Today was a special day in Haiti, much like every day we have had thus far. We had the privilege to observe how the Haitians worship in the Tent Church. The Tent Church got its name from when the earthquake struck in 2010, the Church’s building was destroyed; so for a while, they worshiped in a tent. Since then, they have rebuilt a building, but the name stuck. 

I have to say, it was quite the amazing experience. Although it was 5:45 in the morning, it was hard not to be engaged and in complete awe. They were singing with all their hearts and you could just see them letting the Holy Spirit fill them. The songs were sung in Creole and almost half of the time in English. Although there was the language barrier and we didn’t know what they were saying, we were still worshipping the same God. How cool is that?! We may be difference skin colors, speak different languages, be from different places and different backgrounds, but we worship ONE God; we are ONE community of believers under God. The word that kept coming to mind during this time was unity. As a team, we were talking about the unity of Christians and how God brings people from all around the world together. The Haitians worship in a different way than what most of us are used to, but none of that matters. When we were in that moment, standing in the church, singing and praising our God, nothing else mattered. We are one body of Christ. 

Our next stop was Apparent Project and Rebuild Global. Apparent Project is an organization that is working to keep families together by employing Haitians so that they may provide for their families. This was so encouraging to see. We got a tour of the place and saw the Haitians working. This was such a cool experience. You always see things that say “made from recycled garbage” and people may tell you that things are hand made individually, but it is hard to take that in sometimes. But today, we got to see the Haitians making individual clay beads, beads from recycled cereal boxes, pottery, and much more. It was the coolest thing to see knowing it all is for a great cause. Employing these Haitians is huge and gives them an opportunity that not many people here get. Rebuild Global is an organization that employs Haitians to make flip-flops from old tires and goat hides. And with the parts of the tire they don’t use, they recycle and then that is used for other things. During these visits, I thought about the faithfulness to God these American women had to start these organizations. They left everything in the States behind to come help the Haitians and years later, they are giving multiple Haitians jobs, which allows them to provide for them and their families. The heart, dedication, obedience, faith, and hope that went into creating these organizations and continues to keep them going is truly inspiring. They followed their calling from God. I strive to be that obedient in my faith.

Our last stop was LeFares Orphanage. We taught a faith lessons to the kids about the Creation story. The children just absolutely loved it. We had our interpreter, Emanuel, to help translate to the kids. They were responding and engaging in our activities, which was really fun to see. The kids were full of energy, and so were we! We were all playing around with the kids and music was being played by Nic while this little girl and I were dancing. My team and I made some great connections with these kids, which always makes it hard to leave.

It was a great day. Earlier in the week we had seen some tough things. I know God brought us all here for a reason, and those tough days were in that plan. We learned a lot and experienced things that many people back home haven’t; but it was great to have a day filled with giggles, joy, and hope. I must say, as our time here is more than half way over, I am beyond blessed to have such a great team. We have all come together and really opened up, which is amazing to see the progress. Worshiping with each other is like nothing I have ever experienced. Today, during our group time, we had the guitar and cajon being played while the rest of us found things to use as instruments, such as spoons, jenga wood pieces, and rocks. I felt and saw pure joy. What better way to worship than that? As Pastor Tim Hatt said, “this is the true meaning of worship.”

Alexa Hofstad