opportunity to serve in Haiti and to get a taste of what Samaritan's Purse does on a global level. In my first two weeks here, in addition to helping out with what the rest of the team was doing, I also had the opportunity to assist with some of the administrative tasks that needed to be done for The Lamb Center project. Through that experience I got to know and work even more closely with two of the men overseeing SP's work there. I got a behind-the-scenes look at all that is involved with a project like this and saw a bit of the to-do list for what's left. It's a big list. I enjoyed being able to help them get some of the documents and other files together and organized. And I know there is still a lot I can help with. In talking with one of the guys, I learned that staying a bit longer might be an option and that they could definitely use my help if the request was approved. We put it out there and it was approved the next day. So... I'm staying for two more weeks. The next volunteer team doesn't come until Saturday, so this week I will help with some more administrative work and also get the batter boards done and string pulled across so that the team can start digging next week.

I'm just as excited for these next two weeks as I was when I set out to come for the first. This is a great opportunity and I am blessed to be here and serve with Samaritan's Purse. I've met some incredible people so far who have come down here to volunteer and work with SP. They have encouraged me and I hope I have been able to provide them with some encouragement as well. And most of all, it's wonderful getting to know the kids at The Lamb Center and having the chance to love on them nearly every day. Thank you for continuing to pray for me throughout these next two weeks. I listed some prayer requests prior to my departure for Haiti. As I reread them just now, they still apply so I will list them again to include with any other prayers you would like to lift up for the remainder of my time here. :)

Please pray for good health for myself and the other volunteers and staff.
Please pray that the work of our hands will be productive, but also that our presence and work there will be a demonstration of Christ's love.
Please pray that we as members of a team will be selfless and loving towards each other, and demonstrate unity as the body of Christ.
Please pray for opportunities for us to share the love and message of Christ through both word and deed, and that we will boldly take advantage of those opportunities.

Lunch time!

Day 1 in the life of an orphan

2011-08-22T17:49:00.003-05:00

When most people think of an orphan, they probably think of a child whose parents have died. That was typically what came to my mind as well until I started working more with orphans and vulnerable children these past few years. Before, I would have assumed that most orphanages are filled with children who do not have living parents. Now, I'm coming to realize that a lot of the children in many of the orphanages I have visited have at least one biological parent who is still alive, but who is either unable or unwilling to take care of the child. That was what I experienced today...

As I show pictures from trips like Namibia, and now Haiti, people always remark about how happy the children look. I've already posted one story about The Lamb Center here in Haiti and I've received comments about the beautiful smiles of the children, and so on. And it's easy for me to focus on those smiles as well. Often I'll even tell them to smile for photos. I love seeing how their faces light up with those pearly white smiles! For many of the children, however, unless they were too young to remember a life prior to coming to a place like The Lamb Center, there is a lot of pain behind those smiles. I've already seen that in some of the kids here. There are always those who seem to stay off to themselves or who can't as easily be coerced into a happy smile for the camera. I think about Ringo from FHS who at five years old was one of the toughest kids at the center. It took months for me to get a sincere smile out of him.

What I experienced today was not a happy, seemingly well adjusted child at an orphanage. Today I got a glimpse into Day 1 in the life of an orphan. And it wasn't pretty.

I arrived at The Lamb Center ready to paint with the rest of the team when Kalibe (the director) asked me to accompany him to pick up a baby and take it to his mother's orphanage in Port-au-Prince. About 2-3 hours away depending on traffic (which is insane here!). I got permission and headed off. We drove down some back roads, parked, and walked a little ways until we arrived at a wooden shack. On the way, Kalibe told me a little about the situation. The mother of this 9 month old baby was only 14 years old. In addition to having that baby to care for, she is also three months pregnant. The grandmother is unsure who the father is in both cases. In this situation the family is just not able to properly care for the baby. As if I couldn't already feel the pain and intensity of this situation, before knocking at the door Kalibe remarked, "I am very sad for this baby." I echoed that statement, but I couldn't stop thinking about what the mother was going through.

The mother answered the door with the baby in her arms. The baby--who apparently hasn't been named yet--was very small for his age, definitely malnourished. Kalibe talked with her for a little while until we were interrupted by some men carrying a sick woman into that same house. Soon, all of the neighbors were around us checking out that situation and wondering about the baby. Intense. That's the best way to describe it all. As everyone was talking, I kept glancing at the mother--only a child herself! Her mood was somber and soon I started to see her eyes begin to fill with tears. My heart was so heavy. I thought, "Here I am, standing in front of these Haitian people. About to take this baby from a crying mother, and I'm about to completely lose it." There were a couple times I had to turn my head from everyone and hope my own tears would disappear. Before we left, Kalibe wanted me to take a photo of the girl and her baby. I knew it would be wonderful to be able to give the photo to the mother. When we told her we wanted to take one, she went inside the house. She came back out a few minutes later and it was obvious she had taken a moment to herself to cry. I took the photo, my tears flowing by this time, and then gave the mother a hug. She didn't hug me back. She just stood there. I can't even imagine all of her thoughts and emotions at that moment.

One of the ladies carried the baby to the truck while Kalibe and I followed. I had a hat on but no sunglasses. I kept my head low because by that point I was crying. I've always been on the other end of orphanages. Playing with the kids. Listening to their songs. Amazed by their joy in the midst of their circumstances. But this was a much different perspective. And this was painful. When I was handed the baby, the tears didn't stop. I tried to say a few things to Kalibe but my words were shaky. I asked him to hand me my sunglasses so it would be a little less obvious to everyone outside that the white woman in the front seat holding a baby was bawling her eyes out.

We had put him in a full outfit and a diaper, all of which were way too big for him. We didn't have a bottle, but knew there would be food waiting for him where we were going. At first, he was pretty limp in my arms. Curious about the new environment. But soon he began to cry. I could tell he was tired and I'm sure he was hungry. And I know he missed his mom. When we were passing him back and forth at the house, he always reached for her. I prayed that God would allow the baby to rest. The drive to Port-au-Prince is pretty crazy, bumpy, and unpredictable. After a little while, he finally did fall asleep. And by God's grace he stayed asleep the whole trip!

Once we reached the house, everyone there was happy to meet him. He instantly had a handful of brothers and sisters and was wide-eyed taking everything in. The girls all gathered around as I fed him a bottle--which he drank without hesitation. I know Kalibe's mom will do a great job nursing him back to health and offering the best life that she can. Maybe he will even get adopted one day. Kalibe and his brother were orphans themselves when Sue adopted them. And now they are running the orphanage! So I have no doubt this baby will grow up in a loving and caring environment. Even still, I will never forget the mother's face and feeling a bit of the pain she felt and is still feeling now on her first night without him. And I know that from now on, when I see the smiles of these children and others like them, I will have a new perspective on their journey--from beginning to end.

The baby and his mother

Some of his new sisters

Getting lots of attention and a good meal

Bienvenue a Haiti!

2011-08-19T22:53:00.005-05:00

Our team made it safely to Haiti last Saturday. I can't believe it has almost been a full week since our arrival. Time has really flown by! I can already tell that it will be very difficult to leave this place in another week.

I will try to give the basic rundown of what has been going on these past several days. There are eight of us on this particular volunteer team through Samaritan's Purse. We have been working on an orphanage project called The Lamb Center. The earthquake last year completely destroyed the orphanage. Although we can thank God that all of the children and staff survived, nothing from the orphanage itself was salvageable. Samaritan's Purse has been able to join with the nationals to rebuild the orphanage and provide a safe place for the children. There are 60 children at The Lamb Center. 60 absolutely adorable children!

The children are currently staying in rental homes nearby the previous site. Originally, I thought our team might be working on the groundwork for the new building. But since the project is slightly behind schedule, we are actually working at the rental homes themselves--mostly painting the drab concrete walls and ceilings. This was a pleasant surprise for me because it means we are near the children at the work site every day! Most of the time, many of the children are right at our heels... curious about what we are doing and whether they can help. I know all of them would love to get their hands on a paintbrush, but we've made enough of a mess ourselves as adults so that's probably not the best idea! :) We have let some of them help carry things and clean up and they really enjoyed pitching in. The nationals who work and volunteer at the orphanage have been a huge help and are often working right alongside of us. And I should mention that the two men who are running The Lamb Center were orphans themselves, adopted by an American missionary to Haiti many years ago. It has been so neat to hear their story and witness their love for these kids!

I have also been able to help with some of the admin duties here at the SP base. That's been wonderful as God always seems to use a variety of the skills and talents He has given me for projects like these. I've been happy to pitch in with those duties as well and I'm glad I could be of use in that way. But of course my favorite moments on this trip are spent with the kids, whether they are just hanging around while I work, or we're taking a break to play with them. (We take a lot of breaks!)

Please continue to pray for our team as we serve the children, the SP staff, and others in this community. Pray also for The Lamb Center and SP's role in helping them out. There are still many details and plans that need to come together and with God's help I know they will. Pray for those within SP who are in charge of this project, and that they will have the strength and wisdom needed to carry it out. And finally, pray for these 60 kids. I am thankful for the safe haven they have at The Lamb Center, but truly caring for these children and providing them with love and hope requires more than just a building.

I'll close with some photos of the kids. You'll see from their beautiful faces and smiles how easy it is to fall in love with them!

Preparing for Haiti

2011-08-08T11:55:00.003-05:00

In less than a week I'll be on a plane to Haiti! I'm super pumped about this trip and anxious to see what God has in store!

I don't know all the details of the trip, and I won't really find them out until I hit the ground. But our team will likely be serving on a construction project in Léogâne, Haiti, possibly an orphanage. I did a little research on this area, and here's some information from Wikipedia...

Léogâne was at the epicenter of the 7.0 magnitude 12 January 2010 earthquake, and a United Nations assessment team that investigated three main towns near Port-au-Prince found that Léogâne was "the worst affected area" with 80 to 90% of buildings damaged and no remaining government infrastructure. Nearly every concrete structure was destroyed. The damage was also reported to be worse than the capital. The military estimated that 20,000 to 30,000 people had died from the earthquake in Léogâne. People have congregated in ad hoc squatter camps and relief has taken longer to reach Léogâne.

