Haiti a year after

   I came to Haiti last year 4 weeks after the earthquake.  The country was in panic and survival mode.  NGO’s (Non Government Organizations) had poured in relief efforts in order to try to stabilize a country on the brink of starvation and social chaos. I participated in relief efforts in the city of Petionville and surrounding areas. I saw desperate poverty and dreams of a hopeful future now buried under the rubble of a 7.2 magnitude earthquake that in 1.2 minutes threw a whole entire country into the middle ages, left 316,000 people dead, 300,000 more injured and left over 1 million people homeless. Parks, city centers, and golf courses now gave way to make shift tent cities that would have to weather, rain, disease, crime, and lack of food.  Now a year later I find Haiti in a recovery stage.  You see signs like desk and chairs in airport immigration and advertising for cell phone companies. The rubble in the streets has been replaced with street vendors.  At the moment, the street vendors, are people’s main source of income.  You see row after row, on make shift sidewalks, of stores even in back alleys and neighborhood roads.  There are local woman selling everything from charcoal for cooking to small bags of rice. 

   While there are sure signs of progress, make no mistake Haiti is the poorest of the poor. Only a two hour flight from the over abundance of America, Haiti is a country still fighting the slave colony stigma and generational curses left by the french West India company who shipped hundreds of thousands of slaves from Africa between 1764 - 1771. Haiti has suffered at the hands of dictators and corruption lead governments who historically have plundered the countries resources and aide given by a multitude of countries and NGO’s over the past 20 decades. It has left Haiti in this perpetual cycle of a hand out lifestyle.  People now live off the generosity of NGO’s, churches and mission groups. Most groups who minister here are wrestling with these issues of relief versus development and how to make programs work. In order to create true change, Haiti must move into a “teach a man to fish” mode to replace “handing out the fish”. 

   On this trip I tricked my great friends who went with us to Africa last year into coming along to Haiti.  We stayed in a guest house of a ministry called Child Hope International. Child Hope is a boys and girls orphanage in Delmas 75, run by the Manassaero family. In 2004 they were urged on by their daughter Ariana (I know another story of girl who urged her family to start a run for Africa) to visit Haiti then came back to California and sold all they had to begin their home for abandoned children.  Seven years later the ministry has expanded into a feeding program for local street kids and mercy health clinic for the community they serve.

  Now you just read that paragraph and thought to yourself “what a neat story” and “wow those people are awesome”. There is so much more to this ministry that my poorly written blog won’t really do it much justice. The thing about a trip like this is you spend the first few days fighting with my American self over my abundant lazy heart.  My head complains of the heat and sweat, fear and doubt work overtime to confuse grace, mercy and purpose. Once stripped of your normal life comforts, you go through healthy withdraws, but everyday your heart beats bigger and God’s presence seems more abundant. You replace your iPad with scripture and DVR with conversation. Child hope is propped up by long term missionaries who commit 6 months to a year of their life to serve this group of kids and the surrounding community. They all have different backgrounds, gifts, and denominations of faith. But all were called and took time out of the race to serve people one on one.  It’s both inspiring and damning of my own selfishness and laziness.

  I worked in two areas while at the orphanage, the transition home and the feeding camp. They have started a transition home for kids who are about to graduate out of the orphanage homes.  In Haiti once a child is 18 they must leave and start their life out in the cruel world and I would dare say Haiti’s version of the cruel world versus the American version can not be compared on any level. This transition program is a vital last stop safety net to the future of these children who have been raised by the Mannassero family and staff who have loved these kids through abandonment, loss and pain. The transition program was donated screen print equipment the day I arrived, which was a good use of my knowledge and talent. While I’m glad someone donated the equipment I’m always so frustrated by people who send their broken down equipment and computer leftovers as donations to places like Africa and Haiti, especially when what is being sent is not good quality stuff that’s old and rundown. The idea of someone sending over a PC with windows 92 on it just makes me mad, hey pony up and by them a brand new iMac, give them something they can actually use and will last them through the next generation of kids who need to learn important skills. Back to the point, the transition program is a needed tool to help these kids get a fighting chance of life out side the protection and love of the orphanage.

