By Sara Dessieux
A couple months ago we learned that our plans of establishing Project Living Hope in Fonds Parisien, Haiti had completely disintegrated. I personally had been building relationships with people in that community for sixteen years. Part of my heart has long resided in Haiti, especially in that specific part of the country. To say I was devastated would be an understatement.
Ever since then I have been grieving that loss and I’ve been scared. All our plans for Project Living Hope were suddenly up in the air and we didn’t know where they would land. We still had faithful donors, passionate partners and upcoming events, but now what were we even doing in Haiti? Trip plans I had been making also fell through. When would I ever make it back to Haiti? What would I even do there if I was to go now that I had to abandon all my former connections? How long would it be before we could take our kids back now that we had nowhere familiar to stay? I didn’t know and that was hard.
We often have people asking us when we’re going back to Haiti next and how our project is going, and over and over we had to tell them our sad news. They knew we were crushed and so they said they would pray. We all prayed. And we waited. Guesly, never slow to take action kept pressing forward with the project and began to get excited all over again about the prospects. I, on the other hand, still felt unsure and sad. Then two weeks ago at my daughter’s soccer practice it dawned on me that an opportunity to go to Haiti was right in front of me and I should take it. I jumped on it and we booked a ticket for me to fly to Haiti in six days. I would be accompanying Sarah Comstock as she sought out a new partner organization for the medical team she leads with Corban University. Even though some very unfortunate events led to my needing to go, I instantly knew that God was orchestrating all of this.
While in Haiti, Sarah and I got to visit the land Project Living Hope is purchasing and we were escorted by the family members who are selling it to us. I have been quite a few places in Haiti but I was totally in awe as we made our way across banana fields, huge trees scattered throughout. I stopped to take a picture of a huge avocado tree next to a huge mango tree and spotted a bird I have never seen before. In the areas of Haiti I lived, there really aren’t any birds. But after spotting that one, I realized I could hear birds all around us and in that moment I had a sense that God is truly in all of this. And I was grateful.
Under the shade of a tree, we talked more about the project with the people who are selling us the land. They say the people in the area are thirsty for this project. I am excited for them and what the future may hold for them. And I am grateful we are getting to play a part in God’s story in that region.