I don't think you can ever fully prepare yourself for a trip like this. I think my previous experiences in poverty-stricken areas will be helpful. But I'm holding little expectations and I look forward to simply going to learn about, live among, and serve the Haitian people. I've tried to spend some time each week learning new words and phrases in Haitian Creole. So hopefully that will give me a bit of a leg up as I dive into a new language and culture.

I'm excited to meet the other members of this short-term team. They are coming together through Samaritan's Purse from all over the United States and one from Canada. And a couple members who are U.S. citizens have roots in other areas of the world. One young man is from Russia and a young lady whose parents are Haitian.

I do have some specific prayer requests and ask that you will begin praying with me as I embark on this journey and throughout the two weeks that I am there.

Please pray for good health for myself and my team members. Risks increase anytime you visit an impoverished nation, especially those who have been recently affected by natural disasters and are operating on even lower health standards than normal.
Please pray that the work of our hands will be productive, but also that our presence and work there will be a demonstration of Christ's love.
Please pray that we as members of a team will be selfless and loving towards each other, and demonstrate unity as the body of Christ.
Please pray for opportunities for us to share the love and message of Christ through both word and deed, and that we will boldly take advantage of those opportunities.

From Namibia to New Orleans

2011-07-26T14:27:00.008-05:00

Last week I had another great reunion with Linda Macdonald. I served with Linda in Namibia through Africa Inland Mission at FHS. Linda was there a total of four years, so when I arrived, she was already halfway through her time in Africa. We both ended up returning to the States around the same time at the end of last year.

Linda has heard me talk about New Orleans many times. When I told her I was planning to visit New Orleans this summer, she mentioned she would love to come along. I try to visit New Orleans as much as I can, especially during the weeks of MissionLab. I worked for MissionLab from 2006-2008 and both the city of New Orleans and the ministry of MissionLab will always be close to my heart. It has been awesome watching that ministry rebuild and grow since my first summer there, the summer after Hurricane Katrina. During the summer, MissionLab has 8 or 9 weeks of summer camps for youth groups. In 2006, our biggest week was barely over 100. Now, they easily book 400-500! It's incredible! And the work that is done throughout the city through these groups is amazing.

Linda had never been to New Orleans before, and I knew we would have a great time as I showed her around the city and gave her the opportunity to see what MissionLab is all about. We stayed off-campus with Bob and Linda Jackson and their sweet dog Boudreaux. We really felt at home and enjoyed visiting with Bob and Linda who I first met during my first time in New Orleans in April 2006 and then worked with when I joined the team at MissionLab.

On Monday morning, we hooked up with First Baptist Austin, TX to help out at a children's ministry site. This was one of the first sites Linda chose from the list because she loves children! Linda was head of the Enrichment Program at FHS and was always coming up with creative crafts, games, and ideas for the kids there to enjoy. Our time with these kids in New Orleans was a lot of fun. On three different mornings we hung out with them and helped with the craft. Linda was in her element!

The forecast was calling for rain most of the week, so the first dry moment we had, we headed down to the French Quarter to ensure that she would get a chance to see it. We browsed the shops, saw the St. Louis Cathedral, and walked along the Mississippi River.

We also visited a nearby cemetery. Cemeteries in New Orleans are unique in that they are above ground cemeteries since half of the city is below sea level. It's an interesting and somewhat haunting experience walking around the old tombs. I found a good article about the cemeteries in New Orleans here.

I drove Linda through the Lower 9th Ward, one of the most talked about areas where Hurricane Katrina wreaked havoc. Brad Pitt started an organization called Make It Right to help residents of the Lower 9th return to their neighborhood. Nearly 50 homes like the ones below have been built so far.

On Tuesday afternoon, we went with a group to Colonial Oaks Living Center to play Bingo with the residents. Linda also excitedly picked this option from the list of sites because she loves hanging out with her mom and her mom's friends at the nursing home back in Kentucky. We enjoyed playing several rounds of Bingo. I was happy because the two sweet ladies I sat beside each won a game. The lady pictured below said she ran a real Bingo hall for 18 years!

I was blessed to bump into Myra Dunn, the Activities Coordinator for Colonial Oaks. Myra and I got to be friends back when I worked for MissionLab. I hadn't seen her since 2008. It was a joyous reunion!! She's a hoot!

We made a pitstop at Target so I could show Linda the shopping cart escalator! That's always an incredible sight if you haven't seen such a thing before! :)

On Wednesday, we spent the morning at Bethel Colony South. I've written about Bethel several times before. It is a 9-month rehabilitation program for men and women struggling with addiction. Two of the adult ladies from MissionLab led a Bible study for the women and then we all had lunch together. Bob and Linda Jackson made some delicious jambalaya. The women LOVED it! So did we!!

Linda helped make the banana pudding... which is huge because Linda HATES bananas. She doesn't even like to touch them! HA! I snapped a photo as proof for her friends and family back home. :)

On Thursday we helped out with a couple MissionLab groups working in City Park. City Park is 1,300 acres and is one of the largest urban parks in the country. It went underwater during Katrina, like most of the city, and MissionLab has been a significant source of volunteers. On this day, we helped replant some of the wetland plants. Wetlands are important because in many cases, every 2.7 miles of wetlands can reduce the storm surge by 1 foot. So the issue of decreasing wetlands contributes to the problems cities like New Orleans face when hurricanes strike. City Park is trying to do its part to help maintain a stable and healthy environment. We enjoyed assisting their efforts... that is, until we stumbled upon a bunch of fire ants! Ouch!

While we were on the seminary campus, we bumped into some old friends of mine at LifeSongs. LifeSongs in the local Christian radio station in New Orleans and broadcasts from the same building on campus where the MissionLab office is. Each fall, LifeSongs promotes Operation Christmas Child, a ministry of Samaritan's Purse to pack and deliver shoe boxes filled with goodies to underprivileged children worldwide. When Linda was in Namibia, the organization she served with prior to FHS was on the receiving end of those shoe boxes. When Tom at LifeSongs learned about this, he organized a radio interview with Linda to tell of that experience. Portions of that interview will air with the promotions they will do in the fall. So cool!

On Thursday night, I took Linda to Morning Call where she could try her first beignet. She loved it! I typically describe a beignet (pronounced ben-yay) as a cross between a doughnut and a funnel cake. Most tourists try them in the French Quarter at Café du Monde, but Morning Call was more convenient for us to get to... and I actually prefer the ones there. Brief history, Morning Call was at the location where Café du Monde now sits on Decatur Street--and had been for over 100 years--up until their lease ran out and they moved from that location in 1974.

On Saturday, we decided to try something new... something I'd never even done before. My dear friend Stacy joined us, and we headed downtown to catch the free ferry to Algiers Point. Algiers Point is a historic town across the river from the French Quarter. It is only one year younger than the French Quarter and had very little damage from Hurricane Katrina compared to the surrounding areas. Walking around the streets here was a great contrast to walking around the streets downtown. It's a very quiet place with beautiful and quaint homes, small cafes, and even a cupcake bakery! I'll definitely go back for another visit next time I'm in the area!

To sum it all up... we had a wonderful week! It was great to reconnect with my friends in New Orleans, and Linda enjoyed staying busy both in ministry and sightseeing. MissionLab has a worship service three times a week that we attended. I always love hearing Rob Wilton speak. And Sunday, we wrapped up the week with a church service with the men and women of Bethel Colony and another service at the church where Rob pastors, Vintage Church.

On the way home, Linda wanted to drive through Tuscaloosa to see the devastation left by the tornadoes in April. Even though she had seen the photos I posted online, she experienced the shocking reality of actually seeing such a disaster in person. She had me stop at one point so she could pray for the families affected by the storm.

There are so many needs throughout this country. I think the first step to making a difference in this world is to open yourself up to seeing the needs. They are all around us. Be willing, and God will provide you with endless opportunities to serve Him by loving others!

A day of fun at Children's Hospital

2011-06-29T12:32:00.002-05:00

On Monday morning I went with a group of three other ladies from church to Children's Hospital to throw a "clinic party". The whole idea for volunteering at Children's started with my friend Linda Cooper. Many of you have been praying for Linda as she is fighting ovarian cancer once again. Although seeing a friend going through such physical struggles is difficult, it has been a blessing to watch the journey of faith God has taken her on. Linda is one of the strongest women I know and she is a huge inspiration to me. She has a heart of gold, but I know it has been difficult for her to feel like she is making a difference in the lives of others because of how focused her cancer has caused her to be on herself. Children's Hospital came to mind as a place where she and I could volunteer and share some love with the children there. I proposed the idea to Linda and she was really excited about it. Two other special ladies, Phyllis and Cindy, jumped on board to join us for a fun day with the kiddos.

Volunteers are used in a variety of ways at Children's from room visitation to throwing parties for the children. The clinic party takes place in the waiting area of the Oncology and Hematology department. Children who come for treatments are in and out of the waiting room. We set up our craft at the table and any of the children (patients) and/or their siblings were welcome to join us. Linda had found this awesome craft idea and had brought all the supplies ready to be colored and assembled. We made spinning tops out of used CDs.

Although there were only a few children who joined us on Monday, we had a great time! If nothing else, we enjoyed fellowshipping together and meeting sweet Megan who helps coordinate the volunteers. We even found it therapeutic ourselves to color in the coloring book I brought! :) But the kids who joined us really made our morning. We had a couple four year olds, a boy and a girl, and they were adorable and quite hilarious.

We're making plans to go back and hope we'll have even more kids to entertain next time!

The photo above and CD spinners craft directions can be found by clicking here. And for more information about how you can volunteer at Children's Hospital click here.

I'm going to Haiti!

2011-06-22T19:54:00.003-05:00

I've been accepted to go on a short-term trip with Samaritan's Purse to Haiti in August. I'm super excited for two reasons... 1) I've wanted for a long time to get involved with the work Samaritan's Purse is doing across the globe and 2) I've been wanting to get down to Haiti to help since the earthquake on January 12, 2010.