  On the last day I participated in the feeding program that Child Hope organizes and produces every week three times a week. The mission is to allow the street kids outside the walls of the orphanage a solid meal. What moved me and broke me down the most was this is 100% run by the Child Hope orphans and managed by the staff and family. It’s one thing for me to bring donations and help for the orphans themselves;  it’s a whole other thing to watch these kids serve the street kids who suffer with a whole other level of need and desperation. Bill Mannassero introduced me to a girl who was a twin and her twin died of malnutrition and she herself has mental disabilities and has a hard time walking because she was mistreated and underfed.  She knows the staff and family members well and I fought tears as the feeding program ended that day and these street kids were sent back out into the tent camps for an uncertain tomorrow. 

  I was so blessed to be around the long term staff members, to watch the whole Mannassero family do God’s work with obedience and great humility. I think as Americans we are so busy with our lives we have missed the calling. Seems easy for me to say, but it’s so obvious once you’re around people who serve daily.  To see it in practice is so intoxicating. We live daily without a real need for God, we think if we punch our time clocks at church on Sunday and help support the local food drive at Christmas we have fulfilled Jesus’ call. To paraphrase David Platt from the book “Radical” we as American Christians have compartmentalized our walk.  We have reserved ministry into electable sub cultures. We say things like “I’m not called to missions so I will support those that are”, “I’m not called to feeding people I will cut a check for those that are”. But, if you read the Bible and then go the next step as to profess that what it says is true then Jesus said “go to all nations and spread God’s word” or even deeper go look up how many times Jesus called us to feed the poor. It was never given with the condition “if your called to do it” or more in our language if your good at that kind of thing.  Jesus said “do it”, think about what that means to our walk it’s not “if we get time”, or “if we can once a year” he called us to all nations and all people. 

  My current challenge in my life right now (and you may share my same struggle), is one of my hands is chained to my house payment while my other hand is chained to my bills. I have built a jail cell of debt that I now serve a sentence in and it runs my life, makes my decisions for me and has completely severed me from hearing God’s voice. On top of that I have built up a kingdom around myself of comforts and false traditions that don’t have anything to do with the God I profess to serve. Andy Stanley said “you can judge a man’s heart by his bank statement and how he gives and where”. What if that was a practice of the church to one by one show our personal bank statement on a screen for all to see?  I would be mortified because anyone could see my life for what it really is in about 10 seconds. I am a mess!! Think about it this way, when your life on this planet ends and you go have a conversation in that coffee shop in the sky and you sit face to face with Jesus the Savior, will he recant how great I did building up my business, will he recite the many awards and degree’s I earned in my short time on earth, will he shake my hand and thank me for my hard work building up my 401K and stock portfolio? I know right now as I breath air I have failed my mission and Jesus’ call to my life. I have betrayed Jesus. I have traded the free gift of salvation for a nice neighborhood and a car payment. I have stored up my kingdom on earth with both my time and my money and at the end of the day these things I have worked for and fought to have are meaningless and shallow and will not hold up to the test of time.  Do we recall historically of what the disciples owned or where they lived? You already know the answer I don’t even have to type it out in this blog. 

-Michael Lewis 

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- Bill Power

When you plan a trip to Africa you scramble around to get everything done in your life before you go. You put plans on hold - jobs and family. Your journey is taking you out of a world where we suffer by our own hands. We cause our own problems because we bought into the LIE!  We were sold on this American idea that you can have everything you want.  You can build your credit profile and become a strong consumer.  "Consume" being the word that defines who we are as people.  We take and give very little back. Even when we give we give with the idea of taking.  I buy Toms shoes - I gave. I purchase beads made in Uganda - I gave.  Me personally, I would give shirts once a year to Ellie's Run and donate money to the Nashville Rescue Mission with the complete vision of being a giver.  “I did these things, so leave me alone I did my part."  We live life with a understanding that we are owed something!  By this world, by God, by others!  Seven years ago before I started my company I was broke working two jobs and I vowed to never be poor again so I moved from a townhouse to a smaller house to a larger house, following the life plan of acquiring things.  Building my debt profile around the vision of wealth, thinking this is what we are supposed to do. With the blessing of everyone around you, because we all suffer from the same sickness.  We have holes in our hearts and we fill it with possessions, job titles and things.  We leave ministry to casual once a year after thoughts.

