Faith, Life, and Lessons

These past two plus weeks have been more and less tumultuous and eventful than I expected. Let me explain the contradiction as best I can (which is probably inadequate since I don't completely understand it myself and possibly never will). This trip has been more pressing than anticipated as it has forced me to come head-on with my beliefs on the purpose and methodology of service. On a personal level, the work I've witnessed and participated in has made me question the role I, and all missionaries/servants/Christians play in loving others in a reflection of God's love. I don't think anyone who has read the Bible would deny that Our Father expects us to love each other because of our love for Him. To further the kingdom and attempt to fulfill our roles as humans, service is necessary. However, I'm not convinced the methods we've assumed, both as first-world "helpers" and third-world "receivers," is quite appropriate for a long-term appro...

Bonjour d’ Haiti!!!! For a bit over two weeks now, my friends and I have been staying here at the Children's Lifeline compound about an hour and a half outside of Port-au-Prince. Although I've been on a mission trip to Haiti before about 3 years ago, this trip broke my expectations in both positive and negative ways. Recognizing both the magnificent natural beauty of the land and the tremendous faith of the people, I've grown to appreciate and even love the country. My prayer is that well-intentioned humanitarians don't simply Americanize the area in an effort to "help." Although they may need material aid, I don't believe Haitians need the consumerism and faith-diminishing self-reliance that can dominate the western world. They are poor, the poorest in the western hemisphere actually, but they are also rich in spiritual vitality, relationships, and work ethic. Interestingly, there seems to be an inverse relationship between our culture and theirs in a gen...

For this post, I've decided to write a brief (maybe) and specific snapshot of what my life is currently like as I and the KIVU crew stay in Haiti. We are working with Children's Lifeline Mission, so we generally visit a school or orphanage, often more than one, daily. Working with the children, we can help feed them, weigh or measure them for progress reports, or just play with them for their entertainment. It seems they're always intrigued to interact with a "blanc," or a white person. We're something of celebrities around here, although I'm not sure if that's positive or negative. Although this is my second time to Haiti (I came 3 years ago with my church to work in an orphanage in Jeremie), it's nonetheless been a learning experience for me to figure out how to show I am just as needy and human as others. What I definitely don't want to do is create and further relational roles that show Americans and "blancs" as the superior being...

This is a post I typed about a month ago while living and studying in Denver. I never actually posted it... Sorry it's late, but it's still relevant! [Maybe even more-so as I witness a different level of homeless in Haiti now... More on that in another post :) ] Today, my fellow students and I took a class, one of our classes I'm taking for credit, called Global Urbanization, to better understand homelessness. In the class, we were paired off and given a packet that covers different aspects of homelessness such as shame, mental illness, the need for food and shelter, family, and addiction. For each category, we went to a different corner to read the description and pray about the matter. It was very enlightening for me to read about the various circumstances that homeless face daily. On top of the imminent threat of gang violence or even assault at the hands of local police, (which I know of because of my first-hand witness of a policeman kicking sleeping homeless men in ...

From my conservative Christian upbringing, I know that my priorities are supposed to be God, then others, then myself. I can still hear my elementary school teacher singing, "JOY means Jesus first, Others second, and Yourself last." By now, it's simply unquestioned (although still difficult to implement). As one of my teachers, Ryan, explained, this type of prioritizing is a result of our western culture, which seeks to create linear order and compartments. The problem with this compartmentalizing is that we leave things behind; we simply can't focus our energies on everything. Ironically, that theme is exactly what I was grappling with in my previous blog (Late Night Reflections Part 2). Anyway, this thinking implies that we focus most of our energy on serving and relating to God, then spend the remnants on others, and finally leaving nearly nothing for ourselves. Although at first, this seems like a virtue ("Wow, you're so selfless that you have no time for...

Well, here I am again. Still tired, but it seems I only have the motivation to blog when everyone else is asleep. That's actually pretty telling; my efficiency greatly decreases if I have the potential to "miss out" on something... That's a psychological dilemma I've had since childhood. Maybe I'll work on it. Anyway... From Monday through Wednesday this week, Courtney and I went to the Colorado Organization for Victim's Assistants. It's basically a huge conference for all types of people working with victims of crime, so I was able to go with my co-workers for my internship. We stayed in a lodge in Keystone with of the JAM staff (our co-workers), and I felt so blessed to be a part of such a great week. As I've said before, I absolutely love all my co-workers, and I was able to learn quite a bit about handling panic situations, interacting with victims, and just processing plain information about modern crime (rape, molestation, assault, cults, t...

  Living in a rather run-down area of Denver, I have become accustomed to the  occasional  homeless and drunks on the sidewalks. Therefore, I was not taken aback late one night when a man asked my two friends (Britley and Madison) and me if we had a sandwich. However, after assuring him that we did not, he began weeping and dropped to his knees, crying out in anguish and sheer displacement. At this, I was filled with compassion and ran into the house while my friends kept him company. After hastily heating up a sandwich and some macaroni, I rushed back outside and sat down where they were waiting on me.   My first words were, “What is your name?” When dealing with the financially impoverished, well-intentioned people often try to serve by simply giving a hand-out and moving on. Shifting towards international short-term mission trips, the Church and relief organizations seem to have embraced the idea of impersonal and physical aid as a primary ideology. Howeve...