"What If" Part 5: Your Home Was A War Zone

Right now, if you were born in Haiti, you would be living in a country that is essentially a war zone, especially if you were one of the 2 million people who live in and around Port Au Prince.

Think about that. If you are reading this, based on our readership, there is about a 90% chance you were born in or have spent most of your life in America. Because of that, you have never known what it is like to have your home country ravaged by war.

Right now in Haiti, things are really bad. Gangs have blocked the Ports, they have blocked the roads in and out of the capital, and they have shut down hospitals/restaurants/markets/etc.

People who were already poor and suffering are now wasting away and dying. Clean water is hard to find, gas costs $30/gallon, and there have been thousands of people (Haitians and Americans) kidnapped over the past year.

Schools were supposed to start last month and probably will not even start at the beginning of October anymore in some places.

Think about this...If you were born in Haiti you would be suffering under this same type of oppression.

If one thing in your life was different, the country where you were born, you could be in the midst of one of the worst security situations in the world right now. You would hear shooting each night, have no electricity, no access to fuel, and a dwindling food and water supply.

You could live in fear of being kidnapped in the country with the world's highest kidnapping rate, and that would probably not even be one of your top 10 biggest problems.

Instead, we were born here in America. Things are not perfect, but there is a rule of law, there is access to the things we need no matter who we are or how much money we make, and almost everyone has electricity/water/fuel.

This drives me to my knees in prayer often. Praying for my friends in Haiti, thinking about what it would be like if my precious children were living in that country, and then realizing the magnitude of how many children are living there.

I thank GOD all of the time that He has us here in the midst of such terrible chaos and insecurity there, and I thank Him for His provision.

I also wonder...All the time...Why?

Why am I here when they are not? Why was I able to adopt Zeke and so many others cannot? Why is my monthly mortgage payment more than many Haitians will see in 2022? Why can I go outside freely, drive to the store when I want, take my children to the park, and generally have a sense of safety most of the time?

Sometimes I am utterly heartbroken for my friends and family in Haiti and for All Things New. Other times, I am heartbroken at how seamlessly I made the transition back to America when they cannot.

I can't believe I haven't stepped foot in Haiti for so long and that my last 2 planned trips have been called off by my friends in Haiti for fear of my safety and theirs.

I can't believe that a country where it takes less than 2 hours to fly to from my hometown is, quite literally, in the midst of war and nobody is doing anything about it.

People always ask how are our kids doing...I always say fine, and they always tell us they are doing fine...

Nobody is "fine." People here keep talking about the emotional and physical toll that COVID took on America's youth...The youth in Haiti wake up every day to news of kidnappings, gunshots being fired, gang wars taking place, ports being blocked, food being scarce, clean water being difficult to find, schools being shut down, and there is not an end in sight.

Please continue praying and please do not give up on Haiti, her people, or the kids and employees at All Things New. If you don't believe in miracles then you don't believe in GOD, and He can truly work a miracle here and we are praying that He does.