marching forward in faith.

"Are you still going?"

That's a common question I've been asked since Hurricane Matthew wreaked havoc in Haiti last week.

Four of us will be leaving tomorrow to spend a week with our Haitian family at Hope Vision Ministry in Port-de-Paix, and while many are concerned about safety and unstable circumstances while we are there, I have been praising God for his perfect providence.

Capstone Church had just partnered with Pastor Andy and Hope Vision Ministry when the earthquake hit Haiti in 2010, and we were able to send a small team down to help immediately following the natural disaster. Now, six years later, we are sending another small team down to help after another natural disaster. The coolest part about sending this team down is that it was already planned for this specific week, over a year ago.

What a compassionate God we serve! A God who sets us in His plans and uses us in ways that we can't fathom when we first say "yes" to Him. He knew that this devastation would be occurring only days before we boarded a flight to this island. We didn't, but He did. We said "yes" to His call, His promptings to go, before we ever knew what we were in for.

Funny, huh?

Some will say it's crazy for us to still be going. Others will say that it's too risky. The families and loved ones we leave behind will be prone to worry, anxiously counting down the days until we are home.

But we are certain that God is going before us and with us, that He will be all around us as we go. We are confident that He is preparing the way, that He will guide our steps, and that He will not send us anywhere that He hasn't already been.

Our plan is love on the kiddos (!!), paint at the new land, do some evangelism around the island of Tortug, and be flexible with whatever need may arise. We are all very excited to have been hand-picked to go share the hope we have with this nation when they are more vulnerable and shaken up than usual, and we are committed to seeking wisdom from the Lord as we march forward in faith, not fear.

Would you pray for us?

Pray that lives are won to Christ, that the hopeless receive hope, that hearts are softened to accept the invitation that God is going to offer to us. Pray that the kiddos run to us as we are running to them, that we love them fiercely, presently, and whole-heartedly through any weariness we may experience, and that we leave with a deeper understanding of what relentless compassion really looks like. Pray that our time with Pastor Andy and his family would be refreshing for them and us, and that God would further solidify the already strong relationship we have with each other. Pray that we live in the joy that is ours in Jesus!

We will covet every prayer lifted on our behalf as our own, friends.

We are claiming, believing, and living faith over fear, and we are humbled to be the hands and feet of our Lord Jesus to those who are the most vulnerable and needy.

Yes, we are still going. Just as Christ went to the hard places, loved the lepers and sinners and prostitutes, and was intentional about telling everyone He met about His Father, our mission is the same. Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. That's the heartbeat behind every step we will take over this next week.

To God be the glory forever and ever!