Speechless

Hello to you,

No words will ever be able to fully describe this last week and the events that have occurred. It has been a week of chaos... a week of missed plans... a week of highs... a week of lows... a week completely in God's hands and power. This last week I traveled with Pastor Cebien into the Dominican Republic. I am going to try and make a really long story short here, so a lot of details are going to be missed to give a full perspective on the week.

Last friday, we were supposed to set out for the Dominican Republic at 9:00 AM. For reasons not to be stated, we didn't end up leaving until 2:00 PM. Just about everything this last week was the exact opposite of what I was expecting and under the impression of. I had been told we were riding with a Dominican bus company from Cap Haitian to Santiago... yet there I was at 2:30, loading into a Haitian van and speeding towards the boarder. There were 23 of us in this small van... larger than a mini van but smaller than a Camano Chapel church van. There were several more people on top as well.

We arrived at the border to the Dominican Republic border at 4:45. The border guards had decided to close the border at 4:40 instead of 5:00 when they are supposed to close. We missed crossing the border by five minutes and were stuck overnight on the Haitian side. We stayed with a local pastor and it all ended up working out for the Lord's glory.

The next day, we crossed the border, boarded a bus and headed towards Santiago in the Dominican Republic. Long story short, there are 15 Dominican military checkpoints between the border and Santiago. At each one, they racially profile you, see if you are not Dominican, and if you are not, they stop you and check information. There were eight Haitian illegals on the bus we were on. In the Dominican, as long as they paid the "bribe" that was set at each checkpoint, they would be allowed to pass. We had to stop at each and every checkpoint, have our bus boarded by armed soldiers, have our luggage searched and passports checked. At one checkpoint, I was even ordered to disembark the bus and was escorted by two Dominican Soldiers into a building because the man who checked my passport missed my stamp that had been stamped at the border. Ten minutes later, it finally got sorted out... (it is hard to communicate in Spanish when you are on a bus where nobody speaks Spanish). Being the only white person on the bus made me stand out in a bad way. When armed soldiers and harassing you for money and searching your things to steal, it is not good to stand out. It was a very long day... it took six hours to travel the distance that with no stops took two hours coming back.

So, we finally arrived in Santiago... 26 hours after we had departed. We were staying with a local pastor and his family. A lot of the details of the next few days I am going to skip over for the sake of both time writing, and more important, the privacy and content of what happened. In all, the Lord took what was probably the hardest and loneliest five days of my life and then turned it into some of the most joyful and fulfilling days that I have ever had. It was very hard... very lonely... but the Lord took what was a very tough situation and transformed it into something beyond what I could have ever imagined. He answered my prayers when I really needed him most... in moments where nothing was in my control... and I mean nothing. We serve such a majestic and all powerful God! I have seen God at work in Haiti... and He is working far beyond what I could ever begin to fathom.

He gives protection in situations of danger. He gives health to those who are serving, even in the poorest of conditions. He gives new life to people who desperately need hope. He provides for the needs of those who call upon His name, whether we see him work or not. I have seen God take the lives of children who are starving to death. I have seen God stand by and do nothing in a situation where people are helpless. In all of these situations, good or bad in my eyes... I saw God working.... REALLY WORKING! I ask myself, "How can a God that loves someone, allow a child at the age of six to die of starvation while painfully combating AIDS as well?" God is taking even the worst situations that I can imagine... and using them for His glory. I don't always see it, but I know without a shadow of a doubt in my heart that He does and is. God has taken me in a moment of struggle... a moment where I desperately needed Him... a moment where I could not find hope through anything that I could do... and He took that prayer of mine and transformed my heart. He provided for my basic needs and provided comfort in my heart. God has worked in my life and is working in many lives in both Haiti and the Dominican Republic. He is transforming communities for His glory, and I am honored to be an ambassador of Christ.

I am back in Haiti now. I traveled back to Cap Haitien on wednesday. I did travel by myself back from the Dominican Republic because Pastor Cebien was put into a situation where he needed to stay. I was safe the entire way back and was traveling with a Dominican Bus company called Caribe Tours. It was a very nice and very comfortable trip back to Cap Haitien. I am with Pastor Peyot and his family now and will be staying with him for at least a few weeks I believe.

I thank you all for your prayers. I am greatly encouraged to hear how many of you have been praying for me back home. God is moving mountains in my heart and in Haiti. A lot is still uncertain in my life... but I know both now and forever, God will guide my path. Thank you all and I will continue to keep you posted.

-Garrett Luck