So when you step off a 30 hour flight into a world where people suffer in great need, you see yourself for what you really are - foolish and embarrassingly selfish.  Africa is a mirror to your life where you see in plain sight your failure as a Christian and a person.  And you spend the rest of your mission trip seeing what it feels like to fill the hole in your heart with something that matters - to spend your time doing something that matters. For me, I spend 98% of my time doing things that don’t matter investing my energy and life into worthless hollow activity.

The first person I see from last year in Africa is Benson Mutisya, a powerful pastor whose main job away from Sunday preaching is as the East Africa Director for African Leadership.  He will be our escort, leader, tour guide, pastor and friend on this journey.  His presence is instantly impactful as he is the kind of person you wish you were.  He shines boldness, strength and wisdom.  His faith in God is so powerfully strong, I wonder if I have any faith at all.  And this team is blessed to know him and his family for the next two weeks as he will guide us through the emotions of Africa and the effects it has on your soul.

This team was special because it was made up of strangers from all different backgrounds, age groups, parts of the country and belief systems.  14 of the 19 people on the trip were girls.  And it has been my experience in the past that when you put a bunch of girls together they can be petty and cruel to each other.  Instead what we had was a fast bonding family who found common ground instantly.  While most people resign mission trips to the “someday category” we had people who made this trip happen, with little money, having to raise money to come.  A 18 year old girl who graduated from High School left behind the idea of a summer beach to go on a trip with people she did not know by herself because she knew it would change her life. This trip changed my view on people because I saw young people hungry with the idea of how can I help Africa.  And if you interview us all individually we would all say the same thing.  Africa helped me more than I helped Africa.

The first few days of the trip we ventured out to Kitui Kenya, a small village three hours north of Nairobi.  Tiffany and I made this same journey a year ago.  This time we would be staying in the homes of the villagers who all work together to reach out to 47 orphaned children who are cared for by Grandmothers, and sometimes big brothers and sisters.  Everywhere you go in this poverty stricken village people wave and smile at you.  Children often run beside our van and yell out “how are you?!”  These people who now take us in as guests, share their homes and food with us.  You notice most of the people, even the ones you think are better off, wear donated clothing and live very humble lifestyles.  So, while they feed us food that we of course are not used to, you are moved by the notion of giving and thankfulness that everyones feels.  Life in these poor villages are ones of faith.  You see quickly that they live every day trusting God to provide and they believe it! And live it! And it starts to sink in to yourself, "I don’t trust God for anything in my life."  Take any American and throw them into this world of no plumbing, no electricity and food you grow or kill yourself and we would blame God for our circumstances.  Instead these people thank God every day for providing for them and for the orphans they care after. 

The Kitui trip ends with us taking the kids to their homes and seeing how they live.  The first half of the trip is what you think you will see, but the last child we drop off is one who had found a friend in Bill who had held this kids hand all day.  His name was Keelu.  He had been shy and quiet and made sure he was near Bill where ever he was.  We park the vans and walk to his house because the terrain is too much for the vans to drive.  As we walk, kids seem to come from nowhere and follow us.  Every so often I stop and chase them. The first time I do it they were not ready for it and ran for their lives.  It was the funnest thing ever.  As these children walk with us, they wear clothes torn up and hanging on and most don’t have shoes.  The ones who have shoes too small so they had cut out the back of the shoe to make it fit.  Instantly I feel ashamed to not have brought clothes for these kids.  We could have met their need today and the failure of poor planning makes my stomach sick.  When we get to Keelu’s house it is a round mud hut the size of storage shed.  Keelu’s young sisters sit on a muddy mattress. They are covered in dirt and their clothing suffers the same holes and worn out look as the kids who follow us here.  Michael who is head of the orphan program tells us Keelu will now work through the night to gather firewood and cook the meal for him and his sisters if they have something to cook.  He is the caretaker to these little kids, himself being only 9 year old.  Our team quickly starts to get the picture of life for this kid.  We say our goodbye’s and start the long walk back to the vans. The sun is setting and your spirit plays out the scenario of children living in the dark with no adults.  And this ministry of the orphan program is the only difference to keeping those children alive and connected to the community. And you wonder how many of these kids who follow us life the same fate.

