Spiritual Poverty

On day three, we went to a remote area outside of Gonaives. After traveling down a dirt road for a while we finally arrived at Myan. We hiked a small hill that allowed us to see the entire area. One of the first things that hits you is the stark contrast between the beauty of the land and the extreme poverty that almost overpowers it. As we began to pray over the orphanage being built at Myan, several locals hiked up to meet us.

After praying we went down, got a quick tour of the orphanage being built and then started helping out where needed. They were pouring the footings and part of the foundation on the third building. I saw a guy carrying two 5 gallon buckets full of water. I took one from him and hauled water the rest of the day. Some of the other men moved mounds of dirt and others moved rocks.

As all of that was going on, the rest of the group disappeared into the cactuses that surround the property. A couple of hours later, I went to check on them. There were more than 30 kids from the community around them singing songs and hearing the Gospel preached. Different members from our group would get up and share from their heart about God’s love for the kids. One of our drivers, Kinson, helped with the translating.

The workers at the site wrapped up around 2 since it was a holiday. With nothing more to do there, we went to the other orphanage in Gonaives to love on the kids. We also worked on a plan for the next day to get a lot of the maintenance that needed to be done. We got a list of what supplies we needed and went back to playing with the kids and the locals. After wrapping things up, we headed back to the guest house for dinner and devotions.

God came down and met us that night like only I’ve experienced a few times in my life. We had a powerful time there on that balcony that attracted a crowd of people who wanted to see what was going on. Each of us called out to God on behalf of Haiti that night. We warred for the lives of those orphans and for the people of that country. When people live in poverty they often think that God has forgotten them. We want them to know that God loves them and has not forgotten them.

I’ve learned that even in a land of plenty, there is spiritual poverty. There are people all around us every day that are suffering from spiritual malnutrition. That malnutrition leads to the belief that God has forgotten them too. It’s our responsibility as Christians to show them God’s love. We need to be the channels that spiritual change comes through to those who cross our paths every day. Just as we met the physical needs of the children in Haiti, we need to meet the spiritual needs of those around us.