Starting the Day with Accomplishment
Josh set the tone for Day 3 of the Colonial Hills Church mission trip to
Jacmel, Haiti, with his morning devotional. He reminded the team through his
own personal journey that accomplishments for the kingdom of God are what truly
matter, not worldly pursuits. Then, this team went to the work site and had the
most productive day that I have ever been a part of on a mission trip – and this
was my 10th trip.
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| Heather, the one who didn't know what she could do, had a shovel in her hands before we could get off the truck good. |
Roof Prep
Jim and Dusty worked on the roof all day, installing 2x4’s and getting the
roof of the new House of Abraham building ready for insulation and roofing
panels. I don’t think they came down all day except for lunch.
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| A long day's work and a job well done. |
Concrete Work
I am very grateful to Jeff Witt and Marsha Dawson, who taught me about the
importance and the process of preparing a team for a mission trip. In our three
pre-trip meetings for this trip, we stressed flexibility and focus on serving how we were
needed and not necessarily how we had planned. This preparation paid off in a
big way on Monday as the rest of the team (plus Jalen and Sierra, who were
staying with Fenel for a few weeks and who joined in as valuable members of our
team) prepared to pour concrete, which had not been part of our pre-trip
planning. The team responded as if we had been in training for months for hauling
concrete.
The walls for the bottom two rooms of the house had been built, but the
floors had not yet been laid, so our job was to take the concrete that the local
workers were mixing in a dug-out bowl in the back of the house and carry it
bucket by bucket through the house, down the stairs, and into the kitchen and
dining room areas. There, a couple of local workers would float the concrete
until the rooms were finished. It would be a tall task to finish both rooms in
one day. We formed an assembly line from the mixing area to the two rooms and
went to work. The further along we got in the process, the more energy we
seemed to have. We laughed as we recognized that our communication was coming
in single words: “Bucket!” “Heavy!” “Empty!” And then, finally,
“Finished!”
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| Josh, regaining his man card after the Day 1 man-capri episode. |
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| And down the line... |
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| ...it went.. |
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| ...not missing a beat... |
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| ...until it reached... |
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| ...the bottom of the house. |
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| 2 rooms of FINISHED concrete in 1 day. Well done, team! |
Ending the Day with Accomplishment
What a sense of accomplishment (that word again) we felt at the end of the
day. The team took care of one another and worked as a team all day. The
ladies on our team never missed a beat. A special shout-out to
DeSoto CrossFit,
where Robbie and Jodie work out: whatever the training regimen is there, it is
obviously good prep to be a part of a Haitian concrete moving team! My favorite
story of the day (via Josh) was when the truck pulled up with more bags of
cement. Several guys lined up to take the bags (94 pound bags, mind you) from
the Haitian worker on the truck. When Robbie stepped up, he laughed and
politely shook his head. She nodded and indicated that he should bring it on.
He was taken aback when she took it with little effort and walked away with it.
Always Time for Relationships
While we worked hard all day, there is always time to set aside to build
relationships. We befriended little Andre; he joined in and helped all day. And Ethan began his quest to
befriend the goats who roam the property; that story will unfold throughout the remainder of the week.
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| Andre, fully outfitted team member, thanks to Gary. |
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| Have I mentioned how cool it is to go on a mission trip with someone from your small group? |
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| Andre and Ethan |
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| Gary & crew |
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| Josh, either winning the limbo contest or bouncing a soccer ball (that has left the shot) off his chest. |
Need to Catch Up on the Trip?
A look back at previous day's posts:
Day 1: The Team's Unexpected Challenge
Day 2: Boaz, Super Ninja. Who Knew?
Sponsor
one of the House of Abraham kids
here.
Thanks for reading. Check back tomorrow for more mission trip adventures from Haiti.
4theVoiceless,
Al
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