On day 8 we drive the vans through the heart of Kibera, the largest slum in Africa.  1.5 million people live in this disaster zone.  Children wander around without parents,  covered in dirt and runny noses.  The faces here are not friendly like they are in Kitui.  This mud and tin city is built on survival.  Live or die.  You fight for what you have here.  The sexual abuse statistics are so hard to believe and horrible that you can’t wrap your head around it.  You look into the faces of these women, small girls and their reality of daily life coupled with sexual abuse is ugly and sickening.  We reach the school where some kids remember Tiffany and I from last year.  I’m humbled close to the point of tears as one boy recounts every word I said to him last time and recalling painting with us and how much it changed his life.  All I can think is that I’m such a fool.  I’m not even sure what I said to him and question how one day out of his life with me could impact him so much.  For the first time the fruits of our last trip start to paint a different picture of my time here that even simplest of acts or words matter.  And this just changed the whole rest of the trip for me as I make a vow to be more of an impact on the kids I meet.

The last two days are spent at the New Dawn school and this is a especially meaningful part of the trip for Tiffany as her work with Ellie's Run helps support this school.  And for Bill and I with our tiny “This Shirt Changes Lives.”  This is where the money has gone.  And to see it’s impact is what this is all about for me.  New Dawn is so different from all the other schools we visit.  It is run by a powerful woman of God named Irene Tongoi.  What you get at this school at first glance is that it's made of shipping containers.  Your first thought is, how can this be a good school?  But when you meet the teachers and the students this place is different.  It shines in the cold harsh darkness of the slums that surround it.  It’s highly organized and the teachers do more than teach here.  They empower young people who before this school had no hope.  They now strive with great dreams of being doctors, lawyers, business owners and teachers.  The joy, hope and great potential of this school and what it means to the 147 kids who attend is so infectious that all I can think is we don’t raise enough money for them.  I’m not doing enough and I have to do more.

The last day of this trip was strange.  Your heart now full has lost the hole that blocked it from beating.  After going through all the emotions of Africa and it’s effects you are impacted by the people you have just spent two weeks with.  Powerful people like Benson and Irene.  But you have adopted 14 girls as your little sister and family from Oklahoma.  What you realize that as we come from different worlds in New Jersey, Hawaii, California, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee and Canada - this team will have lived though together what no one else will understand.  Coming back from Africa I’m left with the hole in my heart.  I have been called out by my selfish lifestyle.  Bill said at one point on the trip that he realized that the answer to prayers is us! That it’s the doing!  That is the answer to someone else's prayer.  The money given or the time spent with these kids was God providing.  The harsh reality of Africa is that it is a game changer.  You can’t witness with your own eye’s the poor of this world and not do anything else about it.  I wrote last year in my blog that there is a war on Poverty and you're on one side or the other.  I believe this more than ever.  Buying Toms Shoes or making a yearly donation is not enough.  American Christianity has grown fat and lazy and resigned it’s Christ following to safe easy projects.  When you start to dive into the life of Jesus it was spent with the poor.  His ministry and lifestyle was that of giving daily.

I find it hard to see God and his work when I’m home because I live within the boundaries of excess.  We have created such safe environments that the truth is, we don’t need God.  We don’t trust him with our works, with our well being or with our hearts.  We are so distracted by Facebook, People magazine, E News and reality TV that has no reality in it.  We can’t be bothered with the reality that people need us.  So we drown out the truth with a fake life that has made us numb to pain and hurt.  Last night when I was about to go to bed I picked up a People magazine at our house.  Every story on every page was useless crap.  We don’t hear God because there is no time to hear him.  We don’t see God because we are content in being entertained.  In Africa I saw people who survive on God because they need him every day.  This has been my fourth trip this year between Haiti and Africa.  And the main question I’m stuck with is "what am I going to do about it?"  Before these trips I was a sleepwalker, acquiring a life and lifestyle that is unworthy and false.  If you have made it to the end of this blog I challenge you to put away your “someday” and get on a plane.  Fly to Haiti.  Fly to Africa.  Put away the excuses and fear.  Step outside your safe bubble and let God crush your soul. I promise if you have the guts to do it your life will never be the same!  That unsatisfied nagging feeling you live with will be replaced with the overwhelming call to arms to fight poverty.  I know 19 witnesses who will never be the same.  19 people who struggle with bills, jobs, family and life who put it all on hold to walk the streets of Africa with God.

- Michael Lewis