His Labadee Love

WHAT a crazy day.  We woke up in Haiti.  We're going to bed in Haiti.  And, we were in Haiti in the middle, too...but is SURE didn't seem like it!

Today was something like driving to Florida and back again.

The back entrance to Labadee is complete with a lot of barbed wire and armed guards.  

But our friend Carl leads snorkeling expeditions for Royal Caribbean at Labadee.  And in Haiti, everything is all about knowing somebody.  And suddenly, there we were...surrounded by tons of passengers (many of whom didn't even realize they were ON Haitian soil), piles of apples, a zipline, a roller coaster, marachi bands, and a big 'ole boat. 

The kids were mesmerized.  "Where are we?" Lily kept asking, and none of the kids believed me when I kept telling her, "Haiti!"

The older kids got to ride the water slide, 

we got to watch dozens of people whizz down the zipline,

and got to pretend like we came with the ship :)

And I know this sounds pathetic, but hands down, best part of the whole day was lunch!

I know it doesn't seem like much.  To the rest of the people there, it wasn't even a special lunch.  But ribs? Hot dogs? Corn on the Cob? Watermelon? Olives? Feta cheese?  Oh man.  I mean, we went a little crazy...

A pile.  A pile of apples.  Nobody else was even interested and I think we each had a least four!

I know it seems crazy, but what a day of Praise it was.  And it wasn't even big stuff.

But life here?  It can be really hard.  And it's been really hard a lot lately.  

And it might seem extreme.  

But an apple, a BBQ rib, watching my little girl jumping on a trampoline, drinking a diet coke, just being one of the crowd...forgetting for a few hours that it's hard...

all that whelmed up in me as praise and worship.

(loved laughing at Matt and Lily on this slide!)

He's a good God.  And He knows.  And cares.  And loves.  

He knows the heartbreaks of Haiti, of the world.  More intimately than I do.  And carries them.

And He knows the burdens of our lives, of our days.  

And He's just asked us to be faithful.

And when we are, and when we aren't...He Still Is.

And just like a Good Father, He loves to give us joy and laughter and fun and good gifts...right when we need them.  

Sixty minutes in the car and we were home, only to find this truck flipped on our road, a couple of issues arisen in our absence and--whew--a lot of busyness for the days ahead.

 But tonight I'm praising the Lord...not just for the apples and the surreal beach day, but for knowing me, and loving me dearly all the same.

And instead of feeling overwhelmed, 

I just feel ready again to love others the same way.

Ready to get back to pouring out just what He's poured into me.

Praise the Lord.

***I can't believe it's Mark's b-day and I don't have him in ONE picture!  Mark, we love you, and though we will probably continue giving you a terrible time about being older than us, your passion and great courage continue to run circles around us whippersnappers.

***Carl and Mary, Thank you so much!  We love your little family and were so blessed today!