"Dad, will you go to Haiti with me". My daughter Kelsey had invited me three times over several years to join her on a Healing Haiti service trip. Each time I found my excuse, all sounding valid enough to me as the words fell from my mouth. My work schedule wouldn't allow it, I had planned out all of my vacation days for the year, or the heat and humidity wouldn't be something that I would deal well with. Convinced enough to say no, there was still something that rattled around in my heart as Kelsey would return with stories of incredible fulfillment and grace returned in much higher volumes than was given. God was working on softening my heart.
Several months ago while sitting in church, words came faster than doubts could stop them. Kelsey was happy to hear me tell her that this year I would finally join her. However, there was a catch. The trip was full. True disappointment hit me, but she just looked at me and said "let's leave it in God's hands". An hour later while leaving church we ran in to one of the trip leaders. Volunteering my story to Alicia made her eyes light up and she told me a spot had just opened on the trip through a wide smile. God was on the move!
The days passed quickly and this morning at 5 a.m. we boarded a plane in Minneapolis destined for 10 hours of travels including two connections. God is with us and we arrived safely without any of a myriad of problems occurring that could have. Our group consists of 14 with a good mix of vets and rookies to Healing Haiti. After dinner we discussed our day with each of us offering a word of the day. Two words caught my attention.
The first word is anticipation. Political turmoil had caused the two Healing Haiti trips immediately ahead of ours to be cancelled, yet here we are. Anxious anticipation was exactly what I felt in the weeks leading up to our trip. But in the days just prior to leaving peace and joy began to creep in. Second, connections. Not the airport kind, but rather the spiritual kind. Connectivity is something we all need in our lives. It's good for the soul and the mind. The age range in our group is 16 - 61... almost poetic. Different ways of approaching our trip and how God works through us have been shared and connections are already starting.
Suddenly I realized that my anxious anticipation had turned into joyous anticipation. My reservations had turned into exuberance.
-Kevin
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| Arrived safely in Port Au Prince! |
