Hope for Haiti and for Us Today

I just finished reading a post from missionaries in Haiti where the current situation is extremely dire.  The light of encouragement might not seem to be shining very brightly on a post that starts like this, right?  And it is not... Believe me, as I read the long list of unanswered questions that the writer posted, my heart ached for them and for the entire country of Haiti.  My soul sank as my illusions for good news fizzled, buried under a pile of profound concerns for safety, sustenance and overall survival of the people left on the island.  However, as I went on reading and the questions became more and more terrifying...at the end...after the last one was left hanging: "how do we plan for this?" the pending thought of how do we do life like this was answered by a sole reply: "with hope."

The words jumped out of the electronic pages with full force:  "with hope!" That's how we do life...with hope!  There's no other way.  And the way to hope is marked with blood stains.  The road to hope is the road to Calvary.  The sign of hope is the cross...for Jesus is our Hope and our Salvation!  "For in this hope we were saved!" says Paul in Romans 8: 24.  And hope is usually on things unseen, so patience and trust are its support. 

Life can very quickly become dark, void of joy and meaning if we don't have the hope of Christ in our hearts.  As we see our reserves emptying and nothing but bad news coming our way, it's very easy to fall in despair, especially if the reality of Jesus is not in us.  But the Word is clear:

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 

Hebrews 11: 1

We don't hope on what we see, 

For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Romans 8: 24-25

We hope in Him!  We trust "with hope" in the One who is Trustworthy! 

Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. Hebrews 10: 23

We trust and wait "with hope," patiently and in perseverance, knowing that He will fulfill His promises...

This is true as much in Haiti as it is in our little corner of the world.  This is true whether we are concerned about fuel to keep an entire educational complex on, serving countless of individuals in need of evidence of Christ in their lives, or we are just waiting in the comfort of our safe home for the phone to ring with any kind of news.  This is true in wanting and in plenty.  This is true in darkness and in light.

Before I could finish writing this, another post came in from the same missionary: a miracle! The man they had sent out for fuel came back after 17 hours of perseverance at the gas station with enough diesel fuel to keep them open for another while. And also, a new donor's contribution popped in out of the blue!  Praised be His HOLY NAME!  As she says, all the good things that have happened since her previous post are not going to solve the crisis, but God is at work, and He is aware of their daily concerns.  His Mighty Hand is ready to provide what is needed one day at a time...and this is as much true in the middle of a small country deeply buried in the rubble of corruption and bad decisions, as it is true around our kitchen table today.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. Romans: 15-13

The supernatural presence and actions of God are needed to see Haiti come out of the current and historical crisis in which they are immersed.  Join in prayer for Hope in Haiti, and as you do, I encourage everyone who is interested in finding out more information and in helping missionaries in Haiti to check out the following blogs:

The Ayars Affairs: Life in Haiti at:  http://mshaiti.blogspot.com/

and

Autumn Marshall's Blog at: http://autumnsreflections.blogspot.com/