Lately God has really been drawing to my attention his faithfulness in all things. I keep finding myself looking at circumstances and assuming I know how things will go…or more accurately out here, assuming that they could go any number of different ways, as one of Haiti’s consistencies is inconsistency. I forget that we serve a God who is very much involved in His people’s lives, who is big enough to hold the universe in his hands. In the middle of everything that’s been happening the past few weeks, with the rioting and starvation, he continues to show up and provide for our needs in amazing ways. I sent an email update out a couple days ago about how God provided when the food for the nutritional program here that feeds 300 children everyday nearly ran out because the rioting in Cayes prevented us from being able to re-stock. It was quite amazing how God coordinated everything to get that food up here in the midst of the riots! Everyday it’s a blessing to get to watch those children enjoy a full meal, knowing it means the difference between life and death for them. It’s hard, knowing that these mountains are full of other children who live in hunger but I’m grateful for the work God is doing here and trust it will continue to increase.These are some of the kiddos I've had so much fun getting to know as they're here everyday for the nutritional program.Caleb is probably one of my favorite camera subjects. This little boy is just full of so much life and mischief! His mother cooks for the nutritional program and is a really neat lady, the glue that holds her entire family together.
Donna (the little girl crying) and Daphna are usually smiling and strolling hand-in-hand but I love this picture because it just captures what a caring little soul Daphna has. I believe she's probably about 3 years old but she's such a relationship-oriented girl, it's rare to see her without her arm around a friend.Kenley (Caleb's cousin) continues to hold such a soft spot in my heart. His mother is going through a particularly tough time as she nearly died of a botched home abortion. She is now in Cayes recovering from surgery (thanks to all of you who prayed when we were worried about getting her down there during the rioting!) but will have a long road ahead. I spend as much time as I can loving on this guy who is very much in need of a mom.About 10 children currently live in the nutritional center. Gayleen and Viswa are two of five siblings who live there. Their father has died and their mother is an incredibly mean lady. Here they are safe and cared for. I've started spending a few nights a week watching a movie or TV show with the kids on my laptop. They love one show in particular called 'Life is Wild', a show that was on the WB for awhile about a family that moves to South Africa. Even though it's in English and they don't understand a word of it, night after night they ask me to turn on this show. Although I enjoy watching the kids reaction to the shows and movies we watch together, the highlight for me is holding Gayleen and having her fall asleep in my lap.

Last week I was able to join a team from the States for a couple days that was running medical clinics a few miles down the road from here. We saw many people in those few days and encountered a whole lot of crazy medical conditions I hesitate to describe in detail just incase you might be eating (sometimes I forget that not everyone shares my interest in all the gory details). We sent a couple children, including this boy, who just won't survive out here, to orphanages and others to the hospital for further care. I’ll be following up with several of patients in the coming weeks. One thing I like about being out here for more than just a few days is the chance to follow up and witness the improvement in our patients through our care. Besides getting to have more people to enjoy and speak English with, I was grateful to have this team out here because several of my current patients were able to go to the clinics so that I could consult with other medical personnel to make sure I’m on the right track with treatment. It was really good to be reassured that I'm doing the correct things for them!

Something I've been having to really trust God with is provision for Baby Steven (the now one-month-old baby with spina bifida I've been caring for nearly everyday since he was just a few days old) to be able to get to the States for surgery. We have reason to believe that the organization we were hoping would provide funding for the surgery might not be able to cover the expenses. We may not know right now how everything will work out, but I have to believe that God has his own plans for this baby and is more than able to bring them about.