The team I'll be on will be primarily a construction team as Samaritan's Purse continues its rebuilding efforts in Haiti. I'll look forward to sharing more information as I know more about the specifics of the project. Samaritan's Purse has been working on a variety of rebuilding projects including community centers, schools, orphanages, and churches.

Will you pray with me as I prepare for this trip? I know God is putting together the right team and preparing the ground for our arrival. I need to raise around $1,000 to cover my flight (most of that cost), immunizations, and supplies. If you would like to give towards my trip, you can send a check made out to "Hannah Sterling" to the following address:

Hannah Sterling

P.O. Box 4878

Maryville, TN 37802-4878

To give you a bit of an idea of how Samaritan's Purse has been involved in Haiti since the earthquake, here is some information I received in my pre-trip information packet...

"Since the earthquake, Samaritan's Purse has rotated hundreds of trained emergency responders into Haiti who are skilled in medicine, heavy equipment operations, water and sanitation, engineering, and logistics and management, among other professions. To address the staggering shelter needs, Samaritan's Purse is providing 10,000 transitional shelters for displaced persons. In addition, Samaritan's Purse continues to provide life-saving assistance in the distribution of food, non-food items, and health, water, sanitation and hygiene interventions for those in need. Through Samaritan's Purse health activities, 9,800 life-saving medical procedures and surgeries were performed for earthquake victims. Samaritan's Purse distributed food to 360,000 beneficiaries. Water filters, bladders and tap stands were provided to communities in need of potable water, each system providing thousands of liters of clean water per day. Samaritan's Purse is working with a local church network of 2,000 churches to distribute assistance and share the Gospel."

Thank you for praying with me as I embark on this journey. And thank you for considering how you can give to help me reach my goal!

(photo courtesy of SP)

For more information about Samaritan's Purse, check out their website at www.samaritanspurse.org.

Tornado Damage in Tuscaloosa

2011-06-19T17:49:00.002-05:00

I took a few hundred photos during my time in Alabama. I basically went down each affected street and took a photo of every single house I passed. The slideshow below shows homes and businesses damaged or destroyed in Tuscaloosa, AL. The April 27th tornado made a nearly 6 mile path through the heart of the city. These photos display a small portion of this huge area of devastation.

Project Blessings

2011-06-18T19:49:00.004-05:00

On Thursday I had the opportunity to go to Tuscaloosa and volunteer with another relief organization. Tuscaloosa is about an hour from Birmingham. I had been hoping I would have time to squeeze in a visit, so I jumped at the chance on Thursday. I had found a couple places online that were openly accepting volunteers. I settled on an organization called Project Blessings, mapped out the address, and off I went.

Project Blessings is a non-profit organization founded in 2009 to address the needs of those in the community who are in desperate need of home repair. Volunteers work side by side with the homeowners to make the necessaries repairs and renovations to ensure the home is safe and secure. Since the storm of April 27th, Project Blessings has been operating out of Woodland Forest Baptist Church to bring supplies and relief to the local communities. They have been taking in donations of food, water, clothing, toiletries, cleaning supplies and other items to distribute to those in need during this devastating time.

I helped out in the church gym turned distribution center sorting a big donation of clothes from Columbia. Columbia sent dozens of boxes filled with hundreds of shirts, pants, and outwear to assist the citizens of Tuscaloosa--many who have lost everything. When local residents come to Project Blessings, they sit down with a volunteer who takes their information and records the specific needs they have--much like how it is at Pratt City Disaster Resource Center. Then the volunteers head inside the gym to find the requested items. I helped put some brand new outfits together from the clothes we sorted that morning.

I was so impressed by Columbia and all of their donations. Those clothes were NICE and such great quality!! We cut the tags off before giving them to the local residents, but check out this shirt for $64! I loved being able to hand over clothes like these!

I enjoyed meeting the other volunteers and was interested in learning how each of them came to serve with Project Blessings. Alan, from Franklin, TN, read about Project Blessings online and came Thursday to volunteer at the end of a business trip in this area.

Keonte has been volunteering for about two weeks and heard about the project through a son of one of the people who founded Project Blessings. He helps residents when they first arrive at the center and he also helps provide material for the website by taking photos and interviewing residents and volunteers.

Ali and Liz are students at the University of Alabama. They were in their apartment when the tornado hit. After being warned by a neighbor, they rushed to the bathroom and crouched in the bathtub. They could feel the pressure change and hear the tornado destroying the community around them. Thankfully their apartment was spared, but the other side of the complex had some damage. They helped raised money through their sorority and come out as much as they can to volunteer with Project Blessings.

And Shawn, last but not least, is there each day helping to run the show. After the storm hit, Shawn would listen to the radio for ways to get involved. She would distribute bottled water and assist from morning to evening any way that she could. In her own words: "One day I heard about Project Blessings, showed up here and never left!" You'd never guess her profession... she's a glassblower!

I also got to speak with and hopefully encourage one of the local residents who came to Project Blessings to receive some assistance. Her name was Cynthia. Cynthia's house had minimal damage, but her friend James' house had significant damage. He has moved in with her until his home can be repaired. "God has a plan," Cynthia shared, "He had a plan for this storm. We have to trust Him and let him handle things." I asked her how we could specifically pray for her and

the community. "Pray for us each and every day. Pray that we will stay bonded in Christ. That is how recovery will happen." She also asked that I would thank people who have prayed for them, volunteered, or helped in any way. "Please thank them from the bottom of our hearts!"

You can find out more about Project Blessings at their website, www.projectblessings.org. They can always use volunteers. As it says on their page, no need to register, just show up! They can use help in their distribution center, and they are also still sending teams out each morning for home repair projects. They need more donations, especially cleaning supplies, paper towels, and big boxes of powdered laundry detergent.

(from left to right) Keonte, Ali, Ronnie, Liz, Shawn, me, Alan

I still had some money left that had been given to me by people at my church, so I did a run to Dollar General and purchased some cleaning items.

I will close with some photos of the devastation in Tuscaloosa. It was as bad as Pratt City and Pleasant Grove--worse in some areas and a much wider area of destruction... about 6 miles.

Most of the streets and neighborhoods were reduced to a scene like the photo above. In pre-storm heavily wooded areas, there was hardly a tree standing. And if there was a tree standing, it was merely a portion of the trunk.

The tornado destroyed or significantly damage around 650 businesses in Tuscaloosa County. I saw the remains of Hobby Lobby, Big Lots, World Gym, Krispy Kreme and dozens of locally owned businesses.

Southern Hospitality

2011-06-17T09:37:00.006-05:00

I'm constantly amazed by God's provision and blessings. Wednesday night was no exception. I googled some churches in the Birmingham area to find one that had a Wednesday night service I could attend. I settled on First Baptist Church of Gardendale, just one exit down from where I'm staying. I worked late at the center on Wednesday and wasn't sure I was going to make the 6:15 service, but I headed that way and hoped for the best. I pulled into the parking lot right at 6:15.

FBC Gardendale is a big church, and I wasn't sure where the entrance was. I pulled up beside a lady and asked her to point me in the right direction. She did and I pulled into a parking space. The lady, whose name is Betty, walked into the building with me and asked me where I was from. I told her I was down volunteering. She invited me to sit with her so we found a seat and enjoyed the service together.

After the service, Betty wanted to know more about me. She asked me more about what I was doing, why I came all this way to help, and what else I do. We stood in the lobby for a while as I told her a little more about my life. As we started walking out to the car she asked if I had eaten dinner. I hadn't. She told me she had cooked up some cabbage, pinto beans, corn, potatoes and cornbread. She asked if I wanted to come over and eat some. I was hungry, and she was so sweet. If she didn't mind bringing a stranger into her home, I didn't mind being that stranger. :) I followed her to her home and we had a delicious meal!

Her mother Agnes lives with her. Agnes is 94 years old. And her grandson and his wife live downstairs. Agnes was sitting on the couch when we arrived, watching "church" on television. She is such a sweet lady, still sharp as a tack. Betty and I sat at the kitchen table for over an hour talking about everything under the sun. She asked a lot of questions about the ministries I've been involved in, and I found out more about her life and things she has been through. It was really a sweet time. I could tell she enjoyed the company and I definitely did. I felt at home. And that's always a good feeling when you're out of town!

Betty was interested in the recovery efforts here in Pratt City, so I invited her to volunteer one day if she was able. She came today and stayed for several hours. I showed her around the center and then she helped file the forms after I entered them into the computer. I think she enjoyed it and I certainly enjoyed the help!

I feel blessed to have met her and like I said, I'm constantly amazed at how God provides and blesses. God provided a meal, but rather than just another fast food dinner, He blessed me with a delicious home cooked feast! And I think this is a good example of how sometimes we have to open ourselves up to new places, new people, and a little spontaneity to fully experience all the blessings God has in store with us!

Blessed to be a blessing

2011-06-13T19:12:00.007-05:00

"A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed." Prov 11:25

You know the saying, "It's better to give than to receive"? That statement rings so true for my life! I love to pick out that perfect gift for someone, and it brings me as much joy (if not more) than the person receiving it on the day when he or she opens that gift. I love to give! I believe God has blessed me with a giving heart. I can't say I don't enjoy receiving gifts, because that would be a lie, but I just really love giving things to people who need or want them.

Yesterday I headed back down to Birmingham, Alabama to volunteer again with Pratt City Disaster Resource Center. As you probably saw before I left, I posted a list of items that were needed for the center. Because of the generosity of many of you and those at my church, I was able to pack my car full of donations! I should have taken a photo, but I packed it as full as I could while leaving room to see out the windows. The trunk and entire back of my car was full. I could feel my car groaning at the extra weight, and it put a bigger dent in my gas bill than usual. But thanks to the generosity of even more sweet folks, even my gas was paid for! God is good! Thank you to everyone who gave towards this trip and helping the people of Alabama!!

