Tracy Robinson Reports on Recent Trip

I had the honor of visiting Haiti for the 5^th time in the past 2 ½ years last week. My decision to go on this particular trip was based on my discussions with Kerry about the condition of the country following the recent devastation, caused by four hurricanes in three weeks. Immediately, God spoke to me with these words, “If your biological brother’s house was destroyed by floods, how long would it take you to go help him? It should be no different when it is your spiritual brother.” Having formed real relationships with the Haitian people over the past few years, I have no doubt that they would rush to my aid if they could.

The main point of going is not feeding starving people. It is much more about bringing hope. The food we delivered will only meet physical needs for a couple weeks. However, the message that Jesus loves you so much that He is choosing people to come to your rescue, to meet your needs, and to answer your prayers, has an eternal effect on the people. Haiti is a place of hopelessness. It is a place where people truly believe that their condition cannot improve because things have always been this way, they seem to be getting worse, and no one seems to care. The simple fact that Americans would leave the greatest country on earth to travel to the least country on earth (which has recently gotten worse) blows the mind of the average Haitian. They want to know why we would do such a thing. So, we tell them. It’s not about us at all. Left to my own, I would much rather lay on the couch and watch football. But when I consider the grace of Jesus Christ that has been freely offered to me in spite of my sin and pride, how can I not get out of my comfort zone and share that grace with others? It is not even a choice. It is simple obedience to Christ’s command.

I cannot pinpoint one event from this trip to highlight. Instead, the week was another fresh reminder of how blessed we are in America, and how much we take our blessings for granted. I am convinced that it is almost impossible for the average American to love the Lord with all his heart because all the other things that we love so much get in the way. How much grief do we go through when our 401k loses money, or when our car stops running, or when the cable TV is out for a day, or if the A/C doesn’t work right, or the water faucet leaks? My frustration over these things is an indicator of my lack of complete reliance on my God. My typical attitude is usually, “I totally trust Jesus as long as my income level is stable, nothing needs to be fixed, and no one is sick.” We live in a money and comfort saturated society, and whether we admit it or not, money controls us.

But for a Haitian, life is completely opposite. The day begins with a search for water. Virtually no one has a well or city water supply. Around 5:00 am, you begin to see Haitian men and women walking with buckets on their heads to find the nearest water supply. Usually, this water comes from a contaminated creek or stream where clothes-washing, bathing, and animal-watering take place upstream. There is no way to sterilize this water, and therefore sickness abounds. Afterward, most people begin to make their way to the streets or markets to sell something. It may be fruit, bread, shoes, old tires, charcoal, contaminated goat meat, or whatever else they may have that could potentially produce some income. They use this meager amount of money to buy food for the family for the day, which typically amounts to one meal of rice and beans. Those who own land may use the rest of the day to cultivate the soil by hand. Then evening comes, and they start over again.

This endless routine of utter survival allows Satan to “steal, kill, and destroy”, eventually causing the people to just give up. I am so excited that Jesus has allowed me to be His hands and feet in Saint-Marc these few years, and has used me to partner with Kerry, Joy, and many others to share the truth that Jesus can bring abundant life even to the darkest corner of the earth. The more we go to Haiti, the more I see hope in the eyes of the pastors and teachers whom we encounter. They are beginning to actually believe that God is interested in providing their needs, and that there may really be hope for their children in Haiti. Most of all, the fact that Kerry and Joy are moving to Haiti brings assurance that we are in this for the long haul.

What they do not totally realize is that they are more of a blessing to us than we could ever be to them. I have learned the majority of what I know about joy, kindness, patience, worship, and faith in the past 2 ½ years. Americans really do not understand what it means to have faith. When I open the cabinet and discover that I have no food, I don’t pray about it. I simply leave my nice house, ride in my nice car, and go to the store to buy food. If a Haitian runs out of food, he typically has no option but to trust that God will sustain him for another day somehow, and then he waits to see the method which God will use, while patiently comforting his hungry family. Scripture tells us that faith is the assurance of things hoped for, and the conviction of things not seen. In other words, it is absolute assurance that He will take care of all my needs when I cannot see any possible way out. I must admit that I struggle to open my clenched fist and to give God control.

The opposite of faith is stress. Which do you feel more of these days?