A Celebration of Hope and Life
The Haitian crisis has caused all of us to stop and wonder about the devastation which recently occurred as the result of an enormous earthquake. The scenes of pain and suffering have caused us to look to God the author and finisher of our faith. Once again, we find ourselves calling on the name of Jesus who is our hope and who brings peace in the midst of life’s storms. I don’t know about you, but it has cause me to bow to almighty God in humble submission and cry our “Lord what can I do?”I found that prayer brought some peace to my aching heart. Like other churches, we at St. Paul-Milford, change our morning worship to reflect the suffering of our brothers and sister in Haiti. On January 17, 2010, our worship celebration was transformed to a time of praise, prayer, and testimonies. It was a time to give God all glory, all honor and all praise. I have found that when we suffer, we must learn to PRAISE GOD.
Praise softens the suffering we endure. We glorified God as we lit candles for Haiti. We took up a generous offering as well. In the midst of a recession, I believe is still calling us to “GIVE” TO least among us.
In addition, St. Paul under the leadership of our Helping Hands Outreach Coordinators, (Thomas Morris and Katrina Wilson) plan an outstanding service of Hope and Praise Tuesday, January 19, 2010 and invited the Haitian Community to come and worship with us. What an awesome celebration of hope we experienced. The celebration consisted of two Haitian pastors, members of their congregations, the mayor of Milford, city council persons, visitors and friends from other churches and the community, and our Haitian brothers and sisters.
We had a young Haitian translator who assisted as well. We reached out and they came. Totally, 93 persons attended the Celebration of Hope. The presence of the Holy Spirit ignited our time of sharing. As one Haitian man stood to share his grief, I don’t think there was a dry eye in the sanctuary. He lost 14 members of his family. He actually had flown to Haiti on the 12th and could not land. The earthquake was occurring as they flew over Port-Au Prince. His plane was redirected to Miami, where he met his sister and stayed with her until he returned to Delaware.
As we have witnessed, in the midst of their suffering, signs of joy, and singing prevailed. I witnessed it on January 19th. There was an altar call for prayer. The altar was full of Americans and Haitians. There was no language barrier at the altar. Guess who remained at the altar longer? The Haitians lingered for a long time…seeking help from Jesus. We were all calling on Jesus for HOPE, HEALING, AND STENGTH.
As a result of the Celebration of Hope Service, I asked the mayor to proclaim an “A DAY OF MOURNING FOR THE HAITIAN CRISIS AND THE HAITIAN COMMUNITY IN MILFORD. My request was presented to the Milford City Council on Monday evening, January 25, 2010. Moreover, I believe God is calling St. Paul to do something “More” with the Haitian community. I know God will reveal more as a team meets with a young Haitian man with ideas on Thursday, January 28, 2010.
I will be contacting churches as well to set aside a time of target prayer for Haiti. This is something we all can do.