I was excited to arrive at the center this morning and have to get help unloading everything. I told the guy that there was a lot of stuff. He followed me out to my car and I said, "You might want to get a couple more guys." He said, "How much is there? Like a shopping cart full?" "Maybe five or six," I replied. "Oh!" We got it all out and rolled it inside with the help of the number of shopping carts I estimated. Later another volunteer said, "I can't believe how much you packed in your car! I thought a truck had been unloaded!" I told him that many years of experience have led me to be an excellent packer!! (Mom helped too!)

I spent the day in the main office helping with computer work like last time. Mrs. Helen and Pastor Eric were happy I had returned. I think it is refreshing for them to know that they can tell me to do something and it will get done. Something I didn't mention in my last post about the center, but some of the women who "volunteer" at the center are actually inmates from a nearby prison. There are usually one or two working around me that I get to interact with.

Near the end of the day, I helped put the finishing touches on the "household" room. That room will be opened tomorrow for volunteers to help the locals get household things they need like linens, dishes, silverware, lamps, pots and pans, and so on. A lot of the items I brought down were displayed throughout this room. And I'm going shopping tonight to purchase more things for that room in particular with the gift card and extra money people at my church gave me for the people of Alabama. Thank you!

I'm looking forward to the rest of my time here. I'm hoping to get out into the community a bit and have interaction with locals in the nearby neighborhoods. And I'd like to make a stop in Tuscaloosa at some point and see the rebuilding efforts going on there and see if I can pitch in. It's going to be a busy week and I'm already exhausted. But I'm excited and ready for however God wants to use me this week!

And P.S... we all got a special treat at the center today when Taylor Hicks (Season 5 American Idol winner) stopped by to see what's going on at the center and find out ways he can help his native state during this difficult time.

Below is a video from his webpage. The first half gives a good look at some of the places I photographed last time I was here. The second part of the video talks about a benefit concert happening here tomorrow. If you're in the Birmingham area you should check it out!

How you can help tornado victims

2011-06-06T10:39:00.007-05:00

If you would like to help the victims of the April 27 tornadoes, I will be packing my car up with donations to take to Alabama next week. You can find a list of the current needs below. Call or email me if you have items you would like to donate. If you live out of town and would like to contribute, you can mail a Walmart gift card and I will go shopping on Saturday. (Email me for my address.) If you go to my church, you can bring donations to church Sunday morning and I will collect them before I leave that afternoon.

1. Dry Goods

Cereals, potatoes, tuna and hamburger helpers, mac & cheese, spaghetti, beans and peas

2. Canned Foods

Canned meats and sauces (they currently have enough canned veggies and fruit)

3. Cleaning supplies, Bags & Paper Products

Mops, brooms, bleach, laundry detergent and dish detergent, ziploc storage bags (gallon and quart size), paper towels and bathroom tissue, trash bags (kitchen and 33 gallon)

4. Bedding & Towels

Sheets, pillows, pillowcases and bedspread/comforters, bath/face/hand towels, kitchen towels

5. Household Products

Dishes, glasses, silverware, small kitchen appliances (toasters, crock pots, irons, blenders, can openers), house (landline) phones, pots, pans, and cooking utensils

One idea for a big but inexpensive way to help, purchase dishes from Goodwill or similar thrift store.

Also, if you are interested in volunteering in Alabama for any portion of next week while I am there, let me know. Birmingham is an easy 4-hour drive from Maryville.

Disaster Relief in Alabama

2011-06-06T09:52:00.007-05:00

If you've been watching the news in the past couple of months, you've seen how places in our country have literally been ripped apart by storms, flooding, and tornadoes. It's been heartbreaking to see the images and hear the stories from the devastation. Recently I heard about a father in Joplin who's son was ripped from his arms as they were huddling together in a car as the tornado came through. Can you imagine that kind of heartache and loss? Or the mother, also in Joplin, who went out for pizza during her son's graduation party and never came home. What a tragedy.

My heart first really opened to people affected by disaster after I spent some time volunteering in Baton Rouge just days after Hurricane Katrina. Since that time, whenever I hear of a devastating event like a hurricane, tornado, earthquake, or tsunami, I want to leap into action and offer some kind of help. The more I've watched the news lately, the more I've wanted to do something to love on the people who've been affected here in the South. For me personally, giving money is not enough. (And I wouldn't have much of that to give anyway!) I wanted to physically go and do something to help the hardest hit communities. So I researched some options and off I went...

After a couple dead ends with other organizations, I got online and found a group called Hands on Birmingham. They are an organization that believes in the power of volunteers and aims to put people with a giving heart in touch with places that can use them. I searched some options for disaster relief and found Pratt City Disaster Resource Center. I signed up to help out Thursday and Friday and off I went!

Local people who were affected by the storm can come to this resource center to receive assistance. After filling out a form with the needs they have, a volunteer takes them through the center to gather up some of those requests (i.e. clothing, toiletries, household items, toys, etc). If they have other needs such as assistance with debris removal or rebuilding, they are put on a list and hopefully soon helped with those needs too. FEMA was also present gathering information and assisting where they are able. I saw some Red Cross and Americorps volunteers come through the center, and there were other corporate and church groups in and out volunteering their time as well.

The resource center is set up in a school building that is only used now as a temporary location when other area schools are being renovated. It has proved to be the perfect place for the center's operations.

Each of the classrooms is being used either as an office or is filled with specific items that help meet the needs of the local residents.

Volunteer groups set up here to feed the volunteers. So wonderful!

When I arrived Thursday morning, I was greeted with open arms. The ladies were nice to me from the beginning, but once I mentioned that I drove down from TN to help, they were elated and kept giving me hugs. Now that's a good Southern welcome! You never know what the atmosphere is going to be like when you volunteer somewhere like this. It can be a bit chaotic with all that is going on, and people are often in emergency mode. But these ladies were not only getting the job done, they were so grateful for the volunteers and let them know it. (And these folks were all volunteers themselves!) Sweet Ms. Thomasine assigned me to help with data entry. That wasn't really what I expected to do, but it turns out that is exactly where I was supposed to be. Every volunteer who comes through to help and every client who comes through for assistance gets entered into the database and their paperwork is filed. To give you an idea of the amount of people who have helped and been helped, they had some tables pushed together long-ways and a few dozen fat binders in alphabetical order from one end to the other. My administrative skills were put to use yet again. And on Friday, I compiled all the data from the three separate computers volunteers had been using into one big database. That was a job! But it was very helpful for them, and I knew God had me at that place for that specific time to do that very task. (It's always a sweet thing to know you are right where God wanted you to be!)

Not only do I feel like I made a difference in those two days, but I got to meet some of the most wonderful people in the world. The three people in charge of the whole operation were Ms. Peaches, Ms. Helen, and Pastor Eric Harris. They are stationed in the computer room (Room 12) where I was at. And so it was neat to be in the same room with the big dogs who were getting things done! :) Pastor Eric is a local pastor, but since the storm, he has been busy working on helping and restoring the community. He's at the center practically every day all day guiding the team and making important decisions for the day and for the future of that community. He is trusting that God will help to build back a community even stronger than before. Ms. Peaches and Ms. Helen are two angels who are really making an impact. Ms. Helen is volunteering her time from morning to evening to help keep things running smoothly. And Ms. Peaches is "on loan" from her church to direct the operations and provide the backbone for the center. The foundational people like these three and others all came together from different churches knowing they needed to do something. It's a little over a month since the storm came through and I am amazed at what they have created with God's help. They could teach others how to provide effective disaster relief! And not only were these three people doing a wonderful job with the task they've been given, but they truly made me feel like family. In just two days, they did an incredible job making me feel loved and appreciated. They even surprised me with a big gift basket and bag filled with goodies to thank me as an out-of-town volunteer. How sweet is that?

Ms. Peaches, Ms. Helen, and William

Two good friends of mine, Benny and Ronnie, who live near Birmingham. They helped Friday to clear out some trees and debris.

While I was there I had the opportunity to drive through two of the hardest hit areas in the Birmingham area. Pratt City was one... and I first saw that disaster area on my way to find the resource center. It literally took my breath away as I looked over and saw what looked like a war zone. House after house was either ripped to shreds or just completely gone from the foundation. I drove down those streets a few different times to take photos and document the wreckage. The other area was Pleasant Grove. My friend Ronnie who has been a long-time supporter of mine when I was in New Orleans and Africa lives near Birmingham and he took me around a few neighborhoods in Pleasant Grove. This was an even wider area of destruction, though the city has already done quite a lot to clear the area. My first thought was that it took New Orleans a whole lot longer to get their act together on clearing places like the 9th Ward. But this town has really rallied, and they've cleared so much of the debris away already. The lots of homes that were nearly destroyed or totally destroyed were already cleared... not even the foundation remained. But there were still many homes that were still "standing" and I took photos of those. I'm sure some people are still searching through the rubble for anything they can salvage before they send the machines in to completely clear it out. When you're driving through these areas and you see home after home in such devastation, you'd think it might lose its effect on you. But it doesn't for me. Which is why I took a photo of nearly every home I passed. Each one was just a terrible sight. And I think these photos are important to show, which is why I'm going to post some now and I've even made a slideshow so you can see even more.

(Above) A church completely ripped apart by the tornado

Any one of these homes could have been our home. We have been spared, this time. But what about our neighbors who weren't spared. What about those who lost everything? What about those who lost a loved one or their entire family? What are we going to do to help those in this dark hour of need? Sure, the bulldozers may have everything cleared out in another couple of weeks... but then there is the rebuilding... the putting back together the pieces of all that was lost. Restoring hope when people need it most.

I wrote a blog entry back in 2006 called "Remembering Baton Rouge". At the end I wrote "[my prayer is] that our tomorrows are few in which we find ourselves looking back on the days before... wishing we could have done more." What are you doing to make a difference in this world? What can you do today to brighten someone else's tomorrow?

Now THAT'S a hail storm!

2011-05-26T15:32:00.004-05:00

So I've never really given hail storms much thought. Obviously I knew that they were capable of causing some damage, but I'd never had my own serious personal encounter with a hail storm. Even just a few weeks ago when we had the "bad storm", I only got dime-sized hail at my house and that's a cake walk. (Though I will say that in other areas of town there was a lot more damage from bigger sized hail.)

