The Calvary Christian Youth Team has been serving in Pignon, Haiti, from July 11-July 19. Each member shared what they hope to never forget about their time in Haiti.
To read previous entries, click Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5 and Day 6.
One thing I hope to never forget about my time in Haiti:
One thing I hope to never forget about our trip is the kids, ours and theirs. I was constantly reminded of how Jesus wants us to come to him like children. The Haitian kids would run with outstretched arms with full expectation that our kids would accept them and love them, just the way God wants us to run to him with full expectation! ~ Dave Gritters
I do not want to forget the immense blessings that God has given me. I take so many things for granted; medication within reach, a reliable hospital, machines to do manual labor, and clean clothes in my drawers. I am beyond blessed yet I do not have nearly as much joy as the beautiful Haitian people. I want to bring that happiness and thankfulness back to the States with me. – Emily Van Hal
I never want to forget the people. As we were flying into Haiti I comment to Morgan of the beautiful country. “Just wait until you see the people,” she told me. That was totally right. These people are so incredibly beautiful. I have been so blessed by them and they have taught me so much on how to live my life. I have also been blessed by the team God sent me here with. They will always stay close to my heart. -Karyn Vander Wal
Out of the many unfogettable aspects of Haiti, I never want to forget the smiles that were made on this trip. The people here are so quick to smile and the children’s smiles are priceless. I smile just thinking about the memories I’ve made and the lessons that I’ve learned. I pray I will one day have as much joy as the people here. – Jora Vander Hart
Trying to narrow down this trip to just one thing is nearly impossible, so I will just share what God continously reminded me of while in this beautiful country. Its nothing especially profound or revolutionary, but it is life changing. We are just called to love from the bottom of our hearts. When love fills us… we begin to overflow. We spread the love. We promote grace, extend compassion, grow our faith, and experience extreme joy. I was so blessed to be able to experience this extreme joy every day in this beautiful country. – Morgan De Ruiter
There are many things I know I will never forget about my amazing first experience in Haiti, one of the most unforgettable being the smiles on each child’s face in this country. The joy that each little one has when he/she sees the ‘blancs’ is so unreal, and the love that they give in return to each smile and hug that we provide is tremendous. Each child seems so joyous, so happy… And I hope that I will be able to spread this love that God has shown me through the Haitian children when I get back to the States. -Allie Groenenboom
Simply, love God and love each other. The people of Haiti are so warm and loving. They are willing to touch and hug and be close. We Americans have a lot to learn about loving each other and relationship. – Cindy Gritters
It is so difficult to pick just one thing about this truly amazing trip. But the one thing that sticks out in my mind is that truly God’s love is everywhere. It was evident in the faces of the children, the beauty of the country, and the church services that are constantly going on in Haiti. His love reaches all parts of the world and the body of Christ is everywhere. -Claire Van Weelden
One thing that I will take away from this trip is that God is faithful and has an amazing plan for each one of his children. Weather you are born in a mud hut in Haiti or a state of the art hospital in the United States God’s love for his children is uncomprehendable. God is doing such amazing work in Haiti from the organization Promise for Haiti at the Hospital to the feeding program at the orphanage. I am so blessed that I could be a part of this amazing work and I pray that God will continue to use everyone on this trip to be light in a fallen world. -Tanner Van Maanen
I will never forget the smiles on the people’s faces.I will never forget John Robierre’s smile as he took us through a poor area of the countryside. I will never forget Kouzu’s (a little boy in the orphanage) joyful face and his laughter, as he just received sight 3 weeks ago. I will never forget how the children ran up to us whenever we would leave the compound, and how a little girl named Jubline (Van Maanen’s sponsered child) would run up to me and give me a big hug whenever she saw me. The little children we got to play with were a tremendous blessing to us, and I will never forget how much they touched me on this trip. -Calise Gritters
In general, I will not forget the children. All of the smiles and hugs and trust and happiness I revieved from them was uplifting. It is crazy to me how happy they can be in a poor place like this. It encouraged me to be thankful for what I have and to always be happy no matter the circumstances. -Dylan Nikkel
There are so many things that I learned from this trip, but the biggest one for me was probably don’t take for granted the little things in life. Such as cars and transportation, roads, food, and most importantly health. All these things, I feel like, we take for granted each and everyday so that’s going to be my focus back in the states, i thank God for everything we take for granted. -Riley Stursma