As we were all watching the hurricane build in the waters south of Haiti, I was thinking to myself how thankful I was that it looked like the hurricane would miss Haiti. So I wrote to one of our former St. Jean-Baptiste parishioners, who now lives in Port-au-Prince, to see if he knew the latest hurricane update. His response to me was very troubling: 

Thanks for the information. I must tell you that the hurricane has not caused us any serious problems yet. It is especially the political crisis of Haiti which panics us and exceeds us. We are at a time when things are really lamentable. We haven’t the water, no food, we don’t go about our activities. It’s truly sad. Pray for us. We really need it.  

This was his message to me on September 19. Since then, it has only gotten worse.

A few days ago, October 2, I read that there is now cholera in Haiti for the first time in three years. The reason for this outbreak is that there is no drinking water being delivered anymore because there is no fuel for the trucks. The gangs have control of the fuel depot. The interim prime minister will not step down. And now even the honest people are protesting to make the prime minister step down. Haiti is basically a failed state, a war zone.

Last Thursday night, the interim prime minister of Haiti requested military help from foreign countries, but he did not say which country. Please pray that whoever steps in to help will be able to discern (with God’s help) which leaders should be allowed to lead and which ones need to step down. Pray that they would be able to get the critical supplies to where they need to go. Please pray that any outside assistance will help the grassroot leaders be able to replace all corrupt leaders.

We remain hopeful that God will use this extremely difficult time of “cleaning house” in Haiti to make way for an improved, fully functioning, respected government in this country with so much potential. 

Thank you so much for your prayers during this critical time.

As for our sister church, St. Jean-Baptiste, and school, which are located on the island of La Gonâve, there is no violence, and thankfully our schools and churches remain open. In fact, they were praying for us as Hurricane Ian approached our coast just as we would have been praying for them if it had headed their way.

But the effects of the chaos on the mainland are spilling over onto the island. Gasoline prices are soaring, and fuel is hard to find. The cost of basic goods is spiraling upward and prohibitively expensive for many on the island. The school lunch program is affected as well, with no confirmation our food shipments have arrived safely to the island from the port in Port-au-Prince.  

Please pray for Haiti. Pray for our sister church and all the families who are struggling every day to find food and water in a place where they should have plenty of both. It encourages them to know that we are praying and that they are not forgotten. Pray that God can use these terrible times for good in Haiti. And that with God’s help, a new, just, and honorable government can somehow rise from the ashes and lead Haiti in a new direction. Pray that the natural beauty of the land and the people would be able to shine again and that Haiti would once again rise up, and in so doing, bring glory to the God who saves!