Frustrated with Haiti Missionaries

I spent a good amount of time last evening surveying the coverage of the Haiti disaster on the national news as I interceded for those whom I saw. In ABC's coverage they briefly spoke to a Christian missionary couple at the international airport in Port au Prince. The couple was there with their 2 young children, waiting at the airport to leave the country. ABC reported that the family had been there for 4 years (it appeared that both of their children were old enough to have been born in the US before their Haiti mission).

In my prayers for Haiti, all the while I was thinking, "what can I do, how could I go help, can I rescue even one of those newly orphaned children?" And in that context I listened to these missionaries from Ohio say, "we came here to help, but now it's just not safe. We have to leave for our own children."

Now, I am not in their shoes, and I cannot judge their hearts, but my heart hurt at hearing that. Americans (Christ-followers and non) are wanting to get up and go to Haiti to help, and the Christians who are already there, are leaving. While we are not being allowed to get in. They are trying to get out. They know the culture, know the systems, have connections. They could get SO MUCH done. I assume that after 4 years, they have friends there... friends with children... friends with now-injured children...

So I struggle. I fully understand the instinct of parenthood to keep your children safe at all cost. And I am not God, so I doubt that I could manage to sacrifice my own child for others. BUT, I believe that Christianity is not supposed to be safe in human terms. I think that I will be called to be quite unsafe at times. I think that I am not unsafe enough at most times. (2 Corinthians 11:25-27) I would love the witness of Christ in His church to be a witness of bold service in the face of all kinds of trouble, seizing each opportunity to promote the cause of Christ.

No Christianity is not supposed to be safe in earthly terms. For my safety is my safety in spiritual terms. (Romans 8:34-36)

And even more hard to say, my children's safety is not necessarily earthly safety, but spiritual safety in Christ.

-- Text your Haiti relief donation to the Red Cross. Text "Haiti" to 90999.

--Give to your church's disaster relief missionary fund this Sunday.

--Watch for your chance to go and serve in the clean-up ministry in the months to come.

--MOST OF ALL, pray for God's grace to prevail in each circumstance and for His followers to rise up and show the depth of His love in Haiti, bringing many in the Kingdom of God.