The year 2013 brought HUGE changes for our family. Moving to Haiti has been the BEST & Hardest thing to ever do!! We do LOVE it here. We love Haiti & the Haitian people but living here is Not easy. I was told yesterday that I always post things on my FB wall that make it look like we are on an island vacation. I wasn't real sure what to say....I will be honest....it hurt my heart & I cried. I know I post the Beauty of Haiti often. You see...I LOVE this country & I want others to see its beauty too. I am also VERY GUILTY of posting pictures for my family to see. Some people know....most don't....that my family was NOT real happy about our move. My parents have Always supported me in Everything I have done. My mom & dad lived just up the street. My brother, sister, their spouses & my nieces & nephew all lived within 10 minutes of our home in Alabama. We are all very close. None of them have ever been here & only see the BAD STUFF the news reports....I am guilty of posting pictures of the things my kids do like *get to spend a day swimming because my mother in law sent them $10 each in a card & When we went on a Hike with friends one day to a beautiful waterfall etc... I leave out things like the friends paid for the taptap, we could not have afforded the swim day without the cards from my sweet MIL. I post pictures of my children's school & friends because I am so happy they have a group of other missionary kids who "get it" who moved from suburbia in America just as they did & now live here. These kids bless my heart EVERY time I am around them & I thank GOD that we were planted right in the middle of them & at this exact time....this has made the transition so much easier for our children. YES, we do things with other missionaries that work for other missions but don't most people have friends outside their "jobs"?? Honestly I am not real sure how I would feel today if we did not have these friends down the street who call us over for prayer night because they KNOW we are struggling with some things. They call us over for special meals because they have been here for years & know what it is like to miss those things & that special time together. I truly feel GOD himself Blessed us with these friends.
To be Completely Honest I have laid awake many nights for hours praying God would help some of the harder things here.....sadly the hard things are sometimes other people. Different personalities, different ideas, lack of communication cause most stress. I DO NOT have the answers, I am not even sure what to do at times BUT I do serve a Great Big awesome GOD who I know sent us here, he LOVES us, & when the time is right he will light the path or change hearts. I am not at all placing blame on anyone or saying I have done it all right because I HAVE NOT. I am made of flesh & fail often. I do pray & ask God to check my heart & make it right & I do know that doing WHATEVER God wants me to do & to please him is my Goal therefore I can be in Peace.
I do apologize if it seems like We are on an island vacation....WE ARE MOST DEFINITELY NOT!!! I have spent most of my life hiding the "bad" & showing the "good" which is WRONG in most all situations. I was born a people pleaser & maybe I always will be. I want EVERYONE to be happy (grandparents included) so those pictures (on my personal fb page) are for them. I hope that if you support my family here on the Mission field that you will understand that. I pray that you will. I often find myself posting pictures of the kids that are naked in the street, or the ones playing in the garbage & then I delete & don't post....for that I am wrong. I apologize for keeping so much of the "real" Haiti from you because I worry about what some will think. I do at times wonder if we should just put it all out there like the fact that our Electricity bill was over $700 U.S dollars last month & that our electricity goes out often because of all of the "neighbors" steeling from our line. At one time our line was pulling more than any other breaker at the mission providing it except for a hotel down the road. One day we were told we were pulling 24amps so we flipped our house completely off with a breaker we have & we were still pulling 17amps.......Please pray about this situation. We have tried numerous times to catch ALL of the people steeling from our line BUT if you saw the lines you would realize this is NOT an easy task. I keep from everyone that we have gone through Gordon's savings/retirement from working at his job for 24 years & that EVERY month we run out of money & wonder for a few days "what are we going to do" but then GOD ALWAYS comes through...just as HE promised.
I also wanted to share that we are Hope Vision Missionaries & we are doing all that we can for the Mission & to help raise awareness of the needs of the children, Pastor Andy & his family & the building of the New children's home. We are also here for WHATEVER or Whoever God wants us to help. If we can be used in ANY way here to help others then THAT is what we want to do. If Gordon can help someone else then he does, if I can help in nursing then I do, if God sends a kid from the street for us to help (such as John Mury) then we do. We try to help Mrs. Islande who works in our home & her two beautiful daughters as well as Altida who helps us with our wash. We try to do even little things for others daily that God might lay on our heart. I hope it is ok with all of you to share with you things we do outside of Hope Vision as we feel like God sent us here to help Haitians of all ages.....Ti Moun - Gran Moun (children to elderly) - *we feel that is our calling as a Christian not just a Missionary!!
I pray in the New Year 2014 will be the BEST year yet for all of you & for our family! I pray God will Show Favor in the eyes of others for our family......
Thank you to those who sent Christmas cards & emails you truly have no idea what an encouragement they were.
I read this passage this morning & I felt it speak to my heart -
Psalms 36:5-10
5 Your unfailing love, O LORD, is as vast as the heavens; your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds. 6 Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the ocean depths. You care for people and animals alike, O LORD. 7 How precious is your unfailing love, O God! All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of your wings. 8 You feed them from the abundance of your own house, letting them drink from your rivers of delight. 9 For you are the fountain of life, the light by which we see. 10 Pour out your unfailing love on those who love you; give justice to those with honest hearts.
*We are still filling our schedule for the Summer of 2014 & as 2014 is upon us we need to do so ASAP!! If you would like us to come share Haiti & all that is happening here with your church or small group PLEASE LET US KNOW!! We should be in the states June - beginning of August. Please email us lipscombsinhaiti@gmail.com We plan on being in Alabama, Florida, Arkansas, & possibly Kentucky....WE WOULD LOVE TO ADD YOU!!!
All support goes to
AIM (Assisting International Missions)
PO BOX 2030 Robertsdale, AL 36567
*Lipscomb family in the memo
or online at www.aimconnects.org *you must click the "donate" tab & add a note to say Lipscomb family!!!
WE ARE SO THANKFUL FOR ALL OF OUR SUPPORTERS & PRAY FOR YOU!!
HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!
A family picture taken at our children's school Christmas Program!