All that changed this afternoon... I knew there were hail storm warnings because my step-mom had just called me and I could hear it pounding all over her car. Then my dad sent a text that it was hailing at his house. I had actually just laid down for a breather after cleaning my kitchen post-flood last week. (Always an adventure!) Then I heard a couple hail pellets coming my way...

I went out to put some towels on my front and back windshields. Then I decided I'd move my car as close to my house as possible. My world has always been a world of no carports or garages. Of course my parents have garages... with their cars in them. I moved the car so close I had to climb out the passenger side. Then it really began to hail and I noticed these were quite a bit bigger than dime-sized and I went into emergency mode... Operation Save My Car! I started running around throwing anything within reach on top of my car... bag filled with garbage, the actual garbage can I had just washed out, an old towel... On the way to get more towels, I decided instead for this big thick blanket I keep on my bed. I threw that over the top of my car. Then I put three floor mats on the hood of my car. All the while my car was getting pelted with giant hail pellets and I could see some dings already. But all in all, my fast thinking saved my car from even more damage. Unfortunately, I've counted around 30 dings on my car anyway, but I'm just thankful my windshields didn't break as that's often what happens in these ridiculous battles with nature. (Frank's truck has a crack in the windshield. Bummer!)

Here are some photos for your viewing pleasure. And I'm sure any of you in this area of the world saw the same thing...

Hot dog, Jake! Look at the size of that thang!

Bombs away!

This is my attempt at saving my car. It was pretty effective! The lump under the blanket is a bag of trash. Don't ask!

The two biggest dents on my car

Another shot to give you an idea of how big the hail was

(Sorry to anyone who doesn't like feet...)

The hail on the ground at mom's about an hour after the storm

Reunions and Wedding in Chicago

2011-05-23T13:19:00.005-05:00

This past weekend took me up north to Chicago for my good friend Adam's wedding. Adam was one of my co-workers at MissionLab down in New Orleans. I met Adam in 2006 and over the course of my time in New Orleans, our friendship grew to the point that I count him as one of my best friends. When he started dating Kelsey in 2008, I told him that I would for sure be at his wedding. Thankfully, the wedding was planned for the perfect time for my own travel schedule... considering that this time last year I was in Africa!

While I was in the Chicago area, I also got to meet up with my friend Kitty. Many of you will remember Kitty from my time in Namibia. She was present for that exciting weekend when I burned up my clutch, click here. And she was with me on my very first trip to Cape Town, hereand here. She picked me up from the airport on Thursday and treated me to dinner at this cool stir-fry buffet type place. Then we headed into Chicago for a surprisingly chilly walk around the city. On the way back to her place, I spotted a White Castle and insisted we drive-thru so I could see how they compared to Krystal. :)

On Friday Kitty dropped me off at the train station and I headed to Naperville. I helped with some of the reception set-up, but mostly just enjoyed hanging out with all my buds from New Orleans. We had a great weekend laughing with and at each other, and retelling some of our unforgettable memories from when we all lived in NOLA... most of them still live there. It was such a joy to hangout and be a part of the wedding celebration! Oh... and Adam and Kelsey are heading to Gatlinburg for their honeymoon. :)

Here are some photos from the weekend. You can see more on Facebook...

Sadly, this is the only photo we got together...

Hanging out at the train station

I jokingly made a big deal about eating potato salad out of a carton! I can say that was a first!!

Adam getting his first look at his bride

Adam and Kelsey have placed God in the center of their relationship from the beginning. I'm so excited to see where God takes them together in the years ahead!

Me and my NOLA buds

Congrats, Adam and Kelsey! Thanks for letting me be a part of your special day!!

Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream

2011-05-17T10:44:00.004-05:00

Aside from entertaining visitors, I’ve been busy with other great stuff! When I was on the airplane on the way to Israel at the end of 2010, I felt God leading me to teach a study at my church on the book Radical by David Platt. Our enthusiastic Minister of Education got on board and approved the study. Finally, after months of talking about it, the class has begun! We cover a chapter a week and this week we’ll hit Chapter Two. It’s been exciting already to see the energy among those in the class. Over 20 adults signed up and during our first week I told them how humbled I am to teach this class and to have so many make remarks about how eager they’ve been for the class to begin. A big reason for that is I’m the “teacher” and yet, I’m the youngest person in the class! (I put teacher in quotations because I know that I have just as much to learn from this book and from the other members.)

Like I said, this is a humbling experience. It’s also very challenging. I must fully depend on God for the wisdom and strength I need to effectively lead this class. And I must constantly check my own life against what I’m teaching and the challenges I’m urging my friends to accept. During that first class, I told everyone that I have only one expectation… that God will change each one of us. That He will transform our minds and lead us back to the Jesus of the gospel, away from the “Jesus” that we’ve fit into our lives and pretty church buildings. I have no desire to predict how that transformation will look in each of our lives. I don’t want my human imagination to limit what God wants to do through this study. We will be changed, and I can’t wait to see how that change plays itself out and ignites a new hunger for God and living out His gospel.

Visitors

2011-05-17T09:53:00.005-05:00

It’s been a busy but exciting last couple of weeks! I’ve had some special visitors at my house lately who have really livened things up! Fun fact: Out of those three guests, only one was human… I’ll talk about her first. :)

My dear friend, Linda Macdonald, came to stay with me for five days. Many of you will remember Linda from other blog entries. She was an AIM missionary with me in Namibia. Linda served in Namibia for 4 years and returned to the States shortly before I did at the end of last year. If you’ve ever moved to a new place or job where you don’t know anyone, you know what a blessing it is to be befriended quickly by those who are already there. I don’t remember the details of when Linda and I first met. All I remember is that from the time I arrived in Namibia, we were friends. Linda has such a servant heart! She’s the kind of person who does something for you before you even think to ask. She is so in tune to the needs of others, which made her a very effective missionary on the field. I don’t know if I’ve ever met anyone with more energy and more creativity when it comes to children’s ministry. It was such a joy to be reunited with her again on this side of the world and what a week we had together!!

Before I show some pics of our wonderful time together, let me mention the two 4-legged visitors I had. One was Linda’s dog, Ellie. She’s a dachshund Jack Russell mix and competes with Linda for who has the most energy at any given moment! Linda got Ellie just one month after arriving in Namibia and their bond was so great that she brought her back to the States from Africa. :) My other visitor stood in stark contrast to Ellie… Roman is my friend Tiffany’s great dane. I offered to keep Roman for 11 days while Tiff and her husband Patrick went on their honeymoon. We had a wonderful time together! He’s one of the sweetest and most well-behaved dogs I’ve ever encountered. I miss him already!

Linda and Ellie in Cades Cove in the Smokey Mountains

We saw a mama bear and her 3 cubs! Seeing that many bears at one time was a first for me!

Roman looks so regal!

Ellie stole Roman's bed..

...so Roman happily found another

Ellie found a big turtle in my yard!

We went canoeing with Mom on our last full day together

Ellie and Roman keeping watch! So cute! (Ellie wears that funny collar to keep her from going through the fence.)

Ouvelelo

2011-04-22T21:48:00.003-05:00

"Ouvalelo" means dinner in Oshiwambo, one of the main languages in Namibia. Sadly, I'm 8,000 miles away from Namibia, but on Wednesday night I had the opportunity to revisit it through my taste buds. Part of my role at Candidate Week included hosting an African meal. With the help of the cooks, Ellen and Paul Brown, I was able to offer a true Namibian experience to the AIM candidates and staff. I chose a dish that I had on several occasions... pap. Typically, missionaries in Namibia either love or hate the stuff. I'm in the love category. Pap, or oshifima as its traditional name, is a thick, almost sticky porridge that is usually served with meat or a meat sauce and/or spinach or other greens. We had it with beef and spinach. While it didn't turn out exactly like the pap I had in Namibia, it was close enough and gave all of us in Pearl River a good feel for what it's like to eat a meal like this in Namibia. The kicker... no utensils. You take the pap with your fingers and then dip it in the meat or spinach. The pap has relatively no taste on its own, but combined with the meat or spinach I find it very satisfying. It's also common that you share a communal plate or bowl of the pap and meat. We demonstrated that by sharing among 6 people at each table. For dessert... fat cakes!! These were often sold on the side of the road. The FHS kids would run and get them during break time. Sometimes I'd send them with extra money to get me one for a snack as well! They are basically fried balls of dough. Sometimes they have sugar sprinkled on them. They're often bought wrapped in newspaper. Ellen and Paul's fat cakes were delicious! I truly believe my Namibian friends would be proud! :)

After the meal, I had the opportunity to share about my time in Namibia. I always jump at the chance to talk about Namibia and what God is doing there. I could talk for hours! I shared the video I made along with a slideshow of photos to further explain what it was like to be a missionary there... since I was largely talking to a group of future missionaries. The final slides all had the theme "If you are a missionary in Africa..." with captions like "you will try new things" and a photo of me driving a donkey cart. I mixed in both funny and serious slides. That part of my presentation was a big hit!

Here are a few pictures from the evening...

We had a hand washing ritual which is common in many African cultures

The communal pap and meat

The kids fearlessly dug in!

Fat cakes with extra sugar... yum!!

Candidate Week... Take Two

2011-04-17T22:14:00.003-05:00

This week has brought me back to Pearl River, NY to participate in Africa Inland Mission's Candidate Week. Only this time, I have a new title. Instead of participating as a candidate, I'm here as a volunteer staff member. I'm looking forward to meeting the new candidates as they arrive tomorrow. I'll be leading the morning devotions Tuesday through Friday, hosting a Namibian meal Wednesday night, and being around to assist the full-time staffers with the logistics of this week. I remember my week here as a candidate in November 2008 (I can't believe it was so long ago!) and what an exciting time it was! After your initial interview with AIM, Candidate Week is the first major step in the process of getting appointed as a missionary with AIM. For many, serving in Africa has been a lifelong desire. So finally getting to this step of that journey is a huge deal! I'm looking forward to sharing in all of that excitement as I get to hear stories and testimonies of how each of these individuals got to this point.

