In Haiti

I've been in Haiti a few days now. At first all I saw was the poverty. Poverty on a scale I had never witnessed anywhere else in the world. At first I saw a people who could not complete what they had started as everywhere we went, homes were topped with re-bar as people intended to add on. At first all I saw was the failure of a culture, as the iconic statue outside the government palace depicting a slave calling on a conch shell for the freedom of his people, was deprieved of his machete because it was made of brass and brass is worth money. At first I saw failure and I wondered how anyone of us could make a difference.
After a few days here, I now see hope. No, the poverty has not disappeared, but I see people struggling to claim a future even amidst a system that tries to beat them down. Now I see hope, as people are unwilling to stop building, but have plans for something bigger. Now I see hope, as I see the smiles of children that are just like the smiles of my children as they find joy in the moment and imagine what God could make of them. Now I see hope as I see the people who are investing themselves in a new generation that will not give in, but get going. What a difference a few days make.
As an example of this hope allow me to tell the story of Maya. Born out of wedlock. Abandoned by his father at birth. Abandoned by his mother at 4. Taken in by his grandmother who dies within 18 months. Now taken by a aunt who promises an education, but turns him into a slave in Port au Prince. Forced to sleep on a cardboard bed. Awake before dawn to get water, and the last up taking care of chores. No school, just chores, demands, and beatings. This is spare the rod...sorry there was no sparring the rod. Finally after getting the wrong rice and being beaten for it, life on the street is better than her home. For two years he survives. He survives adults who attempt to take advantage of him, other kids who try to rob him, and just the pain of homelessness in a strange place.
To move ahead, allow me to say that he finds help through a man of God. A man of God who takes kids who don't have shoes out of the detention center into his home for boys where all our family. Maya is now a father, a homeowner with a tremendous view, a provider and leader, and a man of profound faith. Maya's life is a reminder that we cannot give up hope. Maya's story is why we need to be in Haiti as we see the amazing things God is doing.

Peace