Following God from Haiti to Asia

*Names and details have been obscured to protect parties involved.

I first came to Asia in 2018 with my sending church. We support village ministry work here. The people of this region have made a large impression on my heart ever since.

Not long after I took that first trip, I moved to Haiti to work with a nonprofit organization serving poor communities. I fell in love with the nation and the people of Haiti. However, God brought me back to the United States because of Covid and increased unrest on the island.

It took me a long time to heal and come to terms with the fact that I was not going to be able to return to Haiti, but I began to see God’s greater plan and purpose for my life.

I ran into a high school teammate in the town I was living in, and she invited me to her international Bible study. In this group, I learned more about unreached people groups and the fact that only 3% of workers serve in unreached areas, which is where less than 5% of the population are Christian.

During this time, I came to understand God was calling me to one of these regions. Once I connected with SIM, I had peace. During the entire process, it seemed clear that God was leading me to this organization, and I’ve been so encouraged, supported, and lifted up in constant prayer by those I am connected to. I learned so much from the training I received, and some of the other members are now like family to me.

I have seen God’s hand so intentionally at work in my life, and I am humbled to be chosen and used by Him in the work He is doing across the world. I am now part of a team of people from nine different nations—what a beautiful representation of Revelation 7:9!

The first six months of my time in Asia has been filled with sickness, loss of a family member, and an accident, but I see how God is drawing me nearer to Him throughout it all.

He does not call us to an easy life, but to suffering which leads to perseverance, mature character, and hope (Romans 3:4-5). All glory to God, who is able to do immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine.

• For conversations with my local friends, and for continued opportunities to share about God and for their hearts and minds to be open
• For peace and guidance about the next steps ahead for community development research and which organization God is leading me to partner with
• Pray for the people of this land who have not yet had the opportunity to hear about our Savior, and for bonds to be broken with the idols they have worshiped for thousands of years

While I was coming back home from a prayer walk a few weeks ago, I met an older single woman, Mariam*, on the street and we spoke in the local dialect for some time.

She explained to me that her family is from a remote village up in the mountains, which takes about nine hours to both drive and hike to. She is in need of work, especially since she cares for her elderly parents on her own. They are all followers of Christ, which was a blessing to hear.

Mariam invited me and my local friend over for dinner, so we went to her place a few days later. The home she shares with her parents consists of a very small room with two twin beds, a table with a stovetop that serves as her kitchen, and shelves for their few personal belongings.

Mariam explained that their house collapsed during an earthquake nearly ten years before, leaving them with no possessions. She used to be a housemaid and a cook for a few foreigner families who had lived in the area, but the families all left after the earthquake.

She has had a very hard time finding work since and has been forced to take out loans to provide for her and her parents. Mariam’s father is 80 years old and is very sick. Every month, she carries her father on her back down the stairs to a taxi she cannot afford to take him to the doctor.

But Mariam isn’t her parents’ only child. Her siblings, however, are of the majority religion. Though many of them live nearby, they have not been willing to help Mariam and their aging parents.

Sadly, I have heard many similar stories of local friends, here. They have become followers of Christ and subsequently been isolated from their family members who are of the majority religion due to their difference in beliefs.

All I knew to do that evening was to pray over Mariam and her family, for God to intervene in this seemingly hopeless situation. My friend and I walked away from this evening in tears, overwhelmed by this family’s heavy situation.

I asked God why He has placed me in such a privileged position, providing abundantly for all my needs—for allowing me to live such a comfortable lifestyle in comparison to Mariam and her family.

Despite these trials, we are not without hope, for we know that Mariam and her
parents are strongly rooted in God and will be praising Him for all eternity.