I'd appreciate your prayers for myself, the AIM staff, and the candidates as we share this week together. Like I said, I'm excited to be here... and even more so because the plane I was on met a terrible storm in New York and even got struck by lightning! (That was a first for me!) I know it will be a great week, and I'm blessed by the opportunity to get to serve with AIM once again. :)

Calendar Fundraiser = Huge Success!!

2011-04-01T22:02:00.002-05:00

I'm happy to report that the calendar fundraiser was a huge success!! With your help, we raised over $2,600 for Family of Hope Services in Namibia. That converts to nearly $19,000 Namibian Dollars. Thank you to all of the sponsors for this project, to those who purchased a calendar and those who helped sell them. They are hanging on walls and refrigerators across the U.S., in Canada, Namibia, the UK and Australia! I'm always in awe of the creative ways God provides for those in need. The idea for the calendar came to me randomly a couple months before I left Namibia. By the end of that week, I had over half of the sponsors needed for the project. It was amazing to see it all come together. And I'm greeted every day by the beautiful faces of my precious friends at FHS hanging on my refrigerator door. :) I also want to thank all of you on behalf of Abigail Bachopi, the FHS director, and the staff, children and families of FHS.

Also, FHS has launched their new website. The web address is now different than the one printed on the back of the calendar. The website looks great and I know you will be blessed to spend some time reading about the children and various projects they've got going. Check it out at http://familyofhopeservices.org.

Katrina and Beyond museum exhibit in NOLA

2011-03-23T16:17:00.008-05:00

The day before I left New Orleans, Stacy and I had the opportunity to visit the "Living with Hurricanes: Katrina and Beyond" exhibit at the Louisiana State Museum. I recommend this as a must-see for anyone traveling to New Orleans. It will remain open until sometime in August this year.

The museum does a great job tracking the before, during, and after of Hurricane Katrina. It also covers the history of New Orleans, including previous storms that have ravaged the Gulf Coast.

Here are some photos from the museum of damages following Hurricane Betsy in 1965.

Each Gallery has a different theme of exhibits and information...

Gallery One shows Louisiana's history with water and storms. You then move into the "Evacuation Corridor" where audio clips are played of residents trying to make the best decision as Katrina approaches. Next you go into a room with the "Storm Theater". Fans are blowing you away as you watch the storm's impact on the big screens in front of you.

In Gallery Two you find an attic similar to the one that thousands of residents were forced to wait for help. You can listen to firsthand accounts of what the families went through during those difficult and desperate days.

The museum is filled with items that have been donated to the exhibit.

Here's a photo of Fats Domino's baby grand piano found in his flooded Ninth Ward house...

Gallery Three has interactive displays where you can learn more about the levees, eroding wetlands, disaster management, and more.

And Gallery Four "celebrates recovery and promotes preparedness and showcases the ingenuity of Louisianans in rebuilding their lives and communities." (source: second article below)

Throughout the museums are dozens of videos of individuals and families telling their own survival stories.

Here are some additional photos I took of the exhibits.

147 patients in local hospitals died as temperatures rose above 100 degrees...

(Above) Giant journals on sheetrock of one homeowner who stayed in New Orleans throughout Katrina and the aftermath

You've probably seen the x's on the homes following Katrina. The diagram above describes what the numbers and abbreviations mean.

This is a real garage door donated by a NOLA resident

A teddy bear found and donated to the exhibit as a symbol of all of the personal items ruined or lost in the storm

There were several screens cycling through photos of the devastation

Mardi Gras costumes made from the blue tarps that once covered wind-damaged roofs throughout the city

Here are some photos back I took during my first visits to the Ninth Ward.

And finally, here is one of many audio clips with photos that you can watch and listen to at the exhibit. This one is about a local hero who helped rescue those stranded in their flooded homes.

Check out these websites for more information about the exhibit: http://lsm.crt.state.la.us/katrina/ and http://www.neworleansonline.com/news/2010/Nov/katrina.html

Israel Video

2011-03-23T15:57:00.002-05:00

My buddies Mike and Brett put together a video of the Israel Pilgrimage I had a pleasure to be a part of a few months ago. Good stuff! Brings back some great memories!! :)

Enjoy!

NOBTS Israel Pilgrimage December 2010 from MissionLab New Orleans on Vimeo.

My week in New Orleans

2011-03-19T11:18:00.006-05:00

500.

No, that's not a sequel to the movie with super buff guys. It's the number of MissionLabbers that came through New Orleans this past week. 500! That's the biggest week on record. And what makes it more incredible is that it was a Spring Break week. MissionLab typically sees large numbers during their summer camp, but this was pretty remarkable for a week during the Spring. When I was in New Orleans back in January, I had heard that they would probably have a busy Spring. I made a mental note to try and get down here to help out during that time. While it's exciting to see so many groups come to MissionLab during the Spring, there were two things that made it a bit more challenging... 1) MissionLab doesn't have extra helpers--such as the summer missionaries who come during the 9-weeks of summer camp and 2) the seminary was on Spring Break this week, so the cafeteria staff was also down. Needless to say, they had no problem finding places for me to plug in. I helped serve breakfast and dinner in the cafeteria, lent a hand to Stacy and Sarah in the office, checked in on groups at their ministry sites, and even got to hang out with a group all day Friday down in the French Quarter.

I'll be heading back to Tennessee tomorrow, but before I leave the Big Easy, I thought I'd post some photos from the busy week.

The first few are of some groups doing clean-up and rebuilding projects...

A couple teenagers taking a break to chat with a local across the street. This is what I love to see!

Remnants of Mardi Gras

Remnants of Katrina

An apartment building near campus still mostly untouched since Katrina

Eddie, one of my good friends at Bethel, and his daughter.

Hanging out in the Quarter with 1st UMC McKinney. That gold and silver dude scared me half to death as I walked by. He sits still waiting for innocent passers-by like myself to walk by and then jumps and screams at them. Needless to say, I also jumped and screamed!

Stacy and I spent our last day together in the French Quarter. It was such a beautiful day!

Small gesture : Big impact

2011-03-19T09:45:00.003-05:00

I've spent this past week down in New Orleans helping out with MissionLab. (More about that in my next post.) It's been great to help out during a busy week of volunteers, to reconnect with my friends here, and to meet new ones.

I want to tell you a brief story about one new friend that I met. Her name is Sheila*. Sheila is in the program at Bethel Colony South, a rehabilitation program for men and women struggling with addiction. I've mentioned Bethel several times throughout this blog. I was first introduced to this ministry in 2006 when I was a summer missionary with MissionLab. Back then, the program was only for men--there were about 40 at that time--and it was a 90-day program. Now, the program is open to men and women, there are over 90 men and 30 women, and the program lasts 9 months. It's been incredible to watch this ministry grow over the years. I've been in awe to see all that God has done and how He has provided. One of the mottos for Bethel is "If you don't work, you don't eat". Each participant in the program contributes to the ministry by having a job either at the ministry or out in the community. Some are painters, builders, cooks, cleaners... and some work in the various income-generating projects that Bethel has going. Bethel will soon open their thrift store and they're working on getting a coffee shop up and running. They also have a car wash located right across from the seminary. That's where I met Sheila.

On Sunday morning, I spoke at Coker Baptist Church in Alabama. I was invited by my friend Ronnie who I first met in 2008 on my trip to Israel. Ronnie has supported my ministry in New Orleans and Namibia since then. He gave me a few bags of brand new shirts to take to Pastor Mel at Bethel. And his church as a whole blessed me with a love offering and bought most of the FHS calendars I had left. When I arrived in New Orleans, I took the shirts to Pastor Mel. He was very grateful and gave me a tour of the new parts of their facility. As we parted, I told him to let me know if there was anything I could do for him while I was here. He told me to go down to the car wash and encourage the ladies there. So I did.

I decided to swing by Walgreens and buy some drinks for the ladies using some of the money from the love offering I was given. They just happened to have their big Gatorades on sale and the manager said I could buy as many as I liked even though there was technically a 10 quantity limit. (Even a small thing like that is not too small of a thing for me to notice and acknowledge God's grace and provision.) I took the Gatorades to the car wash and let them wash my car as well. The money generated from that car wash goes towards Bethel's programs. I helped a lady unload the Gatorades and then I went to sit down. Ginger, who manages that part of the ministry, called all the women over and they were given a drink. As they passed back by, they all thanked me, a few even gave me a grateful hug. I chatted with a some of the women while I waited. I got to know one lady in particular named Feritha. We talked about her time at Bethel and all that God has taught her. She graduates from the program in one month. She feels called into full-time ministry. She shared with me that she'll actually stay at Bethel for another year, contributing to the program as a graduate. God has big things in store for that woman! I prayed with her before I left and tried to encourage her as she continues on this journey.

By this time, my car was ready. I got up to leave and thanked the two ladies at the drying station. One of them had only been in the program for a day. You could still see the wide-eyed look on her face. She was probably a few years younger than me. I encouraged her to stick with the program (many leave prematurely and return to a life of addiction). The other lady was Sheila. She's been at Bethel for 2.5 weeks. She gave me a hug and said, "I just want to thank you for the confirmation you gave me a few minutes ago." I wasn't sure what she was referring to, but she went on. "I'm used to getting what I want, when I want it. And just this morning, I had to cut ties with some relationships in my life that I was dependent on. Those people were holding me back from the changes I need to make in my life. It was a hard thing to do. I could always call them and they would bring me things. And about five minutes before you arrived, I had just been complaining to myself... 'I don't even have a cup to get a drink!'. And then you showed up. I can't tell you what that means to me. I know that God is going to take care of me and provide for me." There were tears in Sheila's eyes as she told me this. I gave her a hug and continued to encourage her. And I was reminded that what might have seemed like a small thing to me, was something God wanted to use in a big way in someone's life. I'm glad that I could provide a drink to all of the ladies that day, but I'm thankful most of all that God used me to make a big impact in Sheila's life as she surrenders to Him and continues to grow during her time at Bethel.

Will you join me in prayer for Sheila and all the men and women at Bethel? I believe in this program and I've seen with my own eyes the incredible transformation that can happen if they stick with the program and allow God to take away those strongholds. But it's not an easy journey for them. Many will give up and return to their previous way of life. But by God's grace and a commitment to change, they can overcome addiction and find true peace and joy.

*name changed for privacy

The Real World

2011-02-28T22:30:00.003-06:00

The other night I was sitting around with my brother. He was watching TV and I was on the computer. I went to cnn.com to see what's happening in the world and I started reading him an article about a couple who was jailed for serious child abuse charges. You can read the article by clicking here. It's pretty horrific. I told him, "I go to cnn.com when I feel like getting depressed." I mean, let's admit it, reading about the news in the U.S. and across the globe generally does not lift my spirit. There are terrible things happening all around us. I added to my statement a bit by saying, "It's good for me to read up on the news from time to time as a reminder that this world is not 'my world'". Because "my world"... my day to day... my past, my present... It's all been and is very good. I've been blessed with so much. Yes, there have been challenges. Yes, my family has suffered tragedies. But when I compare it to the atrocities that millions of people in this world are facing, I cannot complain. It breaks my heart to see on TV or read in the paper about children suffering needlessly in so many countries, and even in this country. I am saddened by recent events such as the two couples murdered by pirates and the dozens of people killed by the earthquake in New Zealand last week. And these are just two out of countless headlines across the globe reporting news that I could never even imagine being a reality of "my world". And here I will insert a disclaimer to say that I know "my world" could be turned upside down at any moment. I'm not so bold as to say that I could never face similar tragedies. But that's not exactly my point so I'll move on.

I started reading a book called The Jesus Creed. I haven't finished it, though I hope to... if I can stop starting multiple books at one time! The beginning of the book goes into depth about "The Lord's Prayer" and really incorporating that into your prayer life. To me, "The Lord's Prayer" was always something for churches a bit more liturgical than what I'm used to. Of course I know the prayer. It's often recited in public gatherings, and we said it sometimes as a team before soccer games in high school. But I've never considered it much beyond the recitation. That night, after reading that specific chapter on "The Lord's Prayer", I decided to include it in my own bedtime prayer. I changed it up a bit, adding things here and there to really grasp the meaning and offer it up to God. When I got to the part that says "Give us this day our daily bread", I paused for a while. I realized that I've never in my life had to wonder where my next meal was coming from. I've never been hungry to the point of starvation. If I'm honest, I can say that I've never thought to trust God in faith that He will provide for me in regards to my daily need for food. Food has always been an assumption. It's always been accessible. I've always had the means to get it pretty much anytime I want. Are you getting this? This is "my world". And likely... if you're reading this blog, this is your world too. We take so much for granted.

The purpose for this blog entry... well, I'm not really sure what the purpose is. I just had some thoughts I wanted to jot down. But I can tell you one purpose this blog entry is not for... It is not to put a guilt-trip on any of us for what we have, how accessible food or anything else is to us, etc. But just like my visits to cnn.com or other national and international news sources, I don't want to be so far removed from the rest of my world that I start to feel like "my world" is the only one in existence. That is wherein lies the danger. That is where we get complacent. That is where we can get lazy when there are wars raging all around us for peace, justice, and everything else we take for granted here in our comfy chairs. It is crucial that we look outside ourselves. That we realize that not everyone gets to simply assume this standard of living. WE are the minority. Yet we hold so much power to help, heal, and protect. Will you join me as I step outside my world to make a difference in the real world?

Feeding the Orphans

2011-02-21T21:53:00.003-06:00

As I mentioned in my last blog entry, though I'm back home, I want to continue this blog and continue sharing what God is doing in my life and in the lives of those around me.

Feeding the Orphans is a great place to start!

I have been very encouraged that although I've only been home for a few months, I've already met several people who live here but who are very active in helping children and youth in Africa. The first people I ran across founded Africa ELI. (I will write more about them in a separate entry... you can click here for their website.) But let me start now with Feeding the Orphans...

A few weeks ago at church a friend of mine had a bag I recognized. It looked similar to this one:

I recognized the bag because I bought one just like it in Ghana. And out of the five countries in Africa I've been to, that's the only place I've seen a bag like that. I asked where she got it and she told me about an auction that sold the bag in support of an organization called Feeding the Orphans. Of course I googled "Feeding the Orphans" when I got home that evening. In addition to the bags, they also sell t-shirts, quilts, and other nifty things to support their ministry to orphans in Ghana. I read a little more and I stumbled upon their address... Loudon, TN. I didn't realize that this was a local organization! I instantly sent them a message, told them a little about myself, and how I would love to get together, talk Africa, and find out more about what they're doing. I also bought a shirt for myself that very night! :)

After a few back and forth emails, I finally got together with Kristie and her family last week. Her husband was out of town, but I had the privilege of meeting her 5 children, Sydney, Keenan, Aiden, Samuel, and Helen. Samuel and Helen are Ghanaian children that the O'Learys have recently adopted. They were precious! They reminded me so much of my sweet little Namibian friends. And all of her kids were great kids. If you do a little research on their website, you'll quickly learn that it was actually Sydney, 7 years old at the time, whose heart was broken to care for orphans. I love how they put it on the website, "[Sydney] followed God to begin this ministry, which has become our whole family's passion in life."

The O'Learys

Sydney and some of her friends in Ghana

How many of us, at whatever age we are, can say that we've followed God through a burden He has placed on our heart, and made serving Him in that way our very passion in life? And yet this child, now a few years older, already understands the huge truth that our life is to be lived on purpose... and for others! I believe that God calls all of us to follow Him passionately. He puts certain people and events in our pathway that He wants us to notice, that He wants to change us. I went on my first mission trip at 13 to Peru and I've never been the same. God opened a huge world up before me, broke my heart to the needs of others, and I ultimately chose to follow Him by serving others across this globe.

I love the shirt I bought from Feeding the Orphans. It says, "Love orphans because He first loved us." God has so lavishly poured out His love on my life, and I want nothing more than to share that love with others. God has taken care of my needs, and I want to share the blessings He has given me to help meet the needs of others.

I had such a wonderful time meeting and visiting with Kristie and her family. What a wonderful example they are to all of us! I hope you will go to their website, read their story, check out what all they do in Ghana and eventually in other African countries as well, and buy some fabulous goodies from their store! www.feedingtheorphans.com The O'Learys are not superheros. I'm sure Kristie would admit they are far from it, but it's incredible what you can accomplish with hearts on fire for God and His people. God has a special love for children, and He is going to bless efforts like these to care for the precious little ones who cannot care for themselves. I hope you will pray about how you can join with them in their efforts. And I hope that if nothing else, you can be inspired by the heart of a 7 year old girl who looked out at the world and said, "We can and must do something for these children." After all... faith without works is dead. (James 2:17) What can you do?

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress..." (James 1:27)

I miss blogging.

2011-02-21T21:10:00.005-06:00

So many people have said to me, "It's great to have you home!" And certainly, it's a nice feeling to have so many people welcome you back to the place that is your "home". To feel wanted. To feel loved. Other people have said something a bit more difficult to respond to. It is typically along the lines of, "I bet you are glad to be home." Hmm... yes, it is good to be home. Home for me is always a good place to be. And I knew that God was calling me back home for this "season of my life" as I call it. And that's basically my response: "It is good to be home..." though here is where I have to make one important addition, "...but I miss Namibia." I do miss Namibia very much. The place, the people, so much from my time there is very dear to my heart. It is difficult to leave and travel 8,000 miles from such a special place--even if it is to return home to the town I love.

I miss Namibia. I miss the children. I miss my friends... so many of them became like family.

All of that was an introduction to tell you about something else I've missed... blogging. Ok, I know that is a very small thing compared to the other list. But it's true. If you go back and count, from the time I arrived in Namibia July '09 to when I left December '10, I wrote 142 blog entries. That's a lot of blogging! As I have been reflecting on my time in Namibia and my transition back home, it has entered my mind on more than one occasion that I'm definitely not as busy here! Well, I have been busy... just with different things. I don't have children all around me on a regular basis. I don't have to worry with all the administrative details of Unit finances, work visas and permits, and constant issues with the house. I'm not dealing with as many desperate and urgent needs that could arise at any moment in Namibia. Life here is a lot different. But it is my prayer that God will use me just as intensely here as He did in Namibia. And I have to actively fight against getting sucked into the comfort of the American life. (More about that in upcoming posts!)

Perhaps I could say, I still want to live a "blog-worthy" life here back home. I want to continue living a life I can and want to write about. That those of you who have been following along since I left for Africa would desire to continue on this journey with me. I want to continue telling the stories of others who inspire me, or who are facing difficult trials, or who simply need their stories to be told.

I know God has brought me back home for a purpose. Just as He sent me to Namibia for a purpose. I don't know His full plan for my time here. I don't know how long He wants me to stay here. All I know is that I am here now and I want to serve Him in as great of a capacity as I served Him in Namibia.

I hope you will continue to follow along as I pursue God's plan for my life in Tennessee and wherever else I may find myself in the coming year. You may not hear much from me aside from me saying "this year" or "one year", because I'm not a 5-year plan kinda gal! I've found a house to rent and the lease is for one year, so all I can say is that it looks like I'll at least be in Maryville for a year. After that, who knows? And between that, who knows? There are plans brewing that could include a month-long trip to Africa this fall. We'll just wait and see how it all turns out! But in the meantime, I'm excited to be used by God in this place. I may not post 142 entries in the next 18-months, but I'm going to keep it rolling every chance I get!

My Namibia Video

2011-02-15T21:05:00.004-06:00

This is the video I put together for the presentation I did at my church--and those to come.

These are photos and short video clips mostly taken since the last video I made in July 2010 marking my one year anniversary in Namibia. You can view that video by clicking here.

When I showed this video to my church, I had to hold back the tears as I looked into the eyes of those precious children who hold such a special place in my heart. I miss them more than words could ever describe.

I wish you could all have the opportunity to meet these children, to hold them in your arms, to laugh with them, and wipe away their tears. I hope you will open yourself up to an experience like this--if you haven't already--where you have the chance to serve and love the least of these. Your life will never be the same. I know I am not the same as I was before these children came into my life.

I don't think it's appropriate for me to tell you to "enjoy" this video. But I pray that you will be captured by the faces of the children in this video. That you will see a glimpse of what I see when I look in their eyes... the longing and the desperation to be loved and cared for... the innocence... the hope for a future... and in the second half of the video, the pure and sweet joy they have that so many of us have lost.

Be challenged to love. Be challenged to act. Be challenged to find your own Namibia and change the world one life at a time.

If you would like for me to speak at your church, Sunday School class, small group, etc, let me know. I'm always excited to share about my time in Namibia, what God is still doing there, and how He is leading me as I continue in ministry stateside and wherever He leads from here!

Israel Trip 2011

2011-01-23T21:37:00.003-06:00

In my last post I promised more photos from my Israel trip. I was asked to join up with a trip New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary was taking to the Holy Land. I happily obliged! :) This was my second time to Israel and both trips were such a blessing!

There is no way to describe a trip like this to someone who hasn't been there. So if Israel is on your wishlist of must-sees, all I can say is... find a way to get there! Just as many of you might imagine, the Bible really does come alive! How incredible to walk on the same streets as Paul, Jesus' disciples, and Jesus himself!

Probably the neatest part about this particular trip was getting to share the experience with several of my friends.... even Stacy, one of my best friends! I hadn't seen any of them for over a year and a half, so basically we had a 10-day reunion in Israel. How cool is that?! It was a sweet time of hanging out, laughing, encouraging one another, and acting like goof balls in the Holy Land. :) And the rest of the people on the trip were wonderful too. Many were very interested in hearing more about my time in Namibia, and all were encouraging as I look ahead at 2011 and what God has for me here in Tennessee. It's pretty neat who all God puts together on a trip like that. What a combination of scholars and experience in all levels of ministry!

Here are a few photos from the trip... If anyone around my town wants to see more, I made a photobook. :)

Hanging around the ruins of Avdat

At Megiddo, also referred to as Armageddon

The Holocaust Museum

On "Paul's Steps" at Caesarea by the Sea

Knicknacks in Jerusalem

At Masada

Our boat ride on the Sea of Galilee

(left to right) Stacy, Rob, Mike, Brett... all friends from my days at MissionLab. Robert is Rob's brother-in-law and Brent heads up the day camp at NOBTS.

Among the ruins of Bet She'an

Out of my comfort zone

2011-01-17T09:20:00.003-06:00

A new year has swiftly arrived! I spent January 1, 2011 on the banks of the Sea of Galilee. After having only been back in Tennessee for two weeks, I jumped on a plane again and headed for Israel. What a blessing to be invited on such a trip!

More pics to come...

Israel was my 7th country in 2010. While in Namibia I had incredible opportunities to travel to different places in Africa... Ghana, South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Kenya. 2010 was an incredible year for so many reasons! Because I returned home during the busy Christmas season, only to be whisked away to Israel soon after, I haven't had time to think, much less to really process my time in Namibia and my return to the States. But slowly and surely that will come.

For now, let me look ahead... as many of you have been asking "What's next?" If you haven't read this blog entry, start there. It gives a pretty good overall of my thinking for 2011, minus any specific details... since God hasn't yet filled in all of those details! :)

This morning, the theme of my devotional was peace. It referenced Colossians 3:15, "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts"... the amplified version includes "deciding with finality all questions that arise in your minds." Since God called me into full-time ministry nearly six years ago, it has been His peace that has led me throughout. I pray and expect that His peace will continue to lead me, and that He will give me the wisdom to discern between His peace and simply my desires. I don't stress much about that difference, however, because as I have matured in my faith, my desires and His desires have become more and more the same. Nonetheless, 2011 will be a year that will take me a bit out of my comfort zone. For many people, it is out of their comfort zone to think of crossing oceans to minister to those living in desperate situations. For me, that type of gutter ministry is what I love! In New Orleans, God had me loving men who struggled with homelessness and addiction. In Namibia, God had me loving on orphans and those affected by HIV/AIDS. Desperate people, in desperate situations.

If I had my way, I would be back on a plane, traveling to some place to get involved once again in that type of ministry. The thought of ministering in Haiti has tugged on my heartstrings more than once, or Sudan, a country torn apart by war, or Cambodia or India, two of many countries where 2 million children are being exploited in the sex trade industry.

But for now, as I listen to God and follow His peace for the coming year, He has led me back to Tennessee. A place I love, but a place that is out of my comfort zone in terms of ministry. I am not used to ministering inside an American church, or to middle-class Americans, or within the comforts of my American home. But I am trusting that God has plans for me here, and I will commit myself to Him, in this place, until He tells me to move elsewhere.

Thank you for praying with me as God continues to reveal His specific plans for me during this new phase of my journey. It is a very exciting time and I know that I can trust in Him to lead me in this time just as He led me in Namibia and everywhere else.

"Delight yourself in the Lord, and he shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and he shall bring it to pass. Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him" Psalm 37: 4-5 ,7

Another great birthday!

2010-12-29T00:10:00.003-06:00

I think this year went by faster than any other year! It seems like just yesterday at I was celebrating my birthday in Namibia with my AIM friends. And now... I'm back in the States, had a whirlwind two weeks of Christmas festivities, and as of today I find myself another year older.

Despite having to be on the road most of the day, I had a wonderful birthday. I spent the morning with Mom and Granddaddy. He has improved so much since I saw him in September. That's the best birthday present I could ask for! Last night the family we were staying with bought a cake for me and we went to the movies.

After leaving West TN this morning, I hit the road heading for New Orleans. I stopped to have Starbucks with a friend along the way, and then joined up with Stacy in NOLA who was waiting to go out for dinner. She mentioned one or two other people who might join us, but when I got there I discovered that she had set up a surprise birthday party for me! We had a delicious dinner at Rum House, a new Caribbean restaurant in Uptown. They had bought me a gorgeous cake from Whole Foods. Stacy made me a photobook with TONS of pictures from my time in Namibia. It must have taken her hours to scour through my blog to get them all together. It was one of the sweetest and most thoughtful gifts anyone has ever given me! We had a great time laughing and reconnecting. These peeps are some of my favorites in the whole world. We haven't seen each other in over 18 months and yet we can pick right back up like I never left. Several of them will be on the Israel trip with me that begins tomorrow. I can't wait to spend some more time catching up with them!

I feel very blessed and loved on my special day. I got phone calls all day from family and friends. My favorite one was probably from my 7 year old cousin who sang to me, ending it with "You look like a monkey and you smell like one too!" He told Kelly before he called me, "I'm going to do the monkey part. She has lived in Africa after all!" What a cutie!

Thanks to all of you who have supported me this past year. It was certainly a year to remember and I look forward to many more just like it to come!

White Christmas!

2010-12-25T16:39:00.004-06:00

If you don't already know this.. we had a White Christmas here! No more dreaming. It actually happened! I could hardly believe my eyes this morning. There is just something magical about snow. And it happened to be the perfect kind of snow for building snowmen! And yes, for those of you in the hot places like Namibia and others... there are different types of snow! Come visit next year... maybe it will happen again! Though I won't hold my breath. ;)

For those of you who also had snow today, I hope you took the chance to enjoy it! And for those of you who didn't... maybe these pictures will bring you some joy.

Namibian Santa! And he's ready to cook! :)

Matt wanted to make the biggest snowball EVER. He did make a couple pretty big ones. The cat was the unplanned (but pretty stinkin' awesome) result. :)

2010-12-24T23:58:00.002-06:00

merry Christmas

2010 took me places I never would have imagined! I’m thankful to be back home “for now”, celebrating this wonderful season with family. There’s no place like home and getting loved on by so many special people. I’ve realized that one reason God’s brought me back home is to be filled up and refreshed by the love of those here so I can continue on my journey, sharing that love with those who need it.

May you be filled with God’s love this Christmas. And I pray He will use us all to spread it around in 2011!

Love and blessings, Hannah

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6

Leaving Namibia

2010-12-17T07:00:00.003-06:00

If you've been able to follow along with my journey in Africa, you know that I've recently said my goodbyes to all my wonderful friends in Namibia. When I signed up to head to Namibia with Africa Inland Mission, I gave a time frame of 18-24 months. It's been 18 months and I have felt for a while now that God was bringing my time there to a close.

Now that I've found myself back in East Tennessee, I still have much to process from such an incredible and overwhelming experience. I will continue to write about Namibia from time to time, but I've written my final prayer letter and would like to share it with you.

I can never thank you enough for all of your support, prayers, and encouragement throughout my time in Namibia. I know that God sustained me through your prayers. I have so much to be thankful for. Those 540+ days were filled with blessings beyond my imagination.

I am excited for the days ahead. I know that God is continuing His work in me and will continue to use me wherever I am, if I'll allow Him. I am open to His leading and I hope that you will keep praying with me as I continue on this journey.

Click to enlarge, and click again on next page to enlarge even more.

Kitengela Glass

2010-12-12T06:23:00.000-06:00

Everything is unique - nothing is wasted.

That's the slogan of Kitengela Glass Studios. A place we visited before I left Kenya. And what a place it was! As you drive in, bumping your head all over the place because of the terrible road, you start to see art and sculptures everywhere. Kitengela recycles everything possible... scrap glass, bottles, plastic bags, packing material, used oil, tools, and more. From all of that they make some of the most unique and beautiful artwork I have ever seen. If you're ever near Nairobi, you just need to go for yourself. There are stores all over Kenya, but going to the main studio is a real treat! You can even watch the men melt and shape the glass. Kitengela has an impressive history and they try to do right by the locals. They've trained over 50 people to work throughout the business, support a local orphanage, award scholarships, loan school fees, help repair roads, have planted a thousand trees, and of course lead others in the way of recycling.

We had a great time walking around the property, admiring the artwork, and of course shopping. They had a bead and jewelry room that I spent a fair bit of time in.

Here are a few photos to give you a better idea of the place...

That's one big pig!!

The main shop

Bead and jewelry shop

Another shop